DMG Chapter 2 (Part 2)

However, Kang I-won, stubbornly refusing to depend on a Guide, relied heavily on the medication. Over time, this dependence turned into a habit—whenever he needed immediate relief, he instinctively reached for the medication instead of a Guide.

This habit persisted even after he was transferred to the Southern Gyeonggi Third Branch, where Guides were more readily available. He still prioritized Guiding medication and minimized his sessions with Guides.

Of course, there was a reason behind this stubborn habit.

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When an Esper suffers from insufficient Guiding, the symptoms vary. For some, the effects are primarily mental, while for others, they are physical. Naturally, many experience both.

In Kang I-won’s case, insufficient Guiding impacted him in both ways.

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Mentally, he only experienced mild bouts of melancholy. Physically, however, he dealt with mild headaches, nausea, and a dull ache throughout his body—similar to the feeling of being sick with a mild fever. His body felt strangely heavy and sluggish, though this occasionally created the illusion that injuries hurt less than they actually did.

Kang I-won was always in pain. He had merely grown adept at enduring it; the pain itself never became familiar.

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When the pain grew unbearable, he resorted to chewing on the painkillers he always carried with him.

It would have been better to take them preemptively, but strong painkillers dulled his mind, slowing his ability to think and react. As a result, he could only take them after battles, never during or before.

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Of course, even if his dulled mind caused a mistake, Kang I-won himself would not die. His regenerative ability ensured that.

But his companions weren’t so lucky. A mistake on his part could cost the lives of those fighting alongside him.

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Pain was something he could endure, but surviving alone while his comrades perished was a reality he could never grow accustomed to.

For this reason, Kang I-won always maintained a state of guiding deficiency. He needed the pain to keep himself sharp and decisive. To achieve this, Guiding medication was more effective than receiving direct guiding.

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But who could he possibly explain this to? Kang I-won let out a deep sigh.

After a brief rest, he slowly rose, his body feeling somewhat steadier. At the same time, an intense hunger surged through him. He searched his pockets but found only empty wrappers. The realization made him sigh deeply, disappointment welling up within him.

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* * *

Even in a world where Gates appear without warning and monsters emerge to threaten lives, the days still pretended to roll along as if nothing were wrong.

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On an early weekday afternoon, the streets were noticeably quieter than the bustling weekends, giving off an oddly empty vibe.

After five grueling days of work, Kang I-won found himself in the city alone on his day off. The reason? A sale event at a nearby supermarket.

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Having postponed shopping for weeks, he had run out of essential items. Out of toilet paper and with a sale underway, he finally made the trip to the city.

The supermarket was a sizable two-story building with a ground floor and basement. Its exterior walls were plastered with sale signs. Luckily, the toilet paper he needed was one of the discounted items.

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Grabbing a cart at the entrance, Kang I-won headed down to the basement. The first thing he added to his cart was ramen. Since he always cooked it in bulk, no matter how much he bought, it never seemed to last.

As always, he picked the cheapest brand of ramen. With the sale, it was even cheaper than usual, so he added a few more packs than planned, filling the cart with ramen.

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“Toothpaste… and shampoo too,” Kang I-won muttered softly to himself, recalling the other essentials he was running low on. It had been a while since his last visit to the supermarket, and there was plenty to buy.

After adding toothpaste and shampoo to his cart, Kang I-won started heading toward the ground floor. But he stopped abruptly, sensing something ominous.

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His gaze snapped toward the source of the uneasy energy. Though there was nothing visible, the finely honed instincts he’d developed over the past decade as an Esper screamed at him to evacuate immediately.

And those instincts were rarely wrong.

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Kang I-won shouted loudly, something he seldom did.

“Evacuate immediately!”

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People, conditioned by countless past disasters, didn’t stop to confirm the presence of a Gate. Abandoning their carts, they fled toward the ground floor in a panic.

“Evacuate immediately!”

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The shouts of those who had fled to the first floor were loud enough to echo all the way down to the basement. Staying calm, Kang I-won used his device to issue an emergency call to nearby Espers. The reason: Gate emergence. The alert would have reached both the Center and every Esper in the vicinity.

His next priority was to evacuate the remaining citizens, some of whom were still staring at him in confusion.

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One of the stragglers, a man with a swagger in his step, looked around before approaching Kang I-won with an irritated expression.

