TGIC Ch 90

Chapter 90

Vasily seemed startled that the guiding suddenly wasn’t working, his expression turning grave as he stared down at his own palm. I knew the reason, of course, but I had no intention of readily telling him the truth.

A sudden mischievous urge welled up, and I spoke with feigned composure.

“Looks like our matching rate must have changed.”

“…”

“In that case, guiding will be pointless for a while. And if the matching rate doesn’t return even after the suppression chip is removed, then our exclusive contract could just be considered null and—”

The moment I brought up dissolving the exclusive contract, Vasily’s eyes turned ice-cold. His rough hand shot out, clamping firmly around my neck.

“Guide Kwon Gidam, I’m afraid that’s never going to happen.”

“Uhk—!”

“You really think I’d let you go just because our matching rate dropped a little?”

The pressure on my throat was so strong I could barely breathe. Vasily’s voice dropped to a deadly chill as his fingers raked threateningly against my neck.

“Remember this. No matter what happens, Guide Kwon Gidam, you will never escape me.”

His grip rapidly grew colder. Seeing the faint blue light glint in his pupils, I hurried to speak.

“I was just joking…! You know matching rates can’t change!”

It was common knowledge, something even ordinary people knew—that once set, a matching rate never changed. I’d assumed Vasily would quickly recognize my words as a joke and laugh it off, but it seemed he had taken them entirely seriously.

At last, his hand slowly released me. I sucked in air desperately, breaking into a bout of coughing.

My fingers, trembling as they touched my throat, were checking to see if it was still intact. For a brief moment, I had truly believed he meant to harm me. The sight of him strangling me had overlapped with memories of his past self, and a sudden wave of fear crashed over me.

The air between us turned icily cold. A heavy silence stretched out.

Vasily finally stepped back, arms folding as he leaned against the wall. It didn’t seem like he had anything left to say, but he showed no sign of leaving the room—just watched me in silence, making my skin crawl.

Because the room temperature was high, the cold seeping from his body rose as faint white vapor. Each time that chilled air brushed against my skin, I became keenly aware of his presence standing there.

“If you’re just going to stand there like that, please leave. You’re making it cold, Esper.”

I used the chill as an excuse to try to drive him out, but instead, Vasily reached over to raise the heater’s setting.

Click, click, click.

The buttons sounded in rapid succession. Only when the temperature could be raised no further did Vasily look at me, as if challenging me to try another excuse.

No… That wasn’t what I’d meant when I said it was cold. I couldn’t very well change my complaint to “now it’s too hot,” so in the end, I lay there sweating profusely as I struggled to fall asleep.

Turning over in bed, I slowly opened my eyes. The stillness of the predawn hours filled the room.

I became aware of a cool sensation across my forehead and touched it. My fingers met a half-frozen, chilled wet towel.

Blinking drowsily, I turned my head.

Vasily was sitting a short distance away in a chair he’d brought from somewhere, his gaze fixed on the horizon beyond the window where the sun was just beginning to rise.

In the bluish light of dawn, his figure looked almost unreal. The calm stillness in his silver-gray eyes made it impossible to guess what might be going through his mind.

“You’re awake?”

Sensing my gaze, Vasily looked over. I gave a small nod so as not to let the towel slip off, my voice hoarse as I asked,

“Have you been sitting there all night…?”

“I was bothered by the way you kept groaning.”

The heat probably explained my groaning—the room had been sweltering like a furnace. I didn’t need to check to know I was soaked in sweat.

It was strange to think Vasily, who disliked heat, had stayed for so long in a room with the heater blasting at full force in the middle of summer. Still, judging by his calmer appearance, he must have been controlling his own body temperature with his power.

Quietly, I checked my own condition. The stiffness in my body had eased considerably. Maybe it was thanks to the medicine, or perhaps the wet towel Vasily had placed on my forehead had helped bring the fever down.

Probably both, I thought, and spoke quietly.

“Esper Vasily. I think guiding will work now.”

With my fever down and the flu symptoms somewhat abated, guiding should now be possible. I extended a hand out from beneath the covers.

“Shall we check?”

“…”

Despite my offering hand, Vasily simply looked at me for a while, then turned his gaze away without taking it.

“Go back to sleep. Once it’s morning, I’ll take you to the hospital.”

