Esper: A Foreign Entity in a Guide-less World

[What the hell are you babbling about? What kind of nonsense is that?]

[Don’t scare the kids.]

[Kids? Hah, you idiot. Do they look like kids to you? Even after seeing those flames, you still say that?]

Cheon Chan-woo, his dark brown hair tousled, scowled in disbelief at his robed companion, telling him to stop talking nonsense.

His companion pressed his lips into a thin line, looking slightly embarrassed. He had a point. No one had ever seen flames like those before. And calling them ‘kids’… well, one of them, in particular, had an imposing build that made that term seem laughable.

[Tsk, I should’ve asked the strategist, not you. Hey, Kaoru, what do you think? Should we capture them?]

[I do want to interrogate them… but I doubt we can even communicate. Claiming they don’t know our language—it sounds like a lie.]

Kaoru subtly shifted his gaze toward their leader, Jayan. He remained still, standing right before the terrifyingly raging flames, staring at the black-haired boys.

As always, a faint smile lingered on his face, but today, his eyes shone with an unusual gleam. There had to be a reason for that. If Kaoru had to guess, it was because of that tall boy. After all, aside from the Warlord of the East, no one had ever been a worthy rival to Jayan.

[Jayan, what should we do with them? No matter how I look at it, that tall boy seems to have abilities like ours… Does he not realize what he is yet?]

[I doubt they’ll come quietly. Jayan, just give the order already! I want to go up against that brat. Ugh, even his face pisses me off. Look at his eyes—ugh! Just looking at them makes me sick.]

[I don’t care either way. We need to check on Melina and the others, so let’s wrap this up quickly.]

Jayan, his pale skin seemingly untouched by sunlight, slowly nodded in response to the murmurs around him.

For someone at the center of a group, it was a small, almost indifferent gesture, yet everyone’s focus remained completely locked on him. He looked like a master commanding a pack of feral hunting dogs.

[Let’s extend them a polite invitation. Though, considering my lack of proper education, I can’t guarantee it’ll go as planned.]

[Then, as usual, we’ll provide backup—]

[No.]

Whoosh! A pillar of fire flared up like a beast baring its fangs, warning them not to approach. Jayan turned to his subordinates with a lazy smile.

[You guys handle the little one. I’ll take care of the stray dog.]

[Are you sure? That boy… he might be even more dangerous than Reuq.]

[Hmm. Yeah, I get the same feeling. That’s exactly why… I need to make sure I live a long life, Kaoru.]

With those parting words, Jayan surged forward, tearing through the raging flames.

In the end, the boy put up a good fight. At least, that’s how it looked to Kaoru.

As much as he hated to admit it, the boy’s strength was nearly—no, perhaps even greater than their leader Jayan’s.

Jayan’s unpredictable attacks came at odd angles, pressing the boy relentlessly. But he didn’t panic; he responded calmly, his movements precise and trained. He had clearly undergone systematic combat training somewhere. To him, Jayan was nothing more than a manageable threat. Just enough to handle.

But a few unfortunate factors led to his defeat.

First, Jayan’s persistence was far greater than expected. No matter how skilled the boy was, facing an opponent who never seemed to tire—while also keeping an eye on Jayan’s subordinates—was an overwhelming challenge.

Second, the circumstances were against him. In any battle, having something to protect put the defender at a significant disadvantage. Serbul had chosen to exploit that very weakness, and naturally, it was the right move.

With Jayan drawing the boy’s attention, another member managed to take the small child hostage. And the moment the boy saw it, he declared his surrender.

“Tsk, fuck…”

I spat a mouthful of blood onto the ground, signaling that I had no more fight left in me. Slowly, I raised my hands and sank to my knees.

Not far away, I saw Ji Seon Woo being held captive, his face twisted in distress.

I’m sorry. His lips moved silently, forming the words.

Don’t be. I’m the idiot. No matter how much I had insisted, I should have sent Ji Seon Woo away first. My arrogance—believing I could protect him while fighting—had cost me the battle.

If anything happened to Ji Seon Woo because of this, I would never forgive myself.

[Ah, so that little kid is important to you, huh? The way you immediately rolled over makes that pretty obvious.]

A silver-haired bastard approached, grinning despite the blood trickling down his cheek.

I glared at him. My fists clenched at the sight of that smug face, itching to knock him out. But there was nothing I could do.

He was saying something—probably taunting me, maybe cursing—but I ignored it. Instead, I called out to him.

“Hey.”

[Stray dog, that was fun.]

