He looked up and saw a young soldier with a strong, lithe body. He was a young man with fiery red hair. He looked familiar.
He, too, was staring at the forest.
When Leorino looked up to see who it was, the young man turned his head toward Leorino, as if noticing his gaze.
When his eyes met the young man’s, Leorino was surprised to see that he had violet eyes just like Leorino’s own. Pleased by this revelation, he smiled, and the young man smiled back.
Leorino wondered why the young man was holding his hand, but the warmth of his touch was not unpleasant.
In each other’s grasp for so long, he almost felt as if their joined hands had become one.
Are you waiting for someone, too?
Leorino boldly asked.
The young man smiled and nodded. Then he pointed to the edge of the forest.
Many soldiers had already emerged and crowded outside the edge of the trees. Leorino didn’t know who he was pointing at.
He leaned forward to get a better look, and nearly fell off the top of the fort.
But thanks to the young man pulling Leorino back into his arms, he did not fall.
Now you won’t fall again, Leorino.
The young man called his name.
Do you know me? Leorino asked, looking up at him. The young man smiled at him as if to say, Of course. Leorino felt at ease and rested his back against the young man’s strong chest.
His stomach felt hot. He looked down to see a sword embedded in his abdomen. The sword went through Leorino’s belly and also seemed to have pierced the belly of the young man behind him.
It made them fit even more snugly together.
When Leorino said he was waiting for someone, too, the young man once more pointed to the edge of the forest as if to say, Here they come.
Many men emerged from the forest.
Leorino strained his eyes. He saw two men who seemed to sparkle. They were even larger and stronger than the young man he was leaning against.
Two men, one with dark hair and the other with hair like the sun.
Which were you waiting for? Leorino asked, leaning his back against the red-haired young man. The young man laughed and pointed.
Leorino couldn’t tell which one he was pointing at.
I’m waiting, too.
Leorino pointed, and the young man nodded.
Leorino was impressed that he could recognize the person he was pointing at among the crowd.
I’ll be back soon. I have to go down and meet him.
When Leorino said this, the red-haired young man looked a little sad. Leorino tugged on the young man’s arm.
Before he knew it, the sword in their bellies was gone.
They will be back soon. Let’s go meet them together.
Hey, Ionia. Let’s return to them together.
When Leorino opened his eyes, he saw a familiar wooden ceiling. His body felt terribly heavy.
He managed to tilt his head to the side and look out the window. The sky was a light purple. He wondered if dawn had broken.
He heard the door open and someone enter. Judging by the sound of his footfalls, it was Hundert.
“Now, my lord, it’s about time you woke up.”
Leorino thought he had nodded. But Hundert didn’t seem to notice.
He wanted to get his legs moving as soon as possible. Despite everything, he had survived. He didn’t care if he couldn’t fully walk, he only wanted to be able to stand on his own legs and go places.
He felt a sigh building as he wondered if he would have to go through his exhausting training again today.
“Josef will be here shortly, so let’s get moving again, even if only a little. I’ve been feeling a little weak lately, and I haven’t been able to offer you the care you deserve, my lord… Truly a sad state of affairs.”
Josef? The son of Lev?
Wondering if Josef was coming to see him, Leorino thought he had asked out loud, but it appeared that Hundert did not hear him.
Leorino thought he should speak louder as his mind became a little clearer.
“The wounds in your stomach and head are closing up nicely. All we have to do now is wait for your ribs to set.”
The wound in his stomach? Ribs? Leorino was confused for a moment, certain that it was his legs that were injured.
“If you don’t get well soon, you won’t be able to welcome His Highness like this, will you?”
“N-no.”
Leorino agreed, thinking that was the last thing he wanted.
Of course. He had woken up to meet someone after all.
Leorino’s voice finally seemed to reach him. Hundert’s response contained a laugh.
“Of course not. I knew you’d say…so.”
Their eyes met.
Leorino idly thought he had more wrinkles than usual. The attendant was stunned, looking incredulous for some reason.
“My lord… You’re awake…?”
Leorino nodded, and thought he called the attendant’s name, but no sound came out.
The next moment, the old attendant fell to his knees on the spot, clasped his hands, and leaned onto the bedside.
“God… Oh, God… Thank you.”
His thin shoulders shook. Leorino had never seen his attendant display so much emotion.
He wanted to call out to Hundert somehow, but his voice failed him.
Hundert finally stood up and peered in to see his face better. His wrinkled face was wet with tears.
“Welcome back, my lord.”
“…unde…rt…”
When Leorino called his name in a hoarse voice, the attendant burst into tears again. He quickly wiped them away and smiled tenderly.
“…His Royal Highness recaptured Zweilink.”
At that moment, Leorino’s mind shook off the last of its slumber. At the same time, everything that had transpired came back to him all at once.
He was kidnapped from the royal capital. He had escaped, but was caught again. The violence he suffered there. And finally, he had stabbed Smirnov and fell from the fortress walls.
Leorino wondered how he was even alive.
“I-I’m…alive…”
Hundert nodded happily. “Yes, yes, of course. You’ve been asleep for a long time.”
“Ugh…”
“His Royal Highness rescued you, my lord. Now he is fighting beyond Zweilink.”
So when he thought he had heard Gravis’s voice just before he fell, that was not his mind playing tricks on him.
He saved me. I’m going to see Vi again.
There was much Leorino wanted to say, but having just awakened from the long coma, his body was already reaching its limits.
Before he ran out of energy, Leorino asked about something else that he truly needed to know.
“Is my sister…all right…?”
“Yes, rest assured. Lady Erina is safe and sound, and so is her child. She has returned to her parents’ home in the royal capital.”
Leorino’s mind was finally at peace.
Once again, he was rapidly dragged back to sleep.
He wanted to take stock of his body, but could not keep his eyes open any longer.
But he was not afraid to fall asleep anymore, because he no longer had to fight alone. Just before he was swallowed by that peaceful darkness, Leorino felt a strange sense of certainty.
Gravis and Lucas would return soon. They would leave that forest and come back.
After a long, dark night, morning had come to Brungwurt. Leorino finally awoke on the morning of the twentieth day after his return.
Although Leorino could not get up right away due to how long he had spent in a coma, his condition was stable and his wounds were healing well.
His life was no longer in any immediate danger, much to the relief of the doctors and his family.
By the time he was able to sit up in bed and eat on his own, nursing his broken ribs, it had been forty days since he had left the royal capital.