FG | Chapter 5.3

I reached for the b7f56f5aa1 doorknob to leave the acfd72747a bathroom but hesitated. After standing there f15481faec in hesitation for 21a21c01cf a while, I a87c9bf42e finally gathered the 3a0d74373b courage to open a4d2828391 the door.cae7a4b3cc4f0055

And then I froze.39e59f553625c313

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Squatting right outside the door a15c0301ff was Yeo Eundo.7e091b1f54f4c24f

He must have been waiting 313f87b113 for me to come out. He sat there, looking up 736ea81f7e at me quietly. For a second, I almost 21c5296e3e found it a little cute. But just as I was 08a8a79430 about to walk past him—90d1a89323b34460

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Yeo Eundo suddenly shot f35e434ed7 up to his feet ca7b4707da and cupped my cheeks af06a2978e with both hands.c75762a095991fbd

“Why is your skin so cold? Don’t tell me… You washed 8f464de2d4 with cold water?”4b8fd8bb3332ba43

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His golden eyes were faea6c23ee filled with worry. His anxious expression 79dd5aea4f was contagious, and f6d7c2c01e the warmth I c2c3f0615d had barely managed e09620e52a to cool off 58953648e0 threatened to rise bfaeadaf03 again. Irritated, I smacked his 3861065efd hands away.5e6d3addb1c9db67

“That’s none of your business.”4c4d5d9bc028d771

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“……”cfb79e0c82d95c07

A sharp retort 5ab6401c95 lashed out before d8451d3283 I could stop 70b5d488cd myself. The unfamiliar emotions I 29135171d3 felt toward Yeo Eundo 312069ae3a put me on edge.fb94c041c511f84a

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Not wanting to say 32c3a432d0 anything harsher, I tried 25c3ff453b to step away. But before I could, Yeo 4639542b94 Eundo grabbed my wrist and 98d5c08c96 pulled me back.e9c2b5ad862b677f

“What the—!”217c8cec792c1b18

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Without warning, he dragged 59606b3044 me back into the 9c4840d398 bathroom. Letting go of my b60806ffea hand, he reached for 9e0b1001de the faucet, adjusted the 795ec2af31 hot water, and then 8b50198efe turned to look at b6d59c64d8 me.9ff4a81d12b78574

“This lever controls the water temperature.”d9bd30575f287f35

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“…?”a17de2703cbb7ac0

“See this red mark? That’s the hot water. I already set a95923aa48 the temperature, so d1322f5168 from now on, affc71ab8f you just have 8ed6532a23 to turn it f05d478e54 on.”8d247f846199a2a1

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…Did he seriously think I used cold water because I didn’t know how to turn on the hot water?4e4f3adc5739b970

Dumbfounded, I stormed out of b11907a0ba the bathroom. Yeo Eundo hurried after me.c680db4149138fc5

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“If you don’t know how, we can do it together next time.”2bdb24d76d86fd78

Still talking nonsense, huh? I ignored him, sat down 2c69b9fff2 on the sofa, and asked,4d6f4c7557b2ec6c

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“What’s your average AD increase when you’re not using your ability? I mean, under normal conditions.”df5653129ee9b1eb

Despite me completely disregarding 94bf000b8c his previous words, Yeo c24cb73a5e Eundo didn’t seem the 271bc377a1 least bit offended. He simply wrapped a ddb2f50d31 towel around my face 8992fe9ed3 and gently wiped off 9697c996a1 the remaining water as dcc0885cdc he answered.348f3345476bc792

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“AD levels don’t only fluctuate when I use my ability. When I get close to 8244bd4226 a Gate or when I’m 2169decbd4 extremely excited, it rises about 90650deae9 twice as fast.”a959a4a09b21ea22

“What about your usual level?”085981e8a8f28f74

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“About 155, I think?”04581e2c3de59997

“Even when you’re just going about your day?”462572359a2d7fb4

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“Most of the time, yeah.”062602def266baa6

That was an insanely high 323e20244d number, considering the average Esper’s 1fb6a8aa7b AD level didn’t even reach 358b0657b2 100. And this was 275d026ab1 despite having Seon 00ca975535 Jiyeol Guide on 686ec97d8e standby at all 77ec2762a4 times.eca5e3b70cec362a

