AAGULT Ch 78

Chapter 78

“It’s just that Jaeha hasn’t really received much guiding before, so he’s not used to it.”

“Is… is that so?”

“I heard your match rate with Guide Yoon Mingyeol was similar to mine. Didn’t you feel uncomfortable with him?”

“Not really…”

Truly, not at all. It wasn’t hard to tell that the matching rate was low. But what kind of options did an F-rank Esper with a criminal record even have? It was amazing enough that there had been two people who volunteered to guide him daily during his treatment. At one point, he had even thought maybe it was more appropriate for someone like him to live receiving this kind of guiding, rather than the kind that came crashing down like a tidal wave, threatening to completely break him, like Aiden’s.

But to hear that it was less than 20%…

“Jaeha. You need to get used to this. Field guides aren’t deployed unless the matching rate is at least 15–20%.”

“Why not?”

If it’s in the field, shouldn’t even incompatible guiding be better than nothing in emergencies? Are Espers affiliated with the Association picky or something? Childishly? The question burst out, laced with disbelief.

Because of that, the official—who didn’t seem to know the full story—began looking at him with clear pity in their eyes, and Jaeha had to bite his tongue to keep from saying more. Forcing his mouth shut twisted his insides unpleasantly. He knew it rationally, but maybe he just didn’t want to admit that his boss had truly been abusive?

“……”

As always, he swallowed the lump of emotion quietly. He suddenly thought that if it weren’t for the presence of the official, a complete outsider, he might have vented some of his dissatisfaction aloud. So in that sense, he was glad the official was there. He had nearly taken his frustration out on the innocent Guide Seong Dowon. Jaeha slowly exhaled and steadied his emotions.

“…Guide Seong Dowon, did you already know we wouldn’t match well?”

“Yes.”

“Then why…”

“I wanted to see you again. Like I said earlier… I was really worried about you.”

“……”

Once again, there was no malice at all in Guide Seong Dowon’s words. If anything, he was filled with an overabundance of kindness toward Jaeha. Jaeha was glad he hadn’t lashed out emotionally at someone like that.

As Jaeha stayed silent, perhaps thinking the conversation had ended appropriately, the official spoke up.

“Well then… Guide Seong Dowon, you may leave now, and Esper Song Jaeha, we’d appreciate it if you could remain a bit longer. It’s time for the next match rate test.”

“Ah, okay.”

It was Dowon who answered, not Jaeha. Dowon reached out and lightly patted Jaeha’s shoulder in a gesture of encouragement.

“I’ll get going then, Jaeha. If we get a chance to see each other again, let’s meet.”

“Okay…”

“By then, I hope you’ve adjusted better to this place.”

With those parting words, Dowon smiled and exited the matching room. Jaeha watched him go, caught up in a strange, indescribable mix of emotions.

And then the next guide entered.

Unlike before, the very fact that people were continuing to enter this room just to guide him felt very… very sad, yet also joyous. It made him angry, but also left him feeling wronged. It made him anxious, but strangely, it also stirred up a flickering hope in front of his eyes.

The person he should’ve wanted to see right now was, of course, the boss—

And yet, for some reason, he desperately wanted to see Aiden.

The one who had brought him to this place.

The second person who entered was someone Jaeha had never seen before. He introduced himself as a B-rank guide named Han Dodam.

He entered with sparkling eyes, full of excitement, but upon checking Jaeha’s wave graph, he was visibly shocked. Not long after, he set a dismal match rate of 8% and left. Still, he was a B-rank guide, a high-level one, and it was strange that the match rate was so low.

“Esper with a psychic ability… No wonder your waves are difficult…”

Left alone in the match test room again, Jaeha quietly mulled over the parting words Han Dodam had awkwardly muttered, as if disappointed. It really did seem that psychic-type Espers were rare and challenging in many ways.

“There are two left now. Just hang in there a little longer.”

Perhaps concerned by Jaeha being lost in thought, the official who was drafting a report based on the match rate results and other data spoke up.

“Ah… Thank you.”

To be honest, Jaeha didn’t really understand what was so exhausting about just sitting still and receiving guiding, but he was socially adept enough to accept kindness for what it was. He gave a sheepish smile and slowly offered his thanks.

