TS 034

Yoon Taehwa pulled out a cigarette, stepping out onto the Center’s rooftop. The sprawling cityscape stretched before him, a tapestry of twinkling lights that seemed to mock the late hour. It was almost midnight, yet Seoul refused to sleep. 

“Well, neither does the Center…” 

He chuckled, the irony not lost on him. The building beneath his feet, a beacon of activity, operated around the clock, and he, a vital cog in its machinery, was no exception.

“Video review done.”

He’d spent the past few hours reviewing drone footage from the dungeon clearing, analyzing every detail, before sending his team, especially Han Suryeon, to the Guiding Room. Lee Woojin, their designated Guide, was going to have his hands full handling another S-rank Esper, but there was no other option. 

While advancements in Guiding supplements, medications, and therapy were rapidly progressing, nothing could quite replace the immediate effectiveness of direct Guiding.

‘Get some guiding, now.’

‘But I’m not getting rampaging…’

Han Suryeon’s indignant whine, the way he’d fidgeted like a child unjustly reprimanded, was still fresh in his mind. Yoon Taehwa glanced at his lips, swollen and bruised. 

‘That’s an order.’

‘… If it’s an order from our team leader, I’ll follow it like a dog. Just gotta hold your hand, right?’ 

The word ‘order’ had been enough to elicit a surprisingly compliant response from Han Suryeon, who had even gone so far as to offer his hand, wiggling his fingers playfully.

While nothing could quite match the effectiveness of sex when it came to Guiding, Team 1 relied primarily on skin-to-skin contact. Even Lee Woojin, an S-rank Guide, couldn’t handle the energy demands of five S-rank Espers simultaneously. 

Besides, the Center, embracing modern advancements, relied on a combination of scientific and traditional methods. Guiding supplements and medication significantly enhanced the effectiveness of touch-based Guiding, making mucous membrane contact unnecessary. 

While mucous membrane guiding was crucial in cases of nearly rampaging, it was a scenario Team 1, with Yoon Taehwa at the helm, had yet to encounter. 

“Hyung.” 

He called out to the man standing nearby, his face a mask of gentle concern. It was Lee Woojin. 

‘Make it as unpleasant as possible.’

They’d known each other for over a decade, having joined the Center around the same time. Casual requests like this were… easy. 

‘You’re so mean, Team Leader.’

Han Suryeon, overhearing their conversation, whined, his tone laced with mock hurt. 

‘Our new teammate has certainly earned your ire, Taehwa. Shall we go?’

Ignoring Han Suryeon’s theatrics, Lee Woojin steered him towards the Guiding Room. Yoon Taehwa imagined him now, subjected to a barrage of lectures disguised as Guiding. 

If not for his abilities, Lee Woojin would have made an excellent kindergarten teacher. Though whether his gentle admonishments would have any effect on Han Suryeon was debatable. 

“Han Suryeon…”

Yoon Taehwa placed the unlit cigarette between his lips, rolling it thoughtfully.

He couldn’t understand what had possessed him to kiss the other man. The first kiss, the one in the dungeon, had been purely a medical intervention. He’d assessed Han Suryeon’s state, deemed him on the verge of rampaging, and used the most effective method to deliver his ability: a kiss.

But the kisses that followed… those defied any logical explanation. The tangled tongues, the exploration, the nip… those were undeniably… kisses. 

While their encounter had been more of a battle for dominance than a shared expression of desire, Yoon Taehwa knew, without a doubt, that what had transpired between them was… a kiss.

“Strange…” 

He ran his tongue over his lips, bringing the cigarette to his mouth.

While he’d been provoked, frustrated by Han Suryeon’s theatrics, his own reaction had been…uncharacteristic. There was no other way to describe it. It was strange.

‘I’ve never been with a man. Never even considered it.’ 

He’d never viewed a man in a sexual context before. 

Espers falling for their Guides was common. Matching rates weren’t influenced by gender, so same-sex pairings were as frequent as heterosexual ones. And with a few bonded pairs within the Center, same-sex relationships weren’t exactly taboo. But that didn’t equate to personal attraction. 

What made this situation even stranger was that he and Han Suryeon were both Espers. 

Espers, especially those with possessive Guides, viewed other Espers of the same designation as rivals, potential threats to their relationship. Matching rates, bonding, the possibility of their Guide choosing another Esper… It was a source of constant anxiety.

