Chapter 6:
‘So, I accidentally drenched a customer in my flower shop with water, and it turns out he’s an unregistered Guide. We barely touched hands, and my overload level plummeted! It’s a miracle, I tell you!’
It sounded like a blatant lie, even to her own ears. She would be lucky if Kim Yoo-sung didn’t flick her forehead for such a half-hearted attempt at deception.
“…This isn’t the place to talk about this.”
Kim Yoo-sung reluctantly nodded at her suggestion to explain elsewhere.
“Alright, let’s go back.”
“I was on my way to see Won-yeong, but I guess I’ll be late.”
“Seo Won-yeong? She’ll faint if she hears you entered a dungeon.”
“…Please keep it a secret from Won-yeong.”
Just as Seo Jae-yi pleaded with Kim Yoo-sung, a voice interrupted them.
“Hold on! You should apologize after putting someone in that state!”
Someone grabbed Seo Jae-yi’s shoulder.
She gasped, recognizing the Esper in combat gear.
In the commotion caused by the two survivors’ vomiting, she had completely forgotten about kicking the innocent Esper.
“I’m so sorry! I couldn’t dodge because I was carrying the survivors.”
“He’s unconscious!”
“Unconscious? Then he’s not dead? Thank goodness. I tried to hold back my strength, but I was worried I might have hurt him.”
He should be grateful that his stomach wasn’t ruptured after being kicked by an S-rank Esper.
However, unaware of this fact, the Esper’s face turned red with anger, assuming she was mocking him.
“I apologize. Rescuing the survivors was urgent, so I had no choice. Please understand.”
Just as the Esper was about to unleash a torrent of curses, Kim Yoo-sung intervened. The Esper was startled, finally noticing his presence.
“W-why is the Haeil Guild Master here…? Is this person part of Haeil?”
“Yes. As you can see, the two survivors were in critical condition and required immediate attention. Please take that into consideration.”
Kim Yoo-sung gestured towards the ground where the two survivors had been violently ill.
The Esper’s anger subsided. Of course, he had no idea that their condition was a direct result of Seo Jae-yi carrying them under her arms while sprinting.
“The Haeil Guild will compensate for any damages. Please contact us here.”
Kim Yoo-sung handed him a business card with the contact information for Haeil’s damage control team.
“Well, if the Guild Master says so…”
The Esper’s expression completely softened. It was only natural, considering the apology came from one of only eight S-rank Espers in Korea.
He glared at Seo Jae-yi, who stood under Kim Yoo-sung’s protective aura, and left to continue the dungeon raid.
“I take back what I said about why you came. It’s so convenient having the Guild Master around.”
Seo Jae-yi clapped her hands. As expected, their Guild Master was the best.
“I can’t tell if I’m the Guild Master or your personal cleanup crew.”
“You knew what you were getting into when you brought me into the Guild, right?”
Kim Yoo-sung sighed at her shameless reply.
However, he had never regretted bringing her into the Guild. He would gladly handle a thousand more cleanups if it meant he could keep her by his side.
That was the reason he had brought her into his Guild in the first place.
“You should have revealed your face. Then you wouldn’t have to deal with things like this.”
“Well, yeah.”
Seo Jae-yi shrugged.
Unlike Kim Yoo-sung, her face wasn’t publicly known.
Under the Awakened Minors Protection Act, the identities of those who awakened before reaching adulthood were kept confidential until they turned eighteen. Seo Jae-yi, who awakened at thirteen, was also subject to this law.
She had lived like that until she was nineteen, and it had become so ingrained that she didn’t bother revealing her information even after becoming an adult.
Well, there was also the fact that the Head of the Guiding Center, a certain someone, had meticulously controlled her information to prevent leaks, for reasons unknown to her.
“If I reveal my face, people will recognize me everywhere I go. That’s a bit annoying. I like things the way they are now.”
“Don’t you think your flower shop would become famous and attract more customers if you revealed your face? The renowned Firestarter running a flower shop – that would be quite a spectacle.”
Seo Jae-yi’s jaw dropped at Kim Yoo-sung’s suggestion. How had she never thought of that?
“I-I never considered that.”
More customers… Should she reveal her face after all? It was a tempting idea.
“Oh.”
“Ah.”
At that moment, they both flinched almost simultaneously.
Someone was approaching with a leisurely gait.
Tap, tap, tap. The sound of heavy dress shoes hitting the pavement was all they heard, but the two Espers, with their monstrous senses, immediately recognized the owner of those footsteps.
Kim Yoo-sung’s face contorted in displeasure. Seo Jae-yi’s expression turned wary.
“…I should have taken you with me right away.”
“I should have gone straight for the cake.”
The unpleasant footsteps stopped right beside them. They turned their heads to see a figure standing there.
A perfectly tailored suit, pale skin accentuated by his dark hair, a cold demeanor emphasized by his silver-rimmed glasses, and eyes behind the lenses that were an unsettling shade of black.
He possessed an aura that commanded attention.
“Did the dungeon suddenly become Rank 1 without my knowledge? Why is the Head of the Center here?”
Kwon Yi-soo, the first S-rank Guide in Korea and the current Head of the Guide Management Center.
The appearance of the very person Kim Yoo-sung loathed and referred to as “that bastard Kwon Yi-soo.”
