Choi Sukwon smirked when the driver pulled up to MLK with his new guide. That fucking kid was going to get what's coming to him. Both him and his brother.
Han Yoohyun was a cocky bastard who didn't know he was playing with sharks. Let him see how Choi Sukwon planned to drain his older brother every day. Then Han Yoohyun would learn to show Choi Sukwon some respect.
Just like how all small mob organizations were supposed to act.
That would also show Han Yoojin his place. A guide who thought he could get away with negative guiding. A guide trying to hurt espers?! That arrogant kid!
The one time a guide ever did that to Choi Sukwon was an assassination attempt. Choi Sukwon made sure the guide regretted ever being alive.
Guides thought they were so great because espers were obsessed with finding the perfect one. So, they all thought they were untouchable, but the truth was, most of them were useless and weak.
Choi Sukwon needed more guides than most because of his superb rank. He knew how many worthless guides were out there. Sex with guides was the best part of them, but not even that was enough to fully stabilize him. He often had to rely on forced guiding. It was necessary. If Choi Sukwon wasn't stabilized with the full use of his powers, then the entire organization would fall. It didn't matter if a few guides were hurt every month. That was their job.
Guides just needed to learn that they existed because Choi Sukwon allowed them in his organization.
If he wanted to use forced guiding on all of them because they took too long to guide him, then they would get used to it. If Han Yoojin had to guide every one of his espers through sex and forced guiding, then that's what being a guide meant.
The car door opened, and Choi Sukwon's expression fell when Sung Hyunjae got out of the car that was supposed to be delivering Han Yoojin. He wore dark gloves and his red coat billowed in the wind. The nervous driver ran away in terror.
"What the fuck are you doing—" he stepped back when Sung Hyunjae pulled the golden chains out.
"Your men came looking for my guide, so I came instead to see who would covet what is mine."
"Your guide?! What the fuck are you talking abo—" Choi Sukwon barely dodged the gold chains that came flying at his head. "You arrogant bastard. You expect me to believe you went nearly a year without a guide and the moment I threaten that brat, Han Yoohyun, again suddenly his brother is your guide? How dumb do you think I am? You're just trying to protect Han Yoohyun!"
Choi Sukwon pulled out a long sword and dodged the chain again before charging at Sung Hyunjae.
"How about merely unlucky? You picked the wrong guide."
Choi Sukwon never had time to attack and was on the defense every second. "Bullshit! No one would pick Han Yoojin as their guide."
"I had hoped that too, but I find myself constantly swatting flies away."
The chains aimed for Choi Sukwon's throat. He barely missed being decapitated, but not the kick that sent him flying back. He crashed through the entrance of the MLK building. Screams filled the lobby, and everyone ran to evacuate.
Sung Hyunjae walked through the broken wall, the rubble crunching under his feet.
Choi Sukwon coughed up blood and tried to stand, but Sung Hyunjae kicked him back down. Sung Hyunjae snapped the bone in his leg. Choi Sukwon grunted and held back a shout.
"You…" Choi Sukwon coughed again. "You really trust that guide? Had he told you why he couldn't even get picked up by the Association? Or why his own brother left him? He tries to steal esper's powers. You're mad to use him!"
Sung Hyunjae smiled. "Are you looking out for my well-being now?"
"You—UGH!"
Sung Hyunjae stomped his foot down on Choi Sukwon's chest. One of his ribs snapped and he coughed up more blood.
"The relationship between me and my guide is strictly between us."
"You did all this for some stupid guide—!"
Sung Hyunjae stomped down again and heard the bones under his foot snap. The blood rushed out of Choi Sukwon's mouth and soaked through his shirt. Choi Sukwon's eyes turned red as his powers started to overwhelm him.
"Looks like you're close to rampaging. Too bad MLK is lacking guides."
"Y-you crazy son of a bitch. You're going to need a guide as well! There is no way Han Yoojin is your guide, otherwise you'd be about to rampage, too!"
Sung Hyunjae removed his foot and smiled. "I have a dedicated guide now. Why would I be about to rampage?"
"Ha! See how far that gets you! We're S-Rank. We can't survive on one guide. Guides are meant for us to use and toss away when we're done. How long until you rampage?"
Sung Hyunjae wiped the blood from his shoe on Choi Sukwon's shirt. "I wish you luck with your guide hirings. I've heard how fast MLK goes through them and how short staffed you currently are. It must have felt like a miracle to find Han Yoojin. Then threaten him to guide your men while you couldn't find anyone else to work here."
