NOVEL NEXT C5
“W-wait, huff!”
Nine tried to pull his hand away, unable to endure the cold consuming his body. At that moment, Iberis’s mana attacked as if trying to devour him. It went beyond simply draining Nine’s mana and began to invade his body.
“Aagh!”
Unable to bear the pain, Nine screamed and collapsed to the floor. He shivered, his face turning pale. It felt like hundreds of needles were stabbing his entire body.
“Are you alright?”
“I-I’m fine.”
Nine barely managed to answer. His teeth chattered from the chill pervading his body. He rubbed his goosebump-covered arms. His body felt as cold as if he had just emerged from icy winter waters.
“Haa.”
This is why I didn’t want to receive guiding. Iberis looked at the shivering Nine with apologetic eyes.
“How is it? Do you feel any better?”
“Hmm…”
Iberis let out a small sigh at Brenda’s question. The raging mana inside him had calmed slightly, but the cold tormenting his body remained. Honestly, it didn’t feel much different from taking a sedative.
“…Can’t I just take the medicine?”
“Corporal Rebecca, what are you standing around for? Hurry up and guide the Major!”
Seeing Iberis refuse guiding, Brenda called Rebecca without hesitation.
“Y-yes, ma’am!”
Urged by Brenda, Rebecca, who had been supporting the suffering Nine, approached Iberis. Her face was clearly terrified. The thought that she would soon end up like Nine made her want to cry already.
But she couldn’t refuse. If she did, she’d surely be dragged to the brig for insubordination as soon as they left the rift. Rebecca extended her hand to Iberis with a resigned expression.
“I-I’ll start the guiding.”
Iberis silently stared at Rebecca’s outstretched hand. Glancing at Nine receiving emergency treatment with heat packs, he spoke.
“That’s enough.”
“…Pardon?”
Rebecca, who had been extremely tense, blinked at Iberis’s unexpected words.
“I said there’s no need for guiding. Let’s head back.”
“Major!”
Brenda’s expression hardened as Iberis refused guiding. She had anticipated this when Nine collapsed in less than five minutes, but she couldn’t let it happen.
“This is enough.”
“Enough? That’s nonsense…”
“Stop.”
Raising his hand to stop Brenda, Iberis walked towards the distorted space. During the guiding, the dimensional distortion had grown stronger. If left like this, another gate would form soon. Estimating the remaining time, Iberis immediately issued orders.
“Call the closure team and tell them to destroy the core and collect the fragments within 30 minutes. Close the rift as soon as the job is done.”
“…Understood.”
Brenda, her lips moving as if she had something to say, swallowed a sigh and followed Iberis’s order. At her command, the squad members moved in unison.
* * *
“Aaaargh!”
A pain-filled scream echoed from afar. The sound of something breaking followed. Lucas, who had just entered the corridor, frowned at the noise assaulting his ears.
[Code Red, Code Red…]
An announcement alerting to the critical situation rang out repeatedly above Lucas’s head. His eyebrows furrowed as he heard the broadcast. ‘Code Red’ meant an Esper had gone berserk.
“Tsk.”
Realizing he was a step late, Lucas quickened his pace. His white coat fluttered with each movement, and his high-tied silver hair scattered and flowed. Reaching the special guiding room, Lucas grabbed the doorknob without hesitation and turned it. As he opened the door, he felt the air swirling.
“What a mess.”
Lucas muttered in an indifferent voice, slightly frowning at the horrific scene before him. The guiding room, caught in the Esper’s rampage, was in shambles as if it had been bombed.
“Captain!”
The medical officer and guide, who had been trying to calm the rampaging Esper, called out to Lucas as if they’d found a savior. Lucas entered without delay.
“Who made the emergency call? What’s the situation?”
“It was me! While Lieutenant Hans was treating an injury, the Esper went berserk… We tried emergency guiding, but I wasn’t enough… Ugh!”
