By Zephyria 
I remained in shock for a moment before quickly regaining my composure. Right. What did the rank even matter? As long as I didn’t match with Vasily, that was all that counted.
I comforted and soothed myself with that thought. It wasn’t as if I’d be C-Class forever; it was only until Vasily found a new Guide.
‘Let’s just wait for now.’
Once some poor sacrificial lamb appeared to take my place as Vasily’s Guide, I could simply remove the chip and get tested again. Then, I would escape the fate of being Vasily’s Guide and return to my original rank at the same time.
Of course, I didn’t know when that would happen, but I had to believe it wouldn’t take long. When an S-class Esper finds a Guide, the media makes a huge deal out of it, so I just had to wait patiently.
After finishing a few simple tests and waiting for a while, an association employee came to find me.
“Hello, Guide Kwon Gi-dam-ssi. Congratulations on your awakening as a Guide.”
The association employee, dressed in a neat suit, politely handed me a business card. Looking at him, I briefly reminisced about the past.
Six years ago, at this time, I felt like I was walking on air. But right now, what mattered wasn’t soaking in memories or looking back at things that had already passed.
I needed to focus on what was about to happen. Tense, I took the business card and waited for the next words.
“While Guide Kwon Gi-dam-ssi was unconscious, the association conducted a matching rate test. I’ve brought profiles of people who showed high matching rates, primarily among fellow C-Class Espers.”
Fortunately, Vasily’s name didn’t appear, meaning I hadn’t matched with him.
Sigh. I let out a visible sigh of relief as I took the profiles. However, before I could examine the contents, the association employee continued.
“Guide-nim. Would you happen to be interested in working as a temporary Guide affiliated with the association?”
I paused at the familiar term. A temporary Guide… that must mean the association-affiliated Guides I saw every time I went to a Gate.
“A temporary Guide?”
“Yes. A Guide who belongs to the association without signing an exclusive contract with a specific Esper. According to the test results, Guide Kwon Gi-dam-ssi showed high matching rates with most Espers. In particular, the matching rate exceeded 50 percent with the majority of C-Class Espers, so we would like to recommend the temporary Guide position to you.”
As I listened to the employee’s explanation, I rubbed the suppression chip, which felt stiff against the back of my neck. Perhaps because I was originally an S-class guide, it seemed my matching rate remained high with most Espers even with the suppression chip.
I had disrupted my wavelength, but did it not affect this part?
“The term ‘temporary Guide’ might sound unfamiliar, but it’s not much different from a regular Guide. You stay at the association and provide guiding to Espers who don’t have a Guide, except for the fact that you may occasionally be dispatched to the vicinity of a site where a Gate has opened.”
“Hmm…”
Seeing me look conflicted, the association employee hurriedly added,
“Since you’ve just awakened as a Guide, why not gain some experience here while looking for an Esper to sign an exclusive contract with? In fact, there are many cases where people sign exclusive contracts with Espers they meet while working as temporary Guides.”
I fell into thought for a moment. Since I had seen them often whenever I went to a Gate, I knew to some extent what temporary Guides did.
As the employee said, their main job was to provide guiding to Espers without a Guide. The only difference from a regular Guide was that they were sometimes dispatched to locations where Gates opened.
Of course, they didn’t enter the Gate; they just waited nearby and provided guiding to the Espers who requested it.
“Since there is a risk involved in going to the field, this level of salary is guaranteed.”
The association employee carefully wrote down and showed me the starting salary for a temporary Guide.
My deliberation didn’t last long. After hearing the explanation about the salary, I made up my mind immediately.
“I’ll do it.”
For someone like me, who had suffered and died after meeting the wrong Esper, being a temporary Guide was a pretty decent job. If I entered as an exclusive Guide for someone I didn’t know and ended up with an Esper like Vasily, my regression after death would have been for nothing. Rather than taking that risk, it was right to choose being a temporary Guide, even if it felt a bit unfamiliar.
And the highest form of guiding a temporary Guide would perform was likely just swapping tongues, but even that didn’t happen without mutual consent, and I could handle it if I just thought of it as CPR. Since I was originally an S-class guide, a hug would probably be enough for most.
