[Hello. Welcome to Korea. I’m Han Raon, Team Guide Leader of the Guide Special Team.]Raon began by greeting Mikhail with clean, precise British English.In this world, the aftermath of Gates had caused science and technology to advance far beyond what it once was. You could now cross to the other side of the planet in just a few hours, and with feather-light translators, people from all over the world could converse effortlessly. But Raon didn’t use a translator on purpose—he didn’t want to be underestimated. Mikhail, surprised, narrowed his bright blue eyes.[Where is Esper Seo Dojin?]Mikhail, also choosing not to use a translator, asked bluntly as he turned his head. Raon had reached out to shake his hand, but now he let it drop with a tight smile.[Esper Seo Dojin was injured at the recent Violet Gate and couldn’t attend. I’ll be °• N 𝑜 v 𝑒 l i g h t •° guiding you through the Center.][Tch. I actually got along with that one.]The way he said it made it sound like he already found Raon unsatisfactory. Raon felt it clearly, but simply smiled.Mikhail Hamilton was the archetype of an English noble. Flawless platinum hair, icy blue eyes, and a perfectly tailored three-piece suit—every detail was exact. No hat or cane, but just hearing that stiff accent would make anyone guess his nationality right away.In places still steeped in white supremacy, the new class system had shifted: now it was high-ranking Esper supremacy. Mikhail was exactly that kind of Esper—he worshipped power and looked down on Guides as vulgar.[Unlike your country, S-rank Guides aren’t particularly rare here. So if you thought I’d consider you something special, I’m afraid you’ve made a very poor assumption.]He continued to speak down to Raon without flinching.It was true—the European Union had more S-rank Guides than Korea. Larger territory, larger population, more talent. Of course, they also had to handle a far greater number of Gates.But the EU’s land was less densely populated, and so the frequency of Gate occurrences was relatively low. Korea, with its small territory and extreme population density, had a disproportionately high number of Gates—and with them, valuable byproducts. That’s why, historically, Espers from abroad were often dispatched to Korea under the pretext of “support.”This time, the intent was a little different—but if an irregular Gate occurred during their stay, they’d try to go in regardless of their stated reason for being here. That was exactly why Raon had told Yunchae not to worry about Dojin’s absence.“Stop it, Mikhail.”[…]!A calm voice came from behind Mikhail. Unlike Mikhail, who insisted on his native tongue, the newcomer spoke in a polite tone through a translator.“Hello, Team Leader Han Raon. I’m Jamie Windsor, A-rank healer Esper dispatched from the Union.”A slim man smiled as he extended his hand. Raon took it without hesitation, immediately feeling a sense of warmth.“Pleased to meet you, Mr. Windsor.”“Please, no need for that. Just call me Jamie. Or Jay, if you like.”Unlike Mikhail, Jamie was friendly and warm. His red hair, more orange than crimson, marked him as a classic ginger. He wasn’t dressed in a suit, but in something more casual and approachable—he looked every bit the kind person he seemed.[Jay’s too nice, honestly.]“Mikhail, enough. Turn your translator on.”[Tch.]He snorted, clearly irritated, but still turned the translator on. Despite that, the two of them didn’t seem to dislike each other.Even before Raon rewound time, they’d been like this. The only reason Mikhail didn’t cause problems from the start last time was because he’d taken a liking to Dojin.“Well then, this way…”Feeling somewhat relieved by Jamie’s intervention, Raon began to lead them toward the Center. That’s when Mikhail belatedly held out his hand to Raon. Caught off guard, Raon stared blankly at it.“What, you shook Jay’s hand but don’t want to shake mine?”“No, that’s not it.”After outright refusing before, what is this now.Raon clicked his tongue inwardly and reluctantly took Mikhail’s hand. He intended to just give the bare minimum of a handshake and let go immediately.“—Ngh!”But the moment their hands touched, he felt it: a surge of forceful pressure, and his guiding energy being pulled out against his will.Reverse guiding. A technique where a high-ranking Esper forcibly absorbs a Guide’s energy, typically used to assert dominance or dismiss a Guide’s authority. In Korea, it was considered assault—and legally punishable under the Guide Rights Law.