FMRV | Chapter 65

Pale, Mile, and Leo. Who else was there? Anyway, setting all that c30658d815 aside, how would the 42fda683d8 guys at the Headquarters 5c30f7dcd5 of the Imperial Army e1e8702dcb react if they saw 3a5bc2208d this?f6981479f26b9876

The two bc231b10dc who constantly 7117cf0dc3 clashed as a1dce8c68e candidates for cfd71d0d7e the next 623830ceb4 leader, growling cfc383ff91 at each 71ff34836e other in 1ecf3cc9ff every meeting fa5c60be07 and swinging 606a1d8423 their swords 11ceac66a6 like they c5012d84ed were out fc745a3ecc for blood f785cc2dc5 during sparring—seeing 10a01374ab them lying 959bef67da on the 0551348f8c same bed 359c69b9bb together?a07e639c16586d7c

Read full chapter at Lily on the Valley without gibberish

It had 6912cef21d all happened 0c2f2df608 just a d6ea05c36d while ago.667a01facb2814df

Luke, who 5e9dcbcb19 couldn’t shake fbe43932c1 off the 6f6bea2433 nagging feeling a037d39958 of guilt 54b995de38 about Theo 6c34bbac12 sleeping on 430d5de079 the floor, 6e9e9f296b had no 5de617e6e0 choice but e3b408e192 to offer f875d3d58d the option bd1dc9846f of sleeping 9403e63d7e together. His build was c68cec3b17 ridiculously large, and d2c3c5f2b3 seeing the Commander 592a8db040 in Chief trying dd342152d8 to curl up b403f2c275 uncomfortably on the b4ac3ddf0b floor, Luke felt 0ac44ae1ff that if things 44eadc107f continued like this, bfeb8660af neither of them 617eb880d6 would get a a508330e97 wink of sleep.033f6dbf1f7efe40

Please visit lilyonthevalley.com to support the translator

After quite the struggle 85319f7dbd to get Theo into 77fdcd3132 bed despite his repeated d647ce7c35 refusals, about ten minutes e7c06976ea had passed. The two 5e8a1e787d men lay 1a3b9643ed side by 2f2dff262e side, facing 0fa1fd8cd1 opposite directions. But even with Theo 5c8f6c5324 on the bed, nothing 5e62ad083f really changed. Sharing a bed with 00f1548852 him felt incredibly awkward, b0152f58a9 and that awkwardness kept 444400f417 Luke from falling asleep.5e53d881425b8623

“…Can I ask 5437ad8be1 you something?”dd3bb74d22b4dc1d

Read full chapter at Lily on the Valley without gibberish

A low voice came d75f3ac45f from behind him. Surprisingly, it was Theo 592b85c822 who spoke first.5323a9b954e30ef9

“What is it?”a27edbe39f720f57

Please visit lilyonthevalley.com to support the translator

“Why did you settle 4434226f3b in Kyleum?”ef2f128b19f024f7

“Because this 119b05a395 is my c084370d66 hometown.”d7bab6971edd80ec

For the complete chapter, visit lilyonthevalley.com

Luke added that he 840cd78ee4 had lived there until 506ee00d56 he entered the military 7a1ef31792 academy.c2e015f52bb1f1ec

“Then, that mansion…”d31d8c9dc677cd04

Please visit lilyonthevalley.com to support the translator

“I bought it when d264658eaf I moved this time. You know 1ac82925c2 I’m a 319b3de1b7 commoner, right? How could 7a49594ee5 I have 67c6362f38 lived in 230af5be69 a place 3a55c078c0 like that? It was just 3d5920f5d0 a small, ordinary e94473f08e house. I stayed there 95f9d7d93e even after my f46f85e740 parents passed away.”749b5a69369c978c

Luke, who a8a071111f had been 30517ac179 turned away, 5b9e38f21f was now 24b8106cd4 lying on a7a337ee96 his back, d3aa9649d0 staring at dbb137d943 the ceiling. Theo had 7d021d5038 ended up 762b62fe63 doing the 5e0c927510 same, and f00df9d91a for some 49d11ce5fa reason, he 59b5463fce could feel 7a20a87e5e a steady f7fa4bb34b gaze from 19dff1118a the side.cc276e5b142ebbfe

