# Chapter 84
“Your taste is… consistent.”
“……”
“How can you have only black clothes?”
Won Jungyeom shook his head.
“Does Esper Suhyun like black?”
Suhyun didn’t respond to the frivolous question.
“I thought you insisted on black clothes because dungeons make clothes dirty.”
Jiwon had always assumed it was just Suhyun’s preference since he always wore black clothes, but he never expected his entire closet to be filled with nothing but black clothes.
“So you just have all black clothes. You only wear black even in everyday life.”
“……”
“But aren’t these clothes too formal for combat? Isn’t it uncomfortable?”
Looking more closely, they were indeed clothes that seemed somewhat impractical for combat, as Jungyeom pointed out. There was a complete lack of casual attire, and everything looked suitable for somewhat formal occasions.
Come to think of it, he seemed to always wear clothes like this even when entering dungeons.
“…It’s fine.”
“It must be uncomfortable…”
Jungyeom tilted his head. Strictly speaking, Suhyun had abilities specialized in long-range combat, but that didn’t mean he never engaged in close combat.
Additionally, even if he mainly attacked by changing air currents from a distance, like when he fought the American Espers, he still needed to move to dodge or counter enemy attacks.
‘Even apart from that, it’s excessively formal…’
Suhyun was only twenty-two years old, but all his clothes were too mature. It wasn’t just a matter of color.
“You two are pretty similar.”
Perhaps because Jungyeom kept talking, Suhyun walked over with heavy steps. Jungyeom looked back and forth between Suhyun and Jiwon as he spoke.
“In what way?”
When Jiwon asked as if he didn’t know what Jungyeom was talking about, Jungyeom raised his eyebrows as if to say, “Do you really not know?”
“Shall we look at Guide Jiwon’s closet?”
“……”
“I bet it’s not that different from this one.”
Jiwon thought about his own closet, which he hadn’t considered before. It wasn’t as completely black as Suhyun’s, but it was true that it was filled with neutral colors and formal clothes, so to Jungyeom’s eyes, they probably looked the same.
“…Well, I’ve been going in and out of the Association, so that’s why. I can’t go to work at the Center wearing casual clothes.”
Jiwon offered his own excuse. He was trying to emphasize that his situation was different from Suhyun’s, who had to enter dungeons.
But Jungyeom didn’t even pretend to listen properly.
“You both try to act too grown-up. In my eyes—no, objectively—you’re still kids.”
“Not really…”
“Is it because your burdens are too heavy?”
Jiwon, who had been about to deny Jungyeom’s words, had to press his lips shut at Jungyeom’s musing. The same went for Suhyun.
“It’s already spring. Since we’re on the topic, why don’t you buy some brighter clothes and get some fresh air?”
His slightly shadowed face returned to normal. Jungyeom asked the two of them in a cheerful tone.
“The weather is nice, go out and wander around. What’s the point of being young? You should have fun.”
It was less like he was asking their opinion and more like he was pushing them to do it.
“…You sound like an old man.”
“I am an old man, aren’t I?”
Jiwon would normally have responded curtly to Jungyeom’s hearty laughter, but today he couldn’t bring himself to do so.
It wasn’t like he suddenly thought he was carrying a heavy burden. He’d heard such comments before but never paid much attention to them. He didn’t particularly think it was heavy.
Moreover, Jiwon was much more peaceful and happier after becoming a Guide than before.
But what made him unable to continue speaking was that when he applied the same words to Suhyun, it made him uncomfortable. To Jiwon’s eyes, the burden Suhyun carried was undeniably heavy.
Perhaps Jungyeom had been seeing Jiwon the same way Jiwon saw Suhyun.
“Since it came up, let’s go out today. You have to go when you think of it. If you keep saying ‘later, later,’ you’ll never go.”
“What? But the timing is…”
“What about the timing? Did the Riska dungeon appear today? No, it didn’t. Or do you think we can’t go out and have fun because the Riska dungeon situation hasn’t been resolved? How long do you think it will take to resolve? Are you going to stay holed up at home for months or years until it’s resolved?”
They couldn’t stay like this forever, but still, the timing didn’t seem right. It seemed like a bad choice for ability users to be going out and having fun amid all this confusion.
“Oh my. Guide Jiwon. Just go out 100 meters and see if people are crying or laughing.”
“……”
“People are at peace. Why? Because there are people working hard to make sure nothing happens. They can live comfortably, normally, without having to evacuate even once.”
“……”
“Who made it this way? Esper Suhyun and Guide Jiwon. So you should be more confident. Does it make sense to stay cooped up in a room, wearing dull clothes, and just racking your brains? No, that’s not right.”
As he spoke, Jungyeom seemed to get more and more worked up, as if he were the one being wronged.
“Espers and Guides should have fun too. Go to the department store and buy clothes, eat at restaurants. Watch movies in theaters. Do you know that movies are still being released regularly?”
Jungyeom patted both of their backs at once. Then he dragged Jiwon out of the room, leaving Suhyun behind.
“Change into nice clothes and come out. Young people should enjoy some good time together.”
Jiwon looked at Jungyeom with surprised eyes. Jungyeom smiled and looked back at Jiwon, then wrinkled the bridge of his nose.
