Lucius Magnus

Yun woke up after feeling someone cuddling him from the left side. He opened his eyes and sees Rin holding his left hand while cuddling up to him by being between Yun's arm and body.

Yun didn't move but closed his eyes again while pulling Rin closer to keep her warm while putting his right arm around Zhen Luo who was still sleeping soundly.

The sun soon came out and Yun felt people staring at him. He opened his eyes and found the Zhen family staring at him and Zhen Luo who has a rosy face when Yun suddenly felt something soft in his right palm.

He squeezed his hand softly making a moan escape from Zhen Luo's mouth. Yun stopped right away now knowing what he was squeezing and let go of Zhen Luo.

'Not again,' thinks Yun being reminded of how he groped Diao Chan in his sleep before when they weren't married yet.

Rin looked at Yun confused not knowing why Zhen Luo was blushing while Yun had a serious expression on his face. The Zhen family was either confused with the situation or felt embarrassed because of what Yun just did by accident.

Yun tried to ignore the stares oriented at him while they were eating some dried riceballs around the reignited campfire before they began to travel again without the Zhen Family or Rin knowing what happened the last few days.

They soon arrived at Dongguang where they rented three rooms for two days while Yun looked for two strong mercenaries or a little group of mercenaries to escort them to Changlu.

Yun went from tavern to tavern in those two days and he hired three people. One was a young man named Yao who still wasn't a made name in the mercenary community. Then there was a middle-aged man who was recommended to him by some people who is named Tao.

But the last had Yun confused since he was recommended by a tavern owner. It was an old man with gray hair who seemed foreign to the Empire. He was carrying a shield on his back a sword on his belt and a lance was leaning against the counter.

The man's name is Lucius going by what the tavern owner told him but when Yun looked into Lucius' eyes he felt a shiver run down his spine when he hears, "It seems you are scared of me. It's quite common for people since I have lived a long life. I even had to leave my family behind so they could continue to build their legacy without standing in my shadow."

Lucius stood up from his chair and he was just a bit shorter than Yun with both having almost the same physical body just that Lucius seemed more flexible since he was more muscular and lean than Yun.

But Yun wasn't even listening to him. He was just staring at Lucius' eyes which resembled his being in the same shade of blue making Yun think quite hard when Lucius looks at him confused.

"Is something wrong?" asks Lucius confused seeing Yun like that makes Yun sigh in relief.

"It's nothing," says Yun relieved as he hires Lucius as well.

The next day the group continued their travel to Pingyuan which was just some days away from Lu where they wouldn't have to worry about Yuan Shao any longer.

Rin seemed to like the old man, Lucius, which was the other way the same going by how Lucius was carrying Rin on his shoulders. It soon would become dark so they started to open camp for the day.

Yao seemed nervous about something while Tao was attentive to his surrounding. Lucius on the other hand just leaned himself against a tree after eating and fell asleep. He was snoring quite loudly making Yun look at the old man with fury and regret for having hired him.

"Is he really reliable?" asks Zhen Luo nervously as she was worried that a bigger group of bandits might strike them one of those days.

"I hope so, he was recommended to me by a tavern owner who said that he has some particular set of skills," says Yun questioning Lucius himself in his mind but not expressing them in words to not worry Zhen Luo more than needed.

"Also, Rin seems to like the old man so he can't be a bad person," says Yun trying to calm Zhen Luo down.

Nothing happened over the night and the next day they continued their travel. This went on for five days until Yun noticed that Lucius didn't go to sleep like usual but was attentive to his surrounding.

"Is there something wrong, Lucius?" asks Yun seeing the attentive old man.

"It's just a gut feeling but I think we are being watched," says Lucius speaking about his instincts telling him that they will be ambushed.

Yun used his Qi to scan the area and felt two people nearby which made him frown while thinking, 'They are a scouting party. We really need to be attentive tonight.'

'Don't you hire the mercenaries to deal with the bandits? Then let them deal with them while you lean back and kill only the people that pass through them,' says Ysmrgra to Yun who was quite worried since the last few days were too quiet.

Lucius was wide awake while everyone else was sleeping. He suddenly stood up and walked away in the direction of where Yun felt the scouting party was before.

