Chapter 183: Ch 183: A New Dungeon is Opening - Part 1

Living outside the village while still being a part of the community was not bad for Noah. He was willing to tolerate people as long as they left him alone. But sometime within the last week, a change had occurred.

People who were usually too afraid to come closer to him had suddenly decided that it was perfectly fine to try and check him out.

Moreover, the people were sending their kids, having figured out that he had a soft spot for kids in particular.

And Noah did have a soft spot for kids, so he could not blame these parents.

What he did blame them for was the intentionally bad flirting they tried to do when they came to visit with the kids.

For example, right now, two of the kids were playing in the flower field while their guardians watched from his front porch. But their eyes were not trained on the kids.

Instead, he could feel them checking him out with interested eyes.

"Once again, we are so sorry for this. The kids truly wanted to see your garden and play here. It was hard for us to say no to them. I hope you do not mind." ℯℯ𝘭.𝘤ℴ𝘮

The speaker was an esper, and he even tried to wrap his arm around Noah’s shoulder as he apologised.

He was clearly interested in Noah and, as seen from his actions, not sorry at all that his young sister was being used like this.

Noah did not dislike the villagers, but he could not bring himself to like them either after they pulled such bullshit. So he quietly pulled himself out of that half-embrace before he turned around to flash a smile at the speaker.

"Please, don’t worry. I understand that this is how kids are. So I have no intention of blaming them."

But he did have every intention of holding their guardian accountable.

He did not say these words, but the meaning behind his silence was clear. It even made the air turn awkward, causing the man in front of him to turn his head away.

"Ah! Kids will be kids. I don’t agree, Mr Noah?"

The female esper asked, pressing herself against his arm while shooting a look of superiority towards her partner.

It seemed like she was under the false impression that Noah was straight or liked her more.

For Noah, things like gender did not matter. But more than that, he had no desire to pursue a relationship at this point in his life. He felt like he would just waste his own time as well as the time of the person he was with.

His heart was exhausted after everything he had gone through anyway.

"Well, the kids are indeed innocent. I just wish they would not be used by others and retain their innocence. It feels nice to see them like this."

The subtle meaning behind his words did not go unnoticed by the two espers, and they flinched. And yet, they remained glued to his side like they had no intention of letting go.

It made Noah sigh, and he decided not to dwell on it much. Instead, he went inside and started preparing snacks for the kids. They would be pretty exhausted after they were done playing.

He carefully prepared the food to make sure it did not get contaminated with anything that could cause harm, and by the time he came out, the kids were exhausted.

Noah handed them the food and watched with tired eyes as the kids ate their fill.

Just looking at it made him feel fulfilled, and it healed a fracture that was left inside his heart by being alone.

It also reminded him of Bluey and how he had fed the small bird like he was his own child and—

’My thoughts are spiraling out of control. I need to get myself together.’

Noah patted his face to bring himself back. He was aware that the others were looking at him with concerned expressions, but he pretended he did not notice their stares as he took his bowl and started eating again.

He mostly ignored any offer made by the espers after that. They even hinted that they should stay the night since it had started getting dangerous around these parts these days.

But Noah stubbornly sent them back by pretending he did not understand what they were saying and just laughing at most of their words, making light of the situation.

He was well aware of the risky situation and that it had been getting dangerous around these parts recently. But he was confident he could handle himself.

Noah did come out to say his farewell to the kids and their guardians, and as he watched them leave, a melancholic look passed through his eyes.

He was about to enter his house when a sudden sense of ’wrongness’ threatened to choke him. It made him look at the sky above the village, but there was nothing different about it.

It looked just like any ordinary sky, so Noah was not sure what he was feeling...

Except...

"Shit! Is a large-scale dungeon about to open here soon? I need to get out of here. But what about the villagers—"

He bit his lip, not wanting to get involved with the fate of the humans he was living near.

Based on the location of the dungeon, it was possible that he wouldn’t get affected by the large-scale dungeon. And even if he did, he had artefacts to last in there until it was cleared by the authorities.

However, he still felt uneasy. Something about the situation was warning him that he wouldn’t be able to get away if he got involved.

And Noah had always followed his instincts and decided to stay out of this situation... for now.

But he had a feeling he wouldn’t be able to stay out of this for long...

The time of reunion was drawing closer, but still, Noah would try to run away as far and as fast as he could. There was no benefit in getting caught after trying so hard to escape.