“Oh, right. I know a restaurant in the suburbs with amazing scenery and delicious food. I’ll tell you about it as a special favor.”
At that moment, Jiwon’s mind, which had been somewhat touched by Jungyeom’s concern, became noisy. He understood that Jungyeom was genuinely worried about them. But he wasn’t purely worried.
His rambling words were full of ulterior motives. Jungyeom, having noticed Jiwon’s feelings, had started meddling.
Jiwon, with his back to Suhyun, tried to stop Jungyeom with his expressions. But Jungyeom pretended not to understand with an innocent face.
“What do you think, Esper Suhyun? Should I make a reservation for you?”
Jiwon closed his eyes tightly and swallowed a sigh. Jungyeom was famous for meddling in other people’s affairs. And he was the last person who should have found out…
“Yes, thank you.”
“Huh…?”
Jiwon, who had been half in tears from dismay, turned around with a bewildered sound at Suhyun’s words. He hadn’t expected him to agree so readily.
“Are you not interested, Guide?”
Suhyun asked Jiwon. Jiwon answered quickly, as if a “respond” button had been pressed.
“Uh, no? I’m totally interested.”
Jungyeom kept chuckling, finding something very funny. Jiwon didn’t even look in his direction. He was just busy nodding his head repeatedly toward Suhyun.
He knew it was an excessive reaction. But his heart was fluttering at the suddenly arranged outing.
They were going somewhere other than a dungeon or the Association, just the two of them together. Come to think of it, wasn’t it basically a date?
Suhyun probably wouldn’t think of it that way, but Jiwon didn’t really care. The corners of his mouth tried to creep upward.
Jiwon cleared his throat and tensed his lips to hide his excitement.
The sound of his heartbeat was again thundering in his ears.
***
A thick black cardigan worn over a well-ironed white shirt, dark beige slacks revealing his ankles.
Jiwon, who had neatly arranged his hair to slightly reveal his forehead, looked at himself in the mirror and laughed dryly.
“There’s nothing different from usual.”
All that careful deliberation had been for nothing.
Jungyeom had already left after kindly making the restaurant reservation as he’d said he would.
They were both already in presentable condition, but they had agreed to meet again after preparing for the outing, which was an hour ago.
‘This is supposed to be a date…’
It might be just his own thinking, but it meant a lot to Jiwon. That’s why he even went as far as turning his closet inside out, though it wouldn’t change no matter how many times he looked at it.
‘I spent too much time choosing clothes.’
Jiwon slapped his cheeks hard to collect himself.
He really needed to go out now. If he took too long, Suhyun would find it strange.
If he didn’t want to show his excitement, he needed to restrain himself.
“At this rate, I’ll be found out again.”
Of course, Jo Wooyeon and Won Jungyeom knew him well. They’d known him for a long time. So they noticed changes more easily.
On the other hand, he’d only met Suhyun two years ago. Moreover, there wasn’t any special connection between them until he became Suhyun’s dedicated Guide.
So he wouldn’t figure out Jiwon’s feelings as quickly as those two.
‘And it should stay that way.’
Jiwon tried to maintain his composure. He couldn’t avoid Suhyun just to hide his feelings, and he didn’t want to either.
“Phew…”
Jiwon took several deep breaths to calm the tension that was slowly rising. All the while, he kept looking at himself in the mirror.
Why did he keep checking his face when they lived in the same house and saw each other every day?
‘I’m so nervous I could die.’
Jiwon finally turned away from the mirror that seemed to be urging him to check again, and grabbed the door handle. His fingertips were trembling, so he gripped it with even more force.
“Oh, you’re already out?”
As soon as the door opened, Suhyun, who had already been waiting, came into view. Jiwon approached with an apologetic smile for keeping Suhyun waiting.
“…This is really too much.”
But as soon as he saw Suhyun’s attire, his apologetic feeling completely disappeared, replaced by exasperation.
Black shirt and black slacks.
It had always been like this whenever they went to dungeons or anywhere else, but now that he was conscious of it, it seemed really excessive.
A person couldn’t possibly be this dark.
Fortunately, at least his face was radiant. The fact that Jiwon had never been shocked by an outfit that would be suitable for a funeral was all thanks to Suhyun’s face.
“You’re not much different, Guide.”
Suhyun calmly retorted.
But isn’t he still better than Suhyun?
Jiwon looked down at himself and then shrugged. It was ridiculous to try to determine who was better when they were essentially the same.
“As Esper Jungyeom instructed, we should go buy clothes first.”
He had originally planned to skip shopping, but it seemed like they should follow Jungyeom’s advice after all.
“It would be good to buy some comfortable clothes.”
It would be nice to find a style appropriate for their age instead of these gloomy clothes. It’s not like they always had to wear formal clothes.
That’s probably why Jungyeom had been so critical.
“…Yes.”
Suhyun didn’t seem too pleased, but he agreed readily.
“Let’s go, then.”
Jiwon gestured toward the entrance, indicating it was time to leave.
When Suhyun put on black dress shoes, Jiwon almost burst out laughing but managed to hold it back.
He couldn’t say anything since the shoes he had chosen were the same dress shoes, just a different color.