Yun soon followed him quietly only to find Lucius leaning against a tree waiting for him when he says, "You know, I think back then my life was quite easier than it is those days."

"What are you talking about?" asks Yun when Lucius looks at him seriously.

"Come on, Arthur, you should have already some suspicion about who I am, don't you? We have the same sleeping habit after all," says Lucius saying Yun's real name out of nowhere.

"Who are you?" asks Yun seriously pointing his spear at Lucius who only smiles at him.

"I am Lucius Magnus, born and raised in the Roman Republic and over three hundred years old but not older than three hundred and ten years. I stopped counting after I reached the hundred years," says Lucius holding his chin while Yun was still pointing his spear at him.

"This still didn't answer my question," says Yun nervously already putting the pieces together but that couldn't be it since he is still alive.

"I know that you have already put it together. I am you, well a future you that was sent to the time of the Roman Republic before it became the Roman Empire. I am still alive because of the Dragon Blood flowing through my veins but even then I should be dying sooner or later since my body is reaching its limits," says Lucius as if it was a normal Monday for him to disclose such information.

"How is that possible?" asks Yun confused while lowering his spear.

"Oh, trust me, there will be an even bigger surprise down the hill which I already went through. Meeting another me is only normal the more lives we live. Anyway, we should deal with the bandits. It should be a group of twenty," says Lucius as he grasps his lance and throws it in the direction of the bandits killing two of them easily.

Yun could feel Lucius' Qi wasn't regenerating as it normally should but the old man had only a smile on his face almost like knowing that his life would be over after this skirmish.

Lucius runs toward the bandits using his rectangle shield and bashes into them throwing three bandits off their feet before unsheathing his sword and plunging it into their chests.

Yun was quite surprised by Lucius' way of fighting when he remembers that Lucius had far more lives to perfect his way of fighting compared to him who was still standing at the beginning.

Yun soon rushed in as well as he pierces his spear through two of the bandits when one of them attacks him. He lets go of his spear and grasps the hand of the bandit which was holding the sword and turns it making the bandit lose the grip on the sword before being thrown by Yun.

Yun then takes the sword of the bandit and rams it into the chest of the bandit killing him before turning to Lucius who was hitting his shield with his sword intimidating the bandits who fled in fear of being the next to die.

"Why didn't you kill them?" asks Yun confused when Lucius turns toward Yun.

"Because they weren't worthy of my blade. The more I live the more I learn about the world and its marble. But this life is over for me and the next one is awaiting me," says Lucius as he sheaths his sword before stretching his arm out with his hand open and his lance returned to him.

Yun could feel that Lucius Qi was leaving his body and Lucius says cryptic, "It was destined for me to die here. I just hope to meet her in my next life."

"You still haven't found her?" asks Yun as Lucius only smiles at him.

"I didn't, but I found other women that I could rely on," says Lucius as he uses his lance to stand upright when he sees someone approaching.

"It seems she is already here," says Lucius seeing Lorena approach them.

"It is an honor to see you again," says Lucius to Lorena before closing his eyes, dying while standing when Lorena pulled his soul out of his body.

"How is it possible?" asks Yun confused with everything.

"How is it possible for your soul to be in the same place twice? It's quite simple. Your soul is younger than the soul of the version you just met. I can't implant the same soul with the same timeline into two different bodies that would be impossible but a soul older by some centuries can be transferred into the body of a newborn without destroying the balance," says Lorena trying to explain it to Yun when she sees his confused face and she sighs.

"Ok, simpler, you can exist twice and even thrice at the same time but your soul isn't at the same period of time since your soul is at its youngest at the moment with Arthur being even younger than you while Lucius is around the oldest period of your soul," says Lorena explaining it simpler to Yun.

"Will I meet another me in this life?" asks Yun and Lorena shakes her head while retrieving the ring which Lucius was wearing when his weapons and armor enter it.

"No, you won't meet another you in this life," says Lorena sad that Lucius had died when she touches him and he turns into dust.

"You should return to your camp. Your future won't should be worried sick," says Lorena before leaving with Lucius' soul and ring.

"Well, at least now I know that I will live another life once this is over," says Yun as he retrieved his spear before it disappeared into the ring while walking back to the camp.