Chapter 62: You Reached Me

Lumi slowly looked around Evan’s bedroom, taking in her surroundings with quiet curiosity.

They had agreed to let Reeta stay for now and discuss it tomorrow morning.

As Reeta had said earlier, the bed was indeed quite big. Considering how tall Evan was, it made sense that he would need a bed large enough to accommodate him comfortably, although Lumi still hadn’t expected it to be quite this spacious.

The rest of the room was surprisingly neat as well.

She had somehow imagined Evan’s bedroom to look more intimidating, perhaps filled with Sentinel equipment, weapons, or something that would remind her of the dangerous SSS-Rank Sentinel everyone in the Empire feared.

Instead, it was rather simple.

The bed was neatly made, his clothes were nowhere to be seen, and there were only a few personal belongings arranged around the room. Even the desk near the window was organized, with several documents stacked neatly on one side and a small lamp sitting beside them.

It looked exactly like Evan himself.

Quiet and orderly.

And somehow, much more ordinary than she had expected.

Lumi was still looking around when Evan’s voice suddenly pulled her attention back.

"I’ll sleep on the sofa."

She turned her head toward him. "Sofa?"

Evan pointed toward the long, cushioned seat near the window. It was more like a small chaise lounge than an ordinary sofa, long enough for someone to lie down on, though Lumi immediately wondered whether it could possibly be comfortable for someone as tall as him.

"You mean that?"

"Yes."

Lumi looked at the narrow chaise, then at Evan. Her brows slowly knitted together. "That looks too small for you."

"I’ll manage." He was already heading to the chaise but Lumi stopped him.

"I’ll sleep on the chaise. I fit in there..."

She smiled at him so innocently that she didn’t seem to realize the situation they were currently in.

Evan stopped.

His gaze lingered on her for a moment before he quietly sighed. "No."

But before he could say anything else, Lumi had already rushed over and laid herself down on the chaise, smiling up at him with her eyes. With only the small bedside lamp illuminating the room, her face looked even softer, and for some reason, Evan found it increasingly difficult to look away.

Evan closed his eyes and took a slow, deep breath.

’Hold it, Evan... Hold it together.’

"All right. Sleep there." He pressed his lips together, trying very hard to keep his expression composed. "And don’t say I’m not a gentleman."

He paused.

"I’m doing everything I can to keep the gentle part of me in control whenever I look at you..."

The last few words came out so quietly that Lumi couldn’t quite hear them.

She blinked and looked at him in confusion. "What did you say? I couldn’t hear you..."

Evan’s expression froze for a moment. He looked at her innocent face, then quickly turned his head away.

"Nothing. Just go to sleep."

Walking to his bed, he lay down and closed his eyes, but it wouldn’t even take five seconds before Lumi called for him.

"Miss Bellamy and Young Master Leon, are they... I mean, a couple?"

Lumi had already turned her whole body to face the bed.

Evan didn’t turn around, but his eyes slowly opened.

"They are, until now... strictly Sentinel and Guide."

"Huh?" Lumi’s eyebrows instantly raised. "They’re not a couple?"

She blinked, genuinely surprised.

From the way they interacted, she had assumed they were already dating. They seemed to match each other surprisingly well, although, admittedly, Reeta was the one doing most of the talking while Leon mostly stood there looking calm.

Evan turned his head slightly, just enough to glance at her. "They’ve been Fated Sentinel and Guide for years."

"So they never dated?" She really looked surprised. "Then... does Young Master Leo—"

"Just call him Leon..." Evan cut her off.

"Ah... Leon..." Lumi pressed her lips together before continuing, "So, does Leon ever go into Rampage like you?"

Evan narrowed his eyes as he glanced at her from the corner of his eye. "Why?"

Lumi blinked. "I was just curious."

"Curious about what?"

She hesitated, then quietly pulled the blanket closer to herself. "Because... if Miss Bellamy is his Fated Guide, does she ever Guide him like I do?"

"Like the way you slapped me across the face?"

Evan said it so seriously that, for a moment, Lumi couldn’t tell whether he was actually upset.

"Ah—uh, I mean..." She paused, watching his expression carefully. "Are you still angry with me about the slap?"

Evan looked at her panicked face for a few seconds before a quiet chuckle finally escaped him.

"I wouldn’t even mind if you kicked me in the nuts. You were in danger." He finally turned his body to face her. "And to answer your question, yes. Actually, they had gone deeper..."

"Deeper?"

The innocent question mark practically appeared in Lumi’s eyes as she repeated the word.

Evan pressed his lips together.

"For the top three Sentinels, we basically have to be Guided through... ahem..." He cleared his throat, suddenly finding the ceiling very interesting. "You know... because sometimes just a kiss isn’t enough."

"Huh? But I managed to pull you back with a kiss..." Lumi became increasingly interested in the conversation and suddenly sat up. "Are you different?"

Evan was silent for a moment, pursing his lips as he thought about how to explain it without making things unnecessarily awkward.

"Actually, it only happened once. And the doctor told me it might not work again the next time."

Lumi tilted her head. "Why not?"

"Because it depends on how far into Rampage I am, how strong the connection is, and whether the Guide can actually reach my consciousness."

He paused, his gaze settling on her. "Which is why what you did was unusual."

Lumi’s eyes widened slightly. "So... I was lucky?"

"No." Evan’s answer came immediately. "You weren’t lucky. You reached me."

Lumi blinked.

"Other Guides can suppress a Sentinel’s power, but you..." His gaze softened. "You reached me." He ended up sitting up too.

Lumi was stiff for a moment but she locked her eyes with Evan, "Is that why you propose a marriage to me?"