HIDDEN CARD: Hidden Card
ESPER: Psychic [11]
In the end, I returned without even completing a proper patrol. I entered the guardian's room, clutching a boy to my side, and everyone stared at me.
한서준
“What… what? Did you sneak out of town and steal it?”
김여주
"Are you crazy? What do you think I am?"
The heroine plopped down on the sofa and motioned to the child, "Sit here." She understood without even saying a word.
김여주
"I think the anti-government group is conducting human experiments on children. They must have escaped, because they were all over S-4."
At Yeoju's words, the guardians, except Seokjin and Jungkook, all shifted their gazes from Yeoju to the child. The child, perhaps burdened by the gazes, began to scratch his arm, where the needle had been inserted.
김석진
"It's okay. You're welcome. As you thought, this is a government-run area."
Seokjin wrapped the child's already reddened arm in a cold handkerchief. Using his powers to read the child's thoughts, he lifted the child into his arms to ease his anxiety.
김태형
"Little one, what's your name?"
"Subject 9..."
김여주
"Kim Seo-woo."
김태형
"huh?"
김여주
"His name is Kim Seo-woo. Not a test subject or something."
When the girl cut off the child's response and blurted out a new name, everyone looked at her with bewildered expressions. Seokjin and Jungkook, who had heard the girl introduce herself as Subject 9, were no exception.
The child was surprised to hear her name introduced as Kim Seo-woo. Kim… Seo-woo? The sound was nice. It was nice to have a last name, too. The child's flustered expression faded for a moment, but soon she smiled brightly and introduced herself to them.
김서우
“Hello… My name is Kim Seo-woo…!”
Only then did Seo-woo, confidently saying her name in Seok-jin's arms, seem like a child her age. Seok-jin reached out with the hand not holding Seo-woo's and wiped the dirt off her cheek.
Judging by the fact that he kept repeating the name "Kim Seo-woo" in his head, he seemed to quite like the name the female lead had given him. Seok-jin, with a sly smile, stroked Seo-woo's hair, and Seo-jun, watching, let out a deep sigh.
한서준
"I'm skipping all of your classes. Explain everything from start to finish."
Seojun, the Guardian's deputy chief, racked his brain, wondering how to write about this incident in his report. Nothing seemed to go smoothly.
There wasn't a single story I heard from Seo-woo that wasn't shocking. From the kidnapping of orphaned children to the kinds of experiments they conducted, the more I listened to Seo-woo's story, the more bizarre it became.
김남준
“So… your ability is Shishima, and you were a B-class, but the experiment was successful and you became an S-class?”
김서우
“Yes… that’s right. There are still a lot of friends there.”
What kind of experiment had they conducted to transform a B-class into an S-class? The needles etched into Seo-woo's arm prickled his nerves. Perhaps itching from the wounds, Seo-woo couldn't keep his arm still.
정호석
"So, has the experiment already been successful on children? Are there any new ones besides Volta and Walta?"
김서우
"The experiment was a success... That can't be right. Subjects 1 and 2... No, countless subjects died. If I had stayed there just a little longer... I wouldn't be alive by now..."
박지민
"Did you hear anything there?"
김서우
“What did you hear…? Uh… um…….”
박지민
"If you don't remember, just tell me you don't remember."
김서우
"Ah. Duel!"
김여주
“…Dual?”
김서우
"He said he created an Esper who could use multiple abilities. He even tried to do that experiment on me."
Dual Espers. I learned about this in passing in class. Unlike the conventional rule that each Esper has only one ability, each Esper possesses two abilities.
However, only four Dual Espers have been discovered so far, and even they died because their lifespans were short… What are the anti-government forces trying to do by creating Dual Espers?
한서준
“…Day and night. Kim Yeo-ju!”
김여주
"Huh. Huh?"
한서준
"What are you thinking? From now on, you'll take care of her. She'll be with you as Guardian."
김여주
"What? Why?"
한서준
"It's an S-Class. I think you even gave it the name. Or not?"
김여주
“…No, but still,”
한서준
“And most of all…. he likes you so much?”
Turning my gaze to Seojun's words, I saw Seowoo sitting on the sofa, her hands neatly folded in her lap. Looking at her with her already large, wide eyes, a squirrel came to mind.
김여주
"How old are you?"
김서우
“Uh… I’m 9 this year.”
김태형
"9 years old?! He's so small... Hey, Jeon Jungkook. Give me that. I'll give him a snack."
전정국
"……."
김태형
"Hey, don't you see how skinny he is?! A muscle-bound kid should give way to a kid."
박지민
"You idiot. I want to give it to you myself. Just move."
Jungkook sat blankly on the sofa, two bags of snacks clutched to his chest, wondering when he'd brought them back. Taehyung poked his arm, telling Seowoo to give him some, but he didn't move.
김서우
"……?"
전정국
“Eat.”
