By Zephyria 
Jae-ha pleaded with me earnestly.
But I couldn’t grant that request.
Even if my answer burned Jae-ha’s anguished heart.
“Sorry, Jae-ha. I can’t grant you that, at least. You know that too.”
“Ga-hyeon…”
“Do you remember what I said before? That if I were to take revenge on X, it had to be me.”
“…Yeah.”
“This is your revenge, but it’s also my revenge.”
What good would it do if only I were whisked away to a safe place, just to confirm the destruction of my enemy?
I wanted to end that bastard, Ban No-ah, with my own hands.
‘Because that’s the only way I’ll be able to sleep soundly, stretching out my legs.’
Ban No-ah was no different to me than the monsters in the Dungeons I used to take down tirelessly in my past life.
If I couldn’t deal with him myself, together with Jae-ha, I was afraid that I would regret it forever, and it would remain as a nasty, lingering feeling in my dreams or illusions.
“I want to completely cut out that bastard who ruined my life.”
“…Ga-hyeon.”
“Jae-ha, with you.”
“……!”
The sea in Jae-ha’s blue eyes surged greatly at my answer.
“Now that my identity and X’s identity have been revealed, I don’t think we can avoid a clash. Jae-ha, you saw the supernatural power that Ban No-ah uses, too.”
The fact that he could freely control an ability that was hard to even grasp how many there were.
“Even if I hide in a safe place, if he uses mental abilities like the Brainwashing he showed, he could easily break through the location of the hideout. No, he definitely will. What he wants is to completely hunt us down and eliminate us from this world.”
The reason Ban No-ah pretended to appear as a guest on
‘It was as if he was showing off that he could hunt us down and erase us in an instant, just like in this game.’
It was entirely possible, considering he used his extensive mental abilities to completely erase his memories even from Seol Yu-rang, who was just a friend in name.
I took Jae-ha’s hand and looked him straight in the eye.
“What that guy wants might be us falling apart. Imagine. What if he puts a powerful Brainwashing on one of us and makes us fight each other? How would you, and how would I, respond?”
“That’s…”
Even Jae-ha, who had gone through thick and thin, couldn’t easily answer my question.
“We wouldn’t be able to. We wouldn’t be able to launch any kind of attack.”
In the worst case, we might surrender.
Because we are precious to each other.
If they took each other hostage, Jae-ha and I would have no choice but to collapse.
To keep our loved ones from dying.
Because I don’t want to give them the sorrow of losing a loved one again, or the fear of being left alone and falling into despair.
“Let’s move together, Hyeon Jae-ha. Like before.”
Like back then, when we vowed to die together and live together.
Even if our ending ends in tragedy again, this time, let’s be together….
Sensing that he couldn’t change my firm decision, Jae-ha sighed and nodded.
“…Okay.”
“I knew you’d say that.”
When I grinned, Jae-ha frowned and pulled my cheeks mercilessly.
“Ouch, ouch, ouch!”
“Now that you’ve promised, stick right next to me. Don’t die, don’t get hurt. If I see even a slight cut, I’ll lock you up in the hideout.”
“Hey, still, you should let that slide. Isn’t it something you can easily get in everyday life, like cutting your finger…”
“If you can’t promise me that, I can’t cooperate either.”
“Ugh. I got it.”
“Good.”
I had an awkward verbal agreement with Jae-ha.
The thought of fighting with Jae-ha again made my heart flutter for a moment.
Jae-ha flashed his eerie blue eyes and asked us a question.
“You seem pretty confident… So, did you guys come up with a tactic to fight Ban No-ah?”
“…….”
This time, my mouth was shut like a clam.
Jae-ha let out a hollow laugh as if he was dumbfounded.
“I knew it. Ga-hyeon, you were the type to charge in with your body if I came up with a plan and gave you instructions.”
“Ahem, why are you bringing that up now?”
“I’m just glad that you haven’t changed at all.”
Jae-ha is teasing me.
He seems quite sulky. He accepted my joining because he had no justification to stop me, but he seemed uncomfortable because of the trauma from the past.
‘If Jae-ha was in the same situation as me, I would have found a glass coffin like the one Snow White was laid in, sealed him in it, and taken him to a place only I knew.’
Meanwhile, at Jae-ha’s words, the Secrety members looked at me and whispered among themselves.
“I knew it…”
Seo Yun-chae glanced at me and nodded.
“Even if he didn’t learn the dance at all, the effort he put into practicing was no joke.”
Shin Tae-beom was convinced on his own.
“So that’s why he was like that.”
