Does Spring Come Even for a Dying Esper

“C-Captain, stop…”

“Shh, it’s alright.”

Lucas soothed Iberis with a gentle voice while focusing his mind. Although he had sensed it when he examined Iberis’s body earlier, now that he was actually guiding, he fully realized Iberis’s condition.

Normally, ability users absorb and release mana from outside their bodies as naturally as breathing. This is how they take in external mana and circulate internal mana. However, when contamination levels and damage rates become severe, mana circulation becomes impaired, as in Iberis’s case.

Lucas carefully untangled Iberis’s mana, which was bunched up like a tangled skein of thread, using his own mana. As he cleared the blocked mana circuits, he could see the silvery energy that had been stagnant in one place begin to flow smoothly. It was Iberis’s mana.

“Ah…”

What is this? Iberis, experiencing this sensation for the first time in his life, didn’t know how to react and twitched his waist. Every time Lucas’s mana moved inside his body, he felt something crumbling away.

“Haa…”

As a faint heat rose in his body, which had never warmed up no matter what he did, a groan escaped through his closed lips. A strange tickling sensation arose as he felt the ice chunks that had been lodged throughout his body melting away.

Soon, the cold that had constantly tormented him disappeared, and an unfamiliar warmth enveloped his entire body. It felt as if he were buried in a soft, fluffy blanket or plunged into a bathtub full of hot water.

“…Hnn.”

Unable to bear the unfamiliar sensation, Iberis unconsciously gripped Lucas’s coat tightly. In response, a large hand gently cupped his sweaty nape and pulled him closer.

“Breathe slowly.”

“Hah, huu.”

Iberis panted like someone who had just emerged from underwater, rubbing his forehead against the firm shoulder. His posture had almost collapsed, leaving him half-embraced by Lucas.

Maybe we should stop here for today.

Lucas considered, taking in every detail of Iberis’s appearance without missing anything. Although he wanted to continue, judging by Iberis’s current reaction, it seemed best to stop here.

Having made a quick decision, Lucas released Iberis’s hand. As if still unsatisfied, silvery mana flowed from Iberis’s fingertips and clung to Lucas. Lucas’s eyes narrowed at the sudden chill he felt. He lightly turned his hand and helped Iberis sit comfortably in the chair.

“Are you alright?”

“Haa…”

A languid moan escaped from lips that had always only exhaled icy breaths. Iberis, trembling slightly from the aftereffects of the guiding, slowly steadied his breathing. He couldn’t remember the last time he had felt naturally warm without the help of heating devices or medication.

Now he looks more like a living person.

Lucas slightly raised the corner of his mouth as he saw color returning to Iberis’s cheeks, which had been as pale as a corpse. He was pleased to see that Iberis’s complexion had improved significantly. He wanted to measure the internal mana contamination levels again to confirm the effects of the guiding, but he held back, finding it awkward to bring it up. Instead, he asked Iberis for his thoughts.

“How was my guiding?”

“…I’m not sure.”

Iberis, sitting with a somewhat dazed expression, hesitantly spoke in response to Lucas’s question.

“What do you mean, you’re not sure?”

Lucas’s expression hardened as he received an answer different from what he had expected. He was a bit taken aback by Iberis’s reaction, which was both similar to and different from other espers he had guided.

“Did you not like my guiding? Was there anything uncomfortable?”

“It’s not that. It’s just… how should I put it? The guiding itself was very good. It’s just that this is my first experience like this…”

Iberis kept moving his lips, seemingly unsure how to express himself. He took a deep breath and carefully chose his words.

Is it because he’s an S-class guide? Or because of the high matching rate?

Whatever the reason, Lucas’s guiding was on a completely different level from anything Iberis had experienced before. Previously, guiding had only slightly raised his body temperature or made him feel a bit refreshed. But this sensation of mana residue clinging to his body being washed away, along with the comforting warmth as if embraced by a long-lost loved one, was entirely new.

Only now did Iberis understand the feelings of espers who became obsessed with their guides. If he was this disoriented after just a few minutes of guiding, anyone would become addicted to such an ecstatic feeling if they experienced it regularly.