“Evacuate? There’s nothing here. Hey, are you a YouTuber or something? Is this a prank? Damn, you really live up to your creepy look,” the man sneered.

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“Please evacuate immediately. A Gate will appear soon,” Kang I-won said firmly.

The man stepped closer, invading Kang I-won’s personal space, and jabbed his forehead with his finger while spouting insults.

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“Bullshit. Evacuate for what? There’s nothing here. Quit the crap. You’re just some attention-seeking loser, aren’t you? You damn clowns are always pulling stunts for a little fame. You think it’s funny to mess with people like this? Does it make you feel good, huh?”

“You need to evacuate now,” Kang I-won repeated calmly.

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“Evacuayaaaashun my ass! You’re just spouting garbage, you idiot,” the man mocked, mimicking his tone in a high-pitched, mocking voice.

Kang I-won sighed softly, glancing at the man and the small group of onlookers who were watching the scene with morbid curiosity.

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“I am Kang I-won, an Esper from the Southern Gyeonggi Third Branch of the Monster Response Center. I can sense ominous energy in this area, so please evacuate immediately—”

He didn’t get to finish his sentence.

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With a dreadful tearing sound, the air itself began to rip apart as though it were paper. A black dot formed in the void and began swirling rapidly, giving birth to a Gate.

“Holy shit!”

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The man who had been poking Kang I-won’s forehead froze for a second, then bolted in terror, leading the charge up the stairs. The bystanders who had been enjoying the spectacle panicked and rushed to follow.

“It’s a Gate! A Gate has appeared!”

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The man’s panicked shouts echoed loudly as he fled.

Meanwhile, in the basement of the supermarket, where everyone else had evacuated, Kang I-won stood alone, calmly observing the Gate. Judging by the lack of clear precursors, it was likely either a Summoning Type or a Dungeon Type. He silently hoped for the latter.

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He wasn’t confident his current condition could handle what was about to come.

It was his day off after five grueling days of work. Though he had used Guiding medication to recover from overusing his abilities, his body still felt far from normal. If he had known this would happen, he would have followed Choi Soo-bin’s advice yesterday and sought out one of the on-site Guides for proper Guiding.

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But regrets, no matter how immediate, always come too late. There was nothing he could do now but hope the emerging Gate was a Dungeon Type—or at least that the monsters it spawned were low-ranked.

The Gate rapidly expanded, consuming a quarter of the ceiling, before finally ceasing its growth. Soon, a red hue began to envelop it.

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The Gate, now tinged with crimson, flickered ominously. Kang I-won frowned. At that level, the monsters would be somewhere between B- and B rank, a range he’d struggle to handle alone.

“…Ha.”

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He let out a quiet sigh. Neither of his prayers had been granted. Clearly, there was no such thing as divine intervention.

From the dark red Gate, a pair of thick, segmented hind legs covered in tough green exoskeleton began to emerge. Of all things, it had to be an insect-type.

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Insect-types were notoriously troublesome. Even if their heads were severed, they could continue moving for a significant amount of time. To truly kill them, one had to split their body open and spill out their internal organs. But their exoskeletons were absurdly tough, making them incredibly difficult to deal with.

If it had been an external-type creature, it might have been easier to manage. Unfortunately, most insect-types tended to be internal-types, meaning their organs were well-protected within their hard shells.

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As he watched the monster’s hind legs twitch and struggle, Kang I-won made one last desperate wish.

Please, at least don’t let it fly.

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The monster struggled and pulled its torso out of the gate. As expected, the gods ignored Kang I-won’s wish.

It was a monster with a body resembling a praying mantis. It had a pair of wings on its back, and its front legs were equipped with thick pincers, resembling saw blades.

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Kang I-won clicked his tongue as he looked at the strangely furry wings attached to the mantis-like insect monster’s body.

Flying-type monsters were troublesome. If the situation turned even slightly unfavorable, they would immediately escape into the sky, often flying quickly to recover energy before launching surprise attacks on humans. Often, these cunning creatures would engage in hit-and-run tactics, draining the Espers’ energy.

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Since it was a flying-type monster, there was no way it could be allowed to leave this place. It was fortunate that it appeared in the underground area with the ceiling tightly sealed.

The monster was the only one. The gate that had spewed out the single monster vanished as though it had completed its task.

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An insect-type monster, about B-rank level, flying-type. It was an awful match for Kang I-won. It didn’t even have any weapons.

