Huiyeong abruptly sprang to his feet, shifted his weight onto one leg, flashed a crooked grin, and swaggered forward. It was nothing like the fairy-like figure who had been lying peacefully under the soft early winter sunlight just moments ago. Taeseong flinched at the sight. And once that twisted fairy opened his mouth, it got even worse.
"Ah, fuck's sake, seriously. Every damn time you open your mouth, it's all about manners. What are you, the fucking Manners Police? Got possessed by the ghost of someone who died teaching etiquette? It's always useless little pieces of shit with nothing going for them who won't shut up about manners and proper conduct. Bet you'd only come to your senses after serving an ancestral memorial table because you were so damn busy being polite."
"What...?"
After several encounters, Huiyeong had realized that with this frail body, throwing punches posed absolutely no threat. So instead of letting the fist that had nearly flown out loose, he launched straight into a barrage of abuse.
Any guilt he'd felt toward Taeseong after hearing Haram's explanation had completely vanished. One hand stuffed into his pocket, he tilted his head and glared as viciously as he could. His young, gentle face still made him look more like an angry kitten with its fur puffed up than anything intimidating, but the words pouring out of his mouth were savage.
Taeseong already knew from their previous encounter that Huiyeong had a hellish temper. But Huiyeong's delicate appearance had made him forget just how outrageous he'd been before, so seeing him charge in so recklessly without a second thought left Taeseong so flustered that he unconsciously began taking slow steps backward.
"And another thing, asshole. Before you go looking for other people's manners, go find your own family's first. You're so fucking polite that you pick a fight with someone lying down trying to rest? Did you buy your manners off some bootleg website or what? Huh? Got nothing to do? Too incompetent? Is being the fucking Etiquette Guardian the only job you've got?"
"Incompetent...!"
Taeseong trembled. His handsome jaw twisted as he ground his teeth together, veins bulging thickly along his neck. His massive hand clenched into a fist so tightly it shook.
Taeseong was normally cautious and levelheaded. If something didn't interest him, he'd simply ignore it without hesitation, making him seem like an arrogant bastard. But according to the staff, unlike certain other people, he didn't cause trouble, was perfectly reasonable, and always completed his responsibilities thoroughly, making him a remarkably clean-cut person overall. He was unbelievably picky when it came to work, though.
So why had Taeseong suddenly picked a fight with Huiyeong? Why had an Esper suddenly provoked someone else's Guide?
There were several reasons mixed together, but two stood above the rest.
The biggest reason stemmed from their first meeting.
In truth, he hadn't been angry because Huiyeong had screamed at him. That meant absolutely nothing to Taeseong. Likewise, he didn't care that Huiyeong had flown into a rage over what he considered perfectly justified advice and turned him into the world's biggest piece of trash.
Only one thing had truly infuriated him.
Huiyeong had interrupted the Guiding he'd finally managed to receive from Haram... and then taken Haram away.
How many sleepless days and nights had he spent working like a damn dog just to receive Guiding from Haram?
He had intentionally accepted an excessive workload that Han Shinyul had irresponsibly abandoned, carefully keeping his Guiding value hovering just on the edge. He had meticulously studied the duty schedules of every unmatched Guide in the Center until he'd finally secured that opportunity.
The Center always prioritized the Guide's wishes over the Esper's during Guiding. Since Haram consistently refused to Guide him whenever another Guide happened to be on duty, Taeseong would inevitably be sent to someone else instead. Once that happened, there was nothing he could do, so everything required meticulous planning.
Kind-hearted, soft-hearted Haram would reluctantly Guide Taeseong only if there was literally no other Guide available. Drawing him into that situation required blood, sweat, and tears.
Taeseong had even planned to invite Haram out for coffee afterward.
He was going to brew drip coffee himself—the kind Haram always enjoyed.
Despite his busy schedule, he'd completely mastered the art of hand-dripped coffee. He had prepared all sorts of equipment to show Haram his impressive skills, and he'd even come up with small talk topics involving all twenty-six varieties of coffee beans so Haram could choose whichever suited his taste.
But every perfect plan he'd made had turned into nothing the moment Huiyeong appeared.
How could he not resent Huiyeong?
The second reason was Huiyeong's partner, Shinyul.
Taeseong had no idea what exactly had offended that lunatic, but sane people could never understand crazy bastards. During the morning briefing, Shinyul had been wearing that signature cold, unsettling smile of his. Taeseong clicked his tongue, ignored him outright, and focused on his work.
There weren't any dangerous high-ranking dungeons scheduled that day, so everyone had expected a relatively easy workload.
Yet every single time the dungeon management staff tried assigning Taeseong to a dungeon, Shinyul would simply smile pleasantly and snatch the assignment away.
By the end of it all...
Taeseong had been assigned exactly zero work.
Taeseong took tremendous pride in both being an Esper and in his work itself, so Shinyul's behavior infuriated him. But Shinyul calmly justified it by saying Taeseong had been overloaded while he'd been absent, so he was merely taking over Taeseong's assignments.
Even when Taeseong protested fiercely, the Center accepted Shinyul's request anyway, perhaps wanting to test the stability of an Esper who had finally obtained a matched Guide.
As his coworkers scattered to their various assignments, Taeseong caught Shinyul's icy gaze.
And then it hit him.
That bastard had done it on purpose.
Han Shinyul knew perfectly well how much pride Taeseong took in his abilities and how obsessed he was with his work. Rather than dumping extra work on him, the far more effective way to provoke him was to steal his work away.