“If you’re going to hurt someone, hurt me.”

[I really hope you and that kid aren’t Reuq’s spies. I don’t particularly enjoy hurting children. Ugh, even imagining it is disgusting. So barbaric.]

“If you so much as lay a hand on Ji Seon Woo—”

The silver-haired bastard shrugged at my warning. Whether he understood or not, I couldn’t tell, but if he even touched Ji Seon Woo, I didn’t care about restraint or reason—I would kill every last one of them.

[Stray dog, I’d suggest loosening up a bit.]

“Speak in Korean, you bastard.”

[It’s advice based on experience, so it should be valuable.]

“What the hell are you—ugh!”

The silver-haired bastard, who had been grinning as he approached, suddenly drove his foot into my solar plexus.

The heavy blow landed squarely on my unguarded body, knocking the wind out of me in an instant. I had never been beaten so one-sidedly by another esper of a similar level before. Saliva dripped from my mouth.

As I lay sprawled on the ground, coughing violently, I heard him muttering above me.

[Ah… pretty sturdy, aren’t you?]

“You… fucking…”

I barely managed to lift my head, only to see him smirking, his eyes crinkling in amusement.

[Too bad for you.]

“I’ll… fucking kill—”

[Bite down. You’ll lose a tooth.]

Crack!

His spinning kick struck me square in the head.

As my vision blurred, I saw Ji Seon Woo struggling and screaming in the distance.

Damn it… Touch Seon Woo, and I swear—

Muttering curses under my breath, I finally lost consciousness.

The last time I passed out was back when I was a clueless idiot, unable to control my own power as a child.

Clank.

I slowly lifted my gaze to the chains tightly binding my wrists, taking a steady breath.

Were they playing games with me?

I started tensing my muscles little by little, shaking my head to clear my mind. Slowly, my senses sharpened.

[Oh? You’re awake. Good afternoon.]

That irritating voice, that mocking tone, that smug bastard.

The moment I opened my eyes, I felt the urge to shut them again.

Under the dim candlelight that barely illuminated the room, his silver hair shimmered faintly. The shadows accentuated his familiar face—it was the same bastard from earlier.

“….”

There was no point in responding. I stared at him in silence.

He was perched on a rock, grinning like an idiot. Judging by the damp air and the way sound echoed, we were underground. A dungeon, maybe? These bastards sure had some fancy setups for a bunch of lowlifes.

[Up close, your features are sharper than I expected.]

The hell is he talking about? Creepy bastard.

[It feels weird to be the only one talking. Even if we don’t understand each other, you could at least react.]

He got up and walked toward me.

The scent of the wind mixed faintly with the smell of blood. There was a stench of death lingering around him—the kind that clung to those who had taken many lives. It was nauseating, just like always.

I ignored him and slowly turned my head. Now that I was fully conscious, it was time to prioritize what mattered most.

Ji Seon Woo.

He wasn’t here.

His presence—his energy—was completely absent.

That meant I had no reason to stick around.

Crunch. Clatter!

I effortlessly shattered the metal chains that had been restraining my wrists and tossed them onto the floor.

The silver-haired bastard barely reacted. He only raised an eyebrow, as if he hadn’t expected those restraints to hold me in the first place.

“Where is Ji Seon Woo?”

[You really don’t understand our language, huh? You learned how to bite, but not how to bark?]

“Hey.”

I crossed my arms and tilted my head toward him.

“I don’t understand your bullshit language.”

As much as I wanted to return the beating I’d received—tenfold—there was no point.

The real failure was not protecting Ji Seon Woo. That was my responsibility, and I had failed. That mattered more than my anger.

I needed to find him and get out of here.

I sighed. Today was supposed to be my day off. I was supposed to go watch a movie with Seon Woo. Instead of letting him enjoy the film he had been looking forward to, I had dragged him into this nightmare.

“An esper, huh…”

My thoughts were a mess.

I let out an irritated breath and reached for the watch strapped to my wrist.

Just in case, I tried activating it, but—of course—nothing.

I cursed under my breath and ripped it off, crushing it with my grip.

Boom!

A sharp crack echoed through the dark space.

When I got back, I was going to grab the director by the collar and demand to know what the hell kind of junk they had given me.

[Stray dog, I was still talking to you. Ignoring your elders is a bad habit.]

“Where’s the exit?”

[Oh? Are you the elder here? If you insist… Hmm, I guess I could call you hyung.]

“Hah, you think you’re funny?”

I ran a hand through my hair in frustration.