Kang I-won couldn’t hold back and let out a deep sigh. Even so, with just one, he should be able to endure until the others arrived. No, he had to endure.

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“Ki-iiiiiiiick!”

The gigantic praying mantis monster, about 3 meters in length, roared with frustration and irritation at the ceiling, which was slightly higher than its body. The wings, which had been tightly folded against its back, quivered and attempted to take flight. It was trying to break through the ceiling.

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Unable to just watch, Kang I-won grabbed a can of tuna nearby and threw it toward the monster’s wings. The tuna can hit its fluttering wings.

The monster, its wingbeats interrupted, turned its head toward Kang I-won.

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“Ki-ruk!! Ki-reuk!!”

Only then did the monster, having finally noticed Kang I-won, shake its jaw with pleasure.

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It had just emerged from the gate and was extremely hungry. Although it was a shame that there was only one, it thought it would catch the human, fill its belly with him, and use that energy to break out of here and hunt down more humans.

The praying mantis monster used its sharp forelegs, like weapons, to swipe away anything that obstructed its path. Wherever its sharp legs brushed past, it sliced through as easily as cutting tofu. The cutting power was immense.

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Kang I-won kicked a cart and pushed it toward the approaching mantis monster. As before, the mantis monster used its sharp forelegs to strike it away. The cart, sliced in half by the fierce cutting power, rolled across the floor.

“Tch.”

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No matter how he looked at it, the matchup was absolutely awful. If the distance closed at all, Kang I-won’s body would undoubtedly be cut to pieces by those sharp forelegs, like a sheet of paper.

Kang I-won maintained a dangerously close distance that kept him just out of reach of the mantis monster’s strikes while buying time. Thanks to this, shelves were knocked over, goods scattered across the floor, and the contents burst open, releasing the smells of various foods into the air.

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“Ki-iiiii-!!!”

Seeing that Kang I-won was so close to being caught but still evading, the mantis monster threw a tantrum, raising its long arm to scratch the ceiling. The fluorescent lights shattered where its foreleg passed, and the light flickered out.

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Many Espers would rather wish this reality were a game. Monsters don’t have intelligence; they follow set patterns, and if you understand those patterns, you could defeat them easily.

If this were a game, the mantis monster that had drawn Kang I-won’s aggro would continue focusing on him. But unfortunately, this wasn’t a game—it was reality, and monsters did have intelligence. There were even studies suggesting that smart monsters had an intelligence level similar to that of a kindergartner.

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The mantis monster grew increasingly frustrated as it failed to catch the human, who kept eluding its grasp. However, despite its frustration, the mantis monster decided to abandon the hunt for this troublesome human for now.

It would go elsewhere, consume another human to regain energy, and then return to tear this annoying human apart. With that thought, the mantis monster began to scratch at the ceiling. The ceiling crumbled easily, as if it were made of dried, hard clay.

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“Damn it.”

For a monster, it lacked persistence. Kang I-won sighed softly and moved closer to the mantis monster, throwing a nearby cart at it. The mantis monster ignored the cart that collided with its body and continued to focus on digging into the ceiling.

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The ceiling was quickly pierced.

“Ki-rik! Ki-rrr-rrr!”

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The mantis monster let out a joyful cry at the sight of light leaking through the hole in the ceiling.

As it widened the hole to make it easier for itself to pass through, Kang I-won took action. In his hand, he held a long stick, a piece of a display rack that had been sliced by the mantis monster earlier.

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The display rack, which had toppled over earlier, was leaning slightly due to its base being supported. Kang I-won used the five-tiered rack like a staircase, quickly climbing to the top, where he leaped and swung the stick toward the mantis monster’s eyes.

Kang I-won often aimed for the eyes. No matter the monster, the eyes were the weakest and most vulnerable area, and targeting them could easily attract the monster’s attention.

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But the attack failed. Before the end of the stick could reach the monster’s eyes, its thick pincers struck Kang I-won’s torso. Without any armor, Kang I-won took the full brunt of the blow and was immediately slammed into the wall.

“Ugh…!”

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There was no time to lose consciousness. Kang I-won quickly raised the stick and blocked the pincers that came crashing toward him. The shock was so immense that his arms rang painfully, but there was no time to focus on the pain. Kang I-won threw himself to the side.

