The Director’s office had gone quiet.“I resign. No—I'll leave the country.”Sawon stated his intent calmly.“What, you punk?!”Director Kwon slammed the desk with a bang and shouted. A lethal air hung in the office. Next to Sawon, who stood with one foot braced, Mok Geonho stood ramrod-straight.Gu Sawon, you little…!Mok Geonho mouthed a scold at him. Regardless, Sawon shoved both hands into the hoodie pocket.“When missions flip like a palm turn, how am I supposed to trust you and work, Director. You told me to lay low, then to guard the Institute, then suddenly deploy me, and now a dedicated guard? I won’t do it.”Director Kwon glared at him. He knew it well: when Sawon pinned it as “can’t” instead of “won’t,” he truly wouldn’t do that job. While Kwon looked to Mok Geonho and thought of a way to persuade Sawon, Mok swallowed dry and merely watched. Having handled the upper floors, Mok was bearing joint responsibility for the 43rd-floor explosion.Letting out a long sigh, Director Kwon fixed his gaze on Sawon.“Why can’t you. What’s the reason. Let’s hear it.”“The reason?”Sawon immediately thought of Ji Hayeon. That first, intense meeting. Stubborn even while staggering, covered in blood; the touchy attitude and the wrestling with Nine over a little puffball; the way he curled up and looked at him. In every way, Ji Hayeon was a bothersome, grating person. Beyond that, he was someone who had to be handled more delicately than a sensitive child. And Sawon had cared for beasts, not people. Especially not a person that finicky.He narrowed his eyes and answered.“We don’t mesh. We’ll be at each other’s throats in half a day, grabbing collars, and he’ll be the first to tell me to get lost.”Director Kwon tapped the desk.“…Then you adjust.”At that, Sawon let out a breathy, hollow laugh. That reaction meant Kwon himself agreed that Ji Hayeon had a finicky disposition. Not knowing the situation, Mok only glanced between Kwon and Sawon, reading the room. Kwon jerked his chin toward the door.“Mok Geonho. Join the post-processing team first. Go inspect the site.”“…Yes.”Click, the door shut, and only two remained. Folding his arms, Sawon sat on the sofa.“What are you going to say that you sent Mok out.”“You have to be Chief Ji’s guard. No one else can do it but you.”Sawon threw his words back at him.“I’ll at least hear the reason.”Clicking his tongue, Kwon worked the watch-type comm on his wrist. In no time a message came to Sawon’s comm. When he hit the button, a holographic prompt came up in his vision.〈Receive the file?〉He pressed accept, and a dozen square hologram windows opened. They held ID photos and personal details; a few were faces Sawon knew.“Please save the Chief.”It was the researcher he’d met at the Institute elevator.“What is this.”“Members participating in a new project. They’re also the personnel who can access the 43rd floor.”The hologram papers included researchers, two hunters who looked like guards, and info for the lab director and Kwon himself. When Kwon crooked a finger, red slashes struck through several windows, marking the dead. Left were Senior Researcher Ji Hayeon, four researchers, the Director, and the Lab Director.“There’s a lot that can’t leak yet. It’s being run closed even internally, so we can’t assign many guards and we can’t use just anyone. It’s all selected elites, and of all places, the black-sphere formation progressed there… tch.”At the words “closed research,” Sawon immediately recalled Ji Hayeon’s state: an intellect-type Awakened showing reactions like a stamina-type hunter.Testing Kwon, Sawon spoke.“That state I saw Chief Ji in—that’s the research, I take it?”“Yeah.”Kwon answered without hesitation, as if resigned. In the end, Sawon was in the same boat now—so bear responsibility. Sawon furrowed his brow. If another hunter had discovered that scene then, if he had been even a bit lazier, there would have been no proposal for him to serve as Ji Hayeon’s guard.Should’ve played dumb a little.Brooding, he then shook his head. The upper floors were handled by low-year, low-grade hunters. Left as-is, there would almost certainly have been hunter casualties.“As you can see, Chief Ji’s in bad shape a lot. Whatever about the other researchers—Chief Ji can’t go without a guard. It’s nothing hard. Just keep watch and live alongside him. I’ll swap you out as soon as I find someone suitable.”Even as he said it, Kwon didn’t look thrilled. Sawon tapped his toe.“And if I say I absolutely can’t do it. Then what.”“Well. Until we find the right person, we’ll have to protect Chief Ji by other means.”