It was a bit annoying that I’d have to go on business trips occasionally when a Gate opened, but for me, who had entered and exited Gates daily, the area near the entrance was as comfortable and cozy as my own home. Also, the fact that I could earn a higher monthly salary as a temporary Guide than as an exclusive Guide for a C-Class Esper was a big reason.
Good. When I heard I had awakened as a C-Class Guide, I thought I was screwed, but I guess life doesn’t just keep kicking you down.
I immediately began the discharge process.
Usually, people brought in with awakening pain wake up within half a day, but they told me that unlike ordinary people, I had been unconscious for two days. The doctor said it was strange and recommended staying for one more day, but I refused and was discharged immediately.
I could roughly guess the reason. It was probably because of the suppression chip. Or perhaps because of the mysterious pills I took after the chip was inserted.
After returning home, I read the temporary guiding work manual I received from the association employee.
The main duties were providing guiding to Espers without a Guide and occasionally being dispatched to wait at Gates that opened within the jurisdiction. There were a few other unfamiliar tasks, but most were things I could handle.
Well, regardless, it would be better than what I did when I was Vasily’s Guide. Violent and coercive guiding, and training to prepare for battles with monsters. Above all, the best part was that I no longer had to perform guiding with him.
After reading the work manual, I re-read the precautions that came with the illegal suppression chip.
“Dizziness, nausea, headache, fatigue as side effects… why are there so many?”
The side effects were listed endlessly in tiny, dense print. The more I read, the more I felt a headache coming on.
Behind the precautions, I saw the instructions for taking the medication. Maximum once a day. There were also instructions on how to purchase more once they ran out.
“Three million won for a month’s supply…”
A curse escaped my lips the moment I saw the price. To think this tiny pill cost a whopping 100,000 won each. I guess that’s what happens with illegal suppression chips. They’re filthy expensive despite the raw materials being unknown.
For Espers who easily make millions every time they enter a Gate, this amount wouldn’t be an issue, but it was for me. Damn, it looks like everything I earn will go toward medication.
“I’ll have to work like a dog…”
I had barely escaped Vasily, and now I was facing financial hardship. It was a night of deep sighs.
* * *
Today is my first day of work.
I only got to rest for a week. Because of the torment I suffered under Vasily before regressing, I wanted to rest a bit longer, but I couldn’t because my bank account was empty after buying the suppression chip.
However, I have absolutely no regrets about spending all my money on the suppression chip. Without it, I surely would have become Vasily’s Guide once again.
Before leaving the house, I stroked the back of my neck. Perhaps because I hadn’t escaped the trauma of being tormented by Vasily, it had become a habit to check if the chip was properly in place whenever I felt anxious.
Tap.
As I rubbed my neck, I felt a slight protrusion. The area where the suppression chip was implanted was still red and swollen, as if it hadn’t fully settled yet.
Fortunately, it was covered by my hair, so it wasn’t very noticeable; it was the kind of thing you wouldn’t know unless you touched it. This meant that as long as no one touched the nape of my neck, I would never be caught for the rest of my life.
“Well, not that such a thing would happen.”
I shrugged and left the house.
As soon as I stepped out of the subway station, the Guide Association was visible right across from me. It was slightly smaller than the Esper Association standing beside it, but as a core national institution, its scale was considerable.
‘This place is always crowded…’
The association was bustling with people as usual. I pushed through the swarming crowd and entered the building. When I presented my Guide registration card at the information desk, I was given a temporary pass and instructed to take the elevator up.
While waiting for the elevator, I stared blankly at the slowly changing numbers.
Even though it was my first day, I wasn’t particularly nervous. Compared to when I went to see Vasily, my steps were almost light. Since this was my first job where my life wasn’t under threat, it felt a bit unfamiliar yet exciting.
Then, the elevator arrived and the doors opened. As soon as I stepped inside, I checked the floor guide attached to one side. An entire floor was being used as the temporary guiding department.
‘The team size is larger than I thought,’ I thought as I got off on the 4th floor where the temporary guiding department was located. The scent of fragrant coffee was the first thing to greet me.
The next thing I saw were mountains of fatigue recovery drinks and coffee boxes.
“…Should I go back?”
For a moment, I felt like I could see a future where I died from overwork.