Chapter 145: Ch 145: Visiting Ethan

Noah knocked at Ethan’s door, and after a few seconds, he heard some movement from inside before the door finally opened.

Ethan stood there with a slightly tired expression on his face, and the moment his eyes landed on Noah, his expression immediately changed to one of surprise.

"Noah? What are you doing here? I thought you were still in the medical wing."

"I was discharged today, so Erin brought me back. We heard that you got injured during the dungeon exercise, so I thought I should come and check on you before heading back to my room."

Noah smiled as he looked at Ethan, but Ethan did not immediately respond as his eyes moved toward Erin, who was standing behind him. There was a brief moment of silence before he stepped aside and allowed them to enter.

"I am fine. It was nothing serious, but the teachers insisted that I rest for a while."

Noah walked inside and immediately noticed the bandages wrapped around Ethan’s arm, and although Ethan had claimed that it was nothing serious, the amount of bandaging made Noah slightly concerned.

"That does not look like a small scratch."

Ethan laughed awkwardly and waved his other hand.

"It looks worse than it actually is. I just need some time to recover."

Noah nodded, but his eyes remained on the injury for a few more seconds before he suddenly felt his body react again.

His guiding began leaking out without warning, and he quickly clenched his hands as he tried to force it back inside.

’Not again...’

Erin noticed Noah’s strange reaction, but before he could say anything, Ethan had already stepped closer with a concerned expression.

"Are you feeling sick again?"

"No, I am fine. I think I am just a little tired from walking around."

Noah quickly smiled to reassure him, but he could feel the guiding inside his body becoming increasingly restless, almost as if it was searching for something.

’What exactly is happening to me?’

He had never experienced anything like this before, and the more he tried to suppress it, the stronger the sensation became, leaving Noah with the uncomfortable feeling that his body was slowly slipping out of his control.

Noah knew that the best thing to do would be to step back, but Ethan had grabbed his shoulder with his good hand, and his grip was tight enough to start hurting.

"Why don’t you come inside and rest for a while? You are still recovering. Here, sit down. For some reason, your presence feels really good by my side."

Ethan grabbed Noah’s hand and pulled him inside. His grip was so tight that Noah’s arm was starting to hurt, but he did not point it out and followed Ethan inside.

The esper’s behaviour was strange to the point where Noah could not even excuse it anymore, so he looked at Erin for help.

However, Erin was looking at Ethan’s hand on Noah’s arm with a weird expression. He opened his mouth to speak, but then decided against it. It was clear that he had something he wanted to convey.

"I think it’s time we head back. Now that you have seen that Ethan is alright, we should get going."

Erin stood up and signalled for Noah to stand up as well.

Noah pushed at Ethan’s arm with a sorry expression.

"You are right. I will get up now—"

But Ethan’s grip on his arm did not lighten. His eyes looked up at Erin with a will to fight, and he let out a low growl that startled Noah.

"No! Stay."

Ethan’s voice sounded weird, almost as if he was not the one speaking but someone else. His voice sounded a lot deeper than usual.

It was making the danger receptors in Noah’s brain activate, and he instantly felt like he had to run away.

"Ethan, it’s alright. I have spent too much time here. I think it’s time I head back and rest—"

"But you can rest here. You are my partner, right? That means you are supposed to stay by my side. Please don’t go."

Ethan’s eyes looked soft and begging when he turned them toward Noah. It was far too stimulating for Noah to look at, so he turned his eyes away.

But Ethan continued to look at him in order to try and change his mind.

Finally, Erin took a step toward Ethan and grabbed him. Noah, who was suddenly free, heard Erin’s instructions.

"Run toward the door and get out. I will deal with Ethan here."

Ethan was struggling to get out of Erin’s grip, but the slender and taller esper held him in place.

Noah let out a gasp as he looked at the scene of the fight before he took off and exited the room.

He heard loud noises behind him, but when he looked back, he saw nothing but the closed door.

When it opened, he tensed up, but he relaxed as soon as his eyes fell on Erin, with Ethan nowhere in sight.

"So, do you have any idea what happened there?"

Erin asked, and Noah almost spilled the beans to him about what was happening. But he held himself back at the last moment because he did not want to worry Erin more than necessary.

"I honestly don’t know. Ethan was acting strangely, and I think he might still be affected by the dungeon exercise."

Erin frowned slightly, clearly not convinced by Noah’s explanation, but he did not press him any further because he could already see how uncomfortable Noah looked.

"Then we should head back to your room and let you rest for a while. You have only just been discharged, so there is no reason for you to push yourself any further."

Noah nodded in agreement, but as they started walking away from the esper wing, he could not stop thinking about the way Ethan had looked at him.

There had been something wrong with his eyes, and the strange feeling in Noah’s body had become much stronger the moment Ethan grabbed him.

’Could this have something to do with my guiding?’

Noah lowered his head as he tried to understand what was happening, but the answer remained just beyond his reach, leaving him with the uncomfortable feeling that whatever had changed inside him was only beginning to reveal itself.