At the same time, the mantis monster’s forelegs slammed down onto the spot where Kang I-won had been. The legs embedded into the wall, and Kang I-won didn’t miss the brief opportunity.

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He immediately struck the joint of the mantis monster’s foreleg, which was now pinned against the wall, but unless he had a weapon specifically designed to kill monsters, it was difficult to inflict significant damage.

“Ki-aaaaaaaaack-!!!”

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Although there was no direct hit, the pain was undeniable. The mantis monster’s cry of fury echoed through the air.

The mantis monster glared at the human who dared to cause it pain. Rage surged to the top of its head. It seemed as though only by tearing the human apart, piece by piece, and devouring every last bit of flesh would its anger be quelled.

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The chase resumed. Fueled by rage, the mantis monster’s movements were faster and sharper than before. Unlike earlier, when it barely maintained a safe distance, its forelegs now continuously brushed against Kang I-won’s body.

The edges of its saw-like forelegs harshly tore through Kang I-won’s clothes, leaving shallow gashes that appeared and disappeared in rapid succession. The blood stains left behind marked the spots where the wounds had been.

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During this dangerous chase, a display rack that Kang I-won had been using for cover finally toppled, blocking his view. In that fleeting moment, one of the mantis monster’s forelegs, resembling a pincer, shot through the debris and grabbed Kang I-won’s thigh. The jagged inside edge of the leg dug cruelly into his flesh.

Kang I-won’s body crumpled as he was dragged away by the mantis monster.

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“Ki-ruk, Ki-ruk!!”

Finally catching its elusive prey, the mantis monster expressed its joy and lifted the captured human in its pincer. Kang I-won’s body spun upside down, dangling in mid-air.

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Thankfully, his thigh wasn’t completely severed, but the pincer’s cutting power was so immense that it dug deep into his flesh, scraping against the bone. The pain was so intense that he almost lost consciousness.

The mantis monster, eager to enjoy its victory, used its other pincer to seize Kang I-won’s upper body and twist him around. The most delicious part of a human was the head, and the mantis monster was the type that always ate the best parts first.

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Holding Kang I-won’s thigh with one leg and his upper body with the other, the mantis monster moved to bring his head to its mouth.

Just as the monster’s jaws parted, preparing to bite down on Kang I-won’s head, he swung his free arm—the only part not caught by the pincers—and thrust it toward the monster’s eyes, stabbing and scrambling. He felt a soft, mushy sensation in his hand.

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“Ki-eeeee!!!”

The mantis monster, writhing in pain from the sensation in its eyes, instinctively tightened its pincers, causing Kang I-won to break free in an unexpected way.

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“…!”

The sudden wave of pain was so intense that Kang I-won couldn’t even scream. His body, now reduced to a ragged mess, fell to the ground and rolled.

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Barely able to breathe, his mouth open as he gasped for air, Kang I-won stretched out his trembling arm to steady himself. Using only one arm and one leg, he began to crawl across the floor, trying to escape from the monster’s relentless assault.

A trail of blood followed the slow path he crawled.

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As the monster thrashed in agony, Kang I-won managed to put a bit of distance between them, exhaling a shaky breath. His body shuddered with exhaustion. The energy drained from him completely. He couldn’t understand what kind of hell he was enduring on his supposed day off.

Even moving a single finger had become an immense challenge. Yet, he gathered his remaining strength and searched his chest for any relief.

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But there was nothing. No painkillers, no guiding drugs. Feeling utterly defeated, Kang I-won let the strength drain from his body. His chest, along with his severed arm, was regenerating, but it was happening at a painfully slow rate.

He couldn’t buy any more time with this battered body. If he were caught now, being eaten was the only way out. Kang I-won half-accepted this fate, letting go of his remaining strength.

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Fortunately, before the monster could devour him, the 5th and 9th teams, who had been called to the scene, arrived faster.

Choi Soo-bin, upon seeing Kang I-won’s horrific condition, asked in a voice that seemed to scream in horror.

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“Is he dead?!”

“……”

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“Is he dead or not? You damn bastard!”

Choi Soo-bin’s voice buzzed in his ears. Even opening his mouth was a struggle, yet she insisted on forcing him to respond like that. Kang I-won barely managed to open his mouth and answer.

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“I’m alive, but…”

His head was spinning. It felt like he was on the verge of death, though his abilities prevented it from happening.

