Onyul continued his story without caring about Gu Baekyoung’s dispirited appearance.
“So what if I end up on your lover candidate list?”
“…”
Even Gu Baekyoung finally had an ‘oh no’ expression.
He was like that before too. He was the type who charged ahead without thinking of the consequences, so he remembered Na Geonwoo had quite a hard time.
Onyul grabbed his throbbing forehead and spoke as if giving an order.
“Listen carefully. Starting tomorrow, you’re going to become a Gu Baekyoung who’s kind to everyone.”
“Me… too?”
“That’s right! The project name is ‘Guy Who’ll Smile Even If You Give Him Just 100 Won.'”
“…”
Gu Baekyoung furrowed his brow as if he didn’t like the project content. Onyul flicked his crumpled brow.
“Even if you don’t like it, you have to follow it. That’s the only way my identity won’t be discovered.”
“…”
“If my identity is discovered, our contract is over too.”
When he brought out the clinching words, Gu Baekyoung, who had been silent, answered urgently.
“That won’t do. I’ll do anything, honey.”
“That’s right, good thinking.”
Onyul patted his head a couple times as a reward. Even with that brief skinship, Gu Baekyoung’s face immediately brightened completely.
“Now listen carefully.”
Onyul instructed Gu Baekyoung with more detailed methods. The goal was one thing. To cause confusion so that his identity wouldn’t be noticed as much as possible.
The face of the one listening crumpled again, but Onyul’s heart didn’t waver.
***
The next day too, articles and news speculating who Gu Baekyoung’s lover might be poured out. Wherever he went, it was all talk about Gu Baekyoung.
But when afternoon came, slightly different sounds began to be heard.
Onyul secretly listened in on the conversation of two ability users who visited the convenience store.
“…Did you hear? That Gu Baekyoung became strange?”
“I heard. He’s been going around to all kinds of stores and convenience stores holding hands?”
“I even saw Gu Baekyoung smile today.”
“Gasp, there wasn’t any killing intent?”
“There wasn’t killing intent, but it was strangely scary.”
That’s why I told you to practice smiling.
Gu Baekyoung felt awkward about smiling at other people, except for smiling at him. Should he say the appearance of just pulling up the corners of his mouth was quite eerie?
If they saw him genuinely smiling, nine out of ten would all come to like him.
He was the only one who knew Gu Baekyoung’s real smiling face. That fact was regrettable yet also made him happy on the other hand.
‘Anyway, he’s doing well as instructed.’
Yesterday, Onyul had instructed Gu Baekyoung on a smokescreen operation to avoid becoming a strong suspect for the cat helmet.
Starting the next day, he told him to drop by anywhere, whether the convenience store across the street or other stores, and shake hands with people, and also to smile at everyone whose eyes he met.
It was to show that he got along well not just with Kang Ian the convenience store manager, but with everyone.
Onyul, who had finally become able to control his Guide ability after going through a big incident, also withdrew the energy that had been spread throughout the convenience store.
Fortunately, what had been working strongly was Radiant Guiding, so the amount of Therapy energy remaining in the convenience store was thin.
‘With this much, I should be able to get through safely, right?’
The world these days had become so good that they even sold items that had a minimal Guiding effect. Since he asked Gu Baekyoung to obtain items, there would be justification to make excuses for the faint Therapy energy.
Unless they were S-rank, they wouldn’t be able to distinguish well between Guiding and Therapy energy.
Just then, an ability user who seemed to have noticed that change spoke to him.
“By the way, Manager, has something happened recently?”
“Why?”
“The convenience store has changed somehow.”
“Specifically what!”
“…Ah, I’m sorry.”
When Onyul got angry like a cat with its fur raised, the ability user who apologized hurriedly left the convenience store.
He decided to deliberately treat everyone unkindly, opposite to Gu Baekyoung. It was to plant the prejudice that such an ill-tempered person couldn’t be Gu Baekyoung’s lover.
Of course, even with this smokescreen operation, there could be those who suspected him.
But even if he really got dragged to a Guide testing room by any chance, there was a way to escape. Should he say he could make it seem like he was a Guide but not a Guide?
It was something only Onyul, the nation’s first Esper and Guide, could do.
A slanted smile formed on Onyul’s lips. He thought there would be no one to disturb his peace for a while now.
***
Na Geonwoo had been terribly busy for the past few days. While he was busy handling Gates, the surroundings became very noisy due to Gu Baekyoung’s bombshell declaration.
Na Geonwoo used Gates as an excuse and ignored even the summons of Park Hanil, the Guide Center Director, including the media.
But when Gu Baekyoung thoroughly ignored Park Hanil’s summons, Na Geonwoo had no choice but to step forward in the end.
The team leader takes responsibility for what team members do. Na Geonwoo was finally dragged to the Guide Center Director’s office and came to face Park Hanil.
“Esper Na Geonwoo.”
“…”
“You know who that helmet is, don’t you?”
Park Hanil seemed convinced that Na Geonwoo, who got along fairly well with Gu Baekyoung, would know that identity. Na Geonwoo didn’t hide his uncomfortable demeanor.
