DMG Episode 10

His body gave way, and he was dragged toward the mantis.

“Kririk, krik!!”

The mantis let out a gleeful, triumphant sound as it finally ensnared its evasive prey. Holding him securely in its foreleg, it lifted Kang I-won off the ground, suspending him upside down.

Though his thigh hadn’t been severed, the creature’s incredible cutting power had driven the serrated edges deep into his flesh, reaching down to his bone. The excruciating pain was enough to make him nearly black out.

Savoring its victory, the mantis adjusted its grip with its other foreleg, pulling him upright. To it, the head was the most delectable part of any human, and it was the type to always eat the best parts first.

The mantis monster gripped Kang I-won by his thigh with one foreleg and his upper body with the other, positioning him upright to bring his head to its mouth, ready to feast.

As the monster opened its jaws, preparing to bite down, Kang I-won swung his only free arm, jabbing his fingers straight into the creature’s eye and clawing at it. His entire hand sank into the soft, fleshy tissue.

“Kieeeeek!!”

The mantis shrieked in agony, thrashing wildly. The sudden surge of pain made it release its grip on him, and Kang I-won fell from its grasp in an unexpected, jarring drop.

Unable to scream from the sudden shock of pain, his battered body tumbled to the ground, sprawling out across the floor.

Struggling to breathe, his mouth hanging open as he gasped, Kang I-won stretched his trembling arm to drag himself forward, crawling on one leg and one arm to distance himself from the frenzied monster, which was stomping the ground in pain behind him.

A trail of blood marked his slow, agonizing escape.

Finally putting a bit of distance between himself and the creature, Kang I-won exhaled, his breaths shaky and shallow. His entire body quivered as exhaustion sapped his strength.

‘Of all things to be doing on my day off… what a nightmare’

Even moving a single finger was a struggle. Summoning his last ounce of strength, he patted down his chest, searching for any painkillers or guiding drugs.

Nothing. He was out. Feeling utterly drained, he let his body slump to the floor. Though his missing arm and chest were slowly regenerating, the process was painfully slow.

He couldn’t hold out any longer in this state. If the monster caught him again, there’d be no escaping a second time. Resigned, he allowed himself to relax, half-accepting his fate.

Fortunately, help arrived before he became the monster’s next meal. Members of Team 5 and Team 9, responding to the emergency call, burst onto the scene.

Upon seeing Kang I-won’s battered state, Choi Soo-bin shouted in a half-panicked voice, “Are you dead?!”

“…”

“Are you dead or what, you damn idiot?!”

Choi Soo-bin’s voice buzzed in his ears. Speaking was almost impossible, but Soo-bin’s persistence finally forced a response out of him. With great effort, he croaked.

“Still… alive…”

His head spun, teetering dangerously close to the edge of unconsciousness. Not that he could die, thanks to his ability, but it felt like it.

As Choi Soo-bin approached, sending sharp gusts of wind toward the monster to keep it at bay, his face twisted in disgust at the sight of Kang I-won’s mangled form.

“Who do you think you are, tackling that thing barehanded by yourself… Idiot! You really outdid yourself this time. And you didn’t even get guiding yesterday! You’re pushing it too far—I’m gonna have to start nagging you like the Team Leader if you keep this up. Don’t you know how to take care of yourself?”

“Choi Soo-bin… instead of nagging, could you… help with… that…”

Kang I-won weakly pointed to two severed parts lying on the floor.

Sighing, Choi Soo-bin muttered a curse under his breath. But despite his grumbling, he carefully retrieved the severed limbs, aligning them with the torn edges of Kang I-won’s body.

Though Espers could regenerate missing body parts if they had enough energy, on a day like today, when he was running on fumes, reattaching the pieces was faster and required less energy.

Today, his regeneration was unusually sluggish—a clear sign that his need for guiding was urgent.

Through years of experience, Kang I-won knew his limits better than most Espers. His current state was like a water tank filled to the brim, with the surface tension barely keeping it from spilling. He was teetering on the edge of control.

At this stage, his body was dangerously unstable. Even guiding drugs would be useless; in fact, taking them with such erratic waves would be akin to poisoning himself.

