Chapter 2

　　What did he want me to do three times a day? The Vice Director was even more shameless and unreasonable than I remembered. I struggled to maintain my composure and replied curtly.

　　"Forcing guiding like that is illegal, isn’t it?"

　　As the document stated, my pairing with Yoon Geonwoo was strictly "temporary." A temporary pair guide was only permitted to perform guiding up to oral contact. The level of guiding the Vice Director was demanding of me was, strictly speaking, illegal. Got that, you rotten egg?

　　"Why? Because you’re not an official pair yet?" he purred.

　　"Yes, that’s part of it. Both esper Yoon Geonwoo and I are still trainees affiliated with the school." I emphasized my student status to the scoundrel, no, the Vice Director, once more. I wanted nothing more than to curse him out to his slimey face, but I managed to restrain myself with superhuman patience. Seeing my expression twist, he offered a fake smile.

　　"Isn’t it a bit early to worry about that? As you know, So Geumi, esper Yoon Geonwoo is quite picky when it comes to choosing a partner."

　　Right. What a shitty way of saying, "Don’t count your chickens before they hatch." I hated to admit it, but I couldn’t argue. In the past, when the SAA had forced our temporary pairing, he had terminated it without ever letting me touch a single hair on his head.

　　"So… are you saying I don’t have to guide him during the temporary period?" I asked, a sliver of hope in my voice.

　　"Of course not. Just stay close and keep esper Yoon Geonwoo happy. And if he says he wants to… do it with you, well, you know what to do."

　　Wow, what a choice of words. Every word out of his mouth left a foul impression. It felt like looking at a drain clogged with hair or a sink full of bloated, soggy noodles. In short, everything that came out of his mouth was garbage.

　　He must have thought this was his golden opportunity, now that a pushover like me, already on a leash, happened to have a high match rate with someone like Yoon Geonwoo. From the perspective of Central or the SAA, they couldn’t just let a precious S-Class esper like him sit idle, unable to use his powers. In other words, their fucked-up logic was that the condition of a common B-Class guide like me didn’t matter, as long as they could appease the S-Class esper Yoon Geonwoo.

　　"You’re talking about temporary pair guiding, right?" I pressed.

　　"…You won’t have to worry during the temporary period, so by then, it will probably be official pair guiding. Esper Yoon Geonwoo is currently under orders to restrain his ability use."

　　The "official" pairing for temporary pairs was only established after they became adults. He was implying that by then, there would be no legal issue whether Yoon Geonwoo and I engaged in the intense, repeated guiding he suggested or anything else.

　　Hilarious. Does he think I’m an idiot?

　　But his tacked-on comment was nothing but a sweet lie. The only reason Yoon Geonwoo was under orders to restrain his ability was because his repeated refusal of being guided had pushed his toxin levels into the danger zone. They were afraid he would rampage. It was obvious that if I, or anyone else, succeeded in guiding him, the SAA would lift the order and dispatch him on high-level missions that required him to unleash his powers, without a single thought for the guide who would be overworked to death.

　　Wait, a rampage?

　　As I was mentally tearing the Vice Director and the SAA to shreds, a thought struck me. What if the esper who rampaged on graduation day was Yoon Geonwoo?

　　The blue-eyed esper.

　　A piercing, searing blue, like oxidized flame. It was the eye color of Yoon Geonwoo, an S-Class esper who primarily used fire-based abilities. It was also the last gaze I had met at the graduation ceremony.

　　What was his condition that day?

　　Of course, an esper of Yoon Geonwoo’s caliber was carefully managed by not just the SAA but also Central, so the risk of a major incident was low. But perhaps graduation day, the day of that massive explosion, was the day Yoon Geonwoo, who had constantly refused guiding, finally snapped. I had been in a state of panic myself, so I couldn’t be sure of anything.

　　I have to find the esper who will rampage before graduation.

　　Considering the scale of the accident, it had to be an A-Class esper or higher. To avoid repeating my death, I had only two options: find the A-Class or higher esper who would cause the future rampage, or guide every single high-risk esper.

