Feeding My Esper
Lee Heewoo had rarely experienced anyone’s ‘warmth’ properly in his life. His paternal grandmother had taken him in and raised him after his father and mother had practically abandoned him, but she had such a taciturn personality that she never did things like warmly embrace Heewoo.
However, after meeting Heichi, Heewoo often found himself recalling the warmth he had forgotten about. Not just the warmth created when skin touched skin, but the warmth of the heart gained from having someone by his side. A belief took root deep in his heart that if he died alone somewhere one day, someone would know about it.
That’s why Lee Heewoo liked Heichi’s lukewarm temperature—neither cold nor hot. Befitting an alien who said he didn’t feel cold or heat very well, he lacked somewhat in human warmth. But Heewoo thought he liked that uniquely lukewarm warmth characteristic of Heichi.
“What is this… hnngh!”
The Esper who had placed his fingertips on Lee Heewoo’s nape simultaneously convulsed all over as if electrocuted, then rolled his eyes back. Even so, he didn’t remove the fingertips that had finally made contact, and Heewoo found that warmth utterly unpleasant. When he had touched Heichi, he’d felt as though he were spiritually connected to him—a mysterious and fascinating sensation—but feeling it from an unfamiliar Esper he’d never even conversed with once was so unpleasant it made him nauseous for a moment.
“What on earth is this…?”
Kim Sowoon’s Esper, who had seemed to lose his reason momentarily, snapped back to his senses in an instant. No, to say he’d completely regained his senses—he still couldn’t speak properly, looking broken somehow. It was just when Heewoo, who disliked the contact with him, tried to step back.
—Crrrrrunch.
It was a sound from close by, right next to his ear. The sound of bones being crushed and skin twisting. Hearing such a gruesome sound right beside him, goosebumps crawled up Lee Heewoo’s nape.
Heewoo, who had frozen stiff upon hearing the sound, barely managed to roll his eyes downward to see the alien’s hand that had been touching his nape completely twisted and crumpled like a crumpled piece of paper. And at the end of it was the person gripping that hand.
“……”
“Hei… chi… sir…?”
Heichi, who had appeared suddenly between Kim Sowoon’s Esper and Lee Heewoo, slowly turned his head at Heewoo’s call. The moment their eyes met, Heewoo felt an inexplicable chill along with a chilling fear that wrapped around his entire body. Bloodlust—yes, a terrifying amount of bloodlust was flowing from Heichi.
“Ugh, Captain, why are you here…? Don’t tell me…?”
Kim Sowoon’s Esper, whose hand was beyond broken and crushed, seemed more concerned about Heichi who had appeared before his eyes despite his condition. The Esper’s eyes, which alternated between looking at Heichi and Lee Heewoo, shook aimlessly.
“Stand back.”
Kim Sowoon’s Esper, who had extracted his hand from Heichi’s grip, stopped moving like a malfunctioning machine at the frosty command. But only for a moment—a subtle defiance appeared in his gray eyes. Just when Heichi detected that sign and prepared to respond immediately, and the surrounding air began to change—
“Hah.”
Lee Heewoo let out a death rattle-like groan. As if he hadn’t been able to breathe properly for a long time already, Heewoo’s face had turned deathly pale. He had been on the verge of suffocating due to the series of emergency situations that had just occurred and Heichi’s bloodlust. Heichi, who noticed that fact, withdrew the bloodlust he had released and embraced Heewoo’s body.
“Mr. Lee Heewoo, breathe.”
“Hah, haah, hk…”
“Slowly.”
Only after the bloodlust was withdrawn, in the air that seemed to be cleanly purified, did Lee Heewoo gulp down and exhale the breath he had been holding back all at once. As a large amount of oxygen entered at once, his not-so-large lungs were compressed painfully. Heewoo, who pressed one hand against his chest, thump, thump, pounded on his heart area.
Was it because of that? The murderous atmosphere that had been passing between Heichi and Kim Sowoon’s Esper also instantly dissipated. Heewoo, whose face had turned bright red from gasping for breath, muttered with faint teardrops hanging at the corners of his eyes.
“Th-this is… strange…”
In fact, there wasn’t just one or two strange things. Of course it was strange to feel a sense of connection with another Esper, but more than anything, Heewoo had just felt the air change at the same time he was gripped by extreme fear. Something similar had happened at the convenience store, but that was the first time and he’d been too scared to properly assess the situation.
If Heewoo were to properly explain what he’d felt just now… yes.
It felt as if he himself was changing the quality of the air in his vicinity. In other words, like he was constructing his own domain and pushing some intangible energy into it… It was the kind of story that would get him called crazy if he told it to anyone else.
“Where does it feel strange?”
