[BL]The Hero and his Party Won't Let Me Go

"A-Are we all going to die?"

That single question caused despair to spread across the building. People were getting more and more disheartened as monsters rushed toward them.

Some of the people gathered tried to fight these monsters, but their esper powers were not strong enough to push the monsters back. Their lack of control was also causing harm to the building, and there was a real chance of it collapsing as well.

At such a time, what these people needed was a leader. And the leader role was taken up by Secretary Ann.

"Everyone, calm down and come closer to me. I am a member of the Survivor’s Guild, and I will help you all get out of here."

Hope filled people’s eyes as they looked at Secretary Ann, and they came closer to him. But their awe turned into awkward despair once they realized an important fact.

"Y-You are not an esper...? How can we trust you to keep us all safe?"

Someone questioned in a scared voice, and his words caused others to panic as well.

Secretary Ann was taken aback by this, but he was not discouraged. Instead of looking grim, his face was filled with warmth as he looked at the kids around him.

"I might not be an esper, but I am an A-class guide. If you stay near me, then I can make sure you don’t overexert yourselves while using your powers."

That eased some of the tension in the young espers’ frames.

The main reason these espers were afraid was not because of the monsters themselves, but because there was a chance they could lose control and cause massive damage to the building and each other.

But that had just been put to rest by Secretary Ann’s words.

The only one who did not look relieved was Caelis. He narrowed his eyes at the secretary, not liking how he was holding on to Rin as if he were someone special to him.

Before Caelis could do anything about it, a monster rushed toward them, and his body reflexively froze the monster before it could get too close.

Everyone watched this in awe, but Secretary Ann quickly grabbed everyone’s attention once more.

"We need to hurry up and get out of here. Everyone, grab the nearest person and let’s get going."

Caelis’s hands itched to grab Rin, but he knew that now was not the time to be selfish.

The Rin in front of him felt different from the Rin he knew. If he was not careful, then they might clash here and cause hardship for both of them.

’It would be better for me to approach him once this is all over and have a talk.’

With that thought in mind, Caelis followed Secretary Ann, Rin, and the others out while covering their backs.

He did not even bother calling his father or someone else to help because he knew that he could handle this situation on his own.

But just because he did not call others did not mean the information did not get out. And it did not take long for Shuu to hear what was happening either.

__________

Shuu was in a weird mood. For the first time in a long while, he had no idea what he should be doing.

He usually spent his breaks with Rin, but his son was currently at the academy. And Shuu did not want to cultivate a habit of being on his phone all the time, so he was forcing himself not to grab it and check it.

That left him with the option to take a small walk, and that was what Shuu decided to do.

It was a nice evening outside. The sun was setting, and the world felt at peace. The only thing that could make this situation better was some company he preferred-

"S-Secretary Shuu, please wait for me. I-I need to have a small talk with you."

Kris caught up to Shuu, and the easy mood around him instantly shattered.

He felt a little annoyed, but he still smiled and turned to look back at the esper running toward him.

"Sir Kris, can I help you with anything?"

Shuu asked with a smile on his face, and Kris’s smile froze instead. The man suddenly looked flustered, and he shook his hands, almost unsure if he should say what he needed to say.

Shuu waited for the taller man to say something, but once he was sure that the esper was not going to speak, he turned around to keep walking.

"W-Wait-! I... please listen to me-"

Shuu’s indifference made Kris react, and he reached out to grab Shuu’s hand without meaning to. It startled Shuu enough for him to turn around and clutch his chest with a startled expression.

His expression clearly asked Kris what he was doing, and Kris looked embarrassed at his sudden action.

But it did not take long for his face to turn determined, and he hardened his expression.

"Actually, there was something I needed to talk to you about. Do you think you can make some time for me?"

Kris asked without missing a beat. He looked ready to pour his heart out to Shuu.

The situation made Shuu a little uncomfortable, but he still wanted to give Kris the time to hear him out. After all, that was what he would have wanted for himself as well.

"Very well. I am willing to listen to what you have to say to me."

Shuu informed the other man, and he saw Kris take a deep breath before opening his mouth.

"Actually, about you-! Why are you hiding that you are a guide... no, that was not what I wanted to ask. I wanted to tell you that I-"

Ringggg

Shuu’s phone buzzed all of a sudden, and a loud ringing alarm alerted him that he had a message. And he was not the only one who had that emergency tone.

Kris had it as well, and he took out his phone, only to turn pale as soon as he read the message.