The veins in Choi Sukwon's forehead bulged as he glared at Sung Hyunjae. "Guides are weak and meant to be used. That's why we can use forced guiding on them. And I'm S-Rank, of course, I go through a lot of them."
Sung Hyunjae's icy look sent a chill through Choi Sukwon.
"I enjoyed our talk. Let's do it again. I'll give you time to find a guide to stabilize you before I come back."
Choi Sukwon watched Sung Hyunjae leave, but not before that bastard caused a bolt of lightning to shoot through the lobby and destroy one corner of the building. Chunks of debris crashed over Choi Sukwon as the evacuated building collapsed on top of him.
THAT CRAZY BASTARD!
It was hard to move with broken bones and soon he had trouble breathing through the dust, large piles of concrete, and steel that fell on him.
He would get him back! He would get him back for this!
I See Red
Yoohyun stood over half a dozen dead MLK members and glanced at the last living one. He coward and clawed away from Yoohyun. He was the man who had come into his brother's restaurant. He remembered him from the pictures.
"I-I'm sorry… I-I d-didn't know he was your b-brother!"
Yoohyun walked toward him. Brandishing his sword as he walked. "My brother is a member of the Jupiter organization, but the threat was to me. You pissed off two S-Rank bosses at the same time. Do you understand?"
"Yes! Yes! It'll never happen again! I swear."
"Then leave. Make sure the other underlings know that threatening my brother now means Jupiter and I will get involved."
The man got up and ran. Yoohyun sighed and checked his remaining power. Interesting. He hadn't got to hold Yoojin for long, but his rampage was completely taken care of and his power was more or less still stabilized.
He sighed and sat down on a partially burnt desk. The small MLK outpost was going to turn to ash soon.
Yoohyun remembered his brother as a guide. Not good or bad, but just a guide. Growing up, he was all Yoohyun needed. Sometimes he would hold off on asking Yoojin for guiding because his hyung looked exhausted. He had passed out a few times and spent days sick in bed. They couldn't afford hospitals and Yoohyun had worried endlessly when Yoojin would pass out, and he couldn't wake him up.
Not only did Yoojin give up his childhood to raise him, spent all his time working to support both of them, but he also gave all his energy to Yoohyun as well.
Yoojin always looked exhausted, but smiled through everything.
It wasn't until Yoohyun started monster hunting and built a small mob organization that he ran into other guides. Yoohyun had never wanted another guide, but was willing to use others if it would reduce the stress Yoojin had to deal with.
He quickly learned that his hyung wasn't just 'a guide' but an amazing guide.
It was hard for Yoohyun to use other guides, especially once he learned the gap between them and his hyung. Other guides always tried to touch him more, or take advantage of him somehow, and he hated it.
Once when Yoohyun was near rampaging, the guide threatened not to guide him unless he signed a dedicating guiding contract. Then there was the one who thought Yoohyun didn't notice when they use a guiding burst on him and tried to trick him into thinking Yoojin did it.
Using other guides in a small mob organization was frustrating, but at least Yoojin was perfect, and Yoohyun worked hard to be a great esper for his brother. Unfortunately, other people began to notice.
Yoohyun could keep most espers away, but there were always more. Espers who were desperate for a guide, those willing to cheat, steal, and kill for the perfect guide. Then there were the other guides as well who were lying and manipulative.
Yoohyun had just wanted to keep his brother with him, but doing so only put him in greater danger. Another guide poison Yoojin to get his position as Yoohyun's guide. When Yoohyun went to pick up the paperwork for Yoojin's guiding license, an Association member tried to trick Yoohyun into selling his brother to him. Like he was some kind of item. Several prominent members of the Association wanted Yoojin. They weren't even awakened.
Yoohyun was firm in never allowing Yoojin to go to the Association, even if that meant never getting his license.
He saw what some espers did to their guides. Between an esper with the powers of a god and a guide who was no different from a normal human, it was very unfair to guides.
The more Yoohyun tried to keep Yoojin safe, the more attention it drew. More espers notice how close Yoohyun protected Yoojin and became curious what he was hiding.
They noticed Yoohyun never used other guides, but never rampaged. Yoojin had gotten stronger, and no longer got tired after guiding Yoohyun.
