“As you know, Ji Gwanyeong’s ‘matching guide’ right now is Lee Hansol. In other words, this means that Taehun, of course, and no other guide, are connected to him.”

Ji Gwanyeong had just confirmed with his own eyes that his matching rate with Taehun was in the negative points.

There was no doubt that he was now ‘matched’ with that guide, Lee Hansol. Ji Gwanyeong himself was well aware that the instinct of an Esper, desiring to reconnect with that single touch, was growing more menacing with each passing day.

However, the desires of Esper Ji Gwanyeong are not quite like the usual ones. What he is most thirsty for is this:

As his distorted and twisted vision aligned, if he could regain that overwhelming sensation, which once had such a bright color, when it touched ‘Taehun’ again, what would it feel like?

Just recalling that moment made his mouth dry. The center director continued cautiously, speaking to the Esper, who was silently listening.

“But if something happens to Lee Hansol in this situation… No, this is something that should never happen and will not happen, but if we consider the worst-case scenario…”

“If something goes wrong, he could go wild without any answers.”

“…Yes. So I started to mark Lee Hansol 24/7 and keep an eye on him, and it’s definitely different from before. How should I put it… he seems like someone being chased.”

Ji Gwanyeong ran his hand through his hair and let out a small sigh.

That ‘thing’ which had been bothering him and which he disliked from the beginning was now pestering him again. If he could, he would want to completely cut off all connections with the teacher, Lee Hansol, and anything related to them right away.

In fact, if Taehun hadn’t been around, Ji Gwanyeong might have made extreme choices more than once, standing as a puppet in this foolish experiment.

“So, what I’m saying is, how about you talk to Lee Hansol directly and try to convince him?”

“Convince him?”

At the director’s suggestion, Ji Gwanyeong’s eyebrow immediately shot up. Kwon Dahee quickly continued speaking.

“I’m not saying to make contact. Now that you’ve changed your mind, if you can just hold on for the remaining week, this ‘experiment’ will be a success for Taehun. That means the lives of over 600 guides will be saved.”

“…”

“As promised, once the experiment is over and Taehun receives the matching rate, there will be no problem for you, Ji Gwanyeong. But, what if that’s not the case?”

The reason why the center’s researchers didn’t rejoice when they saw Ji Gwanyeong and Taehun paired again, but stayed glued to their computers, was because of that.

‘If the teacher doesn’t keep his promise.’

As long as this one assumption remains, they cannot afford to relax.

Ji Gwanyeong and Taehun were merely an insurance policy. Ultimately, the top priority is to uncover the secret of the teacher’s unknown method of killing. Ji Gwanyeong is fully aware of this.

Since Taehun has also received counseling from that ‘teacher,’ there’s a possibility that he could end up like those guides who died without understanding the reason, just as they did.

The Esper furrowed his brow and crossed his arms. The center director, seeing this, continued in a soothing tone.

“Lee Hansol is showing intense obsession with you, Ji Gwanyeong. Let’s turn that around and use it. The goal is to at least figure out the exact meaning of what he said to Oh Jinwoo. He probably won’t ever speak about the teacher.”

“…C-Center Director!”

An urgent voice interrupted the director’s words.

Thanks to that, the serious atmosphere around the table shifted, and all eyes were now on the source of the call. There stood a mental Esper with a bewildered expression, swallowing dryly.

“Yes?”

“Maam, I think you should see this.”

The mental Esper manipulated a few buttons on the device and then displayed the screen on the massive main window in the central laboratory. As a result, the gazes of hundreds of Espers scattered around the lab all turned toward the screen. What they were now looking at was a live CCTV feed.

The laboratory fell into a brief moment of stunned silence. Ji Gwanyeong, who initially widened his eyes in surprise, soon furrowed his brows and let out a dry laugh.

“This is driving me crazy.”

With his voice laced with irritation, the researchers kept their attention fixed on the screen in silence. What they were seeing was Taehun, holding a few cans of drinks they had requested together, and Lee Hansol, who was frowning as he looked at Taehun.

Initially, the mental Esper had been monitoring only Lee Hansol.

Lee Hansol had a strangely twisted structure in his mind, so while his exact thoughts couldn’t be read, the fluctuations in his emotions were fairly easy to detect when his domain was open.

Because of this, the mental Esper had been monitoring him, preparing for any potential issues. But suddenly, the frequency of Hansol’s energy spiked, becoming sharper, and at the same time, the situation room started receiving a flood of hotline calls.

