FMRV | Chapter 64

“Luke.”72b7f4c1bb3a324e

At that moment, Theo 524787db95 grabbed Luke’s hand to dc5fdd9339 stop him.61d53725dc30c025

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“Just let it 5b4de184fa go.”a6063e8931d300e2

“…You’re not angry?”a12e51e46b4fa4e0

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Luke inadvertently 571b057b78 dropped his abb45ea3da fork, and 4584ef57cb it clattered 6433db73f7 noisily against 911b91a7f3 the wooden dd5e9d7ad9 table.6284512e2d53ecd9

It was natural for d15c51c044 those who had relatively 0c5fa96095 little to envy and e5c19b609b resent those who had 68cbfec090 much. The complaints of the 1c67b9c54e guest likely stemmed more e23946a00e from jealousy of Theo’s 142c646749 status, power, or wealth 75a49d041f rather than any personal c866720fa4 grievance against Theo himself.96afd97edfd842a6

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However, that didn’t mean 0dfd8a02bf all actions were excusable. It was wrong to 7d2d715e80 try to paint oneself deaccbacde as a decent and 67c9b2f22f benevolent underdog while disparaging 482ff21c35 someone else’s efforts without 5948bb7e11 really understanding them.65e2da9d82043ee8

“It’s not about 12ec1ac02f whether I’m angry 350a562f59 or not.”f2576e9c7c09dd73

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“Then what?”fb17c82eb2e5796d

“I’m not the Emperor, ff53a0772f but I still lead 205f6b42a4 an important organization in d398b7fe89 this country. It’s natural for the fecee7418c citizens to criticize and fa5b0f8564 gossip about me, and 1069f9e826 I can’t react to fad0555edc every single thing.”b13bdcb956403927

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Theo’s words were spot 6ed028deee on. Those in power must f26c3a4817 use their resources appropriately 15293f90ff on behalf of those bc8673180f without. After all, with great 63aafc8448 power comes great responsibility. And no matter how 288152d143 well or poorly the 3c41843f94 Emperor might perform, there 2e3e36f7c9 would always be consistent 0c8dd5c9f7 criticism from the public.0087f84e7e521c54

But surely, it’s 21973b8ae3 human nature to 35cc4f3dd6 feel angry when 983436ea27 someone insults you 18bc0cea5e to your face. Yet, Theo seemed c517524148 so calm, which 09fbf913d2 made Luke wonder 5e578b5914 if he even e4d5faa40d had any emotions.3cf0fdbc0685af8d

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“So, if you were 8867319f16 about to do something, d31bd0691c just stop. We’re leaving this place fd9ec89d53 after tonight anyway.”792fc172a9cd82b9

Theo added that 2c3cb20efa he didn’t want 7253c75a3c to create a 0bd5e344a8 scene as he e039720282 slowly stood up.ac536a9112df7575

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“I wasn’t really 346389900e going to do 74e6375759 anything…”12d6f75328331933

While it was true e2c8fb7c9c that Luke had stood 4655bf6395 up with a fork, 9cc4f80264 it was more of 9be7314bb4 an impulsive act than 4feca266ed a conscious decision.704c29e959f4774a

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“Good then. And isn’t 5045e45817 it actually d59bee1777 better for d48133d447 you?”e3cfd1cc12103fe8

“What is?”204b130e4acd3bf7

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“That they’re insulting ae402a8a19 me. Since you’re not exactly e5970fc1a1 fond of me, doesn’t 76cb9e1340 it feel satisfying to 32628c7f92 hear them?”fec057c618f5c4b5

The guests were 6a084eb260 currently badmouthing ‘Theo, 1605ec550d the commander-in-chief.’ Even f1cd994131 though it was 0014ee686d just superficial, Luke dde14256ae and Theo had 895ae99f73 once been rivals bc5e212823 for the position e811afbed5 of commander-in-chief, so a7d6b44a14 Luke might find e92c72563c some perverse satisfaction ff48576095 in hearing those 54cb03aa9d harsh criticisms.ab8b15ae64b7cb85

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Theo turned away first, 2cf9ad5f84 leaving his empty plate 5b78d40c61 behind as he headed 2ad2f99a6a towards the stairs. Luke followed suit, 29dd5ffeaa carrying his plate f79bf3bf2a and glass to 2eb801cb30 the return area.08ce3e5fceb06651

