HRB 110

110 .

“No, well, it’s not that I don’t want to.”

Of course, Eddie was confident he could panic with all his might if Ketron truly came at him wanting to. But if asked if he disliked it, that was absolutely not the case.

“It’s true you can’t accept me.”

It was true he couldn’t accept him. But that wasn’t because Eddie didn’t like Ketron, or couldn’t give him his heart, or didn’t love him.

― Screeeech

“…….”

At the sharp sound that momentarily filled his ears, Eddie squeezed his eyes shut and then opened them. It was only then that he realized it was an auditory hallucination.

The screeching sound, and the image of the second part of 〈The Hero Doesn’t Hide His Power Too Much〉 he had seen behind Ketron on the day he confessed to him, made the pleasant excitement that had been filling his entire body instantly cool down.

Unfortunately, now was too luxurious a situation to share feelings like liking or loving…

It didn’t seem like this ‘story’ would just let that happen. Would this world, already greatly thrown off course by the Demon King’s appearance, allow the protagonist’s romantic front to falter as it pleased?

For a supporting character meant for the protagonist to fall for the protagonist?

Probably not.

But that didn’t mean he wanted Ketron to misunderstand his feelings as he pleased. It wasn’t as if he felt he was good at hiding his emotions enough to allow for such a misunderstanding, but after a moment of thought, Eddie lifted Ketron’s hands, which were wrapped around his waist, and placed them on his chest, right over his heart.

The heartbeat, pounding so hard it felt like his chest might heave, would surely be felt not only by sound but also loudly beneath Ketron’s palms.

“Sorry.”

“…….”

“This is all I can express right now.”

It was a bit of a cover-up, but at least it wasn’t an explicit expression in words.

Eddie’s eyes were tense for a moment, but when a long time passed with no sign of the story proceeding on its own, he let out a small sigh of relief.

Perhaps the story was too preoccupied with the unexpected resurrection of the Demon King to pay attention to Eddie.

As Eddie looked around, wondering if perhaps the story might change, he belatedly discovered Ketron, who had frozen like a statue with his hand still on Eddie’s heart.

His heart was still beating pleasantly, and Ketron was feeling the frantic beat of Eddie’s heart through his palm, through the sound.

As their eyes met, Ketron took a small breath, as if waking from sorcery, and his hand deliberately rubbed against Eddie’s chest.

Eddie flinched.

He felt like he and Ketron had done many things together, but this kind of simple yet explicit touch was new.

“Haa.”

Ketron made no attempt to hide his excitement.

“It’s always been like this when I’m with you, but… now is the most exciting.”

…It seemed Eddie’s actions were far more stimulating to Ketron than he had anticipated.

It was understandable, given how significantly the volume he felt below had increased. The bed was narrow, and their bodies were pressed together, making it impossible not to notice.

And Eddie, who still felt shy about such things, subtly pulled away. That movement only stimulated Ketron further, but Ketron chose to watch Eddie, who was trying to escape on the narrow bed, with a leisurely gaze instead of forcing him. After all, the bed was so narrow that escaping wouldn’t get him far.

“If you get this excited, you won’t be able to sleep.”

“You stimulate me like this when you know that?”

“No….”

It wasn’t intentional, but perhaps his own thinking had been too shallow… Eddie mumbled with a hint of injustice, then subtly lowered his gaze.

He was clearly the second person to know its size, and it was pressed against his stomach, fully aroused.

Sirens blared loudly in Eddie’s head. Eddie made a motion, as he had once before, of stroking up and down with his hand.

“Should I help you with your hand again?”

“…You can’t always do that, can you?”

Please, don’t do that with your hand. Ketron said, pulling down Eddie’s frantically moving hand.

“It’s okay, go to sleep.”

“Really?”

“Really.”

Ketron’s tone was peaceful as he said it was okay, but his lower half, rubbing against his stomach, was clearly aroused and restless.

Which one should I believe? Should I trust that indifferent face, or the heat I feel against my lower body?