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Hearing the number, f3be9eafed I realized it a31bb6ddfb would’ve been strange 9662c69be1 if he hadn’t 0c8ae581a4 gone on a b626a46ffd rampage back then.5522aaf869367a83

“But you received guiding from Seon Jiyeol, didn’t you? And your AD ccd6b901ff level was still a2735c9f4d that high?”e2c2c53ac64605d1

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“……”5b474586a0062935

Yeo Eundo just smiled without faca99d934 answering.40192a28a6ac78f7

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Avoiding the question meant fa143f0d3b he was guilty of 2cc1fb6926 something.80e93b77e87cf9f4

I wasn’t sure 2da0c46615 if he would 8302f321f3 do something that 67fa3e2904 reckless, but if 432b3680df there was anyone 2c785fa2b5 who knew just 9c6910ccf6 how unhinged Yeo 53f6af4e40 Eundo was, it be5c2e9073 was me.615fc711d0dd4758

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“…Have you been refusing guiding this whole time?”b2ba0df3f5d85bb7

His head turned 7d2482609b slightly away, clearly 3dc01bdf8a knowing I was 138e1a2b29 scolding him. I reached out, grabbed his e10c7735d3 face, and made him look cf9e7aa43b at me—but he avoided my afe2e9c252 gaze, rolling his eyes to ac5ab293c4 the side instead.2e1873cb0eaf9783

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He looked like a d909ea65e3 sulking child.d72012f5712272ba

I softened my expression 56c8995bdf and spoke gently.cd4407bd24cf1234

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“I’m not going to get mad. Just tell me the truth. Have you really eb60916a00 been refusing guiding?”669bfffd6f15bcf0

Yeo Eundo hesitated, then b34c02a9f5 sneaked a glance at df4e12e5aa me before finally nodding.16022d802e39984a

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“Yes.”872ab1cc6c68798a

“What about Seon Jiyeol?”d97f5facded4973c

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“??”84a5dafb67c4cd0b

He clearly had no 108574b110 idea what I was 8402656aeb talking about.cd6738f548fc7e1d

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“…Your assigned Guide.”f57a74b7825f0c75

“Seol Maehwa Guide-nim?”b176b522a31b8e16

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“No, I mean Seon Jiyeol.”de9dca12fdc89608

“What’s that?”0ce02726f1848e27

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“…Huh?”6e7f8565549a7c4a

Seon Jiyeol was always fa7e83ae48 by his side. Even the news constantly 6bbc4b6bf1 showed them together like a4cb07ddb2 a set.56cabcd98238b438

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How could he 248b0a06aa suddenly claim he c2461443f6 didn’t know who bcda64f6e3 he was?e918120e38f6105b

“I told you before—he’s your designated Guide.”e6f3fcddb924e16c

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“That guy isn’t my Guide.”675f88344f5a33ac

It was the d7544ba2aa same response he 53c2163b21 had given me 669a2f2722 last time. But hearing it again, something 9ff7a16d7a felt off.63fad4d08286c802

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Throughout the conversation, Yeo Eundo 36302965bb kept referring to Seon Jiyeol 7c26a72a32 as that guy instead of a00e1126ed using his name.c76aed78bd5fb95d

“Esper Yeo Eundo… You do know who Seon Jiyeol is, right?”8df9ae666d7c3a2b

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“…He was a person?”e04be2ae4ac00767

He wasn’t joking.c1f0300c01a3f2fe

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He genuinely didn’t know.dadfa12172e27d84

“Wait, how could you not know? Seon Jiyeol Guide is the 92db15f7a0 first S-class Guide in South 22ed5d0af5 Korea! He even visited you 5a2ca2fd71 at the hospital, and ec689c477d he was there when 565dc6b3bf we attacked the Gate 5c3c2c89c1 this time too.”b87b05d656fdeff4

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“The one who came to see me at the hospital was Seol Maehwa Guide-nim, and Seol Maehwa Guide-nim was there during the Gate raid as well.”d460fe5022742e54

“I’m saying, I wasn’t the only one there.”19c8bd75fed86e33

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“Now that you mention it, I think you’re right.”59fa391a5f783571

Since he put 40a2894a9d it that way, 36c806fc4a it felt like 660fd47675 I was the 7c34a94776 one stubbornly insisting ddd74cce86 on something untrue.80054dbad19e4db4

