“Dana.
It’s not enough.”
She cracked open an eye.
He was fidgeting, his fingers stroking hers with a cloying touch.
A desperate craving for deeper Guiding crawled out from behind his gloomy facade like a bug.
“Not enough.
It’s not enough.”
Dana remained silent.
“Open your eyes.
Give me more Guiding.
It’s not enough.” The low, whining voice was incessant.
A deep line formed between Dana’s brows.
She waved her hand in annoyance.
“Make do with that.”
“I feel like I’m dying.”
She said nothing.
“The smell of fish is torturing me.” His gaze was relentless.
It was the same look he’d had when he’d snuck into her room at dawn after hearing she was a Guide, his Esper Energy crumpled like a ball of foil.
The greater an Esper’s power, the more intense their suffering without Guiding.
For his rank, Jin’s energy was surprisingly potent, and when he’d come to her, he’d been dangerously on edge, unable to contain it.
His hair had been a wreck, his eyes as hollow as a skull’s.
The memory of his hand clamping over her mouth to stifle her scream extinguished any lingering kindness she might have felt.
“I told you before.
I’ll give you what you want only if you’re useful to me.
You’ve already paid for my question.”
Jin was speechless.
“Is there anything else?
If not, get out.”
“I—I have something.”
“What is it?”
“This.” He pulled a gun from his coat.
“A .6-caliber Colt revolver.
I paid a high price for it on the Black Market.”
With a dubious expression, Dana took the gun, its silver barrel gleaming.
“What am I supposed to do with this?”
“For self-defense.
It’s useful against low-level demon beasts.”
While heavy-duty firearms like mortars and machine guns were effective against demon beasts, it was common knowledge that smaller guns couldn’t penetrate their thick hides.
Dana had experienced a Gate twice: the one that had branded her a Contaminant, and the one that had opened on the Lee family’s ancestral mountain.
She had also seen low-level demon beasts during a field trip at Ideia, though she had only watched from a distance as experienced hunters took them down.
One of them had used a handgun.
“I don’t know how to use it.”
“I’ll teach you.”
Dana hesitated, then nodded.
After the first Gates appeared, gun ownership had become legal in Korea, just as in the United States, but she had never been permitted to have one—not by the country, but by the Lee family.
‘It should be fine to keep one in secret.’
At her signal, Jin placed the gun in the glove box, then looked at her again.
“That includes teaching me how to use it,” Dana said, making the terms clear.
He nodded vigorously, his dark eyes fixed on her like a puppy’s.
Suppressing a wave of unease, Dana finally opened her arms.
Jin Yang’s face lit up.
Though lanky, he was still larger than her, and he pulled her into a tight embrace.
She held him until the excess energy in his body had dissipated.
An hour later, she tried to pull away, but even though he must have sensed her intent, his arms remained wrapped around her back.
“Let go.”
He didn’t respond.
“What are you doing?” she asked, her tone a clear warning.
Only then did he reluctantly release her.
As their bodies separated, the inside of his wrinkled shirt collar came into view.
His skin was flushed red with what looked like insect bites.
“Did you go to Director Jeong’s room yesterday?”
“Yes.”
She waited for an explanation.
“I was nearly drained to death,” he said, pulling his collar open to show her the marks.
It was impossible to tell if he was complaining or bragging.
The cluster of kiss marks was extensive, a testament to the night’s activities.
Contempt flickered in Dana’s eyes.
“Cover it up.”
Of course, from his perspective, sex with Director Jeong was a ‘necessary act.’ ‘Just like it is for Doha with Saeron Kim.’
Dana found herself wondering.
Jin often complained that the director wouldn’t let him go, that she’d insist he stay until morning.
But had he ever found pleasure in that ‘necessary act’?
What she was truly curious about was how Doha felt during his sessions with Saeron Kim, but that was a question she could never ask.
“Jin.
Do you enjoy it with Director Jeong?”
He froze, his hand still scratching his neck.
He gave her a look of surprise, and she instantly regretted asking.
