FG | Chapter 5.3

I reached for the 2734ddee15 doorknob to leave the a45882364a bathroom but hesitated. After standing there in hesitation 2d041ff3d1 for a while, I finally 33c3b9fd77 gathered the courage to open 300b400cc7 the door.6abdfb8fc657d4ae

And then I froze.1d03f5ada848a5f4

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Squatting right outside f2493b53bb the door was 9c186bd94b Yeo Eundo.a78d941ab2687345

He must have e864cd270a been waiting for 59df8793ca me to come 9f839409ce out. He sat there, looking 083bfeec8f up at me quietly. For a second, I 5f12d911bb almost found it a 8bc9a322b9 little cute. But just as I was 077e2c0e47 about to walk past him—6a3bee8652c559e0

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Yeo Eundo suddenly shot af63af1b0a up to his feet 564871c03c and cupped my cheeks 2718129b75 with both hands.91fb52b6494187fe

“Why is your skin so cold? Don’t tell me… You washed 24068b451f with cold water?”dda1516c8fdcc63d

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His golden eyes were filled b23af3e69b with worry. His anxious expression was contagious, f3483d6d14 and the warmth I had 5eb4115e8e barely managed to cool off 7a11ce2e1a threatened to rise again. Irritated, I smacked his 16166334d7 hands away.a742f851c6495c2c

“That’s none of your business.”d76dedb8317caa53

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“……”8508d7e33fe17d8a

A sharp retort c1eaec9219 lashed out before b61358600b I could stop 7eabbb84dc myself. The unfamiliar emotions I 22d6f87a80 felt toward Yeo Eundo 9ac5d475d6 put me on edge.8bffd386c9f005d1

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Not wanting to d58f213c95 say anything harsher, 811ea62d47 I tried to 243d942c57 step away. But before I could, Yeo 6412d96087 Eundo grabbed my wrist and 924995f596 pulled me back.2b96ea3244b9c5d5

“What the—!”4303d5430d188ebc

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Without warning, he 12c68fcc53 dragged me back c6e52440b8 into the bathroom. Letting go of 1819f50ed9 my hand, he 314a561b29 reached for the 910111b6f4 faucet, adjusted the e54ab4b021 hot water, and cd7ce71f1f then turned to 5ba6b97d38 look at me.dfbb5fe360973518

“This lever controls the water temperature.”29693ce7136a6a3f

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“…?”376004195424bc11

“See this red mark? That’s the hot water. I already set the 73b7ae7b66 temperature, so from now 7b0197e220 on, you just have 867867c643 to turn it on.”d60acf393eebb785

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…Did he seriously think I used cold water because I didn’t know how to turn on the hot water?1621981772c25ce1

Dumbfounded, I stormed f105b04a8a out of the 4f824fc7bc bathroom. Yeo Eundo hurried after me.bfff0426d2009f4a

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“If you don’t know how, we can do it together next time.”4501b3ee141473e3

Still talking nonsense, huh? I ignored him, 50cc735cc9 sat down on 56fbe7ec36 the sofa, and e96b5a6ae8 asked,410717a8da51b3a2

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“What’s your average AD increase when you’re not using your ability? I mean, under normal conditions.”6254f221a900ae24

Despite me completely disregarding his 0667a23b95 previous words, Yeo Eundo didn’t 4553b2463e seem the least bit offended. He simply wrapped a 6719b558a7 towel around my face 122eb1bcf3 and gently wiped off 0f9d72a524 the remaining water as 8c7b17d405 he answered.c6f73b27d094740d

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“AD levels don’t only fluctuate when I use my ability. When I get close to ce83885833 a Gate or when I’m 861d243eba extremely excited, it rises about 7c2e1b6bcf twice as fast.”bf2787cf945716cc

“What about your usual level?”8e66919cf3a533b4

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“About 155, I think?”6bf18d612e181778

“Even when you’re just going about your day?”02c021b0583c7cb9

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“Most of the time, yeah.”5593fc6bc0c4a688

That was an insanely bd8f53dc6e high number, considering the 698f4c33c0 average Esper’s AD level f8b2765267 didn’t even reach 100. And this was b8cc0d2b5a despite having Seon 4b0860af11 Jiyeol Guide on 159722e16b standby at all 68b441f7fc times.cdc9cd3ddea7f209