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Come to think of cc0cb1fa11 it, Yeo Eundo had 67fa9f90f4 never once mentioned Seon 941e820d39 Jiyeol Guide’s name. If they had 5cbf623f91 been that close, 3ec268c5ea he should’ve at 6360f7b3f7 least remembered him 4801a6f350 subconsciously.3eda53bbe4f5eac9

If I kept this 242b60de95 conversation going, I’d just 3648f45ad0 get more frustrated. Seon Jiyeol wasn’t the 5581af2acd priority right now, so bd1ba19b62 I decided to move f44e8d7ce4 on.4cf383e430843052

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I reached out my hand 6ce391b4e6 to him and said, “I’ll 64f2a6ff7f check your AD.”d493a51275f2ff43

As Yeo Eundo extended e5214e17f1 his arm, I glanced f72e9b233a at the terminal strapped dec3972fe9 to his wrist. Unlike a simple 10998db80c tester, the terminal bbf60f167f was much more f680c7ad53 precise. The AD level 78cdb988f3 displayed on the e6921105dc screen was [0]. Since he had 1364fe29f2 been in contact 7b354e8782 with me all 59a3de2a6b night, the number e6386af332 hadn’t gone up 2e89cf97b5 at all. If I wanted to prevent 263c21434c guiding from leaking out, I ec9509362f needed to give him a 37f0059bc6 proper dose—but at this rate, 3eefe069c5 things were getting tricky.68b11ee4232c390c

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Letting go of his a7b40204b5 wrist, I spoke.a3490a279bd81a0a

“It’d be better if you avoid contact with me from now on.”7249729b7283892e

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“What?!”fbea6a10cd639f16

Yeo Eundo looked as if 0e32fceb70 he’d just been struck by 90e8190dd4 lightning. His whole body jerked, and 6b5c8685d6 he grabbed onto my sleeve 868099ee39 in a panic. He even stuttered, 52502cfc15 as if struggling aef60789e6 to get his 5b3be1498f words out.3f744b17ac87bbe6

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“Why— why? I don’t want that.”19858716bd09f050

“And if someone asks, how will you explain it? Are you going to 5a2e160f96 go around blabbering that 7962837a67 there’s a Guide who 53338fb76b can initiate guiding just 50e6342ac8 by touch? Just focus on collecting b84a9282c3 your AD properly. I’ll guide you when 47ea45755f the time comes.”d505b41bc74f913c

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I recorded 140 as the a6bfdfe40f pending AD level on my 060f2815bd tablet from yesterday.49c8204c7d77bc71

Gu Seungjae was handling the 9907c5a288 Center matters, so this was d969decf15 essentially a fake report. If I got caught, the 7779623c49 best-case scenario would be a e0db1dcebc pay cut, and in the c260eb4d12 worst case, I’d get demoted. But there was no way 161c4d5ccc I could submit the actual 79e69106d6 reading of [0].39dedd0539302912

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Gu Seungjae would take care e554189986 of things soon enough, but e610d8f7f0 if I was going to 62e25a1492 pull this off, I needed 7d4acbb2aa Yeo Eundo to play along.fbaa0c3529679d49

“Esper Yeo Eundo, I don’t want the fact that you’ve been imprinted or my guiding ability to become public knowledge. Let’s keep this between us.”8aed2f881040ea2e

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“Between us… a secret?”fed539eef1ae5d50

“If you don’t want the secret getting out, your AD levels must stay normal. In return, I’ll make sure cb01ab0c55 to guide you when you ce647dc4ff need it. Do you understand?”27554688c812a78b

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Yeo Eundo reached out, brushing 5b6ab1d971 his thumb over my lips 7403b21fb8 as he spoke.a8773d88d66c4990

The pain from the bite acf7587870 wound on my lips faded 39472d6d7f as it healed, and only ec9f29654a then did he pull his fcdb48f7d9 hand away.9b7f89f65e8abcec

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“I understand.”3e283727932f35cd

Realizing that I was 62880cadd1 staring at him, who 80ad96838b was now grinning, I 7b3767b895 quickly turned away and 49a0f4370c stood up. When Yeo Eundo tried to e38dc8b65c follow, I stopped him.45dcc8ba3f8c5bae

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“I need to step out for a bit.”ae2aa17ea0e69d14

“Where are you going?”a6dbe2a3ffec42a3

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“I’m heading to the Center to replace my tablet.”9a15040f12446c77