It finally came to a head when he heard a group of espers talking about Yoojin…
The first time Yoohyun had ever rampaged was because he overheard espers saying how they planned to kidnap Yoojin and what they would do to get him to guide them. The things they had wanted to do to Yoojin made Yoohyun sick and all he saw was red.
Yoohyun killed those espers, but he knew there would always be more.
When Yoohyun rampaged, Yoojin didn't care about his own life and ran toward him while everyone else ran away.
Yoojin was injured, bringing Yoohyun back from a rampage. Yoojin was still wearing himself out, with no concern for his own life.
At the time, Yoohyun was nearly mad with worry. During his rampage, he had almost killed his brother…
Yoohyun had done the only thing he could think of at the time and publicly ruined his brother's guiding reputation. He claimed Yoojin's guiding started the rampage.
The only thing espers cared about more than finding the perfect guide was their ego. They would never let a guide known for negative guiding near them.
He lived with that decision and never once felt anything besides shame for betraying his brother. The Association stopped threatening Yoohyun for Yoojin. There were no more assassination attempts. And the espers had even forgotten Yoojin was a guide.
Yoojin was safe, but ever since then, Yoohyun had been so lonely without his brother.
He sent money to Yoojin every month, but Yoojin always returned it. He tried to buy him an apartment so he could live comfortably, but Yoojin moved away. He tried to buy the restaurant for him, but Yoojin just took out a loan to buy it first. He tried, but… there wouldn't be anything that could fix what he did.
As long as Yoojin was safe… it didn't matter if he had lost him…
But the way Yoojin had held him today made him smile. His brother was still powerful, and it had seemed like he wanted to guide him again. Maybe it wasn't over…
He hated the thought of his brother with Sung Hyunjae, but Sung Hyunjae had agreed to the no guiding rule. And as much as he despised the man, he had the biggest organization in Korea. He may actually have the resources to keep Yoojin safe. And Sung Hyunjae had enough guides that they wouldn't require Yoojin to use his abilities.
Yoohyun was already a mid-tier mob boss. In another three years, he could be one of the top five, then he could take care of his brother properly. Until then, Sung Hyunjae was the best option for protecting him.
After that, he would kill Sung Hyunjae and take Yoojin back. Simple as could be.
Escape 2
Yoojin woke up in a hospital bed. A potion IV was attached to his arm and a healing mana stone was under his other hand. His head hurt. The bite must have been worse than he thought because someone wrapped it up in bandages.
This wasn't the first time he passed out from guiding, but it had been so long ago that he almost forgot what it felt like. His lips were dry, his throat was scratchy, his head throbbed, and colors swirled in his vision. He was in a guiding deficit.
When he first awakened as a guide, he had overused his ability many times, but he never had money to go to a hospital like this. It was unnecessary and too expensive. He wondered what happened to the esper who was on the rooftop garden.
Someone had brought his belongings and even set his phone on the charger. Kang Soyoung was so sweet~.
The ringing had woken him up.
"Hello?"
"YOOJIN!" Yoojin flinched and held the phone away from his ear at Yoo Myeongwoo's shout. "Yerim is really sick! She was taken to the hospital!"
Yoojin had to go to a different hospital. The one he was staying at was specifically for espers and guides. (He was going to kill whoever brought him here, this was a crazy expensive hospital.) Yerim hadn't registered as awakened yet, so they would've taken her to a public hospital.
Yoojin noticed there were two espers guarding his room. He told them his bathroom wasn't working and wanted to use the one next door. While they weren't looking, he left.
How dare Sung Hyunjae have espers watching him. It would only draw more attention. But, what if this wasn't Sung Hyunjae's doing? What if the boss of Jupiter had already found out about him and posted those guards so he couldn't get away?
If that was the case, he would check on Yerim, then pack a bag, and run. He could send Yoohyun a message about his new location once he got settled.
Yoojin was out of breath, running to the public hospital. He found out which room Yerim was in and saw Yoo Myeongwoo talking to a doctor.
Yerim's uncle had quickly stormed out when he heard about the procedure Yerim was going through. She had awakened, and her powers were surging. They needed to call in two guides from the Association to stabilize her and stop the oncoming rampage.
Two guides from the Association were not cheap…
It reminded him of how his own parents had walked out when Yoohyun awakened. How could parental figures walk out on their kids like that…?
"I'll pay for it. Don't bill Yerim." Yoojin said.
