By Zephyria ‘…Was it too sudden?’
Hugo, who had been wearing a gentle smile, slowly removed the smile from his lips. His cautious gaze reached the side of Leonardo’s face, which had completely turned away.
He was a man who openly declared that he was weak to him, so he thought he wouldn’t even blink at kissing his hand. He thought that even if he was embarrassed, he would quickly retort boldly… but Hugo became more cautious because of his unexpectedly stiff reaction.
‘He might not be used to it.’
Leonardo was once rumored to be an exception among his ranks, frequently entering and leaving the Imperial Palace. Moreover, he had heard that he was in a position to stand shoulder to shoulder with military officers at major events, so he must know the meaning of the respect he had given him. However, he would have been more on the giving side than the receiving side, so this situation itself might feel unfamiliar to him.
Sure enough, the eyelashes visible through the fallen hair were trembling finely. That alone conveyed that he was confused.
It seemed that his actions had surprised him a lot, so Hugo felt as if he had committed a faux pas for no reason. It was his fault for not being able to suppress his impulse because that humility of attributing all his achievements to everyone was so beautiful.
Because of that, Hugo, who had been silent for a while, slowly reached out so as not to startle the other man.
“Leo.”
The moment he called his name in a gentle voice, Leonardo’s gaze turned to the outside of the tent instead of Hugo. Hugo also turned his eyes in that direction at the gradually approaching footsteps. Dark blue shadows were rushing in.
“Supreme Commander.”
About half a dozen commanders with operation department armbands approached the large tent where the two were. Hugo, retracting his hand that had been extended to Leonardo, glanced at his watch and asked.
“What’s going on?”
His voice was full of discomfort, as if the timing was bad. Perhaps because of that, the commanders naturally stopped at the entrance.
Gray Scott, the deputy commander of the 12th Battalion at the head, bowed his head when he saw Leonardo with the Legion Commander. Leonardo was already worried that his face would show the events of just now, so he instinctively flinched, even though he was puzzled by Gray’s actions.
But Gray Scott, who quickly turned his eyes away, politely answered Hugo’s question.
“I apologize for the late hour. The dam managers with the decision-making power regarding the waterway passage have just arrived here. I was going to tell you tomorrow morning, but I thought it would be better to talk in advance before the final conference.”
Hugo, who was listening, suddenly got up from his seat. Leonardo turned to Hugo at the sound of the chair dragging, which was a bit rough.
“You’ve come at a good time. Let’s go talk.”
“Ah, yes. This way―.”
“Wait, before that.”
Hugo put the chair he had been sitting on back into the table and looked down at Leonardo next to him. Then, he put his hand on the table, brought his face close, and said to Leonardo as if urging him.
“I’ll be right back, so don’t go anywhere. Got it?”
Leonardo sensed that it was an urgent matter from Hugo’s appearance, which seemed uncharacteristically hasty.
“…Okay.”
“If you’re cold or want to go in first, talk to the members in front of you. They’ll take care of it for me.”
“I understand.”
He nodded obediently, meaning to tell him to come back soon, but Hugo stared at Leonardo intently for about 3 seconds even after hearing the answer. Then, he once again adjusted the handkerchief tied around Leonardo’s neck. After tucking the fallen blonde hair behind his ear, he straightened his bent waist.
“I’ll be back before it gets too late.”
Afterwards, he gestured to the commanders who were waiting for him to come. The commanders, exchanging glances, split to the sides and cleared the way.
Hugo’s expression, naturally mixed in with them, seemed quite serious, unlike before.
“Did Sir Hares delegate the decision-making power?”
“No, it’s not a delegation, but… he said that there was a safety issue, so he needed the advice of experts. They are currently waiting with the managers.”
“Then the battalion commanders from the Central Branch are also there….”
Watching their receding figures, Leonardo blinked blankly. Now he was the only one who couldn’t keep up with the progress of his actions of touching him freely in front of others, and his head was dizzy.
Leonardo idly fiddled with his ear, where Hugo’s last touch remained, as the commanders, including Hugo, disappeared into the darkness.
“…….”
Eventually, he lifted the mug without meaning and brought it to his mouth again. But the lukewarm tea that had cooled in the meantime only briefly moistened his lips.
Leonardo, covering the surface of the mug with both hands, radiated heat to warm the drink. Perhaps because the temperature had risen, he could feel the blood flow scratching his skin from the inside. The unfamiliar sensation still left on the back of his hand gave him a tingling sensation.
“Haa….”
