By Zephyria 
‘I’m sorry, guys.’
Hyeon Jae-ha apologized to the White Tiger Unit members only in his mind. Pretending to be fine on the outside.
Many of the White Tiger Unit members were close to the Ability Users who had been murdered by X, so they readily pushed Hyeon Jae-ha’s back.
“Go, go! Go quickly!”
Ha Ri-ra roughly wiped her hands, which were covered in squid jerky crumbs, on her pants and sent Hyeon Jae-ha toward the door.
Geum Na-ro and Ryu I-ruk felt the same way as Ha Ri-ra, at least for now. So did the other members.
Because they were people whose lifelong wish was to find X and reveal his terrible misdeeds to the world.
Ha Ri-ra even tried to actively pack weapons for Hyeon Jae-ha.
“Captain, do you need a rope? What about sleeping anesthetic? Ah, if it’s an artifact to hide strength, should I pack an artifact that can knock him out completely?”
“No. It’s okay. Ri-ra, I’m going to monitor him, not to bury an Ability User….”
Ha Ri-ra, who was the action leader of the White Tiger Unit, had a strong tendency to charge headlessly.
“It seems that Yeon Yu-jin is going to the Management Bureau for an Ability Re-measurement test. I’m just going to watch him from afar.”
The moment Hyeon Jae-ha heard Yeon Yu-jin singing the song that An Ga-hyeon liked almost identically, he intuitively knew that he couldn’t harm him in any way.
‘Even if he breaks through the slim probability and has any connection with X… I can’t treat Yeon Yu-jin carelessly.’
To Hyeon Jae-ha, An Ga-hyeon was a god and a religion.
An Ga-hyeon didn’t know at all because he didn’t show it. He loved his well-matched pair partner. Even after he died, he had been wandering around for 20 years trying to avenge him.
Sometimes Hyeon Jae-ha wished there was reincarnation like in dramas or novels.
‘If that were the case, I would be able to meet Ga-hyeon again.’
The dead do not return. Hyeon Jae-ha wished that a miracle would happen and An Ga-hyeon would reappear before him, even if he couldn’t confess that he liked him for the rest of his life.
…It’s a futile wish, though.
Ha Ri-ra frowned at Hyeon Jae-ha, who was all in black.
“Captain.”
“Yeah?”
“You’re too drab. You never know. You might catch Yeon Yu-jin’s suspicious behavior and have to catch him!”
That would never happen.
Hyeon Jae-ha barely suppressed the twitching corners of his mouth.
“…Of course, that could happen.”
“Then you have to catch him alive. To do that, the beauty trap is the best for the Captain.”
“…Huh?”
“So, instead of those drab mourning clothes, wear something brighter. You’re going out with a stealth artifact anyway.”
What nonsense is this?
While Hyeon Jae-ha was at a loss, Ryu I-ruk hit Ha Ri-ra on the head.
“Hey! Ha Ri-ra! What rude words are those! That’s sexual harassment!”
Ha Ri-ra grabbed her aching head and glared at Ryu I-ruk, huffing and puffing.
“Rude words? I’m very serious. Look at the Captain’s beauty. It’s a waste to hide it. With that beauty, he could easily seduce a man. It’s best to knock him out with a stealth artifact when no one is around, but there are too many people at the Management Bureau! They’ll be suspicious if he suddenly collapses. In that case, if the Captain just asks for some time with that mournful face…!”
Woop, woop!
Ryu I-ruk, unable to watch any longer, dragged Ha Ri-ra into the room.
Repeatedly apologizing to Hyeon Jae-ha on his behalf.
“I’m sorry, Captain. Go take care of your business quickly. I’ll take care of this guy.”
“…Okay. I’m counting on you.”
“Ah! Why! Woop! I’m just being realistic! Eup, eup!”
Ryu I-ruk struggled, but he couldn’t overcome Ha Ri-ra’s strength.
Leaving the commotion behind, Hyeon Jae-ha quietly slipped out.
And now.
Hyeon Jae-ha, who had been following Yeon Yu-jin like a stealthy stray cat, finally followed him to the Ability User Management Bureau parking lot.
‘Isn’t this stalking, if you think about it?’
Hyeon Jae-ha felt a sense of futility for a moment.
Just because a certain person reminded him of someone he loved, he was following him.
If the dead Ga-hyeon saw him now, he might scold him for being pathetic.
Thanks to telekinesis, Hyeon Jae-ha, who had flown here, confirmed that the manager and Yeon Yu-jin got out of the car and sat on a tall tree nearby.
He had come here without a plan, but… he knew he couldn’t just barge into the Management Bureau.
