While eating room service, I called my family.

Thanks to Seunghyuk’s well-crafted cover story, my family thought I was away on a special overseas training program.

So even though it had been a while since I last contacted them, no one sounded particularly worried.

If Seunghyuk had really wanted to, he could have erased me from society without lifting a finger.

But even thinking about that... I didn’t feel afraid. More than that—

“Hyung, didn’t you say training lasts through next week? You’re done early.”

“Huh?”

“Seunghyuk-hyung said you’d be coming back next week.”

“Oh, uh... yeah, it ended a little early.”

According to Minsu and Gyeongsu, Seunghyuk had told them I’d return before the end of vacation.

So he’d never intended to keep me locked up past summer break in the first place....

***

After finishing my meal, I went to the hotel fitness center to move my body a little.

I’d once exercised with Seunghyuk and been shocked at how weak I was. I assumed it was because my stamina had dropped during confinement.

But now that I was exercising alone, I lasted over forty minutes just fine. Honestly, considering what happened last night, my stamina had probably improved.

Maybe it was because I’d been working out every morning with Seunghyuk. Though with him, I could barely last 20 minutes...

I guess it wasn’t really a stamina issue—it was the intensity. Seunghyuk made sure I did every single movement perfectly.

I didn’t think I was that sloppy, but compared to Seunghyuk, I was still lacking in many ways.

After my workout, I stopped by the hotel café.

I ordered a grapefruit juice and glanced around the space.

As expected of a place limited to A-rank and above—the mana radiating off the patrons was powerful. But even among these top-tier ability users, none could compare to Seunghyuk.

A moment later, my juice arrived.

It probably used much better ingredients than the one we’d had at the highway rest stop, but it didn’t taste nearly as good. The one I drank with Seunghyuk that day had been perfect.

Even though I was pissed because of Aaron, and on the verge of mana shock, just thinking back on that memory made me smile.

Still, no point in letting it go to waste.

As I drank my juice, I pulled out my phone and started browsing the news. I was curious about what had happened while I’d been confined.

[Despite overwhelming evidence... Aaron denies all allegations of conspiring to frame Lee Yeonsu]

[Aaron: “I never used Dust.” Continues to assert innocence]

[Oh Seokgwang confesses to all charges—will he testify against Aaron in court?]

It looked like Aaron’s trial was about to begin. He was still denying everything. What a tenacious bastard. He was probably relying on his family’s backing.

Especially his brother David—he’d stop at nothing to protect him.

“Guide Lee Yeonsu.”

Just then, someone called my name.

When I looked up and saw who it was, my entire body froze.

Slicked-back brown hair. Deep-set eyes beneath pronounced brow bones. A sharply defined jaw. Tall, broad frame. Muscular build. A perfectly tailored three-piece suit.

He radiated arrogance dressed up as gentlemanly charm.

“...David Han.”

It was David Han, Aaron’s older brother. An S-rank Esper.

And in the original novel... one of the men who came after Lee Yeonsu.

After Yeonsu schemed Aaron’s downfall, David had shown up seeking revenge for his younger brother.

He was, in short, an arrogant rabid dog. If Seunghyuk hadn’t killed Yeonsu first in the original, David would’ve been the one to do it.

So what the hell was he doing here?

“Ah, so you know who I am.”

David gave a perfectly manufactured smile. 𝕗𝗿𝕖𝐞𝐰𝗲𝕓𝐧𝕠𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝐨𝚖

“What do you want?”

In the novel, ◈ Nоvеlіgһт ◈ (Continue reading) this guy lost it over Aaron being kicked out of Sungan and threatened to kill Yeonsu.

This time, Aaron’s crimes had been exposed in full and he was awaiting trial.

With the verdict approaching, who knew what David might try?

“I—”

Just as he opened his mouth, a group of hotel staff in suits approached.

Judging by their mana, they were all A-rank Espers. These must be the security personnel Seunghyuk had requested from the hotel.

[Guide Lee Yeonsu, is this man your guest?]

