Chapter 53: A Glimmer of the Past

Espers with restoration abilities were restoring the collapsed cities one by one.
Watching the city regain its original appearance in an instant, I thought that abilities might indeed be a gift from God.

The reinforcements from Korea were originally supposed to return home immediately, but the American Association, who had played a major role in stopping Hyun Taewoon’s rampage and that of the S-Class Esper, urged us to stay longer.
And so, we ended up staying in the US for another week.

We moved to New York, where the American Association’s headquarters was located.
The American Association had us stay on the top floor of a high-end hotel.
In the US, we were welcomed by everyone like heroes.

Since stepping on American soil, I had been unable to sleep properly and was completely exhausted from guiding.
Because of that, I spent the entire first day at the hotel just sleeping.

Even though I had caught up on my sleep, the fatigue hadn’t completely gone away.
I was thinking of resting at the hotel again today if there were no special schedules, but the doorbell rang.
I hurried to the front door and opened it to find a staff member who looked Korean.
As if he were indeed Korean, the staff member greeted me in Korean and handed me a small envelope.

“A letter has arrived for you, Guide Lee Shinui.”

I took the letter and went back to the bedroom.
When I checked, it was a letter from Rainer, whom I had helped.

[To my dear Guide Lee Shinui, I would like to express my gratitude for guiding me when I went on a rampage. – Rainer]

At the very bottom, there was also a message asking me to contact him at the number below if I accepted.
To be honest, I was also curious if he was okay, so I called him after lunch.
But instead of English, I heard Korean.

• [Hello.]

“This is Lee Shinui. I received your invitation.”

• [I was waiting for your call. You did me a great service at the gate.]

At the words that he owed me a great service at the gate, I knew that the person I was talking to now was Rainer.
I was originally going to talk using my phone’s automatic translation function, but I was surprised by his fluent Korean.

“Not at all. I was just doing my job. By the way, are you able to speak Korean?”

• [Yes. I learned it since I was young, so I can speak a little.]

“I was surprised because you speak so well. Are you feeling okay?”

• [I’m great, thanks to you, Shinui-ssi. As a token of my gratitude, I would like to treat you to a meal at my house.]

“Of course, that sounds great.”

Since I was in the US anyway, I thought it would be nice to meet people and experience the culture.

• [Then I will send someone for you at lunchtime tomorrow.]

“Okay. Thank you for your consideration.”

To be honest, I didn’t know how to speak English, so I was just going to ask about Rainer’s well-being, but I was surprised to hear that he could speak Korean.
Just the fact that he could speak Korean made me feel an inner sense of intimacy, and I was looking forward to the meeting.

A suit and shoes sent by Rainer arrived in the morning.
The card that came with it said it was a gift.

I had been wondering what to wear, so it was a relief, but the gift was also a burden.
But since he had given it to me, I decided to wear it.
The stylish suit fit me perfectly.

When lunchtime came, I took the car he had sent and headed to his house.
I had expected it to be a normal house, but a butler and a maid were waiting for me at a grand mansion.
There was also an interpreter for me.
As expected of an S-Class, his wealth seemed to be on another level.

When I was guided by the butler to the reception room, he was waiting for me.

With blond hair and green eyes, he quickly approached me as soon as he saw me.
And he gave me a kiss on the cheek along with a greeting.

“I was waiting for you, Shinui-nim.”

I was surprised by the unfamiliar title and action, but at his comfortable way of treating me like a friend, I was also able to relax a little.
And this was better than being stiff.

“Thank you for inviting me to your home and for the gift.”

I said, pointing to the suit.
He said he had chosen it himself and gave me a thumbs-up.

I smiled slightly at his action.
It was both strange and fascinating to see a foreigner speak Korean.
He, who was watching me, continued to speak.

“Do you like meat?”

“Yes. I do.”

“Then let’s move to the dining room.”

He casually put his arm around my shoulder and we moved.
He seemed to have no qualms about physical contact.
Since physical contact, even if it wasn’t for guiding, was more accepted overseas, I followed him without a word.

He pulled out a dining chair for me.
As I sat down, I watched him sit down as well.

“If you hadn’t guided me, Shinui-nim, I would have died.”

“Not at all. There were many talented guides at the shelter.”

“No. You are my savior. And America’s hero as well.”

“I just did what I had to do.”

“Thank you.”

He said, taking my hand and kissing the back of it.
I pulled my hand away without realizing it.
At my action, he said with a sorry face.

“I was so happy. I’m sorry.”

He, who was apologizing, was like a large dog being scolded by its owner.

“It’s okay.”

The moment it was about to get a little awkward, the meal started to come out one by one, and the chef explained each dish.

He and I ate while talking about the gate this time.
After finishing our meal, we returned to the reception room and had tea.
I was worried it might be awkward, but he was so sociable that the conversation never stopped.

When the bottom of my teacup was visible, I was thinking it was about time to go back, but he spoke up.

“You know there’s a party in two days, right?”

“Yes.”

They said that there would be a thank-you party in the US for the Awakened from various countries who had come for support for the gate.

“Will you be my partner then?”

I was surprised by his sudden proposal to be his partner, but I could tell that he thought well of me.
But being a partner seemed difficult.

“I have colleagues who I came with, so I think it will be difficult.”

“That’s a shame.”

I looked at him with a sorry face.
But he seemed to have recovered quickly and continued with his questions.

