TGIC Ch 7

Chapter 7

Why did Vasily come here?

I froze for a moment, caught off guard. When I paused in surprise, Vasily offered a light smile and said,

“Since it was my fault you got hurt, I thought I’d stop by and apologize.”

“A hospital visit…?”

The word sounded extremely foreign coming from him. Before the regression, when I frequently ended up hospitalized for days after coming back from Gates, he had never once come to see me. And now he’s visiting?

I was confused, unable to guess his intentions. But Vasily, unaware of my growing discomfort, continued speaking.

“I froze the monster just enough to keep it alive so it could be transported to the lab, but I guess I didn’t control it well since I’ve been in bad shape lately. So when I heard you’d regained consciousness, I thought I’d stop by and apologize properly. I even brought this fruit basket.”

He set down the basket on the side table. I glanced at the large, colorful fruits inside and felt even more confused.

“How’s your condition?”

“It aches a little, but it’s manageable.”

“That’s good. Regular humans are usually too weak—when exposed to monster blood, they often suffer severe illness.”

Vasily stared at me curiously, as if he found it odd that I looked perfectly fine. It was understandable. I had always had a naturally robust constitution, so even before the regression, I would come out of Gates mostly unscathed.

After observing me for a moment, Vasily spoke again.

“Come to think of it, I don’t even know your name.”

“Kwon Gidam.”

“You probably already know, but I’m Vasily, an S-rank Esper.”

“Yes. I’m aware.”

When I replied that I knew, his eyes curved beautifully. I was momentarily at a loss for words. I hadn’t realized Vasily could smile like that. I’d only ever seen him frowning, so the sight of his smile felt strangely unfamiliar.

“Most people react a lot more strongly when they see me, so I wondered if maybe you didn’t know who I was…”

“How could I not? You’re probably the most well-known person in Korea after the president.”

To my surprise, the conversation proceeded normally. I had been extremely tense, unsure of what he might say, but maybe it was just my overthinking. Still, I couldn’t relax. Even after confirming that guiding didn’t work well, I couldn’t understand why he was still showing interest in me.

After that, the conversation continued with him asking about the severity of my injuries and other trivial topics. Since Vasily showed no signs of leaving anytime soon, I decided to ask something I’d been wondering.

“Why did you say that in the interview?”

“Say what?”

“That I defeated the monster. I heard you said that.”

“Oh, that? Well, since you got hurt because of me, I figured I’d mention you as a form of apology.”

Vasily lied effortlessly. I knew he’d only done it to shift the blame, which made it all the more exasperating.

“I’m pretty sure I refused when you suggested it.”

“But we did catch it together, didn’t we? And besides, I sent a different monster to the lab, so there won’t be any issues.”

Vasily looked at me with an expression like he was waiting to be praised. I sighed deeply instead of responding and pressed my fingers to my forehead. Better to stay quiet and let people’s attention fade than try to explain.

When my questions ended, Vasily started asking his own.

“What made you decide to fight the monster? The other guides all ran away.”

“I had a dog when I was young.”

“A dog?”

At my absurd answer, Vasily burst out laughing. Of course, the part about raising a dog was a lie, but I couldn’t think of a better excuse.

“That was the strongest monster in that Gate. It was only a D-rank Gate, but it wasn’t something an ordinary person could deal with.”

So what? I stared at him, annoyed. I’d been through higher-tier A-rank Gates before, and compared to those, this one had been nothing. Well, until I died in the S-rank Gate thanks to Vasily’s rampage.

“Do you want to fight monsters? If so, I could take you into a Gate.”

What the hell? I immediately shook my head with a serious expression.

“No. Absolutely not.”

“Hm… Alright. Too bad you’re a guide, Kwon-ssi. If you were an Esper, you’d be a valuable asset.”

Vasily said this as he stood up. Was he finally leaving? I looked at him with a relieved expression.

But maybe I was too obvious—seeing my face, Vasily sat back down instead of leaving.

