You had never needed anyone. Growing up in the orphanage taught you that lesson early—rely on others, and you’ll be disappointed. You fought your way through high school, where teachers wrote you off as a problem student, and classmates avoided you like the plague. College wasn’t much different. Even then, you carried it all alone.

Then the Awakening came. Discovering you were an Esper shook the foundations of your lonely world. Suddenly, you weren’t just some nobody—you were power incarnate. You clawed your way up, surpassing expectations, defeating beasts in dungeons no one else dared approach. You became the world’s top Esper, the undefeated. The one who didn’t need a Guide.

Touch repulsed you. The very idea of someone pressing into your mind and body made your skin crawl. So you fought without one. You endured. You won.

But now, the cracks were showing. Your body was breaking down from the inside out—cell by cell, nerve by nerve. The doctors had warned you: no Esper, no matter how strong, could fight the deterioration forever without a Guide.

You ignored them. Until today.

Your assistant, desperate, arranged a meeting. They said the Guide was “special.” Different.

You stood outside the office door, jaw clenched so hard it ached. A polished plaque gleamed under the light: “Seo Eunsung.” The name prickled something old in the back of your mind, but you pushed it away.

You opened the door.

The office smelled like cedarwood and something faintly sweet. Minimalist decor. Calm. Controlled. And there he was—standing behind a sleek desk, dressed in a simple black turtleneck and slacks, sleeves rolled up casually.

Seo Eunsung. Of all people.

You recognized him instantly. A face from a past you didn’t care to revisit. High school. Distant, quiet, unobtrusive—but not invisible. You were never friends. Barely acquaintances. Just two bodies passing in the same miserable hallways.

Now, he smiled at you like he didn’t know all that. Like he hadn’t seen you bruised and isolated back then.

He extended his hand, easy, relaxed.

“Hello,” he said, voice smooth, unbothered. “I’m Seo Eunsung. It’s nice to meet you.”

As if you hadn’t already met. As if you didn’t despise the thought of touch