Like he had been waiting for this very moment, Wonwoo frowned as he saw the system send a message without hesitation.
“No, you know. It’s not like I can go to a Gate just because I want to…”
It would be one thing if he stumbled upon a Gate by chance, but the fact that a disaster alert had been sent to him in a different region meant the area was already under control.
As an ordinary person, not only would he be unable to get near it, he probably couldn’t even get transportation to Gyeonggi Province.
[But if this Gate isn't raided, it will turn into an A-rank Gate and go KABOOM! (っ °Д °;)っ]
“What?!”
[<QUEST> Generated!]
[<QUEST> Upon failure, A-rank Gates will appear consecutively! User ‘Wonwoo’s’ active participation in raiding the Gate is required!]
'Then this is big trouble… Is A-rank Gate some neighborhood dog’s name? Why do they pop up so often?' Wonwoo thought as he opened his messenger app.
‘Should I try contacting Jinho…?’
They had already promised to meet this morning and go to the Bureau together anyway. So it wouldn’t be strange to casually ask if he was going to raid this Gate, and if so, what would happen to their plans for today. With that thought, Wonwoo opened the messenger window.
“Oh? I got a message from the Chief.”
But an unexpected message greeted Wonwoo. It seemed that with all the mental and physical exhaustion from last night, he hadn't even noticed a message had come in.
[I will see you tomorrow, Wonwoo-ssi. Have a good night.]
The profile picture was the default icon since it hadn't been set, and it was a message that paid attention to every single space and period, without any emoticons.
“Um, um… would it be better to contact the Chief?”
After saying that, Wonwoo found himself unconsciously waiting for the system's reply and quickly shook his head.
'Right, let's contact him. He won't think I'm joining the Bureau just because I'm contacting him!'
-Bbirong bbirong!
[Excellent idea! ♪(^∇^*)]
[A GUIDE for user ‘Wonwoo’!]
[Esper Shin Yonghyun is the most key esper in raiding the Gate!]
[I’m against the Bureau’s monopoly, but that's that and this is this! (∼￣▽￣)∼]
[When raiding a Gate, the national agency, the Bureau, has priority for dispatch! For Gate raiding, dispatch information, etc., go to Esper Shin Yonghyun! (｡･∀･)ﾉ]
[If user ‘Wonwoo’ starts a business… no, forms a guild, the place you’ll visit most often is the Bureau!]
Leaving behind the system that still hadn't given up on the dream of him starting a business, Wonwoo sent a message to Yonghyun.
A prim and proper message suited a person as upright as Yonghyun, but Wonwoo worried the atmosphere would become too stiff if he acted the same way, so he intentionally sent a cute emoticon along with it.
[Hello, Chief! I just saw your message. ㅠㅠ Did you get home safely yesterday? It would have been great if we were together.]
[By any chance, are you at work now? I got a disaster alert about the Gate.]
Wonwoo's thought that he should hurry and get ready to go out was rendered moot as the 'unread' mark on the messenger window disappeared in less than a minute. And right away, a call came from Yonghyun. So, Wonwoo had to sit down and take Yonghyun’s call in the middle of putting on his pants.
“H-Hello? Chief?”
-Ah, hello. Wonwoo-ssi. I apologize for calling so suddenly. But I thought a call would be better than messaging back and forth….
“It’s okay! I was actually going to ask if you were available for a call when you replied. Haha.”
Somehow, his voice sounded much hoarser and more tired than it did yesterday. Well, with a Gate bursting open since the morning, he was bound to be tired. Wonwoo felt a small sense of pity for Yonghyun.
-Thank you for saying so. To be honest, I’d like to talk a little more, but the situation is rather urgent…. I ask for your understanding first. Wonwoo-ssi, are you able to come out right now?”
“Yes? R-Right now? To where?”
Tucking the phone between his ear and shoulder, Wonwoo finished putting on his pants and diligently put on his socks.
“I can leave now, what’s going on?”
-I am in front of your house right now. You can come right out.
“…Uh, yes? House? My house?”
-Yes. The one in Mapo-gu, Seoul, is that correct?
“Th-That’s right. But how did you get the address…”
-I apologize. I came here using the address from the report you filled out yesterday.
'Ah, right… On the report, aside from the Gate sighting details, I wrote down everything—my name, my address, and everything else. Multiple times, at that.'
'But wait, isn't this... a leak of personal information? Is it not? Is this okay?'
