By Zephyria Hugo nodded in response to his obviously bewildered look. His gaze was directed at only one person, so there could be no confusion. His gesture made the adjutants standing nearby step aside to the left and right as if parting the sea.
Because of that, Leonardo Blaine, who was standing blankly in the crowd, was left alone in that place with Flynn.
He knew that Hugo was calling him, but he couldn’t readily step into the crowd. He had told him to sit apart because the attention might be burdensome. He wondered what his intention was in suddenly calling him.
But before he could show any reluctance, Flynn suddenly removed the chair and cleared the way. Leonardo Blaine looked back with a bewildered look at the hand that pushed his back, saying, “Go quickly.”
“Hey, hey, don’t push me―.”
In the meantime, Hugo approached Leonardo Blaine, who was hesitating. Hugo grabbed his wandering hand and pulled him slightly toward him.
Leonardo Blaine, who turned his head with a surprised look, took a step, pushed by Flynn and led by Hugo. The face of the Legion Commander, who greeted him with a gentle smile under the clear sky, was so refreshing and clear that he couldn’t dare to turn his eyes away.
“Let’s go.”
Hugo put his arm around Leonardo Blaine’s shoulder, who was looking dazed, and gestured to the other side with his chin. That action was so different from the person who had been frowning a while ago that Leonardo Blaine could only look up at him with a blank gaze.
His legs moved diligently as he was led, and the two headed to the head table, crossing through the commanders who had stepped aside.
Thinking that everyone’s eyes would be focused on this side in the silence, Leonardo Blaine wanted to shake off Hugo’s hand right away. But before he could put it into action, he arrived in front of an empty chair. Hugo stood Leonardo Blaine appropriately between Bruno and himself.
Soon, he pulled in the shoulder he was holding and looked back at the commanders, solemnly declaring.
“I don’t think we can leave out Leonardo Blaine’s contribution when discussing the process of how we were able to stand safely in this place today.”
Hugo rubbed Leonardo Blaine’s arm in a cast without hurting him. It was a gesture as if to relieve his tension, but Leonardo Blaine’s upper body became even stiffer.
He tried to hide his embarrassment and slowly met several pairs of eyes. He knew what Agrizendro meant by putting him here, so it was quite uncomfortable to face them.
Just as he was thinking that he wanted to run away from this place for no reason, Hugo opened his mouth again.
“Although he participated in the subjugation as an outsider, Leonardo Blaine was responsible for the safety of the members as much as our commanders in every moment. When he encountered the demon beast, he was the first to rush at them, and he always helped from the side so that the subjugation could proceed smoothly with his outstanding abilities.”
Dellua, who barely restrained herself from clapping her hands alone, clasped her hands together tightly. She recalled the deep valley gap where she had walked with Leonardo Blaine in the early part of the subjugation.
In the blood clots of the demon beasts that were falling in droves, the figure of the man who shone brilliantly was drawn before her eyes. From that time until the moment when the core that appeared in the plains was driven out, the back of the person who was trying to protect someone flashed by like a panorama.
“‘Plan 5,’ which most people thought was impossible, became the decisive key to protecting our lives and territory. If you are a commander in this place, you will clearly remember who came up with that idea first.”
Hugo said that and looked down at Leonardo Blaine. Leonardo Blaine avoided his gaze because he was embarrassed.
Bruno, who was watching the two, recalled the eccentric guy who had pointed his finger during the meeting, saying that he would blow up the volcano earlier. At the time, it was an absurdly bizarre remark, so he also recalled his appearance of persuading the Supreme Commander, saying that plan 5 was not possible until the last moment.
Bruno, who was reminiscing about that time, inadvertently let out a small laugh. It was because he couldn’t believe that the impossible had succeeded.
Leonardo Blaine was standing in the center of everyone, but he couldn’t have missed the sound of laughter coming from right next to him. He glanced at Bruno and put strength in his shoulder, but Hugo continued in a serious voice as if he didn’t care.
“He appeared at the moment of despair when the most courage was needed, and fought with his life on the front line, enduring pain that seemed to cut off his breath. Our members, who were moved by him, stood up from the threshold of death, holding their swords with their broken limbs.”
Hugo’s solemn eyes asked the commanders.