While technological advancements had rendered matching rates irrelevant and bonding a rare, almost romanticized occurrence, the instinctive fear, the jealousy, remained. 

S-rank Espers, their rampage thresholds higher, were less prone to such conflicts, but among A-ranks, fights over Guides were a common occurrence. 

In this day and age, relationships between Espers, especially those of the same designation, were considered far more unusual than same-sex relationships. 

“Well, not all kisses are sexual.” 

He muttered the words as he placed the cigarette between his lips, lighting it. 

He’d been angry, frustrated, and perhaps that anger, that destructive impulse, had manifested itself in a… different way.

‘Desire and destruction…  They’re two sides of the same coin.’ 

Perhaps that explained his urge to bite, to mark those lips that had been so boldly devouring that apple.

‘Pointless thoughts.’

He pushed the image away, focusing on what had transpired after he’d sent Han Suryeon to the Guiding Room.

He’d immediately reviewed the footage from the dungeon. Thankfully, there was no record of their encounter. The drones, programmed to return to base the moment the core monster was neutralized, hadn’t captured anything beyond the fight.

‘Too many anomalies.’

He took a drag of his cigarette, the flame from the lighter casting flickering shadows on his face. As he exhaled a plume of smoke, the unsettling feeling, the one that had been lingering since their return, intensified. 

“This is supposed to be a normal dungeon, so why do I feel so uneasy…?” 

The terrain had been a challenge, but they had successfully neutralized the core. The Gate was closed. There was nothing to worry about. Yet, he couldn’t shake off the feeling that something wasn’t right. 

As he replayed the events in his mind, his thoughts inevitably drifted towards Han Suryeon. 

His display of power, manipulating those massive trees with such effortless grace, had been… impressive. And yet, the man had shown no sign of fatigue, his face calm, almost serene.

‘And the way he acted like he was about to go on a rampage on purpose was ridiculous.’ 

Yoon Taehwa frowned, pushing the thought away. 

He inhaled deeply, letting the nicotine calm his nerves. 

“There’s definitely a leak of information…”

A dungeon appearing a few days after a major terrorist attack wasn’t unusual. But the timing of the second attack, the sudden shortage of personnel… it felt orchestrated, as if someone had deliberately manipulated the situation, forcing Team 1 into that dungeon.

The existence of a mole within the Center wasn’t a surprise, but the timing… that was what bothered him. 

‘Why now?’

He ran through various scenarios, each one leading him back to the same conclusion: Han Suryeon. Whether it was Han Suryeon himself, or something he possessed…  

“Damn it.”

He took another drag of his cigarette, his hand, clenched around the burning ember, tightening. 

He needed guiding. 

His gaze, drifting towards the city lights, fell on his phone. He pulled it out, dialing a number without hesitation. 

—Hyung.

A cheerful voice answered. 

“Yoon Taein, where are you?”

Yoon Taehwa leaned against the railing, his gaze fixed on the cityscape. 

—Just stepping out for a bit, be back soon.

“At this hour?” 

—Thought I’d drop by, see your face, but I heard you were in a dungeon clearing. And wasn’t there… an incident a few days ago? Are you okay? I didn’t call, because I didn’t want to bother you.

News of the explosion had undoubtedly spread. It would have been all over the news. But Yoon Taehwa rarely paid attention to public opinion. Damage control was the Center’s responsibility.

“I’m fine, nothing happened. Things have been weird lately so be careful out there.”

—You’re the one who needs to be careful, hyung. Should I come over?

“Tomorrow’s a school day.”

—My morning classes were canceled. I’m coming over. Wait, hold on… What if your girlfriend’s there, hyung?

“Don’t be ridiculous.”

—Just looking out for my workaholic hyung. I’m heading home then. Wake me up when you get in.

“Okay.”

The call ended with a cheerful “See you soon!”. Yoon Taehwa pocketed his phone, exhaling a plume of smoke, the gray cloud dissipating into the night air.

A presence, silent and familiar, made him turn. Han Suryeon, his guiding session with Lee Woojin apparently over, was standing a few feet away, watching him. 

“Do you smoke?” 

His gray eyes, bright even in the darkness, were fixed on the cigarette in Yoon Taehwa’s hand.