← The Resurrected Guide Wants to Live Quietly
"If those bastards come back with a grudge, what are you going to do? You need to have something to fight back with."
"…"
"You have no intention of joining Seonyeon, do you? If you’re refusing because you’d feel burdened accepting something while turning down our offer, you’ve got it wrong. We’ve given up on recruiting him anyway, so we’re trying to at least hand him this. If we thought he’d come running, we’d have skipped this tedious transfer process and just issued him something much better after he officially joined."
"Ah…"
"You’re not one of ours, so if something happens we can’t intervene, but you’re not a complete stranger either — this all happened because you came along with us. It’ll keep nagging at us, so we’re giving you something for self-defense. So just take it. Better to take the item and settle it cleanly than both sides feeling awkward, don’t you think?"
"…I’ll gratefully accept."
He decided not to be stubborn anymore. If Yu-geon was going this far, it meant he’d give it no matter what. And since he’d been read so transparently, his exact weak spot struck, he had no grounds to refuse further.
He gave a small bow and tapped the "accept" button; various cautions and consent forms about gun ownership appeared, and after he checked the contents and signed, a notice that ownership had transferred came up, and the gun was registered as a possession of "Lee Ha-neul."
A faint smile touched the lips of Yi-yeon as he held the gun in his hand.
"I’ll use it well."
Honestly, Yi-yeon loved this gun. Its weight, grip, and firepower were all ideal.
A gun this good was hard to come by. It was priced beyond a Center guide’s salary, of course, and listings themselves were rare. And on the rare occasions one came up, field guilds or guild-affiliated guides snapped them up fast.
So Center guides usually got them through deals with guilds they knew, but with Yi-yeon’s personality there was no guarantee he’d form that kind of connection with any guild — so getting one this way was something to be grateful for.
It was a gift from Yu-geon’s guild, so it would be a keepsake of sorts. It was practically a present from Yu-geon. Especially for Lee Ha-neul, who would likely never meet Yu-geon again, this would be his only link to him — he couldn’t help wanting it.
"Ha-neul, just so you know, we’re not throwing out empty promises because we expected you to refuse. All of it was sincere."
"Yes. I know you think highly of me. I’m grateful."
"It’s true we’re short on guides in our guild. We especially, desperately need someone who’ll guide our Guild Master, who’s picky about everything. So think of it as saving a life and please think positively…"
"Cut the pointless chatter. We’re here."
"Ah."
At some point the car had stopped. Right in front of the guiding Center that "Lee Ha-neul" belonged to.
Yi-yeon scrambled out of the car, and Yeon-seo, her face wistful, looked like she swallowed back more words she wanted to say before breaking into a bright, kind smile.
"Ha-neul, thank you for today! Go in and get some good rest!"
Yeon-seo was an energetic, cheerful person to the very end. He couldn’t fathom how two people with not a single resemblance had gotten close enough to found a guild together, but she left such a good impression that he was glad someone like her was by Yu-geon’s side.
Parting with the two from Seonyeon, Yi-yeon returned to the dormitory and plopped into a dining chair, scrubbing his face with both hands.
"So tired…"
His whole body felt like damp laundry.
He couldn’t even remember the last time he’d been this tired. Even the time he’d focused on clearing a dungeon for three days without sleep hadn’t been this bad. Since becoming a guide from an esper, he hadn’t felt much difference beyond not being able to use his ability — but going to the field made it starkly clear.
This body was far too frail. Thanks to Yu-geon’s efforts the situation had wrapped up quickly, and he hadn’t even fought directly, yet his stamina was this drained. Had the guides he’d seen at the field all this time been going out with espers in bodies this weak? Now he clearly understood how amazing they were.
"Still, it’s a relief…"
At parting, Yu-geon’s wavelength had been incomparably more stable than when they’d first met.
He’d told him to get guided on time, so it would be fine now. He could feel at ease.
Smiling faintly, Yi-yeon fiddled with the gun transferred from Yeon-seo, then got up to wash. ***
Han Yu-geon snapped his eyes open.
"Heo…"
The moment he realized he was awake, a sigh burst out first. He sat up, checked the time, and stayed dazed for a while.
His body was so light, his mind so clear. How long had it been since he’d woken up this refreshed? Perhaps the first time since his one and only guardian had died.
It wasn’t that he’d slept long. Exactly eight hours. And yet he felt more rested than if he’d slept far longer. Truly perfect sleep. He hadn’t even dreamed, and had slept sweetly without much tossing and turning.
Was it thanks to finally receiving guiding after so long? But "finally receiving guiding" had happened countless times over the past six years. Here and there, when he truly felt he couldn’t go on, he’d gotten guiding — yet his body had never felt this light.