“Why are you curious?” A wicked anticipation bloomed in his eyes, like a boy tempting a friend with candy.
Suddenly, his chest was right in front of her.
“Get away from me,” she snapped, pushing him back.
“I want to form an exclusive bond with you, Dana,” he whispered.
Dana didn’t reply.
“I want to please you instead of Director Jeong.
I’ve saved a lot of money.
I can take care of you.”
This was why you never give an opening.
Dana shoved his chest with her palm.
“What about your family in Mongolia?”
“My sister got married.
I don’t have to send money anymore.”
“Then why don’t you go home?”
He said nothing.
For the first time, the corner of his mouth lifted in a slight smile.
His facial muscles barely moved compared to most people’s, but it was definitely a smile.
“I like you, Dana.”
She stared at his idiotic grin and snorted.
“Don’t even dream of it.”
“Dream…?”
“That’s right.
My place is by Doha’s side.”
“That will never happen.”
“What?”
“You will never be permitted to be the young master’s partner.” He stabbed at her most painful insecurity without a hint of remorse.
As he leaned in again, she punched him in the chest—this time with all her might.
“Ugh…” He groaned, stumbling back.
His expression remained flat, but a shadow of gloom fell over him.
“Who said I don’t know how hard it will be?”
He fell silent.
“I’m not giving up, so what right do you have to say anything?”
“I was just worried about you…”
“It’s your possessiveness, isn’t it?
You greedy Esper.”
That must have hit the mark, because he fell silent.
A surge of irritation washed over Dana.
She wanted to beat him with the gun he’d just given her.
He wasn’t wrong.
The Chairman, President Lee, and his wife would never accept her as Doha’s partner.
At best, they might graciously offer her the position of a mistress, a status that held no legal standing in Korea.
And even that could be revoked if Yeonhwa’s family disapproved.
Doha would never enter an exclusive bond, so her value as a Guide would persist, but she would never be his priority.
‘If only my parents were alive.
If only I weren’t a Contaminant.’
Dana ruthlessly crushed the meaningless what-ifs that surfaced.
‘I skipped class today, so I need to ace the exam.
And my practical training starts soon.’ She forced her mind toward her responsibilities, a desperate retreat from the thoughts that plagued her.
“Ahh, the air here is so fresh.
I can finally breathe,” Jintae declared, throwing open a window.
A cool, crisp breeze filtered into the stuffy room, cutting through the stale air.
After confirming that the Esper levels on the Guiding device were slowly dropping, Dana turned her head.
Jintae, dressed in a medical student’s lab coat, exhaled a puff of gray smoke.
Behind him stretched a brilliant blue sky, a rare sight these days.
Since the Gate of the Great Calamity, Seoul’s air pollution had worsened dramatically.
It opened into a sand-filled demon realm in the deserts of China and Mongolia, causing the air quality to plummet.
The gate barriers installed at places like the Hyundai Department Store in Yeouido and even the Blue House to fend off the Gates also played a part in disrupting the flow of air.
Life on Earth was becoming increasingly difficult.
Paradoxically, this drove some scholars to study the Gates not as a threat, but as a potential new home for humanity.
Most people, having witnessed the horrors of Gates and demon beasts firsthand, dismissed them as lunatics.
“Don’t you think so?” Jintae asked.
“This is a non-smoking area, sunbae.”
“You see this perfect weather and feel absolutely nothing?” He eyed her as if she were a robot.
“Just put out your cigarette.”
“If I can’t even have this, what joy is there to get me through this grueling training?”
“What a grueling life you lead.”
At her deadpan reply, Jintae, who had been wailing like a stage actor, curled his upper lip in a pout.
“Why didn’t you go with Doha Lee?
Why did you stay here just to torment me?”
This time, Dana flinched.
“Why are you suddenly bringing him up?”
“Bringing him up?” Jintae snorted.
“Is there anyone who doesn’t know you’re Doha Lee’s pet?”
Chapter 5: Gate Surge