Chapter 88:
“If the Esper refuses? If they have another Guide they want?”
Baek Joo-won’s eyes narrowed at the thought, which was unpleasant to even imagine.
“You’re only paired with Seo Jae-yi, not Imprinted, right?”
Imprinting. A phenomenon where an Esper and a Guide were completely bound, both physically and mentally, desiring only each other.
Of course, they couldn’t be Imprinted, having just become paired.
It was strange for Jang Woo-seok to even ask.
“This is unacceptable!”
“Stop them!”
Suddenly, there was a commotion outside. They both turned their heads, and the closed door swung open, revealing someone unexpected.
It was Kim Yoo-sung.
“Guild Leader Kim Yoo-sung? What is the meaning of this intrusion?!”
Jang Woo-seok, recognizing him, shouted. But Kim Yoo-sung was even more furious.
“You weren’t happy with Seo Jae-yi, so you sent her to a death trap?!”
Baek Joo-won’s eyes widened at Kim Yoo-sung’s incomprehensible words. Even his bag, which had been still, twitched.
“A death trap?”
“Seo Jae-yi is on her way to Mount Taebaek. The government ordered her to extinguish the wildfire there.”
Baek Joo-won shot to his feet.
If Seo Jae-yi had been dispatched, it must have been a serious wildfire. And she was in no condition to extinguish a large-scale wildfire.
‘This was his plan all along.’
Baek Joo-won realized that this had been Jang Woo-seok’s goal from the beginning.
To separate him, her lifeline, from Seo Jae-yi.
“A death trap?! She has a Pair now, so her condition is improving. We just gave her a task she should be doing. She’s always been in charge of extinguishing wildfires!”
Jang Woo-seok argued shamelessly.
Right. He had prepared an excuse from the beginning.
“We just gave her a task she should be doing as an Esper, and you’re barging in here like this? We need to strengthen the Esper Conduct Regulations even further…”
Jang Woo-seok’s selfish words were cut short.
Bang!
Baek Joo-won, having jumped over the table, grabbed him by the collar and slammed him against the wall.
“Ugh! W-what?!”
“How dare you try to kill the one I chose?”
His chilling voice pierced Jang Woo-seok’s ears, sending shivers down his spine.
Baek Joo-won’s face was right before him. An expressionless face, even more terrifying.
“I haven’t even received anything from her yet, and you dare…”
He felt like he was being constricted by a snake. He wanted to call for the bodyguards outside, but his tongue wouldn’t move.
He was terrified. Terrified of Baek Joo-won.
“You’ve been annoying from the start. Why did Seo Jae-yi even bother saving you? It would have been easier if she had just killed you.”
Baek Joo-won’s grip tightened. Jang Woo-seok gasped for air, but he could only weakly kick his legs.
He couldn’t move. It felt like countless thorns were digging into him.
Who was this guy? Was he even human?
“Should I just kill you before you become even more troublesome?”
Jang Woo-seok’s face turned blue. His eyes rolled back, overcome by terror, but at that moment…
“Stop!”
Kim Yoo-sung quickly pulled Baek Joo-won away. Jang Woo-seok, finally freed, coughed violently, but the oppressive aura remained.
“I understand how you feel, but if you commit murder here, it will also affect Seo Jae-yi, your Pair. Remember that unlike you, she’s a Korean Esper.”
Baek Joo-won’s struggle ceased. The sharp aura that had filled the room slowly dissipated.
“Going to Seo Jae-yi is our priority now. It’ll take at least three hours to get to Mount Taebaek. We’ll be too late if we don’t leave now.”
“…Let’s go.”
Baek Joo-won glared at Jang Woo-seok and turned away. Kim Yoo-sung, finally able to breathe a sigh of relief, looked at Jang Woo-seok, who was clutching his throat and gasping.
“I’ll remember that you tried to kill Seo Jae-yi.”
“Y-you insolent… Ugh, do you think I’ll let this slide?!”
Jang Woo-seok shouted, his eyes bloodshot. But Kim Yoo-sung wasn’t afraid.
“Mac Grayson from the US said he would be happy to take both Seo Jae-yi and Baek Joo-won.”
“W-what?”
“I’m warning you. If this happens again, I’ll send them to Mac Grayson. And I’ll expose everything you’ve done to Seo Jae-yi.”
“Kim Yoo-sung!”
