BMD 298

Knock, knock―

When he opened his eyes in a daze, the room was filled with that person’s scent, and for a brief moment, he had the illusion of being held in that person’s arms.

But he couldn’t feel the moderate weight of the firm arms and the warm body temperature that was only allowed to him. The blanket he hugged like a shrimp was soft, but it didn’t give him as much stability as the touch he remembered.

The light seeping in from under the blackout curtains, which he didn’t know when they had been drawn, was particularly bright. It was a very different scene from the darkness he remembered last.

Leonardo drowsily stared at the room, which had become somewhat familiar overnight, and retraced his memory of when he had crawled into this bed. He had heard that sometimes, when he accumulated extreme fatigue and was on the verge of fainting, his body would find a comfortable place and walk there unconsciously.

He remembered Finder laughing and saying that he might have sleepwalking a few years ago. Leonardo buried half of his face in the soft pillow and slowly closed his eyes.

His whole body felt heavy. He didn’t remember the dream well, but he didn’t feel very good, so he must have had another nightmare.

It was a natural course since he had set foot in Zodiac. Nevertheless, it seemed that he had woken up around here thanks to the scent from the bed….

Knock, knock―

“……?”

Leonardo, who had been wallowing in Hugo’s scent like a slug, opened his eyes wide at the sound of knocking that he had missed in his sleep. Reflexively, he raised his head like a meerkat, and following the sound of knocking, a woman’s voice was heard from outside.

‘Is anyone there?’

This was clearly the Legion Commander’s private room. But he didn’t know how to react because he heard the voice of someone he didn’t know. He looked around and checked the clock on the bedside table. 7 a.m. About 4 hours had passed since he last checked the time.

‘What, when did it get like this?’

Leonardo, who had gathered the remaining spirit on the pillow, shut his mouth tightly as if no one was there and barely raised his body from the lying position.

When he put his feet down under the bed, he noticed slippers neatly placed as if he was told to wear them. They seemed to be too big and would flop around, but he roughly put his feet in them and stepped out of bed.

Knock, knock, knock―

As the impatient knocks continued to urge him, sharp Gold Eyes stared at the door with a wary look. At the same time, he swept back his messy hair and naturally headed for the sofa. He felt a presence and wondered if it was him, but Flynn was slumped on the armrest with his legs crossed, looking like he had been working overtime for two days. He was snoring like a mosquito, so it seemed that he was as tired as he was.

Unlike his unsightly posture, a blanket was neatly covering his upper body. It was definitely in a shape that someone had covered him with. Leonardo recalled the gentle touch he had vaguely felt in his sleep.

‘Did he come and go in the early morning?’

“I came by order of the Legion Commander―.”

At that time, the knocking and the woman’s voice grew louder, as if she already knew that there was someone inside. Leonardo, who was taken aback by the words ‘by order of the Legion Commander’, looked around the empty room and bent down to shake Flynn.

“Hey, wake up.”

Even though he lowered his voice and spoke in a whisper, Flynn quickly opened his eyes as if he had been awake. But the whites of his eyes that he first encountered before his pupils came down were quite scary. However, as soon as they returned to their original position, Leonardo leaned his face in and asked.

“There’s someone outside, they said they came by order of the Legion Commander. Should I open it?”

Flynn was still not fully awake, so he just stared at Leonardo with a dazed face even when he asked. Then, when he heard the voice again from outside, he was startled and jumped up from his seat.

“Ah, yes! I’ll open it right away!”

He didn’t know who it was, but that’s what he was doing. Flynn, who answered to the air, fell down under the sofa as if he had rolled down. He stood up awkwardly, quickly straightened his clothes, and rubbed his rough chin with a flustered expression. Then, he went behind the sofa, stood in front of the door, and groped around the door.

He didn’t know how the lock was, but when he touched the doorknob, the heavy door slowly opened with a click― sound after about 3 seconds. In the hallway that unfolded beyond, more than 10 medical team members were lined up in two rows, waiting.

Leonardo, who didn’t know what was going on, held the head of the sofa and watched them with raised eyebrows.

They came by order of the Legion Commander? Just as he was feeling doubtful, the woman at the very front took a step forward and revealed the reason for her visit.

“We will escort you to the ward for a detailed examination. We ask for your cooperation.”

“Eat all of this and this, and you heard about the examination from the Commander in advance, right? There’s no need to be nervous at all. Just stay still. There may be some discomfort, but we’re not doing anything bad to you, so don’t worry.”

To Leonardo, who had changed into an examination gown similar to a patient’s gown, Flynn brought beef stew that had been simmered thoroughly and mashed potato salad that was only mashed enough to keep the texture alive. In addition, he pushed forward three or four packets of unidentified powdered medicine, emphasizing to him several times that this medicine and examination were not harmful.

Leonardo took a large spoonful of the meat in the stew, which tore along the grain even when pressed with a spoon, and put it in his mouth. It was definitely delicious enough to melt in his mouth, but now even Flynn seemed to be treating him like a child, so he retorted in an unappreciative tone.

