Episode 4
A salty, cold wind was sweeping over her skin by the seaside.
Wee-woo, wee-woo
Screeeech
As the siren sound grew louder, a black motorbike pulled off a dangerous drift and roared onto the gravel.
Screeeeech
Thwack.
CRUNCH. BANG!
The criminals’ sedan was lifted about 100 meters into the air before crashing and exploding.
KABOOM!
The shattered car debris was lifted into the air again and broke into pieces like fireworks.
The B-rank Esper inside the car screamed behind his barrier.
“Sh*t… It’s Lee Changgyeol!”
“Run!”
K-KABOOM!
Immediately, the fight of one civil servant against five criminals began. With one kidnapping victim as the sole audience.
One A-rank Esper vs. three B-rank Espers and two B-rank Guides.
At first glance, the single civil servant in his mid-thirties might seem disadvantaged, but he was an A-rank name whose identity everyone knew even with his helmet on.
Lee Changgyeol, Title: ‘Enforcer of Ethics.’
South Korea’s A-rank Esper Ranking, 7th. Including the 8 S-rank Espers, he was ranked 15th among all Espers in South Korea.
“It’s… really Lee Changgyeol…”
The shoulders of the Esper whose back was to Yeongwon trembled.
‘Lee Changgyeol? I feel like I’ve heard that name… Ah!’
Yeongwon knew the name, too. A true veteran in the Veteran Chat room. He was the one who had pleaded with the anonymous chat participants to “go to Ilsan.”
As he took off his helmet and tidied his half-white hair, the five B-rank Awakened knew the ground they were standing on had become hell, and they despaired.
‘We’re screwed…’
‘We’re so screwed…’
Lee Changgyeol approached the five with a grim expression.
Stomp. Stomp.
There was no retreat.
“For our law-breaking citizens to…”
Thwack.
“at this important time…”
Snap.
“Ugh!”
“Attempting to traffic a Non-Selective is just unacceptable, isn’t it?”
Starting exactly five seconds after the civil servant took off his helmet, Yeongwon couldn’t stop a feeling of pity from bubbling up.
“You are causing this competent A-rank Physical System Ace, Esper Lee Changgyeol…”
Pummel.
“…so much trouble.”
Without even touching them with his fingertips, Lee Changgyeol slammed the criminals to the ground.
“And now, I’m not even forty yet…”
“H-hup!”
Crunch.
“half my hair is turning gray.”
With just a look, he bent their joints and flung them back onto the ground.
KABOOM!
Three one-ton containers in the distance soared high into the sky.
“Aaaargh!”
One man foamed at the mouth, watching the metal containers that hadn’t even fallen yet.
“Would I be angry or not, citizens?”
In professional jargon, this situation is usually called ‘boneless-ing.’ Applied examples include ‘He boneless-ed them,’ ‘They were boneless-ed,’ ‘He is boneless-ing them,’ etc.
CRASH!
Lee Changgyeol smashed the containers as if venting his frustration.
An appropriate expression for the current situation would be: ‘Human traffickers and face-judgers are currently being boneless-ed by one speeding civil servant.’
“To call me out to a place like this at this point.”
“H-hup! Owk!”
“Don’t you think you should seriously reflect on that fact?”
Clang.
‘That container box… It’s metal… Is it even possible for that kind of structure to break with that sound…? Is this real?’
All the men who tried to fight back and charge at Lee Changgyeol were thrown down in a messy heap, and Lee Changgyeol stood in the center, delivering sharp, eloquent remarks.
“Right now in Ilsan, my nephew, and my colleagues’ lives are hanging by a thread, okay?”
Every attempt at resistance failed repeatedly.
Thwack.
“Ugh!”
Thwack-thwack-thwack.
“H-ACK!”
“In my opinion, the citizens here need considerably more reflection.”
“Aargh!”
Yeongwon perched slightly on the edge of the trunk, clutching the sack tightly with both hands, and thought:
‘Is it the civil servant’s job perhaps… in the Ministry of Education?’
