TGIC Ch 73

Chapter 73

After that, the most leisurely week since my regression began.

I holed up at home, only occasionally working out to keep myself active. Other than stepping out for meals, I hadn’t gone out anywhere with Vasily. At this point, it felt like I was the one on vacation, not Vasily.

Though I technically hadn’t been to work, it wasn’t as if I was slacking off entirely. Every time Vasily requested guiding, I would hold him in my arms for an hour and perform the process.

Thankfully, it seemed Vasily had become mindful of the four-times-a-week guiding limit. He no longer demanded it daily. Since there were no gate expeditions to stress his condition, guiding had been relatively easy.

Thursday. Today marked the start of the West Sea Gate raid.

I sat in the living room from the morning and turned on the news. On the TV screen, an S-rank esper from the electric-type division, dispatched in place of Vasily, was forcing a smile while waving to the camera. The injury on his arm was still clearly visible even through the screen.

I ought to be grateful to that esper. It was thanks to his decision to attend the meeting—just to pick a fight with Vasily—that we were able to pass the gate raid off onto someone else.

Smirking, I raised my water glass and toasted the air.

The raid team probably wouldn’t return until Saturday. That one was a 3-day, 2-night mission.

Next to him on-screen stood an S-rank esper from the Chinese side, entirely clad in red from head to toe. The look in his eyes as he’d left the meeting room had been bothering me… but we likely wouldn’t be crossing paths again. Shaking my head to rid myself of useless thoughts, I turned off the TV and stood up from the sofa.

Having confirmed that the gate raid was proceeding safely, it was time to head to the Association.

It had been a while since my last visit to the Association, and I wasn’t looking forward to it. Today, I’d be attending a training session I never signed up for, alongside Vasily.

I had expected Vasily to refuse, which is why I brought it up in the first place. If I’d known it would turn out like this, I would’ve found another way to deal with it myself.

Before changing clothes, I went to Vasily’s room and asked,

“Esper Vasily, are you really going?”

“Yes. When do you want to leave?”

“…It starts in the afternoon, so let’s head out a bit early and grab lunch first.”

I asked again, hoping he might’ve changed his mind, but he still answered with a firm yes.

Returning to my room, I began to lazily get ready. Since this wasn’t work, just a simple training session, I dressed plainly in a white T-shirt and jeans to avoid drawing attention. Not wanting to show my face too openly next to Vasily, who always drew every eye in the room, I pulled my cap low over my head.

Then I checked myself in the mirror. With this outfit, I looked like just another passerby on the street…

When I stepped out of my room, I ran into Vasily in the living room. He looked me over and commented,

“You look different from usual today.”

“Yes. Since I’m not going for work, I dressed casually.”

“Reminds me of the day Guide Kwon Gidam ran away.”

“Ugh…”

…Did I wear something similar that day? Feeling guilty, I avoided his gaze.

As for Vasily, he was dressed as always—in a three-piece suit. Honestly, who else wears something like that in the middle of summer? He was bound to stand out again today.

We had lunch near the Association, during which I begged Vasily not to draw attention or act out. Then we made our way to the building.

We arrived a little early on purpose, figuring that showing up exactly on time would draw more eyes. Still, a few people were already seated inside the training room.

As soon as Vasily entered the room, the seated attendees widened their eyes in shock. Some stared at him with admiration, while others hurriedly looked away.

The former were probably mostly guides unfamiliar with Vasily, or newly awakened espers. The latter were likely espers who had previously encountered him at gates.

Taking in the extreme range of reactions, I ushered Vasily into a corner and made him sit down.

…I already felt tired.

It felt like the lunch I’d just eaten was about to come back up. As I rubbed my weary face, Vasily asked,

“Are you feeling unwell?”

“…”

This face was the problem.

Skin so pristine it looked like touching it would feel like brushing against a snowflake, eyes as clear and luminous as glass, and a straight nose that looked sculpted. Every single feature seemed crafted by the gods.

