# Chapter 82
Suhyun’s typically quiet house was filled with commotion.
“Those filthy Association bastards…”
The noise was thanks to Won Jungyeom’s visit.
“I said I didn’t like a single damn thing about them, and sure enough, they went and pulled this shit.”
Jungyeom was trembling with anger. Jiwon offered an awkward smile.
It was his first time seeing Jungyeom since their meeting at the hospital. With everything major that had happened in between, it felt like they hadn’t seen each other in ages.
“You’re not hurt anywhere, right?”
“No, I’m perfectly fine.”
When Jungyeom had contacted him about wanting to participate in the Riska dungeon, he’d been all smiles and laughter. So earlier, Jiwon had been startled when Jungyeom suddenly called, asking in an agitated voice where he was.
As it turned out, Jungyeom had only heard today that Jiwon had been kidnapped by the American Espers, and had contacted him in shock.
“Haah. How am I only hearing about this disaster now? And why didn’t you contact me?”
Jungyeom grumbled, clearly upset. Not having any proper response, Jiwon just smiled again.
When Jiwon was kidnapped, Jungyeom was still trapped in the cycle of tests being conducted at the research lab. The Association’s research facility was located deep underground, structured in a way that made it impossible to know what was happening above, even if you wanted to.
Thanks to that, Jungyeom had been comfortably napping, completely unaware of anything.
Even after waking up, nothing changed. After all, the research staff hardly paid attention to Association matters regardless of what was happening around them. They were probably just busy continuing their tests to evaluate Jungyeom’s condition.
The first news Jungyeom heard after escaping the research facility was that the Association had been completely restructured, divided into three parts—Esper Headquarters, Guide Headquarters, and R&D Headquarters—and that Jo Wooyeon had been promoted to Guide Division Director.
‘Team Leader Jo Wooyeon… no, Division Director Jo Wooyeon has finally seized power…’ is what I thought.
He said he didn’t wonder about the reason, but simply thought that what was bound to happen had finally happened.
‘I always felt it would end up that way eventually.’
Then he heard that they were planning to bring a new Esper to the Riska dungeon, and he volunteered to participate.
From Jiwon’s perspective, it was more surprising that Jungyeom hadn’t known until then, but…
“These sons of bitches. I should have killed them all!”
Jiwon didn’t want to say anything to Jungyeom, who was now outraged after learning what had happened only this morning, when another Esper he was close with asked about Jiwon’s wellbeing.
“Haah…”
Jiwon also felt a bit sorry for not contacting Jungyeom directly to explain the situation, since things had been so chaotic.
“Well, everyone’s safe, so it’s fine.”
“What’s fine about it? Those bastards returned to America with all their limbs intact and are still being treated like heroes.”
Jungyeom sighed heavily and pounded his chest in frustration.
It seemed he had looked up news about the American Espers in the meantime. Of course, Jiwon already knew this story.
Adam had been removed from his Director position, but Kalik and Chase hadn’t received any punishment.
It’s impossible to discipline S-class Espers to begin with. Even if they wanted to impose sanctions, they couldn’t. Bluntly put, they’d probably consider themselves fortunate if those Espers just didn’t run wild.
“But still…”
Jiwon smiled and shrugged his shoulders.
He wasn’t disappointed or resentful anyway.
Jiwon had clearly read the sense of defeat in them—that they had been completely beaten by Suhyun. Despite their handicap of not having a Guide, it was a fact that they couldn’t inflict even a single wound on Suhyun.
“…I wonder if their sky-high arrogance was crushed?”
Jungyeom asked while looking at Jiwon’s smiling face. He was snickering as if he already knew the answer, looking somewhat satisfied. Jiwon nodded.
“Hwashin Group is keeping their mouths tightly shut too.”
“Of course they are—they’d be buried if they said the wrong thing.”
His giggles sounded genuinely delighted.
The Association is strongly holding Hwashin Group accountable for secretly aiding the Americans. Although they’re currently claiming it has nothing to do with them, the American Association directly presented evidence of contact between Adam and Hwashin, so they wouldn’t be able to escape responsibility now.
“This is all thanks to our Esper Suhyun, isn’t it? Hmm?”
Jungyeom, whose mood had improved, looked at Suhyun and laughed heartily.
“Where did an Esper like this come from? Beating up two S-class Espers and driving them away? And confining them without letting them make a peep? How is that even possible? What on earth does Esper Suhyun lack?”
Jiwon felt he could answer that question.
Suhyun lacks absolutely nothing. He could state that with certainty.
It goes without saying that he’s strong enough to immobilize even other S-class Espers.
Then there’s his face, beautiful enough to be mistaken for an angel, and a body that appears perfectly sculpted even at a glance.
You’d expect someone with such exceptional outward appearance to have flawed character, but he’s upright and virtuous. He’s even intelligent on top of that.
No matter how hard Jiwon tried to think of his flaws, he kept failing. Because there were none.
Suhyun was an extreme example of how unfair the world could be.
