DPGR 155

Jiho, unaware of Dojin’s plan, remained at the safe zone as requested, focusing on radiant guiding.

As he concentrated, pink-hued energy began to flow from his body. It was such a striking sight that the guides nearby could only stare blankly at Jiho for a moment.

“Ah! That’s right, guiding!”

“Oh…!”

Snapping out of it, they hurriedly resumed guiding.

From a distance, it hadn’t been clear, but up close, the reality of how badly the battle was going hit hard.

That’s all the espers left alive…?

The number of fighters had dropped to a fraction of what it was. And not a single one was uninjured.

The guides squeezed out their energy with all they had. Jiho stayed focused on the guiding, but part of him couldn’t stop replaying what Dojin had said before he left:

“I’ll be fine. Let’s make sure we meet again.”

Jiho didn’t understand those words, and something about them filled him with unease. He bit his lip anxiously.

He tasted a faint trace of blood, but felt no pain.

‘No. It’s okay. He’ll be okay.’

Even as he repeated it to himself, his heart continued to pound wildly.

And then it happened.

Bang! Bang-bang-bang-bang!

Five distant gunshots rang out, followed by an explosion.

Jiho’s face, frozen in terror, lit up in an instant. Dojin was flying through the air, perfectly fine—and shortly after, the monster’s jaw fell off.

All that was left now was for Dojin to destroy the monster’s core.

‘Wait… huh? But the core…’

How is he going to destroy it?

When Kwak Jiheon had raised the same concern, Dojin had brushed it off, saying he had a method.

Back then, the situation had been too hectic to question it, but thinking back now, it felt strange.

“No… no…”

“Guide Jiho?”

“Hey, what’s wrong with you…?”

The other guides, who had been focused on guiding, started to raise their heads and look to the sky, specifically, at Baek Dojin flying straight into the monster’s mouth.

“Hyung…! Baek Dojin…!”

“Guide Jiho!”

“Get him! Stop him!”

“No! Baek Dojin!”

A deafening boom followed.

Yulchan’s barrier trembled as if it would shatter.

“Khak…!”

Yulchan doubled over, coughing up blood, his wide eyes filled with confusion.

Still, knowing he couldn’t hold out much longer, he took charge of the guides and the defensive espers.

“Everyone, we have to move! Get out of here, now!”

“No, no! Hyung…! Let go! Let go of me!”

Jiho thrashed, but the defensive espers restrained him and all but dragged him away.

Yulchan, staying behind, staggered toward the barrier. With trembling hands, he leaned against the wall, staring with fearful eyes at the collapsing monster.

Its body, like a puppet with cut strings, lost all strength and crumbled to the ground. Shattered fragments of its head scattered and rolled across the floor.

The smoke from the explosion obscured everything, making it hard to see what had happened.

‘Captain…?’

Jiho tried to spot any trace of Dojin, but deep down, he already knew.

The wave of energy released in that explosion had unmistakably been the unique resonance of an esper. There was no mistaking it.

Did he really overload… just to kill that thing?

His legs gave out beneath him. He sank to the ground, and as a single tear silently slipped down his pale cheek.

“Huh…?”

The falling snow stopped. A wind blew from afar, sweeping away the smoke.

As the smoke began to clear, a shadow appeared among the monster’s remains. Yulchan’s eyes widened.

“…Captain?”

He shot to his feet and pressed his face to the barrier. At first he thought he was hallucinating, but others outside had started to move, clearly seeing the same thing he was.

Those closest to the figure recognized him and ran toward him with astonished faces.

Everyone was shouting. It sounded like they were calling Baek Dojin’s name.

Yulchan rushed out of the safe zone.

“C-Captain! Captain Baek!”

Even though he knew Dojin probably couldn’t hear him, he screamed his name with everything he had.

As the smoke fully cleared, Dojin’s figure was finally revealed.

“Captain…! Wait, what…?”

Yulchan froze mid-run and stepped back.

Standing atop the monster’s remains, Dojin looked completely unfamiliar. His eyes were glowing blood-red, devoid of any focus.

Veins bulged grotesquely across his face like a spiderweb. Raw, dark crimson mana surged wildly from his entire body.

“…!”

The other espers watched in alarm, unsure how to react.

