The sharp energy radiating from Kang Taejun burst outward in all directions. Yujin stopped resisting and clenched his teeth. There was no way someone with only an ordinary person’s physical abilities could match the grip strength of an S-rank Esper.
“W-wait, Esper Kang Taejun! What do you think you’re doing!”
Yu Haneul, who had been standing there in a daze, snapped back to his senses and shouted. Kang Taejun’s broad shoulders flinched at that. He turned his head and spoke to Yu Haneul in a low voice.
“Stay out of this.”
“Let go of the Team Leader right now!”
“Does this bastard even deserve to be called your Team Leader?”
The two sharp voices drilled into his ears. But the problem wasn’t just their bickering. Being lifted off the ground with someone’s fist twisted in his collar hurt, and he could barely breathe.
I’m actually going to die like this……
Yujin thought, gripping Kang Taejun’s solid wrist with both hands. His ears were going numb, and he could no longer make out what Kang Taejun and Yu Haneul were saying. And then his eyes finally began to roll back.
“Ugh!”
“Cough, cough!”
The grip on his collar released without warning, and Yujin crumpled to the floor where he stood. Coughs tore out of him uncontrollably.
Ah, this son of a btch, seriously……*
He genuinely wanted to hurl a string of curses, but his voice barely came out — his vocal cords had apparently taken damage. For a while, Yujin did nothing but cough.
He could tell that Kang Taejun had been developing something more intense toward Yu Haneul, given how high their match rate was — but resorting to violence without any thought whatsoever. Yujin clenched his still-trembling hands into fists.
At least in the novel’s world, his high status had guaranteed him a minimum level of safety. And the moment he returned to his own world, this is what he walked into. It was so absurd he nearly laughed.
“Don’t get in my way, Min Jaeha.”
……Min Jaeha?
Now that he thought about it, there was no way Yu Haneul’s words alone could have stopped someone with Kang Taejun’s temperament. And in a place full of only Guides, there was no one here who could physically hold Kang Taejun back.
Yujin barely managed to lift his head. What he saw was a current of water wrapped tightly around Kang Taejun’s arms. Min Jaeha was an Esper who controlled water.
Min Jaeha had also gone out on the mission with Kang Taejun.
He’d said they’d be returning late — but it seemed Kang Taejun had finished the mission early, come back, heard that Yu Haneul had been summoned to Yujin’s office, and stormed in in a rage. Min Jaeha must have followed after him to rein him in. Still, Yujin was puzzled as to why Min Jaeha had helped him specifically.
“I need to get Guided right away, and you can’t go around breaking what I need.”
“…….”
Breaking — as if he were talking about some toy. A sigh escaped him, but without Min Jaeha, things would’ve been far worse. Yujin covered his still-aching throat with his hand and slowly got to his feet.
“T-Team Leader! Are you alright? The medic, we need to call the medic……”
Hayeong, who had rushed to his side, quickly steadied him. He hovered anxiously, muttering under his breath. Yujin glanced at the two Espers still in a standoff and opened his mouth.
“Ahem. Go get Baek Dohun.”
“Sorry? Team Leader Baek Dohun?”
“You want to watch those two fight and bring the whole center down with them?”
“Oh.”
Hayeong gave a belated nod at Yujin’s words and contacted someone on his watch. As the deputy team leader of the Guide team, he would have the authority to call Baek Dohun directly.
Thanks to that, the situation didn’t spiral further out of control. Baek Dohun came and subdued the agitated Kang Taejun, and the moment the door got broken off, center guards came swarming in. Yujin was then treated by a healing-type Esper working as the medic.
“Phew……”
Fortunately, after being treated by the healing-type Esper, the pain was mostly gone. Yujin gently rubbed the area around his now-healed throat.
“Team Leadeeer, are you alright?”
Hayeong asked from beside him, voice wavering on the edge of tears. Yujin nodded at him.
“Yeah, I’m fine.”
“I’m so relieved……”
As though he himself had been the one grabbed by the collar, Hayeong’s face had gone pale. Yujin looked at him and let out a small smile.
Still, I really do feel like I’ve turned into the novel’s villain.
The scene where the protagonist-type character storms in and turns everything upside down upon hearing that the villain is tormenting his main love interest — that was something from the original story, but Yujin hadn’t experienced it firsthand. Because in the world he’d transmigrated into, he’d become close with the main love interest before he could ever fully become a villain.
And yet here he was, back in his original world and treading the villain’s path regardless. The feeling was strange. Looking at the tearful Hayeong, the actual person involved — Yujin — couldn’t feel any sense of reality and was simply left in a daze.
“Are you alright? Nothing’s broken, right?”
“…….”
Could he please stop with all this broken business. Yujin shifted his gaze to Min Jaeha, who had been lingering nearby this whole time. Right, this one was still here too.
“I’m fine. Thank you for helping me.”
“Don’t mention it — of course I’d help.”