When he saw my expression sour again, he smirked and said,

“I haven’t been in good shape lately. Would you guide me?”

“Me…?”

Right now, I’m in a C-rank state because of the suppression chip’s side effects. Even Vasily knew that guiding from me wouldn’t be of much use. Honestly, using a guiding machine made for S-rank Espers would be far more effective.

Why was he asking me, of all people, for guiding? I didn’t even want to touch him, even for a moment. But turning down a request from an S-rank Esper as a temporary guide employed by the Association wouldn’t look good.

In the end, I couldn’t refuse and gave a small nod. The guiding wouldn’t amount to much anyway, and once Vasily confirmed that, he’d probably lose interest and leave me alone.

I raised my casted arm and said,

“My arm’s in a cast, so I can only offer you my hand—is that alright?”

“That’s plenty.”

He nodded without hesitation. Still feeling uneasy, I extended my healthy right arm and took his hand.

The cold of his skin spread from our point of contact, chilling my fingertips. It felt like clutching a block of ice, the freezing sensation crawling across my skin.

Before the regression, when I used to guide Vasily, his energy had always been so cold and sharp it felt like my body might freeze over. But now, thanks to the lower compatibility, the chill wasn’t as intense. It was merely a light coldness, not painful—just a faint cool sensation brushing past my fingers.

As expected, there wasn’t any real feeling of proper guiding. Just a subtle cold current trickling in.

“Is this even working?”

“Hmm… I think so, but it’s weaker than the guiding machine.”

“…Haha.”

Vasily chuckled, clearly mocking my incompetence. And all I could do was let out a sheepish laugh.

He was the one who asked for it in the first place. Still, it was a relief. At least now I had confirmation that the suppression chip was still functioning properly.

“But really, are you sure your body’s okay?”

“Yes. Other than the monster blood, they said I’ll recover if I rest for a while.”

“That’s all?”

“…?”

Aside from my aching arm and feeling a bit off, I was fine. I checked myself once more and tilted my head.

“Yes… I’m really okay.”

“Your body must be incredibly resilient.”

…Is that sarcasm?

Vasily smiled meaningfully. What was he scheming now? Before I could read into his expression, I felt a mild sting at the back of my neck.

A sharp pain again. I reached up and felt that the chip was heating up. It must’ve been straining to suppress the reaction to a high-compatibility partner. I needed to get rid of Vasily before I passed out again and raised suspicion.

“Come to think of it, I am feeling a little tired.”

“Then you should get some rest.”

As soon as I brought up fatigue, he let go of my hand and backed off. It seemed he was finally ready to leave—he stood and checked the time.

Before walking away, he looked back at me and said,

“I’ll visit again.”

“…Haha.”

I barely held back the words Please don’t.

Once Vasily left, silence returned to the hospital room. It felt like the storm had finally passed.

 

Fortunately, Vasily didn’t come back after that day.

I hoped it meant he’d lost interest in me, but considering he kept sending things like flower bouquets and fruit baskets, that didn’t seem to be the case. He was probably just too busy to visit.

I was discharged a few days later. Though the long scar on my arm remained, I didn’t mind—just being freed from Vasily’s relentless gift-giving felt like liberation.

I took a week off from work using sick leave. To think they gave me a whole week off for such a minor incident. As expected, the Association was a tough place to work—but as a government job, it was also the best.

Of course, if I signed an exclusive contract with a high-ranking Esper, I could earn a lot more money with less guiding. But if I ended up with someone like Vasily again, it would make the whole regression pointless. Then again, the odds of meeting someone as unhinged as him twice were slim.

Suddenly, a notification from my banking app popped up. When I checked my account, I saw a nice insurance payout. A coworker who’d visited told me I might also receive a bonus for contributing to the monster’s defeat.

At least I wouldn’t need to worry about medication costs for a while. Smiling at the boosted balance, I stepped out of the house feeling satisfied.