“Ah, no! We can’t both become wanted criminals.”
Onyul hastily stopped Gu Baekyoung before he could take action.
“Can’t……?”
“Yeah, wait.”
Gu Baekyoung would die at his word, but today he seemed to have some lingering attachment.
“But wouldn’t it be easier if I just killed him? Or should I lock him away forever somewhere people don’t know about?”
“No.”
“Then let’s immigrate to another country.”
Of course, that wouldn’t be a bad choice either, but.
“Not right now.”
Unresolved matters would surface again at some point.
“Baekyoung, remember? To make me like you, you have to do things I would like.”
“……Yeah.”
Gu Baekyoung’s eyes, which had been soaked in strange madness, began to return to normal.
“For now, wait.”
“If I wait, will there be a reward too?”
A reward…… Perhaps what Onyul was about to say might be a reward for him.
“Baekyoung, listen carefully.”
“…….”
“First of all, I’m going to continue being your lover as contracted.”
“……Yeah.”
“And I’ll really resolve the Park Hanil matter. I’ve found a way to not belong to the Management Bureau even after taking the Guide examination.”
“Really?”
“Yeah. I can’t just keep getting pushed around either. I’m going to pay him back in kind.”
“…….”
At those firm words, Gu Baekyoung made a dazed face.
Crying, then raging, then dazed……… It felt like he was seeing so many different expressions today. Those were probably expressions that others would never get to see.
The Gu Baekyoung known to the public was just an S-rank Esper who slaughtered monsters with an emotionless face that showed almost no feelings.
A sense of superiority, perhaps. He felt an emotion that didn’t fit this situation at all.
“Did I say that too coolly?”
He’d said it playfully to lighten the mood, but Gu Baekyoung nodded seriously.
“Haha. Anyway, Baekyoung, what I’m saying is you don’t need to worry.”
“What method is it exactly?”
“Should we go to your house first and talk? You can move quietly, right?”
Gu Baekyoung finally returned to his usual self. He smiled crookedly and said confidently.
“If I can’t even do that, I should just die.”
***
Park Hanil, who had left behind the shocking statement that he would issue a wanted notice for the cat helmet, returned to the Guide Center.
Every Guide in the Center stared at him as he passed by. Those gazes were not kind.
The person who had treated Guides like disposable goods was now stepping forward to treat even an S-rank Guide as a criminal, so there was no way the looks would be favorable.
‘What are those who aren’t even S-rank so dissatisfied about?’
Park Hanil held his head high regardless of what they thought of him. He didn’t regret the words he’d uttered.
What was wrong with discovering talent for the nation?
Moreover, the Management Bureau Director had his back.
As long as the Management Bureau Director was backing him, there would be no problem no matter what he did. Park Hanil was certain of that.
Rather than investigating Gu Baekyoung from behind, stimulate him to draw him out into the world— it was also the Management Bureau Director who had told him this method.
The Management Bureau Director knew Gu Baekyoung better than anyone in the Management Bureau, so he didn’t doubt that his opinion was the correct answer.
Meanwhile, Ji Sanghyeon, who was left at the convenience store, was listening to news covering Park Hanil’s shocking interview.
While Park Hanil, acting as if he had the upper hand, felt unpleasant, the situation he’d laid out wasn’t bad.
It was because he was curious how Gu Baekyoung and the cat helmet would escape the crisis that had suddenly struck them.
“How will they get out of it?”
Gu Baekyoung was simple and blind compared to the abilities he possessed.
Like a beast that moved on instinct without calculating…… It seemed he wouldn’t leave Park Hanil alone.
Of course, Na Geonwoo, who had controlled the beast for a long time, would stop his impulsive actions.
‘……He seemed to cherish the cat helmet quite a bit, so will he be controllable this time too?’
Ji Sanghyeon let out a chuckle without realizing it.
It was quite amusing to see people on the same side fighting each other even without him coming to the forefront.
At that moment, a call came from ‘Ghost.’
“Why? I’m busy working part-time.”
-I know there are no customers.
Where is he watching from again?
“Don’t watch like a pervert. It’s embarrassing. Aing.”
-Bullshit…….
“So why did you call?”
-Did you see the news? Park Hanil went crazy…… Keke.
Ghost laughed unpleasantly as usual.
“That makes sense. He found the S-rank Guide he’d been searching for so desperately, but couldn’t subjugate him.”
-……That damn S-rank Guide…….
The sound of grinding teeth came through the receiver.
It was a reaction hard to believe came from Ghost, who would giggle at anything.
-I don’t understand why the past when they frantically tried to artificially create S-rank Guides isn’t becoming an issue.
“It must be because our power is still weak.”
The two were silent for a moment. They were simultaneously recalling the same scene from the past.
