Ha... it's not like I want to do the guiding either.
The ones who benefited from receiving guiding were the espers, not him. He was only doing it out of a sense of duty as a guide.
Still, if he had to name one upside, it was that the more guiding the espers received, the gentler their attitudes became. No matter how ferocious an esper was, it was hard to treat the guide who guided them carelessly. Why else would they fawn over a guide with a high matching rate as if they'd give up their own liver and gallbladder for them, even going so far as to imprint?
Never having met an esper with a high matching rate, Eugene couldn't know what it felt like to be bonded with an esper down to the soul. But espers who received quality guiding tended to transform in an instant from uncontrolled colts into docile lambs. That was precisely the reason he was so proactive about guiding the espers of Alpha-1 Team.
"Pull anything funny and you're dead."
"Sure, whatever."
Answering listlessly, Eugene abruptly grabbed Kang Tae-jun's hand. At that, Kang Tae-jun's bear-like frame gave a small shudder.
Now it feels like I'm the one molesting him. Eugene clicked his tongue and set the guiding energy in motion. He scanned Kang Tae-jun's wavelength quickly.
Every last one of them is in terrible shape.
At least Kang Tae-jun's wavelength was less finicky than Baek Do-hoon's, so the guiding went smoothly. He'd worried because of the low matching rate, but sure enough, for an S-rank guide, matching rates didn't seem to hold much meaning.
Come to think of it, there was no concept of matching rates in that other world.
There'd been something like compatibility — determined by the priests who managed the awakeners — that stood in for the matching rate in the novel. Being a fantasy world, it seemed unlikely they'd have given exact numbers. Eugene drifted into idle thoughts for a moment.
"Hey, hey! Wait!"
"Huh?"
Just then, Kang Tae-jun shouted, his face beet-red. Eugene looked at him, puzzled.
What's the matter now?
He glared with a furrowed brow, but there was something off about Kang Tae-jun. Eugene quietly observed his state.
Occasionally, sensitive espers had a hard time while receiving guiding. If the wavelengths didn't align or the matching rate was excessively low, the guiding became not a healing act but the opposite — a factor that harmed the body.
But there was no way his guiding, as an S-rank guide, could be that mismatched. A little wounded in his pride, Eugene frowned and stared at Kang Tae-jun, who was biting his lip.
But his state seems a bit...
It looked suspicious to call this suffering from mismatched guiding. If he were feeling pain, the first thing he'd have done was fling off Eugene's hand — but that wasn't it. The way his large body squirmed like a puppy needing to relieve itself looked exactly like...
"Are you turned on?"
"Shut up!"
At the blunt question, Kang Tae-jun cried out, aghast. Watching his flustered face, Eugene snickered.
"Hey, an esper can be, that's fine."
"I said shut up!"
Espers who got aroused during guiding weren't rare. It was espers like Baek Do-hoon, who stayed still during guiding, who were actually the uncommon ones. Most couldn't control their bodies once they grew sensitive from the stimulation.
So even when he made it clear that guiding went only as far as hand-holding, there were espers who lunged at him in extreme arousal. In the other world there'd been plenty of watchers, so they couldn't lay a single fingertip on his body, but still.
For a moment he'd worried Kang Tae-jun might lose it too, but fortunately there was no sign of that. If anything, he was huffing and puffing, enraged at Eugene's words. The emotional agitation seemed to have thrown a proper bucket of cold water over his physical arousal.
"Just bear with it a little longer. I still need to bring the numbers down."
Speaking coolly, Eugene peered at the watch screen. The numbers hadn't dropped to a satisfactory level yet. Ignoring Kang Tae-jun's words, Eugene gripped his hand tightly.
"Ah, let go already!"
"Ugh!"
Then, seemingly unable to take it anymore, Kang Tae-jun swung his arm hard. It wasn't a strong force, but the shoulder Baek Do-hoon had grabbed throbbed, and a pained groan slipped out of Eugene before he knew it. At that, Kang Tae-jun flinched, startled.
"Wh-what? Are you hurt?"
"No, it's not because of you, so don't overreact."
Speaking evenly, Eugene grabbed his shoulder with his other hand. It seemed like it shouldn't take any more of a shock.
Ugh, this is too disgusting to keep doing.
He'd meant to knock the numbers down as much as he could while he was at it, since he was guiding anyway. But now he didn't have the energy left to coax and soothe either.
"Let's call it here for today. If your numbers are dangerous, just set up another appointment next time."
"Hey..."
"I'm off."
On top of that, guiding two S-rank espers in a single day seemed to have taken a considerable toll on him without his noticing — his body felt drained and heavy. Giving a careless wave of his hand, Eugene rose from his seat.
"Whew..."
How much more suffering do I have ahead of me? Eugene Langford's karma was truly enormous and utterly exhausting.
