By the time Ambrose got to Devon, he was already passed out in the crater his fall made. Fire leaked out of his body like a broken fuel tank, burning the sand rapidly around him.
"Devon!" Ambrose yelled. "Shit, he's unconscious. And his power is—what the heck is happening to him?"
[Devon's EP: 5805/10000]
[WARNING: Subject's aether energy reserves are leaking at an alarming rate. Permanent guide link needed.]
Ambrose held his breath as he stared down at the unconscious Esper. The heat from his flames was hot enough to make him want to back away.
But he couldn't.
Not when the energy in Devon practically called for him.
Hundreds of meters away, the queen centipede fought hard against the others. With Devon down, the team had lost its main firepower.
Adding a berserk Devon to that mix would be catastrophic.
"So this is it," Ambrose exhaled through his teeth. "How do I even 'guide' all… that?"
[Host needs to maintain physical contact with the subject enough to feel his Aether energy and receive synchronised neural transmissions from the subject.]
'Huh?'
[It'll begin working once you start hearing his thoughts, dingus.]
'As resourceful as ever, Aura.' Ambrose rolled his eyes, squatting to Devon's level.
To his surprise, instead of getting burned, Devon's flames seemed to lessen when he drew closer. Like it recognised him.
Once he was on his knees, Ambrose grabbed Devon's shoulders. He placed the Esper on his lap as the flames leaking out of him almost completely died out.
Enough to let him work.
His eyes settled on the features of the S-rank. From his fiery red hair. To those lashes that batted slowly in his unconscious state. And then… his lips.
His mouth went dry for reasons that had nothing to do with the heat.
Wait a minute… What are these thoughts?! Why was he thinking of kissing the jackass?
[Devon's EP: 5300/10000]
The fuck?
How was it depleting so fast?
Driven by fear and nervousness, Ambrose pulled Devon closer to his chest. He pressed his forehead against his, closing his eyes and exhaling once.
Silence.
The explosions, sonic screams and enraged screeches from the battle fell until they were nothing but a faint ringing in his ears. Devon's heartbeat became audible.
Slow. Following a steady rhythm he subconsciously kept track of.
Thud.
Thud.
Thud.
Without thinking, one of Ambrose's hands traced down Devon's chest. Gripping the fabric of his Hunter suit. Something shifted inside him.
His core.
[Guiding process activated.]
Suddenly, the ringing in his ears grew sharper. Unbearable.
Ambrose gnashed his teeth as thoughts that weren't his flooded his mind:
'My team needs me.'
'He needs me—fuck, why am I always thinking of him?'
'He can't be my permanent Guide. It doesn't make any sense. He's a C-rank… he'll hurt himself trying to Guide me.'
For a heartbeat, that last thought from Devon, though fleeting, settled in Ambrose's head. His cheeks heated, a feeling he couldn't name swelling in his stomach.
The jerk actually… cared about him?
[I'll advise the host to concentrate now.] Aura interrupted his sappy emotions. [Some of the subject's more intense emotions will be coming in shortly. So—]
No sooner had the system given him that warning than a sharp pain struck Ambrose's head. He nearly let go of Devon but held strong as several confusing emotions flowed through him.
Anger. So much anger.
Then there was fear.
Overwhelming sadness. Loneliness.
Tears split down Ambrose's cheeks as his fingers shook.
It was too much.
[Subject's EP stabilising.]
[Hold—Guiding process almost completed.]
An eternity must've passed while those notifications rang in his head.
He felt like he was drowning. Under all of Devon's aether energy.
If this holds on for too long he'd definitely faint.
Fortunately, just when he thought he was about to pass out—
[Permanent Link Established!]
[Core Synchronization successful.]
[SIDEMISSIONCOMPLETED.]
Ambrose's eyes jolted open, a forced gasp escaping his mouth as he backed up. He fell back into the hot sand, panting as a few system screens flickered in front of him.
Devon stirred on his lap, groaning softly. But Ambrose ignored that as he skimmed through the translucent blue screens.
[Devon'sEP: 8000/10000.]
[Host'sHP: 395/500.]
[Host'sEP: 400/1000.]
Well, God damn.
He was beginning to wonder if he had an EP meter as well. The fact that guiding Devon not only depleted six hundred EP but also further reduced his HP made him shudder.
If that permanent link had taken longer to create, he would've been the next one to go unconscious.
Probably permanently.
"Ugh." Devon's groans became louder as he sat up, rubbing his eyes. "W–What the hell happened?"
He blinked once. Then twice, realising he was in the crater of his making. And also… sitting in between Guide Ambrose's legs?!
All Ambrose offered him was a weak smile as he backed away from him. "Why are you here? W–What happened—?"
"You were seconds away from going berserk, asshole." Ambrose couldn't stop the snark or insult that followed, rolling his eyes. Because why the heck was the guy shifting away like he stepped on shit?
Forcing a smile, Ambrose went on. "I guided your aether energy before things could get out of hand. And also created a permanent link." He winked. "You're welcome."
Devon gawked at him for several seconds.
This couldn't be real, right?
A C-rank guide. Permanently linked with him after a successful guiding. And… lived?!
Before either of them could say anything else, cheerful shouts and praises resounded through the desert. Ambrose lifted his head as they magnified.
"We did it!"
"The fucker is dead!"
"We actually killed the Queen!"
'Well, I'll be…' Ambrose sighed mentally. 'They were able to kill that thing without Devon after all.'
He lowered his eyes back to Devon.
The guy still seemed like he was about to have a full-on existential crisis. And honestly, after that hell of a guiding experience… Ambrose didn't blame him.
Staggering a bit, Ambrose managed to get on his feet, dusting himself. He accessed Devon for a couple of seconds before hesitantly doing something he wouldn't have imagined last night.
Stretching a hand to him.
"Come on," he nodded once. "Let's get out of this ditch. You can sulk when we're out of this damn hell scape."
Devon's brows knit, his eyes scanning from his head to his toes. Not only had the C-rank guided him and survived—but he also seemed mostly okay.
He had so many questions he didn't even know where to start.
But Ambrose was right.
They need to get out of here before the team gets worried.
Reluctantly, Devon grabbed Ambrose's hand, surprised at how soothing that felt.
Outside the crater, the queen's body convulsed once.
Then stilled.
Her massive frame collapsed against the crumbling sand hill, black exoskeleton cracking open with a sickening split. Dark blood seeped into the desert floor, hissing as residual fire and frost devoured what remained of her.
For a heartbeat, no one moved.
Then—
The ground trembled.
A low hum spread across the desert, vibrating through bone and marrow. The blazing red sun flickered. Cracks of white light split across the sky like fractures in glass.
"…Do you see that?" someone whispered.
The sand beneath their feet began dissolving into particles of shimmering aether. The air grew thin, and unstable.
Viktor's eyes narrowed after meeting Devon's from across the battlefield. "The… the dungeon is closing!"