Chapter 20

He couldn’t understand why he could still hear the siren sound he had been hearing all day long at the center. At first, he suspected it was just an auditory hallucination.

However, after he saw everyone in the park running as if in a hurry to escape, he had no choice but to admit that the siren sound was real and not a hallucination.

Haon ran in the opposite direction of the fleeing people, cursing the damn Center under his breath. Yet, in the face of the urgent situation for civilians, his body moved unconsciously.

– Mr. Park Haon, are you at the scene right now?

“Yes. It seems that way. How did Director Han know that I’m here?”

– You’re detected by the sensors. But the situation is more serious we first expected. It is presumed that a newly awakened esper of at least A-class is in a coma state.

Haon frowned at the director’s words. He escaped from the wretched Center, only to collide with a newly awakened esper.

Even if luck wasn’t on his side, did it have to be like this?

 And it wasn’t just any esper either; it was the awakening of a high-class esper.

The fact that it was at least A-class meant there was a possibility the opponent could be S-class.

Haon gritted his teeth.

– Currently, the Awakening Response Team, including Mr. Cha Yugeon, is on their way. I apologize, but Mr. Park Haon, if you could buy us some time, we would appreciate it.

“Me?”

– Yes. We request your assistance.

Haon couldn’t say anything in response to the director’s words. He wanted to refuse, but deep down, he knew he would eventually agree. Saying he wouldn’t do it was meaningless; resisting and then reluctantly accepting would only hurt his pride.

Moreover, theoretically, as an S-class guide, he should be able to control the rampage of a high-grade esper.

Of course, it was merely theoretical.

“Which way should I go?”

– If you head in the 12 o’clock direction from your current location, there’s a large clock tower. The esper is beneath that clock tower.

“Understood, location confirmed.”

Haon replied briefly and ran towards the location Director Han mentioned. Soon, in the distance, a conspicuous, giant clock tower came into view. Haon swallowed dry saliva and observed the man beneath the clock tower.

The man’s body was shaking precariously, as if about to collapse at any moment.

Haon wanted to see his face, but he couldn’t as the man kept his head bowed.

With unease, Haon swallowed dry saliva again and silently closed the distance between him and the man.

“Director Han, is that the man?”

– Yes, that’s him.

– Park Haon, stay still. I’ll go. Just stay quiet and behave.

Cha Yugeon’s voice cut into Haon’s radio. It was the last voice he wanted to hear at the moment, making Haon’s forehead furrow instantly.

Haon didn’t respond to Cha Yugeon’s words.

-Park Haon, did you hear me? Just stay still. I’ll go and deal with the esper, so don’t get hurt and just stay still!

Upon hearing the enraged voice, Haon’s already contorted face became even more twisted.

He couldn’t understand why he had to listen to that guy.

“Why should I listen to you?”

-T-that’s…

“Well?”

Haon narrowed his eyes, wondering what kind of excuse Cha Yugeon would come up with this time. But soon, Haon’s eyes widened in bewilderment.

-B-because… I’m worried!

“What…?”

Haon doubted his ears. The infamous Cha Yugeon, the guy who never hesitated to insult him, was now genuinely concerned about him in the face of an esper on the verge of a rampage.

Haon blinked in disbelief.

-So, just stay still. Don’t go out and get hurt for no reason.

Unable to find words to respond to Cha Yugeon’s sincere tone, Haon merely pursed his lips.

At that moment, the sirens grew louder.

Only then did Haon snap back to attention and look at the man again. However, this time, the man who had previously kept his head bowed was now staring straight at Haon.

Moreover, his staggering body had stabilized.

Seeing this, a shiver ran down Haon’s spine. When he felt a chill in the man’s intense gaze for a split second, the ground trembled with a ‘thud, thud, thud’ sound.

“Director Han, has his esper ability been identified by any chance?”

-It hasn’t been identified yet.

-Park Haon, wait. I’m almost there…

Splash, splatter, whoosh!

Before Cha Yugeon could finish speaking, the ground cracked, and water began to gush out from the earth.

A tremendous amount of water shooting up from all directions.

Although Cha Yugeon told him to stay still, Haon couldn’t remain here any longer.