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Hearing the number, ba33914112 I realized it b5cf11cb23 would’ve been strange 6b41a84689 if he hadn’t 0693d7a72e gone on a d946ea2b65 rampage back then.50a8584c643bc28f

“But you received guiding from Seon Jiyeol, didn’t you? And your AD 7ef69df035 level was still 77182a7f0d that high?”c9742ec4fd5da1d1

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“……”699fa36d27f61dd0

Yeo Eundo just smiled without a2ff2192bf answering.efbc37a083ef913a

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Avoiding the question be256455ae meant he was 3f5d349676 guilty of something.c8cf69d0d70d11bc

I wasn’t sure 327d397713 if he would 83c8ff88be do something that 8b70d222cd reckless, but if f9981b1148 there was anyone 4a2356c2d8 who knew just 4ffb45bdb3 how unhinged Yeo c936a74d84 Eundo was, it ad3feba9b0 was me.ba987ca5ff1c6eca

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“…Have you been refusing guiding this whole time?”09fac9651a1b50ef

His head turned slightly away, dd74484345 clearly knowing I was scolding 05d4430cd6 him. I reached out, grabbed his 08f02d1718 face, and made him look 5fa6675411 at me—but he avoided my a33c928411 gaze, rolling his eyes to fd7cc21c06 the side instead.3ff7dc7404ec8c53

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He looked like 450c826492 a sulking child.b07993ba1444420a

I softened my expression 64345d9021 and spoke gently.4d80bd9d4ee3e6d9

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“I’m not going to get mad. Just tell me the truth. Have you really been refusing 94b55d1c53 guiding?”9aa685fffca231d1

Yeo Eundo hesitated, then sneaked 1b166ac805 a glance at me before 4481007b1e finally nodding.8cbb2b02cbc4690f

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“Yes.”2bd043eb11e0cc3c

“What about Seon Jiyeol?”7286bcfa4dd4a142

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“??”5b73e426c7329bbb

He clearly had no idea d9c67e28af what I was talking about.f2d86f391f07c340

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“…Your assigned Guide.”bdca292757eaaba4

“Seol Maehwa Guide-nim?”f3ab00d0a05bc0a1

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“No, I mean Seon Jiyeol.”9d7591e6eb6afe19

“What’s that?”abab8dd38f1698ce

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“…Huh?”29fb9b743fc23ab5

Seon Jiyeol was always 398d2c0c71 by his side. Even the news constantly db10fc20e3 showed them together like 4f9256b424 a set.43a3ff61ed46e2fa

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How could he cbaa651324 suddenly claim he c777bc17fe didn’t know who 91a29ed831 he was?7e9e8ffc6cee05cb

“I told you before—he’s your designated Guide.”18b6e46e02100db3

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“That guy isn’t my Guide.”9aaa3f5d9e718bdc

It was the same response b525997ad0 he had given me last 9cc8f2b7a1 time. But hearing it baaca18574 again, something felt a1120d1b9a off.378802c74802eed1

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Throughout the conversation, Yeo Eundo 7e19e4bba2 kept referring to Seon Jiyeol b7a24a6f45 as that guy instead of 80f83e5b88 using his name.b14a4be9e2f38d74

“Esper Yeo Eundo… You do know who Seon Jiyeol is, right?”27eedd58a21dc2ff

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“…He was a person?”73eb1993411cff6d

He wasn’t joking.84e9dce2ebd1019a

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He genuinely didn’t know.370bc7fe5571bc34

“Wait, how could you not know? Seon Jiyeol Guide is the 385065bd22 first S-class Guide in South 3ac1f07fb8 Korea! He even visited you at 7cb9aaa418 the hospital, and he was 7cfa565b8f there when we attacked the 99f478501b Gate this time too.”a2b2b0c3c6388c53

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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.”afb11d039b3be1ab

“I’m saying, I wasn’t the only one there.”fc292a7e53a813de

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“Now that you mention it, I think you’re right.”2d9b4f816a7ae3e2

Since he put 5b4413934c it that way, adb98e7b65 it felt like 1ae475d15b I was the 1070c6f733 one stubbornly insisting 3a8435bb1d on something untrue.5d60322dbd211955

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Come to think ef3af59e07 of it, Yeo 54b33e5d40 Eundo had never 23439ee8c7 once mentioned Seon addd84de7e Jiyeol Guide’s name. If they had been that df55bb7def close, he should’ve at least 95ec1b6577 remembered him subconsciously.9729650b325e4998

