PRT | Chapter 2.5

As he finished speaking, Seo Yigyeom turned around. He looked at Kim Heeseo with an expression of ridicule, his eyes showing a hint of fracture that seemed to reveal his mood. He must have thought Kim Heeseo was being presumptuous. Despite the tension making the hairs on his neck stand, Kim Heeseo didn’t back down from his gaze.

‘Isn’t Seo Yigyeom going to get his head chopped off by the higher-ups? He’s been ignoring all the calls from the headquarters.’

‘Even if he’s great, if the Head of Division moves, what can he do?’

When was it? Amidst the clinking of cutlery, a familiar name came up. Alone in the corner, eating his meal, Kim Heeseo couldn’t help but pause.

‘I’d like to get that so-called amazing guiding if he could just behave for a bit.’

‘If only Seo Yihyeon was the Guide instead of that bastard.’

They spoke such low-level comments without a care, laughing constantly. People who wouldn’t dare say a word in front of him were now talking about Seo Yigyeom’s downfall as if it were a foregone conclusion.

“I didn’t want to care, but I keep hearing about Guide-nim. I don’t know if you’re aware.”

“……”

“You might want to be careful.”

The subject of the scandal smiled with a calm yet arrogant air. Pulling up the corner of his mouth with his tongue, he blinked slowly. His eyes on Kim Heeseo were sharp, devoid of any amusement unlike before.

“Kim Heeseo doesn’t realize what he’s saying right now? That’s why you cross the line so fearlessly.”

“……”

“Don’t worry about it. It’s none of Kim Heeseo’s business.”

With a fleeting smile, he turned away with his usual indifferent expression. The brief, laughable confrontation ended there. Kim Heeseo burst into an empty laugh as he watched Seo Yigyeom disappear.

“Wow… what a real piece of work.”

How could someone have such a personality that they react like this even when worried about? Feeling frustrated for not countering properly due to surprise, Kim Heeseo glared at the spot where Seo Yigyeom had stood before shuffling off to the cafeteria.

The cafeteria, visited earlier than the usual rush hour, was fairly quiet. As always, he sat in a secluded spot and had barely moved his hands when someone sat down in front of him with the sound of a chair scraping.

“Finally eating with you after missing out last time?”

Looking up, the person was Kwon Joon with his friendly face. Next to him, Hong Taebin was silently placing down his tray. He looked unwell, with dark circles under his eyes.

“Trash side dishes.”

“You shouldn’t mess with food.”

Kwon Joon mumbled in a comforting tone to Hong Taebin, who was poking at his food with chopsticks, but Hong Taebin didn’t respond, just drinking the soup. It was ambiguous whether they were on good or bad terms. Sighing, Kim Heeseo chewed his food, asking why they were sitting there. That’s when he felt Hong Taebin’s gaze.

“Where’s Seo Yigyeom, you’re alone? You two have been sticking together lately.”

“Is that so?”

Even with an ambiguous answer while eating, the conversation didn’t escape his attention.

“It’s strange. Seo Yigyeom doesn’t seem like he’d have a good personality to hang out with.”

“He had the worst personality of anyone I’ve ever met.”

With Kwon Joon joining in, the two naturally started bad-mouthing Seo Yigyeom. They seemed to get along quite well, their comments flowing smoothly.

…But it wasn’t that bad, was it? True, he lacked manners, but not to the extent of being this maligned. Kim Heeseo, who had been consistently silent, found himself, before he knew it, defending Seo Yigyeom.

“……”

Just as he was about to put down his chopsticks, feeling increasingly irritated and wanting to leave, suddenly an alarm blared through the space. Everyone present reacted instantly to the loud noise.

[An A-rank Gate has occurred 5 km north of Gyeonggi. Immediate support requested.]

Even on the activated smartwatches, a bright red warning appeared. It seemed an A-rank Gate had burst open as predicted, though there had been no signs that morning, so it was quite shocking.

“Let’s move together, Heeseo.”

“Yes.”

At Kwon Joon’s gesture, Kim Heeseo agreed. Since they would have to go to the scene anyway, they had to move together. Seo Yigyeom wasn’t there, and even if they spent more time with him, Kim Heeseo was still part of Team 1.

The move to the site was made in a headquarters vehicle. Alerts on the smartwatches didn’t stop throughout the journey. Each time, Kim Heeseo flinched noticeably. The Gate was still unfamiliar, causing inevitable tension to rise.

When they arrived, the scene was buzzing with activity. Chaos mixed with confusion was palpable from all directions. It seemed the initial suppression had been delayed, making things even more of a mess. Thankfully, civilian casualties were minimal.

Kiek―!

“……”

More than anything, what caught everyone’s attention were the horrifying monsters. These creatures, shaped like giant birds, were in the air, pecking at everything from people to buildings with their sharp beaks.

It didn’t take long for the one-sided observation to end. The monster, which had been wildly flailing, charged at high speed. Its dull body had gold eyes that gleamed eerily like embedded claws.

“Aah.” Kim Heeseo instinctively moved his body, his throat making a short sound before his consciousness could catch up. He bent his upper body forward with all his strength. Right after, a sharp wind passed just above his head.

Boom―!

The bird that had flown in crashed into a building. Even after the impact, it didn’t stop, breaking through the exterior as it took off again. Though it took the form of a bird, it was unlike any regular one; its body seemed as hard as steel.

