# Chapter 59
“Haaah…”
“Why are you so nervous? If anyone should be nervous, it’s me!”
“…Could you please be quiet for a moment?”
“How can I help it if I talk a lot when I’m nervous?”
“Esper Won Jungyeom-nim was always talkative to begin with.”
“Right, that’s right! I’ve always been talkative, so why suddenly ask me to be quiet?”
“…”
The Riska dungeon that appeared in Daegu passed without incident. The monster appeared after about 27 hours, and during that time, Suhyun never once said he wanted to enter the dungeon.
In a deathly silence that made it seem like they were the only two people left in the world, they managed to eat meals and take short naps, and when the monster finally appeared, Suhyun handled it smoothly.
After that, three more Riska dungeons appeared. And all three times, Suhyun wasn’t affected at all. It was confirmation that he had completely escaped from the mind control.
“But this tent is no joke. It has everything!”
Since there was no longer any danger to the Esper, the Association decided to proceed with their original plan. This time, they were going to verify Jiwon’s ability.
“I won’t even eat all this. The refrigerator is packed full. Oh? There’s meat too? Are we supposed to have a barbecue?”
And so, an Esper was chosen to participate in the Riska dungeon and be subject to its mind control. To be precise, they called for volunteers, and only one person stepped forward.
It was Won Jungyeom.
“You seem very nervous.”
Suhyun spoke softly as he watched Jungyeom pacing restlessly.
“Hahaha! Does it look that way to you too, Suhyun Esper?”
“Yes.”
When Jungyeom said he would participate in this dungeon, honestly, it wasn’t surprising. If one had to name people who felt a sense of duty as Espers, there would only be Suhyun and Jungyeom.
“What if I suddenly find myself inside the dungeon?”
“Unless Esper Won Jungyeom-nim manages to defeat Suhyun Esper-nim and enter, that won’t happen.”
“Aaah, that’s so reassuring. Thanks, Jiwon Guide.”
Jungyeom let out a hollow laugh. Jiwon’s words were certainly not wrong. But that didn’t mean he could just relax either.
“Take good care of me, Suhyun Esper.”
“Yes, I understand.”
Jungyeom stopped pacing around and plopped down on the floor. Despite the presence of a sofa, he preferred to lie down on the floor, looking like a neighbor’s uncle. Not that there was an uncle living next door…
“Sigh… how did things end up like this?”
Jiwon sat on the sofa. Being alone with Suhyun was nice, but having Jungyeom around definitely lightened the atmosphere. Well, though he seemed to have a lot on his mind.
“Do you regret volunteering?”
Now that the dungeon was right in front of them, his worries seemed to be mounting.
The atmosphere was enough to create worries that didn’t even exist before. That was because the dungeon had appeared on an uninhabited island to the west, a place completely devoid of human presence.
It was an extremely desolate atmosphere. The sound of waves in the distance, though not immediately visible, was also irritating.
“No. It’s not regret.”
For Jiwon, Jungyeom stepping forward was fortunate. Perhaps due to the small confession he made to Suhyun that day, the mood wasn’t so bad that it dampened his spirits, but the sound of the sea still bothered him. Jungyeom’s constant chatter had improved his mood somewhat.
“I’m just worried.”
“I’m telling you, Esper-nim won’t need to enter the dungeon.”
“Oh come on. I know that too. What I’m worried about is…”
Jungyeom opened his mouth as if frustrated, but quickly closed it. The way he shook his head suggested he had no intention of continuing.
“What is it? Why do you stop in the middle of saying something?”
“Jiwon Guide doesn’t understand my feelings.”
“…”
“Doesn’t understand anything.”
Jiwon frowned at his attitude, which was like a child throwing a tantrum. With his lips pushed out, he seemed to think he was a four-year-old.
Jiwon shuddered in horror.
“I’ll continue not understanding, then.”
He turned away abruptly, not wanting to know, and heard giggling behind him. Jiwon stubbornly refused to look back.
“Please take good care of me.”
But it was impossible to ignore such a sincere greeting. Jiwon let out a short sigh.
“Are you concerned about me having to guide you?”
Getting knocked out by Suhyun before entering the dungeon was too obvious. Jungyeom couldn’t not know that. He wasn’t worried about himself.
