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Seon Jae-chan wondered whether he should be satisfied or confused at the passionate appearance of his former rival. He approached the next emergency bed. There, among the tangled waves, stood one Esper using a cell phone. Unlike the other Espers with painful expressions, this one seemed to be in slightly better condition, so it seemed okay to obtain cooperation for the practical training.
“It will be uncomfortable, so don’t look at the Esper. Just look at the wavelength meter. How stable is it?”
“It’s 23.”
The apprentices responded quickly to the easy question.
“Yeah, 23… what?”
Seo Jae-chan looked back at the esper and the monitor of the measuring device. A middle-aged male esper with a slightly double chin and a shaved head close to being bald, his wave stability was in a very low state. It would be incredibly painful, yet he appeared so composed.
I think he’s playing a game?”
At that moment, intern Song Se-in observed the swift movement of both thumbs of the esper attentively and whispered. Also, there were faint sound effects of a ‘pop.’
The Esper playing the game might have had a quite high rank, as he easily heard their voices and responded.
“Playing games gives me a dopamine rush, and I feel less pain. It’s almost as effective as narcotic painkillers.”
“…Is that so.”
Seon Jae-chan nodded thoughtfully. The pain that the Esper felt couldn’t be that simple. It seemed like that person was a unique case. Jae-chan pulled out a chart from under the emergency bed, distancing himself from the game-addicted Esper.
“Look at the chart. What’s written on it?”
Following Seo Jae-chan’s instruction, the interns cautiously unfolded the binder file. Four heads leaned in together.
Nam Hae-sol was the first to respond.
“Age 49, Grade B, Esper Jeong Min-goo. The wave stability was 20 upon arrival… Ampoules weren’t attached per the Esper’s request. It’s been about 15 minutes since the pair Guide was requested. …Huh?”
She looked around at her fellow apprentices in bewilderment at what she had found on the chart.
Seeing the others also looking like they could only roll their eyes, Jae-chan took the chart himself. His eyebrow twitched when he saw the word in question.
“WTS. It’s Wavelength Touch Syndrome.”
Of all things, they were faced with a challenging case as their first Esper.
“Do you know about it?”
Seon Jae-chan looked back at the apprentices, but they still seemed clueless. He didn’t expect them to know. This was also a rare symptom that he had encountered after several years.
“It’s a symptom where the individual perceives wavelengths as if they were a tactile sensation. The pain intensifies whenever the wavelength becomes unstable. It’s a symptom that not only Espers but also Guides can experience.”
This time, not just Nam Hae-sol but the other interns as well took out their phones to start jotting down notes.
“In cases like this, no matter how good the ampoules are, there’s a limit. It’s difficult to untangle tangled wavelengths unless the Guide has a high matching rate or delicate control.”
Even the slightest stimulus strongly triggers the Esper’s sense of pain. While explaining, Seon Jae-chan examined the apprentices’ faces one by one.
“What would you do if you were the emergency guide in charge in this situation? When the person doesn’t have a game to help him?”
“…”
“…”
It was a moment of contemplative silence among the apprentices.
– Emergency situation incoming.
With a sudden announcement, the automatic door of the emergency center opened wide.
It might not have been a “Tempo Red,” but it was undoubtedly an urgent situation. The Guides of Team 9, the supplementary emergency center team for today, rushed out hurriedly. The transported Espers began to be moved to the emergency beds. A glimpse of anxiety could be seen.
In response to the abrupt situation, Seon Jae-chan merely raised an eyebrow. On the other hand, the apprentice’s faces were beaming with excitement. In this quiet emergency center, the thought of working like real Guides, not just fumbling with ampoules, made their eyes gleam.
“Get the ampoules and electrode pads ready.”
The senior’s firm voice echoed.
“Yes?”
“Move. We are not here to stand around when things get busy.”
Seon Jae-chan quickly unplugged the ampoule and rolled up the wires. Even then, the apprentices didn’t know how to move in a chaotic emergency situation. Jae-chan shot them an exasperated look.
“What are you doing? You don’t mean to tell me you’re staying? Are there any other apprentices here besides you?”
Only then did the frozen apprentices begin to move. Nam Hae-sol collected pens and filled her conquering pockets with pad boxes.
“Uh, I’ll carry it. -I’ll do it.”
She was so eager that the other Guides were left with nothing to do.
Seon Jae-chan looked at the apprentices for a while and then gave the rest a moderate amount of work. He instructed one to bring ampoules, and as he attempted to move toward the building connected to the lobby.
Jae-chan hesitated as he looked back at the group of people who had inadvertently entered the emergency guiding center again. Even from a distance, he found Go Woo-jin towering above others with his unruly hair.
