Levi kicked their table over to its side and ducked behind it with Noah in his bosom.
The eruption coming from only two tables behind theirs reached their position within a moment.
Trey’s shield had not finished forming before it was brutally shattered with a resounding crack, knocking him off his feet to the ground.
Abruptly, all noises were drowned out by cracking of the concrete, the sizzling of water and hissing of steam. And then, a moment later, a hair-raising shriek of agony came from the center of the eruption, which was immediately followed by many others. Some high-pitched screeches of horror and panic, others more guttural sounds of inhumane suffering.
The previously quiet restaurant devolved into madness. People closer to the center of the eruption rolled on the ground writhing and screeching like beasts, while people that were far enough fled the restaurant in terror. The clamor of their footsteps could even be felt through the vibration of the ground as if a stampede.
Even the workers of the restaurant mixed within the crowd, tripping over each other to leave first. Only the restaurant manager was attempting to call the emergency number on his communicator while he fled, but his trembling fingers kept pressing the wrong buttons.
Trey, whose mental power was suffering from recoil due to his shield breaking, attempted to get up to hide behind the table, but the ground spun underneath him. With his mental power in chaos, he kept tumbling back onto the ground left and right as if drunk. In any other situation, the sight would have been downright comical, but in the current one, every one of his clumsy tumbles made Noah’s heart leap in his throat with worry.
Levi grit his teeth in indignant frustration as he used his power to push Trey behind their table. Internally, he was feeling rather miserable. Who else had to save the life of his own love rival?! To even do something so disadvantageous to himself… Ah, what he would do just to keep his darling safe and happy…
○| ̄|_
Yet this pig whose entire purpose of existence was to keep his baby safe, couldn’t even do that!!
(ノಥ益ಥ)ノ ┻━┻
“Blackie, what’s happening?!” Hiding behind a table, smothered in Levi’s chest, Noah couldn’t see the situation at all. The glimpses he’d managed to steal provided him with no useful information; the steam and smoke spreading through the air made it difficult to distinguish anything.
“It’s a Fluxer! The middle-aged white-collar worker that was sitting behind you is actually an S-rank Fluxer! He was fine one moment, and the next he suddenly went berserk!” Blackie, for once in his life, helpfully explained. “Poor guy. When his power went out of control, the first thing he vaporized was the water he was drinking. The steam scalded his lips and oral cavity and that really made him lose his shit, so the next thing – boom, he vaporized pretty much everything in his vicinity.”
Noah flinched, “Well, let’s look at the bright side… at least he didn’t vaporize himself.”
Blackie snorted, “…he can’t vaporize himself any more than you can soothe yourself.”
“Oh. Well… at least he didn’t vaporize the water he’d already drunk?”
“Yeah, good thing that one finely steamed stomach wasn’t on the menu…”
“…Blackie …I realize that black humor fits in well with your name… and personality… but there is such a thing as being too black!” QAQ
(≖_≖) “Is that a veiled insult where you tell me that I shouldn’t be myself, Black?”
“…you are overthinking it.”
“Riiiiight. Anyway, you guys were lucky, Trey’s shield did break but it managed to stop the majority of shit that came your way, otherwise, you’d be rolling on the ground with some of your limbs burned or downright vaporized like them” –Blackie mentally motioned towards the direction on the other side of the Fluxer.
Noah closed his eyes and deeply felt all the mental powers around him that were in great chaos.
On his left side, there was Trey who was suffering from a backlash and needed to be soothed ASAP, otherwise, he wouldn’t be able to form a shield to protect them.
On his right side, there was the great chaotic mess of a Fluxer, vaporizing the insides of the restaurant.
And then there were many people rolling on the floor, screeching in agony with some of them going into shock while others had already lost consciousness.
Which one should he soothe first??
As if reading his mind, Levi answered his unspoken question, “Soothe Trey.”
Instinctively sensing the dark thoughts going through Levi’s head, Noah urgently grabbed his upper arm, “He is a victim too! If possible, don’t cause him serious harm! I can handle it; I just need time!”
Levi momentarily stiffened. Did his kitten think he was the kind of person that would kill people at will?
…alright …so he had indeed intended to use a heavy hand. But this was legitimate self-defense! And most importantly, how could he not use a heavy hand when his kitten’s life was at risk!?
Levi’s hands unconsciously clenched into fists. He wanted to protect his baby with all and any means… but he didn’t wish his darling to fear or loathe him!
Levi’s lips pressed tightly together until they turned white. He identified the direction where there were no people and then mobilized his power to swat the Fluxer there.
The man flew like a kite with its string cut, hitting the floor hard. He attempted to crawl up, but Levi’s power pressed him back into the ground. The man screeched like a wild beast and instinctively retaliated by vaporizing everything around himself.
Everything he touched turned either into a glistening liquid that pooled in the crevices of the floor like car paint or turned into multicolored vapor looking as magical as cinematic special effects.
The way solid matter changed into fluid and smoke carried with it a sort of morbid beauty. Fascinating, yet too horrifying to be considered art.
Noah forced himself to tear his gaze away and focus all of his attention to quickly soothing Trey back into shape.
Yet, abruptly, his keen Soother senses, caught someone with perfectly orderly mental power, rushing into the restaurant instead out of it.
