By Zephyria Hugo, who had been trying to persuade him until now, looked at him with a rather cold gaze at Leonardo’s still chilly attitude.
“Leonardo Blaine, I am in a position to take responsibility. I must thoroughly verify and prepare for all possible scenarios. I apologize for testing you. I have clearly learned through this incident that you worry about the safety of other members during combat and try to prevent them from getting injured.”
“……”
“However, the reason I did this was not because I didn’t trust you, but because I haven’t spent enough time with you to fully understand you. I needed to be sure how your control ability would work in urgent moments, what you would prioritize, and how you would act.”
Leonardo glared at Hugo and didn’t say anything. Hugo took a step towards him and spoke again in a slightly softened voice.
“I believe that you, who understood my responsibility, will also understand my judgment.”
Leonardo stared at his blue eyes with distorted eyes. His eyes seemed colder than ever today.
Then he briefly turned his gaze to look at his members standing far away and looking at this place. Some had cold expressions, and some who had rolled around in the water with him had embarrassed faces when their eyes met.
But they had something in common. It was as if this situation would be resolved if only he kept his mouth shut, if only he agreed, as if he was the source of the problem.
Feeling that, Leonardo looked again at Hugo, who was still looking down at him with cold eyes. His gaze seemed to be trying to make him understand, but also seemed to be telling him not to be emotional, making him feel like his whole body was being crushed.
Leonardo also knew well how heavy the responsibility he had was. That’s why Leonardo was even more angry. He also worried about whether it was okay to jump into the water until that moment to make his responsibility not heavy, and again doubted his own abilities and judgment.
The heavy responsibility he had was to protect the safety of the members behind him. But it felt like his own safety wasn’t in that protection.
Even though he fought with them, he was still a person of interest and a target to be watched. Because the powerful magic he possessed would be a dangerous weapon that could hurt someone to them.
Leonardo hated this situation so much, but he hated himself madly because he couldn’t perfectly control it, so he couldn’t refute it or blame anyone.
Leonardo looked at the blue eyes of the man in front of him, letting out a distorted laugh mixed with self-deprecating emotions and resentment towards others.
Then he muttered the responsibility he had to bear.
“Responsibility.”
The word that leaked from between his lips was heavier than anything else.
Soon, Leonardo’s brow furrowed more than ever, and blood was visible from his bitten lip.
“Fuck.”
* * *
The formation waited for a while until the treatment of the injured was finished. Hugo was talking about the route with Squad Leader 8, and Leonardo was sitting far away alone, just staring into the distance.
The members were very curious about what the commander had said to him that made him, who seemed like he was about to run wild at any moment, become quiet.
But that didn’t mean his spirit had subsided. The atmosphere was so fierce that everyone was deliberately avoiding approaching him. Flynn, who had been constantly worrying, plucked up his courage and cautiously approached him alone.
For Flynn, Hugo was like the sky, so Leonardo’s actions of disrespecting such a commander were wrong, but more than that, Flynn hoped that Leonardo wouldn’t hate the commander’s choice and misunderstand his heart. So he approached him and tentatively spoke to him.
“Blaine, the commander isn’t thinking badly of you. He’s worried about your position because you might have trouble later if something happens…”
“……”
“He keeps telling me to take care of you….”
“Your commander is lucky.”
Leonardo interrupted Flynn’s words and said coldly.
“He’s just standing still, but the whole world is stepping up to defend him.”
“……”
Flynn couldn’t say anything to that. Leonardo glanced at such Flynn, then turned his head again and continued speaking quietly with a cold face.
“You don’t have to worry about me anymore.”
“Ah….”
Flynn, who didn’t know what to do at Leonardo’s words that seemed to be drawing a line, clasped his hands tightly and fiddled with the hem of his clothes, then lowered his head and barely opened his mouth after hesitating.
“I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said it in a way that asked for help.”
Leonardo, who had been ignoring his words, shifted his gaze again and stared at Flynn silently. He could see the tendons and bones bulging on the back of his hand, probably because he was putting a lot of strength into his hands. Leonardo sighed deeply.
It was as if that foolish guy was blaming himself for this situation for no reason when it wasn’t his fault at all.
But he didn’t have the generosity or the capacity to understand his heart right now. Just as Leonardo was feeling frustration and was about to say something to him, a voice calling them was heard from afar.
