Episode 55. Giving Up Isn’t Just for Counting Cabbages (7)

Juyul had finally replaced the underwear he had so carelessly torn apart, and with that, their preparations were complete. The fact that he had also brought suitable clothes for her earned him a rare moment of praise.

Thankfully, after some time, the legs that had wobbled like trees in a typhoon had regained enough strength to stand. However, she still lacked proper balance, and after nearly tripping over absolutely nothing on the floor, she had no choice but to keep Juyul’s hand firmly wrapped around her waist.

The moment she heard that the subjugation site was an island, she nearly collapsed again. From that point on, she clung to him with the kind of desperate determination one would expect from someone fighting for their life.

…Even in front of their companions, including Juyul’s childhood friend and a Guide she was meeting for the very first time.

“Uh… hello? I’m Maeng Sodam, Baek Juyul’s dedicated Guide.”

“It’s been a while. Seems like… you and Juyul have gotten a lot closer since last time.”

“That’s not—hey! Let go! I’m trying to have a conversation here!”

She shivered, trying to pry herself free, but Juyul remained as immovable as a mountain. If it had only been Cha Seonghwa standing there, she might have been able to brush it off.

But no—right beside him stood someone whose name she had heard far too many times.

“Ah, hello! I’m Han Dalam, an E-Class Guide, participating in this mission as part of my field training! It’s a pleasure to meet you!”

“Oh, uh… hello…”

Forcing an awkward smile, Sodam returned the greeting. Meanwhile, she channeled all her frustration into pinching the back of Juyul’s hand, nails digging in for good measure.

She had a notorious sharp pinch—there was no way this wasn’t painful.

And yet, he didn’t budge.

Gritting her teeth, Sodam flashed a forced smile and muttered through clenched jaws.

“Let. Go. They’re watching.”

“And why should I care? Less than an hour ago, you nearly fell over just because I let go for a second.”

“I’ll use a damn cane if I have to! Just let go!”

At this point, the way they were whispering back and forth was probably ruder than just arguing outright. But Sodam had only one priority—getting his hand off her waist.

As if she didn’t want a certain someone to see them like this.

Juyul’s gaze cooled.

A quick sweep over the two standing before them gave him a clear answer as to whom she was trying to hide from.

A stranger Guide, and an old friend.

Between the two, it was obvious who needed to be watched.

Turning slightly away from Seonghwa, Juyul smoothly shifted to the real topic. His hand, however, remained on her waist.

“The subjugation site is a privately owned island near Jeju. They want us to handle it as quickly as possible. We’ll be staying in a villa built by the island’s owner… and since it’s not an overseas mission, the Association has likely prepped all necessary supplies, so there was no need to bring extra luggage.”

“Ah! Understood! I’ll make sure that doesn’t happen again next time…!”

“We’re taking a helicopter there, and the target is expected to appear within a week. It’s possible we’ll finish sooner, but don’t count on it. Ideally, we’d take care of it today and return immediately, but that rarely happens. So don’t overdo it from day one. Especially you.”

“…Me?”

Sodam blinked, pointing at herself.

“When have I ever overdone anything?!”

“You always do. You even pushed yourself to come today. Just take care of yourself and pace things properly… Let’s go.”

Juyul continued speaking smoothly, clearly used to commanding situations like this. But when he specifically singled Sodam out, Han Dalam—who had been holding an armful of supplies—turned bright red.

Juyul, of course, didn’t follow up with any reassurance or care. He simply threw out his critique and moved on, as if his job was done.

Sodam felt secondhand guilt just watching it happen.

And to make matters worse, he had specifically voiced his concern for her. That added at least a ton of weight onto the already heavy sense of discomfort pressing down on her.

‘I’m sorry. If I weren’t here, this mission would’ve been yours…’

If things had gone according to the original story, this mission wouldn’t have even happened. Dalam’s first field deployment would have been somewhere glamorous—like a castle in Europe—not some unknown island. She wouldn’t have had to endure Juyul’s blunt remarks either…

Wait. Hold on.

Is she even upset?

Realistically, Dalam should be at least a little annoyed. Maybe not heartbroken, but irritated enough to think, I swear I’m gonna take that jerk down someday.

Instead, her eyes sparkled.

Not just a little, either. Her gaze was practically brimming with admiration, like she was staring at the night sky full of stars.

At first, Sodam brushed it off. She’s just a determined, hardworking character—makes sense, right?

But then she realized something even weirder.

