BMD 550

Theodore’s eyebrows twitched. Judging by the gentle curve, it was a reaction of realization rather than displeasure.

“Do I intend to go back? I am merely moving forward.”

“Sometimes, there are things that only become visible after we have passed them. Or, it is only when we stop and look back that we realize which direction we were heading.”

It was a truth he had chewed over while reflecting on his own life after losing everything following the military trial.

Though he was cautious about sounding as if he were lecturing an elder, Leonardo asked once more.

“Have you truly only moved forward?”

As if it were an unexpected question, Theodore’s eyes narrowed. After a period of silence, he countered with a sharp gaze.

“Does the path I intend to take look to your eyes like the days of old, when I took a long detour?”

Leonardo flinched, having been hit right on the mark. To put it plainly, wasn’t he asking point-blank if Leonardo had seen the future? Just as he was about to be careful, fearing he had been too suggestive…

“Do you possess a third eye?”

A third eye? He had heard that in the past, such a term was used for those among the clergy or the spiritually gifted who could encounter truths or existences invisible to ordinary sight.

Fearing that even a low-voiced question might carry weight, Leonardo hurriedly shook his head.

“If I possessed such a thing, I would have found a way to cure Your Highness’s ailment. I would not be suffering, gripped by such miserable feelings, for failing to do so.”

Even if it sounded like empty flattery, he meant it sincerely. Theodore seemed to have already become detached, but Leonardo had only just learned of the existence of a terrifying disease that might end both their lives. Despite pretending to be calm, cold sweat drenched the back of his neck.

If Theodore hadn’t said, ‘I do not wish to live like a caged bird,’ Leonardo might have warned him to leave this land immediately. No matter how strong the man claimed to be, he did not want him to encounter an Ancient Demon that devoured one’s lifespan.

However, he also worried that intervening in this matter would be no different from treating Theodore like a bird in a cage.

“Suffering?”

Regardless of such serious inner turmoil, Theodore, the party concerned, merely cast a suspicious look.

“Why do you care so much? You said you were merely Nomon of the frontier lands.”

“It is because I am a Nomon who respects Your Highness.”

The name now slipped out automatically. At the answer that followed without hesitation, Theodore furrowed his brow as if unsatisfied.

“…Strange fellow.”

While one was offering serious advice, the definition he received for this body was simple.

However, it didn’t seem as though he intended to overlook the conversation they had shared thus far. The Gold Eyes, which glowed faintly even in the darkness, rolled downward.

“Going back, indeed…”

Slender fingers, unbelievable for hands that gripped a sword, caressed the blood-red gem at the center of the ring. Then, he paused.

Theodore stared intently at the surface of the gem scattering the moonlight. A dry sigh escaped through his parted lips.

“The turbid energy has cleared. For a while, it looked like dead blood.”

Leonardo stole a glance at the ring. Perhaps because of what he had just heard, the color of the gem did indeed seem clearer than before. He asked cautiously, reading the room.

“The clearing of turbid energy… what is that a sign of?”

“It means an ominous future has receded. This gem was created by casting magic on his blood.”

Having said that, Theodore stood up abruptly from the bed and strode forward without even putting on his shoes. Pushing aside the tent flap with a rustle, he raised his hand to hold the ring up against the brightly shining moon.

“The light changes according to the master’s mood. Ever since I departed for this land, it has been a dark red… it is exquisitely coincidental.”

Leonardo hurriedly grabbed Theodore’s shoes and followed. After crouching down and kneeling at his feet, he looked up and asked.

“The blood of that person?”

“Yes. I know not how, but… it seems his mind and body have also found peace. Was it the work of you lot?”

Theodore asked sharply, glancing back and forth between the Canaria on his shoulder and this body. At first, Leonardo didn’t understand, but he belatedly realized he was asking if anyone had leaked the conversations held here to ‘him.’ Coincidentally, the light of the gem had changed while they were discussing ‘him.’

Still plagued by suspicions of spies, Leonardo waved his hands in panic.