"Yoojin…" Yoo Myeongwoo looked pained that his friend just shouldered that much of a bill. But Yerim was still in high school and didn't have that kind of money.
Yoojin was handling the bill. When he saw how many commas were in the number, his stomach dropped. His hand shook, but when he tried to sign the bill, he was denied. The hospital didn't take credit… he would need the cash now.
Why…
Why was it always about money?
Did he have to contact another mobster about opening another line of credit just so he could see Yerim? If he could just see her, he could start guiding her again…
Yoojin touched his injured hand…
He actually couldn't guide anyone right now… his power was in a deficit and his head still hurt. He remembered the feeling well from the times he would collapse as a teen while guiding Yoohyun. If he guided anymore, he would start coughing up blood.
What was he going to do?
"Yoojin-ssi? Did the last hospital not agree with you?"
Yoojin looked up and saw Sung Hyunjae standing next to him. Dress in his red coat, expensive suit, and holding a bouquet of red roses. Once again, there was a thin layer of dust on him, but it seemed to miss his gleaming face this time.
Sung Hyunjae smiled, and his golden eyes curved. "I had wanted to surprise you when you woke up, but you left without telling anyone."
Yoojin looked at the roses in his arms that Sung Hyunjae handed to him.
Sung Hyunjae touched Yoojin's face and looked into his eyes. "Yoojin-ssi, what's wrong?"
Yoojin felt helpless and fought back tears. "They won't let me see Yerim until her bill is settled and I don't have enough to cover it."
"Oh."
Yoojin's heart raced, and his words kept coming faster and faster. He focused on the floor while he talked.
"She just awakened and they called in two guides from the Association. And she only works part time for me and her uncle already left and… and I don't want her to have to join a gang like other espers because of their awakening bill. She's so young and those contracts can be so bad. But I can't help her because I don't have the money and I know I already owe a lot to Jupiter, but could I add this to my debt? Is there any way you could borrow the money from—"
"Here's your receipt, Sir."
Yoojin looked up in time to see Sung Hyunjae finishing up the last of the paperwork for Yerim.
"Did you…?"
Sung Hyunjae set the pen down and placed his hand on Yoojin's shoulder. He led Yoojin down the hall where Yoo Myeongwoo waited next to Yerim's room.
"How can you just sign away that much money?"
"This is a small thing to make my guide happy."
"Still… that was a lot." Yoojin's heart was still pounding with adrenaline, just thinking of dropping that much money.
Sung Hyunjae looked at Yoojin. "Was it?"
Yoojin frowned at how casually Sung Hyunjae threw around his money. But Yoojin felt like a weight lifted off his shoulders. He peaked up at Sung Hyunjae. He had followed him here with roses and even paid for Yerim's bill.
"I promise I'll pay you back."
Sung Hyunjae smiled. "I'm no longer accepting money."
"Huh? Then what do you want? Guiding?"
"Maybe."
"What? What else could I give you?"
Sung Hyunjae squeezed Yoojin's shoulder and hugged him against his chest. "Whatever it is," he whispered into Yoojin's ear, "I'm sure we'll both have fun finding something to satisfy me."
He let go of Yoojin. Yoo Myeongwoo glared daggers at Sung Hyunjae. Yoojin was still staring at Sung Hyunjae in confusion.
"Yoojin, let's go in." Yoo Myeongwoo reached for Yoojin and ignored the sharp look Sung Hyunjae gave him.
Yoojin nodded and headed in.
Beatdown Between Willpower and Bureaucracy
"It's a surprise to see you here."
Sung Hyunjae greeted Song Taewon while he waited for Yoojin.
"You as well. I hope you're not here to threaten a newly awakened esper to work for you by paying their guiding debts."
"Only small syndicates work like that. No actual skills come from taking everything thrown at you. What I should ask is, are you here to threaten a newly awaken esper to work for the Association because you charged them with two guides they could never afford?"
Song Taewon frowned. "Sending two guides to a newly awakened S-rank on the verge of rampaging was on the low end. By rules, we would have sent a third or more, but because of a national guide shortage, we were limited."
"The only way anyone could pay that back is to either start working for the Association or an organization."
"That depends on the person."
Sung Hyunjae shrugged. "Well, this discussion is meaningless anyway, because my guide covered the charges. He seems quite fond of the little girl."
Song Taewon frowned. "Your guide?"
"Yes, he has deep pockets."
Song Taewon shook his head. "I've looked into your guide."