She wasn’t looking at Juyul.

She was looking at her.

What the hell?

Just to check, Sodam pushed Juyul away with as much force as she could muster—only to realize that Dalam’s gaze followed her instead of shifting back to Juyul.

For a moment, Sodam’s strength gave out, and she stumbled right back into Juyul’s hold.

Juyul, watching the whole thing with narrowed eyes, lowered his voice in warning.

“If you feel like you’re going to collapse, say something. Don’t start whining afterward that you didn’t expect it.”

“Y-yeah, yeah…”

Brushing off his concern, she tried to organize her tangled thoughts—but no matter how she looked at it, she couldn’t make sense of Dalam’s reaction.

I need to talk to her once we get there.

Even as Sodam stewed in confusion, the four of them continued walking without pause.

By the time she snapped back to reality, she was already seated inside the helicopter.

The interior wasn’t that small, but with two guys well over 180 cm sitting inside, the space suddenly felt a lot tighter.

At the very least, if Juyul had taken the outer seat, the space might have felt a little bigger. But no—he insisted on seating her by the window, then settled beside her like a human barricade, drawing an invisible boundary between her and the others.

Sodam sighed.

“Baek Juyul, lean in for a second.”

“What is it?”

He tilted his head slightly, curious, which only made her more irritated. She grabbed his ear and dragged it closer to her lips, lowering her voice as much as possible.

“What the hell is wrong with you?”

Juyul, unfazed, responded in kind.

“I don’t like seeing my Guide getting too close to other people.”

“You graduated from elementary school, right? Or do you still divide people into ‘my side’ and ‘not my side’? Do you want to start unnecessary drama on a work trip?”

“If anyone’s starting misunderstandings, it’s you, Maeng Sodam. People might get the wrong idea seeing us sitting this close.”

The sheer absurdity of his statement momentarily stunned her. She gawked at him in disbelief, completely speechless.

Then, finally, she let out a dry laugh.

“What kind of bullsh—”

“….”

“Ah. Sorry. It’s nothing.”

She nearly raised her voice, but the weight of four eyes turning toward her made her bite it back. With a forced bow of apology, she turned back to Juyul and seethed under her breath.

“We’ll talk about this later. When we’re alone.”

“I’ll be waiting.”

“Oh, shut up.”

The brief verbal sparring left her completely drained.

Annoying as he was, she had no other option but to use him as a headrest. As soon as she let her weight drop against his shoulder, her eyes fluttered shut.

When she woke up, however, she was no longer in the helicopter.

Instead, an unfamiliar ceiling greeted her.

Groaning, she pressed her forearm over her eyes, muttering, “Ugh… taking a nap just made me more exhausted…”

“Then rest more. Ideally, you’d spend the entire mission in bed.”

“Wha—holy sh—!”

Juyul’s sudden response nearly made her jump out of her skin.

Shooting upright, she found herself lying neatly in bed, while Juyul stood beside her, slipping on his gloves.

Gloves.

The ones meant to prevent direct skin contact in case of emergencies.

It was the first time in a while that something from the original story had shown up properly. The familiar sight instantly re-energized her.

“You’re heading out already?”

“I’ll patrol during the day. Seonghwa will take over at night. If it’s an S-Class creature, it shouldn’t be too difficult for him.”

“Yeah, makes sense. If it were really bad, the whole country would be panicking by now. But why take the daytime shift? It’s not like your powers weaken at night.”

“…Because my Guide might need me for other reasons.”

His gaze dropped pointedly to her, expression unreadable.

Sodam immediately threw her arms into an X over her chest.

“Are you seriously this obsessed with—”

“Not just that. Maybe you’ll miss me.”

“Not a chance!”

Her immediate, genuine rejection only made him smirk.

Grinding her teeth, Sodam stood, determined not to let him have the last word.

“…What? You’re coming with me?”

“I thought we all went together for the first patrol. You know, as a precaution.”

“Normally, yes. But in your case—”

She could already predict the lecture.

Your body isn’t in normal condition.
You don’t have to follow standard procedures.

But this mission wasn’t just a mission.

This was a fight the Association President had personally thrown at her.

So if she wanted to prove herself, she couldn’t afford to be “normal.” She had to be better.

Before Juyul could argue, she raised a hand to cut him off, eyes shining with sharp determination.

“That’s enough. I already told you, if my Esper is going—”

“…Then my Guide has to go too,” he finished, sighing.

“Of course.”