TTOA Chapter 136
by VolareTaming the Obsessive Maniac – Episode 136
#136
“Now that you know everything, let’s stop. Or are you planning to vent your anger?”
Even if Seo Eui-woo crushed Ma Tae-o in this place, Kwon Jae-jin’s Guiding ability wouldn’t disappear. Kwon Jae-jin could enhance an Esper’s ability through Guiding, and now that he had confirmation, he intended to act as he pleased.
Seo Eui-woo threatened him so much, telling him to be prepared, so he was a little worried about the future…
“That doesn’t mean my resolve will waver. I want to do what I can with my own hands.”
“I know. I know how you feel, Jae-jin. I know it so well that it pains me.”
“Then isn’t that enough? You don’t have to try to kill Captain Ma like this… Shouldn’t we just end it here?”
Kwon Jae-jin slowly turned his head and gazed at Ma Tae-o.
The fear and unease he had felt the first day they met had now vanished as cleanly as if he had dusted off old dust.
The atmosphere of a military dog obeying orders from above, the meticulous attitude that never deviated from the FM, the trim and neat appearance with his hair combed back without any stray strands, etc. At the time, he had felt clear hostility towards Ma Tae-o, but that was no longer the case.
Ma Tae-o was just another Seo Eui-woo.
Someone who received orders and followed them, someone who could die on the front lines at any moment without it being strange, a weapon raised in the military.
If it hadn’t been for Ma Tae-o, Kwon Jae-jin would never have known what he could do with Guiding.
Jae-jin lowered his voice and confessed softly.
“…Although the Guiding I did at the time wasn’t voluntary and was unpleasant, I still owe him my life twice.”
Looking back, it was true. When Kwon Jae-jin was severely injured and collapsed after being attacked by a wolf-type Beta Creature, he wouldn’t be alive now if the 7th Special Task Force led by Ma Tae-o hadn’t passed by.
“If I hadn’t received the Healing Factor injection, I would have died on the spot. After that, a pack of wolf-type Beta Creatures appeared again, and Captain Ma saved me from being eaten once more.”
“……”
“I resented him somewhat when I was being chased by the search party, but in the end, things turned out this way… It seems he was even demoted for the failed mission, so I have no regrets now.”
On the contrary, he was grateful in some ways.
Ma Tae-o had played a significant role in Kwon Jae-jin crossing over into the world outside the frame.
콰지지직! (SFX for something shattering)
Seo Eui-woo’s ability pierced through the shield and scattered it into pieces. Fortunately, only the shield crumbled, and it didn’t break Ma Tae-o’s Core.
The ability subsided, and Ma Tae-o coughed, spitting out the blood that had pooled in his mouth. Judging by his unstable posture, several of his bones were definitely fractured.
“…Since Jae-jin said he owes me his life twice, I’ll let you live twice.”
“Yes. That’s a good thought.”
“Even if Jae-jin doesn’t, I’m full of regrets, though.”
The surroundings were gradually becoming noisy. Special Task Force members were gathering because of the urgent communication sent by the researchers.
Several people approached to support Captain Ma Tae-o, who was clearly injured. They took out a Healing Factor from his chest pocket and injected it into him.
Captain Ma groaned painfully, but he straightened his posture and looked at Kwon Jae-jin. His black eyes, like holes, wavered for a moment before soon taking on a self-deprecating light.
“…Kwon Jae-jin, I heard you received an S-rank assessment. Are you matched with Seo, the Captain over there?”
As he spoke to Kwon Jae-jin, Seo Eui-woo wore a murderous smile, as if he knew this would happen. So this is what Espers are like…
Seo Eui-woo, enraged, was about to raise his ability again, but Kwon Jae-jin barely stopped him and replied simply.
“Apart from being matched, Seo Eui-woo is my Esper. And I am Seo Eui-woo’s Guide.”
“……Is that so? I see. So that’s how it is.”
Ma Tae-o narrowed his eyes with a subtle expression. It was somewhat similar to the expression one makes when swallowing something extremely sour.
“Now, I have no other choice. I can only blame myself for being born as an A-rank.”
Before Seo Eui-woo could smash Ma Tae-o’s Core, Kwon Jae-jin clearly drew a line and answered.
“I didn’t choose Seo Eui-woo because he’s an S-rank. It’s because it’s Seo Eui-woo… because it’s Seo Eui-woo that I’m with him.”
“…Because it’s Seo Eui-woo?”
“Yes, even if the day comes when you receive an S-rank assessment and Seo Eui-woo receives an F-rank assessment, I will still be by Seo Eui-woo’s side. I hope you understand this difference.”
Ma Tae-o’s expression slowly subsided. It was difficult to immediately understand what Kwon Jae-jin meant by the difference, but it was clear that it was a rejection.
