Chapter 48 – GOY 48
#48
‘This is truly a desperate situation… no, wait, this is actually great!’
It was annoying that Professor Oh had mentioned my “place” while pretending to care for me, but looking at it objectively, it wasn’t bad.
In the original story, the matching rate between Joo Seung-hyuk and Aaron was 69%. Considering they were both S-Class, that was quite a high figure.
In fact, Joo Seung-hyuk had evaluated Aaron’s Guiding as being pretty decent. He said it wasn’t as good as Kim Joon’s, but it was far better than Lee Yeon-soo’s trashy Guiding.
I looked at Aaron again.
He took after his American mother a lot. He had pale, almost translucent skin, large eyes, freckles, and small lips. Overall, he had a round and cute impression. His nickname was “Shih Tzu,” and he fit that image perfectly.
And he was slightly shorter than me. Maybe just under or barely over 170cm?
He was the complete opposite of Kim Joon in terms of [unauthorized copy]appearance, physique, and personality, but it should be fine. If nothing else, it seemed Joo Seung-hyuk’s taste in looks had changed from the original.
Anyway, Aaron had the kind of cute looks that had produced countless online “aunties” and “uncles” since childhood, and on top of being an S-Class Guide, he was incredibly wealthy. Furthermore, he was a Dominant Omega.
In terms of conditions alone, he was beyond perfect. Moreover, he liked Joo Seung-hyuk.
Honestly, when I tried to hand Joo Seung-hyuk over to Kim Joon, I felt a pang of conscience. I knew Kim Joon had M tendencies, but I still felt sorry, as if I were ruining an innocent kid’s life for no reason.
But if the opponent was Aaron, there was no need to feel guilty. If he wants to tangle up his own fate, what can I do?
Besides, even if he ends up being imprisoned, his brother or family would stop it.
The more I thought about it, the more those two were a match made in heaven.
I’ll take this opportunity to pair the obsessive yandere with Villainous Sub-Uke No. 2, and then I’ll make my escape!
“Why are you laughing? Do I look funny to you?”
The sense of liberation must have been written all over my face. I need to be careful not to make it too obvious.
“No. I’m just glad to meet you, Guide Aaron. I’ve been a fan since I was young.”
“Is that so?”
“Yes.”
Aaron glared at me. Was he trying to see through my sincerity? I put on the most harmless smile possible.
‘I am not your romantic rival. If you want the madman, please take him. I have absolutely no intention of getting between you two.’
Whether my sincerity reached him or not, Aaron beamed a smile.
“I’m disappointed, though.”
“Pardon?”
“I mean you. There were so many rumors that you were a homme fatale who played with the Espers of Korea, so I thought you’d be a more seductive type. Seeing you in person, I’m relieved.”
It seemed my sincerity hadn’t been conveyed.
“You must have heard false rumors. The idea of me playing with anyone [stolen content]is absurd. It’s also disrespectful to the Espers.”
“Seems so.”
“Ah, yes….”
He glanced at me and spoke bluntly.
“My Korean is clumsy. Please understand if I make a mistake. It’s just because I don’t know better.”
“Not at all. You’re actually very fluent.”
His skill at playing the victim was maxed out. His Korean wasn’t just fluent; it was exceptional.
“Guide Aaron, I’ll show you around the school. Shall we start with the West Wing?”
“Is this the West Wing?”
“Yes.”
“I don’t see any Espers.”
“Guides take classes in the West Wing. Espers are in the East Wing. Joint training takes place in the Central Hall, and mock battle training is held at the KR Hall to the north. Where all the students gathered earlier was the KR Hall….”
“I know that much.”
Aaron cut me off mid-sentence and spoke primly.
“…Right.”
I think I understand why Lee Yeon-soo hated Aaron in the original. Now that I’m experiencing it myself, it’s way more irritating than it seemed in the novel.
No. Why am I empathizing with the villain? Let’s just endure it until I can send him to the obsessive yandere.
“There’s not much to see here. Let’s go to the East Wing.”
He basically meant he wanted to meet Joo Seung-hyuk. That was exactly what I wanted too.
“Yes. Let’s do that.”
When I answered readily, Aaron’s eyes widened. My reaction must have been unexpected.
“You’re quite confident.”
“What do you mean?”
“You seem confident that I won’t steal Joo Seung-hyuk from you.”
“Is Esteemed Student Joo Seung-hyuk an object? To be stolen or taken?”
Besides, if he took him, I’d be thankful. No, please, just take him!
I smiled harmlessly again, but Aaron snorted.
“Lee Yeon-soo, you’re a Beta, right?”
“Yes.”
“They say the powerful strength of an S-Class is also related to pheromones. That’s why most S-Classes manifest as Dominant. My whole family is Dominant. It’s rare for an S-Class Guide to be an ordinary Omega, but a Beta is quite peculiar. Could the grade measurement be wrong?”
He’s attacking the part he thinks is my weakness.
What he said was true. In reality, the S-Class Espers Joo Seung-hyuk, Park Geon-woo, Do Hyuk-jin, and Kim Chae-ah were all Dominant Alphas. The original Lee Yeon-soo suffered immense stress because of his Beta trait despite being S-Class. However, unlike the original, I didn’t mind being a Beta at all. Naturally, it didn’t affect me in the slightest.
“The grade is accurate.”
“That was checked with a Korean machine, right? Couldn’t there have been an error?”
Is he saying Made in Korea can’t be trusted? He wasn’t just putting me down; he was subtly belittling Korea.
It was absurd. Maybe if it were the era when his grandfather went into exile, but currently, South Korea’s technology was among the best in the world.