Saddened by the fact that he couldn't get the gifticon, Wonwoo had thrown away his lingering attachment to the free coupon, and the memory of writing the report along with it. Besides, so much had happened yesterday that it was understandable he wouldn't remember.
-I am truly, truly sorry. But the situation is urgent right now, so would it be alright if we talked about the details in person?
“Yes, yes. It’s okay. It’s okay! I’ll be right out.”
-Thank you. I will be waiting then.
Something felt off, but with a B-rank Gate—not an F or D-rank—appearing in the morning, time was indeed of the essence.
Besides, it felt like following Yonghyun would be a step toward raiding the Gate.
Thinking that Yonghyun wouldn't have come all the way to his house after finding his address for no reason, Wonwoo shook off the uneasy feeling. Then, he hurriedly swept his phone and other belongings into his bag and left the house.
***
“Ah, hello. Did you get home safely yesterday?”
“Ah, hello. I’m…”
“Manager Kim Jaesung. You’re Wonwoo-ssi, right?”
The man who had approached him at the camp, offering to help with his report, greeted Wonwoo with a friendly smile from the driver's seat.
“Yes, th… thanks to you.”
“Hey, it’s not like I did anything. I’m sorry for making you come out so suddenly. To be honest, we’re in a bit of a mess ourselves. Haha.”
As soon as he left his house, Wonwoo was faced with a black van with the 'Bureau' logo emblazoned on the door. And as if waiting, the van's back door opened and Yonghyun appeared.
'Please get in first. I'll explain as we move.'
If someone else had said that, he would have freaked out, thinking, ''Is someone targeting me?!'' But the person was Yonghyun. At the words of the icon of faith and trust, Wonwoo obediently got into the car.
“I’m Assistant Manager Lee Mihee. I’ve heard a lot about you from the Chief. Thank you so much for your cooperation yesterday.”
“Ah. Hello. I’m Kim Wonwoo. Thanks to you all as well, I was able to return safely.”
When Mihee, sitting in the passenger seat, introduced herself, Wonwoo found himself giving his own name in return.
'B-But it hasn't even been a day since we met, what could you have heard so much about?' The words rose to the tip of his tongue, but Wonwoo managed to swallow them by exercising his social skills.
“Um… Chief. Where are we going? And, why am I suddenly…?”
“We are going to Anyang, Gyeonggi Province… where the B-rank Gate has appeared.”
“What? Just like this, s-so suddenly?”
Just a few minutes ago, Wonwoo had been pondering, ''How should I get to Anyang?''
He had even been thinking that if it came down to it, he would just blurt out to Yonghyun or Jinho, ''My ability is telling me! As a Guide, I must go to that Gate!'' For Wonwoo, he couldn't be more pleased that an opportunity like this had come.
But since it was a dangerous disaster situation, if he showed that he was pleased or happy, the Chief might find him strange… so Wonwoo put on a suitably serious and grave expression.
“We don’t know what might happen if a civilian experiences an esper’s movement ability, so we came to pick you up in a hurry to travel by car. I apologize once again.”
However, Yonghyun seemed to misunderstand Wonwoo’s expression for another reason and bowed his head.
“No! Not at all. It’s okay. It's a chaotic situation right now. An emergency. As you said, please explain… slowly while we travel.”
“Thank you for your understanding.”
“Ah, um. But is it… okay for me to go… to the Gate site?”
As Wonwoo finished his sentence, Jaesung let out a dry cough and Mihee sent a restless glance through the rearview mirror. And Yonghyun….
'Chief Shin, about the Gate that just appeared. Proceed with the raiding, taking the Guide you mentioned yesterday with you.'
He clenched his teeth, recalling the Director's words that were more of a notification.
'The timing is good. Is there really a need for us to set aside time to meet and talk? Can't you just film the Guide doing that, what was it, guiding? and send us the video? Haha.'
He really should have broken the desk and caused a scene in front of the Director yesterday, regardless of whether Yihyun tried to stop him.
''What if I say I cannot do that?'
'Haha, Chief Shin. What can I do if you say you don't want to? I can't force you.'
'In that case….'
'However, it will take a very, very long time to acknowledge that Guide's existence. Hoho, it wouldn't be a bad proposal from your perspective either, Chief Shin, don't you think? If what you say is true, won't you be able to raid the new Gate quickly?'
But Yonghyun couldn't just oppose the Director's words and refuse his proposal, as he himself wasn't entirely blameless.
Because as soon as he heard the report that a Gate had appeared, he too had thought of Wonwoo first.
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