That's why he'd deliberately acted that way.
Unable to hide the hollow feeling inside him, Taeseong wandered aimlessly around the Center until he came across Huiyeong.
Seeing that tiny figure peacefully basking in the warm sunlight while he himself was drowning in frustration made his stomach twist.
The sarcastic remark had slipped out before he even realized it.
Then, instead of apologizing, Huiyeong mocked him for being incompetent.
There was no way Taeseong wouldn't be rubbed raw by that.
Still, he couldn't bring himself to seriously fight with a Guide, so all he could do was clench his fists until they trembled.
The petty provocation he'd thrown out in a moment of anger had come back at him several times worse, enough to leave his head spinning.
"Ohhh, what? Got nothing to say? No words, no work. Why're you even alive? Huh? Why're you alive? Being a civil servant suuure is comfortable, huh? The country's willing to pay you just to wander around picking fights and playing the Manners Guardian."
"..."
Afraid Taeseong might not understand his dialect, Huiyeong had even made the effort to switch to standard Seoul speech.
To Huiyeong, this was actually a rather refined argument.
But Taeseong, who usually paid little attention to other people and almost never got provoked like this, was shaking like a vibrating doll as he struggled with every ounce of self-control to suppress the rage boiling inside him.
Watching Taeseong tremble from head to toe after only a little teasing, Huiyeong let out a scoffing laugh.
Then he remembered how he'd been the one trembling uncontrollably with rage just yesterday.
"What the hell... is there some kind of daily vibration quota or something...?"
he muttered in disbelief.
I might not have any stamina, but it's not like I don't have a mouth.
Still wearing a refreshed smile, Huiyeong slowly looked Taeseong over.
The bulging veins crawling up his face from holding back his anger.
The huge fists constantly clenching and unclenching.
The muscles visible beneath the light shirt he wore despite the early winter weather.
The enormous build he'd initially mistaken for Shinyul's.
Especially those hands, as big as pot lids.
Every time those fingers stretched open completely, Huiyeong's body involuntarily twitched.
Hmm.
Huiyeong quietly took one step backward.
Am I fucked?
Only then did he finally remember just how pitifully weak his current body was.
His large eyes darted around, desperately searching for an escape route.
If I can just get inside the building...
...No, it's fucking miles away.
He stared at the distant main headquarters.
He'd be caught before he managed three steps.
Ah... you fucking idiot...
Only now did Huiyeong curse himself for remembering that his weak body couldn't fight while completely forgetting what happened after you spent several minutes provoking a giant built like a truck.
This is why people are supposed to use their brains.
Even back when he was in the organization, his body had always moved before his head.
His boss—the chairman he always followed—had scolded him countless times over it.
He'd survived this long only because of his uncanny instincts and his refusal to lose to anyone. If he'd made even one wrong move, his personality would've sent him straight into the abyss.
"Think before you act."
No matter how many times his boss told him that, Huiyeong always rushed in first, regretted it later, then scrambled to clean up the mess.
Even after getting hauled in and chewed out over the exact same thing time and time again, he'd only grin sheepishly and reply,
"Ah, Boss. A gangster's a gangster for a reason, ain't he?"
Without a shred of remorse.
Huiyeong squeezed his eyes shut.
Ah... where the fuck is Han Shinyul, that son of a bitch?
Fuck, normally I tell him to piss off and he sticks to me like a damn puppy, but the one time I actually need him, he's nowhere.
Grumbling inwardly, Huiyeong cautiously peeked at Taeseong, whose ragged breathing seemed to have calmed somewhat.
Silence settled between them.
"Ahem... So, uh... we're even now, right?"
Huiyeong's awkward attempt broke the silence.
Taeseong stared at him in complete disbelief.
The anger he'd barely suppressed started bubbling back up.
"...What?"
"I mean, ain't that right? Huh? You picked fights with me twice, and I landed one solid hit on you. That makes us even."
Speaking shamelessly, Huiyeong slowly edged his body toward the main entrance.
The intention behind the movement was painfully obvious.
Taeseong let out a furious sigh.
"Ha..."
"Oi, a grown man sighing like that... your balls are gonna fall off. Come on, cheer up! Huh? We both got our shots in, so let's bury the past! A real man doesn't hold grudges. If you're not cool about things, women won't like you. This old man has plenty of dating experience, you know? Well... judging by your face, you've probably dated a lot too. But when an adult gives advice, there's not a single word worth throwing away, so listen carefully."
"Women won't... like me...?"
The fury covering Taeseong's face suddenly vanished.
Instead, he looked completely lost.
Sweating buckets from the overwhelming sense of danger just moments earlier, Huiyeong froze as soon as he saw Taeseong's expression.
His anger hadn't merely faded.
He suddenly looked...
...heartbroken.
"Uh..."
"...Was I... not cool...?"
Taeseong staggered slightly as he muttered to himself.
Anyone could tell from a single glance that he looked exactly like someone who'd just been dumped.
Without thinking, Huiyeong blurted out,
"So... uh... want me to listen to your problems?"
Taeseong's huge body twitched.
He stole hesitant glances at Huiyeong, looking for all the world like he was silently begging, Please listen to me.
Unsure whether he should be relieved they'd somehow escaped without anyone getting seriously hurt, or panic over the fact that the situation had somehow turned into an old man's counseling office, Huiyeong fumbled awkwardly before rubbing the corners of his eyes with both hands and letting out a sigh.
Why the hell do people watch TV?
My life's already a damn comedy.
"Oi, fuck it. Sit down."