Bermuda

"..."

Though thinner than before, the still-fierce rain thoroughly soaked the clothes of the two men.

Amid the noisy raindrops pounding the earth, Nero's voice was crystal clear.

A water droplet that had formed on Leonardo's golden eyelashes could no longer bear its weight and trickled down to the corner of his eye. However, Leonardo stared intently at the other without blinking.

Soon, one eyebrow that had been slightly furrowed rose elegantly.

"What?"

'Run away?'

Nero's words were very short and simple, but Leonardo pondered their meaning for a while. It was because he couldn't understand.

Was that something to be said in this situation? And from this guy, no less?

Leonardo's deeply twisted expression clearly showed that he had many things he wanted to question. Because of this, Nero added more before giving him a chance to issue a stern rebuke.

"I'm not saying this impulsively. Last time, when you jumped off the cliff to save one of those Council bastards. Even then, while you were unconscious, I seriously considered just taking you and leaving. But do you know why I didn't?"

"..."

"I knew you would hate me interfering here, and at that time, the tracker issue hadn't been resolved yet. That's why I didn't intervene rashly."

When the word 'tracker' came up, the prominent muscle on Leonardo's forehead twitched for a moment. Seeing this, Nero quickly continued, gripping Leonardo's hand even tighter.

"But it's okay now. The military command's surveillance network is temporarily paralyzed, so for a few days, they won't be able to locate not just me, but any tracking targets. So if we move now, no one will know. Neither that we made contact, nor that we left the peninsula."

Nero's gaze, trying to persuade, was extremely serious and desperate. As if he had no intention of considering any other options, his grip was unyielding. From the fingertips where their skin touched to the entire palm, a rough pulse carried through.

Feeling that heartbeat so vividly, Leonardo could tell how sincere Nero was being at this moment. But as he listened quietly to his words, ominous questions began to spring up one by one.

"...You say the surveillance network is paralyzed? You didn't..."

"Pierce and Senior Taylor took care of it, so you don't need to worry about anything else. With those two's skills, they wouldn't have left any traces, and there's no chance of being followed-"

"Hey, you idiot, didn't I tell you not to move on your own!"

Leonardo's voice suddenly burst out, echoing sharply around the rocky hill.

At the stern rebuke, harsher than expected, Nero's eyes widened for a moment, and he flinched, unable to say anything.

The golden eyes he faced were instantly filled with all sorts of worry and confusion. At their edges, intense anger smoldered like flames.

A cold gaze, gripped by dark thoughts, glared at him as if it would devour him. However, Nero was not unaware that the emotions contained within were anxiety, impatience, and concern.

Leonardo briefly touched his tightly closed lips above his heaving shoulders. Then, slowly exhaling a trembling breath, he closed his eyes tightly against the oncoming dizziness, then opened them and spoke calmly.

"Leonardo Blaine, who hadn't shown his face for so long, was caught by the Council after almost three years. And in the midst of this, the perfectly functioning military command surveillance network suddenly [N O V E L I G H T] becomes paralyzed? Do you think the military leadership will consider this a mere coincidence?"

"...If they're determined to be suspicious, they might find it strange, but still, there's no physical evidence that we did it..."

"Every existence in this world, every situation—everything about us—is being deliberately suspected. You've experienced it too, so you know. This isn't something to think about so carelessly."

"..."

"And even if we're freed from suspicion due to lack of evidence, what will you do next? The command will strengthen their vigilance because of this incident and monitor the movements of tracking targets more thoroughly. Even if I'm released from the Council, will we be able to meet again after that? Huh? Do you think we'll be able to face each other like this and have this kind of conversation again in the Empire's territory, not on the peninsula?"

As Leonardo spoke calmly yet authoritatively, Nero's expression gradually twisted. He, who had tried to refute the captain several times, finally closed his mouth, suppressing the excitement and rebelliousness rising in his chest.

Though he tried to calm down, jaw trembling, the disappointment and frustration that welled up were not so easily suppressed.

After pondering for a long time, Nero looked up at the sky once and then blurted out.

"So we just stay still again?"

Nero's cold voice and gaze were thrown roughly between them. It sounded more like he was questioning back, making Leonardo's other eyebrow rise.

Nero gritted his teeth, growling lowly, and asked again.

"Are you saying we have to stay still again, unable to do anything?"

His voice, filled with resentment, trembled slightly, noticeable only to those who had known each other for a long time. The tightly clenched hand had now gone numb from lack of blood flow. 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝙚𝔀𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝒐𝒎

"Leonardo Blaine has finally been caught by the Council, the Empire's Sword has cut off the Empire's rotten Silver Arm. It's been splashed across all the newspapers, so by now, probably everyone in this empire knows about it. And yet, you're telling us not to move on our own?"

"..."

"We rarely get to see you and don't even know how you're doing, and then suddenly we come across news about you like this, and you're saying we should have just sat back and done nothing in that situation? Have you not thought about how we would have felt seeing that?"

