Russian Roulette /̵͇̿̿/’̿’̿ ̿ ̿̿ ̿̿ ̿̿
CHAPTER 2
Tessa’s dream was simple. To meet a Guide with a high compatibility rate who she could connect with emotionally and build an ordinary life together. That was all she ever wanted.
The thought of someone who could provide comfort with just a touch—what a blessing such a person must be. For a Sentinel, a Guide was nothing short of a guardian angel. A well-matched Guide could ensure a Sentinel lived a peaceful life free from suffering.
Even Sentinels with an SS-class designation, the highest functional tier, required contact with a Guide. Guides played a critical role not only in enhancing their abilities but also in helping them lead ordinary lives. Because of this, Guides were often treated with utmost care and reverence by Sentinels.
Most Sentinels, being considered key assets of the state, received support and protection, though the level of treatment varied based on their rank. Tessa wasn’t a high-ranking Sentinel. Her registration card was stamped with a C-class designation.
As a C-class Sentinel, what she had was meager: a single floor in a state-provided shared villa and a small government stipend. Yet Tessa was confident that if she found her Guide, she could cherish and love them more than anyone else ever could.
She knew she might not be able to offer as much as an S-class Sentinel, but she vowed to make sure they’d never regret being paired with her.
She even had a small savings account she’d been building little by little for her future Guide. But no matter how long she waited, no one with a high compatibility rate ever appeared.
She vaguely remembered the highest match she’d ever had—someone whose compatibility rate approached 50%. But even that wasn’t enough to provide effective guiding. It wouldn’t alleviate the headaches, a side effect of not having a proper Guide, that plagued her endlessly.
‘If only… if only someone with even 70%, no, 80% compatibility would appear…’ For years, she had endured, relying on temporary guiding supplements that barely kept her functioning.
‘If I find my Guide, I’ll give them everything. I’ll live only for them. I’ll dedicate my entire life to repaying them for showing up in mine.’
That was her solemn vow. But who could have known she would meet such a person in this way?
When Tessa opened her eyes again, she was in a recovery ward. Someone had drawn back the thin curtains over the windows, allowing fresh air to circulate. An IV was taped to her wrist, though she knew it was more symbolic than actually effective.
Lying in bed, she stared blankly at her surroundings.
‘So, I didn’t die after all. What happened while I was out? Did someone… someone actually go out of their way to save me?’
Just as her thoughts began to wander, a sharp pain radiated from her abdomen, jolting her fully awake. For someone like Tessa, with the peculiar physiology of a Sentinel, medications rarely worked as intended. The doctor must have administered painkillers, but they were likely useless.
Considering the life-threatening injuries she had sustained—injuries that would have killed an ordinary person—Tessa was fortunate to be alive, though the pain forced groans from her lips.
It was then that a man entered the room, bringing with him an aura of indescribable dominance.
A subordinate opened the door for Vicente, who stood at the threshold, exuding his usual icy demeanor. His gaze lingered on Tessa briefly before stepping inside.
Under normal circumstances, Tessa would have stood to greet him, but she was a patient now.
‘He’ll overlook this much… right?’
Vicente stepped into the room, giving a silent nod to his men, who promptly exited and closed the door behind them.
The moment their eyes met, Tessa remembered everything that had happened before she’d been brought to the hospital.
‘Ah…’
A sigh of despair slipped from her lips before she could stop it. Vicente’s expression confirmed that he’d noticed.
“I was worried you might have lost your memory from the shock,” he said, his tone almost casual.
“But I see that was unnecessary.”
Tessa dropped her gaze, unable to hold his for long. She had always found it difficult to meet his eyes, even before she knew he was her Guide.
Anyone who knew what kind of man he was would understand why.
Vicente dragged a chair over and sat beside her. Facing him while lying down felt surreal, but what unsettled her more was the fact that she had somehow offended the master of Saint Leroi.
“Is this something to feel so regretful about?”
Tessa frowned.
‘Why do you even care?’
“Since when have my feelings ever mattered to you?”
