The Espers Who Regretted Losing Me Chapter 59

“Co— ah… right. You don’t need to worry about that,” the Director said.
“Dogyeong, Shinra, and Eunhwi have all been in pretty bad condition over the past year, so they’ll need recovery training first. Officially, we’ll say that you’re recovering together with them during that time.”

Ah, I see.
Recovery training usually takes about one to two months.

Since they couldn’t let an S-rank guide sit idle for no reason, they planned to lie and say I couldn’t use my ability properly yet.

I didn’t expect the Director to pull tricks like this.

Did Cha Eunhwi beg him or something?
Either way, it wasn’t bad for me.

“I understand.”

I nodded, but the Director kept staring at me blankly.

“Why are you looking at me like that? Did I say something strange…?”

I felt uncomfortable, so my voice naturally turned stiff.

At my question, the Director let out a short sound.

“Ah—no. Sorry. It’s just that I still can’t believe you’re alive. Seeing you all sitting together like this feels… strange.”

It felt strange to me too.

My death probably hadn’t meant that much to him.

After taking a deep breath, the Director continued calmly.

“Once the recovery training ends, we’ll reorganize the units. And during that process, I promise that your opinion will come first.”

“My opinion?”

“Yes. If you want to form a unit with espers other than these three, I’ll allow that.”

Now he says that?
Back then, he wouldn’t even pretend to listen when I begged.

Rather than gratitude, irritation came first.

The Director kept speaking.

“Hyeya. Originally, you wanted to quit being a guide altogether. And your relationship with these three… even politely speaking, it wasn’t good. If quitting wasn’t possible, you asked nearly a hundred times to become an independent guide instead. And I was the one who rejected every request.”

Cha Eunhwi had said the same thing earlier.
I answered indifferently.

“Wow. You were a real tyrant boss, huh? I already got bullied by them nonstop, and on top of that my boss was like that? That really sounds like hell.”

Honestly, it really did feel like running barefoot through fire.

What I said—half sarcasm, half reckless courage—was meant to pity my past self.

Even though his power had mostly faded, the Director was still an esper.
And I was still an excellent guide.

That meant I could feel emotions strongly when nearby.

Regret. Guilt.
And they were all directed at me.

Despite my obvious sarcasm, the Director only gave a bitter smile and said, “I suppose so.”

Cha Eunhwi, Yeon Dogyeong, and Lee Shinra stayed silent.

The heavy emotions in the air made me frown.

He used to seem like the type who wouldn’t bleed even if pricked with a needle.

Still, long silence was uncomfortable, so I asked casually.

“How long will their recovery training take? And I heard the Geumgang Second Unit was disbanded, but I heard that name again earlier.”

“…Recovery time depends on the person, so it’s hard to say. It can be as short as two weeks or as long as three months. And yes, the unit was officially disbanded. We only used the old name because this was an emergency call.”

Then he added, almost to himself, “In the end, I came because I was impatient.”

I listened quietly, pretended to think, then spoke.

“To be honest, I don’t really know other espers right now. Still, thank you for saying my opinion comes first. But what if, when the time comes, they insist on being in the same unit as me?”

They had promised inside the gate that they wouldn’t—but people always change their minds.

They might pressure the Director quietly, or the Director himself might order it.

I trusted neither the Director nor espers even as much as a speck of mouse droppings.
So this was a very reasonable question.

That was exactly how we ended up in the same unit when we were younger.

The Director answered seriously.

“That won’t happen. But even if it does, what matters most is still your decision.”

At the same time, Cha Eunhwi nodded and added,

“I told you earlier, didn’t I? We’ll leave documents. We’ll follow official procedures and write a proper contract. I promise nothing will disadvantage or harm you.”

I turned to look at Yeon Dogyeong without thinking.

Lee Shinra had heard and agreed to this inside the gate—but Yeon Dogyeong hadn’t.

And he’s the most stubborn one of the three.

Even with official procedures, if an esper threw a tantrum, the Association usually looked the other way.

A place that pretended to have systems but really didn’t.

I’d watched it run like a messy corner shop since I was young, so trusting it easily was hard.

When I looked at him suspiciously, Yeon Dogyeong’s cheeks turned slightly red.

“Don’t stare like that. My eyes are swollen—this is embarrassing…”

He pulled a can out of a black bag and handed it to me.

The way he avoided eye contact almost looked shy, which gave me chills.

As I took the cola awkwardly, he muttered,

“I won’t be stubborn either, if that’s what you want.”

The Director, noticing my doubtful expression, asked gently,

“I know you’re worried, but could you trust us, just a little?”

I had shown enough suspicion already.
If I kept pushing, I’d look strange instead.

So I nodded.

Instead, I said what I’d been thinking for a while.

“Then… when you reorganize the unit, can we change the name?”

“Don’t you like the name Geumgang?”

“Not really. I told them inside the gate, but certain words make bad memories come back—like a chain reaction.”

I pressed the cold can to my temple and frowned.

The Director lowered his gaze briefly, then nodded.

“Alright. I’ll have Eunhwi send you a list of unused unit names. Discuss it together and decide.”

I’d thrown that out thinking nothing to lose, but he accepted it so easily that I was surprised again.

Do people really change this much after dying and coming back?

I’d never died, and I’d never seen someone return from death, so I had nothing to compare it to.

If Mom and Dad came back alive, I’d probably do anything too…

Still, the Director and I weren’t close.

Just like when the espers cried over me—it was a reaction I couldn’t understand.

Noticing my discomfort, the Director stood up from the sofa.

“It would be better to hear the rest from these three. And just in case, I think it would be good for you to get examined. No matter how safe the place was, we don’t know what effect it had on your body. There could also be bacteria that don’t affect humans but harm other living things.”

Now that I thought about it, we had moved straight to the operations room because of all the attention.

Normally, reports, sterilization, and disinfection were done on the first floor.

Checking my condition was expected, so I nodded.

“Yes, I’ll do that. Where and when?”

“I told Eunhwi the location. We’ll schedule it for two hours later, and you’ll go together. Until then, it may feel uncomfortable, but it’s best if you wait here.”

Since it was only two hours later—and we were going together—it probably wasn’t a full examination.

When I stood up without thinking as he moved to leave, the Director waved his hand.

Then he smiled.

A gentle smile—one I had never seen before.