“How am I supposed to read if you keep staring at me like that?”

“I was looking carefully.”

“If you’re careful twice, you’ll pierce right through my face.”

He plopped down onto the bed. His scent, mixed with the now fainter soap fragrance, lingered in the air. Untidy strands of hair fell across his handsome forehead. Watching him, Yoon Tae-ha recited the ten commandments for espers, implanted by the Center, in her mind.

Our freedom begins with respecting the freedom of others. Our demands can feel like coercion, so unless a threat to life is involved…

She was reciting flawlessly when the man lying next to her reached out and half-embraced her, breaking her concentration.

“Close your eyes and let’s sleep.”

Yoon Tae-ha closed her eyes, resenting the uselessness of the ten commandments. The rustling of the blanket was loud.

*

It was dawn when Choi Bo-mi’s group finally arrived. They were later than expected, and she understood why when she saw the chimera they had captured. The six-legged insect-type chimera was foaming at the mouth.

Choi Bo-mi was carrying the cage. Shim Gyu-jong had sustained a minor injury. He reassured those waiting, saying he had only been slightly scratched by an antenna.

“Gyu-jong, can you get some treatment in your car?”

With those words, Choi Bo-mi disappeared behind the car, saying she would give the chimera a sedative. As she suggested, they put Shim Gyu-jong in their car first. Shim Gyu-jong, his face tired, murmured,

“I barely managed to bring him back, he kept saying he was going to chase after them and kill them all.”

Yoon Tae-ha could easily imagine Choi Bo-mi’s reaction. She took out a bottle of cool water and handed it to him, sitting across from him.

“Oppa, your body isn’t just yours.”

Yoon Tae-ha examined the wound with a serious expression. As the person himself had said, the injury wasn’t deep. He hadn’t been poisoned either. But it would leave a scar. She, who could deeply understand Choi Bo-mi’s distress, also frowned.

Cheon Geon-young took out a first-aid kit. While he and Shim Gyu-jong discussed how to attack the chimera, Yoon Tae-ha finished the treatment. Just as she came out of the bathroom after washing her hands, her eyes met Shim Gyu-jong’s. He looked embarrassed, as if he owed her a favor.

“You’re not going straight to the car, are you? Leave unnie alone for a bit. When she’s blaming herself, seeing a guide’s face makes her even more upset.”

Shim Gyu-jong, with a gloomy expression, traced the bandage with his fingertips.

“Would that be alright?”

Yoon Tae-ha, feigning ignorance, told them to have an in-depth conversation between guides and got out of the car.

The forest at dawn was filled with the clear sound of birdsong. Yoon Tae-ha teleported around, lightly scouting the area.

She spent a reasonable amount of time chasing away a few monsters trying to approach the hideout using her physicality. Then, she returned to the hideout and knocked on the car door where Choi Bo-mi was inside.

The door opened silently. Entering the car, she found Choi Bo-mi sitting blankly on the sofa. Choi Bo-mi’s shoulders slumped as if all the energy had drained from her body.

“I knew you’d come.”

A deep sense of defeat was etched on Choi Bo-mi’s face. Yoon Tae-ha sat next to her without a word.

“Rest for a bit, then go back to the second camp. If you deliver the chimera fresh from the source, the researchers there will be happy. We’ll sweep through the canyon. Reduce the number of chimeras around there a bit too.”

“Tae-ha.”

“What?”

“If I had been a little stronger, would he not have gotten hurt?”

The emotional trajectory an esper goes through when their guide is injured is always the same. Once the anger towards the perpetrator shakes their body, they then blame their own inadequacy. Choi Bo-mi was no exception.

“We agreed not to say things like that. Even if others say it, we shouldn’t think that way. You told me to think that every time self-blame breaks your spirit, it shortens your lifespan by a month.”

Choi Bo-mi chuckled, her body trembling, at Yoon Tae-ha’s comforting words, which felt like a solemn declaration.

“You remembered? I thought you had forgotten.”

At those words, Yoon Tae-ha gritted her teeth and replied,

“I’m trying not to forget. I lose six times a week, and win once.”

“You used to lose nine times a week.”

“I was pathetic, wasn’t I?”

Choi Bo-mi shook her head. Yoon Tae-ha stayed by her side until the other woman regained her strength. Choi Bo-mi rested her head on her lap and closed her eyes.

What if Cheon Geon-young had been hurt? Could I have acted calmly in that situation?

In the quiet car, Yoon Tae-ha’s imagination wandered.

If Professor Yoon’s people were to discover Cheon Geon-young’s constitution, they would try to possess his body. Just like they did with her, they might put him in extreme situations and observe his reactions.

She knew by heart a few of the codenames of the children who existed only on paper. Children who had undergone similar experiments and whose current whereabouts were unknown. Perhaps, in some secret laboratory, one of them had awakened as a perfect psychic. Though the most likely scenario was disposal due to a rampage.

She had survived because she was a failure. But Cheon Geon-young was different. Many would want to study an already perfected body. There was no guarantee that he would be unharmed after the experiments.

More than anything, there was a high possibility that Arc would create a woman with the same constitution and try to pair them. A flawless psychic couple born from the Ark – it was hard to imagine how much the media would love that. They would be treated as a new human race.

