Chapter 199: Truth [2]

"I’m okay..." But her voice gave her away. "It’s just..."

Tears slid down her cheeks. She covered her face with both hands and her shoulders shook as the truth finally sank in.

All those years. All those unanswered questions. All the times she had wondered why Leon suddenly left, why he pulled away from her, and why he never explained what happened. There had been an answer all along, and it was far crueler than she had ever imagined.

Leon hadn’t simply abandoned her. He had been convinced that leaving her was the only way to protect her future. And he had carried that belief with him until the end.

"Leon..."

His name slipped out in a broken whisper.

Alden stayed beside her and said nothing. He had known this might happen, and that was exactly why he had hesitated to tell her. He had wanted to expose Arvendis and see him face what he had done. But now, watching Aurelia fall apart under the truth, the satisfaction he had expected was nowhere to be found. There was only the sight of her tears.

’Damn it...’

Alden lowered his eyes.

’Leon probably would never have told her himself.’

Maybe Leon had wanted to leave that part of his life behind. Maybe he had believed that keeping the truth hidden would let Aurelia move forward without being weighed down by it. Alden couldn’t know. But seeing her like this, he wondered whether he had made the wrong choice.

Still, the truth was already out. There was no taking it back.

Alden slowly stood up.

"Please excuse me, Lady Aurelia. I’ll leave you alone for now."

Aurelia gave a faint nod without lifting her head. Tears kept falling between her fingers.

Alden watched her for another moment, then turned away. She needed time. Time to take in everything she had heard, time to grieve, and time to decide what to do with the truth. He couldn’t decide that for her.

With a quiet sigh he began to walk down the corridor.

He hadn’t gone far when he spoke.

"I have Rai and can sense people around me, so quit hiding and eavesdropping. I already know you’re there."

He didn’t even turn around. He just kept walking past the corner.

And there on the floor, huddled together, were Roselle, Nicholas and Emilia.

All three had tears streaming down their faces. Nicholas sat beside the two girls trying to comfort them, though his own face showed how deeply the truth had hit him.

They had heard everything.

Alden stopped for a moment as he passed them. Emilia lifted her face, wet with tears.

"Why didn’t you tell us, Senior Alden?" Her voice cracked. "Why...?"

Alden stood still. For a moment he said nothing. He didn’t turn around either, then he spoke.

"By the way, Emilia."

She blinked through her tears.

"Since I promised Leon I’d keep you safe, I want you to go to Apothesis. Use my name when you get there. Stay in my dormitory."

All three of them looked up at him.

He started walking again. "That way, you’ll be safe."

Emilia stared at his back with trembling lips. She wanted to ask more and wanted to know why he had kept so much from them, why Leon had suffered in silence, and why none of them had ever known about it. But the words wouldn’t come.

Nicholas put a hand on her shoulder while Roselle lowered her head and her tears fell silently onto the floor.

Alden didn’t look back. He couldn’t give them the answers they wanted, all he could do is just keep moving.

The corridors were much busier by the time Alden reached the area where the surviving soldiers and Spires were resting.

People moved between the temporary shelters. Some carried supplies, others looked after the wounded or talked about the next steps in the war. Even with all the activity, the mood stayed heavy.

As Alden made his way through the crowd, he noticed a familiar woman with silver hair sitting nearby.

Seris.

The moment she saw him she stood up and walked over.

"I didn’t expect them to go as far as banning you from all the discussions."

She fell into step beside him.

"Though, since you haven’t told me anything about the meetings or betrayed humanity, I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised."

Alden heard her but didn’t answer. He kept walking, his face unchanged.

Seris glanced at him and followed along, matching his pace.

"...Are you still mad at me?"

Silence. Alden didn’t even look at her.

Seris studied his face for a moment, then lowered her eyes to his arm. Without warning she reached out and gently took hold of it.

Alden didn’t pull away or jerk his arm free.

Seris noticed, and a small smile appeared on her face.

"You know, you’re pretty obvious."

Alden’s brow twitched.

Seris carried on as if she hadn’t noticed.

"I know you’re under a lot of pressure. There’s the war to worry about, the fact that I’m the real traitor, and Leon’s death... which lies squarely on the shoulders of my kind." Her smile softened. "And even though you’re mad at me, you still can’t bring yourself to push me away completely or sell me out by reporting that I’m the spy, can you?"

She gave his arm a gentle squeeze.

"You’re such a softie when it comes to me."

Before she could finish, Seris rested her head against his shoulder as they kept walking.

Alden kept his face perfectly calm. From the outside it looked like nothing had happened. Inside he was struggling.

’Damn it... Why can’t I just push her away?’

He let out a quiet sigh, but he still didn’t pull his arm free.

"Go away," he muttered. "I hate you."

Seris’s smile grew wider.

"Really? Because no matter how many times you say that..."

She lifted her head a little and looked at him from the corner of her eye.

"I still love yo―"

"Hello, human."

A voice came from behind them.

Alden and Seris both stopped. They turned around almost at the same time.

The moment Alden saw the person standing there, his eyes went wide.

"!?"