Chapter 366 -: 365 Reunion with an old Friend.

Chapter 366: Chapter: 365 Reunion with an old Friend.

"So you’re telling me she healed me?" Julius asked as he took another bite of the meat Rosalina had prepared for him.

The juicy texture practically melted in his mouth, and Julius couldn’t help but chew a little slower as he savored the taste.

"Mm, not bad..." He glanced at Rosalina for a moment. Had she learned how to cook while he was gone?

He couldn’t remember her being this good at it, although considering everything that had happened while he was unconscious, he supposed learning how to cook wasn’t exactly the strangest thing that could have happened.

He didn’t think much of it, however, and instead returned his attention to the pair sitting in front of him.

They were currently inside what appeared to be a small room carved directly into the trunk of a massive tree.

The walls were made entirely of wood, though they had been shaped so smoothly that it almost looked as if the room had been intentionally constructed rather than carved out.

Rosalina was sitting beside Julius, making sure he had everything he needed, occasionally handing him food or water whenever she noticed him reaching for something.

In front of them were the two people Julius had apparently known for quite some time, although only one of them was someone he remembered clearly.

Leon.

’Damn, I still can’t believe it’s him.’

Julius stared at the blond-haired man for a moment longer. Leon wasn’t someone the author had created as part of Crypian’s inner circle or one of the important characters who had received much attention in the original novel.

He was simply this world’s Julius’s friend. From the memories Julius had inherited, he knew that Leon had been the only person Julius could genuinely call a friend. Their friendship hadn’t been particularly dramatic either.

They had simply grown close over the years, sharing conversations, training together, and occasionally getting into trouble.

But seeing him now was still strangely shocking because the last image Julius had of Leon was that of a teenage boy.

The person sitting in front of him now was an adult, his youthful features replaced by the mature and handsome appearance of a grown man. Julius couldn’t help but stare at him for a few seconds before thinking that time really did fly.

"Anyways," Julius muttered, taking another bite, "what shocked me even more is that Sylviana is here."

The shy green-haired girl sitting beside Leon immediately lowered her head further. Julius looked at her with curiosity.

Her green hair fell around her shoulders, and despite having already introduced herself, she still seemed uncomfortable whenever Julius looked directly at her. Apparently, she had realized that he had remembered who she was.

Sylviana.

In the original novel, she became Crypian’s seventh wife.

But things had clearly changed this time.

Not only was she no longer following Crypian around, she had apparently even healed Julius after he had nearly died.

According to Rosalina, if Sylviana hadn’t treated his injuries when they found him, there was a good chance that Julius wouldn’t have survived until now.

That alone was enough to make Julius reconsider the way he viewed her. She had also apparently realized what kind of person Crypian really was and had been trying to repair her relationship with Leon ever since. Unfortunately for her, Leon wasn’t making things easy.

He still loved her.

Julius could tell that much.

But Leon had enough self-respect not to simply accept her because she had finally realized that Crypian was, in Julius’s words, a man who belonged on the streets.

Leon didn’t want to hear that Sylviana had chosen him because he was better than Crypian. He didn’t want to be the second choice she settled for after discovering that her first choice was trash.

So although he hadn’t completely stopped loving her, he continued treating her the same way he always had, refusing to chase after her or give her an easy path back into his life.

’Well, I can understand it. It really is humiliating if I say so myself.’

Julius glanced between the two of them. Leon hadn’t said much since Julius woke up, and Sylviana seemed too nervous to say anything either.

Their relationship was certainly complicated, but Julius wasn’t interested in getting involved. That was their problem, and he had enough problems of his own to deal with.

What surprised him more was how close Rosalina and Sylviana seemed to have become during the time he had been unconscious.

From the way they interacted, Julius would have thought they had known each other for years. Rosalina occasionally spoke to Sylviana in a familiar tone, and Sylviana had apparently started calling her Big Sis.

’Damn.’