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Choi Soo-bin, standing some distance away, sent a sharp gust of wind toward the monster and moved closer to Kang I-won. Upon seeing his condition up close, her face involuntarily twisted in disgust.

“Who the hell does he think he is, taking on that thing alone without any protection? Damn idiot. Really, what the hell were you thinking? You didn’t even get any guiding yesterday. And now look at you. Do I have to nag you like Team Leader does, huh? Why can’t you just take care of yourself?”

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“Choi Soo-bin… Forget that, I need… that…”

Ignoring Choi Soo-bin’s scolding, Kang I-won, with what little strength he had left, pointed to two dismembered chunks of flesh rolling on the floor.

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With a voice so faint it seemed like it might fade away, Choi Soo-bin muttered curses under her breath. Still, she cautiously gathered up the pieces from the floor and carefully reconnected them at the severed edges.

Even when there were physical losses, if there was enough energy, the body could be restored. But on a day like today, when energy was in short supply, it was easier and faster to simply reattach the pieces. Of course, this method used less energy.

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However, today, the regeneration was particularly slow. The fact that his powers weren’t functioning properly meant that guiding was more urgent than ever.

With years of experience, Kang I-won knew his own limits better than any other Esper.

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Kang I-won’s current condition was akin to a water tank on the verge of overflowing, with the water gently splashing at the edge but not quite spilling over. He was in that precarious state, barely holding on.

His body was in an extremely unstable state. At this point, even guiding medication wouldn’t help. In fact, it would be toxic, especially when the waves of energy were unstable.

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This was the time when a Guide’s guiding was crucial. Kang I-won suddenly wondered how Heo Do-gyeong would react if he saw him like this. Would he hate the sight of him in such a sorry state? Maybe, but it seemed like it might help clear up any misunderstandings.

He quickly brushed the thought aside. There was no need for that. Even though their matching rate was high, Heo Do-gyeong was only temporary, after all. A temporary presence who could leave at any moment.

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Kang I-won closed his eyes, emptying his mind, and focused on regenerating his body. His condition made the process agonizingly slow, but he was steadily restoring himself.

The mantis monster that had reduced Kang I-won to a ragged mess was subdued by seven Espers.

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Even after the monster was subdued, Kang I-won’s body was still not fully restored. Choi Soo-bin, who returned after the monster’s suppression, grimaced at the noticeably slower pace and spoke with concern.

“The other team’s Guide came along. They’ll handle the temporary guiding, so at least accept that for now.”

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“…He’ll probably hate it.”

Most Espers don’t like their team’s Guide working with another team’s Esper. It’s not uncommon for dedicated Guides to form bonds or even imprint with Espers from other teams, which makes things complicated.

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When a Guide imprints with an Esper, they can only provide guiding to that specific Esper, and the Esper can only receive guiding from the Guide they’ve imprinted with.

Therefore, when a dedicated Guide imprints with an Esper from another team, it’s as if they’ve lost their own Guide overnight. It’s a catastrophe, as though a bolt from the blue had struck.

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A typical example of this was Lee Eun-young, the former Guide of Team 5. She fell in love with an Esper from Team 7 and, in secret, became romantically involved with him. Unknowingly, they formed an imprint bond.

As a result, she could no longer guide other Espers, and, in an emergency, a C-rank Guide without a dedicated team was assigned to temporarily guide Team 5. And now, that role had been passed on to Heo Do-gyeong.

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Though such events occur, it wasn’t unusual for a Guide to provide guiding to an Esper from another team. It was better to provide guiding than to watch them spiral out of control. Choi Soo-bin said:

“No, the team leader from their side seems to like you. He’ll probably help if you ask. Just wait a moment.”

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Choi Soo-bin immediately approached the Team 9 leader and explained the situation. The Team 9 leader then explained something to their dedicated Guide, who approached Kang I-won along with Choi Soo-bin. Upon seeing Kang I-won’s condition, the Guide clicked his tongue.

“Goodness, Kang I-won… What happened to you…? Ugh, I’ll provide guiding right away.”

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The Guide, who sat down next to Kang I-won, urgently attempted to provide guiding. Thankfully, the matching rate wasn’t too low, and Kang I-won felt the chaotic energy waves slowly begin to stabilize. He could breathe again. The regeneration process, which had been painfully slow, started to speed up.

 

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