The Espers Who Regretted Losing Me Chapter 72

Silence fell again.

Like I said before, we didn’t know the reason. We didn’t know the cause. We couldn’t even guess.

Even if these three had lived like empty shells until yesterday and missed everything that happened over the past year, if a guide had gone through changes like this inside a gate, there was no way the Director wouldn’t have mentioned it.

Honestly… I kind of like it, though.

Not just a passing thought. I really did.

The reason guides had been looked down on was simple: even though we were awakened like espers, the only thing we could do was guide. We had no other abilities.

But if my physical abilities improve to the level of espers, then I won’t have to hear that kind of crap anymore.

On top of that, my senses felt fine right now. Nothing hurt. Nothing felt uncomfortable.

I moved my body around, focused on sounds, and checked my condition one more time. Then I spoke lightly.

“For now, it doesn’t seem bad, so let’s keep going. If something feels wrong, I’ll say something.”

I waved my hand like I was brushing away bugs, pushing aside the anxious and worried looks they were giving me.

And as we continued the gate raid, I became sure that my changes weren’t just luck or something temporary.

I sensed monsters faster than Cha Eunhwi, Yeon Dogyeong, or Lee Shinra, and I easily took down any monster that charged at me with my baton.

What Lee Shinra had said was also true.

“…No matter how much we check, it’s exactly like Shinra said. When Hyeya hits a monster, it feels like a radial guiding—calm energy spreading out. And the more monsters she hits, the more that feeling stacks.”

“Yes. And when this kind of guiding happens, the monsters don’t… run at noona.”

“But if she guides normally, they still only target Yoon Hyeya like crazy.”

We tested it more than ten times. There was no way it was a mistake.

After burning an eyeless crocodile that crawled out of the cave lake, Yeon Dogyeong turned to Cha Eunhwi and complained.

“No, seriously, what is this? Why is it like this? Leader, don’t you know anything?”

“I really don’t. If I knew, I would’ve said something already. But… there is something that bothers me.”

Something bothering him. Not just him—everyone probably thought of the same thing.

There was only one clear difference between me and other guides.

“Could it be… the gate noona was trapped in?” Lee Shinra asked carefully.

That was it. The time I spent in The Reclaimed Strange Paradise was the biggest difference between me and other guides.

At Lee Shinra’s cautious words, Cha Eunhwi nodded.

“For now, that’s the only explanation that makes sense. So, Hyeya—yesterday you had tests done, but once we leave the gate, how about doing a full physical ability test too? What do you think?”

“Yeah. We should. This is too strange to ignore.”

“There’s nothing strange about you, Yoon Hyeya. If hitting monsters causes guiding, that means you evolved.”

At Yeon Dogyeong’s word evolved, Lee Shinra muttered that it was a weird way to say it—but I thought it actually fit.

Because I had always—every single day—thought, I really want to guide without touching anyone.

And now, just hitting monsters together caused guiding? That was amazing.

Did God feel sorry for me and give me this power?

Honestly, even I thought my life had been pretty miserable.

Anyway, what mattered was that this change was clearly positive.

To the point where it almost felt overwhelming.

If I were the old me—who got out of breath just from a little hiking—I would’ve destroyed my wrist swinging the baton like this.

And honestly, I’d been holding in so much anger all this time. Beating monsters felt like it was finally letting some of that out.

So I wanted to move to the front—

“Yoon Hyeya. It’s dangerous, so stay back a bit. These monsters look weak, but they’re actually strong as hell. If you get hit wrong, it’ll be bad.”

“Dogyeong-hyung is right, noona. I’ll… keep my barrier as far out as I can, so please come back….”

Yeon Dogyeong and Lee Shinra fidgeted while saying things like that, and even Cha Eunhwi looked extremely uneasy.

It wasn’t that I hated being worried about.

Even though my affection toward these guys had dropped past –100 a long time ago, as long as my goal was “put yourself in others’ shoes” and “turn them into obedient doormats,” it would’ve annoyed me more if they didn’t worry.

But there’s a limit to everything.

They said the same thing every time we passed a fork. I was tired of answering “I’m fine” over and over.

This time, I just gave a cold look instead. Yeon Dogyeong scratched his hair and complained.

“Yoon Hyeya, you know… you used to be super careful with your body. You hid behind us like shields.”

So he’d noticed. I thought he hadn’t.

But honestly, the reason I’d been so careful back then was all because of them.

Every time I got hurt, they said I wasn’t careful enough, that I was spacing out, that I wanted to die early. Of course I’d be cautious.

I’d scream that out someday, with proper breathing.

But recalling bad memories made the anger I’d barely been holding back flare up.

I was about to snap and tell them to stop interfering under the excuse of “worrying”—

“…Just… don’t overdo it….”

Maybe because he was quick to read the room, Yeon Dogyeong realized this was the line.

Lee Shinra also shut his mouth.

I looked at the two of them expressionlessly.

Then Cha Eunhwi, who’d only been watching me with worried eyes, stepped closer and spoke.

“Hyeya. It’s okay to take the lead, but you really have to be careful. If it looks like your head, neck, or chest might be hit, immediately block with your arms, back, or legs. Those areas bleed more, but they won’t kill you instantly.”

“…Huh? O-Okay.”

The irritation faded, but instead, a chill ran down my spine.

Cha Eunhwi said it seriously, and Yeon Dogyeong and Lee Shinra nodded like it was obvious.

So this is normal for espers, I realized.

After a short pause, we continued toward the named monster.

Since it was a cave, most monsters were bats and worm-types, with crocodiles occasionally jumping out of the water.

And the deeper we went, the brighter it got.

It wasn’t light coming from outside—glowing moss and stones were stuck to the walls.

“By the way, what’s the named monster here?”

We’d entered without even asking the most important question.

Cha Eunhwi picked up a large rock and blocked a hole where worms were coming out, then answered.

“A mermaid.”

“Mermaid.”

“A mermaid?”

“…Dogyeong. Didn’t you check the info before entering? You reacted the same way with the bats earlier. Why do you sound like this is your first time hearing it?”

“Uh, I skimmed it. Why ask if you already know?”

“……”

“Anyway, a mermaid means that one, right? The fairy-tale kind. A woman with a fish tail.”

“Yeah.”

“…Eunhwi-hyung. Is it really a fish tail? Not a fish head or something ugly? Monsters are usually kind of twisted.”

“No. It’s really a mermaid. Records say it’s a beautiful monster, like a siren or lamia.”

Hearing “mermaid” made me more curious.

For some reason, I remembered reading fairy tales to these guys whenever they couldn’t sleep as kids. I shook it off, treating it like a past life memory.

When we went further down, a large lake appeared in the center.

Blue light shimmered in the water. Several large rocks sat inside, and on a low one sat the named monster—the mermaid.

Pearl-like skin. Long, thick hair flowing down her back.

We could only see her side profile, but she looked like a woman straight out of a fairy tale.

Beautiful—like Snow White herself.