To My Flower-Like S-Class Guide 104

Chapter 104:

“Welcome! I’ve been waiting for you.”

Jeong Hoon, the shop manager, greeted them as they entered the tailor shop after a long absence.

“Oh, you two seem to have gotten much closer.”

He said that after just a simple greeting. His perceptiveness was uncanny.

“How did you know?”

“Intuition. It’s a basic skill for salespeople.”

This way, please.

Jeong Hoon led Baek Joo-won to the changing room.

“The suit turned out really well. I can guarantee it. I can’t wait to see how good it looks on you.”

While Baek Joo-won was changing, Seo Jae-yi looked around the shop, checking for new items, anything that might suit Airok or Baek Joo-won.

She had recently become addicted to the joy of giving gifts.

“It’s ready!”

She was contemplating buying him cufflinks to match the suit when Jeong Hoon called out.

Seo Jae-yi rushed to the changing room and gasped in awe.

The sleek navy suit looked perfect on him. The dark suit made his white dress shirt stand out even more, accentuating his brown hair. The tie, snug around his neck, gave him a somewhat austere look.

His broad shoulders, his narrow waist, the glimpse of his hips and legs beneath the jacket – it was a perfect picture.

The shoes, ordered to match the suit, were also perfect.

“Amazing… A handsome man in a suit is the best…”

She had been impressed during the fitting, but the finished product was even better.

She had made the right choice, bribing him with a suit.

“It’s perfect. Manager, you did a great job.”

Seo Jae-yi bowed deeply, her hand on her stomach. Jeong Hoon chuckled and bowed as well.

“What about you? Anything uncomfortable?”

“Not at all. This is the best suit I’ve ever worn.”

Baek Joo-won seemed pleased, admiring himself in the mirror. His face was filled with satisfaction.

“I’m glad you like it. Then let’s have another one made here next time. Maybe in gray.”

Jeong Hoon’s jaw dropped, hearing her offer to buy him another expensive suit.

“You’re buying me another one? No, I’ll pay for that one.”

He didn’t refuse the offer, clearly liking the suit.

Seo Jae-yi readily paid and left the shop, as it wasn’t something they were getting right away. Baek Joo-won, at her insistence that he had to wear the suit today, obediently left the shop in his new suit.

Ah, it looked even better outside. He was already handsome, but the custom-made suit made him even more dazzling. Suits were definitely a man’s best friend.

“Now that I think about it, I have a question.”

“What?”

“How did you buy all those suits you’ve been wearing? You didn’t have a card or Korean money.”

And they were expensive suits. Where did he get the money?

“Gasp, don’t tell me you stole them…?”

Was her paired Guide a thief?

Baek Joo-won frowned at her shocked expression and answered,

“I sold gold.”

“Gold? You sold gold?”

“Like you said, I didn’t have money, but I had plenty of gold. I took everything I could find when I left the dungeon. They paid well.”

Seo Jae-yi was a bit shocked by his unexpectedly practical answer.

Well, it was better than stealing, but a dungeon master who sold gold to buy suits…

“Just use the card I gave you from now on. I’ll be the one who gets criticized if you live off the money you made from selling gold.”

He was the paired Guide of an S-rank Esper, and he was living off the money he made from selling gold? People would definitely point fingers at Seo Jae-yi if they found out.

“That’s tempting.”

“Please!”

Baek Joo-won avoided answering and got into the car.

To think she had to beg him to use her money. It was an absurd situation.

---

The incident on Mount Taebaek was a warning from the government.

A warning to stop meddling and let go of Baek Joo-won.

But Seo Jae-yi wasn’t the type to back down from such a warning.

On the contrary, she was the type to flaunt their relationship and provoke them.

So today, she took Baek Joo-won, dressed in his new suit, on a tour of the city. They walked, not driving, and even went shopping at a famous department store in Apgujeong. At the furniture section, no less.

She bought all the furniture they needed for their shared home, making it clear that they were living together.

The surprising one was Baek Joo-won. He had said one suit was enough, but he was more enthusiastic about furniture shopping than Seo Jae-yi, as if he had a grudge against empty spaces.

Seo Jae-yi, sensing his strange obsession, could only swipe her card without protest as he chose furniture.

After buying a ton of furniture and even appliances, they headed towards the women’s clothing section. It wasn’t Seo Jae-yi’s decision, of course. It was Baek Joo-won’s.

“I don’t need new clothes.”

“I’m going to sell gold if you don’t follow me quietly. And I’ll make it a big deal, so everyone knows.”

What a petty threat.

But it was also the most effective threat. Seo Jae-yi obediently tried on the clothes he chose.

“This one looks good.”

Baek Joo-won finally chose one after dragging her through seven stores and making her try on countless outfits.

Seo Jae-yi, mentally exhausted from the lengthy shopping trip, brightened up, hearing that it was finally over.

The cashmere jacket with cute fur accents and the five-quarter wool shorts suited her well.

“I didn’t know you were pretty; you always dress so sloppily.”

“Can’t you just say I’m pretty?”

“You have to act pretty to be called pretty. Act pretty if you want to be praised.”

“Didn’t I act pretty today? I bought you all the furniture you chose.”

“That was more for you than for me.”

Why?

Seo Jae-yi tilted her head, confused.