Leonardo rested his elbows on the table, bowed his head, and rubbed his eyes with his hands. He tried to relieve the tension in his stiff neck and shoulders. To be honest, he still hadn’t escaped from the situation a little while ago.
As he was sighing deeply and blocking his vision, he felt someone’s presence peeking in front of the tent. Before he could open his eyes and turn in that direction, the two members at the entrance stopped the uninvited guest.
“Uh, wait a minute. You can’t come in. Can’t you see?”
The uninvited guest who had been forcibly stopped was also a member wearing the Council’s combat uniform. But the sentries pointed to the side where Leonardo was and tried to send their colleague back without exception.
“I heard that there’s battalion’s shared luggage inside. I’ll just take it out quickly.”
“No one can enter right now because of the Legion Commander’s orders. Come back later.”
Leonardo Blaine, who had been watching only the silhouette that was barely visible, was newly surprised by the unexpectedly firm voices of the guards.
He thought they would be lax if he wasn’t around. Although it was due to orders, he didn’t feel bad because their definite actions made him feel like the space he was in was being protected.
“But I heard that our Battalion Commander gave the direct order….”
“Hey, is the Battalion Commander more important than the Legion Commander to you?”
“Hey, hey, stop it. He said it’s the Battalion Commander’s order…. Which unit are you from? We’ll look it up for you.”
“Ah, thank you. 3rd Battalion, Central Division. I heard that if you go inside and immediately to the right, you’ll see a dark green cover on a backpack.”
“……”
“…I’m sorry, but I don’t think we can do that.”
“…Yes?”
“You know about the relationship between those two, right?”
A member who had been speaking kindly lowered his voice and whispered, saying that they would be in big trouble if it reached their ears. Leonardo, realizing that they were conscious of him, tapped his toes and listened.
‘It seems the bad blood between those two is famous.’
Come to think of it, they fought so fiercely during meetings that it would be stranger if people didn’t know. As he listened to the regretful complaints, Leonardo looked around and found a large piece of luggage in the corner with the words ‘3rd’ written on a dark green cover.
Leonardo got up from his seat without much hesitation. Soon after, he picked up the backpack and approached the entrance.
“Still… isn’t there anything you can do? Our Platoon Leader told us to bring it no matter what, since it’s the Battalion Commander’s order.”
“We’re telling you we can’t because of the Legion Commander’s order, right?”
“Looking for this?”
The three members who had been gathered turned around at the sudden voice. Leonardo, with the light of the tent behind him, was just walking outside.
“Since I came out, it doesn’t matter, right? Take it.”
The two members who had been standing guard blinked and looked at each other. Their eyes seemed to say, ‘What should we do?’ but in the meantime, the member from the 3rd Battalion, who had been bickering, hesitantly approached Leonardo in a hurry.
“Ah, thank you. Thank you so much.”
Perhaps because he was a much lower rank than the two in front of him, he bowed more politely than necessary. So, Leonardo, who was in a relatively bright place, couldn’t see his face properly until the moment he handed over the backpack.
Hearing the words of gratitude, he thought it was a good thing he handed it over. Since he had suddenly taken over the tent because he was begging to be outside, it was right that no one else should be harmed because of it.
Feeling inwardly proud, Leonardo raised the corners of his lips. However, the moment the member raised his head with an awkwardly smiling face, Leonardo’s relaxed expression turned sharply cold.
“Thanks to you, I’m alive. Then… I’ll be on my way―.”
“Hey, you.”
A chillingly low voice grabbed the member who was about to leave after saying his greetings. At the same time, Leonardo, who had grabbed his shoulder and forearm tightly, used his strength to lift the awkwardly bent member’s upper body and made him look straight at him.
“Ye, yes?”
The member looked at Leonardo with wide eyes and a very nervous expression at the sudden situation. Leonardo, who also widened his eyes and became serious, stared intently at the green and blue eyes of Felix Montero.
“You….”
The red lips that had been twitching stopped. This guy was definitely the face Nero had disguised himself as.
However, the face of the other person, who was very flustered because he didn’t know why the other was doing this, was an expression that Nero’s acting could not produce.
‘No. It’s not Nero.’
Leonardo gave strength to the hand gripping his forearm, but when the member’s expression distorted in pain, he slowly released the strength. At the same time, the words ‘military surveillance network’ in the newspaper article he had seen before coming out flickered before his eyes.
“……”
He, who had thought he would at least see his face, was perhaps more naive than Nero. A emptiness that was incomparable to Hugo’s absence covered him.
Without having to analyze the situation one by one, Leonardo could tell.
‘He’s gone.’
The absence of the family who had always been by his side in moments of crisis made his empty heart ache.