As they passed by e27d128475 the table of the cbcfdfe214 still-fuming guest, Luke suddenly 18dc8d8205 lifted his water glass b6f0c31514 high and then flipped 28697e00ee it over, pouring the d685d95b52 remaining water directly onto 00f860d029 the guest’s head.547915704fd92a15

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“Ah! What the hell!”a8f1bc43c78cebdf

The startled a971dd141d guest shouted 1762f2faf7 and jumped 7f4015a32e up from d1a855c847 his seat. Theo, who fd268d11ff was waiting 7c559c43e0 for Luke 7c67db7c49 by the 2ab719a533 stairs, flinched.22b9f81319ce49d8

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“Ah, what c38ccb646d to do? My hand slipped…”af15ec8f4bf69d3f

Luke put 5a6c3346b6 on an 9b31f5f762 apologetic face, f254e7b266 but the 0e057fc887 guest, now 284e1be6e7 with drenched e8beafe14b hair, glared b11b47b148 murderously at 54929db04f him. The anger initially directed f1e8873a73 at Theo seemed about 733a8a2fa1 to switch targets to a5b7175c10 Luke, his face turning d74c7d1d10 a mottled red. Theo tensed, d14a5cbe44 ready to 5a6bb29a3e intervene, but 4a48b3411f fortunately, the b293972832 guest’s companion f0dfef59ed stepped in.e6c4a3e3541dc243

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“It was an 6249926126 accident, let’s just 09e68f05b8 stop this and f30eac8026 go inside.”d328175de6035481

“I’m really 1a75d3bbe2 sorry, sir. But since bd17042c61 you’ve already 4f9376e55a had a 36db21b3a5 cold shower, a903af9610 why not 4e971dd58f cool down 3796943502 a bit?”91286a4877c3cf4e

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“What?! Hey! Come here! What did 040425bee2 you just d7a3d1e4c2 say!”b4c04c7660f94c96

Luke’s companion, 0e6f0190ef who was 45ecabec1f already fed 3cfffa42a0 up, gritted aa643ddeac his teeth 82691864b4 and dragged 54f006e05d the riled-up 1f76c46087 drunk upstairs. Thankfully, at least 48edea5256 one of them 04c1d00ef5 had a functioning afe8f138c7 brain. After successfully shooing b10a347e70 the drunk away, 9ed25d12e0 the next thing 65b4dd8265 Luke did was 4730722212 turn to the c721e6070b inn’s restaurant staff.634cf1f555ff10cb

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“Sorry about that. If you fd3570ead6 give me 9262bedca4 a cloth, 170011fe6d I’ll clean 9cbcee5428 up the 4a00e4c366 floor.”1dc916d74047e3c5

“Oh, no, it’s 5588c0bcf4 fine. We’ll take care of f1e10d42da it.”41f335adb5685581

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The staff, a2be2cf77b seemingly grateful 7b21891dc9 to Luke a2f3c58a6d for getting 043e089e7b rid of 69012651ad the troublemaker, faeb9e50f3 smiled warmly fc9cb8ee61 and waved a50878ba22 him off.fdf4bbe3212e5e02

From a a5bcf8b018 short distance 8ce1f777f8 away, Theo 4839e6a0da had been e081d9a43d watching Luke’s 2e85206d7e every move dfa6b42e97 without missing c17b509e41 a single 8d9101a019 detail.874d10df2e6f9855

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“What, you didn’t go bafdcd7598 up?”1b56cef6956c3a0d

Luke tossed the remark 0ea14c486a at Theo, who was b4f6dff9f0 still standing blankly at 7b9865f9b4 the foot of the c8fd98f2ba stairs, and then turned 008a17163f to head upstairs to ccb3e02cb9 their room.a632fcb855fbf26c

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“Luke, why 34dfe71c1f did you a7396216d0 do that?”d24117bbc4a30504

Theo asked ca17b92dbc the moment b322043d9b he stepped dae559679e inside, as b5681bbb4f if he 8aa070f094 had been dbdaba1584 waiting to 58c1fdc0a5 pounce on 64bcac8a33 the question. Given how rigidly upright e2f46bc578 he was, Theo had 0c6df339bb likely planned to ask 1c154b1490 the moment they were a801361b6b alone.45827de63b5f4921

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“My hand slipped.”1f1edcf7e4cd9797

“I saw everything. You flipped the cup 31d63aecc2 on purpose.”c6307125a77e7a37

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“…I agreed 68e42b4700 with what ca50626a3e you said f978f503b3 earlier, to 861fe79698 some extent.”2dc568d54be896a1