Min Jaeha smiled — the kind of easy, likable smile that drew people in. Was it paranoia to feel like that smile wasn’t entirely genuine and that he had something up his sleeve? Yujin studied him with a skeptical eye before speaking again.
“You’re here to get Guided, aren’t you?”
“Yeah, well. That’s true, but……”
At Min Jaeha’s answer, Yujin rose to head to the Guiding room. Min Jaeha looked at him with a puzzled expression.
“You’re going to Guide right now?”
“What else?”
“…….”
It seemed he was surprised that Yujin intended to Guide after everything that had just happened. But Yujin genuinely felt fine. He hadn’t died, and he wasn’t in pain anymore — wasn’t that enough?
He’d been through plenty of ordeals before. When he’d transmigrated into Yujin Langford’s body, as the Multi-layer Gate situation worsened, he’d gone inside Gates just like the Espers. Having rolled around in there so many times with his life on the line, getting grabbed by the collar by Kang Taejun almost felt trivial by comparison.
“Um, Team Leader……”
“Oh.”
He belatedly realized Yu Haneul was still inside the office. He turned his gaze to Yu Haneul, whose complexion was just as pale as Hayeong’s.
“I’m — I’m sorry. I mean……”
“For what?”
“Pardon?”
“Why is Guide Yu Haneul apologizing?”
“Ah……”
Yu Haneul faltered at Yujin’s question, unable to continue. Yujin looked at him steadily.
What Kang Taejun had done — grabbing him by the throat — was Kang Taejun’s own fault. Even if he’d been worked up over Yu Haneul, unless Yu Haneul had directly ordered him to do it, it was something Kang Taejun alone had done. So Yujin had no intention whatsoever of holding Yu Haneul accountable.
“Kang Taejun caused that scene on his own, so Guide Yu Haneul has no reason to feel guilty.”
“But……”
“I have nothing further to discuss, so you’re free to go.”
“……Understood.”
Yu Haneul hesitated briefly, then gave a quiet nod. Yujin watched the back of him walking out of the office.
Either way, maybe this incident will help smooth things over between me and Yu Haneul?
He was being thoroughly calculating about it as he absently rubbed his throat with his fingers — which no longer hurt.
“Isn’t it possible that Guide Yu Haneul put him up to it?”
“What?”
Just then, Min Jaeha leaned his head in close and asked. Yujin looked at him and frowned.
“I came straight here to get Guided, so I don’t know how Kang Taejun heard about Yu Haneul — but isn’t it possible Yu Haneul was the one who told Kang Taejun first?”
“…….”
“There’s no other way Kang Taejun would’ve found out.”
Min Jaeha’s reasoning was plausible. Kang Taejun was the Esper with the highest match rate to Yu Haneul. The time they’d spent together was short, but it was enough for them to have become close in the interim.
Yu Haneul, too, must have felt threatened by Yujin Langford more than once — so it was possible he’d reported his whereabouts to Kang Taejun for his own safety. But even so, that didn’t constitute evidence that Yu Haneul had used Kang Taejun in an attempt to harm him.
“Unless Guide Yu Haneul directly ordered Kang Taejun to grab me by the throat, it isn’t his fault.”
“Hmm.”
At Yujin’s answer, Min Jaeha reacted as though slightly deflated. It was obvious he’d brought up Yu Haneul half for the fun of it. Yujin gave him a look that said really? before turning away.
“Stop talking nonsense and go get Guided.”
“Yessir.”
Yujin took Min Jaeha with him to the Guiding room.
Fortunately, Guiding Min Jaeha was the last thing on his schedule for the day. His body had been healed by the healing-type Esper, but the mental exhaustion was considerable. The moment Min Jaeha’s Guiding session was done, he was going straight back to his quarters, setting his watch to do-not-disturb, and getting some real rest.
“Hand.”
“…….”
Yujin said, giving a small beckon. From across him, Min Jaeha smiled — the corners of his eyes curving — and grinned.
“Getting treated like a dog by a Guide isn’t actually a bad feeling.”
“Stop with the nonsense.”
“Yessir.”
Was this what his personality was like? He seemed particularly playful today. Enough to wash away the image from the cafeteria.
Yujin firmly took Min Jaeha’s hand. Either way, right now he just wanted to finish the Guiding session quickly and go rest.
“Mmm.”
As the Guiding commenced, a low, suppressed moan escaped Min Jaeha. Maybe because this was his first proper Guiding session, he was having a hard time keeping his excitement in check — like Kang Taejun had. Yujin glanced briefly at Min Jaeha’s flushed face. He wanted to at least bring today’s Contamination level down into the mid-60s.
He was thinking seriously about it when Min Jaeha suddenly bowed his head. Yujin’s eyes went wide as the other’s face lurched unexpectedly close to his.
“Wow, this actually feels incredible.”
“…….”
Min Jaeha said, his face flushed, his voice full of wonder. Yujin made a face.
