TGIC Ch 22

Chapter 22

“Run!”

With one child strapped to my back and another boy’s hand in mine, I ran. But I could feel the chill closing in rapidly from behind.

“Ah!”

At that moment, the boy stumbled and fell. Without even a moment to ask if he was alright, I scooped him up and started running again.

I could feel the precious lives of the two children on my back and in my arms. But at this pace, even if I ran at full speed, we would soon be caught in the ice storm.

I clenched my teeth. At this rate, not just me but the children were in danger as well.

“Vasily Kairova!”

I shouted desperately, as if possessed, praying that my voice would reach his ears.

The name I shouted echoed in all directions like a resounding cry.

“It… stopped.”

Then, as if it were a lie, the ice that had approached right behind us came to a halt.

A cold chill brushed my cheek. The tips of my hair froze slightly, and they crumbled like frost at the touch of my hand. If I had been even a little slower, my entire body would have been frozen solid.

The moment I saw the ice stop right before me, my legs gave out and I collapsed to the ground. The children, frightened, started crying.

I let out a hollow laugh, but in truth, I wanted to cry too. I really thought I might die this time. Calling Vasily’s name was a gamble. If my voice hadn’t reached him, I would undoubtedly be frozen by now.

“Are you alright? Are you hurt?”

I asked in a worried voice, and the children only managed to nod weakly.

I took a deep breath, trying to calm my ragged breathing. After running at full speed for so long, my lungs ached and my heart pounded as if it might burst.

As I tried to steady my nerves, I heard the crunch of ice breaking beneath a shoe behind me.

“I heard a familiar voice, so I came to check…”

The slow sound of footsteps crushing ice grew closer.

“Why are you in a place like this, Guide Kwon Gidam?”

Vasily appeared, his expression icy cold.

“Didn’t you say you’d wait in a safe place?”

Vasily was clearly in a bad mood. There was not a hint of a smile on his lips, and his gaze was as frigid as ice.

“I-I can explain.”

“Then go ahead.”

Vasily swung his arm. A chunk of ice flew past me, and a dull thud sounded behind us. I turned around, sweating coldly, to see a monster that had been creeping up behind me now impaled by sharp ice and lying dead.

“You better have a good reason I can accept.”

I swallowed hard.

Vasily was truly angry. Since returning to the past, this was the first time I had seen such blatant fury from him.

He absolutely hated having his orders disobeyed. He had told me to stay quietly in the safe zone, but I had flagrantly ignored that and walked straight into danger, so of course he wouldn’t be pleased.

If I didn’t give an answer he liked, would I end up like that monster too? Normally, I might have argued back, but there were children here.

Hiding the frightened children behind me, I looked up at Vasily with tense eyes, shaken by the sight of the monster killed with a mere gesture.

His frozen stare felt as though he could freeze me on the spot.

I took a breath and calmly began to speak.

“I was told that the children had gone missing after we reached the safe zone. So…”

“Children, huh…”

Vasily cut off my words and looked at the trembling children behind me with a chilling gaze. Instinctively, I moved to shield them, blocking his line of sight.

“You came all the way here just to save those little things?”

“…Yes.”

“And if I hadn’t heard your voice, you were ready to die here?”

“…”

I couldn’t say anything. Because it was true—if Vasily hadn’t heard my voice, I would have died here.

“I thought it was impressive that a guide could fight monsters… but it turns out you’re just a guide with a death wish.”

Vasily said, his tone dripping with sarcasm. I shrank back and swallowed dryly before asking him,

“I don’t understand why you’re this angry, Esper Vasily.”

“You don’t understand, huh…”

“…”

“Then maybe it’s time for Guide Kwon Gidam to think it over.”

Vasily suddenly grabbed my arm.

“Ugh!”

He gripped it so tightly that a groan of pain escaped my lips. He forcibly pulled me to my feet, and the frightened children burst into tears behind us.

“You’d better figure out what you did wrong before I get back.”

Vasily gritted his teeth as he whispered into my ear. The voice, thick with rage, sent chills down my spine.

Then he roughly let go of my arm. I staggered for a moment but barely managed to keep my balance.

Just then, espers appeared behind us. It seemed they had rushed over after receiving word from Vasily. The moment they spotted him, they gave sharp salutes. Vasily glared coldly at me, then gave them a command.

“Take them.”

“Yes, sir!”

Without even glancing back at me, Vasily disappeared into the ice-covered forest. The espers escorted the children and me back to the safe zone.

“Oh my baby!”

“Grandma!”

I watched their heartwarming reunion with a warm smile on my face. I had saved the precious lives of two children. It had been weighing on my heart, but now I felt like I wouldn’t be haunted by nightmares anymore.

However… just thinking about Vasily’s return soured my mood. And the site supervisor muttering pale-faced beside me was also concerning.

“I’m dead… I’m dead… This is it for me…”

It was partly my fault, and I felt a bit sorry.

I’m sorry, I’ll do my best to calm him down…

I looked toward the distant mountains. The ice covering the entire range seemed more violent and jagged than usual, reflecting Vasily’s mood.

The ice, which had been expanding to engulf the mountains, suddenly halted. That must mean there were no monsters left. Soon, espers would be deployed to clean up, and Vasily would return here.

“Sigh…”

“Sigh…”

The site supervisor and I let out deep sighs at the same time.

‘How am I supposed to appease him…’

In the past, whenever Vasily was in a bad mood, I’d get dragged into the bedroom and wouldn’t be allowed out for days. I was no longer his exclusive guide, so it probably wouldn’t go that far now, but still…

Should I try appeasing him by offering to guide him daily for a while? Even though our matching rate was only four percent, Vasily seemed to really like my guiding. If so, maybe there was room for negotiation.

How much time passed? I hadn’t even finished organizing my thoughts when I saw Vasily approaching from afar, exuding cold energy. I couldn’t tell how bad his mood was. Everywhere his feet touched, the ground froze.

I needed to brace myself. Even someone like me, who had survived under him for years, felt nervous and afraid.

Vasily brushed past the crowd of grateful people and stopped right in front of me.

“So, have you thought about it?”

I swallowed hard. It felt as if the Vasily from before the regression—cold and unyielding—had returned. I nervously brought out the answer I’d prepared.

“I’m sorry for not keeping my word to wait in a safe place.”

“…”

“And for leaving the safe zone despite knowing how dangerous it was…”

Was that not it either? I glanced up to gauge his reaction, but Vasily’s expression remained cold and stiff.

No choice, then. I’ll offer to guide him daily, as much as he wants…

“Ugh!”

Suddenly, Vasily grabbed my arm and started heading somewhere. Was he really going to drag me off to some secluded place and deal with me?

Terrified, I tried to stop him somehow, but he didn’t budge. The sight of it triggered long-buried trauma, and my body grew stiff with fear. My mouth refused to open, and I couldn’t move, as if frozen.

He dragged me along until we reached a location where an Association vehicle was waiting.

“To the Association.”

“Yes, sir!”

Vasily gave the order to the esper standing by the vehicle. Without a word, we got into the back seat and sat side by side in silence. I glanced at him cautiously. The atmosphere was frozen and uncomfortable.

“…”

I felt like I had to say something to ease his mood, but the deep-rooted fear pressed down on me, keeping me from uttering a single word. I trembled like a broken doll. Even clenching my cold hands tightly did nothing to stop the shaking—it only grew worse.