Chapter 8 – GOY 8

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After ​heading ​to ​the ​guild ​office, ​I changed into ​the ​Changwi ​Guild ​uniform ​in the locker room.

The ​combination ​of a white ​shirt and a ​black ​robe ​felt ​unbalanced ​no ​matter how many ​times ​I ​saw it. However, ​knowing that Ji-hee noona’s ​tastes were ​fully reflected ​in the ​design, I ​had ​never ​pointed it out.

Moreover, ​it was ​an incredibly useful outfit ​for hiding my identity.

I ​put on sunglasses and ​a large ​mask ​that covered more than half of ​my face, then pulled ​the ​hood ​of ​the ​robe deep over ​my head.

Being ​one ​of the few ​S-Class ​Guides in South Korea, I ​was followed ​by ​an unwanted level ​of ​fame.

Since ​almost ​everyone ​in this ​world ​knew of ​me, I had to cover my face ​completely.

If someone happened ​to recognize me ​and report the fact ​that I ​was working as ​a ​part-time Guide to ​my school, I ​would face ​disciplinary ​action.

Once I ​finished ​preparing and ​went ​down to ​the ​Guiding ​Room, Ji-hoon hyung ​greeted ​me warmly.

He ​was ​the ​guild ​leader of the Changwi Guild [visit our site]and Ji-hee noona’s stolen contentcousin. He was also one of the few people here who knew my true identity.

“Yeon-soo, it’s been a while.”

“It’s only been fifteen days.”

“It’s always good to see you.”

He gave a genial smile.

“How many people do I need to guide today?”

“Five. Two are B-Class, one is C1, and two are C-Class.”

“Yes. Understood.”

Ability Users are broadly classified into S, A, B, C1, C, D, and F ranks.

Because those in the S and A ranks—called High-rank—were so few that they were said to be chosen by the heavens, typical Gate Raids were handled by B-Class, who were called mid-rank Ability Users.

However, while there were more B-Class than S or A-Class, they were still insufficient in number.

To solve this problem, the government separated the top 20% of C-Class Ability Users into the C1 rank. They then designated the combination of B-Class and C1 as mid-rank.

Originally, they had tried to create a new grading system that included C1 Espers and Guides within the B-Class, but it was said to have fallen through due to fierce opposition from existing B-Class Ability Users.

Anyway, that meant I had to guide three mid-ranks and two low-ranks today.

“I’m sorry.”

“Huh? For what?”

“It’s a waste of talent for an S-Class Guide to do mid-to-low rank Guiding.”

“It’s okay. Actually, it’s more comfortable and better this way.”

No matter how much of an S-Class I was, guiding High-rank Espers of A-Class or above was tricky. I had to consider the matching rate, and the difficulty of the Guiding itself was high.

Some Guides supposedly felt their pride wounded by guiding Espers of a lower rank than themselves, but I didn’t mind at all.

“I appreciate you saying that. [unauthorized copy]Yeon-soo, you haven’t signed [stolen content]a contract anywhere yet, right?”

“No.”

“How about joining our guild? Money is great, but a person needs to have a dream…—”

“Ah, stop trying to sell him your bullshit!”

The door to the Guiding Room swung open, and Ji-hee noona stormed inside.

“Hey, what’s with that tone toward your older cousin? Who’s selling bullshit?”

“I told you not to talk nonsense to Yeon-soo. Why are you putting unreasonable pressure on a kid who came here to help out because of me?”

“Who said I was putting pressure on him? As a senior in life, I was just trying to let him know that there are values more important than money.”

“I’m the only one whose life needs to be ruined by falling for that kind of talk.”

Ji-hee noona snorted, and Ji-hoon hyung glanced at me tentatively.

“Hey, why do you talk like that? Yeon-soo might actually believe you.”

“You still haven’t given up, have you?”

“Noona, I’m fine.”

I tried to mediate the situation, but she was firm.

“No. This needs to be made clear. If you put pressure on Yeon-soo one more time, I will absolutely never bring him back, so keep that in mind!”

“Hey! Park Ji-hee!”

“I warned you. And Yeon-soo, if this man says anything nonsensical, just ignore him and come straight out. Got it?”

“Yeah. I got it.”

After grabbing Ji-hoon hyung and warning him once more, she entered her own Guiding Room.

“Sigh, her temper is truly something else.”

Ji-hoon hyung shook his head and looked at me. [Read on Read BL Novels]He seemed eager to make a scouting offer somehow, but he Read on Read BL Novelseventually shut [stolen content]his mouth, seemingly mindful of Ji-hee noona’s threat.

Since I had no intention of joining the Changwi Guild either, I didn’t add anything to the conversation.

Watching Ji-hee noona struggle had made me realize the reality of small-scale guilds, and above all, I wanted to make a lot of money.

People called awakening as a High-rank Guide like winning the lottery.

If even one child awakened as a High-rank Ability User, the family could seize immense wealth.

I almost did that. If I had become Joo Seung-hyuk’s exclusive guide as in the original story, my whole family would have lived in luxury.