This was precisely the time when he needed a guide’s touch. For a moment, he wondered how Heo Do-kyung would react if he showed up in this state. He’d probably be disgusted by his ragged appearance. Still, maybe it would finally clear up some of the misunderstandings between them.

Kang I-won dismissed the thought. ‘What’s the point?’ No matter how high their match rate, Heo Do-kyung was still temporary—someone who would leave as soon as his time was up.

He closed his eyes, trying to clear his mind and focus on the slow, painstaking process of regenerating his body. It was excruciatingly slow, but little by little, he was making progress.

Meanwhile, the mantis monster that had reduced him to this state was finally subdued by seven Espers.

Even as the battle ended, Kang I-won’s body hadn’t fully healed. Choi Soo-bin, returning from the fight and noticing his sluggish regeneration, frowned.

“The guide from the other team came along. I’ll ask if you can get temporary guiding from them.”

“…They might… not like it.”

Most Espers disliked it when their team’s guide provided guiding to others. It wasn’t unheard of for a team’s dedicated guide to become imprinted with an Esper from another team, often leading to complications. Once imprinted, a guide could only provide guiding to that specific Esper, and vice versa.

Losing a dedicated guide to another Esper was akin to a sudden catastrophe for any team, as 5 Team had experienced when their former guide, Lee Eun-young, fell in love with an Esper from 7 Team. Their secret affair led to an unintended imprint, rendering her unable to guide any other Esper. The team was temporarily assigned a low-level C-Class guide until Heo Do-kyung eventually took over the position.

Despite such incidents, it was still common for guides to provide temporary guiding in emergencies. Better to help an unstable Esper regain control than to risk letting them go berserk.

Choi Soo-bin reassured him, “Don’t worry. 9 Team’s leader likes you; he’ll probably be okay with it. Hold tight.”

A quick conversation ensued between Choi Soo-bin and 9 Team’s leader, who then relayed the request to their dedicated guide. The guide, accompanied by Choi Soo-bin, approached Kang I-won, clicking his tongue as he took in the battered state Kang was in.

“Good heavens, Esper Kang I-won… what a mess. Alright, let’s get you some guiding right away.”

The guide knelt beside him, initiating guiding immediately. Thankfully, their match rate wasn’t too low, and Kang I-won felt his chaotic waves gradually settle, easing his breathing. His sluggish regeneration began to pick up speed, and for the first time in what felt like ages, he could breathe freely again.

After a while, the 9 Team guide, still holding Kang I-won’s hand for guiding, finally let go and wiped the sweat from his brow.

“Um… sorry, but I think this is as much as I can manage right now. I still have to guide my own team members later…”

The guide trailed off apologetically, and Choi Soo-bin quickly waved him off. “Oh, don’t worry about it! This was more than enough. Really, thank you so much. You did great.”

Choi Soo-bin expressed gratitude on behalf of Kang I-won, who was still focusing on his recovery. The 9 Team guide gave a small bow before heading back to his team.

The regeneration process had sped up, but so had the hunger pangs that came with it. Kang I-won mumbled, “I’m starving.”

“Here, eat this.”

Choi Soo-bin peeled the wrapper off a fishcake stick that had fallen nearby and placed it in Kang I-won’s mouth. Without a word, Kang I-won started chewing, going through five fishcake sticks in total. As he munched, Choi Soo-bin stood to help with the cleanup.

Though his regeneration had accelerated, he still wasn’t fully healed and was better off resting while others handled the aftermath. Bit by bit, his body restored itself until he looked as if he’d never been in a fight.

When he finally managed to stand, Choi Soo-bin, who had sidled up to him, said, “Heo’s back at the Center, so make sure you go get some proper guiding, okay?”

“I was already planning to.”

Although the temporary guiding from 9 Team’s guide had calmed his waves somewhat, they were still unstable. Especially after pushing himself to the limit like today, it was better to get an extended guiding session to ensure his waves stabilized properly.

As they wrapped up, Han Kang-jin approached him. “Are you alright?”

“Yes.”

“Good job. It’s your day off, so you’ve been through a lot today. I’ll see if I can arrange another day off soon—just let me know when you want it.”

“Yes, sir.”