"I'm flattered."
"And I wasn't able to find any records of new guides working for Jupiter. Which means you hired someone uncertified and unlicensed, and just a few hours ago an unknown guide was sent to the awakened hospital."
"Hmm, what a strange coincidence."
Song Taewon sighed. He knew it would be impossible to get anything out of Sung Hyunjae.
"Even if they're your dedicated guide, there are standards and practices in place for keeping them safe and preventing them from being abused by espers. A guide being sent to the hospital within an hour is alarming."
"Is there something wrong with how I'm handling my guide? Perhaps, I should act more like the Association and force him into unfair contracts and make him guide however and whomever I choose?"
"The Association makes those contracts to protect guides. It reduces their workload to their designated rank and keeps them out of organizations."
"But it forces them to have to either work for the Association or a syndicate. And once they join either of those, they no longer get to choose who they guide."
A curious expression crossed Song Taewon face. "This isn't like you. Why are you now speaking out on the Association's policies?"
"My guide has yet to register with the Association and receive his license. I know the moment he does, your boss or someone will pressure him to sign with them." Sung Hyunjae stepped forward and stood in front of Song Taewon. "And that will be a big mistake."
Song Taewon felt the unwavering heat of Sung Hyunjae's threat and chose not to press him.
Song Taewon knew the work schedule of guides was harsh, especially with the guide shortage. He had spent a large amount of time on the missing guide cases, but they were all turning up blank.
Too many newly awakened guides were trying to avoid signing with the Association, so there were no records of them before they went missing. Just concerned phone calls from their family members. And the Association director had dismissed most of the missing guide cases unless they were registered with the Association.
Now Song Taewon was worried about Sung Hyunjae's new guide. It would be better for him to sign with the Association first, then work for Jupiter. No one even knew the name of Sung Hyunjae's guide. If Sung Hyunjae did anything to him, no one would know and probably no one would report it.
"It's illegal for guides to work without first completing an initial course and registration at the Association," Song Taewon said.
"Relax, my guide has done nothing against the law," Sung Hyunjae placed his hand on Song Taewon's shoulder. "Because I've been forcing him to guide me."
"You what?!"
Truth is Golden and Glitters like Snowflakes
Yoojin talked to the two guides who stabilize Yerim. He felt a strong sense of control from both of them and determined Yerim would be okay.
She had awakened as an S-Rank, so her powers were chaotic right now and it was difficult to stabilize her. Han Yoojin and Yoo Myeongwoo waited while the two guides work.
It was interesting for Yoojin to watch other guides in person. Because of the earrings skills, he could watch the almost invisible lines come off the other two guides as they broke down Yerim's overflowing power.
Yoojin was happy Yerim was getting the proper helped she needed. She slept calmly. Unaware, she almost fell into a rampage.
When Yoohyun had awakened he had accidently destroyed part of the street and a building entrence. The city had covered most of the damages but when the hospital bill had come, their parents had left. It was a lot more common than Yoojin had thought. The coast of raising an awaken kid was outrageous and dangerous.
Yoojin didn't leave with his parents, and he never once regretted his decision. It broke his heart to imagine Yoohyun alone, sick, and in debt. Yoojin didn't think taking out a loan was a big deal. He had found a small organization who would loan a teenager money.
The second loan he took was for medicine for Yoohyun. Without a guide, Yoohyun got sicker and sicker every day. It was just money, so Yoojin hadn't cared about being in debt.
When he became a guide, taking care of Yoohyun was too exhausting to even think about guiding for money. And when he was still a teen, there was an incident with a handsy esper, Hiroki Juhyeok, who had gotten a little... well. He's not around anymore so it doesn't matter, but Yoojin had only wanted to guide Yoohyun. So, he worked extra hard to earn money so he could reserve his guiding for his little brother.
Yoohyun had been younger than Yerim when he awakened. It was one of the reasons Yoojin was so determined to help Yerim and Yoo Myeongwoo. He didn't want to see them go through the same thing alone.
"Yoojin," Yoo Myeongwoo said slowly. "What's your relationship with that man? You said you were dating, but I didn't think you would date a gangster."
Yoojin figured this would come up soon. And it was better to settle it now before any misunderstanding came from it. "Yoo Myeongwoo, I'm actually a guide and I've been guiding Mr. Sung for a few days now. The dating was a slip of tongue."
