The X Guide

It was not long before Devion returned. Vegetable soup was not that hard to prepare for him and was not time-consuming. Just like Ayen wanted, he cooked enough for them to share.

They only used Ayen’s bed to set up a small table. Ayen did not have an appetite, but he managed to eat almost half of it, which was impressive considering his condition.

As he said, Devion’s vegetable soup seemed to have become his comfort food, and he completely relaxed after eating it.

The two espers only put the dishes aside for now.

"Do you have any discomfort?" Khal inquired. "Mikhael will come to check on you in a bit."

Ayen shook his head. He felt weak, but the dizziness had subsided significantly. Seeing that his complexion truly got better, the two espers were finally relieved.

Since Ayen was already awake and did not have an intention to fall asleep for a while, they began to discuss something. Ayen was also heavily involved in this.

"Remember about your dream. We already received information about it." Ayen turned to Khal, listening intently as the other continued with a solemn expression. "The situation seems dire."

"Those madmen..." Devion clicked his tongue, his gaze becoming sharp. "They deserved the worst."

To dare experiment and use curses... They were a threat that needed to be eliminated.

Ayen frowned and knew that the situation was far too serious than he had imagined. It seemed his decision to develop an ’antidote’ or at least know the nature of his uniqueness was correct.

Despite the situation becoming chaotic, the two could only focus on Ayen’s recovery.

"Don’t think too much. We’ll look into it," Khal assured Ayen.

Though Ayen always seemed indifferent to world affairs, he was changing, and his views might also be different from what they were a few months ago.

Ayen turned to Khal and then to Devion and knew what they were worried about. He changed, but Ayen’s views... Not much. Still, he was not indifferent to whether it affected their future.

The future he wanted was not destruction.

"When I said I won’t risk my life for you..." Ayen stared at them. "I lied the second time."

The two stared back at him.

"But, I want it to be clear. I won’t just risk my life for anyone. What I’m doing... is not for the world. It’s for you and everyone I care for."

Ayen’s eyes filled with the purest sincerity, as it had always been. If this truly got good results and somehow managed to save a few more people than intended, then that was also fate.

"So, don’t worry." Ayen closed his eyes with a smile. "I won’t magically be the world’s savior," his tone playful, uncharacteristic of him.

Ayen did not hear a response from them before their chuckles were heard, albeit late. He felt their kisses in his hand, making his lips curve.

It seemed this sleep would be more comfortable than the first two times. And it was indeed so.

However, how lovely the scene here was, it was the complete opposite of what was happening on the other side of the world. The yellow zone where the epidemic-like curse started had completely fallen.

Those residents who were hiding, if there was no rescue, it was only a matter of time before they were infected or died from starvation.

Other infected were already leaving the zone as if under someone’s order. It was a bit fortunate that the spread would not be too fast, as the city zones were designed to be far apart from each other.

Still, their threat could not be underestimated at all. The infected, with their calm expression and leisurely pace, began their journey. It should be impossible in a world infested with monsters, even if they were abnormal, to travel without any espers around.

The next scenario was as expected. The monsters salivated at the sight of the humans gathering; they howled excitedly and ran towards the humans. Most were lower-level monsters, with some higher-level ones.

Yet, what happened next was truly bizarre. The monsters approach en masse, and the humans should be scrambling to escape... And yet, the humans only looked at them with calm expressions.

The lower-level monsters without any intelligence did not think too much of it, but the few higher-level ones could not help but pause. They wondered what was happening, as the situation was unlike what they were used to.

The less intelligent ones had already pounced on the humans in front. There were no screams or cries of despair. Instead, the eerie, calm gaze only stared as their companions got devoured by the monsters.

A few seconds passed, then a bizarre scene occurred. The corner of the spectator’s lips rose slightly. Their blank stare made even the monsters that did not pounce on the humans step back.

The monsters suddenly all collapsed. They began to convulse as black smoke rose from them. All the monsters that ate or even bit a human experienced the same thing.

A minute passed, and slowly... The monster’s eyes opened, and their black pupils shone. They stood up, their gazes focused on the humans, but they did not pounce mindlessly as before. Instead, their behavior seemed to become similar to the eerie humans.

If anyone was watching right now, they would surely be terrified. This meant this unknown disease could even infect monsters!

The monsters watching from afar were given a fright; those B-class and above ranks had already fled. But the others remained. Their eyes were only hesitating because of the bizarre scene, but they did not have the intelligence to discern what had happened.

Soon, the first monsters that attacked the humans walked alongside them. Unlike humans, the monster’s ferocity remained, but it was not directed at their eerie human companions.

As they passed by the monsters wanting to take a bite of the crowd, the monsters blankly stared at them and directly pounced on them.

The crowd did not even stop and continued walking calmly, letting the monsters fight against their own kind. The same scene occurred... at each stop until they finally reached a new zone.