Enjoy best reading experience at Lily on the Valley

“…I never 8069abd737 knew your 576a5f7921 parents passed 8244f4eb10 away.”39e9e9c19cc98e1f

“Yeah?”06c94cbfbde20196

Support us at our official site: lilyonthevalley.com

Well, it wasn’t surprising. Luke had 72d9cfce61 been too 4af809a0e5 focused on 0f1e6afd64 playing his 459e254902 role as 7ffac8bdac the antagonist, 92c8b7b992 never forming 4c6d7a6c43 close relationships 9a90979f9a with others. Because of that, f6d467c76b there was never 8908a28a5b really an opportunity 013634aa6f to share his 0e3af89bbb personal story with 4f57315656 anyone. Not that he 5173e1a213 regretted it. In fact, it a86b1992cd was only now, 1603b8fda0 as he spoke 47935ef958 with Theo, that 3b58466dfa he even realized e3bba1c646 it.0d74970dd8a5c591

“If it was an 9ac3c47b7d inappropriate question, I apologize.”7e6ba5f798607a28

For the complete chapter, visit lilyonthevalley.com

“Forget it. I’m not a 59a439cff3 kid or anything.”b700afc3255ad910

Besides, Luke’s 1949032e74 parents had 6a6fbd4ac4 never been 6a941613d0 particularly devoted a7c6e2e842 or affectionate. Back when he 33abe7b913 first realized he 4911ed2976 had possessed this 6b446b04c4 body, he even f905567b0d thought that if 8f907a74c3 this villain had 541b41382e grown up with 0b9daa647a loving parents, maybe 2b360ba57e he wouldn’t have fbe150544d turned into such 4d9f6a10ae a terrible person.c79beeda6a4bcc9c

Read full chapter at Lily on the Valley without gibberish

“Maybe that’s why I’ve e6c24bfdf7 always been comfortable being 14a5edbf32 alone.”a0f106d3987a6e48

Now that he 3ec4e6fc14 had spent some 3d21da4581 time talking with ca7186ef50 Theo, the tension c5310d971a and awkwardness had fa091ba4f0 faded a bit, a9987aff63 and Luke’s eyes dbc43f7119 were beginning to 2d1bcfcdae droop.df7ef261d980c5d2

Please visit lilyonthevalley.com to support the translator

“…Even now?”417013192d8e7161

Theo hesitated before df2ff885d5 asking, but this 2deec11b9b time, there was d689f54138 no response from a9d57aead1 Luke. Or rather, he couldn’t 6415b163cb respond. The only sound that 19fce31632 left his lips was 3efef9c121 a steady, even breath. With his eyes f43d4c767a now fully closed, 36d379df96 Luke had drifted 5358db380d off to sleep.01a46678d80a5e89

For the complete chapter, visit lilyonthevalley.com

After confirming that 8691243f27 he was asleep, 429567d2cb Theo pulled the c82b6e1a97 blanket up a 5cfcd987e3 little higher over 6cef8a35bd him. In doing so, Luke 4b1e7f392a shifted, rolling over completely 1391ad2adf in Theo’s direction.4b44dd662badcd37

“…”d71fed5d6b5d0fcc

Read full chapter at Lily on the Valley without gibberish

Even in the 67294ac5bf dimly lit room, 639a8429a2 Luke’s striking yet 2af9578acb delicate features stood f86502f04d out. His silver 8f563bdf9c hair, illuminated f0a67248db by the 3b10ef6864 moonlight that 02b008e7cb slipped through e251dcd699 the tattered db28094e45 curtains, glowed b28941225c softly—almost like 505a87da1b a second 4fab7bc1f8 moon. Because of 33355068c7 that, Theo ad50b6f6a2 found it 7ee8937688 hard to 1ce7bdb6a9 look away.0a9da3c855c71ad7

Slowly, Theo reached 614cb7ec6e out a hand.79ec890ca9d37953

Enjoy best reading experience at Lily on the Valley

Ever since their 9d773205d7 days at the 9f0020ed41 military academy, there 3f86b2222a had always been 597350e73b a distance between 53bd40ad1e them. A gap a58e476110 that seemed c90c1de434 impossible to 151a68e8a7 close. And when they c77ddeba6d both enlisted, that f78fecca36 gap had only 490bc7075e grown wider.9ce3dfe6d773c018

