Chapter 24: Ch 24: Accidentally Bonding

"Ugh, my head..."

Alan complained as he rubbed his head. The darkness that surrounded him felt familiar, and his body protested when he tried to move it.

These were all signs that he had lost himself to his madness and corruption, causing him to black out.

The last thing Alan recalled was being in the dungeon and smelling a sweet scent coming from Noah. After that...what had happened? He could not recall properly. But he could tell that he had been guided.

And the guiding had been so strong that it left an impression on his unconscious mind.

He wanted to be guided by that person again. He wanted to feel those cool waves washing over him and subduing him slowly.

There had been no one until now who had been able to keep up with Alan’s need for guidance, but now he was sure he had finally found a guide who could. And no matter how much self-control Alan had, he was still an esper.

He wanted to claim that guide at all costs.

"Student Alan, are you awake? Blink your eyes if you can hear me."

It was hard for Alan to open his eyes, and the harsh light hurt. But he did so anyway and faced the doctor. The doctor was leaning over him, and his abilities washed over Alan, making him want to recoil.

The doctor instantly let him go once he noticed the look of disgust in his eyes and instead let out a sigh of relief.

"It is nice to see that your vitals are fine and your body is also showing signs of a strong recovery. How are you feeling mentally?"

Alan tried to speak, but his throat was too dry. As for his feelings...?

He felt like an abandoned puppy who had just lost its master. His instincts were telling him that he needed to find his owner and return to their side. It was almost as if his instincts had imprinted on someone.

But Alan did not say these words out loud, and the doctor sighed before helping Alan up without a word.

"You should be fine now. I will let the others in now. You can send them out if it becomes too much for you to handle."

The doctor assured Alan, and he nodded. The headache was trying to consume him whole when the door opened and a familiar scent reached his nose.

He looked up, only to see Daniel and Noah entering the room.

Noah looked concerned, and Daniel looked like he would rather be anywhere else but here. It was clear that one of them was the person Alan had imprinted upon, and his first choice was Daniel.

He had nothing against Noah, but the reason he wanted to be bound to Daniel was because he did not want to hurt his partner.

Noah was a B-class guide, and he would not be able to handle Alan’s powers. Alan did not even want him to try because he did not want Noah to break.

So it had to be Daniel...even if that thought made him recoil in disgust.

He was not even aware that his eyes kept drifting toward Noah until the guide reached out to grab his hand.

"Hey, are you alright? The doctor said that you should be fine, but if you are in pain, then tell me. I will try to help you out."

Noah promised while squeezing his hand, and the familiar coolness surrounded Alan.

He could tell that he was not being guided yet, but he had a feeling he could draw out a lot of guiding if he wanted to. He instinctively tightened his grip around Noah’s hand, refusing to let go.

"...Is everything alright?"

He was not aware that he had lost himself in his thoughts and missed everything Noah had said to him. None of it mattered as long as he could keep holding that hand forever and be guided.

Alan was not even aware he was growling until he felt Daniel grabbing Noah and pulling him behind his back.

"I think we’ve visited long enough. We need to get going right now."

Alan almost lunged at Noah to grab him back, but Daniel was faster and took his guide out of the room.

The esper only managed to calm himself down once the pair was gone, and he looked down at his hand with a blank expression.

"Oh, I think I almost lost control and hurt someone! This is not good. I need to control myself better."

The good thing was that Alan had found the one he had bonded with. It was Noah, and his instincts were still calling for the guide.

The bad part was that Noah was a B-class guide, and he would not be able to handle Alan without help. But Alan’s instincts would refuse to let anyone else help as long as Noah was there.

"What a messy situation...but I don’t hate it."

And that was the unfortunate truth. Alan’s instincts had decided what they needed him to do, and he was not one to back down easily.

Noah had no idea what he was in for, and Alan was not going to give him a warning either. Since Noah had somehow managed to make them bond, he might as well deal with the consequences.

...

"-Tsk, that bastard is trying to drag you down as well. Don’t give him much attention...! Noah, are you listening to me?"

Daniel asked, snapping his fingers in front of Noah’s face to bring him back to reality. Noah slowly blinked as he came back.

He was still dazed after what had happened in Alan’s hospital room.

Noah had felt his energy being drawn out as soon as he touched Alan’s hand. It was clear that the esper had been reverse guiding him without even being aware of it.

But the worst part was that it had not hurt. Instead, Noah’s instincts had wanted to give in and allow the esper to take as much as he needed.

This all led to only one conclusion—Noah had somehow ended up bonded with Alan without meaning to.

’This is the worst possible outcome. I cannot believe this happened! Does this mean my mission has already failed?’

The system had not said anything, so Noah was not sure. But he had a feeling the worst had already happened.