Survive With the Max Level Guide

Three days had passed since the day Shim Tae-seong avoided the guiding with astonishing patience. In all that time, he hadn’t shown his face even once. It was beyond disappointing—it was actually surprising. Not only did he resist the guiding, now he was actively avoiding me. Sure, his job was close-proximity security, so he was probably still hovering nearby…

Well, it’s not like I don’t have ways to call him out.

“Where are you headed, young master?”

Shim Tae-seong appeared on the path leading to the garage. I paused and looked at him. As expected.

“I just have a quick errand to run…”

“I’ll escort you.”

“It’s fine. I’ll go alone.”

“That’s not acceptable.”

His response was overly firm, no room for negotiation. I looked at him, a bit flustered.

“Really, it’s fine. I’m just going out for a little while.”

“I’ll accompany you.”

It was like talking to a wall. No matter what I said, he had clearly decided he was coming with me. He probably thought I lacked a sense of caution. A Guide wandering around alone? That probably sounded reckless to him. In the end, I nodded, as if resigning myself.

Inside the car with Shim Tae-seong at the wheel, silence filled the space. Honestly, our first meeting had been less awkward than this.

I finally opened my mouth after staying quiet since telling him the destination.

“Um… are you feeling better now?”

“…Yes.”

He glanced at me briefly and gave a curt answer. Then after a moment, he asked in return.

“And you, young master?”

“I’m fine now. Wasn’t that sick to begin with, really.”

It had been rough, but it’s been a while since I got back to normal.

“…That’s good to hear.”

Silence settled in again.

“Bodyguard.”

Unable to hide my discomfort, I called out to him.

“About that day… I apologize.”

“What…”

“I think I might’ve overstepped. Maybe I pushed too hard. You left so suddenly… it made me wonder if I did something wrong.”

At my cautious apology, Shim Tae-seong fell silent.

He seemed unsure how to respond.

“No, not at all. I wasn’t the least bit offended.”

He finally chose to deny it. Right, of course. Not only was he not offended—he probably nearly lost his mind for the opposite reason. He’d likely never experienced guiding before, having kept his identity hidden all this time. The shock must’ve been overwhelming.

As I secretly basked in amusement, Shim Tae-seong continued.

“If anything, it was my behavior that was inappropriate.”

“…What?”

I blinked, caught off guard.

“No, really. I didn’t feel bad at all. I figured you must’ve had your reasons.”

“Even so, my actions were undeniably rude. I apologize.”

“No, seriously, you don’t have to—”

We kept going back and forth like that, until at some point, I suddenly realized—what the hell were we doing? Apparently, he had the same thought, because we both fell silent at once. The car came to a stop at a red light.

Our eyes met. A small laugh escaped both of us, almost at the same time.

“Well, I guess it’s a good thing neither of us holds any grudges.”

“That would never happen.”

At least, not on my side.

He added the last part quietly. Rather than ask how he could be so sure, I just smiled, as if to say thank you for being polite.

“Oh. We’re here.”

With the mood softened, we arrived at a building. It was a famous perfume brand’s boutique. Even at the entrance, the air was filled with a fragrant aroma.

Inside, an array of luxurious ampoules welcomed visitors.

“A friend’s birthday is coming up, and he’s a perfume collector. I thought I’d pick out a gift here.”

I strolled through the space at a leisurely pace, testing various scents. Eventually, I found one I liked—a light floral fragrance that wasn’t overpowering.

“This one’s nice. Maybe I should try wearing it too…”

I murmured quietly to myself. I’d never really been interested in perfume before, but this had a fresh, slightly sweet after-scent that wasn’t bad at all.

Shim Tae-seong, who had silently been staying close behind me, suddenly showed interest.

“I think it would suit you well.”

“Really?”

“Yes. However…”

However?

“In my opinion… the young master’s natural scent is even better.”

“…!”

Wow. Did he really just say that out loud?

Stunned, I turned to look at Shim Tae-seong. He was gazing down at me with a calm, curious expression.

“Is there something you need?”

“No, just… You must have an incredibly sharp sense of smell.”

“I do, yes.”

Right. What else would you expect from an S-rank Esper? I turned my head, feeling the heat rising in my cheeks. Even I wasn’t immune to such a blatantly flustering compliment.

***

“I heard you know Eun-hyuk. Please take good care of our Eun-soo.”

That evening—the day he barely managed to pull himself away from the guiding by sheer force of will—Chairwoman Cha called in Shim Tae-seong and greeted him as someone’s mother.

Maybe she wanted to see her son’s bodyguard with her own eyes and judge him for herself, but despite her famously unreadable face, it radiated deep maternal affection.

Wealth and power don’t define a family. Cha Eun-soo’s warmth and gentleness clearly came from being surrounded by genuine love. His mother, his older brother, the youngest sibling who came to meet him after work—and even the older sister who wrapped him in a hug, calling him adorable.

