Even when Park Shinui first appeared on a broadcast and blurted out the unexpected confession “I love you” toward his master, the butler had regarded him as insignificant. It was indifference made possible by dismissing him as someone who would never be involved in their lives.
But for that fateful partner to be Park Shinui. To the butler who had served K Group since the previous generation, this was news close to catastrophic.
Still, just a little bit, under the pretext of being ‘the master’s Guide,’ he had held a sliver of expectation… but the words Park Shinui had spat at the family members during their first meeting still remained vividly like filth in the butler’s memory.
He was someone who trampled without hesitation on those he judged to be of lower rank than himself, not even treating them as human. Park Shinui’s indiscriminate abuse of power toward the servants while coming and going from this mansion amply proved how deeply rooted his twisted sense of superiority was.
[Once we’re pair bonded, I’ll be the mistress of this house. You know that, right? I’m Kang Taejun’s only Guide. So from now on, servants other than the butler shouldn’t speak to me carelessly. I don’t want to see those shabby appearances either, so stay out of sight as much as possible. Honestly, the people here aren’t at a level to even talk to me, right?]
[And from the food I eat to the water I drink, prepare everything with only the finest, top-quality items. Don’t let just anyone touch them—I mean the butler-nim should personally manage everything from meal preparation to room cleaning.]
“The master is a very busy person, but if guiding is necessary, he might come to meet Park Shinui-ssi.”
The butler roughly erased the positive thoughts about Park Shinui that had flashed through his mind for a split second and spoke coldly. To have momentarily mistaken as pure a person whose every word dripped with arrogance—he must be getting old now. Seeing how clouded his judgment of people had become.
He was someone who had thrown tantrums every second and tormented those around him until the day before the Pair Bonding Ceremony. There was no need to attach any special meaning to Park Shinui suddenly becoming quiet after the ceremony. It was merely foul fickleness whose future couldn’t be predicted.
The butler hesitated for a moment. His master’s instructions were clear. Report anything that felt incongruous.
But reports needed to have evidence. Taking up his master’s time with just a vague intuition that ‘he somehow seems like a different person’ was close to dereliction of duty as a butler. Most of all, the very thought that a person like Park Shinui had changed overnight was likely a foolish delusion that overestimated him.
In the end, the butler decided not to include that intuition in even a single line of his report. Never realizing the possibility that his hatred toward Park Shinui might have clouded his judgment.
***
Park Shinui was scanning the interior of the Center he’d never seen before as if exploring, then stopped his gaze on the people standing before him. In front of him stood the Guide Division Chief who was awkwardly blinking and the restless manager. For some reason, the two couldn’t even properly make eye contact with Park Shinui.
“Then, then…… should I come back at the end of your work day?”
The manager spoke up first cautiously, wiping away the sweat beading on his forehead. Park Shinui nodded toward him with a gentle smile.
“Yes. Thank you for your hard work, Manager-nim.”
“Th-thank you for my hard work! Why…… why do you keep saying such things?”
The manager stammered, startled as if nailed to the spot.
“I’ll contact you when I get off work.”
He seemed to be experiencing extreme confusion, unable to adapt to the situation of Park Shinui speaking politely. Whether it was hearing respectful language or facing a gentle smile, he looked awkward throughout, as if he’d seen a ghost. When he’d come to pick him up at the mansion, he’d shown a rather professional demeanor, but right after their first greeting, he’d suddenly changed to this attitude.
At first he’d given suspicious glances, but now he seemed completely terrified. The manager with a plump build and gentle features—had he suffered terribly from Park Shinui’s tyranny? Or was he even feeling fear at his appearance being so different from before? Every time they continued their conversation, he flinched so excessively that Park Shinui worried whether he had some chronic illness.
“Then I’ll be going…!”
“Yes, take care.”
Just what kind of person was the celebrity Park Shinui?
