Chapter 33
I looked at her as if asking what that meant. Then Han Miyeon continued speaking desperately, as if this was her last chance.
“It was definitely Ihyeon-ssi, but it wasn’t Ihyeon-ssi. I know. Those eyes weren’t Ihyeon-ssi’s.”
“What the hell are you talking about? Are there two or three Nam Ihyeons?”
“It was Ihyeon-ssi, but his pupils were strange. It was like he was being controlled by someone. That’s why I clung to him. I was begging him to come to his senses. But it seemed like he couldn’t even hear me.”
“……!”
Being controlled. I recalled the data from the research papers I had looked up. When someone falls under hypnotic ability, that person not only loses control over their body, but their memory of the situation also disappears.
They can’t hear anything except the words of the person who hypnotized them, and they won’t follow anything that isn’t that person’s command. Those were the symptoms.
I thought back to the day the four-directional gate burst open. Nam Ihyeon’s appearance when he brought Jeong Sanghyeop out of the gate.
At that time, Jeong Sanghyeop was unconscious, but was that from fighting those monsters? Could he have faced undead monsters? Thinking coldly about it, it seemed unlikely. Those weren’t monsters a D-class strength-type esper could handle. Even if he had charged at them, he couldn’t have lost only his energy without major external injuries.
Then how had he exhausted his energy? When I tried to guide his body, there was no energy left in his body. It was close to complete exhaustion.
Normally, the more an esper used their energy, the more chaotically their wavelengths should rage, but it was a quiet stillness like hitting rock bottom. A feeling like everything had been poured out. Could that be because someone had hypnotized him, causing him to be unable to handle an amount of energy that exceeded his ability range?
While I was briefly contemplating, Han Miyeon seemed to think this was the moment and poured out her words.
“I definitely remember. I could give Ihyeon-ssi my energy until the end even without kidnapping. Ihyeon-ssi knew that I had such feelings. So kidnapping itself was unnecessary. But Ihyeon-ssi’s wavelength at that time wasn’t what I knew.”
“…….”
“I remember how Ihyeon-ssi looked just before I collapsed. That person…….”
“…….”
“He acted like I wasn’t there at all. Like I was a rock or stone. He carried Sanghyeop-ssi on his back and headed outside the gate, but left me there.”
“…….”
“It seemed like he couldn’t see me. Really.”
I recalled the behavior he had shown based on Han Miyeon’s words. When I had cursed at him, the first thing he said was ‘What bullshit are you talking about?’
As if he had no idea what the situation was at all. He didn’t even flinch when he saw Han Miyeon. For someone who had committed a crime, he was shameless. But what if he was indignant and angry about being accused of something he didn’t even do……?
“Please help me, Guide Park Garam.”
“…….”
Han Miyeon spoke to me while crying so hard her eyes were swollen. Asking me to help. Asking me to help the esper who had almost killed her.
What if it wasn’t Nam Ihyeon but Han Miyeon who had been hypnotized? What if she was deceiving me? I was confused. Why doesn’t this damn novel tell me such important things? At Han Miyeon’s sniffling sounds, I closed my eyes.
Honestly, I didn’t know what to believe. But I couldn’t pretend not to see someone pleading desperately for help right in front of me. I sighed and barely managed to speak.
“Have you tried contacting Esper Nam Ihyeon?”
Han Miyeon shook her head. She said the Association had cut off her contact, so she had no way to reach Nam Ihyeon.
“I’ll try contacting Esper Nam Ihyeon first. I can’t give you a definite answer.”
“Thank you. Thank you so much.”
Ignoring her as she kept bowing forward, I left the hospital room. Nam Ihyeon. I needed to hear his story.
Nam Ihyeon’s contact information wasn’t difficult to obtain. Those of the same rank could easily find out each other’s contact information.
It was for emergency calls, but since there weren’t many S-class espers and guides, and they needed to know each other well, it was accessible.
Of course, there was no reason to contact Nam Ihyeon or Kim Haewon needlessly. If I did that, I’d be disciplined or publicly embarrassed.
In the beginning, there were some people who tried to make advances just because they were the same rank.
I quietly stared at Nam Ihyeon’s contact information. In two days, Jeong Sanghyeop would come to hypnotize me. That’s what the novel said.
If I hadn’t heard the story from Han Miyeon, I might not have known, but there must be a reason why she cried and asked me to look into it just once. I took a deep breath and made the call. The dial tone went on for a while and then stopped.
― Who is this? Isn’t it the great Guide Park Garam-nim?
From the very beginning, he was being sarcastic, so he seemed to be doing well. If he were in front of me, I’d want to pinch his mouth for being so annoying, but I held back.