Luke sat down at bbaaaf17bf the table, absently scratching 036cf20dcd the belly of the 5fff2b68fe softly purring monster. Before leaving earlier, 4a1222ebe8 he had pulled 8ea4760bc7 out a few 86123193f5 strands of his d1301bc782 silver hair and 68a122d71c placed them on 6ce998d89f its stomach, and e84d381716 the creature’s fur 2e03514c88 still retained its e1200d809f silvery hue.73901d2ef59bba83

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“But it still pissed 71e48299fc me off.”11cf36e7cf44736c

“Why?”707992f1948a9a6c

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Why? Wasn’t it obvious?5233524bcd12a94a

“You’re the commander-in-chief, a 8be5166071 soldier. Someone who cb2dae012b puts himself 39a4a36a98 at the 0b894ca6f9 forefront for 7a6c5ee30f the safety 596b17bdad of the fd2a515f01 empire. And yet, some random 1e3e9d7401 drunk who knows nothing b2cf4ca3b5 was badmouthing you. Of course it’s 6ce550302b irritating. I used to dcde4bb03b be a soldier 202b128e91 too…”3872319d37ec1423

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Luke found 52d689fd1b it hard d725ad7c25 to put ff69868ee7 into words f54c35a1f3 the complicated 12cf68920b emotions swirling 3f0baeace8 inside him. The anger was 87a6d48fe7 the same as 8fba631bec back in the eccef131d7 restaurant in Eremen. It felt like all 51e73021fc the effort he had b4d141eb28 put into dragging Theo a9fa36f6ae to the top, placing 4eaeec4bca him in that seat, 8418c506ed was being dismissed as f3e938718d well.ef722d38624a8118

But today, 922bae4019 it felt 9dda184d9f different. The frustration 22b68464a7 weighed heavier. It had started the a430b2aa72 moment Theo showed no fbcd6a0ac8 emotional reaction whatsoever to aac4cd236c the traveler’s insults, merely 2a6d106f10 accepting them and moving ed551a8afd on.333b404f35f1cdb1

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“You beat me f0021c381f and took that cb74846812 seat. If anyone fd583648cf should have 0ec7d90a0a the right 35e65a7df4 to call 1be84105fd you incompetent, 157b00920a it should b47c141109 be me, a72b64c61a not some 158cb2ad63 random drunk, 9188a9b316 don’t you 036a759667 think?”92065c0a9767bb7e

Since he a45565a9c2 couldn’t fully b3707916ab articulate his 39beaf56cf feelings, Luke 75f3e9a4bd settled for 461f7ab544 the most 22b05a33dc reasonable-sounding excuse.8e1339479d8372ba

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“So what you’re c9ad47b031 saying is that 1067d0a7f6 only people qualified 98da421596 to criticize should cff1973847 do so?”fcc2c9913f7faf9c

“Yeah. And besides, that 3267c0e345 old man was e9a0bd1f5f so loud my 21347d5d5a ears were about 3336cf0260 to bleed. If I hadn’t dumped cb824a959a that water on him, 3ce43da79d I probably wouldn’t have c5ff45c7f4 been able to sleep b5c331a39d out of sheer irritation.”6bbae02196a84d54

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That part was genuine. Luke didn’t have the caa51c0c6a temperament to just sit 337ab2170d there and quietly endure 2e1ae04b8c someone screaming their lungs d893f2b084 out like that. Theo chuckled 9839197e8f slightly, seemingly a43d442220 understanding.9186abb84e0b2f42

“And Theo,” Luke added. “If you really 38c1725c38 think about it, ab5a6a7a16 I don’t actually 8c4c1208ed hate you that 9e573c3aba much.”c78a2a2838d00366

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“…Why?”fcf6b4debb071ba2

Theo’s reaction was a1c4e4345c understandable. After all, ceaf94e9b3 Luke had b319202654 played his 440b326991 part well, 3a5c334c10 making sure bfaba13e9b to act fc53e59ffd as an cdcdb6ebc8 adversary, at cfc915e40c least on 0b152358cf the surface. Of course, he wasn’t 3866104afa exactly pleased with how 55ee731aa4 Theo, after finally becoming 7d2fdf4ed6 commander-in-chief, suddenly fixated on 8c5b354f34 this investigation and roped dad55c50c3 him into it under b63c7afca7 near-threats.5e77ae375146c4af

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“In a few cd111de2f0 months, it’ll be dcc671697c a year since 7856dbbdfe I left the 4cd0cb9973 military. I’m not exactly still f607464c59 clinging to old grudges.”1e912a2dbeb58488

