By Zephyria 
I’m so glad you came back safely like this! I was so worried!
“As expected, my prediction was correct.”
The figure of the person I always miss even when I’m looking at him is clearly captured after a long time. The magician, born with shining talent, had long since reached the limit of the realm that could be reached as a human. But strangely, the more the realm moved forward step by step, the more difficult it became to secretly watch Noah Hamilton’s vicinity.
Even after the true purpose of the mana stone he had created and offered was revealed, Noah Hamilton did not throw away the mana stone at once. Of course, he didn’t carry it around all day like he did before he knew the truth, but he would take the mana stone in his hand with a very suspicious expression, especially when the weather was muggy or when the wind was chilly.
Thanks to this, Lennox was able to steal glimpses of Noah Hamilton’s appearance from time to time. However, before long, Lennox had to face it. A subtle…, something like noise that he hadn’t sensed at all at first was surrounding Noah Hamilton without any gaps.
The noise surrounding Noah like ancient fog was very subtle and at the same time something so distant that it was impossible to dare to approach. Even Lennox, who had reached a realm that no human magician could follow, could only vaguely sense that the noise existed.
A demon that is now only left as a few lines of traces in ancient books? Or, a god who has never even had a proper noun defined to refer to him as the sole ruler of this world?
The thing surrounding Noah Hamilton sometimes seemed to be both, and sometimes seemed to be neither.
So Lennox held his breath and waited patiently. The only thing to fear is the unknown. If we thoroughly analyze and tear it apart to reveal its identity, there is no problem in this world that cannot be solved.
Lennox’s stubbornness, affection, and longing for Noah Hamilton deepened day by day. He didn’t even suspect that a suspicious power was being felt in a well-to-do noble young master who was overly beautiful and overly stimulating the desires of the Alphas around him, who was no different from others. Noah Hamilton’s mystery only acted as a stronger attraction to him.
He observed Noah Hamilton from time to time. When Noah wasn’t holding the mana stone, it was mainly through Allen’s eyes. He made a mana stone with roughly similar functions to the one he had given to Noah and asked him to carry it with him at all times. He ordered him to somehow loiter around Noah Hamilton.
The one who was blinded by the desire to become the beloved real one was very easy to use, so he obeyed Lennox’s instructions without asking why.
He had called him in just last night as well. This time too, Allen easily dismissed the fact that the family he had miraculously regained would worry about him and obediently followed Lennox’s instructions.
Lennox took him to his laboratory and spurred on various experiments that he had only planned so far. It was an experiment to analyze the subtle similarity of wavelengths between Allen Hamilton and Noah Hamilton.
He had thought it was strange that they resembled each other too much from the beginning. Even more so considering that the genetic distance between the two was not very close.
So he had been thinking about doing an experiment, but recently something happened that fueled his greed. At first, he thought it was a mistake, but it wasn’t.
He didn’t know what other story was hidden between the two people who looked exactly like twins, but the unknown power that surrounded Noah Hamilton was particularly unable to gain strength in front of Allen. When Allen was near him, it would scatter and disappear without a trace like a midday mist, and when Allen moved away, it would gather densely around him again.
Just like now.
“Were you worried about me, Brother Noah?”
“Of course. Who else in this world cares about you and worries about you as much as I do?”
“Thank you. I’m especially happy that you do, Brother.”
Since the ultimate goal he wanted to explore was Noah Hamilton, the experiment would be more accurate if it targeted Noah Hamilton, but Lennox called Allen. This was because the experiment of observing the wavelength of mana and the quality of the soul flowing out of the human body was still dangerous because its stability had not been secured.
He didn’t want to put his one and only patron, whom he revered, in even the slightest danger. Until he was completely in his grasp, Noah Hamilton had to maintain his current form no matter what. That was the arrogant magician’s extremely devoted way of showing love.
“Whatever the case… it doesn’t seem like a bad thing for me, Patron…”
Cunning red eyes twinkled and curved deeply.
The result of the experiment, which he had poured all night into, was satisfactory anyway. Although he couldn’t pinpoint the exact cause, the observed results showed that Allen and Noah had almost the same similarities to the point where they could be considered the same person, and it also seemed certain that if Allen manifested as an Omega in the future, even the scent of his pheromones would be in the same category as Noah. If so… it meant that his plan to deceive everyone, disguise Allen as Noah, and steal Noah away had gained wings.
“Don’t worry. The cage I’ve made just for you will be wide enough that you won’t feel cramped.”
Unaware that the person he was trying to steal away was already trapped in a cage so vast that it couldn’t be compared to anything else. The foolish human magician was lost in his own premature satisfaction.