Even when he did nothing, he attracted attention. Just because we were tucked away in a corner didn’t mean he’d go unnoticed.

Yeah… That dazzling face and large frame weren’t going to disappear—but at least I could do something about the eye-catching silver hair.

I only had one cap and had worn it myself, but now I realized it would be better used covering up Vasily instead of me.

So I took off the cap and shoved it onto Vasily’s head.

“I think it’d be better if you wore this, Esper-nim.”

“I’m fine, really.”

“Just wear it.”

I pressed it down firmly and checked him again. Just covering up that silver hair already reduced his presence significantly.

This much should be enough, as long as we stayed quietly tucked away in the corner.

Soon, more people began filing in. Most didn’t recognize Vasily in his semi-disguised state and passed by, but a few did notice and flinched. One esper even turned around and left with their guide right before stepping inside.

Even with the cap, it seemed sharp-sensed espers couldn’t be fooled. Just what kind of life had he lived for fellow espers to outright refuse being in the same space with him? Well, I could guess the reason.

Right on time, two Association staff members and a trainer entered the room.

“We’ll now check attendance.”

One of the staff scanned the room while reading from a printed list. Even excluding those who fled at the sight of Vasily, there were just over ten teams seated. Fewer people than I expected.

The staff member continued flipping through pages for quite a while before calling out loudly,

“Is Guide Kwon Gidam present?”

I raised my hand and locked eyes with the scanning staffer. They spotted me and asked,

“We don’t see the name of your assigned esper on the list. May I ask who the person next to you is?”

I froze.

Sitting right beside me was Vasily. I clamped my mouth shut, fully aware that others had started glancing in our direction.

As a heavy silence fell and the pressure became suffocating, one of the other staff members noticed me and widened their eyes in shock. They hurriedly whispered to the one with the list. Upon hearing the whisper, the staffer’s eyes went wide too and their voice wavered.

“A-ah, no problem. We’ve just confirmed it. Then…”

Stammering, they moved on with the rest of the attendance.

Apparently, the other staff member knew I was Vasily’s assigned guide. I saw one of them leave the room in a rush, likely heading off to report that Vasily had been mistakenly invited.

Technically, this whole mess started because the Association had sent me that mandatory message. Now that they realized inviting me had brought Vasily along, I doubted they’d make the same mistake again.

A giant monitor covering an entire wall lit up with the training materials, and the session began.

So this was the training, huh? I wondered what they’d cover—and it turned out to be basic explanations on understanding and building relationships between espers and guides. It emphasized mutual understanding and care, outlining each party’s role.

None of it was particularly helpful to me.

I had already lived six years as Vasily’s guide and had practically functioned like an esper myself, accompanying him into gates. I already knew all this. The information was so basic, it was boring.

I stifled a yawn and snuck a glance beside me. Vasily was sitting obediently, listening to the dull lecture as if it were fascinating.

As my concentration started to fade, I quietly lowered my head. We were sitting in the corner anyway—no one would notice. I gently closed my eyes, trying to sneak in a nap.

“Guide Kwon Gidam, wake up. The training is over.”

“…?”

Vasily’s voice roused me. I opened my eyes from sleep and realized something solid was pressed against my head.

It didn’t take long to realize it was Vasily’s arm. I hurriedly straightened up and wiped around my mouth. Thankfully, no drool… Wait, that wasn’t the point.

“Why didn’t you wake me?”

“You were sleeping so peacefully.”

Vasily gave a faint smile. I shook off the sleep and looked around.

The training must’ve ended some time ago. All the seats were empty now. Only Vasily and I were left in the room.

More than two hours had passed since the start of the session. I must’ve fallen asleep almost immediately and spent the entire time leaning against Vasily.

Which meant the guiding probably started the moment I leaned on him. No wonder my head hurt. But since it had happened while I was asleep, it wouldn’t even count toward our guiding hours. What a foolish mistake.