Julius looked at Rosalina.

’When did all of this happen?’

"So many things happened while I was unconscious," Julius muttered with a long sigh. He finished the last piece of meat and leaned back slightly.

"But I’m surprised you guys landed directly in the Nightmare Forest. That could have been fortunate, I suppose. If you hadn’t arrived there, I don’t know what would have happened to me."

After finishing his meal, Julius washed his hands. He looked around for something to wipe them with, but before he could find anything, Rosalina casually offered the hem of her clothing.

Julius didn’t think much of it and simply wiped his mouth and hands on it before turning his attention toward Sylviana.

"It’s good that you finally realized Crypian is a hoe," Julius said casually.

"I mean, come on, who would even want a man who has so many women? But I can’t exactly blame you. He has that charm thing that attracts people, doesn’t he? Even back in the academy days, girls would practically flock around him. Meanwhile, they wouldn’t even glance at me despite the fact that I was clearly the handsome one."

Julius placed a hand against his chest and sighed dramatically.

"People have terrible taste these days. I wonder if that was some kind of smut novel."

"What?" Rosalina suddenly interrupted from beside him.

Julius’s body stiffened for a moment.

"Nothing."

"You just said something about a novel."

"I was just wondering why the guy was such a hoe." Julius immediately came up with an excuse, his expression remaining completely serious. "That’s all."

Rosalina narrowed her eyes suspiciously, but Julius quickly turned his attention back toward Sylviana before she could question him further.

"Anyway, thanks," Julius said, his tone becoming more sincere. "If it weren’t for you, I might have died. So from now on, you can call me Big Brother. I don’t have any siblings, so you can call me that and I’ll treat you as one of my own."

Sylviana slowly raised her head. Her green eyes widened slightly, and for a moment she seemed unsure whether Julius was actually serious. After realizing that he was, a small smile appeared on her face.

"T-thank you..." she murmured before hesitating briefly. "Big Brother."

Julius smiled.

"Good."

He then turned toward Leon and studied him for a moment.

"And Leon... you really have grown, huh?"

Leon finally smiled.

He hadn’t spoken much since Julius woke up. In fact, Julius wasn’t even sure whether he had spoken more than a word or two. The man simply sat there and watched him with an expression that Julius couldn’t quite understand.

There was something strange in his eyes, almost as though he were comparing the person sitting in front of him with someone he remembered from a long time ago.

Julius understood why.

The Julius Leon had known was completely different from the one sitting here now.

That Julius had been cold and indifferent, someone who rarely showed emotion and kept almost everyone at a distance.

Even with Leon, the closest person he had to a friend, he hadn’t exactly been the most expressive person in the world.

This Julius, however, was... different.

Goofy, talkative and apparently incapable of keeping his thoughts to himself.

Even though Leon had been told that Julius had changed, knowing something and actually seeing it were two completely different things. Julius could understand why the man was still having trouble processing it.

’Oh well. He’ll get used to it eventually.’

Julius stretched his arms slightly before immediately regretting it when pain shot through his body. He winced and carefully lowered them again.

His body was still far from healed, despite Sylviana’s treatment, and he could feel that even simple movements were enough to remind him just how badly he had been injured.

"By the way, Rose," Julius said, turning toward Rosalina, "is there anywhere I can take a bath?"

Rosalina nodded.

"Yeah. There is."

Julius’s eyes immediately brightened.

"Perfect."

He slowly pushed himself to his feet. He was wearing almost nothing at the moment, with only a piece of cloth wrapped around his waist to cover himself.

Considering the circumstances, Julius supposed that was understandable. After all, there wasn’t much else that needed to be hidden.

He looked down at himself for a moment before shrugging.

"Let’s go."

Rosalina stood up as well and moved toward the door, while Julius followed behind her at a much slower pace.

His body still hurt with every step, but after everything he had gone through, the prospect of finally taking a proper bath was enough to make him feel considerably better.