By Zephyria 
The face revealed beneath the helmet was staggeringly familiar. From the provocatively arched brows to the corners of the mouth curled slightly upward. A jawline and bridge of the nose that were sturdy yet possessed a beauty that could be mistaken for delicacy, and red lips. To top it off, rare blonde hair and Gold Eyes.
Leonardo could hardly tear his gaze away from the man, as if he were looking into a mirror. The others around him were the same. Though their reasons differed, every single one of them was captivated by Laina’s King, unable to turn away.
“What are you doing? Take off your helmets at once!”
Coming to his senses a beat late, Theodore’s confidant shouted toward the knights. Immediately, without anyone needing to be told twice, there was a clatter of metal as they removed their helmets and tucked them under their arms. For a knight, it was unthinkable to remain masked in the same space once the King had revealed his face.
In other words, Theodore removing his helmet signaled the disarmament of Laina’s entire army.
He looked back at his soldiers, then turned his gaze toward the man opposite him with an expression that seemed to ask if this was satisfactory. And in that sight, Leonardo could recall the words Agrizendro—who had been slightly less close to him in the past—would occasionally say with a dissatisfied face.
‘Did he call me arrogant?’
In reality, he had essentially conceded a move to the man’s provocation, but Theodore’s smile was so authoritative and arrogant that the preceding circumstances didn’t even come to mind; it suited him perfectly.
The intimidation and dominance that emanated from one born into the center of power. Even though their outward faces were the same, he felt as though he and the man were entirely different people. Perhaps that was why he lacked a sense of reality—the fact that before crossing dimensions, he might have been the former King of Laina and served as the first Emperor of Laina Rogia.
“Now that we are on equal footing, let us resume the discussion. How about this?”
As silence fell over the crowd, Theodore’s voice became even clearer. Some might have doubted his leadership as a King due to his youthful appearance. However, perhaps because a much deeper maturity seeped through the voice he used to expound his opinion…
Everyone present, including Leonardo, felt that he was not engaging in a discussion, but issuing an irresistible command.
“The canyon’s terrain is rugged and narrow, making it unsuitable for moving a large number of cavalry. Furthermore, the retreat paths are limited; unless one knows the geography, it is no different from a death trap where one invites isolation. However, if utilized well, there could be no more perfect hunting ground. Therefore, for the great cause of the Allied Forces, you shall serve as the operational commander for this mission to lure them into a trap. Since you said this is your land, you must know the terrain, climate, vegetation, and the characteristics of the enemy better than anyone.”
The confidants looked back at their Monarch with puzzled expressions.
“If you managed to bring the conscripts here alive, your strategy seems decent enough. I shall serve as the staff officer for the operation to assist you. What do you think?”
“Your Highness.”
As he finished speaking, a confidant called out to him tentatively. No further words were added, but the meaning seemed to be: How can you entrust such a vital position, where the lives of many are at stake, to a man like that?
However, Theodore didn’t mind and gave a quick wink. Due to the angle, it was a rare sight visible only to those on his right. Perhaps because they shared the same face, Leonardo interpreted the gesture as meaning, ‘Trust me.’
Soon, he jerked his chin toward Leonardo. It was a signal to speak.
“Uh… His Highness says that…”
Standing there blankly, Leonardo belatedly opened his mouth.
While his lips moved and his voice sounded instinctively, Leonardo was gradually realizing that he and this body were separate egos. Perhaps the reason he had come to look into the past through this body’s memories was to meet Theodore, who looked exactly like him.
In other words, the narrator of this story was this body, but the protagonist was Theodore. If so, would this body eventually become his knight? Surely the entity whose residual thought claimed to love him wasn’t this body? He’s already married?
As he listed these blooming questions internally, his mouth closed, having finished the translation. Then, the man, who had been listening in silence for once, let out a caustic sneer.
“A brat whose blood hasn’t even dried in his head is trying to play games in front of me.”
Leonardo didn’t bother to translate that part. On the other hand, he was slightly surprised. The man, whom he expected to snap up the high-ranking position, seemed to have seen through Theodore’s proposal.
To this, Theodore replied with his characteristic arrogant smile.
“If you refuse, I shall take that position myself.”
Though the languages were different, the meaning was conveyed perfectly through his bold demeanor.
