“Ah… we’re absolutely not in that kind of relationship.”
Yeoul hurriedly waved his hands. Just yesterday he was treated like a snotty-nosed kid and got scolded harshly, what lovers…
On the other hand, it was embarrassing enough that his face suddenly heated up. Being in a romantic relationship with Kang Hyeseong. It was an absurd assumption, but just hearing it made his heart surge violently, which he couldn’t help.
“Hmm, then the difficulty of guiding will inevitably go up. If a certain degree of sexual atmosphere is formed, guiding becomes much easier.”
“Ah….”
He suddenly felt heat rising from his earlobes to his neck. Sexual atmosphere… As long as Kang Hyeseong was in his right mind, even if he died and came back to life, something like that would be hard to form. How could such a thing happen with someone who still treats me like an elementary school student…
“Since reducing resistance is the top priority, try to increase physical contact as naturally as possible. Within the bounds of not being uncomfortable with each other. Like holding hands frequently, putting arms around shoulders, hugging. That much is okay, right?”
“Yes. That much… is fine.”
Kang Hyeseong seemed to have requested that much from me without any hesitation too. Without going far, just last night, Kang Hyeseong had slept on his lap without any resistance. Then I should try to increase contact to exactly that degree.
“Yeah. First, wear protective gear and exchange guiding as often as possible, and when you become somewhat familiar with each other’s waves, from then on you can gradually try taking off the gloves. For guiding beyond that, hmm… since you’re not in a romantic relationship, discuss and decide in advance. Like whether you’ll do mucous membrane guiding in emergency situations, or how far you’ll go. It’ll help to decide those things ahead of time.”
“Yes! …Thank you so much for the advice.”
Yeoul nodded with a flushed face. Mucous membrane… guiding. It’s something that should naturally be performed in emergency situations, and he learned it that way during training too… Just imagining it made his heart feel like it was broken and creaking somewhere.
“Anyway, since it’s your first time, don’t overdo it and guide carefully. You have a chronic condition too, Yeoul. Guiding puts direct strain on the heart.”
“I’ll keep that in mind!”
Yeoul nodded and answered vigorously. Not only Guide Lee Bora but other team members also kept giving him thumbs up, encouraging him that he was doing really well and that he was the only one who could guide the team leader like that. But they also added that his body should be the priority no matter what, so he should guide carefully.
Yeoul had to make a great effort to hide the joy welling up in his chest. However, no matter how hard he tried to manage his expression maturely, it was difficult to hide the smile that gradually leaked out.
I was right to ask the team members. He gained confidence that he was doing well and established guidelines for the future. Yeoul clenched his fist with a proud heart.
Okay, increase contact naturally, right. Starting tonight, lap pillow every day without fail. Hold hands even while eating, hold hands when walking together, anyway, hold hands all the time without reason.
As he ambitiously made up his mind and tried to clean up the empty coffee cup, the office door opened. Kang Hyeseong, who looked like he had rushed in to anyone’s eyes, seemed to have turned back from going to the team leader meeting again today.
“R1 team members, deploy. It’s an A-rank gate, in the Gangnam-gu area of Seoul.”
“Yes!”
The team members, who were already fully prepared to deploy at any time, moved in unison. Yeoul also tried to quickly follow, but Hyeseong added more.
“Second Lieutenant Kim Yeoul, the Director is calling for you. To the Director’s office right now.”
“Yes…? Yes! Understood.”
He was bewildered for a moment, but Yeoul answered loudly for now. Why is the Director looking for me again…? The dedicated guide contract is already all done. He couldn’t guess at all what it was about.
After all the team members deployed, Yeoul headed to the Director’s office as Hyeseong had told him. He felt anxious for no reason since he didn’t know why he was being called. His head spun.
Did I do something wrong…? I don’t think there’s anything like that… Come to think of it, it didn’t seem like the Director would personally call for a mere second lieutenant for doing something wrong. So calling me separately must be related to Kang Hyeseong.
Is it because I fainted while guiding…? But listening to what the other team members said, losing consciousness while guiding seems to be something that happens often.
While thinking about this and that, he had already arrived at the floor where the Director’s office was located. As soon as Yeoul got off the elevator, a person who appeared to be a secretary stood up and smiled brightly.
“Welcome, Second Lieutenant Kim Yeoul.”
“Ah, yes…! Hello.”
“The Director is waiting. You can go in right now.”
Yeoul took a quiet deep breath and followed the secretary who walked ahead with clicking steps. The door opened, and he first saw a space decorated like a reception room straight ahead.
“Come in.”
A dignified voice followed to greet Yeoul. Yeoul straightened his back and raised his right hand in a salute.
“Peace! Second Lieutenant Kim Yeoul.”
“Mm, yes. Sit down.”
