Huiyeong's leg bounced restlessly. The empty house, devoid of anyone else, was eerily silent. The Center employees had explained that Shinyul would be late because he had to finish his backlog of work and clear an urgent dungeon, then personally escorted Huiyeong home.
If Shinyul had gone into a dungeon, that inevitably meant he would need Guiding afterward. Unlike before, when he had only indulged Shinyul clinging to him and acting cute, now he would have to actively touch another man's body himself.
Ah, fuck, I can't do this anymore. Should I just quit?
But if he left, there would be no other way to gather information about these Espers with their strange supernatural abilities. If he wanted to return to his own world, he had no choice but to stick around here.
Sitting on the bed in the dark room without even bothering to turn on the lights, Huiyeong bit his lip and writhed anxiously before abruptly sitting upright.
No, it's just Guiding. It's not that big a deal. Right?
He muttered to himself over and over as he wandered aimlessly around the room. Suddenly, his watch let out a chirp. Looking down, he saw the Guiding value glowing yellow.
60%.
Just what the hell is this guy doing that his Guiding value keeps dropping like this?
After spending the remaining time learning the basics, Huiyeong had finally realized how important the watch on his wrist was. It truly was the lifeline connecting Guide and Esper, allowing him to monitor Shinyul's condition even from afar.
'Once it falls below 20%, an Esper's senses become hypersensitive, and they begin suffering intense pain. From that point onward, daily life becomes difficult. Below 7% is classified as the onset of Berserk. Once that stage begins, even Guiding drugs become ineffective. If they enter a full Berserk state, the Esper loses all reason, their abilities spiral out of control, and they eventually destroy themselves.'
Haram's calm voice echoed through his mind as he matter-of-factly explained something so horrifying.
That bastard really was living on borrowed time.
A strange mixture of responsibility and pity twisted his stomach. His face darkened, and heavy sighs escaped one after another.
He'd much rather settle things with fists. Even if this body threw itself at Shinyul with everything it had, it obviously wouldn't manage to scratch him, but he'd still prefer that. Saving someone's life by offering up his own body—even if it was only a temporary job—left him with no idea how much he was supposed to sacrifice or where he should draw the line.
"Hah..."
A self-mocking laugh escaped him.
He couldn't believe he was agonizing over this like some lovesick teenager. All he had to do was touch another guy's body. Anyone seeing him would think he was being asked to kiss the bastard right this second.
Huiyeong snorted.
It's nothing.
It's really nothing.
He repeated it like hypnosis.
By the time Shinyul's Guiding value stopped at 58% and Huiyeong had more or less sorted out his feelings, the front door clicked open.
Huiyeong, who had been sprawled across the bed, immediately ran toward the entrance.
He thought he'd calmed down, but the instant he heard someone arrive, his heart started pounding all over again.
"Hey... uh... yeah. You're back?"
"...Wow. Having the princess come out to greet me really makes it feel like we're married."
"God... Listening to you spout bullshit means you're doing fine."
He grumbled, but stared closely at Shinyul's face.
Unlike that dazzling look he'd had this morning, he seemed noticeably wilted. More than anything, the way his eyes drooped while he forced a smile made it seem like he was hiding how much pain he was in.
Huiyeong circled around him as Shinyul trudged inside.
What does 58% even mean? They said Espers only really start suffering below 20%, so I figured 58% would be perfectly fine...
But seeing Shinyul looking so drained filled him with sudden unease.
He knew almost nothing about this world.
Things everyone else considered common knowledge weren't common sense to him at all.
Fuck. If I'd known it'd be like this, I should've asked the instructor what every ten-percent drop actually feels like...
Chewing his lip, Huiyeong quietly watched as Shinyul shuffled into the bathroom.
Completely unaware that Shinyul had deliberately overexerted himself inside the dungeon and was intentionally acting pitiful in front of him, Huiyeong anxiously raked both hands through his hair.
Isn't he gonna collapse in there while taking a bath?
...No, maybe it'd actually be better if he just passed out.
No! Fuck, what the hell am I thinking? Haven't I gotten rid of my gangster habits yet? I got myself stabbed trying to live honestly!
Putting on a one-man drama, Huiyeong jumped away when the sound of running water stopped and the bathroom suddenly became quiet.
A few minutes passed.
Shinyul still didn't come out.
He cautiously crept back over and pressed his ear against the bathroom door.
Did he seriously collapse?
Is the emergency number still 119 here?
Wait, my phone—
Just as he frantically reached for it, laughter came from inside.
