DPGR 48

While Dojin had gone to see Liam off, the rest of the team were crowded around the scruffy monster, chattering nonstop.

“Think we can finally give it a bath now?”

“Yeah. I mean, it can’t talk, but it’s gotta be feeling gross, right?”

“What do we use to wash it though? Is regular shampoo safe?”

“There’s a pet supply store nearby. Should I grab some dog shampoo?”

“It’s a monster, not a dog.”

“Well, there’s no such thing as monster shampoo.”

Regardless of what they were saying, the monster stayed glued to Jiho’s side, tail swaying happily.

Watching the scene, Sehun stroked his chin and murmured,

“That’s seriously interesting.”

“What is?”

“The taming mark is with the Captain, right? But instead of following him, it’s sticking to Guide Jiho.”

“Maybe it’s just because Guide Jiho’s the one who’s been feeding it?”

“You think monsters remember who fed them?”

“Well, it’s a high-grade monster. Maybe it’s got higher intelligence?”

The topic of conversation bounced around. Jiho glanced around nervously, then pulled out his notebook.

Scratch—

He hastily scribbled something and showed it to the others.

[Will it be a problem if this one sticks with me?]

His drooping brows were filled with concern. The others laughed lightly and shook their heads.

“No, no! It actually listened to the Captain earlier too. With a little training, it’ll be fine.”

“Yeah! And monsters usually listen to beings stronger than themselves…”

“Wait, huh?”

The team, nodding at Kijoon’s comment, suddenly turned to Jiho with wide eyes.

Then it hit them—Jiho was S-rank.

“Gasp! Don’t tell me it’s a rank thing?”

“Is it the type to only follow people stronger than it?”

“But Jiho’s a Guide, not an Esper.”

“Still, he’s S-rank. Maybe it’s purely about rank?”

“Hmm, then what about the Captain? He’s S-rank too.”

“Uh… maybe it prioritizes the S-rank who fed it…?”

With no clear answer in sight, the debate just kept looping around. In the end, it was Sehun who broke the spiral.

“Alright, let’s table that for now. First, this little guy needs a bath. Regular shampoo should be fine. It’s a monster—it won’t have sensitive skin, right?”

“Okayyy.”

And so, for the first time in ten whole days, the monster was finally bathed.

Though it had never been washed before, it remained relatively calm even as it was carried off to the bathroom.

Of course, the moment the bath began, all hell broke loose…

Still, they somehow managed to get it clean.

Whimper, growl, whiiine—

Humiliated by its defeat at the hands of humans, the monster glared fiercely at the Alpha team members, growling nonstop.

Jiho, who’d been kept out of the bath for fear of being scratched or bitten, quickly wrapped the freshly washed monster in a towel and gently soothed it.

“Shhh…”

—It’s okay. All done. You did great, huh?

Though the monster couldn’t read lips, it seemed to sense Jiho’s intentions and slowly began to calm down.

It was around then that Dojin returned from seeing Liam off.

“Oh, you managed to wash it already?”

The team leader’s office was now a total mess from the chaos, but the air was filled with the oddly pleasant scent of shampoo—completely out of place.

The team members answered him, their faces drained.

“Yeah… it was brutal…”

“Captain, Kijoonie got scratched. Can we file this as a work injury?”

“I doubt you even need medicine for that.”

“Kijoonie is suffering…”

Leaving the whining Kijoon behind, Dojin walked over to Jiho.

Jiho looked up from drying the monster’s fur.

—You’re back?

“Yes. You didn’t get hurt, did you?”

I stayed back, so I’m fine.

“That’s a relief.”

Dojin gave a faint smile, but there was something different about it. Jiho could sense the subtle shift.

—Did something happen?

“Hmm? No, nothing at all.”

Though Dojin said that, his face looked troubled—clearly something was on his mind. Still, he shook his head and kept his mouth shut.

Hmm…

While Jiho studied Dojin carefully with narrowed eyes, Dojin pointed to the towel-wrapped monster.

“So this one has white fur, huh.”

“Oh, right! Captain, do you recognize what species it is?”

“Hmm. It looks like a fox… but the face is a bit too round for that.”

“A white-furred fox-type monster…”

Golden eyes rimmed with black liner. A red mark on its forehead. Pure white fur. Three tails.

Each individual feature reminded them of something, but none of it matched a specific monster exactly.

The team huddled together, racking their brains to figure it out.

In the end, it was Jiho who solved it.

“……!”