Invisible sparks flew between the two men.
About 50 personnel were deployed for the operation. The number of cavalry was drastically reduced, and the force consisted mainly of the swiftest among the infantry.
And for this operation, this body did not accompany Theodore. Despite this body volunteering to participate for once, Theodore did not grant permission.
‘I heard you risked your life to lure them away to save your comrades. That is enough—your courage and conviction.’
Theodore seemed to have realized early on that this body was not particularly specialized for combat. Of course, Leonardo, who moved with this body, felt it even more acutely.
‘Was saying I could be appointed as a knight just a passing comment?’
Thanks to that, he had time to stay at the base and prepare with the other soldiers, but he couldn’t help the bitterness that surged within him. He had rolled and fought on battlefields for years; when had he ever been excluded from the main force?
Lost in deep thought, Leonardo sat beneath a shaded pillar, staring at the tightly closed gates of the outpost. The operational unit had departed around the time the sky turned vermilion, and there had been no word until now, as the sun set and darkness fell. Occasionally, eerie cries and roars echoed from beyond the cliff, but that alone was not enough to gauge the situation.
The village well, which overflowed once every four hours if left undisturbed, had just overflowed once. It seemed about four hours had passed since the unit’s departure.
In the meantime, Leonardo retraced the place names that appeared on the peninsula’s monument after Perman.
As far as he remembered, there was only one ‘Canyon’ carved there.
‘Canyon of Odil.’
A dozen fast-footed men, bleeding, lured them into the Canyon of Odil. By toppling rocks to block the retreat and firing fire arrows, the eerie demons wailed and vanished into the earth.
If memories flowed according to the past that had already unfolded, this operation was a success. And later, the pillar leading the Allied Forces would be Theodore, not that ill-tempered man. How wonderful would it be if one could look into life like an answer key? He could prepare for crises in advance and maximize opportunities.
However, in this recollection where he couldn’t even move a single finger at will, Leonardo pondered once more what he should see and what he should do.
‘Is it certain that I was Theodore? Or more accurately, that another ego of mine was Theodore…’
Anyone would find it difficult to readily accept that their past was an entity they never imagined. Especially if that entity was the legendary Sun King.
‘Then again, it would be ridiculous to say we aren’t, given we have the same face. It’s not as if my imagination just happened to slot in the same face.’
It was a plausible scenario, but there was a contradiction. While Theodore’s face was certainly the same as his, his build was larger, and surprisingly, he was far more masculine and handsome, appearing subtly ahead in the flow of time. His age was estimated to be in his late twenties or early thirties. In other words, he was both his past and his future self.
Common sense dictated that it would be impossible, even in a dream, to implement the appearance of an age not yet reached with such precision.
Therefore, assuming he and Theodore were one body, it made sense why he felt an unknown sense of déjà vu when visiting the Castle of Romance. It also explained why the core fighting on the peninsula had suddenly shuddered in fear, as if reflecting another existence. As his thoughts reached that point, Leonardo’s eyelids flickered.
‘Wait, this subjugation only ends when the core is destroyed, right?’
If the Sun King couldn’t kill it and instead sealed it, it must have been because that was the best option… But having experienced Theodore firsthand while accompanying him for half a day, he possessed a power far more potent and destructive than Leonardo, who had been suppressed by a Leash. It would be no exaggeration to call him the strongest specimen, possessing every element the Laina dynasty had desperately tried to maintain through generations of consanguineous marriage.
Then, did Theodore suffer a major injury while fighting on the peninsula before the final battle? Was that why he could only seal it? He wouldn’t have died early because that injury worsened, would he?
It was ironic. Honestly, while living as ‘Leonardo,’ he took care of himself reasonably well, though he often heard people telling him to look after his health.
But now, seeing another ego with the same face with his own eyes, he was worried sick. Especially since he knew the ending—that the man died without leaving an heir.
‘Can I do nothing but watch? I wish I could help somehow.’
Leonardo bit his lip hard. Just then, the sound of Laina’s horn echoed from outside the outpost walls.
Not only this body, but the soldiers carrying materials to reinforce the walls also snapped their heads up. He could see the sentries atop the watchtower exchanging hand signals.
Before he knew it, this body’s legs had sprung up, and he was running toward the gates of the base.