The bathroom door suddenly flew open.
"Fuck! You scared the shit out of me!"
"Princess, isn't this a little too naughty? Standing outside the bathroom secretly listening to me shower... You could've just come in."
"W-What the hell are you talking about? You—you were barely walking! You practically crawled in there! I thought maybe you'd died..."
"So you were worried about me."
"I went straight to wash up without even giving Huiyeong a kiss. I just thought I'd clean myself first in case I picked up something dirty while working."
"You're seriously adorable."
Wearing nothing but a thick towel barely wrapped around his waist, Shinyul laughed as he tousled his damp hair.
Huiyeong recoiled in horror and tried to run.
His body floated into the air in an instant before being pulled into a broad embrace.
Moisture soaked into his clothes.
"Hey! Let go! You got a death wish or something?!"
"Haa... Mister."
"Guide me."
"Please?"
"I'm exhausted."
Groaning softly, Shinyul rubbed his face against Huiyeong's cheek.
The faint trickle of Guiding washing over him was unbearably sweet.
There had once been a time when every use of his abilities left him feeling painfully hollow inside, unable to sleep.
He could swallow handful after handful of Guiding drugs, yet the emptiness remained.
He wandered aimlessly, suffering, trying desperately to fill the void inside himself.
At the end of all those miserable days...
There was Huiyeong.
"You only call me 'Mister' when you want something."
Though he wore an annoyed expression, Huiyeong didn't push away the man clinging to him like a child.
It was the first time someone had directly asked him for Guiding.
The worry and anxiety he'd felt after hearing about Guiding values and an Esper's instability also played a part.
Watching Huiyeong quietly settle into his arms, Shinyul gazed at him with loving eyes before carrying him toward the bed.
One hand casually slipped beneath Huiyeong's clothes, stroking his slender waist.
His body jerked in surprise.
"Fuck! Hey! Don't you know when enough's enough?!"
"Princess... did they teach you how to kiss during Guiding class?"
"You think they fucking did? Ah! Get your hand out! I'm warning you before I throw you into the incinerator!"
"Good."
"You should learn how to kiss from me."
Smiling brightly, Shinyul sat down on the soft bed with Huiyeong still in his arms.
As he shamelessly kneaded the light body sitting on his thighs, the Guiding swelled even further.
"Haa..."
A satisfied sigh escaped him.
"Hey. Hey. Look at those damn hands of yours."
"Hold on."
"Hm? Why...?"
"Because! I've got something to do, so stop!"
Huiyeong suddenly shouted.
Shinyul immediately stopped the hand caressing his bare skin.
Roughly grabbing it and pulling it back out from inside his clothes, Huiyeong frowned and steadied his breathing.
Once he decided to do something, he carried it through without complaint.
He neither avoided the situation nor ran away.
Though...
He needed a little time to prepare himself.
"Hm? What are you going to do?"
"Want to try something?"
"Just... hold on."
"Haa..."
"Mister's got complicated feelings too, alright? Stay still."
"I'll do that Guiding thing."
Shinyul's golden eyes trembled.
Resisting the Guiding from the Guide who alone could grant him perfect peace was agonizing.
But he had spent his entire life enduring.
Waiting a little longer meant nothing.
Making a huge fuss, Huiyeong inhaled and exhaled repeatedly before hesitantly reaching out and taking Shinyul's large hand.
The broad hand carefully enclosed his slender white one.
Gentle fingers stroked his skin before slipping between his fingers and interlocking them.
Feeling Shinyul's slow movements, goosebumps ran over Huiyeong's body.
I told you to stay still...
He was about to complain.
But seeing Shinyul staring miserably at their joined hands with drooping eyes, he swallowed the words.
The number on the watch blinked slowly, indicating that Guiding was in progress.
The dark room, lit only by the faint light spilling out from the bathroom, carried a strangely intimate atmosphere.
Hmm...
Just holding hands doesn't seem to trigger the Guiding sensation.
Is this actually working?
According to Haram, once the Guiding sense awakened, it was so unmistakable that no one could ever confuse it for anything else.
He closed his eyes and concentrated.
Still...
All he could feel was Shinyul's trembling hand and the sensation of their skin touching.
Furrowing his brow deeply, he let out a sigh.
"What are you doing?"
"You need more skin contact for Guiding to work well..."
"I'm dying over here, Mister..."
"W-Wait."
Huiyeong answered hurriedly before suddenly grabbing Shinyul's large hand and lifting it toward his own face.
"Hm?"
