By Zephyria 
“Damn it…”
I knew it smelled foul, but it was monster’s blood!
I hurriedly gagged and spat out the blood, but it felt as though I had already swallowed some. Monster’s blood is poison to humans. Fortunately, it was a small amount, so I wouldn’t die, but it seemed a hospital stay was inevitable for the time being.
Regardless, this ice—it does feel familiar. Of course, there are quite a few ice-type ability users, but as far as I know, there is only one Esper in South Korea strong enough to pierce a monster’s head in one blow…
A sense of foreboding washed over me.
“I wondered who was getting beaten so pathetically…”
Someone approached from the side. As I turned my head toward the presence, a pair of expensive-looking shoes entered my vision.
The man gave the monster’s corpse a casual nudge. The monster’s body, which had been precariously supported by the spear, slowly tilted to the side.
Thump.
The monster’s corpse hit the ground with a heavy thud.
“How strange…”
But this obnoxious voice…
“Do Guides fight monsters these days?”
Damn it. Why are you here?
A high-end suit, tailored to perfection. Pale skin, like ice, emitted a cold glow. Fine silver hair fluttered in the wind, and simultaneously, a chilling air enveloped the surroundings.
Unlike the cold smile on his lips, his expressionless silver-gray eyes met mine, and my heart sank.
Vasily.
I had to look at that obnoxious face. I knew we would meet eventually, but I didn’t expect it to be this soon. My body froze reflexively the moment I saw him. Feeling my hands tremble slightly, I clenched my fists tight.
Vasily was looking down at me with eyes full of curiosity. Seeing as he reacted as if he didn’t know me, it seemed I was indeed the only one who had regressed. Realizing this, my tension eased slightly.
“Can you stand?”
Vasily smiled faintly and reached out his hand to me. I didn’t want to take it, but without showing it, I grasped the hand he offered. Soon, I was pulled up by a strong force.
“I’m sorry. I’ve been in poor condition lately, so I made a mistake.”
“Pardon?”
“I needed to move the monster to the lab, but I think I was a bit too weak when freezing it to keep it alive.”
A mistake? This guy makes mistakes? As far as I knew, everything that looked like a mistake from Vasily was entirely intentional.
“Ah, yes…”
After answering lukewarmly, I checked my body; it was a complete mess. I was covered from head to toe in sticky, foul-smelling black monster’s blood.
If I don’t wash this off quickly, my skin might rot. Although it’s for Espers, since it’s an emergency, I should be able to use the portable shower booth nearby.
Just as I was about to leave after thanking him, I saw Vasily nudging the monster’s corpse with his foot. He muttered softly with a troubled expression.
“This is problematic… they told me to bring it back alive…”
It seemed he intended to take this monster to the association for research. Now I understood why he had trapped the monster in ice instead of killing it immediately. It was something Vasily did occasionally.
After staring down at the monster in thought for a moment, he spoke.
“Shall we just say the Guide killed it?”
“What?”
Is he crazy? I barely managed to swallow the words that almost burst out of my mouth.
“No. I didn’t kill it, and… haha…”
Not knowing how to respond, I just laughed awkwardly. In my heart, I wanted to honestly ask, ‘Are you insane?’, but if I did, I would surely freeze to death on the spot.
“Is your arm okay? You’re hurt.”
“Ah…”
Checking my arm as he suggested, I saw blood flowing from long claw marks.
Damn, did I get scratched earlier? I need to wash this quickly before the monster’s blood enters the wound…
“Can I see it for a second?”
Vasily stepped forward and took my arm. As he placed his hand over the wound, a cold sensation brushed across my skin. Checking the area again, I saw that the torn part had frozen, stopping the bleeding.
“It’s just simple first aid, so you should get proper treatment quickly.”
“…Thank you.”
I gave a reluctant thank you while rubbing around the wound.
The Vasily I know isn’t the type to treat someone for a mere scratch like this. He definitely has some ulterior motive.