Jungkook looked back and forth between his own hand and Seowoo's, comparing them, then handed Seowoo one of the bags of snacks he was holding. A hint of regret seemed to fill his eyes.
Seo-woo, who received the snacks from Jeong-guk, didn't open or tear the bag, but just blankly stared at its surface. It seemed like it was her first time seeing snacks.
김남준
"Have you ever tried something like this?"
김서우
“Ah… Is that something to eat? I used to live in a slum, so this is my first time seeing something like this….”
The "before" Seo-woo spoke of was a few years ago, and how impoverished must the slums have been? Nam-joon snatched the snacks from Seo-woo, who was still curiously observing them, and tore open the bag for her.
Seo-woo, who had been curiously gazing at the snacks in the bag, took one from Nam-joon and popped it into her mouth. After a moment's pause, she opened her eyes wide and snatched the bag from Nam-joon. Nam-joon chuckled and patted Seo-woo's head.
민윤기
"So, you don't know exactly how the experiment is conducted?"
김서우
"Yes… I just remember getting injected here before starting the experiment, and when I woke up, my body was in so much pain."
단미래
"Oh my... Our heroine's younger sister is really sick. Should I give her some candy? There are so many lollipops!"
김여주
"Who is my brother? I don't have a brother."
단미래
"Oh my, you're jealous of our heroine!!! Don't worry. I only have our heroine!!! Our baby~♥"
한서준
"Is there a mental esper there too? If they used anesthesia, they would have woken up right away when the pain hit their bodies…."
단미래
"Oh, oh, you're eating well. Aren't you thirsty? Do you want some water? Let me see... Should I give you some soda?"
김석진
"No matter how hard I search Seo-woo's mind, I can't find any memory of being experimented on. It's so clean, it's as if someone touched it. It's clear that there's a mental esper involved."
김서우
“Uh… how do you do this? Do you turn it…?”
단미래
"Give it to me! I'll do it for you! Just like this... Exactly! How is it, don't you think it's cool, sis?"
한서준
"Ah, Danmirae!!!! Won't you be quiet?!?!??"
I wondered why he'd been sitting so still for so long, and I thought he must have come to his senses. But he didn't disappoint. He seemed to be busy observing Seo-woo with his eyes.
As if the scan on Seo-woo had been completely completed, he immediately moved to sit next to her. He was very busy wiping the cookie crumbs from her mouth, opening the water bottle, and praising the female lead.
한서준
"Really!!! ...Yes, hello."
Seojun, who was approaching Mirae, dragging a club from an unknown source, pulled his phone out of his pocket, ringing loudly. He answered the call from a distance away from Seowoo, who was immediately drawing everyone's attention.
정호석
"What's going on?"
Ho-seok, who had been with Seo-woo, turned to Seo-jun and saw his expression darken. He approached him. Judging by the fact that he couldn't put the phone down even after the call ended, something was definitely up.
한서준
"The Espers… attacked the village."
정호석
"…yes?"
민윤기
"What do you mean? A village?"
The Guardians, overhearing Hoseok and Seojun's conversation, turned their attention to Seojun one by one. The school to the north had been attacked not long ago, and now the village? A sense of foreboding was palpable.
박지민
"What kind of village is this? Could it be the work of anti-government forces?"
한서준
"I think we need to go and see for ourselves whether it's the work of anti-government forces or not. I think we should all go there for now."
김석진
"Where is it? You have to tell me the location."
Seojun was stalling for time and not mentioning the name of the village, which felt strange. It wasn't just Seokjin who noticed this; Yeoju, too, looked at him with a puzzled look.
Seojun met Yeoju's eyes, let out a short sigh and shook his hair. After all, it was a place she'd recognize immediately.
한서준
“…Vita Village.”
김여주
"…what?"
한서준
“…It’s Vita Village. Get ready quickly.”
Vita Village. That was the name of the village where Yeoju was born and raised before entering school. However... that village has long since disappeared.
The heroine's face crumpled as memories of her childhood flashed back. She had to go to a place she never wanted to return to, a place she never even thought she would.
Thank you all!!! I'm also really grateful to those who informed me via KakaoTalk ㅜㅠ I wasn't looking at my phone, so I was surprised when I heard that the banner was displayed!!
I don't like the * next to 'made', but whatever... my favorite piece is here!! I'm happier because I didn't expect it!! 🥰❣️ Thank you so much for liking my writing ㅜㅠ I really mean it ㅜㅠ 😭💙
Today's episode may not have been particularly enjoyable because it lacked romance and action! You know my writing style is typically 30% romance and 70% story, right?! 😉 Look forward to the second half 😆
Hidden Card is not a reaction series, but a completely free series! Since it's my favorite work, I've been revising the story a lot and thinking a lot, so please don't hate me for making you wait too long ㅜㅠ 😭 Banner, thank you so much again!! 🙇🏻♂️🌌💙