“What’s the reason?”
“What reason? She’s just not my type.”
“Since when do you care about type when it comes to women?”
“……”
Yu-geon fell silent as Ji-sang’s rebuttal hit home. Unlike the reserved Han-gyeol, Yu-geon was an affectionate son, often engaging in conversations and displaying affection toward Ji-sang. Ji-sang, feigning sternness, spoke in a playful tone.
“Honestly, someone like Sa-weol is too good for you. Stop complaining and marry her now that you’re paired.”
“No, Father. Sa-weol doesn’t like me either. I can’t just decide to marry her on my own.”
This was true. Sa-weol disliked Yu-geon.
And she was a Crimon. To the Baek family, creatures were enemies to be vanquished, absolute evils that disrupted the world’s order.
Even before becoming an Esper, Yu-geon had been taught by Ji-sang that Crimons were no different from creatures. This extreme ideology had been passed down from previous generations of Baek family Espers. There was no tolerance or consideration for creatures.
Yu-geon was trying to suppress any feelings for Sa-weol, even though he would have nothing to do with her regardless of her being a Crimon.
Even though it was a pairing request, Yu-geon had already been rejected by Sa-weol several times.
“I can’t do it on my own.”
“Do you think Sa-weol has feelings for Han-gyeol?”
“…She probably likes him better than me.”
Yu-geon responded with a hurt pride, but it was clear to everyone that Sa-weol preferred Han-gyeol over Yu-geon. If Sa-weol hadn’t revealed herself as a Crimon to Yu-geon, he wouldn’t have even had proper conversations with her.
The idea of marrying Yu-geon would be appalling to Sa-weol.
“I guess… If I were her, I’d trust Han-gyeol more than you too.”
“Dad, you said I was cuter. Why are you doing this to me?”
“You’re cute, sure. But as a man, your charm is questionable.”
“I’m popular outside too! I’m overshadowed by my brother, but I get more pairing requests than him!”
“Alright, alright. You’re 3 cm shorter than Han-gyeol, but it seems you’re more popular with the guides.”
“No, seriously!”
Ji-sang teased him playfully, and Yu-geon retorted angrily. The serious atmosphere had lightened up, and Ji-sang was busy teasing his youngest son.
Since Yu-geon had awakened, Ji-sang had tried to maintain formality as his superior at the center, but Yu-geon made it difficult. Teasing him even slightly made him react like a child.
“Anyway, if you’re so popular with the guides, try to appeal to Sa-weol. I want you to pair with and marry Sa-weol.”
“Even if that happens, I don’t want to pressure Sa-weol into having an S-Class awakener. I hate that old-fashioned culture of our family.”
Like Han-gyeol, Yu-geon also disliked the family’s insistence on marrying high-ranking guides. The pressure had not applied to him as a normal human, but now it did.
“Got it. The center director isn’t the same as before. If you can win over Sa-weol, I’ll prevent that pressure.”
Yu-geon felt troubled. If he outright refused, Ji-sang, who was very perceptive, would suspect something. If he mentioned Sa-weol being a Crimon, Ji-sang would immediately understand, but that was something he couldn’t reveal.
“…Okay.”
In the end, he agreed and left the office. Ji-sang seemed satisfied with Yu-geon’s response.
***
When Yu-geon returned to his room on the second floor, Han-gyeol was sitting on the three-seater sofa. They used to stay up all night playing stick games on the large screen there when they were younger.
They didn’t get as intense about it now. The last time they played together was probably last year.
It wasn’t that long ago, yet it felt like a distant memory. Yu-geon didn’t sit next to Han-gyeol but perched on the table in front of the sofa. His expression and posture were sullen and dissatisfied.
“Why did you leave first today?”
Han-gyeol asked Yu-geon first.
“I texted you. I was out and would go separately.”
“At 5:58 PM.”
Yu-geon’s body tensed.
“I saw you leave the dormitory on your motorcycle from the lobby.”
“……”
Han-gyeol had accurately pinpointed his departure time. Yu-geon had left earlier than usual, but why had Han-gyeol been in the dormitory lobby at that time?
Yu-geon felt embarrassed for lying about something trivial and avoided Han-gyeol’s piercing gaze.
“Yu-geon, are you avoiding me these days?”
“It was just that our paths didn’t overlap.”
“I heard you avoid gates if I’m there.”
“…It’s inefficient to have two S-Classes in the same gate.”
“You never cared about that before.”
Han-gyeol was right. Yu-geon had always followed him around, knowing it was inefficient. Yu-geon was a long-distance dealer using telekinesis, while Han-gyeol was a close-combat physical esper. Learning close combat was essential for an esper, so there was a lot to learn from Han-gyeol.