“It’s not because this is a Rank 1 dungeon, but because an Esper on the verge of overload entered it.”
His voice, as cold as his gaze, was devoid of emotion.
Some lamented that Kwon Yi-soo should have awakened as an Esper instead of a Guide, but Seo Jae-yi disagreed.
She couldn’t imagine anyone more suited to be a Guide than this man.
“Your reinstatement hasn’t been approved yet, has it? Why are you here? There’s no way your retirement was revoked without my knowledge.”
“I’m still officially retired. But I heard that civilians were caught in the dungeon emergence right in front of me. I did my part in rescuing the survivors.”
“With that body of yours, on the verge of overload?”
Kwon Yi-soo’s icy gaze swept over Seo Jae-yi from head to toe. Kim Yoo-sung clenched his fist at the offensive scrutiny, but Seo Jae-yi gently patted his hand.
Antagonizing Kwon Yi-soo, the leader of all Guides in Korea, would benefit no one, especially not Seo Jae-yi.
The Guide with the highest Matching Rate with her, at 37%, was none other than Kwon Yi-soo.
Only he, another S-rank and the strongest Guide, could effectively lower her dangerously high overload level.
“…I was wondering where your confidence came from, but I see your condition has indeed improved.”
And as her Guide, Kwon Yi-soo immediately recognized the change in her state.
He strode towards her and abruptly grabbed her left wrist, lifting it up.
Kim Yoo-sung was about to intervene, but Kwon Yi-soo had already checked the overload level displayed on her watch.
【Overload Progress — 51%】
Kwon Yi-soo’s face contorted in displeasure upon seeing the clearly displayed number.
A year ago, during their last encounter, Seo Jae-yi hadn’t been able to hide her pale complexion. But now? Not only had her color improved, but her overload level was at 51%?
“I haven’t heard of you visiting the Guiding Center in the past year. What’s with this level?”
Such a decrease was impossible without Guiding. Someone must have Guided her without his knowledge. Moreover, they had done so extensively, enough to improve the condition of an S-rank Esper suffering from severe Guiding deficiency.
Who dared to do such a thing without his permission?
Kwon Yi-soo gritted his teeth.
“Let’s talk after you…”
Kim Yoo-sung, unable to tolerate Kwon Yi-soo’s rough treatment of Seo Jae-yi any longer, reached out to pry his hand away.
【Overload Progress — 50%】
The overload level, which had been at 51%, decreased slightly.
Kim Yoo-sung was stunned. Kwon Yi-soo was currently Guiding Seo Jae-yi. Of course, Seo Jae-yi was the most surprised of all.
“Why are you suddenly Guiding me so willingly? Is the world ending tomorrow?”
It was rare for Kwon Yi-soo, known for his dictatorial and abrasive personality, to voluntarily initiate Guiding. He was someone who would only begrudgingly provide minimal Guiding after Seo Jae-yi had exhausted all other options and resorted to desperate pleas. What had changed?
She wasn’t even on the verge of overload like she was a year ago; her condition was better than ever.
“Explain this level. Even if you haven’t used your abilities for a year, it’s impossible for it to drop to 50% without Guiding. Who Guided you?”
Seo Jae-yi closed her mouth, unable to answer.
She couldn’t tell Kwon Yi-soo, even if Kim Yoo-sung remained oblivious.
The person who Guided her was an unregistered Awakened individual who didn’t even know they were a Guide.
In Korea, both Guides and Espers were required to serve for five years at the Guiding Center or the Association upon awakening.
They were also obligated to participate in at least one dungeon raid, regardless of their personal wishes.
This requirement deterred many from wanting to awaken.
That was why Seo Jae-yi hadn’t pursued the man that day. No matter how much she needed him, she couldn’t ask him to endure such a dreadful fate for her sake.
Therefore, she had to keep this a secret until he registered himself.
“I’ve been working hard this past year. Everyone was curious about where I disappeared to for six months, right? Well, I entered a dungeon and suppressed my overload…”
“What?”
“What are you talking about?”
Both Kwon Yi-soo and Kim Yoo-sung cut her off, shocked by her revelation.
“A dungeon? We never received any reports of you entering a dungeon.”
“You entered a dungeon?! For six months?! So you went into a Fixed dungeon? Why a dungeon of all places…!”
They bombarded her with questions.
This was the reaction Seo Jae-yi had hoped for. It would divert their attention from the unregistered Guide roaming around.
‘Besides, it’s not like I’m lying about entering a dungeon.’
She hadn’t planned on revealing this, but she was willing to endure it for the sake of the customer who had helped her.
“So… Huh?”
Just as she was about to offer a vague explanation, her head turned involuntarily, as if pulled by an invisible force.
‘What’s this?’
This was a new sensation.
It wasn’t the unpleasant energy signature of a monster; it was as if she was being drawn by a magnet, her body moving against her will. The world around her seemed to fall silent.
Her Esper instincts were guiding her somewhere.
What was this feeling?
“Seo Jae-yi?”
Oblivious to Kim Yoo-sung calling her name, Seo Jae-yi’s gaze was irresistibly drawn towards a specific point.
And she found him.
“Ah.”
Soft brown hair, a handsome face with a hint of sharpness, and clear brown eyes that had left a lasting impression.
The man in the expensive-looking suit she had seen a few days ago.
Baek Joo-won, the customer she had drenched, was standing there.