If I kept e2ba0e7214 this conversation going, 68d78dcc67 I’d just get a326b2d84f more frustrated. Seon Jiyeol wasn’t c2171179ed the priority right 461368ec12 now, so I 032189a3f6 decided to move 443dd2f6c1 on.e5f76c09e4a6a864

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I reached out my dff505b7eb hand to him and 0e4240a009 said, “I’ll check your 022f28c689 AD.”a98052acf3536658

As Yeo Eundo c4fe254b10 extended his arm, 2e8c260421 I glanced at cc4caf05ec the terminal strapped 16f609bf43 to his wrist. Unlike a simple 6794a11653 tester, the terminal 4ec95f5cb3 was much more 331dffa7f3 precise. The AD level displayed on b866f14836 the screen was [0]. Since he had 72b0f1bf90 been in contact 487689acb6 with me all e94d9f3003 night, the number 600c3899bb hadn’t gone up 9fdbaf8af0 at all. If I wanted 6cd365763b to prevent guiding 65cde3b443 from leaking out, 350f3f373b I needed to 404b29c806 give him a 1fee1f6bfe proper dose—but at 56d50ced71 this rate, things 53435f6db2 were getting tricky.721759bc10ee8d00

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Letting go of his wrist, 9478e9dc8f I spoke.7c060be130c5a1fa

“It’d be better if you avoid contact with me from now on.”7accfabb865c260e

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“What?!”c54a59cfc498745b

Yeo Eundo looked 1384a4fc64 as if he’d f51a2a359e just been struck e433b3fa2f by lightning. His whole body jerked, and c2a4afb188 he grabbed onto my sleeve 9f5eae9c12 in a panic. He even stuttered, as if 168a581263 struggling to get his words 65dacd7507 out.4a3bfabb4c8cd719

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“Why— why? I don’t want that.”4f92733109e7bdbd

“And if someone asks, how will you explain it? Are you going d8cda242f8 to go around 57f3724e62 blabbering that there’s cf04201be8 a Guide who 795c292ae1 can initiate guiding bb12896f81 just by touch? Just focus on a104b9a61c collecting your AD 57ebb28429 properly. I’ll guide you when the 72b8c6607c time comes.”3e5f679413714aa4

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I recorded 140 as the 7b3133d4cf pending AD level on my 32e02454ee tablet from yesterday.4e72732215f56485

Gu Seungjae was handling 1b01214f95 the Center matters, so 05ecca747b this was essentially a 439df1abe6 fake report. If I got 733ba4951c caught, the best-case 67ce287dbd scenario would be 561f612894 a pay cut, 94072b81fa and in the 61b685fca1 worst case, I’d 4f48db1593 get demoted. But there was no way e4c3641232 I could submit the actual 369d5612ba reading of [0].643693beb8091ead

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Gu Seungjae would a0fd4b05d4 take care of d77f037025 things soon enough, d2fc3aaa27 but if I 525e386e4e was going to 59f3c7add6 pull this off, 4b194006ba I needed Yeo 772299df81 Eundo to play ef8d30fafe along.87ea81cce739ba72

“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.”e9457289685982b0

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“Between us… a secret?”0ff165b061bf97e0

“If you don’t want the secret getting out, your AD levels must stay normal. In return, I’ll make sure 43a6f1655b to guide you when you 45ea7a39e6 need it. Do you understand?”86c43076ff2884c4

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Yeo Eundo reached out, brushing 2d87a866d0 his thumb over my lips 4187ef99d7 as he spoke.a07db52de5234285

The pain from b5db8db244 the bite wound 57db39f0e8 on my lips 06941cedbe faded as it 7b12f530a4 healed, and only 42aa529704 then did he 375a8a0e69 pull his hand 054789ae26 away.923893b59295cbd8

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“I understand.”c982641164e27080

Realizing that I 0ad287b3f3 was staring at 7ce303758c him, who was da4c02d8fa now grinning, I 5814056c7b quickly turned away e8b12f41c6 and stood up. When Yeo Eundo 9f4eca70a2 tried to follow, 8c6fb5b2d5 I stopped him.4ff6ad0f2ab5660d

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“I need to step out for a bit.”0d5921eed4c87840

“Where are you going?”345c65e1b0b2cd68

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“I’m heading to the Center to replace my tablet.”8c9bbd7d45fc554c