“How would I know?”
Of course, he couldn’t talk about the convenience store manager at this place.
Not only because of the deal he made with Kang Ian, but also because he didn’t like Park Hanil.
He was a man who thought of Guides as tools to treat Espers.
He thought it was right to mercilessly discard tools that had lost their value, and didn’t even treat low-rank Guides as people.
Because of such values, there were countless Guides who suffered harm from Park Hanil.
Na Geonwoo was bothered by his attitude and didn’t even set foot in the Guide Center. He had even left advice to his own Guide not to get close to Park Hanil.
If he revealed Kang Ian’s existence to such a man, something would happen that would earn Gu Baekyoung’s resentment. It seemed better to reveal it when at least Gu Baekyoung and Kang Ian were ready.
However, Park Hanil didn’t back down as if his curiosity about the cat helmet had exploded.
“If you know anything, it would be better to tell me now.”
Na Geonwoo rather asked back in a tone that gave no leeway.
“Center Director, what has been your wish all this time?”
“…Suddenly a wish?”
Na Geonwoo didn’t care about Park Hanil’s disagreeable reaction and pushed up his glasses.
“Yes, haven’t you desperately wanted a Guide who could control Baekyoung all this time?”
“…”
“Your wish has been somewhat fulfilled and control has become good, so what’s the problem?”
“Esper Na Geonwoo. Are you doing this because you don’t know the seriousness of the situation? If that Guide happens to be an unregistered Guide…”
“At least they’re not someone who will harm us, that cat helmet.”
Even Na Geonwoo saying that was slightly puzzled. He originally didn’t trust others, so he tended to observe people for a long time before judging.
But it had only been a few days since he met Kang Ian.
All he knew about him was from background investigation, yet he strangely trusted him.
It might be because he was someone Gu Baekyoung, who doesn’t easily follow people, showed trust in.
Perhaps it was because of that strange Guiding that stabilized the mind and body of Espers. After experiencing tremendous Radiant Guiding for the first time in his life, strange trust might have formed.
Whatever the reason, it seemed like Kang Ian wouldn’t do anything to betray his trust.
In other words, it seemed he wouldn’t hurt Gu Baekyoung.
Na Geonwoo was confident that his baseless conviction wouldn’t be wrong.
“If really by any chance trouble occurs due to the cat helmet’s fault, I will take responsibility.”
Na Geonwoo left the Center Director’s office with those final words. As if there would be no further cooperation.
Park Hanil, left alone, ground his lower lip.
It felt like there was delicious prey right before his eyes but he couldn’t eat it.
Since Na Geonwoo and Gu Baekyoung, who seemed to know something, wouldn’t tell him anything, his curiosity grew instead.
‘Seeing how even Na Geonwoo is completely covering for them, there seems to be some secret.’
Park Hanil wanted to find out who that Guide was and subordinate them to the Guide Center.
The nation’s first S-rank Guide. Wasn’t it an ability that made one’s mouth water too much?
An honest Guide of the Republic of Korea had to register with the Management Bureau and work for the country.
Fortunately, Park Hanil hadn’t come away completely empty-handed.
Through today’s conversation, he gained the conviction that Na Geonwoo didn’t completely not know the cat helmet.
Moreover, Na Geonwoo seemed to know the cat helmet’s identity, and furthermore, why they were trying to hide their identity. That nuance was felt throughout the conversation.
Park Hanil instructed his secretary to investigate Alpha Team’s movements.
Three hours later, an investigation report containing Gu Baekyoung and Alpha Team’s recent movements was in Park Hanil’s hands.
Among the unremarkable documents, the ridiculous thing was the description about Gu Baekyoung.
‘Guy Who’ll Smile Even If You Give Him Just 100 Won?’
None other than Gu Baekyoung had recently been smiling at others or encouraging skinship.
The Gu Baekyoung that Park Hanil knew had no interest in others. To be more precise, he was indifferent to people except for the recently deceased Kang Onyul.
But what wind suddenly blew? Did his personality change after finding a compatible Guide?
In particular, there were people he got along with exceptionally warmly, and those were none other than convenience store managers.
The C Company convenience store and G Company convenience store managers within the Management Bureau.
Both men were ordinary people, and their physiques were similar to the man wearing the cat helmet who appeared at the scene.
The G Company convenience store was a large convenience store that even Park Hanil frequented, and the manager had changed last year. He remembered it was a young man with a good-looking impression.
Gu Baekyoung had recently frequently dropped by the G Company convenience store to talk with the manager or request to hold hands. While doing so, he also asked strange questions…
<What type of convenience store part-timer do you prefer most?>
<Tell me about convenience store operation methods.>
<Could I work part-time here?>
Gu Baekyoung asked persistently as if he would operate a convenience store in the future. It was behavior whose reason couldn’t be understood at all.
Especially an S-rank Esper who earns countless money wanting to work part-time at a convenience store? It was absurd.
Park Hanil stopped thinking.
Understanding a crazy person was impossible after all.
