Chapter 162: Ch 162: Goodbye - Part 2

"Fuck! Why did you decide to follow me? Noah, what are you doing here?"

Erin yelled as he immediately changed the direction of where he was running. He rushed towards Noah instead and covered his body from the blast of the energy sphere.

The blue-haired esper’s form covered Noah from head-to-toe, causing him to hit the ground. But Erin protected his head from being hit directly. But it felt strange to lie there beneath Erin.

Noah tried to make sense of what was going on, but one look at Erin told him that the esper knew everything.

"Erin—"

"I know what you want to ask. And yes, I deliberately hid what was going on because I did not want to drag you into this mess. I will apologise later for it. For now, we need to get going. The core will explode any second now."

Erin told Noah, and he nodded. They got up and started to run. But the second they reached the end of the barrier, Noah felt his body being shoved outside.

"What are you—"

He looked behind, only to see Erin still inside the barrier. It made him feel confused, and he reached back to grab Erin, only for the barrier to stop him from entering.

"Erin, what are you doing? Come out right now."

Noah pounded on the barrier with all his might, trying his best to get inside. He did not care that his hands were getting bloody with his attempts. All he wanted to do was get to Erin and drag him out.

But Erin looked like he had no intention of moving. He looked calm and even had a knowing smile on his face.

"I am sorry, but this is something I need to take care of. Did you bring along the necklace I left for you? Please consider it a gift from me and always wear it. It will give you what you want the most—your freedom."

Erin promised with a smile, but Noah did not want to hear him speak anymore. The more he heard, the more his insides boiled with anger and annoyance.

"Stop it! I don’t want to hear anymore. You—"

Noah’s hands were getting sore, and it won’t take long before they started bleeding as well. But he could not bring himself to care about it. All he wanted to do was grab Erin and pull him back.

"What use is sorry if you won’t even be there? I—"

The ship repulsed again, causing the light to blind Noah. He could barely make out Erin’s beautiful smile as the blue-haired esper walked back towards the sphere.

Noah could not hear what he said, but he could make out the shape from his lips.

<I will give you what you want>

And then, the light vanished. Or rather, it got absorbed inside Erin’s body.

The human body could not hold so much power, and it began to mutate slowly. First, the wings ripped out of the back, and then the hands began to change into talons. Slowly, a beak appeared, and then the body began to mutate until all that could be seen was a monster.

But Noah still had hope that his Erin was inside there.

"Erin—"

He had to be in there, otherwise, Noah was going to lose his mind. He had to find that person back.

The monster looked at him, its black eyes hidden behind its blue fur. It took a step forward and raised its talons to attack. But Noah did not know whether it was for attacking or something else.

But he wanted to believe that it was a form of greeting.

"That’s right, Erin. I am here. I will find a way to change you back, so come back—"

Noah held his arms open for Erin to embrace him, and the claw descended on him. But Erin did not even close his eyes as he watched them coming near. He was willing to accept it all.

But the monster collapsed at the last second, and golden blood splashed across Noah’s face. His smile froze on his face as he looked behind at his professor.

"Tsk, a monster managed to come here? How? And where is the experimental sphere? It should be here since Subject Noah is here. Now, you are coming with us, Noah—"

The professor took a step forward, but Noah’s eyes were fixed on Erin’s body that had started to go cold. He quickly walked forward and reached for the body, only to feel like the world was collapsing.

"Erin, are you awake? Don’t play like this. You are—"

Noah’s hands were shaking when he turned the huge body around. But a part of him still hoped that he would be able to see his companion.

Memories flashed across his mind from the first time he had seen Erin, but they all felt hollow.

"I—"

"Subject Noah, this is enough. Come with us...what is going on? Ugh, I feel so faint—"

The teacher looked shaken, but Noah could not bring himself to care. All of his attention was on the body in front of him, and he felt like he was about to lose his mind.

"I...this is not real. I cannot—"

His own guide energy was out of control since his emotions were a mess. And as a result, everyone around him started to collapse as they clutched their heads.

The teachers collapsed one by one, but Noah was unaware of all this. All he knew was that he had lost Erin.

His mind felt like a mess, but then his body began to move on its own, and he recognised that power. It was Erin’s power that was causing him to move.

The esper had likely taken measures, knowing this would happen, and Noah had no desire to go against his wishes.

He closed his eyes and allowed his body to follow what Erin wanted him to do. And that was how he got out of the academy and into a home built in the middle of a beautiful flowering field, but his mind was a mess.

And just when he realised, memories of the past began to surface in his mind.