TGIC Ch 111

Chapter 111

‘…Does this really have any effect?’

For now, I had him leaning against my shoulder, dutifully stroking his head, though I truly questioned whether it was helping at all. Vasily, for his part, showed no sign of sleep—sitting in an uncomfortable posture, his gaze cast down in silence.

Continuing in this forced act, which neither of us found the least bit pleasant, I stole a glance at the clock. I had been in contact with him for nearly an hour now; it should be about time for the suppression chip to heat up.

I discreetly moved my hand to the back of my neck to check. Fortunately, it was still only warm. Relieved that I could continue guiding for a little longer, I then caught the sharp tang of blood brushing my nostrils.

Reflexively, I lowered my head toward the source of the scent. My eyes widened at the sight of a bead of blood forming at Vasily’s fingertips.

Did he injure his palm? I hadn’t noticed earlier.

As I leaned back slightly to reassess his condition, his hand suddenly shot forward, covering my mouth.

“Mmff…!”

His large hand seized my jaw. My nose and mouth were blocked together, robbing me of breath. Struggling, I clutched his wrist—just as a cold liquid flowed past my parted lips.

A beat too late, I realized his intent. He had noticed the state of the suppression chip and was trying to feed me blood.

I stopped resisting and obediently swallowed. After gulping two or three times, I judged it enough and pushed Vasily’s hand away. He withdrew easily, unlike his initial forceful attempt to feed me.

Having given me his blood, Vasily rose, as though his purpose was fulfilled. I wiped the blood from my lips with the back of my hand and quickly caught him.

“You haven’t slept a wink yet. If you can’t sleep, I’ll continue guiding you, so—”

“Enough. As I already said, I don’t intend to sleep right now.”

The refusal dripped with cold. Vasily added no more, retreating to his room.

Click. With the sound of the door shutting, silence fell. Left alone in the living room, I clicked my tongue softly.

He’s furious.

In this state, no amount of persuasion from me would get him to accept guiding or to rest. And seeing as I had no wish to tangle further with his stubbornness either, I quietly rose to my feet.

Back in my room, the first thing I did was pull out my phone and send a text message.

[I’ll go to China alone.]

The recipient was Huai Yan.

Vasily probably had no idea I was communicating with Huai Yan. Were he to find out, it wouldn’t end smoothly—I absolutely had to hide it from him.

Buzz. The phone vibrated with a reply almost at once.

[Then I’m leaving in three days. Want to come with me?]

My heart wavered at the message. Truthfully, I had sent my text to him on impulse; I hadn’t expected the offer would come so soon.

Though Huai Yan had claimed he had no intention of reconsidering, the truth was there might not be another chance. As an S-rank Esper, once he returned home he would inevitably become too busy to spare time for someone like me—a mere C-rank Guide he had met abroad, easily forgotten amidst his heavy burdens.

It seemed best to board the flight with him. If I halted the suppression chip’s activity immediately upon arrival and returned at once, I could finish the trip in only a few days.

As for Vasily… he could manage on his own. At most, it would take a week. He could endure without guiding for that long.

[Understood.]

I sent the reply and let out a long exhale.

Thankfully, I had my passport. The problem was whether I could even leave this house, its frozen front door thoroughly sealed. Either I escaped together with Vasily, or I had to put him to sleep and sneak out.

But seeing how he had held back sleep again just moments ago, slipping out while he slumbered seemed impossible. It looked like I would only have a chance if he left the house with me. Setting the phone aside, I wrestled with my options.

Contrary to my plan, Vasily hardly left the house at all.

The next day, and the day after, he remained locked in his room. The only times he ventured out were to accompany me to a restaurant for meals, after which he immediately returned, froze the door, and shut himself in again.

There was no chance to escape mid-meal either. If I claimed to go to the bathroom and didn’t return within ten minutes, I was certain he would come after me straightaway. And since he always brought us back home right after dining, there was not a single opening.