The guide reporting the situation to Lucas groaned and staggered. The Esper had released mana again. Lucas observed the rampaging Esper with indifferent eyes. Each time the Esper emitted mana, a gust of wind arose, scattering debris.
“Wind element, huh… Let’s calm him down first.”
After speaking, Lucas strode towards the Esper. Alarmed by his sudden action, the guard supporting the guide called out urgently.
“Dangerous…! Huh?”
The soldier trying to stop Lucas widened his eyes. With each movement of Lucas’s hand, the Esper’s mana was dispersing.
“What is that…”
The guard gaped in bewilderment at the unprecedented sight. He couldn’t believe what he was seeing.
Regardless of the soldier’s surprise, Lucas focused on his task. He concentrated mana at his fingertips to disrupt the wind rushing at him. Easily reaching the Esper, Lucas immediately grasped his wrist.
“Argh!”
The Esper, his wrist caught by Lucas, twisted his body. However, he couldn’t shake off Lucas’s hand. Instead, he was subdued by Lucas.
Thud!
Grabbing the Esper’s nape and slamming his face onto the treatment table, Lucas immediately channeled his mana. At that moment, the Esper’s eyes flew open. He felt his tangled insides unraveling at once. His breathing eased as if a blocked airway had cleared, and the splitting headache vanished. As the pain subsided, his lost reason returned.
The Esper’s mana, which had been raging as if to destroy everything, settled in an instant. As the wind that had been threatening to tear everything apart calmed, the floating debris all crashed to the floor.
“Ah…”
“Are you back to your senses?”
Lucas spoke after confirming the Esper had regained consciousness. The special guiding room, which had been filled with screams and roars just moments ago, was now eerily quiet.
“What… happened…”
“Stay still.”
“Uh…”
The Esper, bewildered by his own actions, wore an enraptured expression as he felt the refreshing mana gently flowing inside him. He had received countless guidings, but this feeling was a first. It was truly the most pleasant guiding he had ever experienced.
“Huh.”
Meanwhile, the guard leaning against the wall looked at Lucas guiding with a dazed expression. It was incredulous to see the Esper, whom they couldn’t subdue even with three people including himself, the medical officer, and the guide, now docilely receiving guiding like a gentle lamb.
“What was that just now? What did I see?”
“What do you mean? It was guiding.”
“But earlier, he was just eliminating mana with his hands…”
“That’s because he’s an S-class guide.”
“S-class guide… Then is that medical officer ‘that rumored person’?”
The guard immediately recognized who Lucas was upon hearing the explanation of S-class guide. The man before him was a famous figure at headquarters, known even to those not particularly interested in rumors. At that moment, Lucas, having finished guiding, approached them.
“He’s calmed down now. Take him to the recovery room.”
“Thank you. If it weren’t for you, Captain, it would have been disastrous.”
The guide bowed his head, expressing gratitude to Lucas. If he hadn’t arrived in time, they might have lost their lives to the rampaging Esper.
“No need for thanks, I just did my job.”
“Still, thank you. Really…”
As the guide raised his head after thanking Lucas again, he noticed something and gasped. Blood was dripping from Lucas’s hand.
“C-Captain, y-your hand…”
“Hmm?”
Lucas looked down at his hand at the guide’s words. The back of his hand was deeply cut, as if slashed by something sharp. It seemed he had been injured while subduing the Esper.
“Are you alright?”
“It’s nothing.”
“But the wound looks quite deep…”
As the guide said, Lucas’s wound was far from superficial. However, he remained incredibly calm. With an unfazed expression, Lucas picked up a recovery potion rolling on the floor and poured it directly onto his wound.
Hiss…
White smoke rose from the wound as the potion touched it. The guide gasped in shock at Lucas’s action.
Unlike the startled guide, Lucas’s expression remained utterly nonchalant. Getting injured while guiding Espers who were rampaging or on the verge of it was an everyday occurrence, hardly worth making a fuss over.