Episode 20: A Rough Start (1)

“Ah… I’m not just some civilian. My Guide ID… is, well, I forgot it… but, still, look, this coat belongs to Baek Juyul!”

The voice coming from the Association employee was a bit too nice for a simple extra, but Sodam figured that even extras could have a decent voice—after all, her own face wasn’t half bad.

If this man really was an extra, showing him her Guide ID with its glaring “F-class” stamp would definitely be the worst move she could make.

The phrase “an F-class Guide for Baek Juyul” would never exist in the mind of an ordinary staff member, and the moment she presented her ID, Sodam would likely be booted out of there without a second thought.

So, she offered up the flimsy but foolproof “Baek Juyul card” that should easily sway an extra. Ignoring the man’s outstretched hand, she tried to slip past the barrier tape. But just then, the employee blocked her path with his body.

Even at that moment, Sodam should have remembered a cliché that always came up in transmigration stories: no extra character would ever have a voice good enough to make someone stop in their tracks.

“Sure, Juyul does have a coat like that, but couldn’t you have just bought one to copy him?”

“…Seriously, who would wear something like this in the middle of summer? That’s just ridiculous…!”

As she frowned and looked up at the man, without a trace of doubt in her mind, she immediately realized how careless she had been.

The warm smile, the gentle voice, those amber eyes that held a welcoming warmth, and the auburn hair with a hint of red that fell just so—she took it all in as she leaned back slightly, and it hit her.

‘This guy… he’s the original story’s secondary male lead…’

She had tried to back away from the main lead, only to stumble straight into the secondary male lead. Ta-da.

‘Wow, is it supposed to be this tough being a transmigrator? The author—or whatever god is behind this—is being way too harsh!’

This man, Cha Seonghwa, the only secondary male lead in the original story, was the complete opposite of the protagonist, Baek Juyul.

While Juyul was described with almost reverent praise as a solitary figure who wielded ice with the grace of a glacier, Seonghwa was lauded for his warmth, likened to a comforting bonfire even as he wielded fire.

But Sodam couldn’t see this man in such a positive light. It wasn’t that Seonghwa turned out to be a jerk or that he did anything terrible to Juyul. It was simply that he was ‘too’ good, which made Sodam’s favorite, Juyul, seem like a complete trash by comparison…

It was a bit of a twisted sentiment, but anyone who’s ever been a passionate fan of a character could probably understand.

Putting thoughts of past regrets aside, Sodam’s mind was swirling with so many thoughts that it made her dizzy. In the original story, Seonghwa was consistently described as a remarkably kind person, but his current demeanor was completely different. That stiff expression, those eyes that seemed to glare at her—what could they mean?

‘Wait, not “seem to glare”—he *is* glaring at me, right?’

Recalling the backstory of Seonghwa being Juyul’s childhood friend, it was impossible that he wouldn’t recognize the clothes Sodam was wearing.

But if Seonghwa *did* recognize this outfit, his behavior now was completely out of character. In the original story, he treated anyone who guided Juyul with warmth and even fell in love with Han Daram, the first supporting female character to appear. So why was his attitude so different now, just because it was Sodam and not Daram?

Sodam racked her brain until she arrived at one conclusion. It was the outcome she dreaded the most, but it was also the only explanation that made sense.

‘Could it be that this guy actually knows the body’s original owner? I haven’t even shown my Guide ID yet. Is this seriously bad news?’

Honestly, when she first recognized Seonghwa, she’d felt a sense of relief. If it had been some completely unfamiliar extra, she’d have had to worry about a lot more. But Seonghwa had a significant presence in the original story and was known for being a genuinely good person, so she’d assumed he’d be easy to deal with.

But if he really knew the former “Maeng Guide,” this was a serious problem. Forcing an awkward smile, Sodam addressed Seonghwa, who was still glaring at her.

“Well, I guess you could think whatever you want about the clothes, but there’s no way I could get my hands on something like this, right? It’s proof, isn’t it?”

“What kind of proof…?”

“This, here. It’s not something just anyone could get, right? Only Baek Juyul could have given it to me.”

She could have suggested he check the tag inside the coat or pointed out its familiar wrinkles, but that wouldn’t convince someone like Seonghwa, who already doubted the coat’s authenticity.

Instead, she settled on a different piece of evidence—something the body’s original owner couldn’t have afforded on their own: a hot pack Juyul had actually left behind. She had to roll up her sleeves quite a bit to show it, but since Juyul’s coat was so oversized, it was easy enough to reveal her wrist.

Seonghwa’s gaze lingered on the hot pack clutched in her hand for a moment, then slowly traced its way up her arm, finally settling on her wrist—more precisely, on the dark bruise encircling it. As soon as she realized where he was looking, she hastily tried to pull her sleeve down, but Seonghwa’s hand shot out and grabbed her wrist before she could.