Of course, the reason was obvious, as seen in the footage.

Ji Gwanyeong sighed irritably and stood up. However, Oh Yeon stopped him.

“The Esper is already waiting right next to you. Let’s watch for a moment. If you move now, it will stand out too much.”

“What’s the point of watching?”

“Anyway, it’s better for Taehun to be the one to persuade him, right? Do you think you could have a nice chat with that guide?”

Hearing such an aggravating suggestion, the Esper almost pushed Oh Yeon away, telling him to stop talking nonsense. But before he could say anything, another voice, calm and polite, spoke up.

[Where are you staying, Director?]

[…What?]

[Are you eating properly?]

The sound of someone in the lab sighing deeply echoed. For a moment, Ji Gwanyeong thought that he shared the same feeling as that sigh.

The real nonsense was coming from his guide. Right now, Taehun wasn’t asking about just anyone; he was asking about Lee Hansol. But despite the absurdity of the atmosphere in the lab, Taehun had a rather serious look on his face.

Taehun continued speaking, looking at Lee Hansol, who was frowning in front of him.

“Are you going to starve to death or something?”

“Who’s worrying about who right now?! Don’t act like you’re so great when we’re not even matched!”

Lee Hansol remembered that he had said something similar to Taehun before. That thought made him even more furious. His anger was boiling over.

He could still vividly picture the scene of the Esper walking out, holding the guide’s hand with no emotion. It was after that day that ‘Father’ had spoken those unbelievable words to him. His father was clearly disappointed by what he had seen that day.

Lee Hansol clenched his teeth, his frustration building up.

Of all the things he could have said, he didn’t like the word ‘death’ being used. His father had spoken of the guide in front of him with praise.

<The most ideal guide!>

He really wanted to know. If he could just receive even a slight matching rate, he believed he had the power to turn any weak figure into the highest rating. He could even become an absolute being, making any other guide’s matching a distant dream.

Yet his father praised this worthless guide in front of him. The most ideal and perfect guide was him.

He had lived his life for that very purpose!

“Of course, I should be concerned.”

However, contrary to Hansol’s sharp response, Taehun calmly continued speaking.

“I really can’t afford for you, Lee Hansol, to die.”

“……”

“If someone who has something to retrieve is walking around looking like they’re about to die, anyone would take care of them. Get a grip. What’s with that appearance?”

Lee Hansol, now red to the neck, gritted his teeth.

As Taehun had said, Lee Hansol had become gaunt and worn over the past few weeks, resembling someone with a serious illness. Taehun, who had also gone through some mental strain and lost weight, was in a similar situation, but Hansol was not just slightly thin—he was severely changed.

His once delicate and handsome features were gone, replaced by a cold, venomous gaze, and through the thin clothes he had chosen for the hot weather, twisted scars were visible. His skin was rough, and his lips were cracked—nothing about him looked healthy.

Taehun glanced at Hansol, shrugged his shoulders slightly, and then turned, as if he had said everything he needed to say. The scent of Ji Gwanyeong’s perfume lingered in the air. As soon as Hansol realized that, he clenched his fist tightly.

Ji Gwanyeong was the strongest Esper Hansol had always admired. He truly believed that this time would be different. While Oh Jinwoo had never escaped the shadow of his previous pair, Hansol thought that if he erased the memories with his original guide, there would be no choice but for him to be chosen.

He had obtained the matching rate that was impossible to imagine with the previous pair, and he believed that the already high number would rise even higher.

But nothing had gone as expected.

The Esper he thought he had finally secured had scorned him as soon as he saw him and chose Taehun, who didn’t even have a 1% matching rate, once again. This time, he was rejected again.

He was furious. Why was he always overshadowed by the ‘guide’? It hurt so much it turned his stomach. Oh Jinwoo had been obsessed with the ‘liar’ Kim Gaha for more than ten years, and Ji Gwanyeong, though suspicious and cautious of everything, had ultimately chosen Taehun’s hand again.

Lee Hansol staggered and slumped against the wall.

Six days. Only six days left.

It hadn’t even been a week since his father had ordered him to die. It was ridiculous. The only person who said they were worried about him among all the people in this vast space was none other than the guide who had taken away his Esper!

Lee Hansol let out a small laugh. It sounded like a hoarse, almost sobbing laugh. The sound reached the guide’s ears as he was quickly trying to walk away. Taehun thought to himself, “Let’s ignore him!”