“Why? Are you afraid you might attack me?”
The fact that Suhyun had attacked Jiwon was already widely known. They had to disclose everything that could happen in the Riska dungeon.
If so, it was simple to deduce what Jungyeom was worried about. He was concerned that he might do the same thing.
Guiding requires physical contact. Even with Suhyun present, gaps were bound to occur. Even a small attack could potentially cost Jiwon his life. Because he was different from Espers.
But they couldn’t bring an Esper who specialized in healing either. With two Espers, the variables would double, no, increase even more.
The fact that the location was an island was also a problem. There was no place on this island for Association staff to stand by. In the end, only three people, including Jiwon, remained here.
In a situation where it was difficult to ask anyone for help, it was natural to have many worries.
“That’s disrespecting Suhyun Esper-nim.”
Jiwon understood his concern. But he couldn’t just worry like Jungyeom did. The die was already cast, and the best thing to do was to believe in a good outcome and wait.
“Suhyun Esper-nim wouldn’t let me get hurt, right? I don’t understand why you’re making such unnecessary worries. Isn’t that right, Suhyun Esper-nim?”
Suhyun nodded without hesitation. Jiwon smiled with satisfaction at the response that left no room for thought.
If he had no intention of hurting him, what more was there to worry about?
“Hah, right. That’s true. I should have asked Suhyun Esper for help.”
Jungyeom sat up and gave his characteristic friendly smile. Then he winked creepily at Suhyun.
“Take good care of me, Suhyun Esper. I don’t really like getting hurt, you know? When you knock me out, be gentle… okay?”
“I’m not sure.”
“What do you mean, ‘I’m not sure’? What kind of ambiguous answer is that?”
“I can’t be certain. But I’ll try not to hurt you too badly.”
Jungyeom’s mouth fell open in disbelief.
“No, that’s not it. If you were the Suhyun Esper I know, you’d say ‘I’ll do that,’ just like that. That would suit you better. Saying you’re not sure scares me too much.”
“But I might not be able to do it.”
“…Ever since you two signed that exclusive contract, you’ve started to resemble each other…?”
Jiwon smiled and shrugged. Suhyun seemed not to understand why Jungyeom was speaking this way, but Jiwon thought he did.
The old Suhyun would have indeed answered that he would do just that. And somehow, he would have kept his word.
But now, he prioritized protecting Jiwon above all else, so he thought it was inevitable that Jungyeom would get hurt to some extent.
“He’s just become more rational and flexible.”
“Ah, yes… I see.”
Jungyeom answered with a sour expression before breaking into a playful smile.
“Well. One of the Espers who entered a dungeon with Suhyun Esper recently did tell me something. He said that Suhyun Esper was like Jiwon Guide.”
“…What does that mean?”
“He said that except for not smiling and laughing like Jiwon Guide, his way of catching people like mice is exactly the same!”
Catching like mice…?
Jiwon looked at Suhyun with curious eyes before frowning. The absurdity momentarily left him speechless, but he finally found his voice.
“No, saying it like that creates misunderstandings. When did I ever catch Espers like mice? Who is this Esper anyway?”
“And if you knew, huh? What would you do?”
“I’d at least ask exactly what I did. What reason would a Guide have to catch an Esper…!”
The more Jiwon raised his voice and complained indignantly, the more Jungyeom seemed to enjoy it. The urge to catch him like a mouse welled up, but Jiwon had to stop speaking abruptly.
“Ha…”
It was because, in that moment when he was retorting angrily to Jungyeom, he caught a glimpse of Suhyun’s brief laugh.
“Uh…”
Frozen in place, Jiwon just blinked his eyes while making a foolish sound. In that brief moment, Suhyun had already withdrawn his smile, but that expression had left a strong impression on Jiwon’s mind.
“Why are you suddenly like that, Jiwon Guide?”
The corners of Jiwon’s lips slowly crept up.
See that? He’s really pretty, I tell you.
The vague anxiety that had also been present in Jiwon disappeared all at once.
“Your face is incredibly red! Do you have a fever?”
Jiwon bit his lip and shook his head. Suhyun’s gaze on him was so unbearably wonderful that he felt like he might directly reveal his feelings at this rate.
