“Yes. Since it seems like the situation will escalate, it looks like former Chairman Choi Taehyeon abandoned Guide Choi Hyerin and Center 8 Director Choi Taekyung when he resigned. Thanks to that, identifying those involved was quick, and we secured evidence materials.”
“I see… That’s a good thing, right?”
“Of course.”
Team Leader Lee Juyeon’s firm answer allowed Jiwon’s stiff shoulders to relax comfortably. Only then did Jiwon, remembering the purpose of the call, speak calmly.
“And I want to release the recording file I mentioned to you before as soon as possible.”
“Because of public opinion, right? I also think it would be better to open it quickly so the damage doesn’t grow. Please send me the recording file right away.”
After finishing the call, Jiwon’s recording file was reported to the Center’s upper management. And not long after, permission to release it was granted.
Jiwon’s eyes widened at the permission that came too quickly for the closed-off Ability User Center. Just in case, he had informed Team Leader Lee Juyeon in advance about the existence of the recording file from that time, and Jiwon guessed that she had probably processed the related procedures beforehand.
Perhaps because they pursued the same thoughts and aimed for the same direction. Truly, from before, the executives of Center 1 and Jiwon worked together perfectly in sync.
Two hours later, a post with the recording file of that situation attached was uploaded to a large community site.
Having heard the news, Jiwon’s eyes widened as he assumed combat readiness and quickly logged into several communities simultaneously.
He didn’t want to leave even the slightest spark of misunderstanding that Seo Gangwoo had done something wrong first. Even though Esper Seo Gangwoo himself said he was fine and didn’t care about what happened in the past, Jiwon wasn’t fine with it.
How dare the perpetrator pretend to be the victim.
Absolutely unacceptable!
If there was even the slightest sign of defending Choi Hyerin, Jiwon was filled with the determination to refute each one in the comments. With an extremely serious expression, he stared intently at the monitor, but as time passed, his expression relaxed. There were no reactions he had worried about, and he even burst out laughing with a “pfft” at the fresh jokes and pleasant reactions of people mocking Choi Hyerin’s side.
People lined up with roaring laughter and refreshing reactions to the argument between himself and Choi Hyerin. Originally, while childish fights are easy to get heated about for the person on the receiving end, for those watching, there’s fun in spectating.
Moreover, Jiwon hadn’t just thrown random words but had pointed out facts one by one. Since Choi Hyerin couldn’t properly refute and was swept up showing emotions and insisting stubbornly, people could also tell whose words were true and had sincerity.
Jiwon, who had been absorbed in the fun of reading comments for a while, put down the tablet he was holding and flopped onto the sofa. Then he stretched his body out, raising his hands and toes.
The luxurious sofa, wide enough to roll around on both sides, stably and softly supported his body.
Jiwon grinned at that satisfaction. It seemed like it would become his designated seat from now on.
The feeling of relaxed muscles screaming briefly passed refreshingly through his entire body for a moment.
After loosening his body that had stiffened from sitting in one position for a long time, Jiwon got comfortable again.
“Thank goodness.”
More than anything, Jiwon let out a sigh of relief that there were no comments causing trouble or saying bad things about Seo Gangwoo.
Click.
At that moment, the door opened and Seo Gangwoo came in. It was time to replace the magic stone in the artifact vehicle packed with additional functions, so he had briefly gone to the garage for inspection. As Jiwon confirmed him walking toward the sofa where he was, he sat up and spread both arms out.
As soon as Seo Gangwoo approached closely, slipped his body between them, and gently embraced him, Jiwon performed guiding while examining Seo Gangwoo’s interior.
He wrapped the pricklily resisting wavelengths with his energy and gently coaxed them to release, and for places that had been clumped and hardened for a long time, he let the guiding seep in so they would become even a little softer.
Seo Gangwoo, who became drowsy in the soft and warm energy as if wrapped in a nest made of white feathers, groaned and buried his face in Jiwon’s nape. He found Jiwon’s unique body scent among the subtle shampoo fragrance and breathed in deeply.
Jiwon flinched his shoulders at the ticklish breath touching his nape, stroked Seo Gangwoo’s head a few times, then rested his chin on those broad shoulders and continued guiding.
Though they had only been guiding wordlessly for quite a while, there was no discomfort or awkwardness, only a comfortable atmosphere.
Jiwon, who had been concentrating for quite a while, switched to regular guiding when he felt himself getting tired and was blankly being held when he suddenly remembered a comment he saw earlier and giggled without realizing it.
