IDSEGI Chapter 97

Chapter 97

Ihan was speaking to him so casually that for a moment, it felt like they had gone back to the past—to the time when Ihan used to call him “Yeoul-ah.”

But now, the two of them had no relationship at all. It might have made him seem old-fashioned, but Yeoul, who needed to keep his distance, shot him a cold look.

“Esper Yoo Ihan, why are you speaking to me informally?”

Ihan tilted his head with a puzzled expression, then leaned in close with a shameless, calculated look.

“You spoke informally to me first, Yeoul.”

Thinking back, Yeoul realized that in his fluster earlier, he had spoken to Ihan the way he usually did. That was his mistake, not Ihan’s. Feeling a little embarrassed, Yeoul stepped back and cleared his throat.

“I’ll be careful too, so stop speaking informally.”

“I don’t mind speaking informally.”

“Well, I do. I find it uncomfortable.”

Despite his firm tone, Ihan didn’t back down. With a smirk, he teased,

“For someone who finds it uncomfortable, you spoke that way pretty naturally.”

Why had he done that? He’d basically handed Ihan—who was always watching for an opening—the perfect bait. To change the subject, Yeoul asked,

“You’ve already reported that you’re going back to Zone 1, right?”

“No. If I want to go back, I just need to call Kim Yushin.”

“I told you not to speak informally. I’m three years older than you, Esper Yoo Ihan.”

“If you don’t like it, then drop the honorifics too, Yeoul.”

If he kept this up, he was bound to get pulled into Ihan’s pace. Yeoul sighed and grabbed his bag.

“Let’s just go to the Center. Since we were formally invited to Zone 5, we should give a proper report before we leave.”

“If you want, we can do that. But first, I want to wash up. My hair’s a mess.”

“I’ll lend you a hat.”

Yeoul found a hat he’d once left behind at Eunha’s house and handed it to him. Ihan put it on, narrowing his eyes slightly.

“Why are you looking at me like that?”

“Lending me something is just your way of telling me to come back and return it, right? This is how you flirt, huh.”

“It’s not! If you’re going to say things like that, give it back!”

Yeoul jumped to snatch the hat from him, but Ihan wrapped an arm around his waist. His clear, piercing gaze locked Yeoul in place.

“Go out with me, Yeoul.”

Ihan’s expression was confident—not the kind that came from believing Yeoul wouldn’t refuse, but the kind born from determination not to give up, even if he did.

“…No matter what I say, you’re not going to give up, are you?”

“Nope.”

The speed of his reply sparked Yeoul’s own stubbornness.

“No matter what you do, I’m not going to fall for it.”

“Then it’ll be a battle between the spear and the shield.”

Ihan brushed Yeoul’s earlobe lightly and breathed against his ear, his eyes curving naturally.

“I’ll keep stabbing away, so I’d appreciate it if you let me break through.”

Yeoul flinched and stepped back, but Ihan’s eyes followed him with a mix of mischief and heat, as if enjoying the chase. It felt dangerously close to tipping over into Ihan’s favor. Yeoul pushed him away.

“Why do you always talk like that?”

“Did you misunderstand?”

“You say things so I’ll misunderstand!”

“Guess you caught me.”

‘Ihan is upright, kind, and gentle… but sometimes he’s spiteful.’

Upright, kind, and gentle Yoo Ihan. But also a bit perverted and slightly strange.

The word “perverted” didn’t seem to belong beside those other words, yet Yeoul insisted on keeping “upright, kind, and gentle” in front of Ihan’s name anyway.

Even after turning back time four times, Yeoul’s rose-colored glasses for him hadn’t faded. It was a damnable love.

He turned his head sharply to hide the heat rushing to his face.

“Just hurry up and go.”

Ihan followed him with a smile.

Yeoul led Ihan to the Zone 5 Center. As invited guests, it was the rule to formally report their return before leaving. Zone 5 was particularly strict about such regulations. It wasn’t easy to enter or exit freely, so it was better to handle these things properly.

‘In the past, Ihan always complained about these procedures and ended up getting a pass from the Center Director…’

That was then, and this was now. Since they didn’t have an access pass this time, following procedure was the right thing to do.

“Then go ahead. I’m going to work.”

“Okay.”

