I Possessed a Promiscuous Guide 66

This topic had always made him the target of ridicule among his friends, so he had no retort.

He pressed his lips tightly together, silently enduring like a form of protest, signaling he did not want to talk about it any further.

[Anyway. What you’ve got going on with Yu Je-hyun right now—that’s basically dating. I mean, I’ve never been in a relationship either, but you’re both clearly catching feelings. That’s romance. What else could it be?]

When Lee Haru grimaced in rejection, the original owner of the body changed the subject. From his perspective, the two undeniably had mutual feelings for each other.

The man he had chosen even after crossing into another world was utterly clueless when it came to romance—so much so that he did not even seem to recognize the emotions he was experiencing.

…Let’s say I do have feelings. But how can you be so sure about Yu Je-hyun?

He wanted to know if what he felt was visible to others. Was it really safe to believe in how Yu Je-hyun had acted—lost and overwhelmed like a boy in the throes of his first love?

[That bastard? He never acted like that with me. We just had sex. All he came for was Guiding.]

The indifferent tone made Lee Haru feel unexpectedly awkward. He scratched the bridge of his nose, a telltale gesture betraying his discomfort.

[Well, I used him too. We had a no-strings-attached thing going, so there’s no reason to feel guilty about it.]

But the words that followed felt like a subtle excuse, and Lee Haru shook his head. It made him feel even more self-conscious, like there really was something going on between him and Yu Je-hyun.

You don’t need to say all that. Let’s just get back to the revenge plan.

Talking about Yu Je-hyun any further only worked against him. The burning in his cheeks showed no sign of subsiding.

[That was everything. Like I said—pretend you’re in love with Hong Seong-jun. Make him believe you’re head over heels for him. And then, when he’s convinced it’s real, crush him. Break his heart at the very peak of his happiness, make him feel like he’s been shoved off a cliff.]

He could not immediately agree to it. He knew Hong Seong-jun was a terrible person, but even so, manipulating someone’s emotions felt cruel.

He also had serious doubts about whether someone as bad at lying as he was could even pull off acting like he was in love.

As Lee Haru faltered, the voice sighed, then spoke again, sharper than before.

[You’re not seriously feeling sorry for him, are you? Do I have to spell out everything that bastard did to me? What you saw in my memories—that was only a tiny fraction.]

…Okay. I’ll do it. So stop dredging up those painful memories.

Even though he had not lived through it himself, just witnessing the memories had left him feeling emotionally battered.

Even if only the soul remained, he did not want to see Lee Haru relive that suffering.

[…You’re the only one I can ask. I feel like I won’t be able to leave this world without regrets until I see that bastard suffer.]

The voice grew quieter, trembling slightly at the end, as if unsure what would happen if the request were denied.

[Just get revenge for me. Then live a happy life in my body. Fall in love with Yu Je-hyun. Love him all you want.]

At the mention of Yu Je-hyun, Lee Haru’s cheeks flushed again. By now, it was practically a reflex.

Still, there was something he really wanted to ask.

Rubbing his heated face with the back of his hand, he cautiously broached the subject.

What about Esper Kang Min…? Don’t you want to do something about him? You really liked him, didn’t you?

He had only been talking about Hong Seong-jun so far. But the one who had likely mattered most was not Hong Seong-jun, but the man he had genuinely loved—Kang Min.

[I don’t want to think about him. Not anymore.]

The unexpectedly firm tone made Lee Haru silently nod.

He had never been in the same situation, so he could not fully grasp what the other was feeling—but he thought maybe, just maybe, Kang Min was someone whose very memory brought him pain.

I’ll do my best. After all, thanks to you, I got a second chance at life.

If it had not been for him, he would have died in that car crash.

Even if revenge turned out to be far more complicated and difficult than expected, he was determined to see it through.

[…Thank you.]

The voice was barely audible.

But the sincerity in those quiet words was unmistakable, and it gave him courage.

***

Ugh, why isn’t he coming…?

He had run through dozens of mental simulations, preparing himself to fake being in love with Hong Seong-jun.

As soon as the man walked in, he planned to greet him with a bright, open smile.