One of the staff asked in English. Basic conversation like this wasn’t a problem for me.

[No.]

I had no idea why David had come looking for me, but nothing good could come from getting involved.

When I shook my head, the staff member turned to David and bowed politely.

[We’re sorry, sir, but we’ll have to ask you to—guurk!]

Before the man could finish, David grabbed him by the neck.

[I’m speaking. Don’t interrupt.]

[David, sir, what the hell are you doing?!]

The other guards immediately raised their voices, but David ignored them completely.

He was a monster on par with Park Geonwoo. A-rank Espers wouldn’t stand a chance against him.

“I’ll be speaking with Esper David Han. Please wait.”

As soon as I indicated I was willing to talk, David finally released the staff member.

The guards took up positions behind him, visibly on edge. David clearly found their presence annoying, but I wasn’t about to back down on this.

“Please state your business.”

“How cold. I only just sat down and you’re already trying to chase me off.”

Just like in the novel, he was arrogant and infuriating. The kind of man who would travel across the world for revenge.

I didn’t want to face him for even a second. One of the three guards quickly ran off—probably to summon reinforcements.

Even if David did try to hurt me, it wouldn’t be easy. There were plenty of other S-rank Espers around. Thanks to his earlier outburst, people were already watching.

If push came to shove, I could always call for help.

As I searched for a way out, David suddenly bowed his head.

“I apologize for what Aaron has done.”

“...What?”

“I knew he was an idiot, but I never imagined he’d stoop to something so despicable. As his brother, I offer you my sincere apology.”

Was he... apologizing?

In the original, Aaron had fled to the U.S. after being outmaneuvered by Yeonsu. But it wasn’t entirely Yeonsu’s fault. Aaron had caused his own problems and attacked Yeonsu more than once.

Still, David refused to acknowledge any of that. He wanted Yeonsu dead for “disgracing” the royal Han family.

But now... he was apologizing?

“Do you really mean that?”

“Of course. There’s no excuse for what happened.”

Was he seriously here to apologize?

“I’m curious... how did you know I was here?”

“A friend said they saw you around the hotel. I came as soon as I heard.”

It was a high-end hotel reserved for upper-class ability users. It was perfectly plausible that one of his friends was staying here.

Which also meant David had been looking for me—and talking about me with others.

Would he really go that far just to apologize?

Wait... Aaron’s trial was coming up. Was this about a petition? A character reference?

“Is there... anything else you came to say?”

“There is.”

I knew it.

So that was it—a request to testify? To help Aaron? What exactly was he going to ask?

I looked at him warily. And then, boldly, he said:

“Lee Yeonsu, I’ve fallen for you.”

“...What?”

“I saw footage of you guiding an Esper suffering from mana shock. I was deeply moved.”

Oh—he meant he was impressed by my guiding. Thank God. I really thought he meant—

That the original novel’s rabid dog had fallen for me. Scared me for a second.

Wait... he fell for me after watching that video? The one where I guided Moon Seonwoo out of Red Lotus Flame shock? That was because of Aaron. How could he fall for someone involved in his brother’s scandal?

Still, it was a compliment. I couldn’t exactly lash out.

“Thank you for your kind words about my guiding.”

“I fell in love at first sight.”

“...I’m sorry, what?”

“I love you.”

“You... you love my guiding, right?”

Maybe his Korean was weak. His tone was a little too formal—closer to written speech than natural dialogue.

Yeah, he probably misspoke.

I tried to reinterpret his meaning—but David went on:

“Ti amo, Yeonsu.”

“......”

‘Ti amo’—the one phrase I happened to know in Italian.

It means ‘I love you.’

So he really was saying he fell for me?

No. No way. Absolutely not.

One psycho from the original novel was enough—Seunghyuk was already too much.

I had zero desire to add an arrogant rabid dog to the mix.

“I... I don’t speak Italian very well...”

“I love you, Yeonsu.”

I tried to play dumb, but he hit me with a direct fastball.

This was the worst-case scenario.

The original novel’s rabid dog... had fallen for me.