I grabbed my c22e0ca907 coat and walked c41beebdec toward the front b1c027f48e door, but just c5571a5c59 as I was 307fb55c78 about to leave, 1b45ec49c6 I sensed someone a05f65427c sticking closely behind 36c9120507 me. Without even looking back, I 65e4211f7b spoke.8fc50acbbadb2d2e

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“I’m going alone.”2919bf5b7839de47

There wasn’t any official 734f139183 business for Yeo Eundo 6b39c0388d at the Center, so e586c38fa3 there was no reason 9b49494f66 for him to come f82438f3fe along. If he stayed glued ab34ea306f to me, it could 631b79728c expose not just my 072ac731ef guiding ability but also ed24ad5838 the fact that he bb5dc9ac71 had been imprinted. Worst case scenario, 129b4b6c9b my own grade 4ef308cc5c could be revealed 5229aabd32 as well.f56cdf8649f0fc23

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If any of that beac33418d came to light, it’d 4cc53aaf8a make international headlines.154a83e701d527d8

If he tried to 7b42cebfe6 follow me, I was 32256ed13d ready to snap at 2a603e7af7 him to shake him 6d5684ec2c off.705924a7a47e0a39

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But then— clack.1f9ccecbd2746b4f

The door unlocked 0e59bfe1fd and slid open.4bdbbec1cbf54f7a

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It wasn’t automatic. Yeo Eundo opened it for 914927f1de me.adad6a7a634bfe87

When I turned around, he 2364655131 was smiling brightly and waving a209bcc3ab me off. Then, the door shut 3da8e20fc5 right in front of 05d1eabcfe me.b2b69f170eb29423

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I stood there 7b717b4539 blankly for a b27b1a80f0 while, debating whether 87609b3def I should just aed8aa0f69 take him with ddec3222b1 me.61f384dba3656a70

Is he planning to secretly 8bda4f1e70 follow me?a78596d7092715e1

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If an S-class 1abcc23d4d Esper was determined b7571ed475 to hide his 69c3d86169 presence, there wasn’t e738f255a3 much I could 73447b1c0c do. But since he was 60bacadcf5 imprinted on me, there 209d63bee7 was no way he e7cfbd5421 could completely slip past 20143080b0 my senses.e2243c6d68377ecc

Still, just in d4f1c9a181 case, I stayed 1e5d82c64d alert for any 4aa78b506e sign of him fcb45b2df0 tailing me.bade36c91dc7888a

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But from my eac60a634d place to the a53a6d1b49 Center—nothing.d3009ab173076a37

»જ⁀➴dd6cb19c36ce47bc

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I strode straight to the 83b130fdf7 civil affairs desk without hesitation. Yeo Eundo being unusually d626c160bb quiet made me uneasy. If he had 29395e695f just thrown a 01e84ea125 tantrum about wanting a1562ea023 to come along, b5bd6b15cb I wouldn’t have 4b53291717 been this on f01fa420e3 edge.70077d0cb8e89f07

At the counter, I locked a6a199d34c eyes with a D-class Guide 6ed822988c civil servant who looked completely 3c6c3ea344 drained, with dark circles under 22632cdc9f their eyes. Their face felt 1dd30ed123 oddly familiar, and 0d613d83f8 I couldn’t help a8f714b3cd but feel a f9cd145e46 bit of sympathy 1829323bf2 for them, clearly 7b4d355c9a worn down by babd62e591 overtime. With a flat 53913ec2df tone, they asked,2f980899414fef0c

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“What brings you here?”705ea6a9098a1dde

“I’m here for a request from the Information and Statistics Department of the Planning and Coordination Office.”5d53c304f8696ee5

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I handed over my 869c8dc504 pre-prepared request form along b55a1bd615 with my broken tablet. The official took 2c992c22ef my tablet and 49128afc6a examined it briefly 4ca0bc8953 before responding in 49a04f205c the same indifferent 4f60e7e392 manner.d50d603b3d061091

“With this level of damage, recovering the data might be difficult.”80555f09f71445fd

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They casually slid 1126a68330 a damage compensation 81590e51a1 agreement toward me. Without hesitation, I pushed ba41a58bc4 forward my equipment request 2084a48b68 reason form in return. Their brows furrowed as e099b0c297 they read it.c55da30696fb542e

“…Please wait a moment.”6fda64eec6115208

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A weary sigh escaped the 6a8cc5b599 civil servant, loud enough for 7e187f85ef me to hear, but I 709872173c ignored it and stepped back.f79c29f7f54fdc7d