“If the person who made that possible is not a hero, then who on earth is a hero?”
A quiet silence flowed between the hundred or so commanders. Leonardo Blaine didn’t know what they wanted to say. He just hated the suffocating atmosphere, so he unconsciously fidgeted with his fingertips and took a half step back.
But Hugo held his back and arms tightly so that he couldn’t escape. He knew that Leonardo Blaine was uncomfortable in this place, but he was thinking of officially nailing it down at least once.
Hugo gestured to Bruno, who was next to him, and took his hand off Leonardo Blaine’s shoulder. Soon, Bruno, who had grasped his intention, first went down from the head table and stood next to the commanders.
Hugo gestured to Leonardo Blaine, who was confused about how the situation was going, as if to tell him to stay here. At the same time, he gave a gentle smile and bowed lightly.
“So please, I hope you will accept our greetings.”
Hugo, who spoke in a formal manner unlike usual, moved three or four steps away from Leonardo Blaine. He turned his body in that state and stood with his back to the commanders, so Leonardo Blaine’s view unfolded with the sight of really everyone, including Hugo, looking only at him.
He was not used to his appearance standing in the middle of that gaze, so Leonardo Blaine couldn’t make that brazen expression today. Hugo had a satisfied smile on his face as he looked at him. But the smile was quickly withdrawn.
Instead, he lowered his voice as much as possible and firmly instructed the subordinates behind him.
“Everyone, attention.”
The sound of combat boots covered in dirt moving according to the Supreme Commander’s voice became an echo and filled the plaza.
They were not ordinary members, but each and every one of them standing there were all commanders who commanded at least dozens of people. The sight of such people moving in an orderly manner following the voice of a single person was quite a spectacle from the perspective of the onlookers.
Just as Leonardo Blaine was immersed in such impressions, Hugo, who had been putting his hands behind his back alone, ordered in a low voice.
“To the national hero, salute.”
Leonardo Blaine’s eyes widened greatly. It was an honorific he had forgotten for a while.
In that instant, the right arms of the commanders moved in an orderly manner. The arms that made a straight line with the fingertips on the eyebrows drew a knife angle.
At the same time, their voices rising from the solar plexus all shouted one slogan at once.
“Glory to Laina Rogia―!”
Perhaps because the sky was clear, the echo like a shout spread particularly far. As if he had been electrocuted by a subtle current, a tingling goosebump flowed along his spine.
It was a slogan of respect that he had hated and resented since when, but today, strangely, it was not so offensive. Rather, his head was dizzy as if he had been hit. Leonardo Blaine stared blankly at Hugo, who was saluting him at the head, for about 5 seconds.
Ironically, the first thought that came to mind was this.
‘Am I allowed to receive this?’
Soon after, Meterion Kleinder’s appearance of reluctantly raising his right arm from the left came into view. Based on him, when he turned around the plaza clockwise, everyone in this place was giving him their respect.
Leonardo Blaine, who suppressed his overwhelming emotions, clenched and unfolded his right hand and pondered how to act. Should he put his fist on his left chest in the way he always did, or should he put his hand on the end of his eyebrow and receive the salute like them?
But even while he was worrying about such useless things, his brow, where all sorts of emotions crossed, lost control and slowly crumpled. Leonardo Blaine was not aware that his lips, which he had unconsciously bitten, had turned red as if they were bruised.
It would be a lie if he said that everything he had done so far was being rewarded, but at least for now, it felt as if the resentment accumulated inside him was subsiding for a moment.
Surprisingly, even the pain in his left arm, which had been lingering all along, was not felt at this moment. It seemed that the strange feeling that spread achingly in one corner of his chest was making his sensory organs strange.
Leonardo Blaine lowered his gaze for a moment, then trimmed his lips that were about to twist. Then, he raised his head again and was about to respond to those who were facing him when Hugo, who had lowered his arm, strode over and grabbed Leonardo Blaine’s right hand.
He smiled with his slenderly curved eyes and bowed, lightly kissing the back of Leonardo Blaine’s hand.
It wasn’t a deep kiss like last time. But a hot sensation that made his fingertips twitch once again touched and fell thickly.
His eyes, which smiled refreshingly, whispered to Leonardo Blaine.
“Glory to your future.”