Ignoring Shinyul's puzzled voice, Huiyeong glared at the hand as though he wanted to kill it.
Then he slowly parted his small lips...
...and bit down on Shinyul's long index finger.
"Hng...!"
A powerful wave of Guiding suddenly surged through Shinyul.
His sturdy body jolted violently.
'The more direct the contact with mucous membranes, the stronger the Guiding becomes. Advance gradually. Start by bringing the Esper's skin into contact with your own mucous membranes before moving on to the next stage.'
Following Haram's advice, Huiyeong started by sucking on Shinyul's finger.
Still...
He couldn't feel anything especially intense.
Maybe his tongue tingled a little?
Thinking that, he diligently licked the finger.
Shinyul frowned, his face flushing bright red as ragged breaths escaped him.
Acts like he's done everything before...
Turns out he's innocent as hell.
Huiyeong scoffed inwardly at Shinyul's reaction.
As his soft tongue slowly traced over the finger, Shinyul exhaled a scorching breath before pushing his middle finger into the small mouth as well, rubbing firmly.
Whether Huiyeong's mouth was simply small or Shinyul's fingers were especially long and thick, just two fingers filled it completely.
Feeling them stirring inside his mouth, Huiyeong frowned and tried to turn away.
Shinyul immediately caught his chin, holding him in place while slowly brushing over Huiyeong's tongue, teeth, palate, and the insides of his cheeks.
"So..."
"You secretly listened to me shower."
"And now you're suddenly sucking on my fingers."
"How exactly am I supposed to interpret that?"
Drool streamed from the corners of Huiyeong's mouth.
His captured face was flushed bright red as he panted.
Only then did Shinyul finally withdraw his fingers.
He immediately pressed a light kiss to Huiyeong's lips before slowly licking away the saliva trailing down his chin.
"Hey... wait, wait..."
"Your eyes have gone crazy!"
"Whoa! Hey! Hold on!"
"Mister was wrong!"
"Again with 'hold on'?"
"How long am I supposed to wait?"
"I can't take it anymore."
"Huiyeong."
"Want to kiss?"
"No!"
"Ah! Wa—"
Shinyul's burning lips crashed down over Huiyeong's shouting mouth, swallowing it whole.
His thick tongue invaded instantly, pressing against Huiyeong's smaller one just as it had toyed with his fingers, rubbing insistently while their saliva mingled.
Huiyeong's eyes flew open.
Not because of the kiss itself—
But because an overwhelming sensation rushed through his mouth like a surging tide.
A tingling, intangible current flooded every inch of his body.
Through their intertwined tongues, it flowed smoothly away like a river.
There was no mistaking it.
This...
This was the Guiding sensation.
Overwhelmed by the torrent of Guiding pouring into him, Shinyul moved his tongue desperately, breathing roughly.
The Guiding filled even his heart.
Heat spread throughout his body.
Pulling Huiyeong's light body tighter against himself, Shinyul passionately rubbed their tongues together.
Huiyeong's strength began to fail.
His soft moans came between ragged breaths.
Ah...
What should I do?
My poor savior...
The one I've finally caught.
I have no intention of ever letting you go.
While Huiyeong had been hospitalized, he often insisted he would leave this place, reclaim his own body, and return to his original world.
Whether those words were delusion or truth meant nothing to Shinyul.
Whatever the reality was...
Even in death, Huiyeong would never escape him.
He would give Huiyeong everything he possessed.
Even Huiyeong's death...
He would claim that for himself.
Thinking so, Shinyul smiled.
Slowly rocking his hips, he deliberately rubbed his hardened arousal against Huiyeong's lower body.
Only then, distracted until now by both the kiss and the overwhelming Guiding sensation, did Huiyeong's eyes widen as he repeatedly smacked Shinyul's broad chest.
Stubbornly continuing the kiss for several more moments, Shinyul finally pulled away.
A thin silver strand of saliva stretched between their lips before snapping.
"You..."
"...Right now..."
"Sorry."
"I got hard."
"The princess was just too sexy."
"Y-You fucking..."
Panting heavily from the overwhelming heat flooding his body, Huiyeong struggled to breathe.
Still feeling the persistent warmth rubbing lazily beneath him, he gasped in disbelief.
The dizziness overtook him.
His body went limp.
Holding the unconscious figure gently, Shinyul slowly, ever so slowly, continued rubbing his lower body against Huiyeong through their clothing.
On Huiyeong's slender wrist, swaying limply with every movement, the watch blinked green.
78%.