Ma Tae-o mulled over Kwon Jae-jin’s words two or three times, then added a deep sigh and muttered.
“…I should at least thank you. Thanks to that Guiding, I was able to send Lieutenant Park Ho-won off peacefully. I was able to minimize the Runaway damage.”
Lieutenant Park Ho-won… So the name of the Esper who went into Runaway that day was Park Ho-won.
“His presence on the front lines was also excellent. To the point where I felt skeptical about the military’s decision to eliminate mutants all this time.”
“……”
“If you were my subordinate, I would have praised you.”
Kwon Jae-jin blinked silently. He swallowed a hollow laugh and turned his head.
Looking at Seo Eui-woo, his brow was full of fine wrinkles. His face alone said, “I’m jealous.”
He said he didn’t even want to make eye contact, and he didn’t want to let him hear his voice, right? Unfortunately, he did it all. And to Ma Tae-o, no less.
‘Well, who told you to cause a commotion first…’
It was Seo Eui-woo who didn’t listen even when he told him to stop.
‘I came to the Center to figure out the situation, but it looks like I’m just creating more problems. How am I supposed to clean this up…’
At that moment, a familiar face appeared behind the crowd. Lieutenant Colonel Jang Tae-san, with a fierce expression, strode towards the three of them. The Special Task Force members saluted him and stepped back.
Lieutenant Colonel Jang scanned the wrecked floor and walls of the 3rd-floor hallway and the scattered researchers, then furrowed his sparse eyebrows as if understanding what was going on.
“It’s a mess as always. Transport Captain Ma to the infirmary. Captain Seo, Kwon Jae-jin. Come with me. The rest of you, dismiss.”
*
“As you know, using abilities inside the Center is grounds for severe disciplinary action. Captain Seo.”
“So, you called me in to give me a disciplinary action?”
“No. Let’s speak frankly. We don’t have time.”
The place Lieutenant Colonel Jang led them to was the 1st Special Task Force’s combat waiting room. Inside was Lieutenant Colonel Jang’s personal office. As if he had been there countless times, Seo Eui-woo naturally guided Kwon Jae-jin.
Lieutenant Colonel Jang Tae-san, sitting in front of the wooden table, frowned with tired eyes and ran his rough hand over his temples.
“What in the world are you two up to? What’s going on in the military?”
“……”
“At first, I thought Captain Seo was so distracted by S-rank Guiding that he had abandoned his duty. And he actually did. Mutants… Yes, he did.”
To be honest, Lieutenant Colonel Jang Tae-san didn’t like Kwon Jae-jin. He thought that Seo Eui-woo and Ma Tae-o were both blinded by S-rank Guiding. Even the military’s high command…
The search party was suddenly disbanded, and for some reason, the military’s high command made a decision to apply special exceptions to Kwon Jae-jin and made it convenient for him to officially receive a rank test.
Even this was an unusual move, but as soon as he finished the rank test, Kwon Jae-jin left behind a strange statement that he couldn’t do Awakened-style Guiding and disappeared.
However, he said that if it was humanistic Guiding… if it was skin contact, not mucous membrane contact, Guiding by holding hands, he would be willing to do it.
Lieutenant Colonel Jang couldn’t readily understand this statement.
An S-rank Guide refusing to Guide.
Replacing Guiding with the act of holding hands.
Was that even possible?
This was a statement that threw away the Guide’s duties and responsibilities like scraps of paper.
It sounded like he didn’t want his flesh to be torn off, like he was prioritizing his own safety over the battlefield where lives were at stake.
Rejecting efficiency-oriented Guiding was like mocking the Awakened who went to the front lines and risked their lives in battle, a cowardly act.
That’s why Lieutenant Colonel Jang believed that Kwon Jae-jin didn’t have the qualifications to be Seo Eui-woo’s Guide. He didn’t even think he had the qualifications to become a formal Awakened…
However, Kwon Jae-jin appeared on the front lines as if to prove him wrong.
He had refused Guiding, the Guide’s duty, but he wore combat gear, skillfully fired a rifle, and even properly handled the military’s special supply item, the HMD goggles. He wasn’t afraid and resolutely participated in the battle, shooting countless Creatures to death.
Moreover, Kwon Jae-jin, who went to battle, even seemed to have some… a desperate sense of mission.
“I… yes, I want to know the true intentions of you two.”
Lieutenant Colonel Jang was originally a man with a keen sense.
He naturally realized that the movements of the Creatures who formed a force and swarmed in droves were unusual. Something was happening in the military, but he didn’t know what it was, so he was frustrated.
“Captain Seo, why are you repeatedly violating the rules? Have you lost the will to follow the military? And Kwon Jae-jin, what was the meaning of what you said to me back then?”