Confinement Constitution Guide

Unexpected (2)

The Central Center was busy. More precisely, the guides belonging to the Central Center were busy. They were always preoccupied, not only entering and exiting their assigned dungeons but also responding to support requests from other centers. The shortage of guides was a long-standing problem. I was no exception. Because such incidents were commonplace, Espers couldn’t receive detailed care from guides. This had nothing to do with the Esper’s rank.

Usually, S-rank ability users set special conditions when joining a center or guild. In Shin Woo-jun’s case, it was pairing with an A-rank or higher guide with a matching rate of over 80 percent. Not only that, he also added a clause to terminate the contract if a suitable guide wasn’t found within three months.

Normally, people keep their special conditions secret, so it’s natural for others not to know, but Shin Woo-jun went around broadcasting his contract terms to everyone. In an era where guides were so scarce that finding a pair was like reaching for the stars, he couldn’t help but boast proudly about getting his own guide.

Moreover, Shin Woo-jun had a quite unique constitution, and during his five years with the guild, he had rarely met a guide with a matching rate of over 50 percent. In such a situation, he must have been quite excited to get a contract that could potentially give him a pair guide with a matching rate of over 80 percent. Even if the contract wasn’t fulfilled, Shin Woo-jun had nothing to lose.

However, finding an A-rank or higher guide with a matching rate of over 80 percent with Shin Woo-jun within three months was absolutely not an easy task. But the persistent Central Center eventually managed to do it. They found A-rank guide Jeon Ju-hwan, who had never exceeded a 30 percent matching rate with an Esper before.

The matching rate between Jeon Ju-hwan and Shin Woo-jun was exactly 83 percent, and Shin Woo-jun contacted them immediately, saying he would come to work without further measurement or waiting.

“Wow. I didn’t really expect you to find someone even though I set those conditions. Our center director is competent.”

“I don’t make promises I can’t keep. We’ve met the conditions, so we’ll be expecting great things from Esper Shin Woo-jun as well.”

“Expectations? Isn’t that a given? You should know that S-rank Espers are on a different level from those A-rank nobodies, Director. Of course you should expect great things.”

“I’m one of those A-rank nobodies, Esper Shin Woo-jun. I’ll let it slide this time, but be careful when speaking in front of other colleagues or the media.”

“Are you telling me to be mindful of those nobodies? I don’t really want to do that.”

“Fix that loose way of talking too. No matter how invisible an S-rank Esper you are, shouldn’t you behave respectfully in front of your superiors? Don’t you think?”

The conversation between Shin Woo-jun and Esper Center Director Kim Dong-geon, which I overheard while passing through the corridor to the director’s office, was so shocking that I could barely breathe. I empathized with the Esper Center Director, not Shin Woo-jun. To think he would have to share life and death situations with an Esper who spoke so casually and treated other ability users as ‘nobodies’. It was dizzying.

No. In fact, more than that, I was worried about whether that arrogant Esper Shin Woo-jun and the hot-tempered Team 1 leader Esper An Jong-hyeok could get along well. No matter how I looked at it, their compatibility seemed terrible.

Even as I was sighing and imagining a gloomy future, Shin Woo-jun was still putting on airs in front of the Esper Center Director.

“You’re being too strict. Can’t we be a bit more relaxed?”

“All ability users operate on the principle of following orders from superiors. This is especially true in the center. If you’re dissatisfied with this policy, you’re welcome to go elsewhere. Well, what else can you do but part ways with the pair guide you met with such difficulty? It’s nothing for a great S-rank Esper like you, right?”

“…Ah. Haha, hahaha! Director, I think there’s been some misunderstanding. Following orders from superiors, of course I know that. You may not believe it, but that’s what I’m best at. And as for my way of speaking, I can’t promise because it’s innate, but I’ll try to be careful.”

When the pair guide was mentioned, Shin Woo-jun hurriedly spoke in a polite tone. Although I couldn’t confirm because of the wall between us, his posture was probably similar to his tone. After that, the conversation seemed to continue normally, so I returned to the Field Team 1 office after finishing my business.

Then, A-rank Esper Hwang Ji-hyeon asked with sparkling eyes, “Do-min, you just came from the third floor, right?”

“Ah, yes.”

“What do you think about the new Esper? I asked around, and the evaluations were pretty bad… Is it true?”