It was clearly different from usual. Was it because what he’d done this time wasn’t ordinary contact guiding, but "mucous-membrane guiding"?
"Damn…"
Thinking of yesterday, Yu-geon couldn’t withstand the flooding shame and covered his face with both hands.
Receiving guiding was fine. It had been a situation where he needed it, after all. The problem was… that Yu-geon hadn’t pressed his lips to his because he’d wanted guiding at the time.
That had been, unmistakably, a "kiss."
Even while their tongues had been tangling, he hadn’t thought of what he was doing as guiding. Not at all. Which was why, of the thirty minutes their lips had been pressed together, the actual "guiding" had probably been less than ten percent. Instead of cooperating with the guide so the guiding could proceed smoothly, he had just wanted the body in his arms. The lips, the breath, the heartbeat, every small movement — he’d wanted to feel and possess all of it.
It was only luck that Ha-neul was a newly assigned, inexperienced Center guide; if he’d done the same to another guide, he’d have been sued for sexual harassment.
Strength entered the large, thick hands covering his face, and thick veins stood out.
"You’ve lost it, Han Yu-geon."
He’d seen Seon Yi-yeon in Lee Ha-neul.
No, it wasn’t just seeing him — in that moment he’d simply thought he was Seon Yi-yeon. Because it had felt like Yi-yeon was calling him "Geon-ah." Longing had erupted like a volcano all at once, and he’d been unable to contain it.
Why had he made such a mistake, when their voices and looks weren’t even that alike?
Their similar atmosphere, height, and build; the bloodied belly that had brought Seon Yi-yeon’s final moments to mind; the fact that, as his "only lead," he’d been thinking about Yi-yeon so much while looking at Ha-neul; the fact that his wildly unstable wavelength had left him not in his right mind…
He’d come up with several reasons, but even combining them all, he couldn’t find a "reason" that truly clicked. Over the past six years, there had been countless days when longing for Seon Yi-yeon had consumed him, yet he’d never mistaken a stranger for the one he missed. This had been excessive.
Six years was a long time. And with nothing to show for it — time wasted, really — it was understandable to be worn out.
But… at the same time, he didn’t want to admit it. That man had lived more than twice this long for nothing but revenge, and here he was, his heart wavering over this much…
"Haa… get it together…"
He slapped his cheeks, got up, and washed — and then his phone blared with a noisy alarm.
Shaking his wet hair, he picked it up. Yeon-seo, of course.
[Oh Yeon-seo: This is bad! I can’t get in touch with Ha-neul!] [Oh Yeon-seo: Just in case, go check the Center yourself] [Oh Yeon-seo: With what happened yesterday, I’m getting worried 88]
The moment he read them, a hollow laugh escaped him.
She was so transparent.
"Another trick…"
She was trying to make them meet on purpose.
Before Ha-neul was a "talented guide he wanted to recruit," he was "the only link to Jo Min-young." Of course he had people watching him and was being briefed on his every move. Did it make sense for her to panic about not being able to reach someone like that?
If his whereabouts were truly unknown, she wouldn’t be calmly sending messages like this. At minimum it would have been a call, not texts. And that brat isn’t tactless enough to slap silly emoticons onto something serious.
I should’ve just done it myself. I never should have handed it over when Oh Yeon-seo begged to take charge of the surveillance and intel gathering, claiming it was her specialty. I knew she had an angle — why did I agree? Yesterday I was out of my mind, that’s why.
[Me: Wanna die?] [Oh Yeon-seo: You have nothing to do today anyway~~~~~] [Oh Yeon-seo: Bring me a capable guide~~] [Oh Yeon-seo: Work, Guild Master~~~~~~~~~~]
She showed her true colors right away, of course.
They’d only given me the guild master seat because an S-class esper makes a good public face for the guild; she’d coaxed me into it by promising to handle all the actual operations herself. She remembers what she said — that woman has a good head — and still she pulls this brazen act from time to time.
[Oh Yeon-seo: Honestly, is this for me? It’s for you!] [Me: What bullshit] [Oh Yeon-seo: Imagine those Blaze bastards hitting on Guide Ha-neul] [Oh Yeon-seo: You’re not really going to leave that sweet, cute, capable guide in a dump like that, are you, Han Yu-geon~~~~~~]
I’d been fully prepared to curse her out no matter what nonsense she spouted, but the moment Han Yu-geon saw Oh Yeon-seo’s message, his fingers froze.
"Kissing and mucous-membrane guiding are different things, so you don’t need to attach much meaning to it. You can save your first kiss for someone you like."
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