BCGWR Chapter 15 Part 1

Broken Jar 3

The memory of putting Toto, who had newly transformed into a long-tailed tit, into his padded pocket to avoid the reporters and sasaengs camped outside his house, and the memory of Espers constantly approaching and bothering him wherever he went, were all vivid.

He also knew that the reason Espers openly pestered him was due to his unintentional Guiding. After assessing his condition for a moment, Ji-su cautiously asked Kim Hyun-ah.

“Noona… am I still Guiding right now?”

A positive answer immediately followed.

“Yes. You were radiating Guiding even while sleeping.”

“…”

Radiating Guiding.

It refers to the act of spreading Guiding to an unspecified number of Espers within a certain range, as if spraying water with a sprinkler.

The act of Guiding was a type of skill that a Guide used and controlled with mental power. Therefore, if one didn’t stop in time and rest sufficiently, they would feel immense mental fatigue, and if accumulated, it would lead to Brain Overload.

If the Brain Overload state persisted, it could end with a simple fainting spell, but in severe cases, it could lead to various after-effects including memory loss, or in the worst case, brain death.

Ji-su had heard that he had repeatedly slept and woken up for several days, but only the blurry memory of someone holding his hand, likely the very last one, remained. Other than that, he had no recollection of waking up at all in between.

‘…I don’t know who it was, but they must have been a bit surprised too…’

Having cried and cried and cried all this time, had his tears finally dried up?

Han Ji-su, now with a slightly clearer mind, found it strange that he couldn’t cry even after clearly recognizing Kang Jae-yoon’s absence.

Even after five years, he still couldn’t properly talk about his older brother, younger brother, or the Loveis members, so it was difficult to believe he had composed himself in such a short time.

Nevertheless, seeing how calm his mind was, it was highly probable that a mental-element Esper had manipulated his mind.

‘…It must be Professor Choi Seong-hun.’

Hankook University Hospital was where Professor Choi Seong-hun, a renowned psychiatrist who had awakened as a mental-element Esper during the Cataclysm, was located. Realizing he had been admitted here rather than to the Peace Guild, Ji-su, whose suspicions seemed correct, carefully parted his lips.

“Is Professor Choi Seong-hun my attending physician?”

It was a question that implied everything: if Professor Choi had manipulated his brain, forcefully controlled his Guiding, and forcibly blocked his sadness over Kang Jae-yoon. Kim Hyun-ah, however, calmly affirmed.

“That’s right.”

“…I don’t know what he did… but I feel strange… My emotions are so numb… I feel nothing… that’s why it’s strange… I don’t like this… I wish it would stop…”

When he complained honestly, Kim Hyun-ah affirmed that aspect and explained.

“He said he temporarily blocked your sadness. But it’s temporary, so you’ll soon return to normal. He also tried to naturally stop the Guiding as much as possible, but it seems he wasn’t successful. Since he couldn’t let you keep radiating, he took measures to temporarily incapacitate your brain.”

“…So that’s why my memories are fractured.”

“Yes. But it seems to have gradually worn off since yesterday, and you started radiating Guiding again.”

“…Haa…”

As Ji-su let out a small sigh, Kim Hyun-ah opened her eyes and turned her head slightly.

Making eye contact with the somewhat frustrated-looking Ji-su, she stroked Toto on her chest and asked.

“Can you control it a bit now?”

“…No. Honestly, I didn’t even know I was Guiding right now. I didn’t feel anything at all…”

Although he had experienced many Brain Overload states before, this was the first time he couldn’t even recognize if he was Guiding, and self-regulation was completely impossible.

Kim Hyun-ah looked at the confused-looking Ji-su, then supported Toto with her hand and sat up. She then got out of bed, approached the main bed, placed Toto at the head of it, and shared what had happened recently.

“While you were asleep, I took Toto and went around a bit.”

“…You did?”

“Yeah. He kept trying to follow me into dungeons, so I just took him in and came back. Twice.”

“You did well. Toto likes dungeons, you know.”

To be precise, Toto liked the fresh fruits available in dungeons, but either way, it was a good thing. Moreover, if Kim Hyun-ah entered the dungeons, their Ranks would have been high, meaning there would have been many fruits and nuts that were difficult to find in regular markets.

Even though Ji-su hadn’t been in his right mind for several days, he was proud of Toto, who had bravely endured in his own way. He stroked him and asked,

“What else did you do?”

“Just this and that. I also measured his skills. Toto’s shield skill seemed to have become quite sturdy, so I measured it, and it seems to be about S+. It’s not a + yet, but it looks like he’ll reach +Rank someday.”

“Our Toto is amazing.”

As he stroked Toto’s snout, a small breathing sound, “Chyuuuu…” was heard. Kim Hyun-ah briefly looked at the completely unconscious Toto and said,

“Amazing, isn’t it? If he were a normal taming monster, he would have been very anxious, but he endured well.”

“…”

It wasn’t a remark blaming Han Ji-su, but he himself felt sorry for Toto. As a caretaker, he should have taken proper care of him, but he hadn’t been in his right mind for several days.

After the Busan Dungeon Annihilation, he had absolutely no memory of how he had returned home. He heard he had fainted on the spot, but when he came to, he was already at his home in Seoul, and all he did there was cry.

For several days, he couldn’t even sleep properly, and cried, cried, and cried again. Naturally, he couldn’t manage proper meals either. Of course, amidst all that, he consistently made sure Toto was fed.

Since he wasn’t someone who usually enjoyed alcohol, he couldn’t rely on it and merely grieved endlessly in his sober state.

Amidst all that, he also had to consistently reply to the guild manager’s calls checking if he was alright. In truth, he wanted to ignore everything and disappear, but if he didn’t reply in time, the guild manager in charge of his psychological well-being might come barging in, so he had to reply diligently.

During the several days his caretaker lived like a wreck, Toto stayed by his side the whole time. If Ji-su was sobbing, he would sit quietly beside him, and if Ji-su collapsed and fell asleep as if fainting, he would curl up nearby and sleep with him.