But contrary to his thoughts, the guide’s pace had already slowed.

In truth, Taehun was quite surprised by Lee Hansol. The image he had of him in his mind was not like this. He had seen Hansol smiling brightly and claiming ownership of Ji Gwanyeong, or sarcastically mocking others with sharp jabs. At a glance, he seemed to have a bright disposition.

But now, everything was different. If he had passed by without paying attention, he wouldn’t have recognized him as the same person. His hair, which used to look neatly styled, was now wild and tangled, and his clothes were wrinkled and disheveled.

…Could it be because he feared that if he lost in the experiment, he would never become anyone’s guide? Taehun unconsciously clicked his tongue as he recalled the conditions of the experiment he had proposed.

Lee Hansol, that reckless and devious guide, should never be paired with an Esper. Just thinking about Oh Jinwoo is enough. How could someone kill their paired guide and then take their place for ten years? Such a cruel act is unimaginable.

However, Taehun, despite having a clean and decisive conclusion in his mind, kept hesitating and stopping intermittently as he walked.

“Ah, really.”

While his mind had already decided to leave quickly, reality just didn’t allow it. In the end, the guide stopped shortly and let out a long sigh. At that moment, Lee Hansol, along with the Esper waiting silently nearby and the researchers observing through the CCTV, all looked at him with a puzzled expression.

Taehun, three seconds after the sigh, immediately turned around and walked back the same way he had just come. Unlike his earlier hesitation, he was now walking with a completely different air.

Lee Hansol, still crouching, looked up at the tall guide who was now glaring down at him with a slightly tilted gaze. Though Taehun had lost some weight, his height and build still made him an imposing adult man, enough to intimidate the crouching Hansol.

“…What, what is it?”

“By the way, how old are you? Why have you been speaking informally since last time?”

Lee Hansol, caught off guard by Taehun’s unexpected words, froze with a look of surprise on his face.

“Let me see your ID.”

“What, what? What kind of thing…!”

“I’m not the type to care much about that kind of thing, but you should mind your manners.”

Lee Hansol didn’t have an ID.

Oh Jinwoo, who had lived with Hansol for ten years, knew this well. Taehun raised an eyebrow as he observed Hansol hesitating in response to his words. The researchers, who had been watching through the CCTV, couldn’t help but glance at one of the Espers, noticing the strange expression on Hansol’s face, which was completely at odds with his delicate features.

After a moment, Taehun extended his arm toward Hansol.

“Take it.”

“……”

“Ah, if you don’t want to drink it, then don’t.”

It was a drink he had received by accident. Hansol, with a somewhat dazed expression, alternated his gaze between the seemingly insignificant can of cola and Taehun. In fact, the cola was something Taehun had picked out to drink. Hansol fiddled with the can in his hand for a while before awkwardly opening the lid. The characteristic fizzy sound of a carbonated drink filled the air.

Hansol’s eyes widened at the sound, then hesitated before bringing the can to his lips. Not long after, he recoiled in disgust and shouted.

“Ugh. What is this?!”

“It’s cola.”

His expression was strange. Holding the small can in his hand, with his eyes darting around, he looked somewhat unfamiliar, which caused Taehun to furrow his brows slightly at first.

However, in Hansol’s mind, the guide, who knew the ‘process’ that had been made, a shocking assumption suddenly popped up. Taehun, with a thought of disbelief, spoke it out loud.

“…Have you never had cola before?”

“No.”

The answer came so readily after Taehun had said it, and without realizing it, he was momentarily speechless. It only took a can of cola to realize just how far removed Hansol’s life had been from anything typical.

Though hesitant, Taehun thought of many words as he watched Hansol take a small sip of the cola he’d been given, before letting them settle in his mind.

“Lee Hansol.”

His voice was low. Hansol, with a sharp tone, turned his gaze to the guide’s voice. The drink he had been given caused a sharp sting on his tongue and throat.

“I don’t understand you, Lee Hansol.”

“……”

“I can’t forgive what you did to Oh Jinwoo. And that teacher or whatever your father is—same goes for him. You’re really going to get punished.”

Hansol looked at the guide without saying anything.

His expression seemed like he was pondering something, but the vague emotion on his face quickly shifted to something clearer with Taehun’s next words.

“But I do feel sorry for you.”

The words, slow to come out, made Hansol tilt his head slightly. His bright eyes seemed to not fully understand what Taehun had said.

“What’s that?”