Heichi, who had approached closer, made contact with Heewoo’s body a bit more skillfully than before. His arm wrapped around Heewoo’s shoulder and also gripped his exposed nape with force that wouldn’t hurt. The way he kept rubbing with his thumb seemed almost like he was wiping something away, but Heewoo didn’t mind and spoke.
“Just now I, with that Esper, it was like… we were connecting…”
“Mr. Lee Heewoo.”
Heichi cut off Lee Heewoo’s words abruptly. For some reason, at the cold voice, Heewoo, who had been looking down, slowly raised his head to meet Heichi’s golden eyes.
“It’s a misunderstanding.”
“But…”
“It’s a misunderstanding. Forget it.”
…A misunderstanding?
It was true that unlike when he touched Heichi, it had been unpleasant. But that feeling itself definitely wasn’t a misunderstanding. Come to think of it, right now he was in contact with Heichi, so he could even compare the sensations. This time, as Heewoo focused on the contact surface where he touched Heichi, he widened his eyes again at the connecting feeling.
Just as he thought, what happened earlier wasn’t a misunderstanding. Just like when he connected with Heichi, he had also connected with Kim Sowoon’s Esper.
“N-no, it’s not…”
“No such thing happened.”
“Captain, why do you keep denying it? He says he’s a Guide.”
Then Kim Sowoon’s Esper, who had been standing back, stepped forward. He didn’t approach threateningly, but he didn’t seem intimidated either.
“Shut your mouth.”
Unlike when dealing with Lee Heewoo, Heichi snapped coldly. He turned his head at an angle Heewoo couldn’t see, so he couldn’t tell what expression he was making, but seeing Kim Sowoon’s Esper become somewhat flustered and hesitate after seeing Heichi’s face, it was clearly quite a frightening expression.
“B-but is that okay…? That person is Mr. Kim Sowoon’s Esper…”
Heewoo, who had been reading the room, carefully asked that question first. That Esper was Kim Sowoon’s Esper, and he was someone who clearly had a partner, so was it okay for him to connect with himself? Was it really fine? Heewoo thought that maybe that was why he had felt the unpleasant energy earlier.
“What? What do you mean? I’m not Mr. Kim Sowoon’s Esper, I’m…”
“Mr. Lee Heewoo, for a Guide to carelessly guide another Guide’s Esper is considered a very serious criminal act in Epsilon’s culture.”
“Wh-what, a criminal act?”
At the word criminal, Lee Heewoo, who had lived his whole life as a timid person, was startled. It was a tremendous story for Heewoo, who had resolved to live without committing any illegal acts after watching his father and mother become the perfect negative role models for a proper life.
“Conversely, for an Esper who has a partner to receive guiding from another Guide is also a crime.”
“No… Captain, I’m still not…”
“Th-then since Mr. Kim Sowoon’s Esper made c-contact first, I…”
Heewoo mumbled as he asserted his innocence. Precisely speaking, it wasn’t as if he had stepped forward first to make contact. That Esper had approached him first and touched his nape—he stated the facts honestly. He didn’t intend to tattle; he was simply telling the truth honestly.
That was when it happened. The tree-trunk Esper, who had seemed quiet for a moment due to the situation Heewoo had caused, began to move again.
It was when Kim Sowoon’s Esper instantly moved to another location, and Heewoo, who was just as close, was about to tell Heichi they should evacuate quickly. The moment the thick tree trunks targeting Lee Heewoo and Heichi sharpened almost to the point of thorns and poured down sharply, Heichi drew down through the air with his one free hand.
Immediately, the tree trunks fell to the floor with a thudthudthud sound. The debris was in a completely shredded state, just like when the convenience store shelves had been cut. But the Esper who had lost his reason pulled out tree trunks again and shot them, and this time Heichi moved his hand a bit larger.
Then not only the tree trunks but even the opposing Esper’s body switched off like a puppet with its strings cut.
“I severed his muscles, so clean it up.”
“What? Me…? The cleanup team will be here soon though.”
“Who’s faster, you as a speedster or the cleanup team?”
“Haah… Shit.”
Though the word at the end was very insolent, fortunately Kim Sowoon’s Esper also seemed to accept it and hoisted the fallen tree-trunk Esper onto his shoulder. As he acted like he was about to leave, Heewoo, who was practically in Heichi’s embrace, carefully spoke toward him.
“Um… Mr. Kim Sowoon’s Esper, thank you for saving me…”
It was a greeting offered with the mindset of expressing gratitude first and foremost, but when he heard the greeting, Kim Sowoon’s Esper’s expression crumpled completely. He spoke in a tone that seemed very displeased.
“It’s Jet.”
“…Pardon?”
“Not Mr. Kim Sowoon’s Esper, it’s Jet.”