The Director smiled kindly and pointed to an empty seat. She was definitely smiling in a friendly way, but she was someone from whom an indescribable aura emanated from her seated posture and expression whenever he saw her. Yeoul swallowed and sat on the sofa as recommended.
Soon after, a fragrant and hot cup of tea was placed in front of each of them. At the words to drink the tea first, Yeoul lifted the teacup with slightly trembling hands.
“The reason I called Second Lieutenant Kim like this today isn’t a very serious problem, but I’d like to talk about Second Lieutenant Kim Yeoul’s esper.”
The Director smiled elegantly and lifted her teacup as well. While listening intently with full tension, Yeoul felt his heart sink with a thud.
Second Lieutenant Kim Yeoul’s esper… My esper. Kang Hyeseong is my esper… It was a belated realization, but it was a dream-like title.
“Before getting to the point, first, you know that Major Kang Hyeseong’s waves are being monitored in real-time by the Supernatural Security Bureau, right?”
“Yes, I know.”
“It dropped by 4%? In just one day after forming a pair.”
The Director, who put down her teacup, stared intently at Yeoul. Her piercing, intense gaze was endlessly serious and deep.
“I heard from the attending physician that you performed basic guiding for about 5 minutes, and then took off your gloves and performed hand guiding bare-handed for a few seconds. Is that right?”
“Yes, that’s correct.”
“Really… amazing. It’s more than expected.”
With just that, Major Kang Hyeseong… In the Director’s voice muttering like she was talking to herself, unconcealed excitement seeped through.
“Second Lieutenant Kim Yeoul. You probably heard from Major Kang, but the gate occurrence rate is explosively increasing these days.”
The Director spoke with a cautious expression. Yeoul listened to her words with a serious face. Is she going to order me to guide Kang Hyeseong more diligently in the future because the gate occurrence rate is increasing…?
If that’s the case, I’m confident. It’s not just anyone, but the Director’s order, so Kang Hyeseong wouldn’t be able to refuse outright using my health as a reason.
“An official document will be sent down soon, but frontline unit members including R1 are all scheduled to move into official quarters for the time being. So this is my proposal.”
“Yes, Director.”
“How about living together with Team Leader Kang Hyeseong?”
“…Pardon?”
Yeoul, who had been paying serious attention, covered his mouth with both hands to stop the suddenly bursting cough. He stupidly choked. It was that much of an unexpected proposal.
“Oh my. Were you very surprised? Here.”
“I’m… sorry. Cough.”
When the Director pulled out a tissue and handed it over, Yeoul, who had coughed a couple times, received it with an apologetic feeling. Yeoul, who wiped the corners of his mouth, looked at the Director with a dazed expression.
“There’s nothing to be too surprised about. Superpowered individuals who have formed pairs often stay in the same official quarters. It’s because maximizing intimacy helps the matching rate and improves guiding efficiency.”
“Ah….”
“That said, I have absolutely no intention of forcing anything beyond hand guiding on you two.”
Beyond hand guiding… Yeoul, who had been covering the corners of his mouth with the tissue, hurriedly crumpled it up and gripped it. At the words that stimulated wicked imagination, the nape of his neck heated up for no reason.
“I heard you two have been very close since childhood, right? You must have spent a long time together, but when you lived as ordinary people and now are different, right? Each other’s waves will still be a bit unfamiliar.”
The Director smiled with a benevolent face.
“Just like now, just live as you are. Living in the same place and naturally becoming familiar with each other’s waves is the beginning of guiding.”
So there’s no need to make special efforts, just live comfortably together, the Director added. And it would be perfect if he could perform guiding from time to time within the possible range. She also said that Kang Hyeseong had already been informed, so if he agreed, they would prepare the quarters immediately.
It was a proposal with nothing difficult at all. They weren’t originally uncomfortable or awkward with each other, and they had lived going back and forth between each other’s houses as if they were their own. If even Kang Hyeseong had already agreed, there was even less to worry about.
When he had been worrying about how to guide efficiently anyway, the order to live together was no different from laying out a path for Yeoul. Yeoul answered with sparkling eyes and a lively voice.
“Yes, understood! Then I’ll move to the quarters right away.”
“Thank you, Second Lieutenant Kim. For agreeing so readily.”
“Not at all! It’s natural.”
The Director shook hands several times and repeated her thanks. Then she added that she would prepare the residence right away and inform him of the location through Major Kang Hyeseong in the evening.
After greeting her and leaving the Director’s office, Yeoul decided to go home first and pack his things. He had said before that he would pack with Kang Hyeseong, but since he didn’t know when he would return from the field, it seemed better to pack his things first.
Since he didn’t know when the quarters life would end this time, he should properly pack his clothes and belongings. Yeoul came out of the main building with light steps.