I silently looked around. Besides Oh Jeong-woo who asked the question, several colleagues who were writing reports in the office were looking at me. Since it was a rare day with little work, quite a few people were left in the office. Seeing the gazes waiting only for my answer made me feel quite pressured. I had no intention of talking about what Shin Woo-jun was really like, but my mouth felt dry under my colleagues’ gazes.

“…Um, I’m not sure. I just passed through the corridor, that’s all.”

Everyone seemed disappointed by my answer, but for me, this was the best response. Since everyone perceives things differently, I was cautious about publicly stating my evaluation of Shin Woo-jun. Also, maybe his manner of speaking was just like that, but he could actually be a decent person. It’s possible that I made a hasty judgment after hearing only part of the conversation.

“Ah, is that so? Eh, that’s disappointing. I was curious about what kind of person he really is.”

“Yeah. If his personality is really as bad as we’ve heard, we need to prepare ourselves.”

“Come on, what’s there to prepare for? We can just confront him head-on. Team Leader An would probably say the same, right?”

“No matter what, how can we confront a colleague who’s just arriving today? Think before you speak, Esper Yeom Jae-min.”

“Oh? Watch your mouth, Jeong Mi-rae.”

Field Team 1 was a fairly harmonious place except when everyone was on edge due to being too busy. It was also a team characterized by comradeship that had sprouted in the field, rather than a family-like atmosphere.

“Hey, forget all that and ask the youngest. Youngest, is Guide Jeong Mi-rae the problem, or am I?”

“This guy is bullying the youngest again. He’s such a nuisance.”

“Oh? How dare you talk to your senior like that!”

The youngest, Esper Yoon Seon-ho, who had been watching cautiously under Yeom Jae-min’s pressure, soon burst into laughter and answered, “I’m on the guide’s side.”

“This old man, you see? That’s how you should handle social life, like Seon-ho. Anyway, these impertinent Espers. We need to fix their manners thoroughly. Do-min, you should be sparing with your guiding for this guy too. Got it?”

Yeom Jae-min and Jeong Mi-rae continued their playful bickering, bringing laughter to the office. In the midst of all the laughing and chattering, the door of Team 1’s office swung open and an unfamiliar figure entered. Everyone’s gaze, including mine, naturally turned to the door.

A man with light gray hair and a casual impression was standing with the tired-looking Esper Center Director. The man, presumed to be Shin Woo-jun, cleared his throat as he roughly surveyed the office interior.

“Ahem.”

“This is Esper Shin Woo-jun, who will be joining Field Team 1. Esper Shin Woo-jun will introduce himself in more detail.”

“Hah, introduction. There’s no need for that, anyway…”

“Esper Shin Woo-jun.”

Shin Woo-jun, who had been grumbling with an annoyed face, sighed at the Esper Center Director’s stern tone.

“Haah. Name’s Shin Woo-jun, age twenty-seven. As you already know, I’m S-rank, nature type.”

Everyone, including the Esper team leader, made strange expressions at the half-hearted self-introduction. As expected, Shin Woo-jun was not much different from the impression I got in the corridor. And it seemed that An Jong-hyeok, who encountered Shin Woo-jun for the first time after returning from the field, felt similarly.

“…Hah. Don’t you know about following orders from superiors?”

“I’m not an idiot, of course I know. It’s just that you don’t particularly feel like a superior to me. Is it because of rank? Or what, skill? Either way, I’ve got nothing to lose. Can’t we re-elect the Esper team leader?”

Shin Woo-jun seemed displeased that An Jong-hyeok, who was of the same rank and only one year older than him, was in charge of Field Team 1 as the Esper team leader. He repeatedly suggested re-electing the team leader and picked fights with An Jong-hyeok over every little thing, and because of this, the once cheerful office atmosphere was always frozen.

While we were spending precarious days feeling like we were walking on thin ice, an incident occurred. An Jong-hyeok, who had always been the one to endure and bear with things, finally dragged Shin Woo-jun to the underground training area. When the Esper Center Director found out about this, he imposed a pay cut on both of them, and the incident seemed to be settled for now.

However, even after that, the two were quick to growl at each other whenever their eyes met, and because of this, the office atmosphere was always at its worst. Unable to endure this situation any longer, Shin Woo-jun’s pair guide Jeon Ju-hwan finally rose up. More precisely, he reported Shin Woo-jun, exhausted not only by the situation but also by Shin Woo-jun’s gaslighting and excessive demands.

Jeon Ju-hwan even shed tears, claiming that Shin Woo-jun had shown violent behavior towards him. It was an unbelievable story. It was extremely, very rare for an Esper to go against their instincts and use violence against a guide.