DPGR 23

Before his regression, he’d been timid and scared—too much so to use his full ability.

The result back then? Grade A.

It was a high enough rank, and since Jiho hadn’t cared much about grades, he never tried to revise it.

But things were different now. Jiho might be a little nervous, but he wasn’t afraid or holding back.

If he didn’t deliberately suppress it, hitting S-rank wasn’t out of the question.

“You can begin now,” came the researcher’s voice.

Jiho didn’t hesitate long. He swallowed hard, then pushed his ability to the limit.

The aggressive guiding energy that had once surged wildly through Dojin’s body now funneled smoothly into the machine through the handles.

Woooo—WOOOOO—

Clunk! Clunk-clunk!

The machine’s vibration intensified—so much that Jiho’s head rang from inside.

He heard the startled murmur of the researcher outside.

“W-wait, hold on—what is this…?!”

It had been a long time since Jiho had unleashed this much guiding energy at once.

His face turned pale, and sweat beaded on his forehead.

His head felt overloaded, spinning wildly. He barely managed to hold back the sudden urge to vomit.

Pshhh—

With a sharp hiss, the machine’s door opened.

Jiho opened his eyes, which he had closed to concentrate, and found himself staring at the pale-faced researcher, the stunned Alpha Team espers, and a visibly shocked Dojin.

What the—?

Did I mess up?

Startled, Jiho instinctively stepped back—but the machine wall was right behind him, blocking any retreat.

Like a cornered rabbit, he shrank back, eyes darting nervously.

Dojin was the first to recover. He approached Jiho and extended his hand.

“Come on out.”

“……”

“Careful, watch your step.”

Dojin sounded perfectly calm. Relieved, Jiho hesitated before taking his hand and stepping out of the machine.

At once, Kijoon, Jihye, and Yulchan rushed over, making a ruckus.

“Holy crap! S-rank! It’s S-rank!”

“First S-rank in Asia!”

“I’ve never even seen an S-rank guide before!”

There were only two officially recognized S-rank guides in the world: Raya Hill of the U.S., and Jeremy Wood of the U.K.

Now, “Seo Jiho of South Korea” would be added to that list.

“Oh my god… I knew something was up with that compatibility score…”

The researcher looked on the verge of fainting. He started pacing in a panic, muttering about alerting the Center and the global organization immediately.

“I… really didn’t expect this,”

Sehun, one of the more composed team members, rubbed his chin as he glanced between Jiho and Dojin.

Then he gently clapped Dojin on the shoulder and asked with concern,

“You going to be okay?”

“…There’s no reason I wouldn’t be.”

“Still… He’s S-rank. The Guide Director won’t just let this go.”

“We’ve already clashed once.”

“What? When did—how…?”

Sehun trailed off, noticing the faintly sharp smile forming on Dojin’s lips.

It vanished quickly, but it had been there.

“It might get a little messy, but the outcome won’t change.”

“The outcome…?”

The outcome. The pair contract between Dojin and Jiho.

Sehun understood exactly what he meant.

His eyes shifted to where Jiho, now surrounded by Kijoon, Jihye, and Yulchan, stood blushing shyly.

A guide who looked so young—and so terribly fragile.

All Sehun could hope for was that this precious guide Dojin had barely secured wouldn’t be torn apart by greedy adults.

“Take good care of him.”

“…Of course. He’s my guide.”

Dojin smiled again—this time fiercely, like someone with no intention of yielding.

To officially pair an esper and a guide, a guarantor was required.

Someone to verify that both parties consented freely, that there was no coercion or bribery involved, and that their compatibility met the World organization’s standards.

Since the authority in pair contracts usually fell to the guide, the guarantor role typically belonged to the Guide Director.

But Dojin didn’t take the contract to the Guide Director.

***

“…You’re asking me to be your guarantor?”

“Yes. Please.”

“…Haah.”

Inside the Esper Wing’s Director’s Office.

The Esper Director looked up from his desk, incredulous at the unexpected visit from Dojin.

He’d known Dojin was returning today, but he hadn’t expected this.

“…Hang on. You’re giving me a headache already.”

He took off his glasses and set them down with a sigh, pinching the bridge of his nose. His relationship with the Guide Director was already strained—and now there was yet another powder keg about to explode.

“S-rank, huh…”

He murmured under his breath, casting his gaze at Dojin and the guide standing quietly beside him.