Ihan waved toward Yeoul as he walked toward the office. The corners of Yeoul’s mouth almost curved upward, but he quickly turned his back to him and walked into the office. As he entered, touching his lips, a staff member greeted him.

“Guide Han Yeoul, did something good happen?”

Something good, huh.

“Yes.”

Something very, very good had happened. Because nothing was better than getting to see Ihan.

A soft, bright smile spread across Yeoul’s face.

“Something very good happened.”

* * *

Ihan smiled as he thought of Yeoul, who had coldly left him behind to go to work.

‘Cute.’

At first, it was simple curiosity because he was convinced Yeoul was the Guide he had imprinted with. He had suddenly developed a rejection response to guidance from all Guides—except Yeoul. At the concert hall, Yeoul had definitely guided him.

‘My Guide.’

That was where his feelings had started.

But the more time he spent with Yeoul, even for such a short while, the more he liked him—every minute, every second. His face being exactly his type was a big factor, but so were his squirrel-like, busy steps, and those big eyes that would sneak glances at him despite his prickly attitude.

Even insisting that they had to file a report seemed cute. If it had been anyone else, he would have called them uptight, but coming from Yeoul, it was just endearing.

For someone like Ihan, who lived freely, Yeoul’s by-the-book manner could have been suffocating, but he didn’t mind. He’d be coming back here often anyway. Next time, he’d have an access pass, so going through the hassle once wasn’t a big deal. Besides, he had another goal.

“In truth, I didn’t get clearance from headquarters before coming here.”

Inside the Center Director’s office, Ihan openly revealed the falsification of his documents to the Zone 5 Director. The Director was about to blow his top, but this was Yoo Ihan—that Yoo Ihan. Best to just let it slide.

“That’s fine. Let’s pretend this never happened.”

But Ihan had no intention of letting it go. Instead, he made a very civil-servant-like statement about how he didn’t want special treatment.

“No. We have to follow the rules. Falsifying documents is a serious offense, isn’t it?”

“What? But…”

“Esper Special Law, Article 14, Clause 6: Unauthorized entry into another zone without headquarters’ permission is punishable by a minimum of three months’ imprisonment to a maximum of expulsion, depending on the severity. However, the Center Director has the authority to reduce the term or substitute punishment with gate dispatch duty.”

The Director’s mouth fell open as Ihan recited the full article from memory. First, he was shocked that Ihan knew it word for word. Second, he was shocked that Ihan insisted on being punished when he’d been offered leniency.

“How about disciplining you with fifteen days of training Zone 5 Espers?”

And third, he was shocked that Ihan was the one deciding his own punishment. Under Ihan’s pressure, the Director nodded almost automatically.

“I saw them yesterday—they’re a mess. I’ll give them proper training while I’m here. You should be grateful. Opportunities like this don’t come often.”

Ihan’s shamelessness went beyond surprise—it was almost impressive.

* * *

With official permission to remain in Zone 5 for fifteen days, the first thing Ihan did was tell Yeoul. As expected, Yeoul was appalled.

“What?”

“Well, now that it’s an official disciplinary measure, there’s no way to refuse. Take care of me for the next fifteen days, Yeoul.”

His brazen face had to be the thickest in the world. Even with his rose-colored glasses, Yeoul felt like it might be time to remove “upright” from Ihan’s list of virtues.

‘But… he’s still kind and gentle…’

“Please, get Esper Yoo Ihan out of here. I really can’t live like this.”

Unlike the disciplined Espers in Zone 1, it was impossible to completely shut the mouths of Zone 5 Espers. One of them came to Yeoul, complaining about how Ihan was tormenting them under the guise of training.

But when Yeoul went to the training ground to check, Ihan didn’t seem to be scolding anyone.

“Ha ha, take it easy, everyone. You’ll hurt yourselves.”

Yeoul turned to look at the Esper who had dragged him here. His eyes seemed to say, Are you making this up about Yoo Ihan? The Esper looked ready to lose his mind from frustration.

“Fine. Let’s pretend we’re leaving and go up to the second floor. You can check the CCTV from there.”

Following the Esper’s instructions, Yeoul entered the second-floor control room and watched Ihan on the screen. There was no sound, but it was clear what he was doing—beating the Espers like a drum.

Yeoul let out a sigh.

‘Maybe I need to remove “kind” too…’