At this rate, tomorrow would be the same. But tomorrow I had to leave. It was the day Huai Yan departed.

“You’re not going to work…?”

Unable to bear it any longer, I finally approached Vasily and asked cautiously.

“No. With all the fuss from reporters after the other day, I was told to stay quietly at home for a while.”

“…Huh? For how long?”

“Until the reporters settle down and people forget about what happened yesterday.”

A chill of sweat trickled down my back. Desperately clinging to the last thread of hope, I asked one more question.

“Then… what about gates?”

“They’re sending in other S-ranks for the time being. So you can just rest quietly at home, Guide Kwon Gidam.”

“…Understood.”

Feigning composure, I nodded before leaving the room. Then, outside, I collapsed in silent despair, gripping and tugging at my hair.

This wasn’t part of my plan!

I had already packed my passport and belongings in a small backpack, ready to slip out at the first opportunity. But if I couldn’t even leave, all of it was meaningless.

Red warning lights flashed in my head.

Huai Yan was leaving tomorrow. We had already finalized where and when to meet before heading to the airport together. With the flight scheduled, postponement was out of the question.

Damn it, what should I do?

Nibbling hard at my nails, I sat on the floor, racking my brain for a solution.

In the end, what I came up with was… a trick.

It was now 11 p.m.—the perfect time for sleep. Dressed in pajamas, pillow tucked under one arm, I left my room and swung Vasily’s door wide open.

Bang!

Startled, Vasily lifted his head from where he sat leaning against the bed, his fingers pressed to his temple as usual. Seeing me stride in with clear intent, he furrowed his brow slightly.

“I’ll be imposing just for tonight.”

Without caring for Vasily’s opinion, I threw myself onto his bed. Settling in comfortably, I laid down my pillow. From the edge of the bed came Vasily’s low voice.

“What the hell are you doing?”

He shot me a baffled look. I ignored him, pulling the blanket up to my chin.

“What useless nonsense are you plotting this time…”

“Ah, this is nice. Aren’t you going to sleep, Esper?”

“Guide Kwon Gidam, you can sleep as much as you want.”

Vasily let out a short sigh, turning his head away. Then he winced, pressing his brows once more—likely from headaches brought on by insomnia.

How many days had it been now?

If he hadn’t slept since the day I returned to my family home, then it had been almost a full week. As someone who had long served as Vasily’s Guide, I knew his insomnia well. But normally he would fall asleep during guiding long before it reached this point. I had rarely seen him in such a battered state.

He looked ready to collapse at any moment. If he were an ordinary man, he would have fainted days ago and been hospitalized. But an S-rank Esper couldn’t collapse so easily.

Would it take a month for him to finally break down? Half a year of sleepless nights before he fell unconscious? More likely he’d go insane and go berserk long before that.

If it were an ordinary person, I could knock them out with a blow to the back of the neck. But doing that to him would only be seen as a declaration of battle. At best, I would be knocked out myself and wake up in the hospital.

“Esper, lie down as well. Sitting like that will only make your headaches worse.”

“I’d prefer if you stopped meddling and just slept quietly.”

“Even if you can’t fall asleep, come lie down and at least close your eyes. You might drift off while receiving guiding.”

“Not necessary.”

His stubborn tone made my eyebrow twitch.

Normally, I would have just ignored it and gone to sleep myself, but tonight I had a mission: somehow get Vasily to fall asleep, so that I could escape this house. Staying awake with him until dawn was not an option.

I suddenly rose and moved directly in front of him.

“Lie down.”

“No…”

“When I say lie down, then lie down!”

I shoved his shoulder firmly, forcing him onto the bed. His head shifted, aggravating the headache, and his brows twisted into a fierce grimace. Muttering softly in a foreign tongue, it sounded very much like a curse.

His silver-gray eyes glared at me with lethal sharpness, but I simply yanked the blanket over him, shutting it all out.