But more than that, Yu-geon simply enjoyed fighting alongside Han-gyeol in gates.
Until he paired with Sa-weol.
“I’m starting to pay more attention now that I’ve settled into the center.”
Yu-geon had planned to stick close to Han-gyeol for at least three months to learn, but he suddenly changed direction. Although it wasn’t as effective as direct experience, he decided to train on his own.
Yu-geon was keeping his distance to avoid Han-gyeol and Sa-weol running into each other too often, as he spent a lot of time with Sa-weol.
Han-gyeol smiled leisurely, as if he knew exactly what Yu-geon was thinking.
“Just tell me what’s going on. Do you really plan to date Sa-weol?”
“If Sa-weol agrees.”
“I told you to stay away from my guide.”
“Yes, and I don’t think I ever responded.”
That’s right. On the day they had that conversation, Han-gyeol had left without answering. Judging by his wavelength, Yu-geon knew he wasn’t in a good mood.
“You didn’t stop me from pairing with Sa-weol. I thought you accepted it.”
“I don’t mind you pairing with Sa-weol.”
“So, you plan to share Sa-weol?”
“I wouldn’t put it that way.”
It wasn’t right to talk about a person like an object, but Yu-geon couldn’t think of a better way to phrase it at the moment. He was too flustered to be considerate of her feelings.
Han-gyeol often criticized Yu-geon for his blunt words, and he now looked displeased.
“But I guess it’s not entirely wrong.”
Contrary to Yu-geon’s expectation of a reprimand, Han-gyeol admitted it. Yu-geon looked at him with wide eyes, and Han-gyeol smiled faintly.
“I don’t intend to guide Sa-weol as you warned. You’re not interested in anything but guiding Sa-weol anyway.”
Yu-geon had mentioned this before when discussing Sa-weol with Han-gyeol. Even if they paired, he wouldn’t become close to her or develop a romantic relationship.
Typically, about 80% of espers and guides who paired ended up dating, so it was a likely outcome.
But back then, Yu-geon had been in a position where he was constantly rejected by Sa-weol, so he had no positive feelings towards her.
“So, you don’t care if I date Sa-weol?”
“How can I not care? Who knows what you two will do? If you make contact, wavelengths will flow.”
“I can’t help it, but you know Sa-weol can control her wavelengths well enough.”
Guides could block wavelength transmission if they tried, even during close contact. Sa-weol, with her long experience at the center, was skilled in wavelength control. It was nearly impossible for her to guide unintentionally.
“Still, no. You never know. How can I be sure I won’t develop feelings for Sa-weol later?”
Just last week, he had said he had no feelings, but changing his tune now would raise suspicions, so Yu-geon left room for doubt.
He felt that if he left things as they were, Han-gyeol might cause big trouble. He had to prevent Han-gyeol and Sa-weol from getting closer.
“And you said you didn’t see Sa-weol that way.”
“I did.”
“Then why are you changing your story now?”
Han-gyeol’s expression turned cold.
“Because I thought Sa-weol shouldn’t be involved with me.”
“…”
Though he didn’t say it outright, Yu-geon knew he had brought up the wrong topic. Han-gyeol was comparing Sa-weol to his biological mother.
“I also backed off because I thought Sa-weol was the only guide who matched your compatibility. I thought there would be no issues since neither of you had feelings for each other.”
“What issues?”
“You seeing Sa-weol as a woman.”
“I still…”
“You said it yourself. You can’t be sure what will happen.”
Even if Yu-geon married Sa-weol, she would still be tied to the Baek family. Han-gyeol seemed to dislike the idea of Sa-weol being connected to their family.
“I just talked to Father, and he said if I marry Sa-weol, he’ll protect us from that kind of pressure.”
“Do you trust Father?”
Han-gyeol had learned from the past. When their biological mother went insane, Ji-sang had abandoned her. Ji-sang claimed he had changed, but Han-gyeol still didn’t trust him.
“Yu-geon, I was never really bothered about giving you anything. I thought it would be okay if you paired with Sa-weol and even dated her.”
When Yu-geon had asked Han-gyeol if he could pair with Sa-weol, Han-gyeol had agreed without hesitation.
He had added that Sa-weol’s choice was important, but Yu-geon had asked for his consent, knowing how close Han-gyeol and Sa-weol were.
Han-gyeol’s immediate agreement had made Yu-geon think he had no feelings for her, but it turned out Han-gyeol had been making a concession.
Han-gyeol had always been the one to make concessions to Yu-geon, knowingly or unknowingly, and Yu-geon was aware of it. Han-gyeol had never expressed dissatisfaction with his sacrifices and often seemed eager to give more.
This was the first time they had ever been at odds like this.