Once he crossed the highlands, it was a quick trip to Bartolo. The weather was completely warm, though not as scorching as the midsummer sun, and the spring clothes he had brought from the capital felt a little hot.
“…Where are you going, Allen?”
“Ah, Frederick, Brother.”
Allen, who was about to go for a walk, smiled faintly with a troubled look and sat back down. It must be because the determination on Frederick’s face when he asked where he was going was not something that could be considered normal.
From the villa’s terrace, which overlooked the vast vineyard, I leisurely flipped through a book and watched the two of them, trying to hide the subtle laughter that leaked out, and raised the book I was reading. The thick hardcover was big enough to cover my playfully raised lips.
“No, I was just feeling a little stiff and was going to stretch for a bit.”
Ever since Allen briefly disappeared in those deep mountains where the snow hadn’t melted and returned, Frederick had been following Allen’s tail like a baby duckling that had just hatched from its egg and only looked at its mother, all the way to Bartolo.
Everyone except him was enjoying peace under the warm Bartolo sun. They put aside all the hectic affairs of the capital, woke up late, filled their empty stomachs with freshly baked bread, fresh cheese, and high-sugar fruits, busied themselves with trivial matters while being fanned by the diligently fanning servants, and when it got hot, they lightly played in the lake attached to the villa. When they got sleepy, they took a nap, and when they got hungry, they ate snacks. At the evening banquet where the whole family gathered, high-quality wine with a rich aroma was always served.
“R-Really? That’s what it is, right? You’re not going anywhere, right?”
“…Yes. Of course.”
Even in that boring and peaceful daily life that made me yawn, only Frederick couldn’t let go of his tension. The emotion in his footsteps as he followed Allen was closer to an obsessive fear than a caring worry and affection.
As they say, you see as much as you know. After learning about Frederick’s long-held secret that he had been hiding, and then recalling the memories, it was clear that Frederick had been protecting Allen out of a sense of duty rather than affection from the beginning.
“Brother. Please, just relax…”
Listening to Allen’s voice, which sounded subtly annoyed, I couldn’t hide my gloating feelings.
I had no intention of helping Frederick, who was suffering. It was all the better for me.
“Young Master! Everything is ready. But are you really going that far?”
“Ah, it’s stuffy. I think it would be nice to ride a horse.”
“What riding on a hot day like this…”
Even as I passed Frederick and Allen with the grumbling Nicole, I kept laughing. While Allen was tied to the villa because of Frederick, I had something more important to find right away.
I got on the horse straight away, escorted by Nicole. Kyle followed closely behind me as I energetically kicked off from the villa. No matter how much I said I would go alone, I couldn’t get through to the impenetrable Andrew. Well, it was only natural since it was an unreasonable request to wander around without a guard in a place that was almost like a first-time visit. Fortunately, Kyle didn’t express any particular doubts about my actions of rummaging through this remote area. I don’t know what he’s planning in his mind, but at least on the surface, that’s how it was.
Today too.
“How about we take a break here for a while?”
He followed my words obediently without questioning any of my intentions, as long as I didn’t overexert myself physically. Kyle Gray was a problem from the beginning because his personality wasn’t trustworthy, but he was more than capable, so he was indeed convenient.
“The place I wanted to go is right near here. Let’s go there and then rest.”
“Yes.”
After arriving in Bartolo, I had already looked around several candidate sites over the past few days. All I knew was that Allen had ‘accidentally’ arrived in front of a cave while getting lost. I was grateful that at least the direction was limited to the southern outskirts of Bartolo. After obtaining a map of the surrounding area, I diligently wandered around, focusing on caves that had been abandoned by people for a long time, and now there were only two places left. If I don’t find it today, I’ll start to get a headache…
Before starting again, I narrowed my eyes as if glaring at a distant place and looked at the horizon that felt so far away.
“Uh…?”
“Young Master!”
Strangely, the ground beneath my feet, or rather, the ground itself, began to shake violently. What is it, an earthquake…? There wasn’t such an event!
Just as Kyle was about to reach out to me in a hurry. Like a CG effect, the middle of the ground cracked with a tearing sound, and a torrent of water like a waterfall shot up towards the sky.
Who the hell is it, annoying me for days! It’s so noisy I can’t sleep!
A clear voice like a child’s rang loudly in Kyle’s and my ears.
System is intrigued that you came when the Spirit was still sleeping well, which is why things got so twisted.
If you had come just a hundred days later, the Spirit would have flattened itself out…
System chuckles.
“C-C-Crazy… You should have told me that sooner…”
Is it you? Is it you who keeps bothering me!
There was no time to answer. With Kyle’s shout of Young Master! as the last thing I heard… I fell straight into the cracked ground.