Survive With the Max Level Guide

“……I said it was a misunderstanding.”

That deep, resonant voice—always pleasant to hear—echoed my words back at me, slow and deliberate. His thick brows twitched slightly.

Suddenly, a strange sense of disconnect hit me.

That’s weird. He seems oddly confident.

But he’s supposed to be acting like he’s guilty. Like a sinner. That’s what I expected.

“Ah…!”

Thick-boned fingers abruptly grabbed my chin. The grip wasn’t rough, but it was assertive—unapologetically so.

My face was tilted upward, forcing our eyes to meet. And then, he spoke.

“Well. I don’t think it’s a misunderstanding.”

“……Hyung?”

“I told you, didn’t I?”

He leaned in. So close, I could feel his breath.

His black eyes swirled with emotions too tangled to name, locking me in place.

But one thing stood out unmistakably—an intense hunger that made my breath catch in my throat.

It didn’t make sense. He should be in perfect condition, swimming in the overflow of my guiding.

And yet—

“What I need… is you, just as you are.”

A shiver shot down my spine.

He wasn’t saying he’d lost control in a moment of lust.

He was saying he meant it.

I froze, wide-eyed.

Wow…

So this is how it’s going to be?

“Get some more rest.”

Before I could say another word, his lips brushed my forehead with a soft chok, then pulled away.

Then he stepped back.

Without another glance, he turned and walked away.

He left the room, silent as ever. The door closed behind him without a sound, sealing off the sight of his retreating figure.

I stared at the door for a while before clamping a hand over my mouth.

Shit.

He’s insane.

…But why does this feel so much better?

***

Jung Hyun-sik rushed back to his room like a man being hunted. His hands were trembling as he fumbled to open the door. Once inside, he collapsed to his knees with a thud.

His legs had simply given out.

He remembered how he had become the personal physician to the Cha family.

Back when he was working at the university hospital…The rise in Esper-related crimes had been nowhere near as overwhelming as it was now. But even then, day after day, the ER was flooded with victims. He had been on the front lines, running from case to case—

It was just another hectic day, tending to the endless stream of patients. A man was brought in with a massive abdominal impalement.

“Chief! Over here!”

“You heard? He’s the CEO of J&J Law Firm.”

“Shrapnel hit him when…”

He’d been caught in the crossfire of a battle between an Esper terrorist and an Esper from the Association. The wound was so catastrophic, it was a miracle he hadn’t died instantly. Tragically, there wasn’t even time to prep for surgery before they had to pronounce him dead.

Behind him, slumped to the floor, a man broke down in raw, heaving sobs.

It was the deceased’s son.

“Espers are monsters!”

Jung Hyun-sik silently agreed with the man’s outburst. Then, he rushed off once more, desperate to save the next victim of these monsters.

Many years passed, and he eventually retired. Around the same time, a man named Joo Sang-ho announced his candidacy for president.

Joo Sang-ho campaigned on a platform that included creating a separate agency dedicated to the strict control of Espers. His policies heavily leaned toward regulation and suppression, including harsher penalties for Esper-related crimes.

The moment Jung Hyun-sik saw the candidate’s familiar face on TV, he felt like he could hear that harrowing voice from long ago echo in his ears. The voice of the man who had cried out, “Espers are monsters.”

Joo Sang-ho was that very man.

“He’s got a death wish… acting so fearless like that.”

The public clicked their tongues. They said he’d painted a giant target on his back for terrorist organizations that believed Espers should rule the nation. That he was practically begging to be killed.

But far more people supported him.

Too many Espers—wielding powers far beyond the grasp of ordinary citizens—had become drunk on their own abilities and gone astray. It was a massive societal issue.

Those who’d lost family, friends, loved ones to Esper-related incidents… Those who felt a kinship with Joo Sang-ho, having suffered in the same way he had… And even people who had never been personally affected but agreed with his views.

Jung Hyun-sik, too, who had witnessed far too many lives snuffed out by Esper crimes, supported Joo Sang-ho’s uncompromising stance.

And so, Joo Sang-ho’s approval ratings soared with each passing day. The public began to see his victory as inevitable.

Then, one day, as the election neared—

“Presidential candidate Joo Sang-ho was found dead at his residence today following an attack.”

“The perpetrators are believed to be affiliated with the nation’s largest terrorist group…”

The entire country was thrown into chaos.

Assassinated.

Even the cynics who had warned that his words would lead to tragedy were stunned by the reality.

Jung Hyun-sik, having witnessed a fragment of Joo Sang-ho’s tragic life firsthand, mourned his death.

But given the tight security and the fact that the funeral was invite-only, he never imagined he would actually meet the late Joo Sang-ho’s family.

“It’s the Cha family. Word is, their attending physician quit after the trauma of the incident. I was thinking of recommending you for the position. What do you say?”

That offer came from the hospital director—an old drinking companion he still met from time to time, even after retirement.

Jung Hyun-sik didn’t need much time to think it over. He simply said he’d be grateful if the director did that for him.