Gulp.

Iberis swallowed hard and looked at Lucas with eyes that seemed both expectant and fearful. Although everything still felt surreal, he was pleased to have found temporary relief from the relentless cold that had tormented him.

“Is guiding usually like this?”

“I’m sorry, but I don’t quite understand what you mean.”

“No, well, um, it’s just that it’s quite different from the guiding I’ve received until now…”

“Ah, I see.”

Lucas nodded, making a sound of understanding. Iberis’s current reaction was similar to that of a newly awakened esper receiving guiding for the first time. It was somewhat ridiculous for an esper who had been active in the field for 10 years to sound like a complete novice about guiding, but considering his background, it was understandable.

To put it simply, Iberis was like someone who had been living on tasteless instant food and combat rations for years, suddenly tasting a gourmet steak and dessert made by a famous chef and being amazed.

A low matching rate means that the guiding effect is correspondingly lower. For Iberis, whose highest matching rate with a guide had never exceeded 50%, this guiding session with Lucas could be considered his first proper experience.

“Could you tell me exactly what it felt like?”

“Well, I’m not very good with words, so it’s hard to express clearly… Roughly, it felt like my body was warming up and both the cold and pain disappeared? Something like that.”

“Then it seems the guiding worked properly. You’re an ice ability user, Major, and your side effects mainly manifest as frostbite. Guiding manifests as what the esper needs most.”

“Is that so?”

“Yes. It might feel strange at first, but as you get used to it through frequent sessions, you’ll gradually come to enjoy the guiding.”

“Enjoy…”

Iberis slightly wrinkled his eyes, seeming uncomfortable with Lucas’s statement.

“I’m just stating facts. Many espers deliberately overuse their abilities just to receive guiding.”

“I’m not that kind of person.”

“Of course, you shouldn’t be. You’re a patient, Major. Your body won’t heal immediately just because we did guiding today. It’s only given you temporary relief. You’ll need to consistently combine treatment and guiding for a very long time. You should also refrain from using your ability for a while.”

Lucas spoke firmly, his expression serious. While Iberis seemed to have lost some of his distrust in guiding, Lucas still couldn’t see any will to treat his illness. So Lucas deliberately warned him in a stronger tone.

“Refrain from using my ability? This is a battlefield. We might have to deploy tonight.”

“I was actually going to talk to you about that. Well, it’s too late today, so we should discuss this tomorrow. It seems like it will be a long conversation.”

Lucas checked the clock on the wall and stood up, indicating he wanted to end the conversation. Then he extended his hand towards Iberis.

“What?”

Iberis looked alternately at the hand in front of him and Lucas, as if to say, “What’s this?”

“You look tired, so I thought you might need support. Let’s return to the quarters together.”

“What… I can get up on my own.”

Frowning, Iberis stood up abruptly instead of taking Lucas’s hand. However, the moment he stood, he lost his balance and staggered.

“Oh dear.”

Lucas supported the wobbling Iberis as if he had expected this. How would he know, having never properly received guiding before? He looked down at his surprised superior, whose eyes had widened like a startled rabbit, and explained.

“It’s common to feel weak right after receiving guiding. Please don’t misunderstand, I’m not disrespecting you.”

“I, I see. Thank you for helping me not fall.”

Embarrassed, Iberis cleared his throat softly. Feeling his face flush, he put strength into his toes and straightened his body. Then he paused, thinking, “My face is hot?” Usually, he couldn’t sense well when his cheeks heated up, so he wondered if this too was an effect of the guiding.

“It’s nothing. I should have explained better from the start. I apologize.”

Lucas looked curiously at Iberis, who thanked him readily without throwing a tantrum or showing displeasure. The espers he knew were fundamentally arrogant, especially those of higher rank or position. Many superiors would shift blame to subordinates or get angry even when they were at fault.

But Iberis was different. Although it was difficult to make a definitive assessment of someone he had known for less than a day, Lucas, having met countless people as a military doctor and guide, thought that Iberis seemed to have a gentler personality for an esper.