Zero Point

#029

“I’m sorry, Guide. I’m not a pervert or anything… It’s just not something I can control… I’m sorry.”

Lim Jihyeok apologized in a voice as small as a mosquito’s. His ears were bright red, as if he was dying of embarrassment.

“Don’t worry about it. I’m already aware that such reactions are common during Guiding.”

Eunseok spoke in a deliberately businesslike tone to ensure Lim Jihyeok wouldn’t feel overly burdened.

“…Yes.”

Lim Jihyeok nodded slightly.

After a little more time passed, Lim Jihyeok’s watch turned a deep blue. The female hunter who checked the watch let out a short exclamation of amazement.

“Wow. You just hit zero, Jihyeok.”

“…Really?”

Lim Jihyeok checked his own watch. He took a deep breath, seemingly surprised to see the zero reading.

“Then I’ll end the Guiding now.”

Eunseok gently pushed away Lim Jihyeok’s body that he had been holding and got off the bed. Meanwhile, Lim Jihyeok was still staring at his watch in wonder.

“This is the first time I’ve ever hit zero.”

Lim Jihyeok said to Eunseok with sparkling eyes. His eyes were filled with intense joy and adoration as he looked at Eunseok.

“Then I hope you recover quickly.”

Eunseok picked up the shirt he had thrown off, put it on, and gave a brief greeting.

“Yes… Yes! Thank you!”

Lim Jihyeok managed to get out of bed despite his not fully healed body and bowed his head.

“Thank you. We’re greatly indebted to you, Guide Lee Eunseok.”

The female hunter stood next to him and bowed her head together. Eunseok nodded back and turned around.

***

Due to the emergency Guiding in the early morning, all morning schedules were pushed to the afternoon. Although the person directly involved didn’t particularly feel the need for rest, it seemed to be the procedure. Instead of going to the gym to continue his interrupted workout, Eunseok stretched his body in the dorm living room using martial arts he had learned in the special task force. Only after his body was drenched in sweat did he take a shower.

He felt a bit hungry after skipping breakfast. Eunseok went down to the cafeteria for an early lunch.

The moment he stepped out of the elevator and entered the cafeteria, he felt eyes turning towards him. He had always received a lot of attention, but today it seemed especially intense.

As he went to get his tray, suddenly a group of people approached him. There were some faces he had encountered a few times before, and some unfamiliar ones. At the front of the group was Hunter Lim Jihyeok, who had received emergency Guiding earlier.

“Um… Guide Lee Eunseok.”

For someone who had been brought in nearly falling apart and on the verge of going berserk in the early morning, he looked quite presentable. After receiving Guiding and healing, showering, and changing clothes, he looked very neat.

“Thank you so much for earlier!”

Lim Jihyeok bowed deeply and greeted loudly.

“Thank you for saving our Jihyeok.”

“Thank you very much, Guide Lee Eunseok.”

“Thank you!”

Those who appeared to be members of the 2nd Public Order unit each bowed their heads and greeted.

“No, I just did my job.”

Eunseok spoke softly, feeling the increasingly blatant stares.

“We were shocked to see Jihyeok come out with a zero reading.”

“It’s the first time I’ve seen a hunter hit zero.”

“You’re really amazing.”

The 2nd Public Order unit members each expressed their admiration for Eunseok. Eunseok inwardly sighed at the obvious stares from all around the cafeteria.

“Well then, enjoy your meal.”

Eunseok greeted with a smile and picked up his tray. Starting with Lim Jihyeok, the 2nd Public Order unit members quickly grabbed trays and lined up behind Eunseok. And when he sat down at an empty seat after getting his food, they occupied the seats in front and to the sides of him.

“Please eat a lot!”

Lim Jihyeok, who sat right next to him, almost shouted. Even after Eunseok started eating, he kept sending sparkling glances instead of eating his own food. It felt like there was a vigorously wagging tail behind him.

Whether it was gratitude, or affection and obsession born from the Guiding… Or maybe he wanted to build a friendship with Eunseok.

As Eunseok silently focused on his meal, the 2nd Public Order unit members also started eating as if following his lead. Yet they kept glancing at Eunseok, their faces showing they were dying to know what S-class Guiding felt like.

“Hey, hey, stop staring. You’ll make the Guide choke.”

Lim Jihyeok, who had been glancing himself, noticed his team members’ stares and waved his hand to caution them. Only then did the stares decrease a bit.

‘They say he was on the verge of going berserk, but he brought him to zero. Just with contact Guiding.’

‘Wow. S-class is really on another level.’

