Guiding Behind the Curtain
Episode 1: The Invisible Line [take your own risk reading the long script]
[The Esper Association – Waiting Hall. The sound of news reports blares in the background.]
News Anchor
...and once again, S-Rank Esper Kang Taegun has cleared the Class B Gate in record time. Casualties remain at zero thanks to his—
Seo Ian [bit young,]
(Sighs softly, leaning against a cold pillar) "Zero casualties... but at what cost to his own sanity?"
[Ian looks down at his hand. A plain silver ring sits on his finger. It’s humming almost imperceptibly.]
Seo Ian [bit young,]
(Thinking) The limiter is holding. 70% suppression. To everyone else, I’m just Ian, the unranked office drone with a weak A-rank license. Just the way I like it.
Nurse
Seo Ian-ssi? Please enter Calibration Room 4.
[Ian enters the sterile room. A technician hooks sensors to his wrist.]
Technician
Alright, let’s see... Purity 71%. Output is... stable A-rank. Same as last month.
Seo Ian [bit young,]
Is that okay? I’ve been feeling a bit tired lately.
Technician
(Laughs) It's normal for A-ranks, Ian. You guys are like AA batteries. You’re lucky you don't have to deal with the S-rank monsters. Those guys go crazy before they reach thirty.
Seo Ian [bit young,]
Right. Lucky me.
[Ian leaves the office, walking toward the VIP elevators. He just wants to go home.]
[The elevator doors slide open. The air inside is freezing. Heavy. Suffocating.]
Seo Ian [bit young,]
(Stops in his tracks, heart racing) This pressure... it’s like a mountain is sitting on my chest.
[In the corner of the elevator stands a tall man in tattered combat gear. It’s Kang Taegun. His eyes are glowing a violent, jagged blue. He’s shaking.]
Kang Taegun
Don't... get in.
Seo Ian [bit young,]
(Swallows hard) "The other elevators are under maintenance. I just need to get to the lobby."
[Ian steps in. The doors close. The silence is deafening until—]
[CRACKLE. The elevator lights flicker and die. The lift jerks to a violent halt between floors.]
Kang Taegun
(A guttural growl) "Damn it... not now..."
[Taegun collapses to one knee. Blue sparks of 'Shadow Radiation' begin to eat at the floor tiles. The metal walls start to groan under his telekinetic pressure.]
Seo Ian [bit young,]
(Thinking) "He’s hitting the Critical Limit. If he 'Bursts' in this small space, the whole building collapses. Thousands will die."
Kang Taegun
"Get back... A-rank... If you touch me... your brain will melt from the feedback..."
Seo Ian [bit young,]
(Looks at the ceiling camera. It’s dead. He looks at Taegun.) "My brain is tougher than it looks, Taegun-ssi."
[Ian steps forward. He doesn't look like a 'weak' Guide anymore. He reaches out and grabs Taegun’s face with both hands.]
[Ian twists the silver ring on his finger. CLICK.]
[Suddenly, a massive wave of golden light fills the dark elevator. It’s silent, warm, and smells like fresh rain.]
Kang Taegun
(Gasps, his eyes widening) "What... is this...?"
[The black veins on Taegun’s neck vanish instantly. The violent blue sparks die down into a calm shimmer. For the first time in years, the 'noise' in Taegun’s head is gone.]
Seo Ian [bit young,]
(Whispering) "Just breathe. It’s okay now."
[The lights flicker back on. The elevator starts moving again. Ian quickly twists the ring back into place, the gold light vanishing.]
[DING. The doors open to the lobby.]
Seo Ian [bit young,]
"We're here. You should see a doctor."
[Ian tries to walk away, but a hand like a vice grips his wrist.]
Kang Taegun
(Voice low and dangerous) "Wait."
Seo Ian [bit young,]
(Fakes a nervous smile) "Yes? I’m late for my bus—"
Kang Taegun
(Pulls Ian close, eyes narrowed) "I’ve been guided by every S-rank in this country. None of them could do that. None of them felt like that."
Seo Ian [bit young,]
"I... I have high compatibility. It's a fluke."
Kang Taegun
(Leans down, whispering into Ian’s ear) "A 'fluke' doesn't heal a shattered core in five seconds. Who are you really, 'A-rank' Seo Ian?"
Seo Ian [bit young,]
(Thinking) Shit. I'm in trouble.
Episode 2: The Predator’s Mark [Yup another gate open]
[The Association Lobby. Ian is trying to pull his arm away from Taegun’s grip.]
Seo Ian [bit young,]
"Taegun-ssi, people are staring. Please let go."
