MCLE | Chapter 7

“You don’t hate it, do you? Me.”

“Ah, can you stop staring at me already?”

Zero Nine spoke with a bright smile, as if he was already fed up. From the very beginning, espers were inevitably drawn to guides with a high matching rate. Damn it.

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Hexion knew that fact all too well. He grabbed the back of Zero Nine’s neck and pulled him closer until their noses touched. Zero Nine didn’t back away. Instead, he met Hexion’s gaze head-on. Neither of them moved. Not even an inch.

Thud, thud!

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That’s when it happened. Someone was knocking on the changing room door. The loud, impatient banging grew stronger. Both of them turned to look at the door.

“Quit messing around in there and get out!”

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It was Elijah’s voice. Like a damn ghost, as always.

Zero Nine was the first to let go. Hexion clicked his tongue in disappointment. Zero Nine reached out and straightened Hexion’s clothes, which had gotten disheveled because of him. Ah, he learned it again. The exact same gesture Hexion had done for him before.

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“Just say I was the one being stubborn.”

Zero Nine said that with that same, ever-polite smile. A face that revealed absolutely nothing.

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And Hexion realized—ah, I messed up.

“This won’t happen again.”

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Zero Nine retreated behind that perfectly composed smile once more. The gentle, affectionate expression looked flawless, making it seem as if nothing had happened at all. Hexion stared at him for a moment before moving first to open the changing room door.

The moment the door swung open, Elijah shot Hexion a glare. Then, he let out a deep sigh when he saw the split, bleeding lip.

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“…If you really can’t hold back, just go home already!”

“Hm.”

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Hexion smirked crookedly as he stepped out of the changing room, Zero Nine following right behind him. Zero Nine turned to the personal shopper and gave an apologetic smile.

“Sorry about that.”

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“It’s fine.”

Even though it was blatantly obvious what had just happened in there, the personal shopper remained perfectly professional. Zero Nine blinked at her carefully composed face. I should be like that too. He copied her expression exactly and gave the same smooth, effortless smile.

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Hexion, who had turned back to glance at him, clicked his tongue again in his mind. Damn, he really learns fast.

Hexion gestured toward the personal shopper. She approached naturally and asked,

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“Do you need anything?”

“Pick something that suits him.”

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“Understood.”

The personal shopper exchanged a few brief words with Zero Nine before heading toward the racks of clothes.

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Hexion ran his tongue over his busted lip with a quiet hiss and sank into the sofa. Elijah walked over and spoke.

“Stop provoking Zero Nine. I brought him here to lower his stress levels, so why do you keep winding him up?”

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“Does sexual tension count as stress? That’s a tough one.”

“Zero Nine is incredibly gentle. As long as you don’t keep poking at him, he’ll stay calm.”

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“Gentle, you say?”

Hexion’s eyes followed Zero Nine, who was with the personal shopper. Whenever she reached for something, Zero Nine would reach first and take the clothing she was about to pick up. He held it against himself, checking the fit, and when the personal shopper explained something, he nodded with a soft smile.

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Hexion watched the whole scene in silence for a while.

“An esper who never complains, never whines, not even once.”

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“And that’s exactly why he turned out like that.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

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“If you don’t get it, then forget it.”

Hexion watched for a little longer as Zero Nine tried on clothes by himself instead of waiting for the personal shopper. Then he stood up and said,

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“Send everything we looked at so far.”

“Ah, understood.”

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Zero Nine handed the clothes he was holding back to the personal shopper and glanced at Hexion. His smile was gentle, but there was no warmth in his eyes.

Hexion realized. Ah, I pushed too early.

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He could feel the walls around Zero Nine growing even thicker.

He let out a faint chuckle.

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Digging into something intriguing was practically in his blood from birth.

But if Zero Nine’s nature was the complete opposite of that…?

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‘Ah, this bad habit of mine again.’

Hexion raised a hand to cover his mouth.

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Zero Nine stepped closer and asked, “Are you uncomfortable anywhere?”

“No, it’s nothing.”