I’d been ready to kindly reassure him, remembering the way he’d looked so grave when guiding hadn’t worked before—but apparently he no longer cared.

I withdrew my hand without further insistence, assuming he’d at least checked my condition when he placed the wet towel earlier.

When I asked him to turn off the heating, Vasily silently got up from his seat. Listening to the soft sound of his footsteps, I closed my eyes again. Somewhere in the room, cooler air began to filter in, carrying me back toward sleep.

Once I began taking the medicine prescribed at the hospital, the flu-like symptoms faded quickly. Still, I wasn’t completely recovered, so I planned to avoid overexerting myself for a while.

On the way back from the hospital, I bought the latest model smartphone. The remains of my dearly departed old phone were laid to rest deep in a drawer.

“Guide Kwon Gidam, are you ready?”

“Yes. Let’s go.”

Normally, I had no intention of visiting the Association in the near future, but today was Friday—time for my regular injections to detach the suppression chip from the skin. In addition, I planned to request an MRI a week earlier than scheduled, just to check my progress.

We timed our arrival for midday to avoid any reporters who might be lying in wait.

Fortunately, we made it up to the private room without running into them.

As I leaned back into the sofa with relief, Vasily shot me a look that suggested I was being overly cautious. Clearly, since he hadn’t witnessed the chaos of reporters mobbing the Association’s lobby, he didn’t understand why I was so determined to avoid them.

But I knew. If reporters who didn’t know Vasily’s true nature swarmed him with cameras and microphones, the scene would be chilling—literally.

It was my job to save lives from him—and to prevent his reactions from shattering what peace I had in my life.

No one appreciated my tireless efforts, of course. I had barely blinked away the sting in my eyes when someone knocked on the private room’s door.

“Excuse me, Esper, could you attend a brief meeting?”

They must have rushed over the moment they learned Vasily was in the building—undoubtedly about the incident a few days ago when he attacked a Chinese S-class Esper. The Association would need his explanation in order to contain the situation.

“Guide Kwon Gidam, shall we just go straight to your doctor?”

Vasily completely ignored the Association staff member who had come looking for him, treating them as if they were invisible. It was so thorough I felt second-hand embarrassment.

The staffer, perhaps realizing Vasily was immovable, glanced at me with a troubled expression.

I sighed quietly, taking in their youthful appearance. Normally, senior staff would have come themselves to summon Vasily—but clearly, this time they’d shoved the job onto the most junior member they could find.

Reluctantly, I spoke to him.

“Esper Vasily, please go to your meeting. I’ll head to my doctor in the meantime.”

“Let’s just go together. You need a guardian—”

“Do I look like a child who can’t even handle getting an injection alone? I’ll listen to the doctor’s results and pass them on to you. Just go explain the situation properly.”

“…”

Cutting in over his words, I shooed him toward the door. His eyes were full of displeasure, but I met his gaze evenly without flinching.

Still wearing his sour expression, Vasily finally rose and left. I waved him off from the sofa, then slowly got to my feet.

Time to visit my doctor as well.

Judging by the time, Vasily should have reached the meeting room by now. I switched off the lights in the private room and stepped out, locking the door carefully behind me before heading toward the elevator—only to meet an employee coming from the opposite direction.

I knew instantly: this one was here for me.

“Guide Kwon Gidam, could you come with me for a moment?”

“Of course.”

I nodded without surprise at their mildly awkward request. I’d had a bad feeling from the moment I saw Vasily’s unhappy face on his way to the meeting—it seemed he had indeed caused trouble.

I’d long grown used to being summoned to smooth things over whenever Vasily stirred up a problem, even before my regression. This time would be no different. I followed the staffer without resistance.

We arrived at a small meeting room. The staffer held the door open, suggesting I go in alone.

Inside was far too quiet. As I stepped in, a strange sense of unease prickled through me—there was only one person there, which was unusual for a meeting.

It wasn’t Vasily, that was certain—the hair color alone told me that.

Recognizing the situation wasn’t ordinary, I let my eyes settle on the man sitting opposite me.

A young man with long hair swept back and tied in a single tail. He wasn’t wearing a changpao1, yet I knew at a glance who he was—the very one who, just days ago, had torn up the area near the Gate alongside Vasily: Huai Yan.

¹ Changpao — A traditional Chinese long gown, often formal attire; here, it’s noted only to contrast his current appearance.