# Chapter 52
Dohyuk awkwardly asked back.
“A cat?”
His mouth suddenly went dry as he swallowed nervously. Junseo added:
“Esper Choi Dohyuk is being considerate of me. I keep telling you, cats are scary.”
The reddish-brown eyes, which had failed to notice the playful smile lingering on Junseo’s lips, sighed instead of speaking.
“…Please stop.”
It was a serious crime to say such ambiguous words with that kind of face. Even without intention, it was in poor taste. Just as Dohyuk was about to scold him for the childish whining, a low voice stopped him. Those eyes, not smiling thinly as usual, seemed a bit unfamiliar.
“What’s important is Esper Choi Dohyuk’s feelings. You don’t want to send it to the lab, do you?”
Mirror-like eyes. Dohyuk lost the confidence to meet that gaze. Perhaps he was afraid something might be reflected in them. Though he clearly felt the gaze on him, he pretended not to notice. He gripped the cat’s front paws for no reason and shook his head while trying not to reveal any expression.
“…I have to send it.”
He hid in the falling shadows. There was no other choice, so he had no option.
To say that his feelings were what mattered. Dohyuk, who had never made important decisions based on such thinking in his life, ultimately pretended not to hear until the end.
There was a sound like air deflating. That sound felt somewhat painful, like a kind of surrender. Was it because of the obvious sigh? It naturally reminded him of Seungmin, with whom he’d always had similar arguments.
‘Dohyuk, please!’
He must be frustrated.
Even as he understood this, every time disappointment leaked from those pitch-black pupils, Dohyuk felt like the ground beneath him was collapsing. But what was offered to Dohyuk, whose shoulders were already half-slumped, was a gentle tone different from what he expected.
“I actually knew you’d say that. When you become a bit more honest later, tell me again.”
The warm temperature carried in that tone. Dohyuk felt like he might get burned by that warmth.
“……”
Meeting his bewildered gaze, Junseo smiled languidly.
“In exchange, I’ll name it. I don’t mind disliking what Esper Choi Dohyuk likes, but if I think about you even naming it…”
That would definitely make me jealous. Junseo whispered in Dohyuk’s ear. Though the content was close to complaining, it couldn’t have been more affectionate. It was also in a tone that was certain Dohyuk would eventually keep the cat.
Even setting aside Dohyuk’s feelings, just looking at the situation, the probability that Dohyuk could take responsibility for this fragile creature was significantly low.
Dohyuk bit his lip thoughtfully. The breath that touched his ear still seemed to permeate deeper, still making him feel dizzy. The expectation that welled up at those words was foolish, since abundant hope was bound to shatter soon.
Did all Espers feel this way toward Guides with high matching rates?
Feeling manipulated all day, yet ultimately letting a smile escape.
Dohyuk, unaware of what expression had appeared on his face, absently followed Junseo with his eyes for a while as he walked away without lingering.
Jihun, who was nearby, finally couldn’t hold back his laughter. At the soft laughter coming from close by, Dohyuk narrowed his brow as if he didn’t understand why. Jihun, as always neat but with a strangely pleased expression, answered the unspoken question.
“I still don’t know how Esper Choi Dohyuk-nim and Guide Yu Junseo-nim became partners, but lately I often think you two match very well.”
“…Is that so?”
Though he wasn’t sure exactly how he and Junseo appeared to others, he figured it was better than saying they didn’t match at all.
Thinking this, Dohyuk gazed at Junseo.
A prim expression as if he was deliberately saying something completely obvious. That appearance was so childlike that Dohyuk unconsciously reached out and stroked Junseo’s bangs. The fine, smooth hair parted, revealing a snow-white forehead.
This makes him look even younger. As his finger traced the elegant curve of that forehead, he could feel the other’s body heat fully on his bare hand. Only then did Dohyuk belatedly mutter, ah, I took off my gloves.
When had it started? Things that seemed difficult had become easier. Dohyuk was still confused whether this change would become a flower or a blade for him.
“Whenever Esper-nim tries to give up, Guide Yu Junseo-nim forces something into your hands.”
Dohyuk merely shrugged at Jihun’s words.
“I don’t know. No matter how I think about it, Guide Yu Junseo-nim seems to be getting the short end of the rela—”
Before Dohyuk could finish his sentence.
Kak!
The cat in Dohyuk’s arms let out a sharp cry and jumped down, startling Jihun. At the cat’s sudden reaction, Dohyuk turned his head to the left. It was when Jihun, who couldn’t grasp what was happening, reflexively followed Dohyuk’s gaze.