“Ba-Baek Dojin…?”

Someone reached out toward him, but their hand never touched him. A towering pillar of flame erupted from Dojin’s body, consuming them.

“AAAGH!”

The esper yanked their arm back, clutching the burned limb and rolling on the ground. Meanwhile, the flames from Dojin’s body shot outward, lashing at the surrounding espers.

Several were burned in the sudden attack.

“Everyone, fall back! He’s still in a overload state!”

“O-overload?!”

“What the hell…!”

One of the more experienced espers shouted out.

An SS-rank in overload. It was hard to believe he was still alive after obliterating the monster’s head and core, let alone capable of releasing that kind of mana.

The news sent a shockwave through the espers.

“W-We need to stop those flames somehow…”

“If the snow melts, there could be a landslide!”

“What do we do?! Should we try knocking him out?!”

Panic spread through the group.

Even the Alpha Team members were overwhelmed.

“C-Captain!”

Kijoon raised his shield and slowly approached Dojin.

“Hey! Are you crazy?! You wanna die?!”

Jihye shouted from behind, but Kijoon didn’t stop.

“Ugh… hot! Captain! Captain Baek!”

Dojin’s head turned in Kijoon’s direction. Kijoon thought he recognized him.

“Please calm down! If this keeps up, you’ll be in danger!”

If an esper’s overload state was left unchecked, their internal mana would deplete and lead to death.

And there was no guarantee the others would wait that long.

Overload espers tended to lose all reason and attack indiscriminately. Protocol dictated they be subdued, or killed, before causing further harm.

But how could anyone subdue an SS-rank?

This is dangerous.

Right now, the others were stunned by the situation, hesitant because Dojin had just saved them.

But if he keeps going, they’ll have to kill him.

Enough people had already been injured by his flames. It was only a matter of time.

He had to be stopped before that.

There has to be a way.

Kijoon wracked his brain, but no good ideas came. As he silently cursed himself.

“–Hyung! Baek Dojin hyung!”

He glanced back, Jiho was running toward them.

A fragile guide, running straight into this chaos.

“Ugh!”

Jiho tripped over a snowbank and nearly fell, but got up again and kept running.

Kijoon quickly shouted toward Dojin.

“Captain! Over there–your guide!”

“……”

“If this keeps up, Guide Seo Jiho will get hurt!”

Flinch.

Dojin, who hadn’t responded to anything, visibly flinched at the name Seo Jiho.

That was it. Despite being in a overload state, he still recognized his guide.

Kijoon allowed a hopeful smile to creep onto his face. But–

Fwoooosh

The wind and air swirled toward Dojin. Just as Kijoon realized something was wrong.

Boom!

An explosion erupted.

Kijoon tried to brace himself by planting his shield and hunching low, but he was blown backward.

The espers nearby were also thrown. Jiho, too, was knocked off his feet and rolled across the ground.

“Ugh… uhh…”

A painful groan escaped Dojin’s lips. He doubled over, clawing at his face with both hands.

Blood-red tears dripped from his eyes.

“Ah… ugh…!”

“C-Captain–agh! It’s hot!”

Flames rose from Dojin’s body and swirled like a storm. Even with Kijoon’s shield, it was hard to get close.

‘I can’t talk him down.’

He gave up on reasoning with Dojin and ran to Jiho.

By now, Yulchan, Geonwoo, and Sena had caught up and were helping Jiho to his feet.

“H-Hyung, hyung…”

“Guide Jiho!”

“Esper Choi Kijoon! What about Dojin hyung? What’s happening to him? Tell me!”

Jiho seemed unaware that Dojin was in an overload state, or maybe he knew but refused to accept it.

Kijoon glanced down at the arm Jiho had desperately grabbed, hesitated, and reluctantly answered.

“Uh, Captain… he’s in… overload…”

“O-Overload…”

Jiho swayed for a moment. Then he straightened up, planting his feet firmly.

“Then… what do we do? Do we subdue him and transfer him to a bunker at the Center?”

That was the standard procedure. The problem was, they had no one capable of subduing Dojin.

Kijoon couldn’t bring himself to answer and just lowered his head. He couldn’t say out loud what was likely going to happen.

As he silently moved his lips in place of words, Jiho’s eyes widened.

“I’ll go.”