As soon as the director’s eyes landed on him, the pale-faced guide flinched. That was all—but even that tiny reaction had Dojin subtly shift, placing Jiho behind him like a shield.

Tch.

The Chief Esper clicked his tongue and reached out a hand.

“Well, let’s see this contract then.”

Dojin handed over the documents without resistance—pairing contract, esper certification, guide certification, all in proper order.

Ignoring the rest, the Esper Director immediately opened the guide certificate. And there it was, stamped clearly across the top: S-Rank.

“…The Guide Director doesn’t know yet?”

“He probably just found out.”

“I see… Well, I can’t say I don’t understand why you came to me instead.”

The Esper Director, too, was well aware of the Guide Director’s greed.

Someone like him wouldn’t hesitate to manipulate matching scores just to pair the guide with an esper of his choosing.

And if not that, he’d likely turn Jiho into a trophy—leave him unpaired and sell his guiding to the highest bidder both at home and abroad, treating him like a commodity.

Three days ago, in this very office, the Esper Director had heard Jiho’s background from Dojin.

That young man had been a victim of an illegal guiding facility.

If he ends up being sold around as an Unpaired Guide, it’ll be no different from that hell all over again.

Espers were, by nature, hopelessly soft when it came to guides. And while he was long past his prime and no longer active in the field, the Esper Director was no exception.

‘There’s no way I’m pushing that kid into a future I already know will be hell.’

In his view, there was only one way to protect Jiho: pair him with someone strong, someone clean—

And there was no one more fitting than Dojin.

“…Well. It’s not like I don’t have the authority to sign off.”

He finally spoke after a long pause. A subtle hint of relief passed across Dojin’s face.

Seeing that, the Esper Director began the official process. Or at least, he tried to.

“Ahem. First, the match rate—wait, hold on. This can’t be right.”

“Is there a problem?”

“A problem? A problem?! Of course there is!”

From what Dojin had told him, the Esper Director had only expected a high but plausible match rate—certainly nothing worth raising an eyebrow over.

He hadn’t mentioned anything about this.

“…Don’t tell me you forged this.”

It was a fair suspicion. 99.99%? That was a number he’d never seen in his life.

But one look at the sour expression twisting Dojin’s face, and the director let out a sigh.

“So… it’s not fake?”

“It’s not.”

“Damn. In all my years…”

The first S-rank guide in Asia. That alone was earth-shattering news. And now, to top it off, he had matched at 99.99% with an esper the moment he appeared.

“There should be a researcher’s certification attached at the back. Along with the preliminary compatibility report from earlier.”

The Esper Director flipped through the documents again. As Dojin said, the researcher’s notes confirmed the data was valid—not tampered with—and the compatibility report was indeed attached.

He smothered another sigh and resumed the official questioning.

“All right. There haven’t been any financial exchanges or coercion between you two?”

“None.”

Dojin answered immediately, and Jiho peeked out from behind him, nodding earnestly.

The Esper Director, already briefed on Jiho’s state, didn’t press further after that.

“Has Esper Baek Dojin fully explained the responsibilities of a pair guide to Seo Jiho?”

“…Yes.”

“And Guide Seo Jiho, do you fully understand and accept them?”

Nod, nod.

Jiho nodded again.

But something about how untroubled his face looked made the director frown slightly. He cleared his throat and elaborated on what that “responsibility” really meant.

“As a pair guide, you’ll be deployed directly to dungeons. Unlike unpaired guides who can remain in safe zones, you’ll be exposed to danger in the field.”

Nod, nod.

“…You understand you could die. Is that clear?”

Nod, nod.

Strictly speaking, even unpaired guides wouldn’t remain safe forever.

There were still a few years to go, but eventually, dual dungeons would emerge, and the final dungeon —the end of humanity—would be discovered. When that time came, even unpaired guides would be sent into the field.

Jiho simply thought of it as going in a little earlier than the rest.

But Dojin and the Esper Director, unaware of that truth, couldn’t help feeling uneasy about how calmly Jiho accepted it.

‘Does he not value his own life?’

‘He clearly didn’t understand what I said.’

Both men had similar thoughts, but since Jiho insisted he understood, there was no way to nullify the contract based on assumptions.

In the end, after a few more confirmation questions, the Esper Director finally stamped the pair contract.