“A temporary Guide?”
“Yes.”
“Rank?”
“C-Class.”
“Hmm…”
Vasily stroked my arm as if checking the wound.
To an outsider, it looked natural, as if he were worried about the injury, but I—having been his Guide for several years—could tell exactly what he was doing. He was attempting guiding to verify if my words were true.
Realizing this, my body stiffened with tension. Soon, a familiar chill followed. The spine-chilling sensation of coldness flowing through my veins. The breath I shallowly exhaled turned cold. Even after guiding him for six years, it was a wavelength I could never get used to.
Did he find out?
Anxious, I felt the back of my neck with the hand he wasn’t holding. I worried that the suppression chip might have fallen off because my neck had scraped the ground when I fell, but fortunately, the chip was firmly implanted.
For a moment, his expression turned cold before returning to a smiling face. Not missing that, I felt a great sense of relief internally. The guiding hadn’t worked as much as he wanted.
“Ugh…”
The moment my tension released, I felt a sharp sting in the back of my neck. What is this? That’s where the suppression chip is implanted.
“Are you okay?”
“Ah, yes… maybe it’s because of the monster’s blood. I should wash up quickly…”
And then, darkness fell.
* * *
I woke up in the hospital a few days later.
Looking at the hospital ceiling the moment I opened my eyes, I let out a sigh. Of all things, to faint there. I felt incredibly uneasy, not knowing what had happened after I lost consciousness.
But it was actually a relief. Vasily hated weakness. Seeing me faint from such a minor injury, he must have completely lost interest in me.
“Gi-dam!”
In the afternoon, Jo Woo-yeon, who had heard the news that I had woken up, came to visit me while I was resting after completing some simple tests.
“I’m so glad you’re safe. I can’t tell you how worried I was after seeing the news about the accident at the Gate you went to…”
Jo Woo-yeon looked distressed and apologetic upon discovering the bandages wrapped around my arm. To reassure him, as he was overly consumed by guilt, I smiled and said,
“I’m okay. I just got a few scratches and rolled around a bit.”
I was sincerely okay. I was just unlucky. I was just a bit unluckier than others, becoming a monster’s target and ingesting highly toxic blood. The worst part was encountering Vasily, but since nothing major happened, I could say it was fine.
“Still, I was very worried. Especially when I heard that you killed the monster, I was so surprised.”
“What?”
What on earth is he talking about? When I asked back in confusion, Jo Woo-yeon continued his explanation.
“Vasily gave an interview to a reporter regarding this monster escape incident, and he said that a temporary Guide from the association killed the escaped monster. The article is all over the main page of the internet… surely you haven’t seen it yet?”
That crazy bastard…
I pressed my brow, cursing Vasily internally. I clearly refused, yet he went ahead and pinned it on me? It was my fault for momentarily overlooking the fact that he is the biggest son of a bitch in the world.
The thought of having to explain this brought a sudden wave of exhaustion. Seeing me like this, Jo Woo-yeon must have misunderstood, as he stood up with a deeply apologetic expression.
“Ah, you must be tired, and I’ve talked too much, haven’t I? I’ll be going now. Don’t overdo it and get some good rest!”
Once he left, the hospital room became quiet. It was a four-person room, but since the other beds were empty, it felt even more silent.
“Sigh…”
I flopped back onto the hospital bed and lifted my left arm wrapped in bandages. In this condition, I can’t even go to work… I’ll have to stay lying down for the next few days.
I thought it was a relief that I had brought the red pill that came with the suppression chip for emergencies, and just as I was about to rest, I caught a glimpse of a silhouette beyond the curtain.
Is it Mr. Woo-yeon?
“Did you leave something behind?”
I asked through the curtain while sitting up. However, the person who revealed themselves by pulling back the curtain was a silver-haired foreigner who looked to be over 190cm tall.
“Are you feeling better?”
It was Vasily.