A chilling hypothetical scenario materialized and flashed before her eyes. In that scenario, she, who could go berserk at any moment, was just a dangerous element.

Those people might take him away.

Even now, just seeing him talk to someone else made her feel uneasy. She smiled brightly, trying not to deviate from her self-imposed standards.

I don’t want to lose him.

This overwhelming feeling, far from fading, grew stronger with time.

*

The two returned to the camp with the captured chimera. Weapons, food supplies, and spare field uniforms were left behind for those who would remain.

Looking at the heavy boxes piled on the floor, Yoon Tae-ha said enthusiastically,

“We even got new magazines?”

“Looks like we’ll be busy this afternoon.”

“Yeah.”

With her last words, the two began to move busily. Just organizing the supplies and planning the reconnaissance routes for the future took up the entire afternoon.

After finishing the organization, they sat together at the living room table and spread out a crisp map.

Yoon Tae-ha made a small mark on a point Cheon Geon-young had indicated. It was known to be the base of the Vice Chairman’s espers. Around the mark, the name ‘Red Canyon’ was written in large letters.

“Many people live around this canyon. From foreigners who haven’t adapted yet to non-registered guild forces with some notoriety in the underworld. There’s also a global black market and an auction house that only the wealthy frequent. It’s illegal, of course. But everyone turns a blind eye.”

“Have you been there? To the auction house or the black market here?”

At Cheon Geon-young’s question, she, who had lowered her head to look at the map, calmly met his eyes. Her loosely braided black hair flowed softly down her shoulder.

“Of course. Coming all the way to the Green Sea and not going to the canyon’s black market would be a waste of a lifetime. Everyone visits at least once. They just turn a blind eye to each other. If you want to continue working in the rifts after your mandatory service, it’s good to go. It’s best to go when you’re partnered with me.”

“Do you know anyone there?”

“Quite a few.”

Having finished her explanation, Yoon Tae-ha focused on the map again. Cheon Geon-young watched her slender fingertips moving busily.

His gaze traveled from Yoon Tae-ha’s fingertips to her wrist. She, who liked to wear thin shirts as outerwear, was dressed that way again today. Soon, his eyes moved up her arm to her hair, which looked easy to tousle, and then to her focused face. Watching her, Cheon Geon-young fell into thought.

A partner with a limited time. He didn’t want Yoon Tae-ha to be in that position anymore. He hated that she talked about time and contracts, imagining the end.

The woman who had changed from a school uniform to a neat suit hadn’t given a definite answer even for the near future of ‘next summer’. Despite it being a much closer future than the end of her mandatory service period.

Was she perhaps planning to change guides in the meantime? Was that why she was delaying?

Yoon Tae-ha with someone other than him as her guide. Yoon Tae-ha holding hands with someone. Yoon Tae-ha whispering thanks to him. Ending with the image of Yoon Tae-ha looking up at the other person with wet eyes, Cheon Geon-young came to a conclusion.

That should not happen. It was an emotion that preceded logic. But it was clearer than anything. Yoon Tae-ha, the woman before him, was his esper. The one he had chosen because he wanted to. That would not change in the future either.

“Are you planning to keep working here?”

She raised her head. A questioning light flickered in her eyes.

“Suddenly?”

“Espers should have a choice too.”

“I could leave and work somewhere else right now if I wanted to. I’ve already met my quota. I don’t owe Arc anything.”

“Do you have any intention of leaving?”

“Is this a job offer? The hiring conditions are quite strict.”

Picking up her empty water cup, she got up and headed to the refrigerator. He saw through her unique way of deflecting the conversation.

Answering a question she didn’t want to answer with another question. And performing an action to divert attention. Then, bringing up a new topic. Yoon Tae-ha filled her cup with cold water and returned to the desk. He waited for her next words.

“Recently, unregistered guilds simultaneously cleared several dungeons. The minerals and weapons that came out of there will probably be registered at the canyon’s auction house. It’s good for window shopping.”

Cheon Geon-young’s prediction was correct. It was a topic she didn’t want to talk about. This too. His esper disliked many things. She didn’t like promising next summer, and she didn’t like answering whether she had any intention of leaving the company. The more she did that, the more he wanted to find out.

It felt like a painful moment was hidden at the end of the things she disliked.

Cheon Geon-young grasped Yoon Tae-ha’s wrist, which was resting on the cup. And gently pulled her towards him. With a small gasp, her sweet-smelling body fell onto his.

Cheon Geon-young softly swallowed the lips that were about to ask what he was doing. Yoon Tae-ha, who had braced herself against the wall with one hand, staggered and collapsed. Soon, with his arm around her waist, he sat her on his lap.

A sound indicating her displeasure with the position escaped from her slightly parted lips. He blocked them again. He immediately ran his hand up her back and kissed her.

To maintain her balance, Yoon Tae-ha wrapped one arm around his neck. Feeling the tightness deep within her body, she intertwined her tongue with his. He consciously gave a short burst of guiding. At that moment, Yoon Tae-ha stiffened like someone who had felt static electricity. Pushing his chest urgently, she said,

“Don’t do that.”

The tips of their noses barely brushed. Even that was tempting, so Cheon Geon-young frowned lightly.

“We were doing quite a lot just now. What exactly shouldn’t I do?”