How could he explain that he couldn’t stand their sparsely furnished house because he had never lived without furniture? She wouldn’t understand anyway.

So Baek Joo-won just snorted.

The shopping spree ended with Seo Jae-yi’s new outfit. It was dinner time.

They decided to have dinner at a fancy hotel lounge, enjoying the stunning night view.

To make it clear to everyone that they were on a date.

“The government is monitoring my every move, so they must have received a report by now.”

Seo Jae-yi smiled, sipping the wine recommended by the sommelier.

She wondered what those bastards were thinking. They would probably be suspicious of their relationship.

“They might even think we’re about to get Imprinted.”

Imprinting, a phenomenon that occurred between Espers and Guides.

If pairing was a simple promise, Imprinting was an unbreakable shackle.

Imprinted Espers and Guides could only sense each other’s energy and couldn’t receive or give Guiding to anyone else.

It was literally becoming each other’s only world, the other half disappearing if one died.

That was why some called Imprinting the forbidden fruit for Awakened individuals – the most dangerous, terrifying, yet alluring thing.

So the government would definitely want to prevent Seo Jae-yi and Baek Joo-won from getting Imprinted.

“But Baek Joo-won, you’re not a real Guide, so we can’t get Imprinted, right?”

She didn’t even know it was impossible in the first place.

Baek Joo-won, who had been sipping the wine and smacking his lips, nodded matter-of-factly.

“That’s right. I can act like a Guide thanks to my regenerative ability and my ability to influence Espers. But Imprinting is impossible because we’re different species.”

Seo Jae-yi “recognized” Baek Joo-won as her Guide, but that didn’t make him a real Guide.

Imprinting was impossible unless he became human.

“Are you disappointed? Having an Imprinted partner, not just a paired Guide, is every Esper’s dream.”

Baek Joo-won smiled strangely, licking his wine-stained lips.

Many Awakened individuals desired Imprinting, even though it was a bond that couldn’t be broken, even in death.

The Esper would have a Guide who would save only them, and the Guide would have an Esper who would protect only them, even if the world crumbled.

That sense of security was sweeter and more addictive than drugs. Especially for Espers, whose lives were at stake, they instinctively craved Imprinting more than Guides.

Seo Jae-yi, with her stronger instincts as an S-rank, was no exception.

“No. I’m not disappointed at all. You would have wanted it if you were Baek Joo-won, but I’ve never wished for it since I found out you’re Hae-wi.”

But his smile vanished at her unexpected answer. Seo Jae-yi, oblivious to the change in his expression, took another sip of wine indifferently.

Baek Joo-won’s fingers tapped the table nervously.

“Because I’m a monster, not a human?”

“Well, that’s part of the reason.”

His expression darkened even further, and then she gave him an even more unexpected answer.

“Because you’ll live longer than me.”

Baek Joo-won’s lips parted slightly in surprise.

“Imprinting literally binds the souls of an Esper and a Guide. The Imprint doesn’t break even if one dies, so you would live the rest of your life without half of your soul. How could I casually ask you for something so serious?”

Seo Jae-yi continued, her expression as indifferent as ever, unaware of his reaction.

Their lifespans weren’t even comparable. Baek Joo-won had already lived for hundreds of years. She didn’t know how much longer he would live.

How could she ask him for something like Imprinting?

Seo Jae-yi, who had escaped her predetermined death thanks to Baek Joo-won, didn’t want to ask for any more favors.

“It’s a relief that Imprinting is impossible because we’re different species.”

She smiled, genuinely happy, without a hint of regret.

Baek Joo-won was speechless. He opened and closed his mouth several times, unable to speak, and then finally turned towards the window, looking at the night view.

But he could only see Seo Jae-yi’s reflection in the dark night sky, not the dazzling city lights.

“…What will you do if another Guide with a high Matching Rate appears? Will you break up with me and pair with them, since you can get Imprinted with a human, unlike a monster like me?”

“Do I look that heartless?”

Seo Jae-yi glared at him, almost spitting out her wine.

Baek Joo-won turned back to her.

“Imprinting is good, but I don’t crave it enough to abandon my benefactor who helped me. I’ll stay with you until you decide to return to the dungeon. Even if a Guide with a 100% Matching Rate appears.”

“Are you serious?”

“Of course I’ll be a bit tempted.”

Seo Jae-yi chuckled playfully.

A smile finally appeared on Baek Joo-won’s face.

“You haven’t forgotten that you’re precious to me, right? You’re the only one for me now. I’m not lying.”

“…Okay.”

He looked at her intently.

At her, wearing the clothes he had chosen, her, who had just told him he was precious.

She probably didn’t know how those words affected him.

She probably didn’t know that monsters were even greedier than humans.

“But it’s okay to use this, right? The government doesn’t know the truth, so they must be worried about us getting Imprinted.”

“Do as you please.”

Baek Joo-won nodded casually and finished his wine.

He hadn’t told Seo Jae-yi one thing.

While Imprinting, which was exclusive to Espers and Guides, was impossible because he was a monster, he could do something similar.

It was originally impossible, but now that his seed was within her, he could do it whenever he wanted.

‘…I should keep it a secret for now.’

He didn’t want to see her discomfort if she found out.

He would confess when she desired him more, when she was completely captivated by him.