Had they even blinked once? Hansol, Sangjun, and Jaesik appeared in the empty space as if by magic. They must have teleported on their way back after finishing the search. The cat kept yapping as if startled by the people who suddenly appeared.
“You’re here?”
Dohyuk rose and greeted them with his eyes. Instead of Jaesik and Hansol, who had little reaction to Dohyuk, Sangjun returned the greeting.
“Yes. Esper Choi Dohyuk, was there any problem at the base? Aigo, this pig of a cat is grunting again. Is it happy to see me?”
The cat captured by Sangjun kept rustling tirelessly. It even bared its sharp teeth and growled, which Sangjun found amusing as he deliberately made an unpleasant laughing sound to tease the cat.
“Fortunately, nothing happened.”
“For now, Esper Hansol worked hard handling the scanning and transportation, so let’s have him receive guiding first, then share the search results. Guide Kwon Jihun, would you please take care of this?”
Upon hearing Sangjun’s words, Dohyuk instinctively looked down at Hansol’s choker.
A yellow light was flashing. Jaesik and Sangjun were in a similar state, suggesting there had been combat during the search. Jihun hurriedly nodded.
“Understood.”
“And well. There’s no suitable person. Guide Kwon Jihun, for Esper Seo Jaesik’s guiding too…”
Just as Sangjun, having mentally excluded Hayeon who would handle his own guiding, was about to assign the guiding of two A-class Espers to Jihun.
“Oh, are you short on Guides? Then I’ll handle Esper Seo Jaesik’s guiding.”
At the gentle voice, the surrounding noise momentarily ceased. The owner of the voice was Junseo, who had been sitting quietly as if he had not a shred of interest in the returned search team. Disregarding the chilling silence, Junseo curled up the corners of his mouth and looked at Jaesik.
“That’s alright, isn’t it? We also have some misunderstandings to resolve.”
It was the first time.
That Dohyuk’s face hardened despite Junseo’s smile, which his rosy lips spread wide to create.
“Yu Junseo? You’re going to do it?”
Sangjun could only ask again in suspicion that his ears had gone bad. Sangjun hadn’t thought of Junseo as a Guide from the start. He could only wonder what Junseo was thinking.
Guiding that wasn’t even requested? The guy who hadn’t shown a speck of interest in guiding anyone except Esper Choi Dohyuk? They say people die when they suddenly do strange things. Sangjun thought it would be more realistic if Junseo had confessed to having a terminal illness instead.
“Yes. Don’t worry. I’ll be as gentle as possible.”
But Junseo’s thoughts seemed different from Sangjun’s, as his answer was firm. At Junseo’s clear response, Sangjun looked at Jaesik. It was a look that asked if there had been some private agreement. In response to that look, Jaesik reflexively grabbed Sangjun’s collar. It seemed like a signal for help. Apparently, there had been no agreement after all.
Sangjun clicked his tongue softly and narrowed his brow. Jaesik had become oddly submissive since staying at the base with Yu Junseo the day before. Even during this search, Jaesik’s words had decreased significantly compared to the first day of searching. To the point where he seemed like a different person. Plus, no matter how annoying the guy was, wasn’t it too harsh to make him receive guiding from Junseo? As a fellow Esper, he had to intervene.
Sangjun thought Jaesik had been quite rude on the first day, but on the other hand, he also fully understood Jaesik’s position, which activated his sympathy. From what Sangjun had observed so far, Jaesik wasn’t the type to make big plans that required sharp vigilance. He was someone who knew when to yield to power appropriately, had high pride but was transparently simple. He was the type likely to be used and pushed around.
Now that he thought about it, wasn’t Jaesik’s personality perfect for Junseo to manipulate? Sangjun turned his gaze to Junseo. His head was already throbbing at what nasty ideas might be filling that round head. Still, Jaesik was an A-class Esper. Sangjun declined any noisy incidents during this mission on his end. Besides Junseo, Sangjun had countless other things to worry about.
“Why don’t you just let Guide Kwon Jihun handle it? Your matching rate with Esper Seo Jaesik is low, and there’s no way you have good empathy power.”
Empathy power was a term used only for guiding. In guiding, which prevents Espers from going berserk by suppressing their emotional depression and anxiety, empathy power was as crucial as matching rate. Even with a low matching rate, high empathy power dramatically increases guiding efficiency. Recently, papers and research results suggesting the importance of empathy power had been consistently emerging.
Then, what about the empathy power of S-class Guide Yu Junseo? As far as Sangjun remembered, one of the reasons Junseo had been able to live like an idler despite being S-class was his trash-like empathy power. Although he had become quite docile since meeting Dohyuk, whatever his intentions, it was impossible that he had reformed and would empathize with others. It would be the same with Seo Jaesik.