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Hexion raised his hand slightly in a dismissive gesture, and Zero Nine didn’t come any closer. Hexion was beginning to understand what it meant when people said he was obedient.

“Let’s go.”

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“Finally, we’re leaving?”

Elijah’s exhausted face brightened a little as he responded. Zero Nine turned to him with an apologetic look.

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“Sorry. You must be really tired.”

“It’s fine. What fault could you possibly have, Zero Nine? It’s all this guy’s fault.”

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Hexion just shrugged before stepping out of the department store.

Click.

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Once inside the limousine, the three of them fell silent. Elijah was exhausted, Hexion was lost in thought, and Zero Nine was quietly watching him.

When Hexion felt that gaze clinging to his cheek and turned to look, Zero Nine immediately shifted his head forward as if he had never been staring in the first place.

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“…….”

Since he kept picking apart Zero Nine’s words and pushing at him, maybe he had decided to stop talking altogether.

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Without another word, the car moved through the roads toward the facility Elijah had mentioned.

The place they arrived at was the [National Special Management Central Residential Bureau for Awakened Individuals].

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“Do you see that white building?”

Elijah was the first to step out and pointed at the largest white building in the area. It looked more like a hospital than an office building.

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“You’ll be staying there from now on.”

“What, they’re giving us two hospital rooms to live in?”

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Hexion asked, unimpressed by the facility that was much smaller than his own family home.

Elijah looked at him like he had just said something ridiculous.

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“Why two rooms?”

At those words, Zero Nine felt a strange sense of unease and asked cautiously.

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“…Um.”

“There’s only one room. An esper and a guide are one body.”

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Zero Nine smiled. Ah, he really wasn’t happy about this.

“Well, in another sense, we will become one…”

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“Don’t say things like that in front of me. I do not want to know.”

“Who’s the one forcing us into a honeymoon situation here?”

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“Alright! Let’s head inside!”

Elijah completely ignored Hexion’s remark and strode forward. Zero Nine and Hexion exchanged glances before following after him at a slower pace.

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The interior of the bureau was just as hospital-like as it appeared from the outside—white floors, white walls, white ceilings. A large lobby was the first thing that came into view, with a reception desk situated off to one side. Elijah walked in confidently. There were many uniformed people inside. Those in gray uniforms were guides, while those in black uniforms were espers.

“Ugh, I have to see that damn thing again.”

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“The German military and the U.S. military have different uniform designs, though.”

“That’s not what I meant.”

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Elijah jabbed him in the side, and Hexion’s expression turned flat. Then what do you mean? Elijah grumbled under his breath but quickly shut up when his eyes met Hexion’s.

As Zero Nine and Hexion stepped into the lobby, murmurs spread among the white-uniformed staff. Some of the espers and guides even stopped to stare.

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“The esper arriving today is…”

“Which one is it? The one on the right or the left?”

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The general staff couldn’t distinguish between the two. That was expected. However, the guides and espers had no trouble telling them apart.

The espers looked at Hexion, the guide. The guides looked at Zero Nine, the esper.

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The espers, realizing that a new “stabilizer” had arrived to keep their bodies in check, seemed intrigued. Seeing their stares, Hexion’s smile twisted slightly.

On the other hand, the guides gazing at Zero Nine were filled with nothing but exhaustion. They were already overworked due to the shortage of guides, and it seemed word had already spread about him being a catastrophe-level esper. Many of their looks carried subtle rejection.

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Zero Nine pretended not to notice those glances and simply followed Elijah with a light smile. Hexion clicked his tongue.

Guides being sensitive wasn’t anything new, but these raw reactions were extreme.

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Then, Zero Nine spoke up.

“Good thing you bought me a suit.”

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“Why?”

“With all these eyes on me, imagine if I’d walked in dressed in rags.”

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“Hah.”

Was he teasing him by holding onto that first remark? Or was he actually grateful? Hexion let out a dry laugh.

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Noticing that his intention wasn’t getting across properly, Zero Nine slightly tilted his head and added,

“I’m saying thank you.”

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