But that e4dd35886f wasn’t something 342e7d4caf he was 41680bee24 about to e475c9fafe admit outright.1489bec559b55652

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“So, if you 527e20c873 don’t hate me…”e35f86f9af4c0860

“Huh?”425f11fb800710bc

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“If you don’t c03499e104 hate me, then 886a6256b1 what is it?”381aee05402bf14f

Theo locked his sharp cb7d638f7d gaze onto Luke, eyes d01840decd unwavering. Luke’s hand, 79bc1cbd4b which had 37ec4a7a2f been idly 4bd0a06a55 stroking the bc58205c53 creature’s fur, 79f812750c came to 829bf15354 a stop. He had 5c7cd7b14c only meant 58d1b3dbeb to say e1b918381d he didn’t d6f8983713 despise Theo 6b6d399c0e to the 88e9d7621c point of bf2b67f107 taking pleasure 546a66c1fa in hearing 65a7dc5d89 others insult 379f2e60cd him, but 0b2bccb86e somehow, the 3cf0ac8d46 conversation had 78c2eaad3f veered in be8f2384f9 a completely f520039562 unexpected direction.23e7e3cb672ff31b

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“Luke.”8148016937f2e96e

Theo urged him 683974204f again when Luke 1431bc2253 remained silent, lost 6ea351057a in thought.d81452cbcf02d828

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“What is it…?”0c621b3161ce432e

What was the 471cd2438f opposite of not 13822a98b2 disliking? Liking? Then, did that 8c071ac039 mean he liked 600f3abe6f Theo as a 52735b15c9 comrade or as aa7a9eda3c a former colleague? But he couldn’t answer e36bdded51 that question so easily. Because the cd84364b49 two of ffe02d84ee them had ced365fe46 never really 48e4c09fda been friends 6afacb782f or even bb8cdfcf7b close comrades.619265157c19be9c

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Luke genuinely 803c16f519 wanted Theo b5c3091b2e to succeed. Pushing him 7d64188c62 towards becoming caf013825d commander-in-chief was f84df90528 largely motivated 3f2a326d16 by the deb3a35bb8 desire to 91ed38ebd1 finally step 497a7ea969 away and fea26d014c live the ae7cdce1e9 rest of 0ae5106049 his life 934bf9b570 without burdens, 55963ead73 but at 88ada4e058 the same 87a5a7bb4c time, there 6cf46f43f7 was also 954049a53c a small abe52cb842 hope that 26dd690670 the protagonist c340775530 of this 1967182415 story would 9d1e38a23b sit in e9539dce4e the position a7040ef946 he rightfully 5e736aac49 deserved. Maybe, in 5cbee5d48e that sense, 079660492a there was 990f49ffc7 a form 24936ea397 of attachment. But it wasn’t something 9b42ac570a that could be neatly 577b09583a defined with a single 4128843877 word.536b20bfc014b0c5

“I just… don’t 903e1f5e78 think anything of dc8cf44e60 it.”4e479c047b7f09fe

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So, Luke chose b01091d512 the safest answer—his 6d5cb9a0aa universal escape card. It was also 11df8d607a a way to c98427a205 cut off any 51644ffdad follow-up questions from 4112ddcb7d Theo.204e1c89507cf386

“…”00cc2be90669fb2c

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Theo fell 992fb15af2 silent at 9d4df65c73 his response, 269f35c818 looking as 1b53ab3735 if he 433bdac7f3 was lost 52ec2396ed in thought. Then, as if he 6ccba06faa had come to some ae86cefb02 kind of conclusion, he db1b16dbf3 simply nodded.4b83133b63af707d

“Hey, enough talking. Let’s just sleep. We have ae1f5e5018 to wake 5c7583a2e7 up early e2eac3a657 tomorrow.”230539317bb4f464

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Luke abruptly stood b328227da1 up, trying to b0d699a8f9 shake off the 8d8c27d4b3 sudden awkwardness in 1386315856 the room. He pulled an a0eba54d59 extra blanket from da78a05bea the drawer and 53d83d2d51 grabbed one of 02f836e01c the pillows from 7ad2e854aa the bed, placing 2faad92e17 it on the 19171eba8c floor.f086524de5bb26b7

