Chapter 69: Wait for me! Damn it!

A bad feeling crept over Lucien. Before he could respond to Jake, Zephyr spoke up.

"We can. Just run."

Jake blinked, momentarily confused.

Then he understood what ’run’ meant in Zephyr’s dictionary. His eyebrow twitched.

Zephyr actually picked Lucien up!

Lucien, who clearly hadn’t expected this, was startled when he found himself being princess-carried as if he weighed nothing.

He instinctively struggled, mortified.

"What are you doing?!"

Zephyr simply looked down at him.

"Don’t move. This way, you can rest and recover your guiding energy on the way."

Lucien froze.

What kind of logic was that?!

"You can’t even see, and you want to princess-carry me all the way there?"

"Put me down!"

Zephyr tightened his hold on Lucien.

His expression turned pitiful.

"Cien... believe me, okay?"

Lucien immediately stopped struggling.

For a second, he didn’t know how to react.

His ears flushed with frustration.

On one hand, he wanted nothing more than to vanish from sheer embarrassment. As a grown man, being carried by someone who couldn’t even see was just too humiliating!

On the other hand, Lucien really couldn’t bring himself to ignore the pitiful look on the handsome face so close to him. And if he refused now, wouldn’t Zephyr think that he, too, didn’t trust him like everyone else?

That thought made Lucien hesitate.

He had to get on Zephyr’s good side!

Well, even if Zephyr was only using him to test his abilities, Lucien had to endure it.

In the end, Lucien gritted his teeth, cursing inwardly as he reluctantly compromised.

"Ugh... Fine. But definitely not like this! Put me down first. I’ll get on your back instead!"

Zephyr sighed. Still, he didn’t push too far and put Lucien down before bending over.

At least this was better than nothing.

He was satisfied.

Lucien looked like a dead fish as he trudged over to Zephyr and climbed onto his back.

It’s just...

Why was Zephyr’s heart beating so fast earlier? Was Zephyr feeling nervous too?

He was still lost in thought when Zephyr suddenly stood, hoisting him onto his back.

Zephyr’s hands reached down, firmly gripping his thighs to keep him secure.

Lucien instinctively clung to his neck. But suddenly, his breath hitched as he froze in place. Had he imagined it, or had Zephyr really just deliberately squeezed his butt?!

Jake stared at them for a moment, speechless. He could only ask.

"...Are you sure this is okay?"

Lucien didn’t respond.

He was far too embarrassed. He simply buried his face against Zephyr’s shoulder, refusing to say a word.

Zephyr didn’t answer either.

Jake rubbed his forehead in frustration before holding out a hand toward Zephyr.

"Then how about you hold my hand? It’ll make it easier for you to follow me."

Zephyr immediately shook his head.

"No need. Just lead the way."

Jake could only sigh and turn around.

"Fine..."

Still, he couldn’t help glancing back. How was a blind man supposed to follow him through all the debris and rubble around them? Zephyr was even carrying Lucien!

Jake hesitated before deciding to move slowly at first. If anything happened, he would stop immediately.

But the moment he started running, he heard steady footsteps behind him.

Jake glanced back.

To his disbelief, Zephyr was actually keeping up with him effortlessly!

Despite being unable to see, he ran at the same speed as Jake, weaving through the debris and rubble without stumbling once.

Jake’s eyes widened.

...How?

He didn’t voice the question. Instead, on impulse, he suddenly increased his speed.

As an A-rank Esper, he was by no means slow. Yet Zephyr still caught up with him!

And so effortlessly, at that!

"Haha..."

A wry laugh escaped Jake.

This guy... How the hell was he B-rank?!

He was clearly an S-rank!!

Even Lucien looked surprised.

Although he said he trusted Zephyr, after climbing onto his back, Lucien had actually mentally prepared himself for them to fall at any moment. Yet somehow, they didn’t!

Wow... A spark of excitement flashed through his eyes. It seemed that although Zephyr didn’t know his true rank, he had already begun to instinctively tap into the strength and abilities hidden within him!

Lucien would not need to worry about finding ways to teach him anymore!

This was amazing!

Also, as a Guide, Lucien’s stamina was nowhere near that of the Espers. Before, whenever they had to run around, he was usually the first one to get tired. And, of course, no Esper would waste their energy carrying a Guide around when they needed every bit of their strength to fight monsters.

But now...

Lucien glanced at Zephyr.

If he got tired in the future, couldn’t he just ask Zephyr to carry him?

The thought had barely crossed his mind before Lucien was already imagining all the situations in which he could get Zephyr to carry him around.

Lucien suddenly stiffened.

...Wait.

Wasn’t he the same person who had been complaining about it just moments ago?!

How did he go from refusing to be carried to wanting it already?!

Haha.

He was done for.

After spending so much time around the protagonist and his teammates, their way of thinking was starting to rub off on him!

Zephyr had no idea about the mental crisis happening inside Lucien’s head. He simply continued carrying him. His psychokinesis skill had become even more proficient after he had used it so much. Now, the strain on him was much lower compared to before.

Moreover, he no longer needed to envelop Jake in his mana and follow his every step.

He could now easily sense everything around him without much difficulty.

’I have a feeling I’ve only scratched the surface of what this skill can do. It’s an S-rank skill, after all.’

A faint smile curled across his lips.

He tightened his hold on Lucien. The next second, he suddenly picked up the pace, startling Lucien as he rushed toward the source of the tremor, effortlessly weaving through the fallen buildings and rubble.

This time, he didn’t stop to help when they encountered Espers fighting along the way.

He remembered Lucien had told him to manage and use his mana more carefully.

Jake was shocked.

"Wait for me! Damn it!"

For a moment, he almost felt like he was the blind one between the three of them!