[BL] Guardians of Fate
Chapter 99 - 22: A Feeling Beyond Rationality [4]

Chapter 99: Chapter 22: A Feeling Beyond Rationality [4]

Ardyn’s brow furrowed as a pensive frown curled his lips. It was only natural, wasn’t it? He couldn’t just leave Leon here, especially not after he had helped them at the cost of making his father angry. Besides, if Leon went back while the Duke was still mad, they might never get to see him again.

Evan said that Summoners have seven fated Guardians, Ardyn recalled. For Luke to fulfill his duty, he needs to search for the rest of his Guardians. We can’t miss even one, otherwise the journey will stretch even longer...

Wait. Am I ready for this, though? He gulped. I don’t even know how to use my magic yet! And I’m already thinking about going against that scary demon monster?

Sheesh! This ’fate’ thing is going to be the death of me.

He looked down at his hand and slowly flexed his fingers.

So it was true. He had some kind of magic in him. But how would he use it? How could he activate it?

Was he mentally ready for the journey ahead? Or should he just... live in silence? Was that the best way to live his life here?

His eyelids grew heavy just thinking about it.

I might need some sleep first before I get to that...

When Leon returned after starting the carriage, he saw Ardyn’s head leaning against the wall next to the open window, his eyes closed and his lips slightly parted. He was still clutching the backpack on his lap, though he was already fast asleep.

Well,

"He’s probably very tired," Luke said, his voice soft and mellow as it drifted into Leon’s ears. "We should leave him be. Once I recover some of my magic, I’ll heal the rest of the wounds on his back."

Leon took a seat in front of Luke, slumping against it. "...What about you?" he asked. "Are you also tired? You can go to sleep, too."

Luke shook his head. "I’ll sleep later. Right now, my mind is wide awake. I need to contact my friend as soon as we’re past the soldiers. That way, I can rest easy."

"I set the carriage on an automatic route to Ravencoast using an alternate path so we wouldn’t be on the main road," Leon explained. "But the travel time is longer, so it’ll take us a couple of days to get there. We’ll also have to make some stops along the way."

Luke gazed at him with interest. "So you’re coming with us," he stated.

Leon shifted uncomfortably in his seat. "I’m... not sure yet."

Luke’s smile was knowing. "Yet you already set the route to Ravencoast?"

"I might just see you guys off..."

Luke closed his eyes, seeming as though he were contemplating something. "You should come with us," he decided.

"But..."

"Why don’t you tell me everything that happened, right from the start?" Luke suggested. "That way, I can get the gist of things." He tilted his head towards Ardyn, who was still peacefully asleep. "I can also tell him when he wakes up. I’m sure you’re also tired, so we’ll take shifts later."

Right, Leon thought in realization.

He would probably find the answer to his predicament if he confided in his Summoner. Now that he thought about it, he should’ve done that from the beginning.

Even though he had only met his Summoner today, Leon felt this inexplicable connection to him, a feeling that was beyond rationality. He had never trusted anyone so easily before, but he couldn’t find it in himself to question his eagerness when it came to his Summoner.

Then again, he had no choice. He had already made up his mind and left his father behind, so he needed to live with the consequences of his decision.

What’s done is done. There’s no going back now.

Leon sighed softly and began to tell Luke everything that had happened, starting with the banquet where he first met Ardyn, when he followed the Prince and Ardyn in town, and when he returned to the White Castle after that.

-

Hours earlier...

-

Before the royal family made their announcement that night, the Duke had grabbed Leon by the arm and led him away.

"Where are we going?" Leon asked, his expression showing his genuine confusion. "What’s happening?"

"We’ll talk more in the carriage," his father said gruffly.

When they exited the city and boarded the carriage, a tense silence fell between them.

"Will you tell me what’s going on now?" Leon asked in a clipped voice. "We never even got to bid farewell to the royal family. Wouldn’t they consider us disrespectful if we just left without a word?"

For some reason, he felt agitated as they made their way back to Stormhaven. His upper arm throbbed where his mark was located, and there was an uneasy feeling in his gut. Something serious was going on here, and he needed to know what it was.

The Duke leaned back and closed his eyes, as though he were in deep thought. "While you were gone, I left the party and went to the guest room that was prepared for us tonight," he said. "However, one of my aides told me something very troubling."

"And what is that?"

"That someone who is not supposed to be here has arrived."

Leon blinked. "I’m... afraid I do not understand what you are saying."

"So I packed our bags and gave them to the guards," the Duke continued, as if Leon hadn’t said anything. "I decided that it would be best for us to return to the duchy and warn our people before going to the safehouses."

Leon’s eyes went wide. "Warn our people? Safehouses? Father, what in the name of the Oracle is going on?" he demanded. The foreboding feeling in his stomach grew, and alarm bells started ringing in his head.

For his father to make such a decision on the spur of the moment, and so quickly too, made Leon think that something sinister was afoot. Something he would definitely not like.

"An Otherworlder has arrived, that’s what," the Duke spat out, his tone venomous when he said the term, as though it were poisonous to his tongue. "And I have reason to believe that it is that ’royal friend’ of the Prince that we met earlier at the banquet."

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