On his first day as the family’s physician, he was met with immediate suspicion from the eldest son, Cha Eun-hyuk—who had awakened as an Esper on the very day of the tragedy.

Despite witnessing his father die right before his eyes, Eun-hyuk hadn’t fallen into panic. Instead, he stood sharp-edged and hostile, as if determined to shield his family from this unfamiliar outsider.

The second child, Cha Eun-se, showed signs of selective mutism. A renowned psychiatrist was brought in to handle his case.

The mother, though, was in the worst shape of all—psychologically shattered and physically frail. For that reason, Jung Hyun-sik practically lived in the mansion in the beginning, dedicating most of his time to caring for her.

And yet, even in that house blanketed in grief, there were rare moments of warmth.

Those moments came whenever he saw the youngest child.

Being a newborn, Cha Eun-soo was prone to getting sick often. Jung Hyun-sik had to monitor him closely, with the same level of vigilance he gave the Chairman.

“Waaah, uu!”

Cha Eun-soo was truly special.

Whenever that tiny face broke into a smile, it felt like sunlight breaking through on a gloomy, rainy day—like all the heaviness in the world had lifted, if only for a moment.

That never changed, even as he grew up.

“I’m okay.”

Despite being strangely and frequently ill, he would always say he was fine.

It was obvious—even to someone completely oblivious—that he said it not for himself, but to keep his worried family from feeling distressed.

He had a heart as pure as a painting. Delicate and selfless, he looked after those around him with quiet devotion. No one could help but love him.

…And it was that very child—

That precious boy—

Who was shattered mercilessly by the one who called himself “Hyung.”

When the early-morning call came in, Jung Hyun-sik rushed to throw on clothes and head over.

What he found—

Was Cha Eun-soo, lying limp in bed, a complete wreck.

His entire body bore marks that, to anyone’s eyes, could only have come from non-consensual intercourse.

And the only possible perpetrator—

Was Cha Eun-hyuk, still dressed in a half-open gown, standing beside the bed like he had just finished.

“You… monster…”

Jung Hyun-sik muttered through dry, cracking lips.

Just as Joo Sang-ho had said—Espers were monsters.

A monster who would even lust after his own brother if that brother happened to be a Guide.

Joo Sang-ho had likely never imagined that his own son might one day become one of those monsters.

Jung Hyun-sik recalled the cold, domineering stare in Cha Eun-hyuk’s jet-black eyes.

He remembered the brutal way he’d attacked some nameless man… and that same suffocating sense of violence returned to him now, making his entire body tremble.

The higher an Esper’s rank, the more excruciating the symptoms from guiding deficiencies become—or so the reports say.

And pain like that… erodes one’s humanity.

That’s why, for ordinary people, even just facing a high-ranking Esper often invokes a visceral sense that what’s standing before them isn’t entirely human.

But Jung Hyun-sik had never once felt that way before. Even from a young age, Cha Eun-hyuk had merely been excessively quiet—never once giving off that alien sense of otherness.

He never showed signs of strain or weakness, either. Maybe that’s why everyone thought of him as a tragic genius—dignified, composed, and deeply human.

But today, for the first time, Jung Hyun-sik felt the inhumanity radiating from him in the most extreme way.

“…Ha.”

He shook his head before he even realized it.

Right. Self-control, huh?

What kind of self-control allows someone to violate their own brother, unless they’ve completely given in to their animal instincts?

And then there was Cha Eun-soo’s response—which was its own kind of problem.

Even if he couldn’t bring himself to confess what had happened, he shouldn’t have been protecting his brother.

But instead, he defended him as if it were the most natural thing in the world. Not only that—he even asked Hyun-sik not to tell anyone what his brother had done to him.

The real kicker was that Cha Eun-hyuk seemed most concerned with keeping the fact that Cha Eun-soo was a Guide a secret.

…What was he planning to do with that secret?

Exploit his brother for the rest of his life?

Jung Hyun-sik staggered to his feet. The trauma of what he had just witnessed—and the looming threat—left his insides churning.

He had tried so hard to keep his composure in front of those two, but there was no way his discomfort hadn’t shown. 

He stepped into the attached bathroom and splashed cold water onto his face. It sprayed everywhere, soaking his clothes.

Even so, his head remained clouded.

How could he help that poor boy?

His mind swirled with one thought and one thought only: saving Cha Eun-soo.

…Should I report this to the Guide Association?

At the very least, it would get him out of Cha Eun-hyuk’s grasp.

“Hm, that’d be a problem.” A voice spoke, unprompted.

Startled, Jung Hyun-sik sucked in a sharp breath and whipped around.

There was no one there.

“It’d just make things messier.”

His mouth moved on its own.

It was only then that he realized the voice had come from himself.

A chill ran down his spine.

He turned his head slowly, trembling—

And came face-to-face with his reflection in the mirror.

It winked one eye playfully and said,

“Thanks for the useful intel, Doc.”

Then—Darkness.