Chapter 11 - 10. Encounter
Zein frowned and looked at the man inquisitively. From the way he had no mask on, and the stealthy way he approached the guide, Zein knew this man was an esper.
But the man clearly wasn't a member of the Unit, or from any other Unit, because there was no way a borderland's esper would dress in something as cumbersome as a whole three-piece suit. Normal clothes would get damaged if they were touching miasma too much, so everyone here wore a combat uniform made from a corrosion-resistant material.
Unless, of course, the suit itself was made from resistant material, which actually looked possible, from the persistent luster on said suit. Zein knew nothing about the fashion of the safer zone, but he knew enough that such material wasn't cheap.
So his immediate impression was 'Who the hell is this rich esper?'
From the aura emanating from the tall and imposing figure, Zein knew he was faced with a 5-star esper. And so his next thought was about why a 5-star esper hanging around in the borderland. Not to mention the posh type like this one.
It was only after he was done with scrutinizing the esper's overbearing fashion that he started to look at the face.
Adhering to the neat clothes, the platinum blonde hair was arranged neatly, the color contrasted with the copper complexion underneath. It framed a handsome, just slightly mature face adorned with eyes akin to liquid amber, glowing in a reddish-golden hue even inside the murky air of the black field. There was a small tattoo of three black scales beneath the man's left eye that reminded Zein of a snake.
The constricted feeling from the amber eyes gazing at him just accentuated this image.
Zein had no interest in getting acquainted with this man. He looked like all the typical esper that he hated—overbearing, elitist, and overall a pain in the ass. So rather than asking something that would incite an infuriating exchange, he just answered the man's earlier question nonchalantly.
"It's a job. Not supposed to be fun," he turned his head to the marsh again.
And it wasn't as if it was empty; there was a whole field of bubbling liquid miasma that could generate a wraith any time. Zein didn't understand why an esper didn't think about that.