Wow. A person can really be that handsome….
Wonwoo almost spat out words that would have made Jinho's face flush even redder had he heard them, but he barely managed to swallow them back down.
He had thought Jinho was really handsome when he saw him in commercials or on the news, but seeing him in person made him realize the cameras had done a terrible job. He could even feel the limits of video technology that failed to properly capture this level of beauty.
To think a day would come in my life where I’d be admiring a man with pink hair and flushed cheeks….
If Yonghyun felt like a well-trained military dog, Jinho was like a Samoyed. A white puppy with a cherry blossom petal placed on the bridge of its nose, at that.
‘This is why I donated to the stray dog association as if I were possessed back then…,’ Wonwoo thought. Then he shook his head, trying to cast away his personal feelings.
Following Yonghyun, he had met another S-rank Esper. And without much trouble at that! On top of that, thanks to Jinho’s arrival, he was able to naturally cut off Yonghyun’s somewhat ticklish and strange request. Wonwoo glanced at Yonghyun and let out a sigh of relief inwardly.
He had wondered what the big deal was about holding hands when he was already in his arms, but Yonghyun's gaze as he looked at him was strange, so he couldn't just be at ease in front of him. He felt an unnecessary strength in his fingertips, making them curl involuntarily.
For that reason, Wonwoo was delighted by Mihee’s interruption and Jinho's new appearance. He clapped and danced. Of course, only in his mind where no one could see.
“Esper Han Jinho-nim. Thank you for your support on the dispatch.”
“Not at all. The, uh, the gate was raided before my support was even needed…. Ah, of course, it's better that the raiding finished quickly!”
“We won't be able to provide the dispatch fee, but we will look into whether there are other ways we can support you. For instance, priority nomination for Gates or an exemption from the usage fees for Espers affiliated with the Administration, things that seem most necessary for you, Esper Han Jinho-nim.”
“I would be grateful for that. Personally, I think the fee exemption would be the cleanest. Things can get noisy in many ways if priority rights go to an individual instead of a guild….”
“I will take your words into consideration.”
Yonghyun stood up from his seat and offered Jinho a handshake. Jinho took Yonghyun's hand. However, as if conscious of Wonwoo, he couldn't keep his eyes still while talking to Yonghyun, sneaking glances at him.
‘Oh, right. I know he’s an Esper, but… he doesn’t know I’m a Guide. No, he probably doesn’t even know what a Guide is.’
Just as Wonwoo was debating whether he should also get up and offer a handshake, Jinho spoke first.
“Um, by any chance, was the Gate's danger level misjudged? It's hard to believe an AA-rank Gate was raided this quickly.”
“Ah….”
Yonghyun couldn't answer right away and let out a low sound. To Wonwoo, who knew the circumstances, he seemed to be contemplating how to explain without causing a misunderstanding. But it didn't seem that way to Jinho, as the tension on Jinho's face deepened.
“The danger level was indeed AA-rank. However, um. How should I explain this…”
“Chief, uhm. Sorry to interrupt while you're speaking…”
“Ah, yes. Not at all, Wonwoo-ssi.”
After Wonwoo's name came from Yonghyun's mouth, Jinho's gaze once again fell on Wonwoo.
“If it's alright with you, that is. I'd like to… give the explanation, if that's okay?”
And so, thinking of the PowerPoint file dormant inside the phone in his pocket, Wonwoo interjected into their conversation. He had come face-to-face with two S-rank Espers, who were so difficult to meet. He couldn't miss this opportunity.
“…That's fine. In fact, I brought Esper Han Jinho-nim here because I also had something to explain regarding that.”
“Uh, uh… uh, so.”
“Then, Chief, by any chance… may I use that?”
Wonwoo pointed to a table against the wall. Like the one Yonghyun and Wonwoo had been using, it was a shabby table you might see at a street food stall. But on top of it sat a beam projector.
‘That looks like the same model as the one in the department lounge. Then it should connect to my phone, right?’
After hearing Wonwoo's words, Yonghyun thought for a moment and then nodded. He then issued an order for everyone except Jinho and Wonwoo to leave.
