Chapter 161: Ch 161: Goodbye - Part 1

Erin was not inclined to do anyone favours except Noah, but he still decided to leave a detailed record for Alan and Daniel for future use.

The SSS-grade esper was well aware that even when Noah was set free, he would still be under the Labs’ influence. So until the Labs existed, Noah would never be free.

But Erin no longer had the strength to go against the Labs, so he was going to give everyone a final parting gift of freedom.

"I already pointed Alan and Daniel in the right direction. Now, the rest is up to them. Noah, you are going to make it to freedom this time."

Erin promised as he continued to jot down lines after lines of data before he sealed it with a special power. It was a power that his monster form had, but he had never used it before.

Just accessing this power made his body feel like it was falling apart, but Erin braved through the pain with a smile and looked down at the desk in front of him.

Finally, everything was complete, and it was time to welcome the next step...

Except, his body had started to betray him. He could feel the painful cough forcing its way up his throat. Each second alive felt like agony, but living felt well worth it.

"Ah, it’s almost time. I should get going now. There is no need to wake Noah up and make him worried. I will finish this on my own. But before that-"

Erin was going to use the last of his power to plant thoughts inside Noah’s mind. He was going to make Noah forget...no, make Noah’s emotions duller so that his death wouldn’t have much of an impact.

At the same time, it would serve as a trigger for Noah to leave the academy and live his own life far away without being stopped.

Was it scummy of him to do this without informing Noah about all this? Perhaps it was. But he had never boasted that he was a good person. He had been and would always be a selfish person.

"Goodbye, Noah. I wanted you to look at me at least once in this lifetime. But I guess that wish will never come true now."

He whispered, his lips resting close to Noah’s, but he never made an effort to close that distance. For him, it was a taboo action that crossed the invisible line set by Noah. Erin was bound by Noah’s will, and he closed his eyes and allowed his body to move.

It was difficult for him to leave Noah behind after all this, but the future was calling to him.

"Noah, I love you. You were and are my everything. I hope we get to meet again in my next life."

A tear fell from Erin’s eye at the confession, but he forced himself to keep going. He was almost at the end, and he could not afford to hesitate now. He had left his artefact beside Noah, and once it was all done, Noah would be free.

...

The door closed behind Erin, and he left the room. But as soon as he did, Noah’s eyes opened, and he looked around with a slightly startled expression.

He looked around until his eyes fell on the artefact that Erin had left behind. It shone brightly, and Noah immediately gripped it tightly.

A wave of dizziness hit him as soon as his fingers closed around that artefact, and Noah let out a gasp of shock.

"I feel so much lighter...just what is this artefact?"

He questioned as he looked down at the pendant-shaped artefact in his hand. It was pulsing brightly with a flame inside, and Noah had a feeling it was important.

So he grabbed the artefact and wore it before he looked around in order to find Erin. But the blue-haired man was nowhere to be seen.

"Erin, where are you? Are you around? If you are, then can you say something? I feel a little lonely all alone..."

Noah called out to the darkness, but no one answered him. It made him leave his bed to look around.

"Erin, stop playing around with me. Are you there-"

He looked around, but he was suddenly overcome with a bad feeling. It made him clutch his necklace harder, and his body started to move on its own. He was panicking inside his mind as well, with a need to get to Erin.

"I need to find Erin as soon as possible, otherwise something bad would happen. I-"

His feet moved on their own, not stopping for even a single second. He was unconsciously following behind Erin even without knowing about it.

Noah had no way to know whether where he was going was even right or not, but he hoped he would not come to regret his decision.

"I am going to make it. No, I have to make it in time. Otherwise, Erin...he will-"

Noah whispered with certainty as he rushed towards Erin’s presence. But he could see the future reflecting in his mind.

A section of the academy was going to get blown up, and Erin would be caught. The area would light up in blue flames, and a creature made of blue flames would descend, causing destruction.

[Congratulations, you have caught a glimpse of the future that will happen 20 minutes from now.]

[You have regained your ability to see the future. ✧｡◝(ᵔᗜᵔ)◜✧*｡]

The system was another can of worms Noah did not want to open right now. All he wanted to do was reach Erin, and finally, he could see Noah after braving through the pain.

The blue-haired man was standing in front of a spear of energy, and he was reaching for it. Noah’s insides went cold as soon as he saw that, and he rushed forward with only one goal in mind-to stop Erin from touching that thing.

"Erin, stop! Don’t do it-"

Erin looked back at him with a startled expression, but it was too late. The unstable energy decided it wanted to explode, and Noah was in its path.