Chapter 177: Ch 177: New Beginnings - Part 2

"Now that it has been some time since you adjusted to this family, how are you feeling, Alan? As your family, I will do whatever it takes to make you feel comfortable with me. So you don’t have to be shy with me."

Alan’s blank eyes smiled back at his ’grandfather’, causing the other kids around him to shudder. They were not happy with the kind of attention he had been getting from the elder man.

But because of his SSS-grade esper status, they all hesitated to openly say anything to him. Instead, they decided to sabotage him from behind the scenes.

Alan could not even bring himself to care about such things. He only wanted to live out his life and find the cure for this emptiness.

"Alan, I am expecting great things from you. Don’t you dare disappoint me."

His grandfather spoke again, and this time, he looked straight at Alan. But once again, it did nothing to move Alan. Instead, his actions felt mechanical, and he picked up his cup to take a sip from it.

"As you wish, Grandfather. I will make sure to deliver the results you want me to."

He told the elder as he took a sip. But he also noticed the jealous looks he got from around him.

And it did not take long for the other kids to start their operation of trying to suppress him. But he could not help but feel like it was just childish jealousy and attempts on their part.

Their bullying started small, putting a lizard or another animal in his room or his food, causing him trouble when he was trying to get something done, or even stealing his things.

It was all petty stuff that made Alan want to teach them a lesson. But every time he turned around to use his powers, a voice in his head stopped him.

’Don’t use your power for useless things. You have a gift, and you should be careful using it.’

The voice spoke, and all the anger and hesitation Alan felt melted away from his body. He suddenly felt like he could think clearly once more.

And that was what made him endure.

In fact, he could not help but find these kids cute all of a sudden and easily forgive them. But once they noticed that their bullying was not of any use, they started to get bolder and more creative.

It was easier to overlook the bullying when it did not affect Alan a lot. But he could no longer overlook it when it started to get physical.

Not only did these kids keep trying to steal his stuff, but they also decided to blame him for things he did not do. Not that Alan bothered to deny it anyway, since his grandfather looked proud of the fact that he was causing trouble.

But it all changed when these kids dared to put their hands on his pendant.

He had been told that it was the only thing he had brought back from the place he had been found at, and it held significance for him.

Even his instincts told him that he needed to hold on to it because it was connected to someone or something precious.

But it went missing one day, and he found one of the kids playing with it. When Alan approached them to demand it back, the kids ran away while teasing him.

And that was the final straw for Alan. He could take all the teasing and even abuse, but this was not something he was willing to take lying down.

So he hunted these kids down one by one.

These kids were mostly espers, but their grade was much lower than Alan’s. Moreover, unlike Alan, these kids had not fully awakened to their powers. So it was easy for him to trap them in darkness, and they had to pound their hands on the barrier to be let out.

But Alan had no intention of letting them out. Not even the guides who had tried to take his precious thing away from him.

"Y-You cannot do this to us! We are the real grandsons, and you are just a substitute adoptee. You will be thrown out—"

"I don’t care. Give me the necklace back, or else... I will make it impossible for you to be able to go back in one piece."

Alan threatened without a hint of emotion in his voice. He was not taking any risks with the pendant, and the kid who held it tightly decided to throw it towards Alan.

"Here, take it! We did not want it anyway. Who cares about a rusty old piece of metal?"

The pendant was thrown out, and Alan quickly picked it up. However, his anger did not go away. If anything, it became even more fierce compared to before.

He touched the pendant lightly before he looked up with a sigh.

"This is annoying. I don’t like the fact that you are treating my pendant like this. It seems you have not learned your lesson yet."

Alan spoke, and the darkness got even darker. But this time, it was even harder to breathe inside the darkness, and the kids let out screams of terror. But Alan showed them no mercy.

These kids had brought it upon themselves by grabbing this pendant that was his only connection to—

He suddenly could not recall what or whom he wanted to, but this time, the sensation was clearer. It was someone’s ability that made it impossible to think about the past, and every time he tried to remember it, he felt like he was making a mistake.

Alan did not like the feeling he got when he touched that seal, so he stopped trying to touch it.

Instead, he decided that it was time for him to head back to his room. His grandfather would hear about what happened soon.

"Grandfather won’t let you get away with it—"

One of the kids yelled, but Alan sighed, knowing the truth.

And true to what he thought, his grandfather just laughed and let him get away with it with a pat.