“Flynn, Leonardo. We’re starting.”
Hugo said to them and gestured lightly with his chin. All the members were packing their things and waiting.
Leonardo buried the words he was about to say and got up from where he was sitting without saying anything. Then he passed by Flynn’s side and nudged the hand he was holding together as if telling him to relax.
“Let’s go.”
Flynn flinched at the sensation he felt on his hand. And he turned around and stared at Leonardo’s back as he walked away silently.
Originally, his hand was so warm that you could feel the warmth even if you didn’t touch it and were just close to it, but the hand he had touched just now was so cold that he couldn’t believe it was his.
* * *
The formation moved quickly and immediately set foot in the active volcano zone.
Unlike the dormant volcano zone they had passed through until now, this was a place where even basic things like breathing and walking were difficult for the members. The smell of sulfur stung the nose, and steam rose from the ground due to the heat of the magma.
Next to the path, geysers were scattered here and there, boiling like hot spring water, and occasionally the hot water spurted out like a fountain and scattered around. In such an environment, all the members wore protective gear and even put up barriers and walked with difficulty, but Leonardo didn’t need to do that.
The boiling water spurted out and fell, and the water stream poured over Leonardo, but the water evaporated in an instant due to his heat before it could even wet him. Thanks to that, the surroundings were full of hazy steam, and he seemed to be walking leisurely in the steam where you couldn’t see an inch ahead.
Leonardo, who had been walking quietly at the very back of the formation like that, decided to be calm now.
‘No, when you think about it, I was the stupid one.’
Why did I bother to build up a sense of bond and trust on my own and feel betrayed on my own when all I had to do was achieve the goal of subjugation? At this rate, I’m not even in a position to call Flynn foolish, am I? To Agrizendro, my existence is just a burden that is somewhat helpful, nothing more and nothing less.
Leonardo looked at Hugo’s back in the center of the formation with a face that looked colder because he had no expression.
It wasn’t that he didn’t understand the responsibility he was talking about. He knew it, so he just ended it there and kept his mouth shut.
He also knew that he was thinking about his position. If someone got hurt due to his unstable control, there could be problems with his release even if he successfully completed the subjugation. It seemed like he was worried about such things. And that was exactly why this situation was terrible.
He didn’t trust his abilities, but he made the best choice from his point of view. In the end, he had to suppress his anger on his own. He made a judgment as the commander-in-chief of the Council, and everyone in the Council’s central branch here was on his side.
Leonardo took his eyes off his back and turned his head to the left. At the end of the peak in the distance, a crimson magma stream was flowing slowly and sluggishly without anyone knowing.
Leonardo knew too well now. No matter how much you think about others’ positions and understand everything, only you think about your own position. You have to take care of your own body and mind.
He told him that he was living a tiring life, but he himself was still doing that tiring thing. So, rather than finding the reason why he had no choice but to do that from his point of view, Leonardo decided to take care of his emotions more.
In the meantime, Leonardo suddenly wondered if he would have tested his own members while they were rolling around in the water like that even if their magic was unstable.
Of course, he didn’t want to be protected by him at all. He wasn’t weak enough to need his protection. But the problem was that he felt like he was being rolled around just because he was a ‘strong outsider’.
But then suddenly, the words he had said flashed through his mind.
‘I haven’t spent enough time with you.’
“……”
When you think about it, it was absurd for him to expect more from them since he had only seen them for a short time, unlike his colleagues who had gone through life and death together.
‘Fuck…, it’s tiring.’
Leonardo bit his lip and decided not to think anymore. Getting angry, understanding, and getting angry again. The repetition of these emotions made his head throb as if it was about to break.
Feeling the fatigue overwhelming him, Leonardo closed his eyes and swept back his hair with a dry wash. And when he raised his head again, Hugo Agrizendro was looking back at him.
When Leonardo, who had met his eyes, glared at him with fierce eyes, Hugo stared at him for a moment and then turned his gaze back to the front.
Leonardo soon furrowed his brow and let out a deep sigh. And he decided to be cold-hearted again.
Now that that person will take responsibility for the safety of the members here, it’s none of my business who gets hurt. He decided to just focus on hunting demon beasts thoroughly and finish the subjugation as quickly as possible and part ways with these people.