Desperately, he avoided the collapsing ground.

The gushing water turned into multiple streams, spreading in all directions.

In an instant, the nearby lowlands were submerged.

Thanks to this, he got a gist of the man’s ability.

Among many esper’s abilities, it was challenging to deal with an esper manipulating nature, especially water.

It didn’t bode well against Cha Yugeon, who controlled fire.

In this situation, even if Cha Yugeon arrived, subduing the esper wouldn’t be an easy task.

…But the more significant issue was whether Haon could hold on until Cha Yugeon arrived.

Dodging the unpredictable water streams was a challenge in itself.

Even if he slightly grazed by those streams, considering that the water had pierced through the ground earlier, the consequences would be dire.

The water pressure must be incredibly strong.

Swallowing dry saliva, Haon desperately ran around the park, avoiding the water streams.

However, he knew he couldn’t keep running forever.

For now, the man was still in a coma state, so there might be a chance to evade his attack.

However, if the man truly started to rampage…

No, it wasn’t about him escaping or not; a terrible disaster was about to unfold.

Gritting his teeth, Haon sprinted towards the direction where the man was.

“Argh!”

While he managed to dodge the water stream coming straight at him, Haon couldn’t avoid the one coming from behind.

Haon tumbled forward and bounced of the ground, flying several meters before landing forcefully on the ground, rolling a few times.

“Ha, ugh.”

His breath was labored.

By the feels o fit, it seemed like several ribs were broken.

-Hey, Park Haon, are you okay? What happened?

“Uh, ugh, no, not okay, so hurry… come. Ha, ugh, at this rate, I might die before you arrive.”

Struggling to hold onto a distant consciousness, Haon managed to get up from the fallen position and approached the man again.

Fortunately or unfortunately, getting hit by the water stream brought him much closer to the man.

With a few more strides, he could reach the man.

Taking a deep breath and preparing to run towards the man, Haon was suddenly halted by an unusual pain in his chest.

“…Cough.”

Wincing in pain, Haon covered his mouth with the back of his hand and coughed. Each cough was accompanied by a burst of blood.

The excruciating pain made his body involuntarily shivers.

It seemed that not only his ribs were broken, but also his internal organs were injured. He couldn’t even breathe due to the terrible pain. When he coughed again, more blood sprayed out.

The agony was unbearable.

He attempted to take the medicine Cha Yugeon had given him. However, due to the internal injuries, he couldn’t swallow it and ended up spitting it out.

As he tried to swallow the medicine again, a swift water stream came from the front, heading directly towards Haon.

Helpless, Haon could only watch.

He tumbled backward as the rushing water hit him.

“Ha, you really know how to make people worry.”

However, Haon didn’t collapse to the ground.

Thanks to Cha Yugeon, who embraced and caught him from behind.

“Cha, Yugeon…”

With bloodied lips, Haon struggled to call out Cha Yugeon’s name.

In response, Cha Yugeon gritted his teeth.

Feeling the anger of an S-grade esper, Haon, who hadn’t done anything wrong, instinctively curled up.

“Why didn’t you take the medicine I gave you?!”

“I can’t… I can’t swallow. It hurts too much.”

Cha Yugeon’s forehead wrinkled. He carefully observed Haon.

“Cough, gah…”

When a burst of coughing racked Haon’s body, he quickly covered his mouth with his hand.

Through the gaps in Haon’s fingers, blood oozed out.

Seeing this, Cha Yugeon’s eyes widened.

“Damn.”

Cha Yugeon cursed vehemently.

In a split second, another water stream rushed towards them at a frightening speed.

Holding Haon in his arms, Cha Yugeon propelled himself into the air.

The two of them soared high, propelled by telekinetic force.

The ground looked eerily distant. Haon, overwhelmed by fear and pain, inadvertently grabbed onto Yugeon’s clothing.

He knew Cha Yugeon could feel his trembling body.

Despite this, Haon couldn’t control the shivers.

“…Don’t curse.”

“What are you talking about? Fuhhh…”

Cha Yugeon, who left an indecipherable comment, took the medicine in Haon’s hand and held it in his mouth, then placed his lips on Haon’s lips.