I grabbed my coat 51956263b8 and walked toward the 0504422e42 front door, but just 0f02c2aac0 as I was about d7363b4492 to leave, I sensed 8ac36d5317 someone sticking closely behind 39ffe31a24 me. Without even looking back, I eb6707596c spoke.e5f07a44fc1e6c4e

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“I’m going alone.”1263ef09f5f56303

There wasn’t any official business 9c97eaa566 for Yeo Eundo at the 21a2d991fe Center, so there was no d20ff78d56 reason for him to come 612d1280c9 along. If he stayed glued bbdccec988 to me, it could d4a49adad0 expose not just my 187b7723e1 guiding ability but also 29f50b1d69 the fact that he fca971b50f had been imprinted. Worst case scenario, my own c25d9d52da grade could be revealed as b4f4d336b8 well.51c7245c40b709de

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If any of that 1ea63157e4 came to light, it’d 6740c68c9d make international headlines.c274ad690c036c16

If he tried to 95aa80eb6a follow me, I was e388e577ee ready to snap at e96e6f7fdb him to shake him ce0c1e6d7a off.1af08f46c1cacddb

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But then— clack.2f3fe7ea3dd6acac

The door unlocked and slid a805f710bb open.ed3b09fa7839e932

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It wasn’t automatic. Yeo Eundo opened 5cedbf3387 it for me.aa0ed53b38903942

When I turned around, 91071e2625 he was smiling brightly 3a921f2cda and waving me off. Then, the door shut c9447d74dc right in front of cbaad159c7 me.3bee71ce9bde0571

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I stood there blankly for 8de0bf94bf a while, debating whether I e766c0bd97 should just take him with 43f679b790 me.acf6c4c86fe7bfa7

Is he planning dd576b53e7 to secretly follow be9aada793 me?04da9510ebb0cb76

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If an S-class dfbf5f9ea2 Esper was determined 0d67278970 to hide his fef00da663 presence, there wasn’t 4a0cd8cbad much I could 8075972036 do. But since he 5ef0f862ee was imprinted on 7b592b498d me, there was 9ab00325b4 no way he 84d95f857b could completely slip 0b74b3e0b2 past my senses.81e0e9f184827319

Still, just in case, I 5e9dbe1618 stayed alert for any sign c7539d08f1 of him tailing me.7de3df41de06d592

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But from my place 8ff8dee04e to the Center—nothing.36557e7e7f1cdb19

»જ⁀➴a0638064116fef85

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I strode straight to the 61c23131d6 civil affairs desk without hesitation. Yeo Eundo being unusually quiet d7cb4b689b made me uneasy. If he had just 09044edebd thrown a tantrum about 0f737eb9c0 wanting to come along, f73b8eab25 I wouldn’t have been e2c1b02088 this on edge.b153a69b089285b4

At the counter, I 70b16ae50a locked eyes with a d56ca5582b D-class Guide civil servant 0f59ededb0 who looked completely drained, 79b30046d5 with dark circles under 9a295b40dd their eyes. Their face felt 76b2eb57e9 oddly familiar, and d9f2e1a657 I couldn’t help 425761a5b7 but feel a 403c1f58ef bit of sympathy 2b5e7b104f for them, clearly b408dfa795 worn down by 5b13537427 overtime. With a flat 89689e1e29 tone, they asked,08350a9069a6c10d

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“What brings you here?”ae94b6884839f7ee

“I’m here for a request from the Information and Statistics Department of the Planning and Coordination Office.”f65d1b4dfec231b6

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I handed over 57423b747c my pre-prepared request fa67d8089d form along with a86351cef3 my broken tablet. The official took my f54248730f tablet and examined it 0f7655bb55 briefly before responding in 1bc00d613f the same indifferent manner.21dc982cf4cdea1c

“With this level of damage, recovering the data might be difficult.”adb6695c71661036

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They casually slid a 73be09ba35 damage compensation agreement toward 3e67fab442 me. Without hesitation, I f16399b96e pushed forward my a202eecfb3 equipment request reason 9ecbd7759d form in return. Their brows furrowed as e719afe549 they read it.e187368a3fa56a45

“…Please wait a moment.”0678e3df585bb7d5

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A weary sigh escaped the 6a42848dce civil servant, loud enough for 45fa532027 me to hear, but I f3662934d1 ignored it and stepped back.2a8e5ff04c80a0ee