Kang Taegun
(Eyes fixed on Ian’s face) "Let them stare. I’m more interested in why an A-rank clerk just did the impossible."
Seo Ian [bit young,]
(Heart pounding) "It was just an emergency surge! Sometimes compatibility spikes during a crisis. It’s in the textbooks!"
Kang Taegun
(Smirks coldly) "I’ve read those textbooks. They don't mention a 'surge' that feels like a pure reset of my entire system. You didn't just guide me... you fixed me."
[Taegun’s fingers brush against Ian’s silver ring. Ian flinches.]
Seo Ian [bit young,]
"I really have to go. My bus—"
Kang Taegun
"I’ll drive you."
Seo Ian [bit young,]
S"What? No! That’s—"
Kang Taegun
(To his subordinates who just rushed into the lobby) "Clear my schedule. I have an 'official inquiry' to conduct with this Guide."
[The subordinates look confused but bow immediately. Ian realizes he can't escape without making a scene.]
[Inside Taegun’s black luxury SUV. The atmosphere is suffocating.]
Seo Ian [bit young,]
(Staring out the window) "This isn't the way to my apartment."
Kang Taegun
"I know where you live, Seo Ian. 4th-floor studio, near the old district. But we’re not going there yet."
Seo Ian [bit young,]
(Thinking) "He already looked up my file? He’s faster than I thought."
Kang Taegun
"Why are you hiding it?"
Seo Ian [bit young,]
"Hiding what?"
Kang Taegun
"The fact that you're an S-rank. Or maybe... something even higher. Your energy is too dense for that cheap limiter ring to contain it perfectly."
Seo Ian [bit young,]
(Voice hardening) "I’m an A-rank. If I were an S-rank, don't you think I’d want the money? The fame? Why would I work a 9-to-5 desk job?"
Kang Taegun
"Because you're smart. S-rank Guides are treated like national property. You don't want to be a bird in a cage."
[Taegun suddenly pulls the car over into a dark alley and kills the engine.]
Seo Ian [bit young,]
"Why are we stopping?"
Kang Taegun
(Turns to face him, eyes glowing faint blue) "Because my radiation is spiking again. Prove it, Ian."
Seo Ian [bit young,]
"Prove what?"
Kang Taegun
"If you’re really an A-rank, guide me right now. Without the life-or-death adrenaline. Give me that same feeling you gave me in the elevator."
Seo Ian [bit young,]
(Thinking) "He’s testing me. If I give him too much, I’m caught. If I give him too little, he’ll know I’m holding back."
[Ian reaches out, his hand trembling slightly. He touches Taegun’s shoulder and sends a weak, shallow pulse of energy. The bare minimum.]
Seo Ian [bit young,]
"There. That’s all an A-rank can do."
[Taegun doesn't move. He grabs Ian’s hand and presses it hard against his own chest, right over his heart.]
Kang Taegun
(Voice low and husky) "Don't lie to me. I can feel your heart racing. You’re terrified... not of me, but of what you are."
[Suddenly, Taegun’s phone pings. A high-priority red alert.]
[SYSTEM ALERT: CLASS A GATE OPENING – GANGNAM DISTRICT STATION. RADIATION LEVELS RISING RAPIDLY.]
Kang Taegun
(Tsk) "Bad timing."
Seo Ian [bit young,]
"You need to go. That’s an A-rank gate. It could upgrade to S-class at any moment."
Kang Taegun
"I'm going. But you’re coming with me."
Seo Ian [bit young,]
"What?! I’m not a field Guide!"
Kang Taegun
"You are today. You’re my 'Personal Assist ant.' If I find out you lied to me back there, Ian..."
[Taegun leans in, his nose brushing against Ian’s hair, taking a deep breath of his scent.]
Kang Taegun
"...I won't just turn you into the Association. I’ll make sure you never have a reason to leave my side again."
[Taegun shifts the car into gear and roars toward the Gate.]
Seo Ian [bit young,]
(Thinking) This is a disaster. If an S-class monster comes out of that gate, I’ll have to choose: keep my secret, or save his life.
Episode 3: The S-Class Shadow
[Gangnam District Station. The sky is torn open by a jagged, purple rift. Buildings are vibrating from the raw pressure.]
[The area is swarming with lower-rank Espers and police. They all freeze when Taegun’s SUV screeches to a halt.]
Random Esper: "It's the 'Weapon'! Kang Taegun is here! We’re saved!"
Seo Ian [bit young,]
(Looking at the rift, face pale) "Taegun-ssi, look at the color of that radiation... that’s not a Class A Gate. The readings are spiking too fast."
