AAGULT Ch 86

Chapter 86

“S-Stop, stop…”

Song Jaeha flailed, trying to push him away. Was he suffocating? But it wasn’t time yet.

“Just a bit more. I need to replenish the guiding, it’s not enough right now…”

Aiden calmly soothed him, wiping away the blood Jaeha coughed up in gulps with his sleeve. Although he had been discharged, he hadn’t fully recovered, and on top of that, his body had long suffered from chronic guiding deficiency. It seemed the sudden depletion of guiding had triggered a severe rebound effect.

Aiden quickly wiped away the blood so that it wouldn’t block Jaeha’s airway, then kissed him again. He gently sucked on Jaeha’s already torn lips but paused mid-action as if he realized something, letting out a faint, self-deprecating chuckle with their lips still touching.

“Seriously…”

Why am I guiding this man so cautiously, afraid he might get hurt? Why do I care this much about someone who came back with another man’s lips on him…?

“Even my nose was ridiculously hooked…”

He found himself absurd. Even as he mumbled with a trace of laughter in his voice, Aiden continued to embrace the man clinging to him with all his strength, guiding him as gently as possible.

In truth, it was nothing complicated.

He’s mine.

He had simply reaffirmed that fact.

Fortunately, Jaeha didn’t end up having to pay for the broken wall of the dormitory.

Although it wasn’t technically his fault, there hadn’t been definitive proof that he wasn’t responsible either, so he had almost ended up in debt just weeks after becoming an esper affiliated with the association. Before he could even begin explaining, Aiden had already gone ahead and paid for the repairs—purely because he found it bothersome to prove otherwise. Since circumstances made it difficult to refuse the favor, a strange sense of guilt and burden toward Aiden had started to build in Jaeha.

Moreover, because not just the dormitory Jaeha had stayed in, but the entire building was part of the esper housing support program, the association had to overhaul the security system to ensure no unauthorized individuals could enter again.

At any rate, with the system needing an overhaul and the dorm being unsafe for reuse, Jaeha had no choice but to move just a week after being assigned.

Yes, the biggest problem was the dormitory. Realizing that villains could infiltrate under the association’s radar at any time brought awareness to the fact that Jaeha, a key witness in the incident, might be in danger. Since he needed to remain until the case was resolved, Jaeha had somehow ended up living at Aiden’s place.

However, due to the side effect of vomiting blood, only his belongings were moved to Aiden’s home. Jaeha himself had to be re-hospitalized.

A week passed that way, and Jaeha’s rank rose to D-grade far faster than expected, with C-grade now just around the corner. He didn’t quite feel the recovery physically, but when he came to his senses, he noticed that he could now hear other people’s thoughts much more frequently than before. Sometimes, he could even hear them without making eye contact.

Whereas before, it felt like he was struggling to control something enormous and shapeless, now that he had lost everything and was starting over, he was beginning to get a sense of how to manage the power. So while it might sound odd, it was actually easier to hear thoughts now than before.

[Is this one of Baek Beomwoo’s little fish?]

Yes, just like now.

Jaeha instinctively turned his gaze to look into the other person’s eyes.

[Tsk, psychic abilities are such a nuisance…]

“I’d appreciate it if you’d stop rudely reading my thoughts and avert your eyes.”

“…Ah, I’m sorry.”

Jaeha obediently lowered his gaze halfway. He had only stepped out of his hospital room briefly to assist in creating an antidote, and hadn’t expected his path to be blocked like this. The man in front of him was a sharp and tired-looking middle-aged man, seemingly in his late 40s or early 50s. Jaeha had been staring, struck by the familiarity in his features, when he unintentionally heard his thoughts—prompting the man’s rebuke.

Who was he? Did he know him? Given that he mentioned the boss’s name, perhaps he was related…

Before Jaeha could finish that thought, the man’s next words told him everything.

“You’re my younger brother’s prospective pair, aren’t you.”

“…Your younger brother?”

There was only one person who could be referred to as Jaeha’s prospective pair. Aiden—someone far too good for him. But the age gap between them seemed too large to be siblings, and just as he was about to object, a memory floated to the surface.

A conversation they had while huddled inside a closet at the orphanage.

‘I’ve got an older brother with quite an age gap. He didn’t want me to go to college.’

‘He just… wanted me to stay as a guide. It’s nothing serious.’

Aiden had definitely mentioned having an older brother with a significant age difference.

“…Ah.”

