The esper who killed their guide.

That was the rumor that had followed Yoon Tae-ha since she was eighteen. Even after coming out of the underwater prison, she hadn’t uttered a single word about Moon Seon-woo. Thanks to that, Doctor Moon’s reputation had remained untarnished to this day.

“Thanks to your new dedicated guide, your family and such are no longer on her mind.”

Doctor Moon gripped the edge of the desk tightly.

“When you think about it, Moon Seon-woo was just one of the guides we assigned, wasn’t she?”

“That child treated me like family...”

Doctor Moon murmured powerlessly. Under the light that was so white it was almost blue, her face looked like a bloodless skull.

“Don’t forget that Yoon Tae-ha must not go beyond your influence.”

“I told you, Tae-ha doesn’t doubt me!”

“I hope so too. We need that woman for Doctor Yoon’s sake.”

With a cold sneer as her last words, Min Cha-hoon left. The lab where Doctor Moon remained alone was precarious with the sound of the machines running. Staggering, she slumped into a chair.

On the desk in the lab she used when meeting Yoon Tae-ha, there was a photo of her with her niece. But on the desk here, she had placed a different photo.

Two female researchers in white gowns, with carnations pinned side by side on their chests.

“I raised Tae-ha...”

In the empty lab, Doctor Moon began to ramble to the woman in the photo standing next to her. With her dry fingers, she repeatedly smoothed down her already neat hair.

“My niece gave her one too.”

Her neat hair became disheveled. She trembled as if hearing voices.

•

When they had some free time, there was a place they needed to go. Yoon Tae-ha and Cheon Geon-young, their hands full of gifts, visited a certain hospital in the morning.

A young boy sitting on the bed of a clean and spacious private room smiled brightly at them. He seemed happier to see the visitors than the snacks they brought.

“Fairy Godmother!”

“Have you been doing well?”

The secretary, who was acquainted with Cheon Geon-young, had the bodyguards step back.

“I want to talk secrets with that older sister and brother! I even got permission from Dad!”

Song Jun-tae said stubbornly. Reluctantly, the secretary also left the hospital room and closed the door. As soon as he left, the boy eagerly explained what he had been doing.

“I’ve been taking the medicine the teachers gave me well, watching the strange television, and exercising every day!”

There had been quite a few cases where people became psychics after coming into contact with monsters inside the rifts. The tests Song Jun-tae was receiving were likely related to that. Cheon Geon-young and Yoon Tae-ha exchanged a brief look.

“I’m also getting training. It’s so difficult, and I get it wrong all the time.”

Yoon Tae-ha looked at the boy with a kind gaze.

“Can you tell me what kind of training it is?”

“Sure. Um... but there’s a lot. I’ll show you here first.”

Song Jun-tae got off the bed and went to the space decorated like a living room. On the clean floor, wooden blocks of various shapes were piled up.

Yoon Tae-ha smiled warmly as she watched Song Jun-tae neatly roll up his loose sleeves.

Cheon Geon-young leaned against the window, watching the two of them. Warm sunlight touched their heads. Yoon Tae-ha’s hair, tied low in a single ponytail, looked even rounder than usual today.

He wanted to touch it.

The prospective psychic and the experienced psychic were having a conversation like a comedy duo.

“They tell me to look at this and think. I can lift it. I can make it float in the sky.”

“Hmm.”

“Like a balloon.”

Yoon Tae-ha, who had been fiddling with a wooden block on the floor, lifted it to Song Jun-tae’s eye level. After confirming that the child’s gaze followed the block, she let go.

Song Jun-tae naturally expected it to fall. But the block remained firmly fixed in mid-air. As if something was supporting it from below.

“Wow!”

The child exclaimed. The question that followed was quite realistic.

“This isn’t a trick, is it?”

“My Fairy Godmother’s friend doesn’t do tricks. That’s just how it is. Birds of a feather.”

Cheon Geon-young, who had suddenly become a joint guarantor, crossed his arms. She shrugged with an innocent attitude, as if it were nothing. Cheon Geon-young couldn’t help but laugh.

She always managed to make him laugh.

A woman who was difficult to categorize as either black team or white team. Every time he tried to be cold, she made him laugh. Even though the trap was obvious, he fell for it every time.

It was clear that being a hunter, not a hunting dog, suited him much better. There was no need to pull the trigger. Even just the act of pretending to hold a gun would make the ferocious prey lie down before her.

Of course, it wasn’t a picture he wanted to see. He could guess how many would gather.

Yoon Tae-ha began to build a tower with no base. Song Jun-tae vigorously waved his hand underneath, as if trying to check if there was any hidden device.

“There’s nothing underneath. Wow...”

“You can stack them in the air like this. You can also line them up horizontally like a train.”

“Can you make a train too? I like trains. They’re longer than cars, so I like them.”

It was a sight that looked amazing even to Cheon Geon-young. Naturally, Song Jun-tae couldn’t take his eyes off it. Her power was like magic. Song Jun-tae fired off questions like a machine gun. The woman’s eyes curved into crescents as she diligently answered.