Kang Taegun
(Stepping out of the car, looking calm and deadly) "I know. It’s a mutation. Stay in the car, Ian. If you run, I’ll find you before you reach the end of the block."
Seo Ian [bit young,]
"I'm an A-rank Guide, remember? My job is to be at the command center, not sitting in a car like a damsel!
Kang Taegun
(Smirks, eyes glowing a blinding blue) "Then watch closely. Watch what a 'real' S-rank looks like."
[Taegun leaps into the air. He doesn't use a weapon. He doesn't need one. With a single flick of his wrist, a massive wave of telekinetic force slams into a swarm of emerging monsters, crushing them into the pavement instantly.]
Seo Ian [bit young,]
(Thinking) "He’s terrifying. He’s fighting at 100% output without any guiding. He’s burning his own nerves just to show off."
[Suddenly, the ground groans. A massive, obsidian-skinned creature—a Gate Guardian—claws its way out of the rift. The air turns toxic. Nearby A-rank Espers begin to scream, clutching their heads as their mental stability collapses.]
Field Commander: "Emergency! The Gate has evolved! It’s a Class S! All non-S-rank personnel evacuate immediately!"
Seo Ian [bit young,]
(Clutching his Limiter Ring) "Shit. If Taegun fights that thing alone while his mental pollution is already high from the elevator incident... he'll lose himself."
[In the middle of the chaos, Taegun is a god of destruction. He’s tearing the Guardian’s limbs off with raw mental power, but his nose is bleeding. The 'Shadow Radiation' is wrapping around him like black smoke.]
Kang Taegun
(Roaring) "Is that all you've got?! Come on!"
Seo Ian [bit young,]
(Thinking) "He’s losing it. He’s entering the 'Manic State'."
[Ian can't stay in the car. He jumps out, dodging falling debris. He runs toward the 'Hot Zone' where the radiation is so thick it would kill a normal Guide.]
Other Guides: "Hey! You! Stop! You’ll die if you go in there!"
Seo Ian [bit young,]
(Ignores them, eyes fixed on Taegun) "I have to stabilize the perimeter without him noticing it's me. Just a small burst... just enough to keep his heart from exploding."
[Ian hides behind a flipped bus. He presses his hand to the ground. He doesn't twist his ring off—he just "leaks" his S-rank energy through the pavement.]
Seo Ian [bit young,]
(Whispering) "Expand. Purify. Stay hidden."
[A pulse of invisible gold energy ripples through the ground. The dying Espers suddenly catch their breath. The toxic black smoke around Taegun thins out just enough for him to see.]
Kang Taegun
(Pauses mid-air, feeling the sudden warmth) "This feeling... it’s here again. The gold light."
[Taegun turns his head, his sharp eyes scanning the ruins. He spots the corner of Ian's jacket behind the bus.]
Kang Taegun
(A dark, knowing smile) "Found you."
[The Guardian lunges at Taegun, but Taegun doesn't even look at it. He snaps his fingers, and a pillar of blue fire incinerates the monster's head in seconds. He lands on the ground, the Class S threat dead at his feet, and walks straight toward Ian’s hiding spot.]
Seo Ian [bit young,]
(Pulling his hand back, panting) "Okay... the monster is dead. Now I just have to act like I was hiding in fear—"
[The bus is suddenly ripped away and tossed aside like a toy by Taegun’s power.]
Kang Taegun
"You have a very strange way of 'hiding,' Seo Ian."
Seo Ian [bit young,]
(Faking a stutter) "T-Taegun-ssi! You killed it! That was... amazing! I was just praying for my life—"
[Taegun leans down, grabbing Ian by the collar and pulling him up until their noses touch. Taegun’s eyes are no longer blue—they are calm, dark, and predatory.]
Kang Taegun
"The ground under my feet is purified for a hundred meters. My core is humming like a kitten. And you're standing in the middle of an S-class dead zone without a single scratch on your mind."
Seo Ian [bit young,]
"I... I told you, I have high resistance—"
Kang Taegun
"Stop. Lie to me one more time, and I’ll kiss you right here in front of all these cameras just to see how much your 'A-rank' heart rate can take."
Seo Ian [bit young,]
(Freezes, face turning bright red) "You... you wouldn't."
Kang Taegun
"Try me. You’re coming home with me. Not as an assistant. As mine."
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![Seo Ian [bit young,]](https://up-pic.mangatoon.mobi/contribute/fiction/12276728/avatar/54952320/17684710180.jpeg-s200webp?sign=14502b2459efe74488e06e665baffb53&t=69ede8ed)