Yoo Myeongwoo sat back with surprise. "What? You're a guide? Is that how you paid for Yerim's bill?"
"Umm, actually no… I'm not a good guide. I don't really get paid for guiding…"
"Yoojin… you're not a back-alley guide, are you?"
"No… I actual wasn't planning on being a guide, but I noticed you and Yerim were unawaken and… well. I'm sorry, but I noticed the fluctuations in your powers were giving you headaches, so I would use my abilities on you from time to time."
Yoo Myeongwoo's eyes widened. Yoojin quickly added, "I'm really sorry. I know that breaks your trust in me."
"I'm an unawakened?" He gasped. "Are you the reason I'm not feeling sick anymore?"
Yoojin rubbed the back of his neck. "Yeah. I'm sorry for not telling you sooner—"
Yoo Myeongwoo grabbed Yoojin's hand. "Yoojin, thank you. I promise when I awaken, I will take care of you so you don't have to guide that gangster anymore."
What was this now? Yoojin laughed nervously. "It's okay. You don't need to promise me something like that. Like I said, I'm not a good guide and once you get established as an esper you will find a better guide."
"A better guide? What does that mean?"
"You know, like, someone with a higher sync rate or a high rank. Right now, we can't even check our compatibility because you're not awakened. Besides, I wouldn't force you to stick with me when there are better options out there."
Yoo Myeongwoo looked down. "Is it because of the gangster out there that you can't be my guide?"
"Mr. Sung? Umm, kind of? I am guiding him now, but I can still guide others too. But I accidentally used up all my energy so I can't guide you or Yerim right now."
Why was Yoo Myeongwoo looking so sad? Yoojin didn't understand what he was doing wrong. "Is that why you're covered in bruises and bandages? Did Mr. Song do that too?"
"Ah!" Yoojin had left the other hospital so quickly he forgot to cover his neck. He had thought the choke marks from Choi Sukwon would have disappeared by now.
Yoojin touched his neck. "Actually, they're from another esper…"
Yoo Myeongwoo's eyes went to Yoojin's injured hand. "And he broke your hand too?"
Yoojin forgot about that. Jeez, what kind of day had he had… "No… this was an accident from an esper about to rampage."
"Yoojin!" Yoo Myeongwoo shouted so loud the other two guides glanced over. "You had to go near an esper about to rampage? A-are you in trouble? Is that why you're guiding now? I can help you out."
"No, no," Yoojin shook his head and tried to calm Yoo Myeongwoo down. It wouldn't do Yoo Myeongwoo any good to focus on helping Yoojin while he neglected his own problems and debts. It would only make Yoojin feel worse. "I'm handling everything. This is just an accident, promise."
Yoo Myeongwoo didn't look happy at all.
The two guides stood up. They explained that they stabilized Yerim enough, and now they would take a break then take turns checking on her. Yoojin was upset they were just going to leave her alone. What if she had another surge?
When they left, Sung Hyunjae and a civil servant from the Association walked into the room.
Sung Hyunjae introduced them. "Yoojin-ssi, this is Song Taewon from the Association. Song Taewon, this is Yoojin-ssi, my lover."
Yoojin's mouth fell and the room got so quiet you could hear a pin drop.
That crazy bastard…
Song Taewon took Sung Hyunjae and Yoojin to a private room to discuss their relationship. Yoojin's face was red the whole time, and he fought through the embarrassment.
Sung Hyunjae… I will get you back for this…
He knew why Sung Hyunjae said that about him without an ounce of shame, but it was now impossible to look anyone in the eye. You didn't need a guiding license if you never intended to guide anyone. People in relationships got away with it because the closeness made avoiding guiding impossible and if they happened to be an esper and a guide then it was called fate. But most people called it, 'cheating the system.'
Back-alley guides were infamous for guiding without a license. They covered it up by calling it dating but it was closer to prostitution.
"Han Yoojin, have you been guiding anyone else besides Sung Hyunjae?"
"Please don't entrap my lover, Song Taewon." Sung Hyunjae cut in. The blush only got worse for Yoojin.
"Yoojin-ssi has never guided me. Don't say it in a way that could be used against him. We merely have been having sex and Yoojin isn't able to control his guiding when he loses focus. He doesn't need a license for that unless you want to monitor all my sexual exploits."
Yoojin was going to die. He was going to die of shame. His ancestors were looking down at him from heaven, wondering what happened to their family line.