“You’re heading to the Center for guiding, right? We’re almost done here, so hold on for a moment, and we’ll go together—”

Brrriing—Brrriing—

Their devices buzzed urgently, the screen flashing red. An emergency alert. Checking his device, Choi Soo-bin groaned.

“Ah, damn. Team Leader, looks like we have to head over there. It’s close by, and there’s a summoning type with seven monsters reported.”

“…Alright, I’ll coordinate with 9 Team. Looks like you’ll have to go back on your own, I-won. Think you can make it?”

“Yes. My regeneration’s complete. I’m fine.”

Kang I-won lifted his still-trembling hand, clenched it into a fist, and lowered it back down. “…Once I get guiding, I’ll be perfectly fine.”

“Good. You go get that guiding, and I’ll handle things with 9 Team.”

Han Kang-jin turned to coordinate with the 9 Team leader. Kang I-won, still barely holding himself upright, let himself lie back down for a few more moments of rest.

The deeper wounds had healed, leaving no visible traces, but the lingering pain left an imprint. Feeling the exhaustion take over, he closed his eyes for a brief moment.

“…Food…”

A familiar voice cut through the haze of Kang I-won’s drifting consciousness, accompanied by a gentle shake. Slowly, he began to resurface from his daze.

“I-won sunbae! If you’re sleepy, go sleep at the Center!”

It was Kim Young-ho, the youngest member of Team 5. Kang I-won hadn’t even realized he’d dozed off. Forcing his battered body upright, he looked around. It seemed the other Espers had already moved on to another scene, leaving only Young-ho behind.

“Why didn’t you go with them?”

“I still haven’t gotten my guiding. I was supposed to go after Team Leader finished his session, but then the emergency call came in. So, I just came along.”

“You should’ve stayed behind for it.”

“Come on, how could I do that? Anyway, Team Leader said I should take you back to the Center first. They’ll catch a ride back with 9 Team, so we’re good to go.”

“I’ll drive.”

“No, I’ll do it! I didn’t do much today, anyway.”

“Alright.”

Kang I-won nodded, accepting the offer without objection.

The two of them left the supermarket and climbed into the parked vehicle. As soon as he settled into the passenger seat, exhaustion washed over him once more. Rubbing his neck, he murmured, “Young-ho, sorry, but I think I’ll take a nap. I’m really worn out.”

“Of course! I’ll wake you as soon as we get there.”

“Thanks.”

Kang I-won closed his eyes, falling asleep almost instantly. In the driver’s seat, Kim Young-ho stole a quick glance at him.

Kang’s skin was so pale it seemed almost bluish, his entire body covered in blood, and his clothes torn and shredded in places. To anyone else, he might have looked like a corpse, peacefully lying there.

With a sigh, Young-ho started the engine and pulled away.

Kang I-won was a remarkable senior. It was impressive enough that he had risen to an A-Class Esper with only a regeneration ability, without any direct combat powers.

On top of that, there was much to learn from him.

He possessed a vast knowledge of monsters and Gates, kept himself updated with the latest information, trained consistently even at levels that would overwhelm others, and was, in general, unfailingly steady in character. In many ways, he was admirable.

But sometimes, watching him throw himself headfirst at monsters, landing strikes through sheer force of will, Young-ho couldn’t help but wonder if Kang I-won was even human. Did he really need to go to such extremes?

He vividly remembered the first time he’d seen Kang I-won in such a state, utterly horrified. And even after half a year, he still hadn’t gotten used to it.

The heavy scent of blood filled the car, prompting Young-ho to crack a window open for ventilation.

To Kim Young-ho, Kang I-won was both a respected senior and an enigma he couldn’t quite understand. Watching him recover from grievous wounds as if they were nothing, as he had today, was unsettling.

All in all, he was a complicated and difficult person. To be honest, if they weren’t on the same team, Young-ho probably wouldn’t choose to associate with him.

“I don’t know why Soo-bin sunbae even likes being around him…” Young-ho muttered softly, as the wheels rolled smoothly beneath them.

Once they arrived at the Center, Young-ho parked the car and gently shook Kang I-won awake. The short nap had given Kang I-won some much-needed rest, and he slowly blinked himself awake.

“Go on and get your guiding first, sunbae,” Young-ho said. “I’ll go ahead and start on the report.”