STJ_14
Doyoung struggled to find the words, but Iijun nodded nonchalantly, as if not surprised.
"I was evaluated as a Guide... and somehow ended up here."
"Isn't that so?"
Iijun frowned in confusion and tilted his head.
"Yes?"
"You were a Guide from the very beginning. Since the day you came to rescue me."
"....."
Sa Iijun had a talent for making people doubt the truth, even if it was about making meju with soybeans*.
*콩으로 메주를 쑨다고; idiom; refers to disbelief in something real. The original expression is '팥으로 메주를 쑨다’ (make meju with red beans)', which is something that is known to be impossible. Meju is made from soybeans (콩), not red beans (팥). So if you say, "Meju is made from soybeans," the other person will not believe the most obvious things and will believe more in the impossible. Example sentence: "I believe that meju is made from red beans more than I believe what you said.”
"....yeah, think of it that way. After all, I ended up living in this dormitory."
Although general employees could live in the official dormitory if they met certain requirements, Esper and the Guide had to live here to prevent them from escaping.
"But Master, you didn't answer who this man is."
Seungjae was still in such awe of seeing Sa Iijun in person that he didn't notice Sa Iijun's caution towards him or the strange call of 'Master'.
Doyoung, on the other hand, furrowed his brow. At first glance, he felt uncomfortable with the title 'this guy' being addressed to someone older than him.
"He's my friend. He helped me move my luggage."
"Nice to meet you, Sa Iijun-ssi. My name is Choi Seungjae."
Iijun stared at Seungjae's face and the hand he held out for a few seconds. No, it was more like a piercing look. Then, as if he had decided to treat Seungjae like an invisible person, he shifted his gaze to the suitcase at Doyoung's feet. Seungjae lowered his hand, which was hanging awkwardly in the air.
"Will you stay with me? Is this your dowry?”
“......”
Doyoung felt like he was speaking another language. It seemed as if he couldn't communicate with Sa Iijun at all.
"That is impossible. I just found out that Esper Sa Iijun is in the same building."
Those words contained a hidden meaning: "If I had known earlier, I would have asked to live in another building.
"Ah..."
Sa Iijun looked regretful.
Doyoung wondered for a moment. Sa Iijun seemed to really believe that he had come here because of him. But on what basis?
As he thought that, Sa Iijun picked up his suitcase from the floor with one hand and extended the other to Doyoung's suitcase.
"Let me help you carry your suitcase."
"No. No need."
Doyoung firmly declined his offer.
"I have something to discuss with my friend and we'll carry it together. Please go in first."
"Why? I'm stronger than that uncle.”
Seungjae, who suddenly became an uncle, opened his mouth wide. Doyoung forced a smile.
"I said it's okay. Please go in first."
"But I can help..."
"Haa... Can you listen to me? Don't make others tired."
Sa Iijun's face, which had been bright, turned grim as Doyoung did not hesitate to show his annoyance. With slumped shoulders, Iijun replied in a low voice.
"I understand..."
He bowed to Doyoung and walked past them into the entrance. Seungjae looked at Sa Iijun's obedient back with pity and clicked his tongue.
"Tch, tch... his tail is drooping. Is it necessary to say such a thing to him?"
"He's the one who doesn't listen to what others say."
Seungjae was still staring at Sa Iijun's entrance with a pained expression. Doyoung felt like an evil adult who had bullied a weak child. Suddenly in a bad mood, he unreasonably took it out on Seungjae.
"Haa... Seungjae-ya, stop talking nonsense and help me carry my luggage. Do you still feel sorry for him even though he calls you 'uncle' at the age of 27?”
"Okay, okay. You're a fussy person after all."
With Seungjae's help, Doyoung moved all his things and tidied up for a few hours. After dusting, taking a shower in the bathroom, and going outside, it was almost midnight.
He died and came back to life. Suddenly he was a Guide.
Not only that, he even sat next to a young Guide who asked him, ‘Is uncle a Guide too?’, and went through training until he unpacked all his belongings in the UEFC dormitory. It was a few days full of events beyond imagination, enough to write a book about in the future.
Knowing that writing things down could be an asset in the future, Doyoung kept a journal every day. He sat down on the dining room chair to write down the day's events and took out his laptop from the bag he always brought to the office.
Suddenly, something fell at Doyoung's feet.
It was a blind Yopy doll, with only two lines drawn to replace the eyes, that Sa Iijun had left in the hospital room and put in his bag when he left. Doyoung gently stroked Yopy's blind-eyed face with his fingertips.
