The Espers Who Regretted Losing Me Chapter 89

“I’m bored……”

My boring day off, which visits every single week without fail, had come again.

Today, too, I stretched out like a sloth, drowning in extreme boredom.

As expected, Yeon Dogyeong was whining in the group chat.

┈┈┈┈┈
❮ Yeon Dogyeong ⇢ Platinum Squad (Yoon Hyeya, Lee Shinra, Cha Eunhwi) ❯

↪ Maknae

↪ Hyung is bored

↪ Wanna go clear a gate real quick?
┈┈┈┈┈
❮ Lee Shinra ⇢ Platinum Squad (Yeon Dogyeong, Yoon Hyeya, Cha Eunhwi) ❯

↪ No;

↪ Don’t you have enough stamina already?

↪ You dragged us out last night too
┈┈┈┈┈

So they’d gone gate clearing again at night.

A reply from Cha Eunhwi followed, and it seemed all three of them had gone together.

They’re close, huh.

I didn’t feel left out just because they went without me.

We’re not close enough for that.

Still, even if we’re not close, wouldn’t it be polite to at least ask, “Do you want to come too?”

The fact that they had never once asked me until now was a little ridiculous.

Anyway, Dogyeong kept looking for “someone to go with.”

He whined for thirty whole minutes.

After finishing my inner debate, I finally replied.

┈┈┈┈┈
❮ Yoon Hyeya ⇢ Platinum Squad (Yeon Dogyeong, Lee Shinra, Cha Eunhwi) ❯

↪ Me

↪ Going
┈┈┈┈┈

That sounded indifferent enough. Like I was just bored out of my mind and accepting casually.

I was getting up to get ready when a strange reply came.

┈┈┈┈┈
❮ Yeon Dogyeong ⇢ Platinum Squad (Yoon Hyeya, Lee Shinra, Cha Eunhwi) ❯

↪ ?

↪ Yoon Hyeya lost her phone?

↪ Call me
┈┈┈┈┈

What nonsense was that? The message clearly came from my name.

While I was typing What are you talking about?, my phone rang.

It was Cha Eunhwi.

“What?”

[…Is that really you, Hyeya?]

“It’s my phone, obviously it’s me. What?”

[Ah, sorry. Are you alone right now?]

“Yeah.”

[Okay… then the message in the group chat—was that really you?]

“……”

[Hyeya. If you’re in danger or something’s wrong, just answer. I’ll come immediately.]

His voice was extremely serious.

I pulled the phone away and looked at the chat.

It was a mess.

They were talking about phone theft, hacking—someone even suggested I might be under threat like Eunhwi just implied.

Sigh.

I put the phone back to my ear.

“Nothing’s wrong. I was seriously, extremely bored. I had nothing to do. And right at that moment, Dogyeong brought up gates. So I said I’d go.”

[…So you’re not in danger?]

“No. What danger would there be inside headquarters?”

Unless you count unstable espers acting up.

But thanks to me generously guiding them like volunteer work these past few days, even that wasn’t much of a concern anymore.

“I’m hanging up.”

I ended the call without waiting for a reply and typed in the group chat.

┈┈┈┈┈
❮ Yoon Hyeya ⇢ Platinum Squad (Yeon Dogyeong, Lee Shinra, Cha Eunhwi) ❯

↪ I talked to Cha Eunhwi

↪ I said I’d go because I’m bored, why is this such a big deal;
┈┈┈┈┈

Maybe I shouldn’t have said I’d go.

I was considering typing Never mind, I won’t go when Dogyeong’s messages flooded in.