‘His schedule must be pretty loose, isn’t it unfair that only the 1st Public Order unit gets the benefits?’

‘Who knows. Now that he’s made connections with the 2nd unit, he might help them too.’

Eunseok’s ears, well-trained to grasp surrounding situations, clearly picked up the whispers around him.

‘Isn’t an A-class Guide enough for the 2nd unit?’

‘Now that an S-class has arrived, A-class became old news in an instant. How frustrating.’

There were quite a few murmurs mixed in, presumably from other Guides.

“Uh… Don’t mind those words. Hunters often talk like that when there’s a rank difference. It’s just how things are when people live together…”

Lim Jihyeok, who seemed to have heard the whispers with his developed senses, whispered softly to Eunseok.

“It’s fine.”

Eunseok replied calmly and stood up with his empty tray.

“Well then, enjoy your meal.”

As he gave a brief greeting, the 2nd Public Order unit members awkwardly stood up and bowed their heads.

It was true that he had a lot of free time since he only had to cover the 1st Public Order unit. Eunseok used this leisurely time to thoroughly examine weapons and armor.

It was quite fun to pick up various weapons, swing them around, and examine them. He mentally noted a few that he particularly liked. Especially for firearms, he carefully examined each and every one without exception. Before he knew it, time had flown by.

It was already almost 3 PM. Eunseok left the armory with a feeling of regret.

When he returned to his quarters, Secretary Kim had arrived early and was waiting for him.

“Ah, sorry to keep you waiting.”

“No, I just arrived a bit early.”

Secretary Kim smiled brightly and showed a carrier with two cups of coffee.

After going inside and sitting across from each other, Secretary Kim took out an iced Americano and placed it in front of Eunseok.

“Was the emergency Guiding alright?”

“Yes, it was fine. There was no need to cancel the morning schedule.”

“No, you guided a hunter who was on the verge of going berserk. You needed some rest. Besides, there weren’t any urgent appointments. By the way…”

Secretary Kim trailed off and put down the papers she had been holding under one arm. They were various pamphlets and magazines with documents inserted here and there.

“As expected, the response to your first interview was explosive. Your value skyrocketed with just one interview. We’ve received many more good offers. I’ve already filtered out the less desirable ones at my level, so you only need to check these.”

“This is… a public service advertisement for the Guide Association with no appearance fee, but I recommend it for your image. And this fashion magazine is for the entire 1st Public Order unit, but they insist you must participate. They say they’ll build the concept around you accompanying them on Gate conquests. This is an advertisement for a casual suit brand targeting young men, and I personally highly recommend it as all the celebrities who’ve worked with them are top-tier.”

Secretary Kim briefly explained as she flipped through each one.

Even after being filtered, there were more offers than expected. Eunseok was more interested in the amounts written on the attached documents than the brand names. After all, this activity was to earn money for supply costs, so the amount was important.

This is enough for a new dagger. This is enough for bullets.

The amounts in Eunseok’s mind automatically converted into costs.

“This level of income should be enough for supplies.”

At Eunseok’s words, Secretary Kim paused for a moment before letting out a small laugh.

“In the case of hunters, contracts are usually for one year, but for you, there are many requests for 3-year contracts. I suppose it’s because hunters have a considerable chance of causing incidents that damage their image during the contract period, but you’re different.”

True. Hunters were so physically robust that even a small conflict could escalate into a major incident. In comparison, Guides were unlikely to cause incidents that would damage their image. After all, physically, they were no different from ordinary people.

“This is… a cosmetics advertisement, isn’t it?”

Eunseok picked up one of the pamphlets and asked.

“Ah, yes. Usually, cosmetics advertisements don’t come in for male individuals, but they made an offer saying your skin and mask would be perfect. I think it would suit you well, so I recommend it.”

“But I’m a man.”

“Oh my. Is there a law that says men can’t wear makeup? Besides, this is an advertisement for cleansing cosmetics, so you don’t need to feel too burdened.”

Eunseok looked at the pamphlet with dissatisfaction for a moment before checking the attached document. They say the cosmetics business is lucrative, and indeed, the amount was substantial.

“…Alright.”

In the end, Eunseok succumbed to money.

As they discussed and engaged in light conversation with Secretary Kim, it was already almost 4 PM.

“You have a 4 PM Guiding appointment, right? Well, we’ve roughly sorted things out, so I’ll be going now.”

Secretary Kim said as she tidied up and gathered the pamphlets and documents.

The 4 PM appointee was Choi Hanseo. The thought of Guiding alone with him in the Guiding room already made Eunseok’s throat feel tight.