DPGR 129

“Director…!”

The area buzzed with unrest. The lingering shreds of darkness dispersed, and the thick scent of blood sent the monsters into a frenzy, shrieking as they charged forward.

The Esper Director grimaced at the searing pain in his left arm, then let out a crooked smile. The pain was brutal, and the situation had worsened, but at least he was still alive.

Though he couldn’t say for how much longer.

“Hold them! Hold them back!”

“Deploy the barrier!”

“Director! Esper Director! Please stay with us!”

“…I’m not dead yet.”

The Esper Director muttered between ragged breaths. With a groan, he slowly pushed himself up.

He looked at his arm. Everything below the elbow was gone. Blood poured freely from the open wound, it was a terrifying amount.

His vision spun.

Of all things… to die from blood loss.

If there had been proper guiding, at least the bleeding could have been controlled.

But there was no time, no guides, and no energy to spare.

He managed to get to his feet, only to sway unsteadily, as if he’d collapse any moment. In fact, a nearby injured esper had to catch and support him.

“A-are you okay? Director? Stay with us!”

“Y-yeah… I’m conscious. Still here…”

His awareness faded by the second. He couldn’t afford that. He had to hold on until backup arrived. He was the only one left who could lead.

‘If I die, there’s no hope left.’

Things were already desperate. His death would completely destroy the remaining espers’ morale.

Forcing himself to focus, the Esper Director whispered to the esper supporting him:

“If I… cough! If I die… just…”

He grinned faintly.

“…Keep it quiet. Don’t let anyone know.”

Saying it aloud made him feel like some war hero from a story—maybe like Admiral Yi Sun-sin. ¹Admiral Yi Sun-sin (이순신, 1545–1598) was one of Korea’s greatest national heroes and a legendary naval commander during the Imjin War (Japanese invasions of Korea, 1592–1598).

Even facing death, he wasn’t afraid. But one thing still weighed on his heart.

He turned for the first time to look behind him, toward the Guide Director.

‘After what I let happen to him… and now I’m going to die too?’

His face twisted. His nose stung, and his vision blurred. As he stood there, numbly surrendering to death.

“—Director! Esper Director!”

The fading sounds around him suddenly sharpened, ringing in his ears again.

Like a dying bulb flickering back to life, consciousness snapped into place.

The Esper Director inhaled sharply, then broke into violent coughing.

“Cough—! Hack—ghk!”

He felt it, energy brushing against his skin, anchoring him back to life.

He instinctively understood what was happening.

Guiding? No way…!

This wasn’t just any guiding—it had a match rate of at least 85%, maybe even over 90%.

He briefly suspected the esper holding him, since they were in physical contact.

But one glance at the esper’s dazed expression, eyes wide, mouth slack with surprise, told him he was feeling it too.

Then… there really is a guide nearby?

His wounds healed rapidly. Strength returned to his limbs.

He gently pushed away the supporting hand and stood on his own, scanning the surroundings like the others.

Dignity didn’t matter now. Every conscious esper nearby was doing the same thing.

Where is it? Where is the guiding coming from?

The others seemed lost, but the Esper Director remembered something from a recent conference: radiant guiding.

Sharpening his senses, he searched for the source of the guiding energy tickling his skin. His eyes scanned the distance.

And there it was.

Far away, in a tucked-away corner, he spotted glinting brown hair and the yellow hem of a hoodie catching the sunlight.

There you are.

Knowing the source brought relief.

Of course, he had no idea how Guide Seo Jiho was managing to guide both him and the other espers, or why he was hiding in a place like that to do it.

“Everyone focus! Focus on the battle!”

The Esper Director straightened his back and stood tall. The wounds in his side, the severed left arm, all had stopped hurting. The pain had faded.

“Just a little more! We can do this!”

At his shout, the espers cried out, not quite a cheer, not quite a battle cry.

Pushed to the edge, they now rallied together, striking the monsters as one.

The howls of monsters quickly turned into screams of pain.

They could survive now.

Winning might still be out of reach, but they could hold out until reinforcements arrived.

As if to prove him right, a wave of espers in combat suits came charging in from the distance.

“Esper Director!”

A young esper beside him shouted with elation.

“The Jeju dungeon raid teams are back! It’s Alpha Team and Beta Team!”

“…!”

Relief spread across the Esper Director’s face. He raised his lighter left arm and waved it high at the reinforcements.