Nero had fully expected that the captain wouldn't be too pleased with him still remaining on the peninsula and ultimately interfering in this matter. Moreover, he had been aware for quite some time that these emotions he was pouring out were far from rational.

But actually hearing one-sided criticism rather than sharing the feelings he had wanted to share made his heart ache far more than he had anticipated.

It was because the denial and distrust embedded in each of the captain's words sounded like he was telling them to just sit helplessly.

Just like that cruel court day when they couldn't do anything.

"..."

"Captain, why do you always-"

Nero tried to convey his boiling emotions through unsteady breaths. He wanted to throw out any words to somehow scratch at the other's heart. But suddenly, faced with a face looking at him with sorrowful eyes, he was at a loss for words.

Those wet eyes, clearly showing signs of fatigue, guided his hand, even though he knew it wasn't right.

Nero lightly touched Leonardo's eyes and cheeks with his left hand, then carefully lowered it to his blood-soaked shoulder. Then, slowly caressing the wounded area with his heated palm, he lowered his voice once more and muttered, almost resentfully.

"...Why do you try to shoulder everything alone? You said we're family. Can't you trust me a little and come with me?"

Leonardo, who had been silently staring at Nero like this, just blinked slowly, his heart complicated. Then he bit his lip, ran his hand through his hair, and unnecessarily turned his gaze to a distant place.

As he faced the wavering red eyes, his heart was greatly shaken, contrary to his will. He knew well how unsightly it was to lash out like this, blaming others and the situation, at a precious comrade who had come to rescue him out of concern.

But his current reality was forcing him into this position.

A captain who couldn't welcome his comrade who had risked his life, out of fear.

That shabby and unsightly figure was his current reality.

Just then, a violent explosion in the sky above shook the ground they stood on. At the same time, perhaps due to blood loss, a chill ran through him, and his body trembled lightly.

As soon as he felt that tremble, Nero stepped closer and enveloped his entire body in flames. But even in that moment, melting into the warmth beside him, Leonardo's eyes took in the bodies strewn about in disorder, covered in ash and smoke.

Those with parts of their bodies caught in scattered boulders were growing cold, pelted by the ashen rain falling from the gloomy sky.

Leonardo blankly etched that miserable scene into his eyes and mind. Then, with his gaze still fixed, he spoke different words to Nero beside him.

"Nero, this is a battlefield."

Though he heard Leonardo's voice softly spreading through the rain, Nero didn't answer. It was because what he was about to say was all too obvious.

However, as if to remind him once more, Leonardo slowly continued in a low, gentle voice.

"This is a battlefield where countless people are dying. Have you forgotten what we should be doing on this battlefield—who we are?"

Nero deeply furrowed his brow at the pedantic words reminding them of who "we" were, as Leonardo turned his head and met his eyes. Eventually, a weary sigh escaped.

"I haven't forgotten. I haven't forgotten, I tell you. But this matter now is something the Council should resolve. Not us."

"Nero."

"I won't ask now why those Council bastards brought you here, or what was said in between. But, Captain, you don't have an obligation to risk your life here, bleeding like this. This is their duty, not yours. If we leave now, really no one will know-"

"Nero."

Deliberately ignoring the words telling him to stop, Leonardo bit his lip again. His fingers, which had been pressing his forehead as if his head hurt, dug into his golden hair, roughly grasping his bangs. The flashing eyes revealed beneath gazed at Nero with a pained look.

"Is that how I taught you?"

At Leonardo's words that suddenly hit close to home, Nero hesitated for a moment. He immediately tried to argue back, asking why he was bringing that up in this situation, but Leonardo's voice was faster.

"What, do you think I don't know how shitty the Council is? I'm annoyed at the bastard who brought me here too."

"...Then-"

"I want to kill all those higher-ups who suddenly sent me to subjugate the peninsula, gouge out the eyes of those bastards who whisper and stare while mentioning my name behind my back, those who openly provoke and try to intimidate me, those who don't know their place and try to strike up a conversation for no reason, and just leave this place. But do you know why I'm just enduring it?"

"..."

"Because they'll release me if I stay quiet? Yeah, that's right. It's not wrong. But before that-!"

Leonardo, who had suddenly pulled his hand out of Nero's, raised his trembling left arm and pointed somewhere.

The place his fingertip was pointing to was the middle of a terrible wasteland where blood from corpses had pooled.

His straight index finger pointed again and again at that place he had seen countless times in nightmares. And yet, in a resolute and desperate voice, he recited to the other, word by word.

"Those bastards dying over there, all of them are citizens of the Empire."

Leonardo clenched his right hand into a fist and struck his own left chest hard enough to make a "thud-" sound. Then he stretched that hand forward and lightly tapped Nero's left chest, careful not to hurt him.

Through the fist touching his heart, that firm resolve carried over to Nero.

"They too are people we must protect."