Watching the back of the manager who left a bow without even being able to look straight ahead and fled the office as if his tail was on fire, Park Shinui fell into deep thought. The acting ability confirmed through videos uploaded to the internet was at a level that couldn’t be called good even with empty words, and he’d never shown any particular sense on variety shows he appeared on as a panel member either.
‘Is his at least passable appearance doing all the heavy lifting?’
Seeing people who even forgot the fact that the other person was that notorious Park Shinui and stared entranced, the power of the ‘shell’ was certainly impressive.
Park Shinui erased the afterimage of the manager who’d disappeared as if fleeing and turned his gaze to the Division Chief who was watching him with mouth agape.
“Um, did you have something to say……”
“……”
“Division Chief-nim?”
“Ah, yes. Yes? Hahaha. The manager must have had some very urgent business?”
The Division Chief who came to his senses belatedly burst into an awkward laugh and blushed. He didn’t forget to make excuses that he rarely saw celebrities this close up, so he committed discourtesies every time.
Honestly, Park Shinui found it hard to accept the situation of having a manager following him around when he wasn’t even going to continue acting activities. No matter who had decided this, he thought he should meet the agency CEO soon. Of course, he planned to moderately utilize the manager’s help until he became completely accustomed to this world. After all, he didn’t know how to hold a steering wheel or the complex geography of this unfamiliar city at all. For now, the best strategy was to enjoy this excessive favor while gathering information.
“I’ve been looking forward every single day to when Park Shinui-gun would visit the Center over the past month. Shall I pour you a cup of tea?”
The Division Chief who stood up from his seat moved toward the table where the coffee pot was placed and asked in an excited voice.
“Water is fine. Thank you.”
“Thank you? You say such unnecessary things.”
The Guide Division Chief, whether he’d received news in advance that Park Shinui was coming to work, had come out to wait directly at the building entrance. Then saying there was something he urgently needed to discuss, he immediately guided him to this Division Chief’s office.
The problem was that following the manager, even the Division Chief—why was everyone struggling so much in front of him? If the manager who would have watched Park Shinui’s life most closely was scared by his current appearance that was completely different from his past behavior, what was the reason the Guide Division Chief, the head of a national core facility, was being so humble?
‘Is what he has to say something difficult to bring up?’
Park Shinui scanned the Division Chief’s office once more as if looking at something curious. Numerous medals and plaques filling the walls stood out, proving the Division Chief’s splendid career and authority.
On the way here, Park Shinui had encountered several times people wearing the same uniform as himself. From the circumstances, this building seemed to be a building exclusively for Guides. The movements of those passing through the corridors were disciplined, and they seemed skilled as if they could communicate just by exchanging glances.
The Guides belonging to the Ability Center received systematic training in their assigned teams and supported Espers, or were directly deployed to combat sites when operation orders came down. In short, it was no different from a civil service organization operated by the state.
When a high-ranked Guide was assigned exclusively to a high-rank Esper team, the income they earned was enormous, and their status within the organization changed accordingly. Conversely, low-rank Guides found it hard to get opportunities even if they wanted to stand on the front lines. On the surface it was one organization, but internally a strict hierarchy based on rank was operating.
Of course, Park Shinui was an exception who didn’t belong anywhere in that pyramid. With just the title of Kang Taejun’s Dedicated Guide, he was placed outside of all ranks in this organization. He hadn’t yet realized what that meant though.
“The tea is hot, so be careful. It’s tea extracted from magic stones collected from an A-rank Gate—very precious. Of course, Park Shinui-ssi must have tried much better tea than this. Hahaha.”
“I said water would be fine……”
“Oh no, I can’t serve water to an honored guest. The very fact that someone like Park Shinui-ssi is coming to work at our Center is a great honor for us. Kang Taejun Esper’s Dedicated Guide—just thinking about how amazing that is. In fact, you don’t know how excited I’ve been since this morning. Hahaha.”
To have flattery flow out like that must require practice. Park Shinui accepted the teacup with suspicious eyes. Could there be some ulterior motive in going so far as to serve such expensive tea?