“You bastards—! Took you long enough…!”

The words sounded harsh, but his expression was all joy and release.

“Good timing! Damn good timing!”

***

“Guide Jiho, stop, stop it, please! Guide Jiho!”

“Haa… huhh…”

Jiho, who had been leaning against the wall, slowly slid down and collapsed onto the floor. As he sat there panting, Geonwoo reached out blindly until his hand found Jiho’s shoulder.

“Stop the guiding. Now!”

“B-but…”

Jiho glanced over the wall toward the battlefield. The Esper Director, who’d been near death, was now standing on his own two feet with energy in his steps.

Not just him, other espers also looked visibly better, glancing around in search of the source of the guiding.

Jiho quickly pulled back, hiding his body as he saw the Esper Director’s head start to turn in his direction.

“Haa… huu…”

His breathing was rapid, like he’d just finished running.

Not since the support mission in Japan had he overexerted his guiding like this.

‘I’m dizzy…’

His vision blurred. If it had been direct guiding, it wouldn’t have taken such a toll.

But radiant guiding without contact consumed far more energy.

More than half of what he released dispersed into the air, so to achieve anything close to a decent result, he had to pour out many times his usual output.

As a result, Jiho was rapidly draining his guiding energy.

He could feel the reservoir inside him emptying.

He might, like Geonwoo, lose his eyesight, or one of his other senses.

Of course, with enough rest, his energy and senses would eventually recover.

But if I lose a sense too, when Guide Geonwoo can’t see… it could get dangerous.

Even so, Jiho couldn’t bring himself to stop the guiding.

No, couldn’t was more accurate.

Something’s… wrong with my body…

He’d already tried several times to pull the energy back in. But it wouldn’t respond.

As if rebelling, it surged out of him, uncontrolled.

Geonwoo, unaware of this, could only assume Jiho was being stubborn and ignoring him.

“Guide Jiho…!”

Geonwoo’s expression hardened like never before. Jiho, on the verge of tears, groaned softly and opened his mouth to explain.

But his faint voice was completely drowned out by the cheer that erupted outside.

“…What was that? What’s happening over there?”

Geonwoo turned his head anxiously toward the sound. With his vision gone, he looked visibly uneasy.

Jiho flinched and peeked beyond the wall.

“Ah…”

And their eyes met. A werewolf the size of a house, its jet-black fur bristling, stared straight at them.

Grrrrr—

A low growl rumbled. Fangs bared, the werewolf drooled hungrily as it began to approach.

Step by step, its hulking form advanced. The killing intent it radiated prickled their skin, so sharp, even the blind Geonwoo could feel it.

“…Guide Jiho.”

Geonwoo called his name in a slightly trembling voice. Then, reaching out, he grabbed Jiho’s arm and pulled him behind him.

“When I give the signal, run. You can do that, right?”

“Ah, n-no…”

“It’ll be fine. Don’t look back. Just run.”

Tears welled up in Jiho’s eyes. The werewolf could pounce at any moment and rip them apart, but it moved leisurely, as if savoring the hunt.

That gave Gonwoo precious seconds. He murmured low:

“One.”

“N-no, no, don’t—”

“Two.”

“Guide Gonwoo…”

Gonwoo opened his mouth.

“Three.”

The instant the word left his lips.

ROOAARR—!

The werewolf lunged, jaws wide. Its massive shadow loomed over them.

At the same time, Geonwoo shoved Jiho backward, and Jiho tumbled, crying out his name.

SHRAK—!

The sound of flesh tearing rang out. Hot, sticky liquid splattered over both of them.

But the one who collapsed, bleeding, was the black werewolf.

Thud!

Yelp! Yipe—yelp yelp yipe…!

Its body sliced in two, the werewolf writhed on the ground, whimpering pathetically. Then a sharp blade plunged into its mouth.

Crunch—and the werewolf stopped moving completely.

“Haa… hah…”

The man who had felled the werewolf was breathing heavily. Jiho, eyes filled with tears, looked up at him.

“…Guide Jiho.”

“Uhh…”

“Are you… are you alright?”

“Ha…”

At last, Jiho burst into tears. Grime-streaked cheeks ran wet with sobs and snot.

“Hyaaaahhh…”

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  Admiral Yi Sun-sin (이순신, 1545–1598) was one of Korea’s greatest national heroes and a legendary naval commander during the Imjin War (Japanese invasions of Korea, 1592–1598).