He couldn’t penetrate the Management Bureau’s strict security network with a stealth artifact. The moment he entered, a loud alarm would sound.
No matter how much of an S-Class Esper Hyeon Jae-ha was, he wasn’t confident in fighting and winning against high-ranking Ability Users in a one-on-many battle.
‘I’ll have to wait until he comes out.’
The Ability Measurement wouldn’t take too long, so if he waited a little, he would be able to see Yeon Yu-jin again.
Tearing open the beef jerky he had brought as a snack, Hyeon Jae-ha stared intently at Yeon Yu-jin as he walked into the Measurement Center.
Paying attention to his gait and the habits he unconsciously showed.
Then, Yeon Yu-jin suddenly turned his head back, and their eyes seemed to meet for a moment.
‘What?’
He had completely hidden himself with the stealth artifact, so the perception that they had met was wrong, but… Hyeon Jae-ha was preemptively startled and hid behind the tree.
Thump, thump. His heart beat violently.
The manager’s voice was heard.
“Huh? Yu-jin, what are you doing? Is there something there?”
“…No. I thought someone was there. I guess I was mistaken.”
Hyeon Jae-ha held his breath. He thought he was a Guide who hid his abilities, but he didn’t expect him to have found out his location.
‘Is he an S-Class?’
He would have to wait for the test results to know, but Yeon Yu-jin’s potential as a Guide didn’t seem to be D-Class at all.
‘…It’s still strange.’
His unique gait and the habit of touching his wrist when he was nervous were so similar to An Ga-hyeon.
Like someone who had deeply delved into and internalized everything about An Ga-hyeon.
‘If even his appearance was the same as Ga-hyeon’s…’
Hyeon Jae-ha felt bad when he thought this far.
“Crazy bastard.”
The dead do not return.
To remind himself of that fact, Hyeon Jae-ha pounded his chest with his fist.
“Ga-hyeon is dead. He’s dead.”
He hated and resented himself for constantly projecting Ga-hyeon onto another person who was alive and well.
He was more embarrassed and annoyed because this had never happened before.
‘I wish I hadn’t met Yeon Yu-jin in the first place.’
Hyeon Jae-ha, who had washed his face several times, sighed.
“Should I just go?”
Instead of coming up with ridiculous excuses, it would be better to forget Yeon Yu-jin and focus more on tracking down X.
‘Let’s go.’
Just as Hyeon Jae-ha was about to use telekinesis to fly to the dorm where his colleagues were, another van entered the Management Bureau Measurement Center parking lot.
Hyeon Jae-ha was surprised when he saw the people who got out of the car.
“Why did the Management Bureau suddenly call us?”
They were the Secrety members, who were Esper in the same team as Yeon Yu-jin and his current partner.
What is this situation?
‘Wasn’t I the only one coming for a re-examination?’
I arrived at the Management Bureau Measurement Center, registered with the front desk staff that I was here for a re-measurement, and was waiting on the sofa.
Suddenly, the Secrety members appeared all at once.
“…What? You guys? Why are you here?”
When I asked Ra Ho-yeon, he showed me a text message as if he didn’t know what was going on either.
[(Web Sender)
[Ability User Management Bureau] Espers of Yeon Yu-jin (20), who is scheduled for an Ability Re-measurement test on X month X day (Wed) at 11:00, are requested to visit this Ability Measurement Center together for a thorough examination.]
‘They’re sending this kind of message on the day of the test? The Management Bureau?’
Did they sense something suspicious, or…?
‘Are they hoping that Jae-ha will show up again?’
That’s too stupid of a plan.
Hyeon Jae-ha isn’t a fool with a brain full of udon noodles. There was no way he would come to the Management Bureau’s Ability Measurement Center, which was no different from the enemy’s lair.
‘That guy doesn’t even know that I’m An Ga-hyeon. It would be a miracle if he showed up in front of me again.’
Recently, I hadn’t run into Hyeon Jae-ha. It was disappointing and sad.
‘A moment ago, I felt an energy similar to the telekinesis that Hyeon Jae-ha uses, so I turned around for a moment…’
But it seemed like I was mistaken. There was no one in the place I turned to look.
There were a few sparrows chirping on a tall, lush pine tree, but that was all.
I don’t know why I was so disappointed.
Ra Ho-yeon said to me, who was feeling depressed.
“We don’t know either. The Management Bureau contacted us urgently after you left, Yu-jin.”
“…That contact, was that all? There was no separate guidance by phone or fax?”
Seo Yun-chae rested his chin on Ra Ho-yeon’s shoulder.
“There wasn’t. Not at all. The President was cursing, saying that just because they’re a government agency, they think they can do whatever they want.”