It was all very strange. Wasn’t he supposed to just focus on recovery here, receiving treatment and guiding with gratitude? Why was this resistance, this urge to question everything, bubbling up inside him? His chest felt itchy.

Was it because admitting to the abuse he suffered felt like denying the grace the boss had shown him? No, that’s not it. This is weird. What’s going on with me?

“……”

He couldn’t exactly scratch his stomach to relieve the itch inside, so instead, Jaeha scratched at his neck to try and dispel the frustration. His scratching was slow, but forceful enough to redden his skin quickly. The pressure was strong enough that if someone else had seen it, they might’ve thought it was strange behavior, as if his skin might tear at any moment.

“You’re quite late. My apologies.”

“Ah, Guide Kwon Ido! You’ve arrived.”

“…Guide Kwon Ido?”

Right at that moment, the door opened with perfect timing. A face he’d seen nearly every day for weeks appeared. A stern, intimidating-looking middle-aged man.

Guide Kwon Ido had signed up for the match rate test? Up until the last day—yesterday—he and Guide Han Mingyeol were only guiding him during his hospitalization. There hadn’t been any talk about testing. Eyes wide with surprise, Jaeha blinked, and the man gave a faint smile.

“Why are you… guiding me…?”

“I wanted to give you a little surprise. Looks like it worked.”

“……”

His lips parted slightly. No, it was just ironic and oddly funny to hear someone who looked like that say “surprise.” A helpless chuckle escaped, and the heavy feeling that had weighed on him lifted a bit.

“Shall we begin right away?”

“Yes.”

Jaeha rose from the chair outside the matching device. Maybe it was because he had already done this twice, but entering the device no longer required much resolve. Before stepping inside, he glanced at Ido’s profile next to his own. The wave line was smoother than Seong Dowon’s but not as chaotic as his own.

“You may begin.”

“Yes.”

At the same time as Guide Kwon Ido’s composed reply, Jaeha quietly accepted his guiding—something he had grown accustomed to. As always, as long as it wasn’t Aiden doing the guiding, Jaeha could manage his frayed waves.

Aiden… Aiden’s guiding was… simply too good. Every time he received Aiden’s guiding, it felt like he was falling apart. In other words, though he used a negative expression, it was only because it was too good that it became a problem.

“I heard you’re being discharged today. Did the process go smoothly?”

“Thanks to your concern, yes…”

Jaeha refocused on Ido, who was speaking from the other side of the glass. After receiving guiding for a month, it seemed he had grown attached. Smiling awkwardly, he took the initiative to speak.

“I really didn’t expect you to apply for the match rate test. Didn’t you say you were going to continue working as a guide instructor?”

“That’s true. But after guiding you, I suppose I grew fond of you.”

Jaeha responded with a smile instead of words. He knew that affection wasn’t the whole reason. And he also realized that it was about time he said something.

He subtly shifted his gaze to check on the official operating the machine outside the device. He figured their conversation inside probably wasn’t completely inaudible, so he began speaking slowly and carefully.

“I know there’s another reason why you requested to guide me.”

“……”

“I just wanted to say thank you. Even if it was your job, coming to guide me every single day couldn’t have been easy, and yet you did it willingly.”

“Is that so.”

It was difficult to read Ido’s thoughts. Jaeha tried to use his ability by looking into his eyes, but nothing came through. No—more precisely, it felt incredibly difficult to activate his ability. Jaeha clicked his tongue inwardly.

He had to continue the conversation carefully so that the official operating the device wouldn’t catch on. But before he could speak again, Ido, who had silently listened, opened his mouth first.

“Indeed, you’re not wrong.”

“…About what?”

“About there being another reason.”

“I see…”

Jaeha tried not to show his nervousness and subtly lifted the corners of his lips.

“……”

“Your father was a guide, Jaeha. You may already know that.”

“I do know.”

But what came out of Ido’s mouth was something entirely unexpected. Did he not understand? Or was Jaeha’s suspicion that he might be a spy from the boss’s side completely off the mark? Unable to grasp the situation, Jaeha narrowed his eyes.

He wasn’t good at psychological games like this.