Chapter 34

Haon quickened his steps towards Cha Yugeon’s dorm. Despite pondering for two days, he couldn’t find an answer, and he found himself going to meet Cha Yugeon without knowing what to do.

The moment he thought about skin ship, embarrassment overwhelmed him, and his body involuntarily hesitated. Haon murmured to himself multiple times in an attempt to calm himself, but it didn’t seem to have much effect as his steps remained unsteady as he approached Cha Yugeon’s dormitory next door.

Arriving at the front door, Haon hesitated. His hand slipped several times on the doorbell. While he thought he should go inside, he also didn’t want to.

“I can’t keep doing this forever…”

He paced around for about ten minutes, feeling as if he were trapped. Haon scolded himself and steeled his resolve. He had to go in now.

At that moment,

―Beep. Beep. Beep. Emergency situation detected. Emergency situation detected. Prepare for dispatch. Prepare for dispatch.

Sirens blared from the speakers installed in the center and the earphones plugged into his ears. As he was about to turn around, the door suddenly opened.

It was Cha Yugeon.

Though the situation at the door was awkward, fortunately or unfortunately, with the impending dispatch, Haon didn’t have the luxury to scrutinize his emotions.

“Were you about to come in?”

“Huh? Uh, uh…”

“Ah…”

Cha Yugeon let out a short exclamation, looking somewhat regretful. It seemed like he was disappointed.

Was it because they couldn’t train?

For a moment, such a thought crossed Haon’s mind, but seeing Cha Yugeon rushing forward, he snapped out of it. The mission was more urgent now.

Rushing to the helicopter boarding gate, they encountered several people. Besides Siyun, there was also Won Jaehyeok, a close friend of Cha Yugeon’s. In addition, there were more than ten people, including several espers and guides. It seemed like a large incident had occurred.

If such a large group was dispatched, it must be quite serious.

“Director Han, what’s going on?”

―Monster gates are opening sporadically in the middle of Gangnam.

“…Wow, that’s the worst.”

After hearing Director Han’s radio transmission, Haon finally understood why so many people were being dispatched. He quickly boarded the helicopter. Perhaps because there were quite a few passengers, the helicopter seemed larger than usual.

As he fastened his seatbelt, he felt a presence at the entrance. There seemed to be more people coming. Haon unknowingly turned to look at the helicopter entrance. There, Baek Chan-kyung was standing.

Baek Chan-kyung entered the helicopter with a stern expression. Upon seeing Haon, he smiled brightly and waved lightly. Haon waved back in return.

As Cha Yugeon, who was sitting next to him, glanced at Haon, he turned his head to where Baek Chan-kyung was. Cha Yugeon’s expression hardened upon spotting Baek Chan-kyung.

“Fuck.”

Startled by the sudden curse, Haon looked at Cha Yugeon, but Cha Yugeon didn’t say anything more. In the inexplicably chilly atmosphere, Haon swallowed uncomfortably.

―Mr. Cha Yugeon and Mr. Baek Chan-kyung will enter the monster gate and destroy the rift core inside the gate. Ms. Go Daeun, Mr. Kim Sangho, Mr. Won Jaehyuk, Ms. Lee Eunhee, and Ms. Jang Haram will take care of the monsters coming out of the gate. Mr. Park Haon, Mr. Kim Jeongwon, and Mr. Park Inhyung will enter the gate with Mr. Cha Yugeon and Mr. Baek Chan-kyung.

Director Han’s mission instructions came at just the right time. When he heard they had to enter the gate, Haon wrinkled his brow. Destroying the rift core sounded simple, but in reality, it meant they had to enter a gate filled with thousands of monsters.

If they could quickly find and destroy the core, it would be fortunate. However, if not, they would have to confront all the monsters inside the gate.

Even though they hadn’t arrived at the mission site yet, Haon already felt a headache coming. He pressed his temples, hoping the pain would subside.

“…Headache?”

“Just a stress headache.”

Haon replied casually to Cha Yugeon’s question. Cha Yugeon rummaged in his pocket and pulled out a pill.

“Take it.”

“Nah, it’s not that bad. Besides, these are expensive.”

“What do you mean it’s not bad. Your face looks pale.”