“What is this?”

“Wh-what? What are you talking about?”

“There’s no way Juyul would do something like this for no reason. Don’t tell me…”

“Oh, this? Haha, you’re really looking at someone’s wrist that intently? If you’re not careful, people might call you a creep.”

She preemptively cut him off, fearing what he might say next, but she didn’t have much time to come up with a believable explanation. If she didn’t speak up right now, his suspicion might reach a breaking point. Throwing caution to the wind, she closed her eyes tightly and turned her head away, muttering in a small voice.

“Um, Baek Juyul, he has… let’s say, a particular… taste.”

“…What?”

“It’s really hard for me to say any more, honestly. I’m already embarrassed just saying this much…”

With her head still lowered and her ears flushed red, Sodam put on a convincingly embarrassed act. Of course, it was a lie from start to finish, and the real reason her ears were turning red was because she felt guilty for pinning everything on Juyul. But to Seonghwa, who didn’t know the truth, it looked genuine.

Seeing how her neck had turned so red from the heat—even in the middle of summer—he probably thought, *My friend’s tastes have really gone off the deep end…*

That was when Seonghwa’s stern expression, which had been set on driving Sodam away, started to soften. Fortunately, it seemed that his gentlemanly, kind-hearted nature hadn’t disappeared entirely. Scratching the back of his neck awkwardly, he spoke, though traces of suspicion still lingered in his voice.

“You’re Guide Maeng Sodam… correct?”

“…Ah, yes. I’m Maeng Sodam.”

Even though Seonghwa’s tone had become noticeably gentler, Sodam couldn’t help but hesitate for a moment. After all, just yesterday, Baek-whatever-Esper had tried to kill her over a different name. Apparently, exceptions to that rule existed only for Juyul. Forcing down the wave of relief threatening to wash over her, she responded with a delay, but Seonghwa seemed more filled with guilt than with any lingering doubt.

“I suppose there’s a reason the senior Guides always warn against jumping to conclusions based on rumors. I apologize for my rudeness.”

“No, it’s fine. I’m aware that my reputation isn’t the best…”

“There have been quite a few Guides who tried to get close to Juyul just for the fame. I made the mistake of assuming you were the same based on hearsay. I truly apologize.”

Just as he was about to release her wrist with a stiff expression, Seonghwa suddenly sensed something and whipped his head toward the coastline. Whatever it was, it was clear it triggered a dangerous feeling. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have instinctively pulled Sodam into his arms, shielding her.

“This is…!”

“Urgh!”

With her nose buried awkwardly against a surprisingly soft chest and her wrist, still aching, held tightly in Seonghwa’s grip, a pained yelp escaped Sodam’s lips. Rubbing her stinging nose, she glanced over at Seonghwa with a puzzled expression, wondering why he was acting this way. But the moment she turned her head, her eyes widened in shock at the scene before her.

Accompanied by the roaring sound of the waves, an enormous creature emerged from the distant ocean. It looked like a mountain draped in tangled seaweed, and as it lumbered toward the shore, the seaweed-covered mass slapped against the water’s surface.

Between those thick strands of seaweed, she caught sight of a sharp, protruding horn. It had to be the “Leviathan,” the creature that was supposed to appear here.

But what truly stunned Sodam wasn’t its identity—it was its size. The creature was so massive that Juyul, standing in front of it, looked no bigger than a speck. Her mouth hung open in disbelief.

‘What the… Are you kidding me? How is this thing bigger than Baekdu Mountain? And they called this *just* an S-class creature? Like, “Oh, it’s named Leviathan, by the way”?’

The author hadn’t really started emphasizing the descriptions of the creatures until later in the original story, after the very early chapters. In other words, this creature in the first subjugation episode had been treated as little more than a basic underling.

Sure, the story had explained through the reactions of ordinary people that it wasn’t an easy foe, but since the entire novel followed Juyul’s perspective, it hadn’t seemed all that impressive.

So Sodam had felt relatively at ease about it. After all, even though Juyul had almost lost control after defeating this thing, she thought that was only because he lacked proper Guiding… or so she believed.

‘What a joke! It wasn’t about Guiding; it was because he had to use an insane amount of power to take this thing down!’

As Seonghwa glanced over at her pale face, he seemed to contemplate something for a moment. Then, realizing how close their faces were, he flinched in surprise and quickly pushed her away.

Clearing his throat awkwardly, he released her wrist gently and spoke with a cautious tone.

“It seems like that thing is why the danger level here was so high, but Juyul should be able to handle it just fine on his own. Still, just in case, you should move back to a safer distance.”