　　How am I supposed to check on every A-Class or higher in the entire school by myself?

　　Forget not having enough power; I’d probably be drained of all my energy and die of natural causes. But I couldn’t just sit back and do nothing, knowing the danger that was coming.

　　"I’ll… I’ll give it a try," I said, my voice firm. I shed my previous helplessness and resolved to successfully become Yoon Geonwoo’s temporary paired guide this time. Right now, the most likely suspect was the guide-hating S-Class esper, Yoon Geonwoo.

　　"Good, that’s a wise decision. Now, if you’ll just sign your consent here…"

　　"On one condition," I interrupted.

　　Even if it was a bit extreme, the beginning had to be different from before. This might be the worst-case scenario for Yoon Geonwoo, but for now, it was the best I could do.

　　"Make me his roommate. With my… temporary pair esper."

* * *

　　Clutching my hastily packed luggage, I stood pacing in front of Room 714 in the Blue Wing for over half an hour. And where was Room 714? Where else? It was the room of Yoon Geonwoo, the guy who used a two-person suite like his own private bachelor pad.

　　I had gotten permission to become his roommate through the Vice Director’s authority, but hesitating at the door was unavoidable. To put it bluntly, this was no different from breaking and entering. My sudden appearance, completely disregarding his wishes, would surely make me feel like an unwelcome intruder to him.

　　Well, whatever Yoon Geonwoo thought, the first piece of my plan was in place.

　　"Haah… What the hell am I doing?" I muttered, pressing my fingers to my throbbing temples. My temporary pair in my past life used to do this for me, calling it a folk remedy. I never knew if it actually worked, but it felt like it did, and after a few times, it had become an unconscious habit.

　　Ah, now that I think about it, he was an A-Class esper too.

　　This time, I was focused on becoming Yoon Geonwoo’s temporary pair, so it was unlikely I’d build a relationship with that guy from before. Our connection had only formed after my temporary pairing with Geonwoo fell apart. We had gotten along pretty well, so it was a little disappointing, but survival came first. I could think about it later, once Geonwoo’s condition stabilized. For now, I had to focus on the task at hand.

　　"He wouldn’t actually hit me, would he?"

　　No matter how fiery his temper, I’d never heard of him hitting a guide. Or had I? Maybe I just hadn’t been paying attention. Yoon Geonwoo himself was so walled off from guides that there was little information about him beyond the official records.

　　Knock, knock, knock.

　　I took a shallow breath and knocked cautiously on the door of Room 714. My clenched fist was slick with nervous sweat. What should I say when I met him? Should I greet him first?

　　"Hi, Yoon Geonwoo. My name is…" No, that’s not it. With his personality, he’d probably slam the door in my face the moment I said, "Hi, Yoon Geonwoo."

　　I rehearsed my introduction over and over in my head, but the door remained stubbornly shut.

　　Maybe he’s not here because of the break?

　　It was true that most students had left the dorms for the short, ten-day winter break. Except for people like me with nowhere else to go, it was plausible that Geonwoo wasn’t here either.

　　Should I just let myself in?

　　A strong urge to return to my old room washed over me, but I knew if I left now, I’d never want to come back. To catch a tiger, you have to enter the tiger’s den.

　　I pulled out the spare key to Room 714 that I’d gotten through the Vice Director’s influence. It wasn’t so much a key as a spherical multi-recognition device. You had to register your fingerprint and eye scan to the sphere to gain entry, so the security was tight. Of course, since I was now one of the residents of Room 714, it wouldn’t be a problem.

　　As the key was recognized, I heard the sound of the warm-textured wooden lock turning. The dormitory hallway was silent, and there was still no sign of anyone inside the room. I tried to shake off my pointless anxiety and opened the door.

　　"Anyone home…?"

　　The sun had already set, but the room I cautiously stepped into was shrouded in darkness, thanks to heavy blackout curtains. The visibility was so poor I considered turning on a light.

　　And that’s when it hit me.

　　"Ah!"

　　An intense energy, so powerful it made my skin crawl, washed over me.

* * *