“I was told you were the only S-rank Guide here, so I had some expectations… guess that was misplaced.”Mikhail muttered coldly as he let go, watching with indifference as Raon stiffened in shock, unable to resist the forced energy drain. But he didn’t get to finish that sentence.“Kh—!”In an instant, an intense killing intent slammed into him. Mikhail reflexively cut off the gravity around his body. Since gravity heavily affected Esper powers, he sometimes used this technique to block attacks from other Espers.What the hell just happened just now?Even in that split second, Mikhail had genuinely felt his life in danger. His blood was still boiling from it.He immediately realized who it had come from—the Esper standing like a shadow behind Raon. That burning black stare was locked directly on him.“Mikhail!”“Siwoo!”Jamie and Raon shouted at the same time. Jamie scolded Mikhail for being rude, while Raon rushed to stop Siwoo from killing him.In Korea, it might’ve passed—but injuring a foreign S-rank Esper could never end cleanly. It would blow up into an international incident. Raon had to stop him.“Siwoo, stop. I’m fine, okay?”“….”Siwoo was still breathing heavily, glaring at Mikhail. Reverse guiding was indeed offensive, but it wasn’t like Mikhail had done it severely—just enough to win a dominance contest at first contact.Still, Raon was deeply annoyed. Dojin had always been the protagonist he hated most—but Mikhail was a close second. Before the rewind, the world had been in such chaos that he’d never gotten too entangled with Mikhail. But now, it was infuriating.“Mikhail! Apologize to Team Leader Han Raon immediately!”“Why should I…”“Now!”Jamie’s voice was uncharacteristically sharp.Come to think of it, Jamie was a white Esper too, but he’d always treated Guides with kindness. Raon recalled that he’d gotten along well with Dasom, who used to be a Guide.“Tch. I apologize.”“Seriously…”Jamie pinched the bridge of his nose, like he was dealing with a toddler. It was exhausting.“I truly apologize on his behalf, Team Leader Han. As a representative of the Union, I offer you a formal apology for Mikhail’s misconduct.”“It’s alright. You don’t need to apologize, Esper Windsor.”Raon genuinely pitied Jamie. The decent ones were always the ones who had to suffer for the assholes. Raon clicked his tongue and gave Mikhail a sharp look.“I really don’t get it. Why would an Esper like you follow the orders of a mere Guide?”Mikhail’s attention was still fixed entirely on Siwoo. He asked the question with a mixture of suspicion and disbelief.As someone who believed in Esper supremacy, Mikhail couldn’t understand why Siwoo, a fellow S-rank Esper, would be part of a team led by a Guide—taking orders from Raon. Even though they were both S-class, in that brief moment, Mikhail had already sensed a massive gap in power between them.The higher an Esper’s rank, the faster they could assess the threat level of others. If it hadn’t been for his unique gravity ability, Mikhail would already be dead. That cold edge in his blood—he hadn’t felt it since awakening as an S-rank. The memory of it made him swallow hard.“If you’re ever rude to him again, I’ll smash your fucking skull.”“…!”Siwoo didn’t even bother responding to Mikhail’s bullshit. He just growled the threat with unmistakable venom. Raon’s eyes widened—he’d never heard Siwoo speak like that before.Wait, he talks like that?Raon gave Siwoo a once-over, newly surprised. Even as his Guide, he could feel the raw aggression still radiating from Siwoo’s body.Mikhail wasn’t just any Esper—his powers were rare, and even among S-class, he ranked high. Compared globally, he stood out. Only someone like Dojin might have matched him within Korea.And yet, Siwoo had just crushed him in an instant and even threatened him openly.Unbeknownst to Raon, Siwoo had grown far more dangerous.His contamination level is just barely past 70%, and he’s already like this… how strong will he get once it rises more?Because Siwoo had been suppressing his contamination for so long with medication, he suffered from severe side effects. No matter how intense the guiding, his level rose slower than most Espers. But once it increased further, so would his abilities—by a wide margin.Raon, who usually just found Siwoo cute when he played docile, felt something unfamiliar stir in his chest. On one hand, it was reassuring to have someone this powerful as his bodyguard. But on the other… something about Siwoo becoming more and more like a monster made him uneasy.

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