― What business does the attempted murderer punk have calling me directly?
But my resolution didn’t last three seconds. I just hung up the phone. Then immediately the phone rang.
“Hello.”
― What? Are you playing with people? Why did you call and then hang up?
“Ah, I thought I dialed wrong. I called Esper Nam Ihyeon, who is the face of our Association, a gentleman with manners, and has celebrity-level popularity, but some real punk was being sarcastic.”
― Ha!
“Since it seems we both equally want to punch each other, I’ll just get to the point briefly.”
― Who said they wanted to hit you?
Nam Ihyeon spoke as if he was dumbfounded. I didn’t respond to that and just continued with what I had to say.
“I met Guide Han Miyeon today.”
― ……So?
Nam Ihyeon’s voice immediately became sharp. He seemed to react very fiercely to the name Han Miyeon.
― Are you going to curse at me again? What is that person saying? That I tried to do something to her?
“Don’t misunderstand. Guide Han Miyeon asked me to help prevent Esper Nam Ihyeon from being disciplined.”
― Damn. Giving disease and then medicine.
“Do you have no memory of the kidnapping incident?”
Nam Ihyeon said nothing at all. My ominous premonition seemed to be correct. I asked for the reason.
“Why don’t you remember?”
― …….
“I’m not even the police, so don’t exercise your right to remain silent.”
― I don’t know.
“What?”
― I said I don’t know. I don’t know that such a thing happened, and I don’t know why that person was there. When you asked me, I really didn’t feel it. You can think it’s a lie if you want. I really don’t know.
Nam Ihyeon spoke as if he was annoyed. His words seemed truthful. He had the tone of someone irritated about being involved in unnecessary trouble.
“……Then why did you admit to the charges?”
― All the evidence points to me. They even said there were traces of guiding kidnapping left on my body. There’s no point in saying I didn’t do it, it’ll just make my mouth hurt. It’ll just end with getting a few shots.
Just getting a few shots could have unknown effects on an esper. If all this was some force’s scheme to weaken the power of S-class espers…… It might even include drugs that suppress Nam Ihyeon’s power.
If this situation repeated and disaster-rated ‘Gab’ or ‘Eul’ gates burst open, it would be a huge burden on the other espers. Especially for outstanding espers like Nam Ihyeon.
If the target of all these situations was Kim Haewon, then the plan was proceeding successfully. Nam Ihyeon seemed to have no consideration for such an overall picture at all. Rather, he acted as if such misunderstandings were familiar. He didn’t seem to care much about someone slandering him or being caught up in such scandals.
“What’s that? You said you did something you didn’t do?”
― You also said I did it.
“Because the circumstances suggested it!”
― Then just accept it and move on. Such things are common.
“You said you don’t remember?”
― So?
Nam Ihyeon asked as if his own memory didn’t matter at all. I was speechless. Why are all S-class espers like this? Every single one of them seemed born with the ability to infuriate people.
“God, where do S-class espers get group training?”
― What?
“Do you get training on how to piss people off? You should say no if it’s not true. What? So? Isn’t this completely crazy?”
― I don’t think someone who suspected me first should be saying that?
Nam Ihyeon spoke as if this situation had happened because of me. Normally I would have expressed my apologies too, but Nam Ihyeon’s attitude made me angry.
There could be misunderstandings. There could be false accusations, and one could be cornered. In life, everyone faces such crises. But not properly resolving it and blaming others while passing it off was wrong.
It was no different from making everyone except oneself look like fools. I sighed deeply and said.
“Ha. Shouldn’t you be persuading me? Don’t you know what persuasion is? Then if I spread rumors starting today that Esper Nam Ihyeon and Esper Kim Haewon are a couple, would you just let that be too?”
― What kind of ridiculous nonsense is that! Why would that bastard and I!
“Why can’t you just accept that one and move on? Where do you get off blaming others? You just ran away. Because you didn’t want to explain and make the incident bigger. You just cowardly ran away and are blaming me and Han Miyeon-ssi.”
― Hey. Do you think everything you say is right?
“Yes! Hang up, you bastard!”
I screamed and turned off my phone. It wasn’t worth talking to him. What could such a coward do? I huffed and flopped onto the bed.
Anyway, it was leaning toward the misunderstanding about Nam Ihyeon being true. If I could arrange for him to be arrested at the moment Jeong Sanghyeop tried to hypnotize me, I would be able to reveal the truth. However, it was too much for me alone. I needed someone’s help.
I thought of someone’s annoying face. I really didn’t want to call him, but he was the person who could help me the most right now.