It was a completely different image from what he had vaguely imagined, and Jaeha, flustered, quickly bowed his head in greeting.

But the man didn’t spare Jaeha’s bow a glance and continued with his business.

“Have you recovered all your memories?”

His voice was cold and solid. It felt like it gripped Jaeha’s nerves. Jaeha paused for a moment before looking up at him. Even though the man claimed to be Aiden’s brother and their facial features were similar, his aura was so icy that Jaeha couldn’t associate him with Aiden at all. It felt as if he were being completely seen through, and the man left no room for error, which made Jaeha tense up.

“…Not yet.”

Jaeha’s voice was faintly subdued. The man didn’t blink. He simply gave a short nod.

“I see.”

That was all. He tapped Jaeha’s shoulder in passing. It seemed like a gesture meant to carry weight, but Jaeha wasn’t so small that he would stumble from just that. He turned around in confusion, watching the man walk away.

“Gasp, Jaeha-ssi…!”

“Ah, yes.”

The staff member, who had been nervously watching the situation unfold from nearby, rushed over the moment the man passed. It was someone Jaeha had gotten lightly acquainted with after seeing them frequently while moving in and out of the hospital to help with the antidote.

“Please don’t mind him too much…! He’s always been a bit sharp like that…”

“Ah… that’s fine. But, may I ask who he was…?”

“That was Mr. Ye Kanghyun. You know the Halla Group, right?”

Given that he also had the surname Ye, it seemed they really were brothers. Jaeha dumbly processed the thought before the name clicked, and he responded reflexively.

“Of course. Who doesn’t?”

Just like everyone in Korea knew the name of the Esper Association’s chairman, there were very few who didn’t know about the Halla Group. It was one of the most well-known conglomerates.

The Halla Group, led by Chairman Ye Gwangsik, was a representative global conglomerate of South Korea, exerting overwhelming influence across electronics, automobiles, construction, and finance.

While it was globally renowned for its cutting-edge technology and financial prowess, it was also the subject of shady rumors related to the Gate industry. Officially, the company touted its involvement in equipment development and support funds for espers and guides…

“…Wait.”

Chairman Ye Gwangsik? Ye… same surname…

“W-Wait a second. Don’t tell me Aiden is part of the Halla Group…”

“Actually, it’s not widely known unless you’re an insider.”

“Wow…”

The staff member chuckled awkwardly and whispered. A headache began to form. Jaeha had known Aiden was far too good for him and suspected he came from a well-off family, but he never imagined Aiden would be the second son of the Halla Group.

“Seems like… he and that man don’t get along too well.”

“Hmm…”

He had thought they might not get along, given how Aiden’s older brother had tried to stop him from going to college—but seeing it firsthand felt… off. And what was that mention of “memory”? Was it related to him somehow? Or had the man heard of him through the association because of his corporate background?

“Um… please don’t repeat this anywhere, okay?”

“Ah, of course.”

Just as the throbbing in Jaeha’s head grew stronger, the staff member leaned in and whispered something with itching lips. Their quiet words didn’t echo down the hospital corridor but settled squarely into Jaeha’s ears. The more he heard, the wider Jaeha’s eyes grew.

“…!”

It was a clear expression of shock and disbelief.

“Hey, hyung.”

“Tsk.”

“What, you’re not happy to see me?”

“So flippant…”

Ye Kanghyun looked at his younger brother. Dressed in an all-white uniform exclusive to guides, his little brother now stood as South Korea’s one and only S-rank guide and the official president of the Guide Human Rights Association. The boy had grown into a proper adult. The last time Kanghyun had seen Aiden was around the time he had just come of age. It was unsettling and irritating to see that his once-boyish face had matured into that of a poised man in his late twenties.

He had disliked his much-younger brother for quite a long time. Though it hadn’t always been that way.

At twenty-two, Kanghyun had already firmly established himself as heir to the family and had a clear direction for his life. Then their mother suddenly announced she was pregnant.

At first, the news of a younger sibling hadn’t felt like much. He had even considered doting on the child like a beloved pet.

But if he had known that the child would be born with such extraordinary genius, he never would’ve entertained such thoughts. He should’ve used their mother’s age as an excuse to stop the pregnancy. Had he done so, he wouldn’t be dealing with such a headache now.

“Then how about this, hyung~?”

“….”

Aiden’s cutesy tone and the way he rested his chin on his hands were so irreverent that it was unbelievable he would do something like that in a public setting. How on earth did such a person come from the same bloodline?