Zero Point

#024

“Eh… Why? I washed my hands thoroughly with bottled water.”

Moon Bora meekly protested, showing her freshly cleaned hands.

“We can’t leave a Guide alone among hungry Hunters,” Choi Hanseo said. Surprisingly, the team members all nodded in agreement.

“I’m fine with it,” Eunseok said, but the team members gave him somewhat pitying looks. It was as if they were looking at a baby rabbit hopping towards predators, unaware it might be eaten.

“Eunseok, just listen to the Guild Master. It’s hard for us too, just having to look at food we can’t eat…” Moon Bora said. Next to her, Ji Taeuk nodded in agreement.

“Let’s go,” Choi Hanseo urged Eunseok. In truth, Eunseok didn’t mind Guiding during the car ride. It was actually good to not waste travel time.

When Eunseok didn’t move, Choi Hanseo tilted his head to the side as if to say ‘hurry up’.

Well, if the boss says jump, you jump.

Still accustomed to following orders, Eunseok reluctantly followed Choi Hanseo down the mountain path.

As they approached Choi Hanseo’s black sedan, the driver opened the back door. Eunseok looked alternately at the spotless interior of the car and his own clothes. His light-colored clothes were filthy with green blood, tiny body fragments, grass, and dirt from the aftermath of the final attack. It was clear he would ruin the expensive leather seats if he sat down like this.

Eunseok put his duffel bag on the ground and unzipped it. He took out the spare clothes he had packed. As he was about to take off his shirt, suddenly his arm was grabbed.

“What is it?” Eunseok asked.

Choi Hanseo countered, “What are you doing, Mr. Lee Eunseok?”

“I was going to change clothes before getting in the car.”

Choi Hanseo’s eyes scanned the surroundings at Eunseok’s answer. Team members and broadcasting staff who had just come down were preparing to leave in the small clearing.

“Are you planning to just change clothes here?” Choi Hanseo asked with reproachful eyes.

“Is that not allowed?”

“It’s not.”

The answer was razor-sharp.

Is it because of the cameras…

Eunseok glanced at the broadcasting cameras already being loaded into the car.

“Just get in for now. If you’re that uncomfortable, change inside the car.”

While changing shirts might be okay, it would be impolite to change pants with women around. Eunseok realized he needed to break the habit of changing clothes anywhere, which he had picked up in the military. He loaded his duffel bag into the trunk and got into the back seat holding only his spare clothes.

After Choi Hanseo got in the seat next to him and closed the door, the car started and departed. After leaving the clearing, Eunseok was about to take off his shirt again but hesitated. Choi Hanseo was giving him a disapproving look.

“What? You said to change in the car,” Eunseok said in a disgruntled voice. He could tolerate being dirty, but the stench from the monster’s blood and body parts was unbearable.

“Mr. Lee Eunseok, you need to be more aware of the fact that you’re a Guide,” Choi Hanseo said.

“Are Guides not allowed to change clothes?”

“That’s right. You shouldn’t carelessly take off your clothes.”

“There aren’t any women here, so what’s the problem?”

“There may not be women, but there’s a Hunter right next to you.”

It was still difficult to follow the thought process of ability users.

“Are you saying that if I undress, it will stimulate you, Guild Master?”

“What do you think?”

Choi Hanseo asked with narrowed eyes. The pupils in his slitted eyes had a strangely threatening glint.

“Now that you’re no longer an ordinary person, you need to realize that you’re a Guide, and a very appetizing one at that. To Hunters, Guides are sexual objects regardless of gender. Especially since you’re an S-class Guide, Mr. Lee Eunseok. You’re someone they want to sweet-talk or even use force to take down.”

It was a rather unpleasant statement. Eunseok frowned, not bothering to hide his feelings.

“Accept reality as soon as possible. That’s the way to protect both your body and mind.”

Having finished speaking, Choi Hanseo picked up a tablet. As Choi Hanseo quickly immersed himself in work, Eunseok glared at him for a moment before abruptly taking off his shirt. As he put on the new shirt, he noticed Choi Hanseo’s gaze was still fixed on the tablet. However, his slightly furrowed brow betrayed his mood.

Seeing no sign of further objection, Eunseok skillfully took off his pants. As he was putting his feet into the new pants, Choi Hanseo finally looked at him.

“What? Are you turned on by me too, Guild Master?” Eunseok asked as he lifted his hips to pull up his pants.

“Knowing that, you still strip in front of me? Are you brave, Mr. Lee Eunseok, or just reckless? Or are you trying to seduce me?”

“…”

Eunseok’s throat tightened, and he silently zipped up his pants and buttoned them.

After enduring an awkward silence until they arrived at the building, Eunseok got out of the car without a word and headed straight for his quarters. As he stripped off his clothes and stepped into the hot shower, the conversation and situation from the car came flooding back to him.

‘Are you saying that if I undress, it will stimulate you, Guild Master?’

‘What do you think?’

‘What? Are you turned on by me too, Guild Master?’

‘Knowing that, you still strip in front of me? Are you brave, Mr. Lee Eunseok, or just reckless? Or are you trying to seduce me?’