It was another high ranked Soother!
‘Oh, no!’ A shudder went through Noah’s body, and as if to confirm his sneaking suspicion, the newcomer set his sights on the rampaging Fluxer and activated reverse soothing.
No!! If he knocked the Fluxer out, his mind would collapse and everyone on the scene would be goners!
Levi’s arms suddenly tightened around Noah, his instinct screaming like never before. Noah’s pupil’s dilated, and in a split-second decision, he dished out his own mental attack towards the approaching Soother.
The man’s eyes widened and then rolled to the back of his head as he slumped to the ground.
Noah immediately returned to soothing Trey, not even bothering to wipe off the cold sweat dripping down his forehead.
Trey felt as if a refreshing stream of cool water was entering his parched head, clearing away all the pain and confusion. His dazed eyes snapped to clarity.
“Doughnut shield! Cage and protect the Fluxer!” Before Noah could even finish voicing the command, Trey had already jumped back to his feet and formed a doughnut shield around the Fluxer, cutting off Levi’s hold on the man.
A piercing stab bit into Levi’s heart. Why a double-sided shield? Did his baby think that he was such a maniac that the Fluxer needed to be protected from HIM? Did his darling not trust him at all?
Could it be that his baby… feared his power?
His precious treasure, as if to confirm his fears, wiggled out of his arms as if to distance himself from Levi.
Levi stood there dazed, with his arms still in a hugging position, feeling as if the world was collapsing around him.
Levi’s eyes burned holes in Noah’s back, completely forgetting the dangerous situation they were in, for in Levi’s mind, there was no situation direr than his darling disliking him, fearing him, staying at a distance.Did his baby notice the reluctance with which he had saved Trey? To be so coldblooded towards someone who was on their side… wouldn’t he have looked cruel and heartless to his kitten?? No one would want to keep a rabid dog by their side that might bite them at any moment with no provocation!And then, even his murderous aura had reared its ugly head. Putting the final nail on his coffin. His carefully craft
“Brother!” Noah turned his desperate gaze towards Levi, “Your power… can it target a region instead of a specific target?”Levi nodded urgently. Right now, even if his kitten asked whether he was retarded, he’d nod his head excitedly for a single smile. Anything to have his precious treasure looking at him with undivided attention, looking at him as if he, Levi, was the center of his world.Levi searched Noah’s gaze, but the other’s eyes were still as clear and pure as before. As if nothing had changed. Within, he found no fear, disgust, reservation, nor coldness. The only thing he saw within those larg
After several more moments of being smothered inside Levi’s arms, Noah was starting to realize that if he didn’t initiate their separation, his silly brother-in-law wouldn’t let go. So, he very patiently tried coaxing the other, “I’m fine now, brother…” – So, you can let me go.The other, naturally, didn’t catch his implied meaning.Noah tried again, “We came out of it whole all thanks to your quick reaction! How did you know something was amiss?”It was at this moment tha
After confirming that the trio hadn’t received any injuries, they were escorted to the station for further proceedings.If in the previous incident, Cordia Aris was just a passerby, then this time, that was no longer the case. This matter had directly escalated from an accident to an attack on the leadership of the city.To make the matter even worse, not only was their young city lord implicated, but the issue also involved a high personage considered as a foreign diplomat - the vice-city lord of Astarea, Astar Levi.With his invol
‘This… escalated quickly…’The department head could only let out an internal sigh of exasperation. Knowing Astar Levi’s famously bad temper, the department head had half-expected this to happen. But half of him had still hoped for the loner wolf to show some leniency due to the upcoming marriage.After saying his piece, Levi proceeded to pull his paws off of Noah’s head, of course, as always, very reluctantly. And then he turned his attention to the light interface of his communicator, swiftly opening windows and pressing buttons.The department head who was just prepari
“…father?” Noah asked bewilderedly.“…Is he angry?” His father’s constipated voice could finally be heard coming from the other side.“Who?” Noah stupidly asked.“Your brother-in-law.”Still very baffled, Noah responded, “I suppose so? He nearly died, so he, justifiably, isn't in the best of moods. Why do you ask?”
The department head sat stiffly in his seat while the food boxes were brought in and placed in front of Levi. Who then opened them one by one, and set the vast majority of them in front of Noah.Levi peeked at Noah from the corner of his eyes to check whether the other liked the food he had served. And then, upon getting a positive response, right there, in front of department chief’s disbelieving eyes, the ferocious wolf miraculously transformed into a big fluffy doggie looking at his owner. As he adoringly gazed at the teen, the only thing missing to complete the picture was a wagging tail.Everyone else present felt as if they had been person
“I’ve just finished the routine questioning of the witnesses that were still on the scene,” Fynn spoke in between bites of a crispy fried duck. “The victims, as well as the Fluxer, are currently unavailable for questioning due to their ongoing treatment. And it will take some time for us to track down and question the witnesses that fled the restaurant.”Fynn paused to chew and swallow, “We still don’t know what’s causing the power rampages, but there are now two people who came down with the same symptoms. This is clearly not a coincidence but a series of related cases. The cause and motive are unclear, but for the time being, we are treating it as an act of terrorism and attempted murder.”