Though they’d lost their father in a horrific incident, according to Cha Eun-hyuk, it had happened when Eun-soo was just a baby—too young to even remember it. Which meant he likely grew up without the kind of trauma that leaves a lifelong scar.

But.

I remembered Cha Eun-soo saying something had happened. And those brief shadows that would sometimes flit across his delicate face.

He probably only awakened as a Guide recently. Which would explain why Cha Eun-hyuk had become even more sensitive about his brother’s safety.

Looking for someone who wouldn’t recognize the signs of a Guide, he chose me—someone he believed to be a regular civilian—to act as a bodyguard.

And with that, I realized another truth. One that was far from pleasant.

Cha Eun-hyuk was an Esper. An S-rank Esper, no less—one who required high-level guiding.

There was no doubt he’d received guiding from Eun-soo. And with the intent to keep his brother all to himself, he was planning to hide the fact that Eun-soo was a Guide from the outside world. Correction—he already was hiding it.

…Eun-soo’s illness had probably been caused by overextending himself to guide Cha Eun-hyuk.

Considering the dangers of their powers and the physical toll involved, I was probably of a similar rank to Cha Eun-hyuk—and yet, just one guiding session with Eun-soo nearly shattered my mind. There was no way Eun-hyuk had fared any better.

Maybe the brothers—

“Took longer to choose than I thought. Should we go for a little drive, maybe grab dinner before heading back?”

That gentle voice called out. Shim Tae-seong turned his head.

The person possibly holding the greatest potential among all living Guides was looking at him.

Even this moment felt so good, so perfect. How could he possibly say no to the offer of spending more time together?

Shim Tae-seong pushed aside his unpleasant thoughts and nodded.

“That sounds great.”

“I’ll drive.”

“…”

Shim Tae-seong responded by starting the engine. He needed to be the one driving so he could react quickly in case of danger while on the road. It was only a precaution, but he didn’t want to ruin the moment by explaining and making things awkward, so he kept his mouth shut. Not knowing the reason, Cha Eun-soo simply looked disappointed.

“I’ve been noticing since earlier… you’re really firm about things, aren’t you, Mr. Bodyguard?”

“Where would you like to go?”

“Hmm, I’m not sure.”

He tapped his chin, lost in thought.

“Somewhere remote sounds nice. No people around.”

He was probably hoping to relieve some stress, maybe born from recent internal struggles. Without hesitating for long, Shim Tae-seong turned the steering wheel.

They drove just long enough—not too short, not too far—to make it out of Seoul. Where they arrived was an expansive view of the sea.

Cha Eun-soo, who had gasped in awe the moment the ocean came into view, stepped out of the car. The sea breeze tossed his clothes and hair about. White puffs of breath escaped him as the blue horizon reflected in his eyes.

“This is amazing! I feel like my chest just opened up.”

“I’m glad it pleases you.”

“I actually was thinking about going to the sea. But every place is too far to go on a whim…”

He seemed to be considering the driver’s fatigue. Once again, Shim Tae-seong could feel his kindness. He followed behind as Cha Eun-soo began walking along the sandy beach.

“Feels so much more relaxing with no one else around. Maybe because it’s winter and the beach is empty.”

“This place is always sparsely populated.”

“Really?”

Looking around at the area, which had no shops or signs of civilization, Cha Eun-soo smiled in satisfaction. That smile lifted Shim Tae-seong’s mood, too.

“I should probably let them know I’ll be back late today.”

“I’ll inform the chairwoman for you.”

Shim Tae-seong reached for his phone, but Cha Eun-soo shook his head.

“No, I usually prefer to call her myself.”

He then rang his mother. His usually soft, quiet voice grew louder to carry through the wind.

As Shim Tae-seong watched the increasingly flushed cheeks of Cha Eun-soo in the cold air, he took off his winter coat and gently draped it over his shoulders.

Cha Eun-soo had just finished his call and looked startled.

“Bodyguard! If you give me your coat in this weather…”

“It’s alright. I don’t catch colds easily.”

For a top-tier Esper, even the freezing chill of midwinter didn’t register as cold. He only wore season-appropriate clothing to avoid drawing suspicion from others.

“Still, you must be cold. Come on, take it back. Wear it.”

“I’m not cold. Please keep it on.”

A brief tug-of-war ensued.

“…Bodyguard.”

In the end, Shim Tae-seong won again.

Shim Tae-seong figured it couldn’t be helped if Cha Eun-soo saw him as stubborn. From his perspective, protecting someone as physically fragile as Cha Eun-soo was the obvious and proper thing to do.

But Eun-soo seemed to believe that Tae-seong was silently enduring the cold, and the uneasiness in his expression only grew. In the end, they hadn’t walked far before he turned around.

“Let’s just go back to the car.”

“You don’t want to stay out a little longer?”

“I’m cold. And we can enjoy the view from inside the car too, can’t we?”

It was a transparent white lie, but Shim Tae-seong accepted it. He was more concerned that Eun-soo, who was probably more susceptible to the cold, might catch something.

The two of them turned back and made their way toward the spot where the car was parked.