***As he walked the hospital corridor, a hologram notice streamed endlessly ahead of Sawon.〈Basic Rules for a Dedicated Guard〉〈It is a basic principle to reside at the protectee’s side. Hunter regulations apply identically, and…〉The more he read, the deeper his brow creased. Reside at his side.“It’s literally babysitting. What, follow him to the bathroom too.”Grumbling as he went, he soon saw the room door up ahead. Late at night, ~Nоvеl𝕚ght~ the corridor that should have been quiet resounded with relentless knocking. He heard the medic’s voice too.“I said no!”“Open up, now!”A loud sound came from inside the door. The medic wiped his forehead and heaved sighs.“Ha… so there was a reason you locked it.”Sawon waved a hand and the hologram document vanished. As he approached, he asked:“What is it?”Recognizing him, the medic gave a wry smile and explained.“His condition’s still not good, but he keeps trying to go out… so we activated the lock system and the Metena blocker.”At that, Sawon glanced at the door, still thudding.“Director Kim authorized it. He said not to let him out under any circumstances.”“Mm…”'Well. Until we find the right person, we’ll have to protect Chief Ji by other means.'If this was the “other means,” the patient’s body would worsen rather than recover. This time his eyes fell to the medicine pouch in the medic’s hand.“Is that for Chief Ji?”“Ah. Yes. It’s time for his meds, but the moment the sedative wore off, this mess started. We can’t even open the door.”After a brief thought, Sawon held out his palm.“Give me that. I get him to take it and put him to sleep, right?”“Yes, that’s right, but… are you going to open the door?”Staring tensely at the handle, the medic asked. Taking the pouch, Sawon turned away.“No. I’ve got my own door.”Leaving the puzzled medic behind, Sawon went upstairs. Exiting a window on the 20th floor, he climbed down the wall like rock climbing, then slipped in through the 19th-floor window of Ji Hayeon’s room. In the unlit room, Ji Hayeon was still standing at the door. Tock, tock, teeth clicked together. Pacing anxiously, he didn’t notice Sawon sitting by the window.“Didn’t you hear me tell you to stay put.”With a small grunt of effort, Sawon stepped inside. Only then did Ji Hayeon turn to him. Red lips parted and moved a few times, and he raked his eyes up and down Sawon.“You… why are you coming in there?”Near those red lips, his bent fingers trembled. In Sawon’s sharp gaze, his nails came into view. With nothing left to tear, they were even more ragged than in the daytime.So that’s a habit.Ignoring his hands, Sawon approached him.“You were waiting there, so I came here. If I open the door, you’ll bolt.”Ji Hayeon’s eyes sharpened on him.“…Why did you come.”Lifting a corner of his mouth, Sawon answered in a breezy tone.“Came because I wanted to see you, Chief.”At that, Ji Hayeon’s shoulders gave a jolt.His mouth was smiling, but his eyes held no emotion at all. When Sawon set a hand on the shoulder braced against the door, Ji Hayeon’s face crumpled. He slapped at Sawon’s hand. To be precise, he tried to, but the weak arm couldn’t even brush off one of Sawon’s fingers. Sawon drew him back and stood behind him, gripping both shoulders. Because Ji Hayeon was taller than Sawon, his arms naturally rose higher. The trembling that met his palms hadn’t changed much since daytime. Sawon guided him toward the bed.“Did you eat? Feels like you’ve been starving.”“Food isn’t what matters right now.”He did his best to brace and refuse, but he couldn’t beat Sawon. Even after telling him to let go several times, when Sawon didn’t budge, Ji Hayeon shouted:“Gu Sawon!”Only then did he stop. With a smack, Ji Hayeon knocked his hand off Sawon’s arm. Though he took the slap, Sawon didn’t so much as sway.“You have a comm, right. Just one call. Lend it.”“Who are you calling.”“Director Kim.”“To ask to get you out of here?”From what he’d heard, no one was more straight-laced than Director Kim. There was no way such a man would undo confinement for a mere call or two.“Where are you going in this state. The Institute?”“That’s none of your business. Institute matters are my purview.”Sawon nodded perfunctorily.“And what are you going to do there. You must’ve heard they put up a barrier; the Deaters won’t all be handled yet. How are you getting to the 43rd floor?”“I’ll handle it.”“Right…”“Just open the door. I can do the rest by myself.”That stubbornness is really…“…Impressive.”Sawon bent, then gripped the backs of his thighs. Startled, Ji Hayeon planted a hand on his shoulder.“What are you doing!”

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