Jiwon nodded proudly, as if glad to have forgotten the times when people whispered about Suhyun’s personality during the period he was mistreated.
“I wish I could have a son like Esper Suhyun.”
“That’s quite a dream.”
“Dreams should be big!”
“Maybe start by getting married first.”
“…Ouch, that hurts.”
Jiwon snickered as Jungyeom pretended to be hurt while rubbing his chest. Jungyeom laughed along, then looked at Suhyun again.
“Seriously, how proud must Esper Suhyun’s parents have been when they had him? His face must have been perfect from birth, right?”
Jiwon was about to naturally agree with this heartfelt praise when he suddenly hesitated. Then he carefully observed Suhyun’s reaction.
He knew Suhyun didn’t like his parents. No, it seemed to go beyond simply not liking them.
When Adam mentioned Suhyun’s parents and talked about revenge, Jiwon couldn’t help but vaguely sense Suhyun’s feelings toward his parents.
‘…Should I be worried?’
When asked if he wasn’t worried about his parents, Suhyun had responded by asking if he should be.
It wasn’t a negative connotation suggesting he didn’t want to worry—it was closer to profound indifference.
And now, suddenly bringing up his parents…
Jiwon was frantically trying to think of an appropriate way to change the subject.
“…They were proud.”
In the meantime, Suhyun spoke first.
His voice was devoid of any emotion, as if talking about someone else.
“Right. If it were me, I’d have gone around bragging to everyone in the neighborhood.”
“They did brag.”
“…Yes. I’m sure they did.”
“Excessively.”
“…What’s this? It’s true, but when Suhyun himself says it, it sounds a bit unpleasant…”
Jungyeom, who had been laughing, gradually looked disgruntled.
Suhyun continued impassively.
“But they weren’t happy.”
It was a quiet, calm voice. It clearly contained not a trace of emotion, yet why did it feel so lonely?
“……”
Both Jungyeom and Jiwon fell silent, unable to find words to respond. The atmosphere inevitably became tense.
“Ah.”
Suhyun sighed as if that hadn’t been his intention, and lightly twisted his neck.
“You might come under Riska’s control again. Would that be alright with you?”
Then he asked a question that wasn’t awkward, one that refreshed the mood and was perfect for Jungyeom to answer.
“Huh? Oh! Yes, of course! If it wasn’t alright, I wouldn’t have volunteered!”
Jungyeom eagerly took Suhyun’s question. His flustered look disappeared, and his voice, more energetic than usual, was shouting with relief at the change of topic.
Jiwon was busy observing Suhyun. He seemed completely unfazed. So unfazed that it felt rather complex and melancholy.
“So we start guiding before entering Riska dungeon’s domain of control, right?”
Jungyeom asked.
His effort to change the atmosphere was commendable.
He seemed to think it was much better to talk about the Riska dungeon than about topics that drained Suhyun’s vitality.
“Yes. Since we can’t know when Riska will begin controlling you, it’s better to start guiding from the beginning.”
Jiwon shared the same opinion and willingly played along with Jungyeom.
“Great. It’s been a while since I’ve received guiding from Guide Jiwon!”
“You received it back then too.”
“I have no memory of it. That’s so unfair.”
Jungyeom grumbled, and Jiwon laughed lightly. He was someone who preferred chatting to guiding, yet had received special treatment when he visited the center.
Jiwon spoke casually while subtly checking Suhyun’s reaction.
“Anyway, take good care of yourself until the Riska dungeon appears. And prepare yourself mentally since you might get hurt again.”
The previously expressionless face had stiffened slightly, as if caught in some thought. Jiwon’s attention was naturally drawn to Suhyun. He was so focused that his concern for Jungyeom barely had any soul in it.
“I’d better prepare myself mentally.”
Still, Jungyeom seemed to have taken the advice to heart as he said with a deep breath.
“Esper Suhyun. Please go easy on me. You said you’ll put restraints on me before we start this time, right? That means I can’t use my ability or anything. An Esper who can’t use their ability is no different from a normal person. I believe Esper Suhyun understands that well.”
Not just taking it to heart but apparently scared too, Jungyeom grabbed Suhyun and earnestly expressed his vulnerability.
“…Yes.”
Suhyun nodded seriously.
“Really? You promise?”
“Yes.”
“I’m truly fragile. I suffered a lot as a child, so my body is in terrible condition. It all comes back as you age. I break if you just tap me lightly, okay? Even if I recover quickly, pain is still pain. There might be after-effects.”
“I understand.”
“You believe me? Are you really going to trust me?”
Is this really something to be so persistent about? It was hard to tell if he was joking or not.
Jiwon laughed in disbelief.
“Come on, why are you being so insistent? Anyone listening would think Esper Suhyun is just waiting for a chance to attack Esper Jungyeom.”
“……”
“……”
It was meant to be a joke, but no one except Jiwon even raised the corner of their mouth.
The atmosphere was strange.