“This is unfair, Your Highness! I have been with Your Highness the entire time, and I only just learned what that ring was; how could I have played such a trick?”

Cheep, cheep!

Canaria also chirped urgently, asserting its innocence. It was an ironic situation, but it sounded like a quite desperate appeal.

Despite two mouths busily explaining, Theodore only responded with a cold gaze.

Then, he let out a faint laugh.

“So frightened; I am joking.”

The small chuckle shifted the atmosphere instantly.

Leonardo, who had been incredibly tense, blinked with a bewildered expression. Regardless, Theodore raised his head once more toward the permeating moonlight.

The shadow of a fast-moving cloud brushed past the gold eyes, revealing the hidden area of the celestial body. Theodore’s pupils, gazing at it, shimmered brilliantly as if containing the Milky Way.

“The sky is clear. Even though it is a day of bloodshed.”

“…….”

“Does this mean it is worth a try?”

Muttering to himself like a poem, he stood beneath the night sky for a while. Shards of light swept across his clear face. It felt as if a giant existence, invisible to ordinary eyes, was revealing its affection for him. At the strange and beautiful sight, Leonardo simply remained kneeling, quietly admiring the gift bestowed by the divine.

Before long, Theodore returned to the bed and sat down alone.

Having slipped the ring back onto the ring finger of his left hand, his gaze turned toward this body, who had followed him without a word. Perhaps because the way he had been so heatedly involved earlier seemed suspicious, his scrutinizing gaze was subtle.

Theodore suddenly asked this body.

“So, what was it that you truly wished to know?”

“Pardon? Suddenly, what…”

“You were prying into my affairs while mimicking a clumsy sage, so I thought you were some rogue who had sneaked into my bedchamber out of romantic longing. But since you say you have a wife, that cannot be it.”

From what he said, it seemed he had misunderstood him as a soldier who had burst in during a bath, having lost all fear due to his affection. For a moment, the thought ‘His self-awareness is a bit…’ flashed through his mind, but it became understandable after Theodore’s following remark.

“There have been more than a few such fellows.”

Had there not been many stalkers secretly following him in his own life? Just as he was about to accept [stolen content]aria-label="visit our site">visit Read on Read BL Novelsour sitethat he could be viewed that way, Theodore, crossing his legs beneath the silk gown, flicked his toes once.

It was a signal to wipe them, as they had become dirty. At that arrogant gesture, a headache washed over Leonardo, wondering how he had ended up acting as a servant to his own body. However, contrary to his mind, his two hands moved naturally.

He dipped a soft piece of cloth into the water he had brought in a bucket and wrung it out tightly.

“Excuse me.”

Then, he slowly lifted Theodore’s ankle. Recalling how Agrizendro had wiped the moisture from his feet and legs, he caressed them delicately and softly, just as he had felt then.

While he was engrossed, Theodore, who had been watching closely, asked again.

“Why did you come to find me?”

Leonardo’s hand, which had been moving naturally, faltered. The way those words sounded… it was as if he were asking why he had come to find him, even to the point of crossing dimensions and intervening in the past. Though it couldn’t possibly be.

Lest he look strange, Leonardo continued to move his hands while stealthily lifting his eyelids. Theodore, resting his elbows on his own legs and leaning his chin on his hand, was looking down at him quietly. Because of the leaned-over posture, the distance was closer than expected, and Leonardo felt anxious that his inner thoughts might be read.

Though he had lived slightly longer than he had, could he possibly see through this much?

“Did I not tell you earlier? I felt Your Highness’s heart must be heavy…”

“No, stop that talk. Answer with sincerity.”

As if annoyed by the repeating words, Theodore cut him off firmly. Yet, he curled the corners of his mouth into a soft smile.

“Though it sounded like nonsense, you pleaded so earnestly that there must be an intention held within. I shall deem that sincerity commendable and, this time, give you the answer you truly seek.”

Leonardo blinked blankly. Theodore reached out toward this body’s face.

“What was the path you sought to find by meeting me?”