┈┈┈┈┈
❮ Yeon Dogyeong ⇢ Platinum Squad (Yoon Hyeya, Lee Shinra, Cha Eunhwi) ❯

↪ If you’re really Yoon Hyeya

↪ Come to Zone B right now

↪ We’re clearing the gate in Zone B

↪ Prepare properly

↪ Or I won’t believe you

↪ If you say you’re not coming now

↪ Then you’re not Yoon Hyeya

↪ I’ll come to your house
┈┈┈┈┈
❮ Cha Eunhwi ⇢ Platinum Squad (Yeon Dogyeong, Yoon Hyeya, Lee Shinra) ❯

↪ Dogyeong, stop…
┈┈┈┈┈
❮ Yeon Dogyeong ⇢ Platinum Squad (Yoon Hyeya, Lee Shinra, Cha Eunhwi) ❯

↪ I need to confirm Hyeya is safe

↪ So you have to open the door
┈┈┈┈┈
❮ Lee Shinra ⇢ Platinum Squad (Yeon Dogyeong, Yoon Hyeya, Cha Eunhwi) ❯

↪ Hyung
┈┈┈┈┈
❮ Yeon Dogyeong ⇢ Platinum Squad (Yoon Hyeya, Lee Shinra, Cha Eunhwi) ❯

↪ Otherwise
┈┈┈┈┈
❮ Yoon Hyeya ⇢ Platinum Squad (Yeon Dogyeong, Lee Shinra, Cha Eunhwi) ❯

↪ I’m going so stop
┈┈┈┈┈
❮ Yeon Dogyeong ⇢ Platinum Squad (Yoon Hyeya, Lee Shinra, Cha Eunhwi) ❯

↪ Okay

↪ I’ll wait
┈┈┈┈┈

Does he have boosters attached to his fingers?

The messages poured in within seconds.

Clicking my tongue, I got off the bed, washed up quickly, and changed.

Picking clothes used to be annoying, but ever since I received my squad uniform, getting ready was easier.

I strapped my baton to my waist and grabbed the heavy bag filled with all sorts of things.

Dogyeong, Shinra, and Eunhwi had prepared it.

After that crazy discussion before, they’d actually stuffed it with everything imaginable.

The first time I didn’t bring it, they clung to me all day.

So now it was basically mandatory gear, like my uniform.

Thanks to constantly clearing gates, my strength had increased. It wasn’t unbearably heavy anymore.

But before? I wouldn’t have been able to lift it.

I left home and headed straight to Zone B.

Dogyeong was already there.

Shinra and Eunhwi stood beside him.

So much for not going.

They must have sensed me coming. They were staring in my direction before I even got close.

It was oddly pressuring.

“It really is Yoon Hyeya.”

He said it playfully, even though he obviously already knew.

“Hyeya noona!”

Shinra now said my name smoothly, without stuttering.

When we were alone, he used to sweat and blush.

“Hi, Hyeya.”

Eunhwi was always relaxed and friendly.

It was hard to imagine the cold iron-mask version of him saying, ‘Yoon Hyeya. You’re late again. Do you think raids are a joke?’

Anyway, Dogyeong grinned brightly.

“So where should we go? C or D ranks finish fast. Since we’re all here, B rank could work too. What do you think, Captain?”

“No B rank. The uncleared B-rank gates right now are all difficult for a single squad.”

“Oh, really? Then absolutely not. Let’s do C rank.”

That was another recent change.

Before, he’d rush into danger with a You think I can’t handle that? attitude.

And Shinra and Eunhwi hadn’t stopped him either.

Now they prioritized safety.

The reason was obvious.

Me.

After thinking for a moment, Eunhwi nodded.

“There’s a decent one.”

He pointed deeper into Zone B.

“If we go a bit further, there’s a crack leading to the ‘Forest of the Lying Fairies.’”

The Forest of the Lying Fairies.

I remembered seeing that name on the very first page while studying gates.

I’d flipped straight to the back afterward, so I didn’t remember details.

Thankfully, I had the perfect excuse—amnesia.

I looked at Eunhwi confidently.

“Are there actual fairies?”

“Yeah. As the name suggests, it’s a forest where fairies that love lying and playing tricks appear. If you avoid their tricks and escape the maze-like forest, there’s a named monster at the end. The fairies aren’t aggressive, but the forest is structured like a maze, so it takes time. That’s why it’s low priority and left alone. What do you think, Hyeya? If you want to fight monsters, we can go somewhere else.”

Escape game. Maze.

Just hearing it sounded fun.

Lately—no, honestly—I hadn’t had much stress.

I was just bored.

So I immediately said yes.

Shinra and Dogyeong didn’t object.

And just like that, we stepped into the crack leading to the Forest of the Lying Fairies.