“They haven’t,” he admitted with a shrug. “At least, not until now. But things will be different from today. I don’t like forcing a relationship under coercive circumstances.”
The moment Tessa realized what he was implying, her headache became more unbearable than the pain of her injuries.
Not all Sentinels and Guides developed romantic relationships, but the most effective form of guiding often required physical intimacy.
Which was why compatibility with a Guide wasn’t just about abilities—it was also about emotional connection.
But this…
Vicente smirked, as if amused by Tessa’s silent suffering and the cold sweat beading on her forehead. His smile was far from warm—it was sharp and icy, like a blade.
It felt as though a bucket of freezing water had been dumped over her, leaving her trembling with unease.
Vicente’s dark eyes, glinting blue under the light, were like a bottomless abyss. Someone once said that what made the abyss terrifying was not knowing what lurked within.
Tessa agreed wholeheartedly.
“A… relationship?” she stammered.
“We’re not doing anything here, so don’t look so tense.”
“Did you… already know?”
“All those years… the Guide I couldn’t find—it was you all along. Did you know that?”
Vicente didn’t miss the implication behind her words.
“Of course. Do you think I wouldn’t know?”
“When did you find out?”
“Are you expecting me to file a report on it now?”
“If you knew… then the reason you hired me so easily, the reason you welcomed me into your city so readily… was all because of that?”
“Is that really what’s important to you right now?”
He shifted his posture, leaning slightly as he gazed down at Tessa. It was the look of a ruler—a man who knew how to imprison someone without the need for bars.
Once caught in his gaze, there was no escape.
“Tessa. Aren’t you curious about how much I knew and when I knew it?”
“…”
Her entire body stiffened in response to his words. Instead of answering outright, Vicente pulled something from his pocket and tossed it onto her. Photographs.
Tessa’s trembling hands reached for them, each finger quivering as though holding the weight of her doom.
What she feared most stared back at her from the images. They showed her meeting with government agents—evidence of her role as a spy.
“I hate spies more than anything. You know that.”
The government often placed agents near Vicente, infiltrating his inner circle. Despite the uneasy symbiosis he maintained with them through secret dealings, as a figure of the underworld, they could never fully trust him.
Someone always had to watch him from close by.
Tessa had been one of those people—one of the spies who had risen to a position within Vicente’s trusted circle.
It seemed she wouldn’t be able to keep up her charade any longer.
“How did it feel sneaking around behind my back, Ms. Ambrose?”
Tessa knew all too well what happened to spies who were caught. She had been present at countless executions and clean-up operations. Now, pale with fear, she looked up at Vicente.
This was the kind of situation where it wouldn’t be surprising if she were dragged out, stripped, and tortured on the spot. Vicente never hesitated to issue such orders, regardless of whether the target was a woman.
“What should I do with you, Tessa?”
“…”
“Tell me, what do you think I should do?”
He plucked the photos from her hands. The images fluttered like lifeless leaves before scattering across the hospital floor.
“If you’ve done wrong, you need to pay the price. You’ve seen it yourself—I never let these things slide.”
“You knew all along,” Tessa said, her voice trembling.
“Of course, I knew.”
“Then why did you save me? Wasn’t it you who had me brought to this hospital?”
Vicente laughed at her question.
“Why do you think I did it?”
Without giving her a clear answer, he grabbed her wrist and pulled her up. The sudden force made her stumble as her upper body was jerked forward, the space between them shrinking until it was close enough for their lips to touch.
Tessa’s eyes widened as she locked gazes with him. She couldn’t even breathe. His calm, scrutinizing stare was at odds with the grip on her wrist, which had gone from burning to numb under the pressure.
It should have hurt—by all accounts, it should have hurt. Yet, even in the face of his almost violent touch, her body betrayed her. Every fiber of her being seemed to crave him, pleading for more.
The instinct to collapse into his arms flared within her, and as if he had read her mind, Vicente murmured,
“Here I am, trying to decide what punishment to give you, and you’re already thrilled just because I touched you, aren’t you, Tessa?”
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