“Ah, I get it―. As long as you don’t do things like extracting Magic Power again, I’ll stay still too.”

“…….”

“And what, do you think I’m running wild all the time? I have a sense of what’s going on, too? I know it’s just an examination, so I’m quietly wearing this, aren’t I?”

Leonardo raised the arm holding the spoon high and shook the silver ring that was revealed under the loose examination gown. The ring, which was the perfect size for his wrist, was not for the same purpose as shackles, but it was still a bracelet-shaped restraint that performed a similar function. This was because the medical team had strongly demanded that Magic Power restraints must be worn in order to proceed with the examination.

Hugo wanted Leonardo to undergo the examination without wearing any restraints, but since he had a history of causing a riot in the ward once, it was not easy to even narrow down the examination personnel because the medical staff were afraid. In the end, Flynn had a brief argument with the medical team in place of Hugo, who was absent, and in the process, Leonardo suddenly stepped forward and insisted on wearing the restraints himself.

There were several reasons, but the biggest reason was that he wanted to get rid of the troublesome work quickly, and he was also bothered by the fact that Agrizendro had exercised his veto power against the order of the same family’s Council member because of him.

However, Flynn knew that Leonardo was sensitive to shackles because of what happened last night, so he wanted to avoid this situation as much as possible. However, it was not a problem that could be solved by taking a strong stance on his own, and it was the best decision to proceed according to Leonardo’s wishes for a more detailed examination.

So, it was only natural that Flynn had a bitter expression when he saw the silver ring on his wrist.

“Yeah, it’s just an examination…. Thank you, Blaine. For understanding.”

From Leonardo’s appearance of eating the stew again as if nothing had happened, Flynn felt that he was deliberately pretending to be brave. That’s why he felt even more sorry.

Leonardo glanced at him with a weak voice, but didn’t say anything in particular and put the remaining stew in his mouth. Then, he took a bite of the fluffy potato and looked at the laid-out medicine packets and asked.

“But what kind of medicine is this?”

When Flynn saw what he was holding in his hand, he was startled inside for a moment.

“Uh? Uh. Muscle relaxant and painkiller… something like that.”

“Hmm.”

“Oh, right, and. It’s said that it contains a small amount of ingredients that make you sleepy, but you don’t have to worry about it much. You can sleep during the examination if you’re sleepy. The medical staff will take care of it.”

Leonardo nodded with a vague reaction. Then, he stretched his neck out for no reason and looked around, asking with a sulky expression.

“Is your Commander busy? Why isn’t he showing up again?”

Flynn gave an awkward smile.

“…It seems like he has a lot to check because of what happened yesterday. But he’ll come around the time your examination is over. I heard Gabe was ordered to clear all of his afternoon schedule. I think he’ll be with you all afternoon?”

While explaining the situation, Flynn couldn’t deny that he felt a little bitter inside. From Leonardo’s appearance of looking for the Commander even though he was next to him, he felt that he was not very trustworthy.

Well, he was being pushed around even when it came to the issue of the medical staff and wearing restraints, so he was lacking in many ways to gain Leonardo’s trust.

“I’ll be here watching over you until the Commander comes.”

Nevertheless, Flynn lowered his eyes and muttered softly to reassure Leonardo. It wouldn’t be of much help, but….

Leonardo, who was puffing out one cheek and chewing on the potato, licked the crumbs on his mouth and stared intently at Flynn’s face.

“Really?”

Flynn raised his head with a puzzled look at the sudden question. Leonardo raised the corners of his lips and grabbed Flynn’s hand tightly.

“You promised. You have to be here, okay?”

“…Huh?”

“Don’t leave me alone, okay?”

The hand he held tightly was always warm, even hot. As that heat sincerely grabbed him, Flynn became quite determined, even though he had no intention of going anywhere else in the first place.

“Yeah. Of course, I’m not going anywhere.”

“Leonardo Blaine, if you’re done eating, we’ll move to the examination room.”

Just in time, the medical staff, who had finished preparing, gave him a hint after seeing the almost empty bowl.

He had finished his meal simply, but since he hadn’t taken the medicine yet, Flynn gathered the laid-out medicine packets, asking them to wait a moment.

But Leonardo, who had gotten up first, naturally took them himself. Then, he shook the medicine packets lightly as he headed towards the examination room with the medical staff.

“I’ll eat it inside.”

Flynn, who had hesitated, stopped in his place and nodded without saying anything.

Anyway, the examination room had one side made of glass, so he could observe the situation from the outside.

“Do well.”

With Flynn’s greeting, Leonardo nodded and entered the examination room. Unlike yesterday, he didn’t seem as anxious as he had feared, and he was following the instructions of the medical staff without much resistance.

Relieved, Flynn collapsed into the seat where Leonardo had been sitting. He leaned his head against the pristine white wall and sighed.

While the Commander was away, he was Leonardo’s guardian. He hoped that the examination would proceed safely so that he could take responsibility for him.