Ra Ho-yeon exchanged glances with Shin Tae-beom, as if the mysteries had been solved.
“Even if it’s a little uneasy, if we think back to the Simulator dungeon, Yujin, no, Guide An Ga-hyeon is a reliable commander, right? I think I can trust him.”
Only Cha Si-yoon tried to defend me, even if only slightly.
I ruffled the youngest’s navy blue hair and smiled.
“Jae-ha’s just sulking. I’m more useful than you think. Jae-ha admits it too, but he’s just worried about me and teasing me.”
“Really?”
“Of course. Jae-ha, how long are you going to avoid looking at my face? We don’t have much time.”
“…….”
This was not an empty promise.
In fact, Secrety’s schedule was packed tomorrow as well. They had to show their faces on various programs, from cameo appearances in popular dramas to attending group talk shows.
On top of that, since they had made a comeback, they had to go back and forth between broadcasting stations to record music shows, so they were extremely busy.
I sat back-to-back with Jae-ha, who was sulking.
“Aren’t you going to introduce them? Your longtime colleagues, the White Tiger Unit.”
“…You’re going to drag those kids in too? Are you okay with that?”
“What’s there to be okay with? Those kids suspected my identity first, so I had no choice but to reveal it, and it seems like Ban No-ah won’t leave them alone either, so I have to take them with me.”
As I leaned comfortably against Jae-ha’s back, he worried about me.
“What if he puts a Brainwashing on those kids and makes you give up your life on your own… I…”
“You’ve become too soft in the meantime. Don’t worry. Those guys are A-Class Espers and Elemental Ability Users in their own right. Let’s find a way to break through mental abilities. Maybe… Ban No-ah will think about what would give us the most terrible despair first.”
“…Okay.”
Jae-ha, with a heavy expression, got up from his seat.
Then, he gestured to me and the Secrety members.
“Follow me. We’re going to the White Tiger Unit’s headquarters now.”
The White Tiger Unit, which originally changed hideouts periodically, had recently been maintaining an ambiguous settlement.
Geum Na-ro, who was resting in the apartment prepared by Hyeon Jae-ha’s parents, spun his chair around and looked at Ha Ri-ra.
“Why?”
When Ha Ri-ra asked, Geum Na-ro, who had dark circles under his eyes, muttered.
“It’s suspicious. Why isn’t the leader changing the hideout? I heard that the leader’s parents had already looked into other places and told him that it would be better to move soon.”
At Geum Na-ro’s words, Samoa rested his chin on his hand and answered instead.
“Well… I guess it’s because there’s a new Guide he’s been paying attention to lately, so he’s reluctant to leave this place right away.”
Geum Na-ro thought of Yeon Yujin’s appearance and was somewhat convinced.
“Hmm. He’s definitely beautiful enough to be reluctant to leave.”
Ha Ri-ra reacted strongly to Geum Na-ro’s words.
“Come to think of it! Geum Na-ro, you’ve seen the real thing of the Guide that the leader is paying attention to!”
“I saw him through the screen, but.”
“Anyway! I’m bored, so this is good. Tell me about it. Huh?”
From the moment they found out X’s identity, the White Tiger Unit members’ heads were filled only with plans to catch and kill him, so they needed fresh stories.
The other White Tiger Unit members also shone their eyes like hungry beasts and urged Geum Na-ro.
“That’s right, Mr. Geum Na-ro. Please tell us what kind of person he was.”
“We need to know who the Guide that the leader, sob, is clinging to so that we can at least suggest a strategy.”
“Is this some kind of dating sim game? If you do that, you’ll be found buried up to your necks in a pit the next morning.”
“Aww…”
“I have nothing to say.”
Geum Na-ro strictly kept the secret.
‘The leader told me not to say anything about that Guide… Yeon Yujin.’
I don’t know why he cherishes that Guide so much, but Geum Na-ro didn’t want to upset the leader, Hyeon Jae-ha, so he kept his mouth shut.
It was then.
The sound of the door opening was heard, and Hyeon Jae-ha appeared.
It was the moment when all the members, including Geum Na-ro, were about to jump up and greet him.
“Le…”
“So this is your headquarters?”
‘Huh?’
An unexpected, pleasant voice was heard. It sounded familiar.
Geum Na-ro raised his head and looked behind Hyeon Jae-ha, and there stood Yeon Yujin, looking at all of them with curious eyes.
“…Why is that person here?”
Geum Na-ro, who was bewildered, tried to say it as indirectly as possible, but his colleagues immediately understood his nuance.
Ah! That person is the Guide that our leader is clinging to!