He couldn’t even think about turning his head, and just took in the scene.

“Whether it’s training or a test, it’s okay to stop if it’s too hard.”

Her words triggered a memory in Cheon Geon-young. For a moment, it felt like sharp, tiny thorns had entered his eyelids. He lowered his head. He pressed his palms against his eyelids.

Yoon Tae-ha, who had been engrossed in talking, belatedly raised her head.

“What’s wrong?”

She looked at him with worried eyes. Making a natural excuse that dust had gotten in his eyes, he left the hospital room. He reached a secluded window and covered his eyes with his palms.

<It’s okay to stop if it’s too hard.>

He had heard that before.

A female researcher in a white gown had said that to him. The problem was, it didn’t seem like he had met her after his parents had passed away.

Unfamiliar memories flowed in. Pain came with them.

The surroundings were different from Professor Yoon’s lab that he remembered. He was a little younger. The space around him was also unfamiliar. Alien. The face of the researcher he saw for the first time was blurry. His stomach began to churn as if he were peeking into someone else’s memories.

<Gun-young-ah.>

She called him.

“Gun-young-ah.”

Turning around at the sound, Yoon Tae-ha was standing in front of him. Her eyebrows were furrowed with worry. A white and elegant nape was visible between her shirt.

“Are you okay? You don’t look well.”

Cheon Geon-young pulled the worried esper’s hand and held it. Tightly, so that not a single breeze could pass through. He could feel each other’s body temperature through their touching skin.

Wandering through the dizzying memories, he lowered his head like a scolded child.

“Should we go to the hospital? No, this is a hospital, but...”

Yoon Tae-ha was very flustered to see his head droop powerlessly. She was sensitive to temperature. And Cheon Geon-young’s hands had always given a pleasant coolness. But now, they were only hot. It didn’t feel like a good sign.

“Let’s go back if you’re sick. I’ll say hello to Jun-tae. You don’t need to come in.”

He grabbed her hand as she tried to let go and turn back. So she couldn’t even take a full step. Rather, due to the reaction of trying to break free, the two of them became even closer.

Yoon Tae-ha consciously suppressed her senses. But perhaps because her health was improving, the faint scent of fabric softener bothered her. His natural scent, from not drinking or smoking due to his mission, was excessively pleasant.

Fabric softener when someone is sick? Scolding herself, she awkwardly tilted her head and examined the man’s condition.

“What can I do for you? Should I teleport us out right away? I’ll do whatever you want.”

No sooner had the words left her lips than his forehead touched her shoulder. The effort to focus as much as possible on the guide’s condition collapsed again. Like a fool, she let out a single sound.

“Ah.”

A large and solid body was leaning on her. His usually straight back was bent. The hair touching her shoulder tickled her. Even though he wasn’t hugging her waist with both arms, her body stiffened with tension.

Her heart pounded with a feeling she couldn’t tell if it was fear or nervousness. It felt like she was embracing an injured animal.

“Just a moment.”

His voice was hoarse. He gripped her caught hand tightly, to the point of pain. Any words seemed like they would be a hindrance to him right now.

She had to find a way.

Her gaze on the blue sky behind the man, she bit her lip. And with a resolute expression, she raised her free hand.

Feeling her mouth dry from nervousness, she placed her hand somewhere between his back and waist. Not being able to see made the tension double. She could feel his firm, well-built muscular back.

She slowly patted Cheon Geon-young’s back. Ready to stop at any moment if he found it unpleasant. But the man leaned in even deeper. As if saying there was no need to stop.

They ended up in a half-embracing position.

It was fortunate that they were by the window. She was certain that her face was now red, and the only ones who could see it were the pure white clouds.

Stare all you want.

She glared aggressively at the clouds watching them. The cloud that had been floating directly in front of them drifted sideways as if frightened.

A little while later, when the back of Yoon Tae-ha’s head began to feel prickly from other people’s gazes, Cheon Geon-young said in a weak voice,

“I’m not nauseous.”

Aware of the patting that had become faster than before, she suddenly slowed down. If she had slowed down like this on a highway, she would have received an enthusiastic barrage of honks from the cars behind.

“Because I’m worried...”

“I stayed still because it seemed like you were.”

“Are you okay now?”

Yoon Tae-ha asked, naturally pulling away. Cheon Geon-young, his front hair slightly pressed down like a cat that had just woken up, was looking down at her with a much better complexion. His expression was also dazed.

He slowly let go of her hand. Yoon Tae-ha naturally brushed his bangs with the fingers that wore the ring. Cheon Geon-young obediently entrusted himself to her. Seeing him even close his eyes, Yoon Tae-ha was filled with a strange feeling.

Why are you closing your eyes?

Knowing what kind of person he was. He must have done a lot of rough and unpleasant work. And yet, he so easily let her touch his bangs and closed his eyes. Shouldn’t he not be doing this? Could it be that even this is included in his calculations? Is this a tactic to lower her guard?

Thinking such thoughts, her mood suddenly soured. Even messing up a few strands of his bangs didn’t relieve her feelings.