“Bastard,” Eunseok cursed, roughly running his hands through his wet hair.

It was bad enough being seen as a sexual object by dark-skinned men, but Choi Hanseo’s last words had aroused a strange sexual shame in Eunseok.

Eunseok scrubbed his head and body vigorously to shake off the feeling.

After finishing his shower and checking the time, it was appropriate for lunch. Although he was quite hungry, he didn’t feel like filling his stomach with anything at the moment. Instead of going down to the cafeteria, Eunseok pressed a speed dial number on his phone.

Ring ring-

Secretary Kim answered the phone almost immediately.

“Yes, Guide Lee. Do you need anything?”

“I’d like to request Guiding reservations for Hunter Han Cheolyong, Hunter Moon Bora, Hunter Oh Seongeun, and Hunter Shin Jeongho. I’m available for Guiding from now, so please schedule all four of them for today. I think one hour each would be good, is that possible?”

Eunseok was planning on doing contact Guiding today, so he requested shortened times.

“Yes, of course it’s possible when the Guide requests it first. I’ll contact those Hunters right away.”

“Alright, I’ll move to the Guiding room and wait there.”

After hanging up, Eunseok drank a bottle of cold water and left his quarters.

When he checked his tablet after moving to the Guiding room, four notifications had already appeared. They were reservation requests from the four people he had asked for. He accepted them all and sat down in the chair. Shortly after, the doorbell rang. When he went to open the door, Oh Seongeun was standing there.

“Come in and have a seat.”

Oh Seongeun nodded slightly and walked to the desk, taking a seat.

“How’s your condition?” Eunseok asked as he sat across from him at the desk.

“My numbers suddenly jumped, so my condition isn’t great, but I feel refreshed.”

His expression and tone were still cold, but Eunseok sensed a deeper friendliness in Oh Seongeun’s expression and words. It seemed he didn’t mind their shared experience in the Gate.

“Is a handshake okay?” Eunseok asked, extending his hand across the desk.

Oh Seongeun stared at the hand for a moment before slowly raising his own. As they clasped hands in a handshake, Eunseok immediately began Guiding.

Contact Guiding was indeed very different from area Guiding in both efficiency and feeling. The exchange of energy along with physical contact definitely increased their intimacy even without much conversation.

Oh Seongeun let out a soft, long sigh.

Eunseok could see the slight frown between his brows relaxing.

“If there was anything I needed to improve inside the Gate, would you mind telling me?” Eunseok asked while Guiding. He didn’t think there were any particular issues, but that was just his own perspective. Eunseok was newly incorporated into a team that was already perfectly in sync. If there was anything the team members found uncomfortable, he needed to adapt to it.

“There wasn’t anything like that. I was relieved that you did better than expected. However…”

Oh Seongeun trailed off. Eunseok gave him a look encouraging him to speak freely. After thinking for a moment as if choosing the right words, Oh Seongeun spoke again.

“The sustained area Guiding was excellent. Of course, this Guiding now is too. The timing of your focused Guiding when I was about to cast to eliminate the ant colony was also appropriate. However, the intensity of that focused Guiding was extremely strong…”

Oh Seongeun trailed off again.

“Was there any physical or mental discomfort or inconvenience? Or was there pain?”

As a non-Hunter, Eunseok had no idea what it felt like to receive Guiding. To provide appropriate Guiding to team members in different situations, it was essential to understand how they experienced it.

Oh Seongeun immediately shook his head at Eunseok’s question.

“It’s not that. It’s just that until now, I felt it was enough to receive Guiding that maintained my numbers, so I was a bit surprised by such explosive Guiding. It was my first experience of that kind.”

Oh Seongeun paused briefly, then looked directly into Eunseok’s eyes and asked,

“Are you aware of the physical and emotional changes that occur between Hunters and Guides during Guiding?”

“I’ve read about it in books. Practically speaking, I’m just starting to learn.”

Oh Seongeun nodded slightly. Then, with careful eyes, he said,

“I tend to have a relatively mild reaction to Guiding. Despite that, I felt an intense desire to monopolize you as a Guide for a moment. It’s more common than you might think for Hunters to feel abnormal attachment and affection towards Guides. Or rather, you could say that’s how the Hunter species is naturally wired. So it might be good for you to be wary and careful around Hunters from now on. Of course, the Guild will protect you, and you’re not an easy target yourself… But still, there’s a good chance that unavoidable situations could arise.”

“…Thank you for the advice. I’ll keep it in mind.”

Oh Seongeun’s advice was echoed, in slightly different forms, by the other three scheduled after him. Especially Moon Bora, with her honest and outgoing personality, warned Eunseok in very explicit and direct terms about the dangers of Hunters obsessed with Guiding. According to them, being a high-ranking Guide with high compatibility was like being a plump rabbit wandering in front of starving predators.

Since all the team members gave similar advice, Eunseok had to strongly acknowledge the situation. He also began to understand Choi Hanseo’s words and looks when Eunseok was casually changing clothes.

It seemed he would have to be more careful in his actions from now on. Although it was still insufficient to completely rewire the thought process of someone who had been part of a macho group.