Her pity was short-lived. Considering the criminals’ offenses and vulgar language, Yeongwon decided to lament only the fact that she couldn’t make popcorn in this situation.
“Aargh!”
“Lower your voice. Please be proper in conduct and speech. But citizens, do you perhaps possess… firearms?”
Pow-pow.
Suddenly, it looked like the five people might successfully counterattack as they pulled out guns from their clothes, but it seemed Lee Changgyeol deliberately left the opening.
“ACK!”
Thud.
‘Oh… Nice.’
The three criminal Espers who fell for the trap stumbled right into a deep, sunken pit.
Plop. Thud.
It must have been painful for the ones suffering, but there’s a reason overpowered hero stories are so popular.
Lee Changgyeol stacked the five guns in his hand, juggled them, and then, CRUNCH, crushed them all at once into a steel sphere.
“What sort of cutesy act were you planning with children’s toys?”
Yeongwon was completely immersed in the short action drama unfolding before her eyes, like watching a movie where her side was clearly favored from the start, remained favored throughout the fight, and was guaranteed to win in the end, yet was strangely tense and entertaining.
She congratulated herself for chewing on that ‘sweet potato’ patiently while mentally drawing the character for ‘patience’ up until this moment.
“Law-breaking citizens.”
“Hee-hee-hee-ugh…”
Clang. Clang.
“As of this moment, you are arrested on charges including violation of the Special Awakened Act.”
Lee Changgyeol meticulously handcuffed the five men, who had completely lost the will to fight and were sprawled on the ground.
“You have the right to hire a lawyer,”
“Ugh…”
“You will be given the opportunity to explain your actions, and you have the right to request a judicial review of the arrest from the court.”
“Hee-hee-ugh…”
“If you wish to remain silent, please do so. Also, do not forget that your testimony may be used against you.”
He even informed them of their Miranda Rights in detail.
Wee-woo, wee-woo
“Director! Already…”
And just like that, the arrest of the international human trafficking ring was concluded, even before the last backup vehicle arrived.
‘It was incredibly fast…
Yeongwon regretted that she couldn’t rewind the surreal scene like a video.
‘A-rank, A-rank… Which means there are S-ranks even higher than that…’
Yeongwon mentally replayed the scenes, one by one.
There seemed to be action and reaction, but he moved and controlled objects without touching them.
It was a scene that couldn’t be explained by ordinary laws of physics.
It wasn’t completely alien, but it was unfamiliar.
Yeongwon hardened her expression and fundamentally revised her vague understanding of Espers and Guides.
They were something more than she expected. Something she didn’t underestimate at all.
‘So…’
“Ah.”
Yeongwon let out a gasp of surprise and took a step back.
Thump.
But there was no space to retreat behind the trunk.
“Guide-nim.”
“…”
Lee Changgyeol had quickly approached and stood in front of her.
“I am Deputy Director Lee Changgyeol, Esper of the Center’s Emergency Response Division 2.”
Up close, the man’s impression was kinder and more ordinary than she had expected.
No, perhaps his appearance quite matched the image, considering his meddlesome nature of constantly participating in the Veteran Chat, even if it didn’t match the scene she had just witnessed.
“It’s a pleasure to meet you.”
“…”
“I was eagerly anticipating meeting you safely. The Republic of Korea’s sixteenth Non-Selective Guide-nim.”
“…Yes.”
The Sixteenth Non-Selective Guide.
That was the first piece of information Yeongwon learned about herself at this moment.
“Your name is Shim Yeongwon, I was told.”
“Yes.”
“Please understand that I cannot escort you to the Yeoksam Headquarters myself right now due to urgent matters.”
Lee Changgyeol gestured, and the motorbike he rode floated up and came forward. When he reached out his hand, a helmet was placed in his palm.
Yeongwon intently watched the process, then answered belatedly.
“Ah… I’m, it’s fine…”
“I look forward to working with you in the future. Please.”