“Ah… A few hours ago, the recording file from that time was released. But people’s comments are so funny.”
Jiwon lifted his head and told Seo Gangwoo, who was looking at him questioningly, about the community comments he remembered.
As Jiwon talked to Seo Gangwoo while giggling, he felt relieved once again at having urgently suppressed the fire that was spreading like wildfire.
Since it had been quiet for a while, Jiwon had wondered if he was overreacting, but after seeing Choi Hyerin’s interview speaking as if she were the victim, he rearmed his thoughts that had been trying to soften.
As expected, I can’t let my guard down!
This recording file release would be a big blow to Choi Hyerin. With this much, the situation was clearly advantageous to this side.
His round brown eyes sparkled with spirit.
It seemed like Choi Hyerin’s family had also pulled their hands from this matter, and it was revealed that she didn’t properly do guiding while they were paired and that the content of her interview wasn’t true, so Jiwon thought meaningful results would come out soon.
Actually, in this matter, Jiwon and the Center had prepared well in advance, but what was big was that Choi Hyerin had made the risky move of pair contract termination, relying only on the pair matching rate.
Could they have ever predicted it?
That a Guide with a high matching rate with Seo Gangwoo, who couldn’t be found anywhere in the world, would appear at this very time.
What use was there in thinking such thoughts now, but from the beginning, the person with more decision-making power in a pair contract was the Guide, and unless there was a big problem, even the Headquarters or Center couldn’t arbitrarily change pairs.
That was the same even for high-risk S-rank Espers.
Even if a Guide with a much higher matching rate than before and of high rank appeared, if there was already an existing pair, the will of the Guide in the pair was more important.
Also, even if the Headquarters issued a recommendation to change pairs, making an issue of the high-risk group, with Seo Gangwoo’s personality and character, he wouldn’t have stepped forward himself to change his pair Guide.
Of course, you never know with people. Since there was no law saying one must only receive guiding from a pair Guide, even if he could receive emergency guiding from a high matching rate Guide, he wasn’t someone so disloyal as to terminate a pair with an existing Guide who had been faithfully providing guiding.
In the end, it was all self-inflicted.
She’s a fool who can’t even recognize treasure.
Even though they hadn’t been living together long, that’s how Jiwon felt.
Seo Gangwoo seemed blunt, but he listened well to what Jiwon said and, upon closer observation, had considerate aspects too.
Though some people said he was a monster or scary, in reality, Seo Gangwoo didn’t use his power carelessly and was careful.
He was an S-rank ability user who made good money, and the danger of runaway was because he couldn’t receive guiding.
Fortunately or unfortunately, since he had always suffered from the risk of runaway and lived with high gauges, he actually had much better control ability and mental strength regarding runaway than other Espers. If his internal energies were stabilized through guiding, he was a safer Esper than anyone.
He didn’t seem like someone who would wander when he had a partner, and even looking everywhere, he had a perfect face without a single flaw visible.
Even objectively considering this and that, in his eyes, he was a person full of strengths rather than weaknesses, holding beautiful light and fragrance like a gem carefully crafted by an artisan…
Why had he been treated that way?
Sometimes Jiwon wondered what it would have been like if he had manifested a little earlier like other Guides. He was at the point of regretting his late Guide manifestation, but what was their dissatisfaction that they made a person suffer so much?
Bad person…
I really hope she receives appropriate punishment.
When he swept and touched his somewhat dry cheeks at his heart that was about to get upset for no reason, Seo Gangwoo moved his face and buried his lips in Jiwon’s hand.
“…!”
Jiwon groaned “Urk!” inside and barely swallowed the sound.
He wiggled his fingers at the slightly dry yet soft sensation, then even that stopped at the regular, warm breath.
If he withdrew his hand, he thought Seo Gangwoo might be embarrassed, but he didn’t really want to pull it away either… Jiwon couldn’t do this or that and couldn’t move, keeping his hand still.
Since the evening of the day they first moved, when he said to tell him first and not hold back if guiding was needed, Seo Gangwoo occasionally made such skinship.
Not intense, but somehow ticklish and embarrassing…
Each time, Jiwon had to grab his trembling heart.
Doing this with that face is foul play!
The face with closed eyes rubbed diagonally against his palm, and under the sharp bridge of his nose, red lips appeared and disappeared slightly.
Ahhh…
In the end, Jiwon turned his head first and leaned on Seo Gangwoo’s shoulder, hiding his heated face. He felt like he was committing a sin because of the strange feeling.
Anyway, Guide Choi Hyerin is definitely a fool!