In the end, Haon accepted the pill. Since there was no water available, he simply swallowed the pill without anything to drink.

Though it looked like a simple pill on the outside, it was actually an expensive sensory dulling pill sold at the Center. While its effects were undeniable, it was difficult to obtain due to its high price. For Haon, it was his first time taking it.

“Stick close to me. And try to stay as far away as possible during combat.”

“…Got it.”

Cha Yugeon unnecessarily informed Haon of such an obvious fact. Haon hesitated on how to respond to Yugeon, who was telling him basic common sense among awakened individuals, but in the end, he just replied briefly. It felt too confrontational to say he already knew, and too proud to say thank you.

“Don’t go near that bastard.”

“Huh?”

Haon inadvertently blurted out loudly in response to the following remark, but quickly closed his mouth as he felt the gaze of the people around him focusing on him. After they eased off, Haon opened his mouth again. Of course, he kept his voice as low as possible, so as not to attract attention.

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Exactly what it sounds like.”

“That bastard? You mean Baek Chan-kyung?”

“Yeah, he’s dangerous… But it seems like you’ve already gotten close to him?”

Cha Yugeon responded calmly to Haon’s words, then asked with a tone mixed with dissatisfaction. Haon tilted his head, wondering why Cha Yugeon acted like this. There was no reason for him to be annoyed, whether Haon became friends with Baek Chan-kyung or not.

“We’re not exactly close yet, just trying to be.”

“Why?”

“Why? Do you need a reason to become friends with someone?”

There it was again. That damn ‘why.’ Haon narrowed his eyes at the forced question.

Then Cha Yugeon let out a heavy sigh.

“Keep your distance because he’s dangerous. Have you forgotten? He attacked you.”

“Well, he was in a frenzy state. Besides, it’s not unusual for an esper’s eyes to roll back when they go on a rampage. You should understand that. It won’t happen again.”

Cha Yugeon seemed to be harping on the incident where Haon was attacked. It was only once, and although it was undeniably dangerous, it was just an accident.

Moreover, the possibility of going on a rampage was something all espers had. So as fellow espers, one should understand. However, he seemed to have no intention of thinking that way.

“You don’t know that. Who knows when he might go on a rampage again. All espers are like that.”

“If you put it that way, you’re the same.”

“I’m different.”

“What do you mean you’re different?”

Haon couldn’t help but burst into laughter at the childish words. He had to ask how exactly Cha Yugeon was different. Then Cha Yugeon responded shamelessly.

“I didn’t attack you. Even if I go on a rampage.”

“Uh… what are you talking about? Since when do espers attack people while they were rampaging?”

“Anyway, that’s it. So you don’t have to be careful around me.”

“Yes, yes. I guess so.”

“I’m serious, though?”

Seeing that continuing the conversation would only lead to meaningless bickering, Haon tried to wrap it up roughly, but Cha Yugeon got annoyed. Since it seemed more childish, Haon just shook his head. Meanwhile, the helicopter had arrived in the airspace above Gangnam.

The helicopter prepared to land. Haon unbuckled his seatbelt and got ready to disembark. However spacious the interior was, it was still a helicopter. Since everyone was preparing to disembark at the entrance, it inevitably became crowded. Haon was pushed by the crowd and ended up a little away from Cha Yugeon.

Then Cha Yugeon grimaced and grabbed Haon’s wrist, pulling him towards himself. Then he glared at the awakened pushing Haon.

“What are you doing? Can’t you see there are people here?”

‘What are you doing?’ That was what Haon wanted to say. He was annoyed at Cha Yugeon’s sudden temper. Haon quickly shook his head, appeasing the awakened who seemed frightened by Cha Yugeon’s anger.

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry. My esper is a bit sensitive.”

Haon couldn’t understand why he had to apologize, but seeing the lower-ranked awakened who was clearly frightened in front of an S-class esper made him feel bad. He couldn’t just stand there and ignore it.

“Why are you apologizing? That guy started it…”

“Enough, let’s just get off already.”

Cutting off Cha Yugeon’s words, who seemed upset at Haon’s apology, Haon cut off his word and hurriedly got off the helicopter.