Chapter 62: Guiding Session.
Ethan’s heart skipped.
Then the next moment Drey’s eyes flashed an unmistakable, terrifying red causing Ethan’s entire body to go cold.
It seemed something had gone horribly wrong.
Ethan immediately realized what was happening.
If Drey was filtering the energy and sending the purified portion into him, then the corrupted energy had to be staying behind inside Drey.
His eyes widened as the pieces finally clicked together.
Shit.
Ethan immediately severed the connection and pulled his hands away from Drey.
The change was instant.
The spiritual energy surrounding them seemed to settle, and the invisible pressure that had been gathering around their bodies gradually weakened. Ethan stared at the space around them before looking back at Drey, his expression turning grim.
So that was it.
For some reason, guiding in this particular area was acting like a magnet, drawing the spiritual energy leaking from the unstable rift toward them. Instead of simply calming Drey’s spiritual energy, the Guiding process had caused Drey to absorb the spiritual energy in the area.
He didn’t know why but he knew if he wanted to guide Drey properly, he needed to get away from the rift. Then figure out later on how to continue the spiritual energy channeling in a safe way.
Ethan’s gaze moved over Drey’s condition, and his stomach sank.
Drey looked considerably worse than he had before the guiding session began. His breathing was heavier, his face had lost some of its color, and the faint red still lingering in his eyes made it painfully obvious that whatever they had just done had gone terribly wrong.
This was the definition of a guiding session gone wrong.
Drey slowly raised his head, his voice coming out rough and hoarse. "What’s wrong?" He stared at Ethan suspiciously before his brows furrowed. "Were you trying to kill me?"
Ethan scoffed, though he was still staring at Drey’s condition with unease. "Although killing you has crossed my mind a few times, I wouldn’t want to stain my hands with your blood." As he said that, he quickly looked away before he accidentally revealed too much.
He couldn’t tell Drey or anyone what he had discovered. So he simply settled for the safest explanation. "For some reason, this area is making it difficult for me to guide you properly. The spiritual energy around the rift is interfering with the process."
Drey glanced toward the unstable rift before looking back at him. His expression remained strained, but he seemed to understand.
"Then should we move farther away from here?" he asked, his voice still weak. "Somewhere away from the others?"
Before Ethan could answer, Zane immediately spoke.
"No."
Both of them turned toward him.
Zane had remained quiet throughout the entire session, his gaze moving between Ethan and Drey as though he had been observing every single detail without missing anything.
Drey gave him a tired look. "What? Are you scared I’ll hurt him?" A weak chuckle escaped him despite his condition. "Relax. I don’t bite."
Zane simply gave him a flat look. "As if."
He didn’t bother wasting another word on Drey and instead walked toward Ethan, his attention settling on him.
Before either of them could say anything else, a voice suddenly rang across the area.
"Attention! Rift- Entry will begin in ten minutes!"
Ethan’s brows furrowed.
Ten minutes?
That meant he had exactly ten minutes to figure out how to guide Drey properly, stabilize him, and somehow understand how he was supposed to find out how to handle this strange discovery before they entered the Rift.
"Fine," Ethan finally said. "Zane can follow us. He can keep watch for any roaming monsters while we move away from the rift. We don’t have time to argue about th
The three of them moved away from the main deployment area, heading toward a more isolated section where the influence of the rift was considerably weaker. The farther they went, the lighter the oppressive spiritual pressure became, until Ethan could barely sense the dense energy that had surrounded them earlier.
Once they had settled in a safe enough location, Ethan crouched in front of Drey and reached for his hand.
This time, he was careful.
The moment their palms met, Ethan felt the familiar connection form between them.
And thankfully, the Guiding process began normally.
A gentle stream of spiritual energy flowed from Ethan into Drey, moving through his spiritual pathways and gradually calming the violent fluctuations that had been tormenting his body.
Drey’s breath caught the moment Ethan’s soft palm touched his, a strange sensation spread through his body, and he had to swallow hard to steady himself.
For some reason, the simple warmth of Ethan’s hand felt strangely distracting.
He had been in pain for days.
It wasn’t always unbearable, but the constant pressure inside his spiritual core had become exhausting, like a dull ache that never truly disappeared. Every attempt by another Guide had only ended in failure, leaving him with the same unstable spiritual energy and the same lingering pain.
But now...
It was fading, slowly and steadily.
The ache that had settled deep inside his body began to loosen beneath Ethan’s Guiding, and the oppressive pressure surrounding his spiritual core gradually became lighter.
Drey’s fingers unconsciously tightened around Ethan’s hand.
His breathing finally became calmer. For the first time in days, his body felt as though it was finally being allowed to rest.
What exactly did you do to me?
The thought surfaced again.
He had already asked himself that question countless times since the first time Ethan Guided him, but now that he was experiencing it again, the confusion only deepened.
Why Ethan?
Why was Ethan the only one capable of doing this?
And what exactly had changed between them after that first Guiding session?
Drey couldn’t understand it.
All he knew was that the moment Ethan’s spiritual energy entered his body, the resistance he had been experiencing against every other Guide seemed to disappear.
The Guiding continued until the violent fluctuations inside him finally settled.
Ethan slowly opened his eyes.
The first thing he noticed was Zane.
The man was smiling and it wasn’t his usual irritating, playful grin that made Ethan want to punch him, but a genuine smile that reached his eyes and made his entire expression look strangely bright.
Ethan stared at him for a moment. Then his eyes narrowed as he shook his head. "You’re seriously a lunatic. You say one thing and mean another."
Zane raised an eyebrow innocently.
"First, you practically refused to let me guide Drey, and now you’re standing there smiling like you’re happy about it. Make up your mind."
Ethan had no idea just how wrong he was.
Zane had hated the idea of Ethan guiding Drey more than anything.
He had hated watching Ethan touch Drey, hated the thought of them being connected again, and hated every second he had spent standing there while it happened.
But he had endured it because he needed confirmation.
He needed to know whether what happened during Drey’s previous rampage had truly been cleansed by Ethan.
And now he knew.
There was no coincidence or misunderstanding.
Ethan really was the Guide who had managed to cure Drey’s corruption.
And more importantly...
Zane had finally found the person who might be able to save him and it was surprisingly his pretty boy roommate.
The realization was enough to make the smile on his face impossible to suppress.
Drey, meanwhile, withdrew his hand and flexed his fingers slightly before looking at Ethan.
"Thanks."
Ethan nodded as response and the three of them quickly made their way back toward the main deployment area, arriving just as the commander stepped forward and raised his voice.
"The time to enter the Rift has come!"
The casual conversations among the Sentinels stopped as everyone turned toward the massive unstable rift looming ahead.
"Capable Sentinels, collect your assigned weapons and proceed toward the rift entrance with your personal and team Guides."