Bang! Bang!

Loud gunshots that split the ears rang out. Even though these were undoubtedly specially made for eliminating creatures from beyond the Gate, they had no effect. The giant creature flapped its wings nimbly despite the scratches.

As the creature drew a large arc in the sky and came back, Kim Heeseo’s eyes moved quickly. His fingertips trembled. His widely opened eyes stung. Strength was put into his feet that pounded the ground. All his senses sharpened.

This time, there’s no escaping.

This was a judgment close to certainty. As the monster came closer, Kim Heeseo didn’t retreat but focused on drawing out his ability. At that moment, an unreal veil unfolded before his eyes.

“Why is the chicken flying?”

Muttering in astonishment, Hong Taebin swept his hand through the air as if drawing something. The illusion he created was eerily deep and dark, resembling the Gate itself, even in its unsettling flicker. It seemed almost real.

The monster, encountering the illusion, flinched. At the same time, a black shadow rose over the creature’s body, constricting it before turning sharp and piercing through its neck.

Thud―!

The struggling creature fell onto a crumpled car, writhing in pain as shattered glass fragments flew up. The area was once again ravaged by its massive body.

There was no time to celebrate dealing with one as there were still more monsters around.

“Is this a poultry farm?”

“I won’t want to look at birds for a while.”

With a sigh, Hong Taebin and Kwon Joon released their abilities again. Kim Heeseo also took a proper stance, focusing on the rampaging creature until he stopped breathing, then moved his fingers.

He felt the wave that made up his entire body flow as he intended. The scattered energy gathered and took shape. A chill ran up his spine, and his neck stiffened.

“……”

The monster, screaming hideously, approached. Its skin split, revealing sharp teeth. Then, the space around the monster completely compressed, distorting like cracks in glass, crushing its body.

Crunch, the monster that had been howling turned into complete debris a few seconds later. Kim Heeseo remained with his breathing undisturbed.

Success.

Was it thanks to the continuous training and the occasional guiding from Seo Yigyeom? His ability had never manifested so perfectly. Only after staring straight ahead with dilated pupils did Kim Heeseo blink.

“What was that?”

“What kind of ability…?”

The murmurs around grew louder. More and more overt gazes fell upon him. As Kim Heeseo clenched and unclenched his lightly sweaty fist, turning his head, his eyes met with someone, and he froze.

“……”

He was here.

Seo Yigyeom had a peculiar expression, unlike anyone else present, different from when they parted at the headquarters. He then stepped forward into the center of the scene.

“Oh.”

Seeing Seo Yigyeom boldly approaching, Kim Heeseo widened his eyes. A Guide entering the heart of an incident scene? Guides were supposed to stay back unless it was a special circumstance.

Moreover, to make matters worse, another monster approached. Quickly assessing the situation, Kim Heeseo shielded Seo Yigyeom behind him, blocking the bird. Another Esper finished off the monster through the divided space.

“……”

The monster was dealt with safely, but Kim Heeseo’s expression didn’t ease. He bit his lip tightly, his attention trailing back. He had acted to protect Seo Yigyeom despite their fight-like parting earlier, which made him feel unfairly obligated.

“……Guides and civilians are priority protection targets on the scene.”

Feeling like he had lost, he mumbled his excuse, and a sound like air escaping came from Seo Yigyeom.

“Quite a long explanation.”

Turning around slowly, Kim Heeseo paused at the sight of Seo Yigyeom, surprisingly, smiling without showing any negative emotion.

“What are you doing? Another one’s coming.”

With a smirk, Seo Yigyeom, hands in pockets, gestured to the back with his chin in an audacious stance.

“You need to save me.”

Amidst actions that were hard to fathom, one thing was clear:

The one who had drawn a harsh line was now blurring those boundaries.

What could possibly lie beneath that smiling facade?

Seo Yigyeom had never allowed anyone to interfere in his affairs. After drawing lines telling people not to approach, now he was the one closing the distance. Kim Heeseo was confused, unsure which beat to follow.

Looking back, Seo Yigyeom had always been like this. He never once revealed what he was thinking.

“Why doesn’t Guide-nim have any middle ground?”

Feeling suddenly suffocated and unfairly treated, Kim Heeseo blurted out in frustration, turning away without seeing Seo Yigyeom’s expression as he finished speaking. His attention was split between the approaching monster and the man behind him.

Despite the many piercing gazes around, his focus remained intact. It was different from when he was intimidated by scornful looks. Now, everything seemed fine, except for Seo Yigyeom standing behind him.

“What can I do about my nature?”

The voice that came back was endlessly nonchalant. Even in this situation with monsters rampaging, he was calm, seemingly without a trace of fear or crisis.

Did he ever feel fear in his life? Kim Heeseo, contemplating Seo Yigyeom’s life vaguely, swung his ability as he had before, facing the monster.

“Ah.”

Boom!

Above the loud explosion, a soft groan fell. His eyes, which had been staring straight ahead, creased. Pain that made his pupils tremble shot through his head. Kim Heeseo scanned the scene as he tried to stay calm.

Right in front of him, the space was more distorted than before, crushing the monster. It happened with just a surge of power. The creature’s mangled body oozed onto the ground.

“But isn’t that the same for Kim Heeseo?”