Lee Changgyeol extended his hand, not holding the helmet, for a handshake. Yeongwon let go of the sack she was holding and accepted.
Their hands clasped tightly.
His strength immediately eased.
The handshake was sudden and unexpected, but it wasn’t unpleasant or awkward.
“I will be going now.”
Clank. Lee Changgyeol put on his helmet.
“Go safely…”
“Yes. I’ll see you again.”
Bow. They both bowed their heads simultaneously.
Lee Changgyeol moved his long legs and got back on the bike. He then sped out of the Incheon dock area.
‘His eyes look like someone’s… Who is it?’
Yeongwon searched her memory, trying to resolve the question, but she couldn’t find the answer she wanted.
‘If it was someone important, I’d remember it eventually.’
Yeongwon moved the sack off her shoulder and picked up a piece of the broken car debris from the ground.
Slips.
Then, she put a fragment in her pocket and walked toward the direction where more vehicles had arrived and people were gathering.
Tap. Tap.
Though the two wouldn’t know it for a while, it was a moment that would be long remembered as the start of a new history for the Center.
The first meeting between the Republic of Korea’s first Non-Selective and the Non-Selective who stood at the absolute peak of Non-Selectives.
“Non-Selective Guide Shim Yeongwon-nim, is that your real name?”
“Yes, it is.”
“Are you also the person who tipped us off about the Guide trafficking?”
“Yes…”
“You must be very surprised, right? I’m sorry we were late. Because of the Ilsan Gate issue… You must have been very scared inside the trunk.”
Yeongwon was provided a blanket by Go Yoryeon, a C-rank Guide from the Emergency Response Division 2, and had to comply with a sort of interrogation.
“…Yes.”
“And you also had to see our Deputy Director get a bit heated up because of the Ilsan Gate problem. You saw something unsightly. Hah-hah-ha.”
“Yes…”
Yoryeon offered her warm tea with an apologetic expression.
“As you know, his S-rank nephew… Um, he has an extreme love for his nephew… Um. Well, that’s not important. Just wait a moment, please.”
“Okay.”
“Just a moment, really. I have a summons from over there, so I’ll be back quickly.”
“You can take your time.”
Pretending to be a frail B-rank Guide, Yeongwon wrapped the blanket more meticulously around her shoulders and tightly held the warm teacup with both hands.
In that state, she went back to contemplating the nature of the power Lee Changgyeol had used.
It was a different kind of ability than what Yeongwon had long been familiar with.
It didn’t seem to distort the world he was in, and it didn’t seem to require a chant. The most important thing was… There didn’t appear to be a painful price he had to pay every time he used that power.
Sip.
She grew interested in the ‘power’ contained within the vessels of Espers and Guides.
Along with that, her caution about the annoying situation swelled at an even faster pace.
‘For now… I’ll stay put. Absolutely, I’ll stay quiet.’
Yeongwon repeated the mantra as if brainwashing herself.
‘First, I’ll get into the penthouse. I’ll think about the next problem after that.’
There was a reason why not just overpowered heroes, but also the secret mastermind and power-hiding weakling were long-standing tropes.
Wee-woo, wee-woo
Wee-woo, wee-woo
Perhaps there was still work to be done or remaining members of the gang to be arrested, as the siren kept wailing.
Yeongwon complied with the request to wait a moment. She just leaned against the black car, holding the warm teacup, and gazed only toward the distant west.
If an A-rank was that spectacular, what would the S-rank level be like? Lee Changgyeol didn’t even seem to be fighting at his absolute best.
Rustle.
The wind tousled her hair. Her long locks, which she was starting to get used to, flowed gently.
Beneath the star-lit sky after sunset, the sea was calm.
The cold wind blew.
How long had it been since she last saw the sea?
Yeongwon looked at the dark scenery and slowly took another sip of the warm tea. One sip, then another, slowly, slowly.
The churning, black sea. That liquid mass whose depth couldn’t be seen, as always, was not to her taste.