There is that old saying: “No one spits on a smiling face.” And if Hong Seong-jun really did love the original owner of this body—if that twisted, possessive obsession could even be called love—then seeing a genuine smile would surely make his heart flutter.

His first move was to keep smiling, to melt his guard little by little.

Clapping only works when both hands come together.

The problem was that Hong Seong-jun had yet to show up. Not even a shadow of him.

[He probably won’t be talking to you for a while. Today already pushed his limits.]

Those were the last words from the body’s original owner before falling into a deep sleep inside the ring.

Lee Haru had called out his name several times since, but never once had he responded.

Left alone in the spacious room, time crept by painfully slowly.

Still, fueled by a single-minded resolve to fulfill Lee Haru’s revenge, he endured, entertaining various thoughts to distract himself.

He had thought so much about Hong Seong-jun that now, all he had to do was close his eyes to see the man’s face.

My stomach’s growling too….

The fact that Hong Seong-jun had yet to show up, leaving him unable to even begin enacting revenge, was a problem in itself—but the far greater issue was that there was not so much as a crumb of food in the entire room.

For someone whose driving force in life was appetite, the absence of food stirred a bone-deep sense of dread.

Lee Haru had no choice but to drag himself out of bed. His body, weakened from a prolonged lack of nourishment, swayed unsteadily, but he could not just lie there and waste away.

He needed to fill his stomach with water at the very least before he collapsed from starvation.

As he had suspected, one of the two doors led to a bathroom. The interior was clean and minimalist, equipped with a spacious bathtub big enough for two adult men, a shower booth, a sink, and a toilet.

Without a second thought, he made his way to the sink. When he turned the tap, clear water poured out in a steady stream—thankfully.

He bent over and gulped down the cold water greedily. It did little to satisfy the gnawing emptiness in his belly, but at least it dulled the edge of his thirst.

Food… Just give me something to eat… I’m seriously starving here…

But there was only so much a belly full of water could do. No matter how much he drank—enough to soak the front of his shirt—the growling from his stomach only grew louder, more insistent.

Eventually, Lee Haru slumped down in front of the locked door and started banging on it with his fist. Unlike the bathroom door, this one refused to open from the inside.

Shouldn’t doors normally lock from the inside? Maybe this room had been designed from the beginning to keep him locked in.

Even as rage simmered at the thought of Hong Seong-jun’s depraved intentions, he was willing to forgive the bastard—if only he would show up with food right now. That was how desperate his hunger had become.

I want tteokbokki… and fried snacks… soondae stuffed with innards… Just one bite of that and I’d die happy…

As the hunger deepened, his thoughts began to fray at the edges. To fight off the creeping memories that threatened to consume his mind like mold, Lee Haru clung to food fantasies with desperate intensity.

Spicy-sweet tteokbokki, crispy fried treats, soondae dipped in that rich tteokbokki sauce—he conjured up the flavors in vivid detail.

Before long, he was sprawled weakly on the floor in front of the door, completely drained. He was so hungry he couldn’t even sleep.

Each time he blinked, he imagined black mold blooming across the plain ceiling.

It was something that shouldn’t have been happening. But his eyes traced the spreading blotches, like ink bleeding across white parchment.

This isn’t that place… That’s all in the past now…

If only the past could be cut away cleanly—like slicing through radish—how much easier it would be to move on.

Even when he managed to forget for a while, there were moments like this when the past rushed back in, wrapping around him like a fog.

He was no longer the helpless child who could do nothing on his own—but sometimes, his heart still remained there, stuck in that childhood, unable to move forward.

The hunger crashed over him like a wave. Groaning, Lee Haru clutched his stomach, curling into himself. He lacked the strength to stand, so he rolled across the floor, dragging himself back into the bathroom.

Drinking more water wouldn’t banish his hunger, but he had to put something—anything—into his mouth. If he did not, he was sure that mold on the ceiling would start to fester inside his chest.

I’ll get revenge. I swear I will…

At this point, it was no longer just about honoring the original owner’s final request—Lee Haru wanted vengeance for himself.

Some things were just basic human decency. If you are going to imprison someone, then at the very least, you ought to feed them.

Author: Levia