But so far, I hadn’t signed any contracts.

My family wasn’t struggling with poverty, but we weren’t exactly well-off either.

It would have been tempting to accept the incredible contract terms offered by corporations, but my parents respected my choice.

Not once had they forced a contract on me or made me feel pressured.

I was grateful to my parents for that, and I wanted to make sure they lived in luxury one day.

“Shall we start the Guiding?”

“Yes. I’ll begin.”

When Ji-hoon called over the radio, a B-Class Esper entered.

“Wow, I’m in luck.”

He looked at me and let out a frivolous whistle. Then, Ji-hoon hyung spoke in a low voice, sounding fed up.

“Stop doing useless things and take a seat.”

The B-Class Esper clicked his tongue and sat in the leather chair designed for Espers.

“Guild Leader Park, watching over us every time we get Guiding makes me feel like a criminal; it feels disgusting. This is why Changwi can’t grow.”

“We will handle it, so please do not worry.”

In the case of corporations or centers, CCTV and safety [stolen content]devices were installed [stolen content]to [unauthorized copy]prepare for unforeseen accidents that could occur during Guiding.

Since Changwi didn’t yet have the resources to implement such a system, when guiding mercenary Espers, an Esper belonging to the guild would provide direct security by their side.

This was also why I preferred part-time Guiding at Changwi over working for corporations or centers.

Small guilds always had safety issues, but Changwi not only hid my identity but also ensured the Guide’s safety was firmly protected.

The mercenary Esper glared at Ji-hoon hyung. However, since Ji-hoon hyung was an A-Class Esper and he was B-Class, he didn’t pick any more fights.

“There’s a great reputation that getting Guiding from the hooded Guide at Changwi makes your body feel exceptionally refreshed. I’m telling you, there are plenty of Esper bastards who work with Changwi just to meet that person.”

The mercenary grinned foolishly at me. It was absurd to see him smile so quickly after picking a fight just a moment ago.

Regardless, it was a compliment, and since I didn’t want to ruin the barely thawed atmosphere, I gave a small nod.

“Thank you.”

“Now, shall I have a taste of the Guide?”

My motivation to guide plummeted at the stolen contentdisgusting comment. However, Read on Read BL Novelssince most mercenaries [Read on Read BL Novels]had foul mouths, this was common.

‘The higher the rank of a mercenary, the worse their personality. There’s a reason they’re working as mercenaries with that rank!’

The words Ji-hee noona had said suddenly came to mind.

Ji-hoon hyung also seemed to judge that such comments were common, so he didn’t stop the Guiding.

I didn’t intend to cause a scene either. To guide a mercenary, one had to be prepared for this much.

“I will begin the Guiding. Please give me your hand.”

I lowered my voice more than usual. This, too, was an action to hide my identity.

I reached out my hand, intending to finish the Guiding as quickly as possible and send him away.

The mercenary let out a perverted smile, then grabbed my hand and began to squeeze and fiddle with it.

Before I could protest, Ji-hoon hyung slapped his hand away first.

“What do you think you’re doing? Is this your stolen contentRead on Read BL Novelsfirst time receiving Guiding? Just place your hand lightly.”

“The Guild Leader is young, so he must not know. Guiding requires communion. Like this.”

The mercenary suddenly tried to pull my waist toward him. At that moment, the door to the Guiding Room opened.

No, the door was smashed open with a thunderous crash. And the figure of a man standing outside was revealed.

“Joo Seung-hyuk…”

Those words didn’t come from my mouth.

The B-Class mercenary, recognizing Joo Seung-hyuk, shouted in surprise. And the next sound that man let out was a scream.

“Aaaagh!”

In an instant, the man’s arm was severed and rolled across the floor.

The Guiding Room was stained with red blood and screams. However, the person responsible for this situation ignored the mercenary’s screams, strode inside, and gripped my hand.

“S-Seung-hyuk-ah…”

A murderous aura wrapped around Joo Seung-hyuk’s entire body was swirling. He silently pulled my hand toward him.

As he tried to drag me away, Ji-hoon hyung urgently tried to stop him.

“Esper Joo Seung-hyuk, what is the meaning of this!”

Joo Seung-hyuk glared at Ji-hoon hyung. The dark mana that had sliced the mercenary’s arm now pointed toward Ji-hoon hyung.

No matter how much of an A-Class Ji-hoon hyung was, Joo Seung-hyuk was on a different dimension.

If Joo Seung-hyuk attacked, he wouldn’t be able to block it.

I shouted urgently.

“Stop it!”

Joo Seung-hyuk looked down at me. His gaze felt as if it would freeze my very heart, but I couldn’t just stand by when someone might actually die.

“Seung-hyuk-ah, don’t do that.”

“Informal speech is appropriate for times like this.”

He spat out coldly, then held my hand and walked out.

“Wait!”

“Ji-hoon hyung, it’s okay.”

Ji-hoon hyung tried to grab me, but I urgently stopped him. If we upset Joo Seung-hyuk here, someone might truly die.