“When are you returning to your home country?”

“In three days.”

“You’re leaving early. I want to be with you more.”

He seemed really disappointed.
At that, I told him I would give him a tour if he came to visit Korea.
Then his face brightened, and he promised me that he would come to visit Korea.

After returning to the hotel from his mansion, I was so drained that I was sprawled on the hotel sofa.
I had a simple dinner with room service and was watching TV when the doorbell rang.

When I opened the door, Minseong and Taewoon were standing there.
Even though he had written a promise not to bother me as a condition for lifting the restraining order, he was still the same.
I didn’t even feel disappointed anymore.

“Guide Shinui.”

“What brings you here?”

I asked Minseong and looked at him with a cold gaze.
At that, Minseong said with a troubled face.

“Since we’re in the US, I thought it would be nice to take a walk together.”

At his words, I immediately knew that this was his suggestion.
He had a tense face, unlike usual.

When I was silent, Minseong hurriedly said.

“And I heard you like desserts. They say there’s a famous bakery nearby.”

The main branch of my favorite dessert brand was nearby.
He was probably talking about that place.

I was conflicted by his words.
To be honest, I didn’t want to go because of him, but I also wanted to walk the streets of America with Minseong and eat the desserts from the main branch.

He was looking at me with a face mixed with anticipation and worry.
In the end, I nodded.

“Thank you, Guide-nim. I’ll be waiting outside while you get ready.”

There was nothing to prepare, so I just put on my coat and came out to the streets of New York.
It was still winter, so it was cold even with a coat and a muffler.

Even though it was late, the streets were dazzling, and there were many people.
It was a definite change of pace, and I was glad I had come out.

“That’s the famous bakery.”

At his words, I looked where he was pointing, and the magnificent main branch of the bakery came into view.

I was about to go inside when his phone started to ring.
He answered the phone and frowned slightly.
It seemed something had come up.

“The Association has urgently requested me to fill out a document, so I think I have to go in first.”

“It’s okay. Please go ahead.”

“I’m sorry we came all this way. You two can look around and then come.”

I originally wanted to follow him, but since I had come this far, I wanted to buy dessert.
It was also close to the hotel, so I could just buy it and go straight back.

When I went into the bakery, he also followed me.
Fortunately, he stood apart from me and talked to a staff member.
I chose a dessert to eat at the hotel.
Looking around, it seemed that the Mont Blanc, with its rich chestnut cream, was the signature dessert.
But they said I couldn’t buy it without a reservation.

In the end, I bought a few eclairs instead.
He also seemed to have bought dessert, as he was approaching me with a paper bag with the bakery’s logo on it.

He hesitated for a moment and then spoke to me for the first time, handing me the paper bag.

“Shinui-ssi, it’s a gift.”

In the unexpected situation, I took the paper bag in a daze and looked inside.
There was the Mont Blanc I had wanted to eat just a moment ago.

“I don’t need it.”

“You like sweets. Eat it at the hotel.”

Since we were confronting each other in front of the entrance, I could feel people’s attention focusing on us, so in the end, I took his gift and came out.

He walked at a distance from me without a word.
I glanced at him.
His dirty personality should be coming out by now, but he was still acting kind.
I thought again that he might not be the Taewoon I knew.

Come to think of it, Wonjae had come out as an A-Class, and I had become an S-Class, so this might be a different world from the one I knew.

If that was the case, had I been too harsh to the Hyun Taewoon of this place? I thought, but thinking of the Hyun Taewoon of the past made me hate the current him too.

By the time we arrived at the hotel, his face didn’t look so good.
He had the face of someone who hadn’t been able to sleep due to the side effects of his abilities.

“Go on in.”

He took me all the way to the hotel room door.
The gift from him in my hand and his haggard face kept weighing on my mind.
I didn’t go in and finally asked him.

“Are you receiving medication guiding?”

“Yes.”

“Come in.”

He had pushed himself too hard for the US gate, and that’s what had happened.
I could have pretended not to know, but seeing his weakened state, my heart wavered a little.
I thought I should at least raise the guiding level of him, who was suffering from the side effects.

“What?”

He was surprised at my sudden words to come into the room.

“I’ll guide you.”

“Really?”

At his words, I nodded and slightly lifted the paper bag with the Mont Blanc.

“This is in return.”

“Shinui-ssi, thank you.”

He looked at me with a face as if he were about to cry.
I turned away from him and went into the hotel room.
And feeling him follow behind me, I sat on the living room sofa.

“Turn on your Guiding Watch.”

His guiding level was 43%.

“Didn’t it hurt?”

“It’s okay. It’s like this every day.”

“I can’t do contact guiding. I’ll do remote guiding. Sit next to me.”

At my words, he hesitated for a moment and then sat next to me.
I looked for his wavelength and tried to do remote guiding.
His wavelength intertwined with mine as if it had been waiting.

“I’ll only guide you until you’re in the calm zone. You can sleep in the meantime.”

“Thank you for your consideration. Then I’ll just sleep for a bit.”

I no longer answered and leaned back on the sofa, looking at his face as he closed his eyes.

He must have been very tired, as he fell asleep quickly.
Seeing him now, I was reminded of the old days.
Often, when I guided him on the sofa, he would fall asleep right away.

I had liked his sleeping face.
Because he looked so peaceful.

Looking at his peaceful sleeping face now, I also gently closed my eyes.