-Don’t jump to conclusions too much, Boss. That’s why you prepared an interesting plan.
“Right. It’s a plan with some bleeding, but it’ll be quite good for causing internal division.”
-By the way Boss, did the ‘turning boyfriend into a cat’ project succeed?
“The wall was unexpectedly high. But I did secure two debts.”
-Oh, securing two debts in one day. Hunting Dog’s skills haven’t gone anywhere.
“I think I can secure about three by tomorrow…… I need your help.”
-……Me? Is there something you need investigated? I am tracking Gu Baekyoung and Alpha Team in real time though.
“No. Separately from that.”
-What is it?
“Do some convenience store part-time work.”
-……Wha?
Ghost, sounding flustered, made a strange noise.
“Don’t just tap on keyboards in your dark corner and come out into the world a bit. I refuse your refusal. Come to work tomorrow morning, I’ll be waiting.”
Profanity-laced words came back through the receiver, but Ji Sanghyeon hung up without listening.
“It seems our manager will be busy for a while.”
Ji Sanghyeon recalled Kang Ian’s retreating figure as he’d rushed out several times making various excuses.
Speak of the tiger and it comes—as soon as he hung up, a text came from Kang Ian.
[Please take good care of the convenience store ㅠㅠ]
Well now, someone who doesn’t really need to run a convenience store is quite serious about the convenience store.
Ji Sanghyeon replied seriously so Kang Ian wouldn’t worry.
[Manager, don’t worry! I’ll take responsibility and protect the convenience store ♨♨ It’s a bit quiet being alone though!(っ˘̩╭╮˘̩)っBut it’s okay! I’m happy just working♪(๑ᴖ◡ᴖ๑)♪ I’ll wait here until you contact meeee ( ˘⌣˘ )ｂ]
“Phew, this should keep him from worrying about the convenience store.”
It was a text he’d agonized over for a full 5 minutes.
Ji Sanghyeon looked at the text Kang Ian had sent again and recalled the moment he first saw him.
Receiving a report from Ghost was the beginning of this part-time job.
[The likely candidate for the cat is Kang Ian, and his identity as a convenience store manager is likely a disguise. Additional observation needed.]
He didn’t doubt Ghost’s report. He had a rare ability that even the Management Bureau Espers didn’t have. His skill in analyzing others was unparalleled.
Park Hanil probably made a risky move because he couldn’t pinpoint a likely candidate like Ghost could. As a method to make someone who wouldn’t come, come.
He’d been pondering how to approach the man named Kang Ian when a part-time job posting happened to be up.
Ji Sanghyeon applied without hesitation and became a part-timer. Honestly, he didn’t think he wouldn’t get hired at a convenience store with his looks and experience.
Kang Ian, whom he met with skepticism, was much more likable than expected.
He looked cute and spacey, yet had a strange stubbornness. Should he say he seemed like the type to push through with his own thoughts without being swayed by others?
It was the same even if the result of what he pushed through ended up strangling his own neck.
Ji Sanghyeon almost became certain that Kang Ian was Gu Baekyoung’s Guide when he saw him rush out as soon as the Gate rampage article appeared.
Then a curiosity of ‘why’ arose in him.
He didn’t know what circumstances there were, but Kang Ian had been hiding the fact that he was an S-rank Guide for a long time. Even now, he concealed his identity while wearing a bizarre helmet.
Kang Ian must know that saving Gu Baekyoung meant revealing himself.
Yet despite that, he rushed to the scene. Because of that, he was now in a situation where he was on the verge of becoming a wanted criminal.
Why did he go that far? That question wouldn’t leave his mind.
Was his relationship with Gu Baekyoung that deep?
‘But according to what I’ve investigated so far, Gu Baekyoung seemed to have no interest in anyone except Kang Onyul. And the two of them haven’t known each other for very long either.’
He still didn’t understand Gu Baekyoung and Kang Ian’s relationship well.
However, Ji Sanghyeon found himself thinking about what it would be like if he had such a Guide too.
If there was a Guide who would prioritize his life above all else no matter what happened. If there was such a Guide who was cute and spacey but had the best abilities.
‘If I had such a person by my side…… would I not have established the anti-Management Bureau?’
He found himself envying Gu Baekyoung.
Perhaps he felt that way even more because he didn’t have a paired Guide.
Even before Kang Ian, he had Kang Onyul, a therapist with abilities just for him, and even after Kang Onyul died, he gained an S-rank Guide named Kang Ian.
It was as if everyone in the world liked Gu Baekyoung.
On the other hand, Ji Sanghyeon was hated by almost everyone.
“I want one.”
He wanted to have someone who sincerely liked him, even just one person.
The image of Kang Ian lingered in his mind for a long time.
