Chapter 142

"Quickly, wash it off quickly."

"M-Mr. Blaine, I'll do it! It's hot!"

Kenis waved his hands in a panic, his face stiff with fright, at Leonardo's action of trying to push his head into the steaming stream while holding it.

However, as the stream water was not ordinarily this hot for a normal person to put their hand in, he fumbled, repeatedly putting his hand in and taking it out. Frustrated by such sluggishness, Leonardo nervously fixed the back of his neck and roughly rubbed his face with one hand, scooping up water.

It was to wash off the venom on his cheek and neck, but when the hot water touched the skin that had already turned red with blisters, Kenis writhed in pain.

His two hands trembled as he couldn't do anything, but Leonardo was not in a situation to consider each and every pain right now. Because he had used attack magic on the surface, not in a tunnel, pursuit might have followed.

His gentle touch, which could hardly be called delicate, rubbed Kenis's face roughly as if washing off a dirty object.

Meanwhile, Alec was looking at the southern mountain peaks with binoculars, searching for the source of the huge roar that had shaken the entire peninsula a moment ago. Hearing Kenis's pitiful groans beside him, he turned his head and casually said,

"Be a little gentler. You'll kill the kid like that."

"You, who nearly died, just shut up—."

As Luggage #2, who was not much different from Luggage #1 currently being washed in terms of combat ability, gave advice-like comments beside him, Leonardo glared at Alec with sharp eyes.

Then, he suddenly stopped moving, unable to finish his words, and flinched his hand, his eyes wide with sharp tension. Thanks to that, Kenis, who had been holding his breath and flailing, was finally able to remove Leonardo's hand from his face.

As he barely opened one stinging eye, looking like a drenched rat, Leonardo suddenly stood up from his sitting position as if sensing some air current. Then, he looked around while holding his breath and stopped his gaze in a certain direction, becoming highly alert.

"..."

Kenis, who had been looking up at him with a puzzled expression as his demeanor towards that far place was unusual, suddenly caught a familiar scent brushing the tip of his nose. Soon, his expression also hardened with tension, and he stared blankly at Alec beside him.

In the meantime, Alec had packed his backpack and taken out his pocket watch to check the time. As Kenis's gaze fell on him, he put the watch back into his pocket and said to the two people in front of him, grinning,

"A farewell earlier than expected."

At Alec's words, as if he had intuited something, Kenis also hurriedly stood up from his spot, rubbing his wet face with his forearm.

Eventually, Leonardo, who had been staring into the distance, opened his mouth.

"He's coming."

Then, he turned around, his face solemn.

He met eyes with Kenis and Alec, who were looking at him, once each, and finally spoke in a low voice as if to firmly keep in mind,

"Listen carefully to what I say from now on."

***

Hugo stepped on the scorched ground and placed his hand on a broken structure.

Ahead, traces of mana stretched out in a straight line remained intact. The sparks that still held heat and occasionally crackled and flew up hinted that "he" had been here until a moment ago.

Brushing the smooth surface of the structure pierced by mana, Hugo closed his eyes and stood still in that spot.

There are bound to be things that can only be felt when vision is blocked. The rustling carried by the wind or subtle changes in temperature. And things like instinctive attraction.

After a while, the closed eyelids slowly opened, and the crimson twilight draped over the blue pupils. The mysterious color calmly stared straight ahead as if having found the answer, and the white steam rising around him extinguished all the sparks flickering on the ground.

Gazing at the heat that was turning cold with icy eyes, Hugo silently thought,

'I absolutely won't let go this time.'

Letting go of that hand once was enough. There wouldn't be a second time.

Quietly making a pledge, Hugo moved somewhere else again.

The place where he reappeared with a bright light after vanishing silently was in the middle of a dense forest. The tall trees meeting the sunset were flushed red, and the faint fog in between scattered the light, making it dazzling.

Because of that, Hugo, furrowing his brows slightly, kicked a tree stem caught on his foot to the side and walked about five steps before suddenly stopping. Looking down at the ground, there were traces of artificially cut marks on the tree stem kicked by his military boots.

The unusually blue pupils that had been quietly looking at it slowly rose and leisurely scanned between the towering trees. Amidst the fine water droplets dispersed in the air, a very secretive and cautious movement was felt.

Perhaps "he" didn't know, but to himself, this fog-filled forest was no different from a home ground where he had spread out each and every nerve.

Strength slowly entered Hugo's right hand holding the greatsword.

He had to aim for just one moment.

If he carelessly provoked him, this agile and capricious fellow who gnawed at his insides would surely be startled and run away.

With that thought, as he was slowly turning his head, Hugo's gaze landed on a rocky hill hidden between the trees.

In an instant, he disappeared with the light.

Kwaaang—!

A thick ice pillar shot up in front of Leonardo's eyes as he was quickly passing by, hiding behind a huge rock. Startled by the chill felt right in front of his face as if it would graze him, he barely stopped in midair, gathered his bewilderment, and immediately changed direction.

However, before he could even leave that position, blue-green ice bars diagonally shot up from the rock beside him, surrounding him from all sides as if trapping him in a grip, making it impossible to move.

The densely rising ice pillars, even more than the lush forest, blocked Leonardo's vision, and the sharp tips of the pillars narrowed like the neck of a funnel, gathering in one place. And at the end of it, a single narrow exit was visible.

The direction of that exit was slightly downward, and Leonardo, who sensed someone walking up from below, couldn't rashly go out there. Because even without seeing, he already recognized who it was.

Leonardo, who had been intermittently catching his breath, stopped moving and quietly stared at the only open exit, listening attentively.

The noble gait indicated by the sound of steady footsteps on the ground conveyed a will to never let go and a heavy composure that made it seem possible, further heightening the tension.

The footsteps got closer and closer. Eventually, black military boots appeared in view, stepping on the soft leaf-covered dirt ground. Seeing that, Leonardo leaned against the rock with his hand on the cold pillar and swallowed dryly.

Hugo slowly caught his breath and approached the conical trap he had created.

It was already enough time for him to break the pillars and escape, but it was too quiet, making it rather strange.

Stopping for a moment to probe the air current of the fellow inside, Hugo took a few more steps without loosening his tension. Then, he raised his head and looked up at the narrow entrance that could barely fit about three people.

Hugo's eyelids twitched. His Adam's apple slowly moved up and down.

Because he saw Leonardo looking down at him from inside.

His momentum wasn't as fierce as expected, but the golden eyes he was seeing after a long time looked quite startled, so Hugo immediately lowered his body, placing one knee on the ground and sitting down. Then, to ease his wariness, he slowly put down the greatsword in his hand on the ground.

Even so, his gaze never left him.

"Leonardo."

As he heard the cautious voice calling his name, Leonardo also flinched.

The golden eyes that had been staring downward turned very briefly to the left, which was not even visible, and then returned to their original place. Seeing him like that, Hugo quietly looked at him with eyes filled with tension, hoping that he wouldn't have any rash thoughts.

In the middle of the quiet forest, a wind that was like when they were about to fall and crash before meeting circled sadly between the two confronting each other.

Hugo relaxed his tensed eyebrows. Then, he quite earnestly extended his right hand towards him, who was looking at him.

Leonardo's gaze fell on Hugo's carefully outstretched hand, then turned back to his eyes. His face seemed to have become quite haggard since the last time he saw him.

Perhaps because of that, he had the illusion that his usually cold and rational eyes looked pitiful. It couldn't be, but…

However, the voice that followed made him realize that it was not just an illusion.

Hugo looked at Leonardo with much softer eyes. Then, extending his hand a little closer, he spoke gently, hiding his impatience.

"Come here quickly."