‘Forever run Yopy.’
This children's cartoon character has received a lot of love in the half century since it first aired in Sweden.
The main character, Yopy, is a golden retriever who gets separated from his family while camping and goes on a long journey to get back home. Along the way he meets another animal friend with whom he develops friendship and love.
Although this is a children's cartoon character, it often contains aphorisms that make people nod their heads and is known as a healing program for adults.
Her thick fur and slightly moody eyes resembled Sa Iijun.
Suddenly, the image of Iijun glaring at Seungjae and not greeting him properly came to mind. Doyoung squeezed Yopy's head with his hand.
"...dreadlocks.”
It seemed that he (IJ) was attached to the doll enough to hang it on his combat uniform. An Esper with terrifying killing power with a soft and fluffy doll. Although it seemed out of place, it was strangely fitting.
Doyoung looked around and found a hook-shaped magnet attached to the refrigerator. It looked like it had been left by the person who lived here before. He hung the bow on the doll's head on the magnetic hook and remembered to return it to its owner.
After that, he continued writing in his diary and lay down on the bed while making some plans. He needed to buy food to stock the refrigerator and kitchen utensils. Tomorrow he had to go to the nearest supermarket.
The clock on the wall showed two o'clock at night. It was time to sleep so that he could go through her daily routine tomorrow without any problems. However, perhaps because the new place felt unfamiliar, he had trouble falling asleep.
Doyoung gave up trying to sleep and went to the living room.
Since the kitchen was still empty without a single tea bag, he sat on the sofa with a cup of warm water in his hand. Doyoung, who had just turned on the TV and pressed the remote, had his eyes glued to the screen. He saw a familiar face on the news channel.
『All of the gates that have sporadically appeared around Phnom Penh, Cambodia, have been closed. The Esper troops sent by the UN to suppress the Creatures and block the gates arrived on the 24th. S-class Esper Sa Iijun and A-class Esper Tae Guhyeong from our country went to the scene. Within three days, Esper and the four countries had killed more than a thousand Creatures…』
Just as Hyeju said. The behavior of the UN is like a businessman in the defense business. They viewed Esper as a weapon, like a fighter plane or a warship. It was not uncommon for them to use it for power or political interests.
Despite these problems, Sa Iijun's battle scenes were as breathtaking as ever.
As he creates a huge fire in the air, an Esper with the power of Aerokinesis, or the ability to control air, creates a vortex of wind and pushes the towering pillar of fire into the gate, where the Creatures fall one by one.
Soon after, a huge explosion occurred inside the gate, and the small gate disappeared with black smoke, as if fleeing.
It was an unreal sight. Normally, he could only marvel at it from the outside, but now he felt more sorry for him. Perhaps it was because he had seen Sa Iijun being treated like a lab rat and pushed to his limits.
Feeling bitter for no reason, Doyoung turned off the TV and got up.
As he rinsed the cup of drinking water and put it in the sink on his way back to the bedroom, he suddenly stopped in front of the refrigerator and touched the Yopy doll hanging there with his finger, Doyoung said in a bitter voice.
"Good night, you too.”
***
"I'll give you your callsign."
He didn't know if he would get used to spending a day here.
After the call, he went to the personnel office. Doyoung asked back what the soldier on the other side of the desk had said.
"Callsign?"
"It's an identification code assigned to each individual when communicating over the radio. It's like a nickname given to anyone who might have to go to war."
"Ah..."
Only then did he remember hearing the word 'callsign' in a fighter pilot movie. It was like a nickname used instead of a real name to hide the person's real name or identity. The explanation continued.
"Have you ever heard of NATO Voice Text? It's used to clearly convey meaning when communicating over the radio, and in Korea we've been using initials for callsigns since last year.”
While listening to his explanation, Doyoung remembered the words used to call Sa Kangjun and Sa Iijun.
"Ah, like... Seirra?"
People called Sa Kangjun Sierra 1 and Sa Iijun Sierra 2.
"Yes, that's right."
"Is it something you or the people around you made? I saw it in a movie."
"It used to be like that, but now it's changed."
"Changed? Why?"
"Because Sa Iijun's callsign is ‘Sex Bomb’."
"Ah..."
As expected, it was a failure.
"When there are the same initials, a number is added after it. Because... Guide Jeong Mihyeon left the company last year, so Guide Joo Doyoung just used her callsign."
"Ah, really?"
Doyoung made a bright expression as if he was in a good mood. And with hopeful eyes, he asked.
"So my callsign is...?"
"J. It's Juliet.”
–
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