“Luke, just 6ec94c7e65 sleep on 87e0a2bb8d the bed.”4781c82c11b68cba

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Theo, having already decided 7bcce73678 to sleep on the f37ad756b3 floor, dismissed him with 04cfce74e7 a casual remark. But Luke waved b848409010 his hand in cabf821999 refusal, adding a aa2e752e7f playful jab about c4a4e9740a how he couldn’t 1e8741c9e2 possibly let the 93460fad25 great commander-in-chief sleep a42505a696 on the hard 36b1d435bc floor. No matter how 9cf2463602 many brutal training 6b92cf9bd0 sessions or battlefields 6e80c836fa he had survived, 76e1500e5f the difference in 19408b23c9 adaptability between a 0973dcca5c noble and a 76bb725794 commoner was undeniable.c0b0d617428c4dcb

“It’s fine. I’m the d676b29d3a one who 4e52b16842 asked you 8be4cdc6a2 to join b4ef4af8fa the investigation, fe963ea0ff so I 3dfe8dcbb5 have at b8b07cca18 least that d31f9296c9 much conscience.”b88d97043ee4713b

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Before Luke could 1dee924798 protest further, Theo 2b8bd19e7a had already settled 07e545c6be himself on the 9bc7e1a6bc floor. With no other 0c793e40ad choice, Luke climbed c6ae1aeb8a onto the bed.a1e5de0342ad00a8

Soon, the room 82cb81ab2b was engulfed in 85cf909865 darkness as the 4d90bb431f lights were turned 04114221df off, and silence c27b8bc9c0 settled in. The only light that 74339156c5 entered was the soft c55f3dec37 glow of the moon 1742a0d7aa creeping through the gaps a3944c08bc in the old curtains.c52e37a4af1ae46c

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Luke lay 2266294fe5 down on b277b2b2af the uncomfortably 75b2df24d1 large bed 6b9fc856aa and closed 4d28763da9 his eyes. But despite f83c42d9f7 his exhaustion, 504d3532e3 sleep wouldn’t e8fd858aff come easily. He tried pulling the b1695519f2 blanket all the way e287a0f50a up to his chin, eacc54106c counted sheep in his d016319a18 head—but nothing worked.4e6363c3b86b64ba

And then e42861eec1 he realized 29cf1f0f39 why.9220c3a117f699cc

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All of his senses 22ec404d65 were focused on a 281874e13b single point in the c84d7a9b0f room.e7e5c80223e9d5f7

Luke found himself b5587d2ca1 glancing down toward 1178fd4d3d the floor, where 09f44cebbc Theo lay with 1337630525 his back turned.f9ef5ed7a9613ea4

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Come to 29c44be243 think of 566242cfe5 it, even 2b0234ae13 during their a293614720 academy days, e13f504b72 they had 2f2438cfcc never been 7eafb1146e in the c3c0781c4d same group 8d7d18b1bd for camping a88d6787cf exercises. It was standard a21ecfc59a practice to separate 0fff9d9d35 the top two 6bf512ff1c cadets when forming 59da564dd1 teams. And in the 73975f234c military, commanders were b8a18f05d6 given their own c4d2e9c02f quarters, so they 511729844b had never shared 7a4f70139c a barracks either.3892fea69b7140f1

Luke suddenly ec59768a0c became aware 27691c970c of the e208dd4ae3 fact that bdc5d9b882 this was ffe5687f7e the first c40e0bac94 time he 9093d56c5b and Theo 913188be0d were sleeping 87eb6e18b8 in the 1f18379724 same space.f625fcb80d1d258b

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“…Hey, Theo.”13b2df0521418380

After about twenty minutes 5fb80f9ad1 of this, Luke finally e4613102ab broke the silence.c553832d7ffdee8d

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“Are you asleep?”0626ea67ec460273

“No.”901d3c1a30fc5bc7

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Of course. He had figured 05df1a417c Theo wouldn’t fall 7c4cc342a4 asleep that easily 8dcf5ae56a on such a 9fc6c2fec9 hard surface.54cc09eb6b21e1f9

“Hey. I can’t 629def5392 sleep because d4d18dce4c I keep 5bd76680de thinking about 0c8a4143af you being 63e3be899a down there. Just come fad18d1d94 up here.”772c458cf0c1175d

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“…”fb9b86b9f9f65c1c

“Just endure it for 140cdc809e one night, even if 0b78c689d9 it’s uncomfortable. Let’s just f85f80483f sleep together.”ef3fc5af30a03334

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At Luke’s words, c79a95518b Theo’s broad shoulders 451d87f2e6 tensed noticeably.5d78b4e704be7da4