Lost deep in thought, Jiho suddenly stood up, gently set the monster down, and rushed off to find the bestiary.

A moment later, he returned, flipped to a page, and held it out for everyone to see.

[Gumiho] (Nine-tailed fox)

It was the same monster page Jiho had once shown before.

“A gumiho?”

Jiho nodded enthusiastically.

“But the eye color and number of tails are different.”

Jiho shook his head, then started scribbling something in his notebook again.

[Some animals have eye colors that change as they grow up.]

“Ah, like cats?”

He nodded again.

“Oh, maybe monsters are like that too. It’s not like we’ve ever seen a baby monster grow up before.”

“That’s a fascinating theory.”

[The number of tails might also be because it’s still young. Maybe it’ll grow more as it gets older.]

“Yeah… it really does resemble a gumiho, now that you put it that way.”

“True. The face is kinda round and soft-looking, but if that’s because it’s still a cub…”

As the others agreed, Jiho let out a proud little giggle. From a short distance away, Dojin watched with a wry smile tugging at his lips.

A conversation with Liam from earlier echoed in his mind.

“By the way, that Jiho person—he’s a Guide, yes?”

“Yes. He’s my Pair Guide.”

“Ah, I see. Then why hasn’t he been treated?”

“…Sorry?”

Liam raised a brow at him.

“He seemed capable of speech. Didn’t he use his voice?”

“……”

“Thought so. And yet, you haven’t arranged any treatment. That must mean there’s a reason, right? Ah—could it be that Korea doesn’t have the concept of rehabilitation?”

Liam had said it bluntly, even somewhat rudely. He’d gone on to brag about the top specialist in his country, offering to make an introduction.

“If I were Jiho’s Pair, I wouldn’t have let this slide. I would’ve made sure he got proper treatment.”

“That’s something for me to decide.”

“No, Mr. Baek. That’s something Jiho should decide. The choice is his. Did you fully explain the situation to him?”

Dojin hadn’t been able to say anything to that.

He had to admit he’d prioritized Jiho’s field adaptation over his emotional or speech rehabilitation. He’d never thought of it as neglect—but thinking back, he couldn’t exactly say it wasn’t.

“Mr. Baek. A Pair Guide is not the property of their Pair Esper. Keep that in mind.”

With that, Liam had smugly gotten into his taxi and left.

Dojin had stood there, watching the vehicle disappear, chewing over his guilt again and again.

Even now, that feeling hadn’t gone away.

[We should give it a name.]

“A name? Ah, good idea. He’s part of our team now. We can’t just keep calling him ‘the monster.’”

“He follows Guide Jiho the most, so how about letting him pick?”

[Would that be okay?]

Jiho smiled shyly, and when the others started joking around, his mouth opened wide in laughter.

He gestured with his hands, moved his lips, and communicated through notebook and pen, constantly trying to join the conversation.

Dojin felt his heart growing heavier.

‘He’s such a social kid. He loves being part of the group, chatting like this. Had I delayed his chance at healing just because I was too comfortable with how things were?’

Maybe it’s not too late…

Even now, he could start pursuing proper treatment for Jiho. Of course, just as Liam said, the final decision would be Jiho’s. The first step was explaining the options.

As Dojin watched Jiho, lost in thought, Jiho finally decided on a name and wrote it down.

[Heendungi? Because his fur is white.]

Though the team gave a few awkward chuckles at Jiho’s naming style, they quickly burst into cheers at the satisfied look on his face.

“Wow, Heen—Heendungi! So cute!”

“Totally sounds like something out of a cartoon!”

“Nice! Easy to say and it rolls right off the tongue!”

“…Hee.”

The newly named Heendungi didn’t understand any of it, but he seemed happy just seeing Jiho smiling, and let out a few content snuffles.

Dojin, warmed by the joyful team atmosphere, collected himself and joined in.

“Since we have a new team member, we’ll need joint training.”

“Joint training?”

“Yes. First, we need to figure out what Heendungi’s abilities are, and then see how he meshes with the rest of us.”

Dojin glanced at the time and added,

“It’s almost the end of the day, so rest for now. We’ll start joint training on Monday—three days from now.”

“Gasp!”

“Yessss!”

The team, who’d been quietly suffering from boredom lately, exploded with excitement at the word “training.”

Jiho let out another soft giggle, and Heendungi jumped up, tail wagging.

In the middle of the chaotic scene, the last remnants of doubt lingering in Dojin’s heart were swept away.

The office was now filled with cheerful energy and laughter that echoed like sunshine.