Becoming the Guide of the Mysophobic Villain? Absolutely Not! - Side Story 19

In the end, the Esper in charge of overseeing the site raised both hands in surrender.

“We clearly didn’t think things through. From now on, Rose will be excluded from such tasks, so please, calm your anger…”

And so, what happened? I ended up sitting back and watching the other Espers work hard while I leisurely sipped on a drink—simply because I was an Esper.

Well, it wasn’t just that…

“You, come here.”

Claude grabbed my arm and pulled me toward him.

Before I knew it, he had seated me in a chair that had been set up on the side of the site, and he sat down next to me.

But that wasn’t all…

“Rose, drink this while you watch.”

“…”

“Good.”

Claude stuck a straw from a watermelon juice into my mouth, insisting I drink.

I was a bit dumbfounded, but… there was no choice but to take a sip.

The sweet taste of fresh juice filled my mouth, and Claude looked incredibly satisfied as he watched me drink it.

…I was starting to feel a bit overwhelmed by him.

Maybe more than just a bit.

***

Claude was clearly in a bad mood.

The first emotion he’d felt when he realized that he was a Guide and Rose was an Esper was anticipation.

He had been curious to see how that small, energetic thing would behave as an Esper.

He had wondered if, after they were intimate, when he was left wanting more, she’d scold him with, “Claude, you’re the Esper, and I’m the Guide! I’m weak, so you need to be considerate!” He had been especially eager to see just how much stronger she’d become.

…And most of all, he wanted to see what it would be like if Rose desired him as intensely as he desired her—if she couldn’t take her eyes off him, if she couldn’t stand to be apart from him even for a moment.

If she felt even half of what he felt, she would stop complaining about being overprotected.

So Claude decided to wait. To let Rose come to him first, when she showed interest.

But he had overlooked one crucial thing: Rose never acted the way he expected.

The Rose Claude knew liked his face and body. Plus, he was an S-Class Guide.

He thought she would show interest soon, but even after waiting for a long time, she didn’t bite.

Even when Claude made the first move, hanging around wherever she went, there was no difference.

Sometimes, their eyes would meet, and she’d startle and avoid his gaze. Clearly, she was aware of him, but she made no move beyond that.

Eventually, Claude’s patience wore thin, as usual. He ended up grabbing her in the street and declaring, “I’ll be your exclusive Guide.”

But then Rose didn’t even know his name—a name every Esper at the Center knew.

And she had the audacity to say she didn’t need him because she already had a Guide.

When he asked if she didn’t want him, she blinked in confusion and said, “…Should I?”

He was fuming inside, rage boiling over. His temper flared up to the point where he almost snapped.

He wanted to shout at her, Do you have any idea what kind of opportunity you’re missing? Do you think you’ll be fine if I look away and you lose me?

…But Claude knew better by now. If he did that, Rose would certainly avoid him altogether.

Rose was indifferent to anything she deemed irrelevant to her. If Claude tried to act nonchalant or pretended to be interested in someone else, Rose would simply continue to run around without a care in the world.

…Finding comfort in the arms of another Guide, a friend.

Seeing Rose tremble in fear as she looked up at him was both nostalgic and shocking. He couldn’t understand it. How could she be an Esper, yet still be so afraid of her own Guide—him?

Claude had to confront the harsh reality.

The thirsty one has to dig the well, the one who needs more has to make the first move.

It took him time to realize this, but now he knew.

He had finally accepted that waiting for Rose to approach him first was a lost cause.