But the magic lantern had already been extinguished, and it was dark all around. Ketron closed his eyes, as if he had nothing more to say. As if he really intended to sleep like this.

Only Eddie, who knew how agonizing his current state must be for a fellow man, fidgeted.

But as Ketron lay there with his eyes closed, unmoving, Eddie, with no other choice, relaxed his body, which had been stiff with tension, and lay down.

Their bodies pressed together, Eddie naturally rested his head on Ketron’s offered arm and murmured softly.

“I’m the older one, but you seem more like an adult in moments like these.”

Ketron opened his eyes slightly.

“Did you want to be treated as an older brother?”

It wasn’t that he particularly wanted to be treated as an older brother. Eddie and Ketron’s first meeting hadn’t been ordinary, and Ketron always maintained a stiff, formal tone with everyone, so Eddie was naturally treated as the elder, even without trying.

“Brother.”

So, at the word ‘brother’ from Ketron’s lips, Eddie involuntarily opened his mouth in surprise.

“Sleep quickly.”

At that, Eddie felt sleepiness wash over him as if he had been enchanted. Or perhaps Ketron had actually used sorcery.

He never thought he would feel this way from hearing the word ‘brother,’ but if Eddie hadn’t been so overwhelmingly sleepy, he might have been quite excited by the clear pronunciation of ‘brother’ in that deep, resonant voice. No, he definitely would have been.

But the overwhelming sleep was too strong.

No, I shouldn’t, I need to savor that ‘brother’ sound, which I’m hearing for the first time, this is such a monumental occasion, Ket is calling me brother right now, no, that’s not the issue, he should be calling me ‘Eddie-hyung,’ I shouldn’t be sleeping right now…

Eddie thought this far and then drifted into sleep.

As Eddie, who had been struggling to sleep with a tired face, finally fell asleep, Ketron, who had been gently stroking his face so as not to wake him, also closed his eyes to get some rest.

「…….」

The Holy Sword leaning against the wall watched the two of them with clear eyes, remaining silent as it had been all along.

It was strange for the usually chatty sword to be so quiet for so long, but Ketron deliberately didn’t try to speak to the Holy Sword.

When he had been confined in Boram’s cage, Ketron could have escaped Boram’s cage on his own.

Using the Holy Sword’s power, he could create a small gap and slip through it. Boram was a powerful Magician, and the cage was a large-scale magic that had consumed all the mana she had accumulated over a long time, but Ketron had long surpassed human limits.

The problem was that Ketron was the only one with the physical ability to escape through that fleeting gap.

Perhaps Ebon might have been capable, but Ebon would never think of surviving alone while leaving Gerold or Eddie behind.

Just as Ketron had no intention of surviving alone, leaving Eddie behind.

「You’re completely broken.」

The Holy Sword said, looking at Ketron with disbelief.

「You can’t leave Eddie? So you’re going to die for this pathetic thing?」

“…….”

「Of all the masters I’ve seen, this is the most pathetic death. I never thought you’d be like this.」

Around that time, Eddie reached out and grabbed Ketron’s hand. Ketron looked at the hand that held him loosely for a moment, then gripped it tightly as if he would never let go.

Watching this, the Holy Sword muttered in incomprehension.

「It’s so unlike you, yet so like you.」

However, after a moment of thought, the Holy Sword spoke after a long while.

「It’s strange that I find the thought of Eddie dying not particularly pleasant either.」

Do as you please.

Not long after the Holy Sword said that, Eddie led the others to the basement, and although they managed to overcome the situation somehow, the Holy Sword didn’t speak to Ketron much afterward.

The Holy Sword, too, seemed to have many thoughts. Just as Ketron did now.

His inner self had already undergone too many changes. By meeting Eddie, by Eddie. And that change wasn’t limited to Ketron; it was changing those around him, and even the Holy Sword, who had lived for ages.

All without Eddie knowing.

And there was one being who was most displeased by that fact.

― Screech

At some point that night, a faint sound of gears, unheard by the sleeping Eddie, briefly occurred and then disappeared.