“All the human experiments you conducted on her when she was a minor, and your attempt to kill her today.”
“Do you think I’ll be intimidated by such threats?”
“Do you really think I would make such accusations without evidence?”
Kim Yoo-sung scoffed as Jang Woo-seok froze.
“You underestimate Seo Jae-yi. She wouldn’t have left without preparing something, knowing how her father, Seo Joo-il, died.”
Jang Woo-seok’s eyes wavered at the mention of Seo Joo-il’s name.
They had truly underestimated Seo Jae-yi.
“I’ve given you a warning. It’s your choice whether to heed it or not.”
Kim Yoo-sung left the room, leaving Jang Woo-seok gasping for breath. Baek Joo-won was waiting for him in the hallway.
Kim Yoo-sung was a bit nervous, despite having just threatened Jang Woo-seok.
The aura he had felt from Baek Joo-won when he grabbed Jang Woo-seok by the collar, it wasn’t ordinary. It had been a terrifying power, strong enough to make even an S-rank Esper like him hesitate.
What was that?
“What’s wrong?”
But Baek Joo-won’s expression was calm, as if he hadn’t just done something so terrifying.
Kim Yoo-sung couldn’t help but ask.
“Baek Joo-won, are you really just an ordinary Guide?”
“Huh?”
Baek Joo-won looked at him with a bewildered expression, unlike Kim Yoo-sung, who was tense.
“What was that power you used to threaten Jang Woo-seok?”
“Power? Ah, that wasn’t me.”
Baek Joo-won opened his bag.
“Hiss! Hiss!”
Airok was inside. He was clearly enraged, his blue scales glowing red.
“Why is Airok…?”
“Seo Jae-yi assigned him as my bodyguard.”
Ah, so that was it. The chilling aura he had felt wasn’t from Baek Joo-won, but from the enraged Airok.
Dragons were apex predators. It was natural for him to exude such power, as he possessed strength comparable to an S-rank Esper.
Kim Yoo-sung, relieved that the misunderstanding had been cleared, rushed towards the parked car with Baek Joo-won. He stepped on the unconscious bodyguards Kim Yoo-sung had knocked out, scattered around the area. He didn’t even want to look at them.
“What’s Seo Jae-yi’s current condition?”
“She’s not in a condition to easily extinguish a large-scale wildfire.”
“…Let’s go as fast as we can.”
Traffic laws didn’t matter now. The only thing that mattered was reaching Seo Jae-yi before she died.
The problem was that her death wasn’t the worst-case scenario.
‘If she overloads…’
A corner of the Korean peninsula might disappear. And it might not end there.
There wasn’t a single Esper in Korea who could stop Seo Jae-yi if she overloaded.
“Wow, look at that. It’s shrinking again!”
Mount Taebaek National Park parking lot.
Chu Sung-won exclaimed, watching the scene unfold from a safe distance.
It had been about an hour since Seo Jae-yi had entered the deep mountains alone to extinguish the wildfire on Mount Taebaek. The flames, which had been so intense they turned the night sky into day, had subsided considerably.
The area affected by the fire must have been larger than a hundred soccer fields, and she was extinguishing it this quickly? It was much faster than using several firefighting helicopters.
“Even four or five A-rank Water Manipulation Espers wouldn’t be able to match that speed. She’s a monster, alright.”
Chu Sung-won glanced at Gong Ju-hyun, who was staring intently at Mount Taebaek, his fists clenched.
“Gong Ju-hyun, you can do it, right? You have to succeed this time to become Seo Jae-yi’s Pair.”
“Yes, I know.”
Gong Ju-hyun nodded. His confidence wasn’t unfounded. He was certain he could do it this time.
The scorching flames within her body, consuming her lifespan. He had been shocked by the terrifying heat and fled, but not this time.
This time, Seo Jae-yi would be the one clinging to him.
“A car is approaching.”
Three cars entered the parking lot. It was the official car used by Center Head Kwon Yi-soo.
“What brings you here, Center Head?”
Chu Sung-won was startled, seeing Kwon Yi-soo’s grim expression as he got out of the car.
“Support Seo Jae-yi immediately. The wildfire will be completely extinguished today.”
Kwon Yi-soo ignored him and gave orders to the Espers who got out of the other two cars. He approached them only after seeing the three or four Water Manipulation Espers head towards the mountain.