“Everyone, halt what you are doing and move. Relocate to the B-2 container house. This place will be used as a meeting space for myself and Han Jinho-nim.”
The Dispatch Department employees moved swiftly without a hint of complaint. Witnessing their wondrous speed and efficiency somehow made Wonwoo feel intimidated. He felt self-conscious and worried that the staff had been kicked out in the middle of their work because of him.
However, contrary to Wonwoo's worries, they were accustomed to suddenly relocating. The only thought in their heads was, 'Let's finish the work here quickly and go back to the Department!' There was a reason all their computers were laptops.
And so, only Wonwoo, Yonghyun, and Jinho remained in the container house. With a somewhat dramatic expression, Wonwoo connected his phone to the beam projector.
<How to Solve the Gate Problem>
The PowerPoint screen that Wonwoo had diligently prepared with the System's advice appeared.
After hearing the explanation about Guides from the System, and taking on the mission to become a nourishing tonic for Espers, Wonwoo had fallen into agony the more he researched them. How should he explain his existence, the existence of Guides, to Espers and make them understand?
‘Wow, even though I’m a Guide, if I were them, I couldn’t—no, I wouldn’t—believe that something like a Guide exists.’
The appearance of Gates led to the emergence of a great disaster. The number of survivors depended on how quickly Gates were conquered and dealt with. That's how important an Esper's strength was. The measure of a developed country, a powerful nation, was now linked to the possession of high-rank Espers.
In a situation like this, a being who could make an Esper stronger with just physical contact!
If he met them for the first time and suddenly shouted, 'I can make you stronger!', he'd be condemned as a snake oil salesman.
So, Wonwoo had prepared. A PowerPoint to explain about Guides, and about himself, anytime, anywhere.
Wonwoo was the kind of student who, during group projects, would hear things like, 'You're good at presenting and making PPTs, so why don't you do it?' That's why, among the many ways to explain about Guides, he chose to create a PowerPoint.
Of course, the System had sent a message that threw a wet blanket on Wonwoo's resolve to create the PowerPoint file and prepare a presentation.
[User ‘Wonwoo’ seems to be making unnecessary trouble for himself… (′д｀)σ]
‘No, then do you have some other good method?’
[…….]
‘Tell me. I’ll do it your way.’
[…I’m cheering for you! (o゜▽゜)o☆]
He created it while receiving that cheer that wasn't quite a cheer. While making it, he had several reality-check moments, thinking, 'Why am I even doing this…,' but he still did his best to complete it.
But he never thought he’d be unveiling it this soon…! Feeling a mix of deep emotion and a strange sense of novelty, Wonwoo stood before Yonghyun and Jinho.
Despite the sudden appearance of a PowerPoint file, Yonghyun sat down quietly without any sign of surprise. Jinho looked back and forth between Yonghyun and Wonwoo before hesitantly sitting down next to Yonghyun.
“Regarding… 'How to Solve the Gate Problem,' there is something I would like to tell you both.”
In truth, even as he was connecting the beam projector, Wonwoo had been endlessly debating whether it was right to bring out this PowerPoint screen now. It seemed suspicious even to himself. And there wasn't just one or two things to be concerned about.
Yonghyun knew about him being a 'Guide.' No, it would be more accurate to say that even if he didn't know about 'him', he knew about 'Guides.' On top of that, to think he knew they would meet today.
Wonwoo hadn't known he would meet two S-rank Espers, Yonghyun and Jinho, today. He had simply taken the Line 2 subway because the System told him to reenact what he had done on May 8th, before he died.
He had worried, 'Am I going to get swept up in a Gate like before I died?', but he hadn't thought he would be able to meet the S-rank Esper Yonghyun by getting caught in that Gate.
At first, he thought, 'I was lucky!' but the more he talked with Yonghyun, the more he realized it wasn't just simple luck.
In such a suspicious situation, was it really the right thing to do to reveal the existence of Guides, to reveal things about himself? Wonwoo kept pondering but couldn't come to a conclusion.
Comments Box