In the next moment, he instinctively disappeared at a speed akin to a broadband network. He positioned himself tightly against the corner leading to the guiding room.
Seon Jae-chan had been avoiding Go Woo-jin for some time now. To be precise, since the year-end seminar three weeks ago.
Of course, if it had been a guiding request, he would have gone right away. Seon Jae-chan avoided Go Woo-jin only when they happened to cross paths, as they did now. The Guide Bureau and the Esper Bureau shared a lobby and were symmetrically connected, so they could meet if they wanted to.
He never expected that being caught by Woo-jin going upstairs with Han Tae-hoon would give him such an uncomfortable feeling.
‘But why did he come to the emergency guiding center?’
Just to be sure, he quickly checked his guiding app and official mailbox. From December up to now, for a whole month, there hadn’t been any guiding requests or requests for field support. It was due to the lack of incidents and accidents.
Could the disturbance in wavelengths be due to training?
It was the time when Jae-chan was distantly staring at the back of Go Woo-jin’s head while fiddling with his phone.
Thunk-thunk-clank-clank!
A loud noise echoed in the dry sky. It really sounded like that in Seon Jae-chan’s ears.
A large ampoule fell as Nam Hae-sol inadvertently overturned a disposable electrode pad box. Simultaneously, there was a squealing noise and a strange mechanical sound as the ampoule nearly broke. The red line on the spinning monitor screen accompanied it.
Naturally, the attention of everyone within the emergency center was drawn to the commotion. Although Seo Jae-chan had quickly hidden himself again, he couldn’t hide from the bewildered stares. The apprentices also watched in shock as Nam Hae-sol hastily got up from the floor, her mouth agape.
“S-Sorry, sorry… I’m sorry, Sunbae…!”
She repeatedly bowed her head towards the corner where Seon Jae-chan was hiding. Jae-chan almost felt like she was deliberately making him conspicuous. If Go Woo-jin happened to glance in this direction, he would see Nam Hae-sol bobbing her head continuously against the wall, looking rather odd.
“Sunbae-nim. Esper Go Woo-jin is coming this way.”
Song Se-in, who has a bit of wit, whispered in a low voice accompanied by an awkward cough. Seon Jae-chan’s heart skipped a beat.
“What? Why?”
“Well, I’m not sure. But he’s definitely coming.”
Se-in nervously fidgeted with his hands.
Even though Seo Jae-chan had hidden at the speed of light, it was a situation where Goh Woo-jin could potentially have seen him. Fortunately, the distance was considerable, and the chaotic noise might have obscured the sound.
“Hey, hey, that guy, no, Esper Go Woo-jin, check his wave stability.”
“What?”
“Us?”
The apprentices with widened eyes responded hesitantly. Frustrated by his urgency, Seo Jae-chan exclaimed:
“You just reviewed how to use the equipment earlier, you brats. Humbly inquire if emergency guiding is needed, and attach the electrode pads. Just make sure he can’t come over here.”
As he quickly poured out his words, Seo Jae-chan realized the true nature of his emotions toward avoiding Woo-jin.
It was embarrassment and fear.
He felt concerned about what Woo-jin might have thought while observing him heading up to the room with Han Tae-hoon.
“This is the first test given by your senior.”
Contrary to his self-deprecating realization, his voice became lower and faster.
“For apprentices with great merit, I will personally- Hey, hey. Hae-sol. Hae-sol?”
As his voice grew softer and more affectionate towards the end, it had already melted into the surroundings. While Nam Hae-sol struggled to set up the misbehaving ampoule like an ill-behaved child, her ears perked up, and she suddenly stood up.
Then, her face reddened and she rushed at Go Woo-jin like a car with broken brakes. She had seemed to have transformed into an extremely proactive individual, and now her desire to perform well seemed to accelerate even more than her shyness towards Esper Go Woo-jin.
Seon Jae-chan had hoped the other kids would stop Woo-jin, but he hadn’t actually wished for Nam Hae-sol and Go Woo-jin to meet so soon…
“Hello, Esper Go Woo-jin!”
Hae-sol’s voice faintly reached him, and Seon Jae-chan unknowingly stretched his head out from the corner. It was like a turtle, hiding inside its shell, suddenly being thrown into a pit and popping its head out in surprise.
And then he couldn’t help but watch.
He watched Woo-jin’s gaze when he first encountered Nam Hae-sol.
Others might not have noticed, but Seon Jae-chan could. It overlapped with a certain moment from the past. It was like a glimpse of a suddenly brightened world– Woo-jin’s eyes widened slightly as if he had fallen in love at first sight. He couldn’t take his gaze off the flustered Nam Hae-sol.
Inevitable fate.
In that moment, the phrase that all things would inevitably return to the right path passed through Seon Jae-chan’s mind.