He glared daggers at Sung Hyunjae.
Song Taewon cleared his throat and looked professional and not at all judgmental. Maybe he was just used to Sung Hyunjae? Either way, Yoojin was sorry for him.
"I'm sorry, Han Yoojin. I'll rephrase the question. Have you ever guided anyone outside sex-"
"No!" Yoojin shouted. His face burning from the growing mortification. He knew it was illegal to guide without a license, but he had never thought this would come up.
"How do you know the esper in the hospital room?"
"She works in my restaurant. I'm her employer."
Song Taewon eyed him. "And you never once guided her?"
Yoojin opened his mouth, but found it hard to lie.
"If he had, would the little girl be about to rampage?" Sung Hyunjae asked.
Song Taewon looked at him. "S-Rank will rampage even with the best guiding. Most destroy buildings upon awakening. That's why I'm so curious why Yerim isn't in worse shape."
Song Taewon said the last part, looking at Yoojin.
"You've become quite cynical in your old age," Sung Hyunjae said. "Not all espers are monsters, you know."
Song Taewon sighed. He knew he wouldn't get anywhere talking to Sung Hyunjae. But it was good to see the guide. At least he knew his name and what he looked like. If Han Yoojin went missing, Song Taewon could help find him.
Song Taewon stood, and so did Yoojin. "I'm sorry for taking up your time."
"No, it's fine." Yoojin responded.
"I would still recommend for you to get your license and register with the Association. Even if you don't plan to guide anyone. If you continue to stay near espers, guiding may come up. It will keep you on the right side of the law and allow you to take part in an emergency."
"Oh! Yes. I will."
Song Taewon continued to eye Yoojin until he felt uncomfortable. Song Taewon turned to Sung Hyunjae. "Did you do that to his neck and hand?"
Yoojin flinched and tried to pull his jacket collar up higher. Sung Hyunjae stared back at Song Taewon. They were quiet and Song Taewon looked back at Yoojin for an answer, but Yoojin looked away.
"Ha ha, no… I had… an accident after work."
Yoojin didn't know how much Sung Hyunjae knew, but he didn't want to talk about the illegal guiding situation anymore with Song Taewon.
Choi Shuwon may have threatened Yoojin, but he was still one of the big five syndicates. He had contracts with the Association, and Yoojin wasn't naïve enough to think Choi Shuwon didn't have connections to get him out of trouble. Snitches get stitches and all that…
And after a member of the Association had once tricked Yoojin, he had little faith anyone could solve his problems except himself.
Song Taewon released a deep breath. "Licensing and signing with the Association is also recommended for new guides. It offers protection and jobs to guides who--"
Thunder crackled somewhere close by and shook the building. It lit up the night sky through the little window in the small room.
Yoojin glanced at Sung Hyunjae, who just smiled back at Yoojin. "My guide doesn't need work. He'll be busy taking care of me and the little girl. After he gets his license, of course."
"I thought you said he was your dedicated guide."
When Song Taewon said that, Yoojin frowned at Sung Hyunjae.
"If she works for me, it won't matter. I've already contacted my assistant and they are writing a job offer. She will need work if she wants to expand as an esper and a place to start if she doesn't want to get stuck with a low branch family or the Association."
Yoojin gasped. "You can do that for Yerim? Is your boss okay with that? He hasn't even met her."
Sung Hyunjae had a strange looked when he faced Yoojin. As did Song Taewon.
"I didn't know there was someone higher than you." Song Taewon said. "Do guides report to someone else besides the boss of Jupiter?"
Sung Hyunjae sighed. "No. It's just a game we play."
Yoojin stared at Sung Hyunjae, unsure of what he was saying, but his heart thump painfully in his chest.
Song Taewon nodded. "I… I won't get involved between you two anymore unless Han Yoojin requests me to intervene, or I think he's in danger. Have a good evening, Boss Hyunjae."
The color drained from Yoojin's face as Song Taewon left them alone. He couldn't hear anything but the ringing in his ears or his racing heart.
Yoojin took a step back, then another. His legs threatened to give out and Sung Hyunjae grabbed his arm from the chair he still sat in.
Sung Hyunjae pulled Yoojin to stand in front of him. He kept pulling until he wedged him between Sung Hyunjae's legs, and Yoojin had to brace his shoulders for support.
"Yoojin-ssi."
"… Boss Hyunjae?"
Sung Hyunjae smiled and nodded.