After telling Ha-young he was leaving for the day, Eugene returned to the dormitory room where he'd first opened his eyes. His whole body felt weighed down by a thousand tons.
"Come to think of it, I haven't eaten a single meal today..."
He'd been in such a frazzled state that he'd gone about the day forgetting even to eat. Eugene rubbed a hand over the belly that let out a feeble grumble.
He thought about eating something before bed, but now that he was already in his room, even going all the way to the cafeteria felt like a bother. Shaking his head, Eugene washed up haphazardly and went into the bedroom.
"I need to change all this damn interior décor too..."
Glaring hatefully at the antique furniture that looked to be made of mahogany, Eugene muttered. To think he had to look at the very things he'd grown sick to death of in the other world here as well. Eugene heaved a heavy sigh before falling asleep.
Eugene slowly opened his eyes.
And there below him spread a blue field. He blinked for a moment at the familiar sight.
This is...
It was a familiar place. It was also scenery he'd looked upon for the past three years.
A place he'd come to whenever his chest felt tight. The one space where he could set his mind at ease. Gazing at the tranquil field swaying in the wind, his heart grew as calm as the meadow once again.
But why am I here...
Staring at the scenery for a while, Eugene soon felt puzzled and tilted his head.
This was the world of the novel he'd transmigrated into. A clearing within the imperial palace of the Fernando Empire. It was such a secretive space that only a handful of people knew he frequented it.
So why was he here? He'd definitely...
Gone back to my original world.
Eugene murmured briefly inwardly. He couldn't tell whether he was dreaming now, or whether he'd returned to this world once more.
Eugene.
Just then, a familiar voice called his name. Startled, Eugene turned his head.
But his surroundings were still nothing but the blue field, and there was no sign of another person. Eugene blinked blankly.
Eugene, where are you?
Ah...
At the gentle voice, his lips parted before he realized it. But he soon closed his mouth. Somehow, an instinctive feeling told him he mustn't answer that voice.
My Eugene.
...
It's all right, I'll come find you soon.
The affectionate voice brushed past the curve of his ear like the wind blowing over the meadow. It was unmistakably a soft, tender voice — so why did it make his skin crawl like this? Eugene gripped his faintly trembling arm tightly with his other hand.
I'm waiting for you.
Nngh...!
A wind gusted from somewhere. Eugene squeezed his eyes shut.
And when he opened them again, an entirely different space came into view.
"Hah...!"
Bolting upright in bed, Eugene breathed raggedly. His eyes swept dizzily over his surroundings. Where he was now was not the imperial palace of the Fernando Empire, but the real world he'd been living in.
"Right, I came back. I came back..."
Murmuring softly, Eugene wiped his sweat-soaked forehead with a hand.
After he'd transmigrated and ultimately arrived at an ending different from the original, Eugene had gradually begun to find living as "Eugene Langford" unbearable. The people he'd formed relationships with there knew him not as Kwon Eugene but as Eugene Langford. He'd grown more and more disillusioned with a life spent deceiving them.
So when he'd driven off the original's threat and the world found peace, Eugene had resolved to use his wish to return to his original world. He didn't regret that choice even now.
But why had he dreamed of being in that place? He couldn't even tell whether it was a simple dream or not. It was too vivid to call a mere dream — the feeling of being in that space, the familiar voice burrowing into his ears, all of it enough to raise goosebumps.
"Ha, no. It's all over. That place has nothing to do with me anymore."
The real Eugene Langford had surely already returned to the world of the original. The sharp-eyed attackers would notice that he and Eugene were different people, but there'd be nothing they could do. The world of the novel didn't even really exist, after all.
So he should feel relieved, but strangely, Eugene kept getting an uneasy feeling. He couldn't understand why he was like this himself. It was nothing more than a simple dream, wasn't it?
It was probably because he still hadn't adjusted to this world and everything felt strange. Thinking so, Eugene raised himself to get out of bed.
Ding!
"Huh?"
Just then, something popped up abruptly before Eugene's eyes.
Belatedly, he realized it was the system window he'd seen sickeningly often over the past three years.
SYSTEM
Main Quest triggered!
SYSTEM
A grave danger is approaching this world! To confront that danger, let us guide your assigned espers and lower their contamination levels as much as possible!
SYSTEM
Current Assigned Espers
Baek Do-hoon (S): Contamination 85%
Kang Tae-jun (S): Contamination 78%
Min Jae-ha (S): Contamination 69%
Lee Si-yoon (S): Contamination 53%
Park Ro-woon (S): Contamination 42%
SYSTEM
Objective: Lower your assigned espers' contamination levels to 20% or below!
Success Reward: Chance to protect the world UP, next-stage quest
Upon Failure: World destruction
"..."
What is this now...