“That’s right. Most centers in Korea use testing machines made by Seong Han. That’s why they’re accurate. They are products renowned worldwide for their precise matching rates.”
“It could have been an old machine.”
“Guide Aaron.”
I erased my smile and called his name in a low voice.
“What?”
“I have provided Guiding to many Espers until now.”
“Are you proud of being a freelance guide? How vulgar.”
He sneered at me.
Compared to bonding or being an exclusive guide, there was a perception that freelance guides were low-class. I heard that up until our parents’ generation, freelance guides were treated like prostitutes. Of course, as times changed, the number of people saying such things openly decreased, but many still looked down on them.
My parents supported whatever I did, but they expressed concern about me living as a freelance guide.
They told me that money or grade didn’t matter, and they hoped I would sign an exclusive contract with an Esper of great character.
It was because of the negative perception of freelance guides.
I thought the rumors that Korea was particularly conservative and derogatory toward freelance guides while other countries weren’t were true, but it seems they were false.
“I cannot agree with your words, Guide Aaron. I respect freelance guides. Compared to Espers, there is an absolute shortage of Guides. If freelance guides didn’t exist, there would have been a lot of chaos.”
“Pfft. Respect? You two really are birds of a feather.”
Many people look down on freelance guides, but this is the first time I’ve seen someone so blatant about it. Especially another Guide.
I didn’t have much affection for Aaron to begin with, but now I’ve completely lost it. I spoke with a stern face.
“Guide Aaron, you are being very rude. And until now, not a single Esper has questioned my grade. If my grade were wrong as you say, it would mean the Espers who received Guiding from me are also idiots who cannot even distinguish a Guide’s grade.”
It is said that Espers can feel the difference in a Guide’s grade during Guiding. If I had lied and pretended to be S-Class while being A-Class, it would have been discovered immediately, and some Espers would have demanded a re-measurement.
“Are you ignoring the Espers of Korea, Guide Aaron?”
“I-I didn’t mean that. My Korean is just clumsy. I’m sorry if I offended you.”
The Korean Espers I had guided included ‘Joo Seung-hyuk.’ Realizing he had indirectly insulted Joo Seung-hyuk as well, Aaron panicked and apologized. Though he added the ridiculous excuse that it was because his Korean was clumsy.
If it had only been a problem between us, I would have let it go. But since his words insulted others as well, I gave him one more warning.
“Please be careful in the future. It’s a disrespectful remark not only to me but to others as well.”
“But it’s a fact that you’re peculiar.”
Aaron pouted. I think it’s been less than 30 seconds since he apologized….
“Peculiar in what way?”
“I heard your parents are both commoners.”
“Pardon?”
I doubted my ears. ‘Commoners’? This wasn’t a historical drama; that wasn’t a word used in real life.
“…Did you mean to say ‘ordinary people’?”
The term ‘ordinary people’ was also unpleasant, but it was a hundred times better than ‘commoners.’ However, even though I gave him a chance to correct the word, he instead got annoyed.
“Not that, I mean powerless. ‘Commoners with no abilities.’ Do you not understand the word?”
I had a feeling, but he really did mean ‘commoners.’ I was speechless.
“Then are Ability Users nobles? I didn’t realize America was a caste society.”
“Stop nitpicking. You’re someone who doesn’t understand humor. I really don’t know why you’re so popular.”
“Guide Aaron, please refrain from rude remarks.”
I tried my best not to antagonize Aaron. That was to follow the flow of the original story. But the moment he touched my parents, my patience reached its limit.
“Does Esper Park Geon-woo know that you’ve cheated?”
“Cheated?”
What kind of nonsense is this now?
“Don’t you feel sorry for Esper Park Geon-woo, who is suffering in Africa? Imagine how shocked he’d be to know you’ve cheated and are walking around covered in another Alpha’s pheromones.”
He boldly brought up false rumors.
“Guide Aaron, I think your Korean really is clumsy. ‘Cheating’ is a word that applies to people who are dating or married. I have never dated Esper Park Geon-woo. Rather, Esper Park Geon-woo would be shocked to hear rumors that we are dating.”
I explained, but Aaron snorted.
“Ah, so you’ve completely switched to Joo Seung-hyuk?”
“When did I ever say that? Do not distort my words. I have nothing going on with Esper Park Geon-woo.”
“Well, in terms of face, wealth, and skill, Joo Seung-hyuk overwhelms Park Geon-woo in every aspect.”
He continued to be sarcastic.
“Guide Aaron, refrain from rude remarks. Both Joo Seung-hyuk and Park Geon-woo are outstanding Espers.”
“It’s not rude, it’s reality. Isn’t comparing skills natural in this world?”
“You weren’t talking only about skills, were you?”
“Did I say anything wrong? You also finished your calculations that Joo Seung-hyuk is better and switched, didn’t you?”
“Sigh….”
A deep sigh escaped me. I [Read on Read BL Novels]was tired [unauthorized copy]of repeating the same words. I’ve never encountered a wall like this.
“So, Geon-woo Seonbae and I have never dated.”
I had planned to pair Aaron with Joo Seung-hyuk. But my mind was gradually changing.
No matter how much of an obsessive yandere Joo Seung-hyuk is, it seems too wasteful to link him with a brat like this.
“Since such false rumors are disrespectful to both me and Esper Park Geon-woo, please do not mention them.”
“Well, if you deny it that much, it can’t be helped.”
He remained sarcastic until the end. It seemed he intended to claim I was dating Park Geon-woo no matter what.
Is he planning to steal Joo Seung-hyuk by painting me as a two-timer?
I wanted to escape the madman, but that didn’t mean I was willing to suffer through strange false rumors.
Just as I was about to say one last thing, the ground shook with a loud roar.
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