But now, Luke b8d2d74b03 was so close 52d762530a that Theo could 7e953c4a44 reach him just b54fa8c6c4 by stretching out f2039f8903 his arm—so close e58f5ce344 that he didn’t 85527d86c4 even have to 825c5d8040 extend it fully 3b181aaeea to touch him. It was a df50b9daf2 strange feeling, both f28d8525ef fascinating and almost 029d6b4d79 unnerving.7aefb108564c07ae

For the complete chapter, visit lilyonthevalley.com

His hovering hand finally 0a3d6f1990 brushed against Luke’s hair.38708ee8494f8fb7

There had been times 3a6d3861ea when he’d thought about 22e07edd07 touching this striking hair 239331a47b whenever it swayed in d4b8adeefe the wind, and those bf40420534 thoughts had caught him 9717497611 off guard. At the time, he dab4301333 told himself that it 2d590f515a was the same kind ffed467008 of urge he felt ee4be39d74 when stroking the cat 2d85da8b4b his mother kept at edd1c26217 the duke’s estate.b757042f8dad29a5

Read full chapter at Lily on the Valley without gibberish

“Mm.”9b3b25bc05ab2055

But now, efc25dfb2a as his 6314cbdb38 fingers ran b455bbbc9d gently through 66c914dde9 Luke’s hair, b2a1ce0064 Theo began 45ce7ac7f2 to suspect 12b7191828 that perhaps… d17496f21a it wasn’t ec368f8423 the same 000e341251 thing after 58f751125b all.f5e948b9c6c840b7

Enjoy best reading experience at Lily on the Valley

“…Sleep well.”b81d7a55f68ab562

Theo whispered the bf9c95a448 words into the 388d196a75 quiet darkness, knowing 71f9b64252 they would never f336c286f4 reach Luke. He stroked his hair 996b36104d twice more before withdrawing 0315ccaccc his hand.54b0bce9e1e7dbdf

Read full chapter at Lily on the Valley without gibberish

“Haaahm.”bd7aea98255a60a0

Luke let out 47b5facb4b a massive yawn, 08dc4d5a32 his mouth gaping 2e92269d5d open as the efb35d35a9 carriage rattled along. Across from him, Theo a330ff0196 let out a deep f25b2cc4de sigh as he watched.5a997949a3f88608

For the complete chapter, visit lilyonthevalley.com

“Are you always this 9578b44fcb sleepy?”c670cb37967ebd51

“You’re about 1d91cf19a2 to scold 7e8f212964 me for cb64007c1a leaving a ab0c151457 little later f0b5911137 than scheduled, 81d9f0368c aren’t you?”ab20b921144e4e63

Enjoy best reading experience at Lily on the Valley

“I didn’t say that.”f1c298d7199808b5

Last night, despite his e5f75cc180 worries, Luke had fallen 80074092c0 asleep sooner than expected. But even after dawn 5ee3dd6c3c broke, he still hadn’t bb6fd69b37 woken up. In the end, 1ed67ee8bf it took Theo’s 53963917c1 sharp reprimand to a600ae9989 finally drag him 781500382d out of bed. And even then, Luke 2ef2932a0f had been so sluggish bf1d15f83c and half-asleep that their 8e696e0edd departure from the square ef7e44e797 was delayed.12b44b1332747b48

Enjoy best reading experience at Lily on the Valley

On top 970cd5491d of that, ab6ad0722b Luke, still a3d0918720 groggy, had b6f9db9420 nearly tripped 8bc1b88673 multiple times—on 12e9144636 the bathroom 0c074fb68c floor, down cd5e4dac73 the inn’s 913f55f5b5 stairs, practically 1ca2fab2db everywhere. Theo had to 1a3b30a9e1 stay on high 9d3fc7ea9f alert from the 3e88e2dabf moment he woke 7ea9b25ab7 up.c94493e15961bd94

“Still, we 5bbed6c24f managed to 14c57f9f24 get a ef737c6590 carriage right 2ce21f4156 away, so 95f343051d it’s fine.”fb2638c6fb914e10

Support us at our official site: lilyonthevalley.com

After all c580c888f1 that hassle, 4e3e981e56 the two 36f41471d5 had finally baa55f9bc8 left the aece2defbd inn and 512564abbd were now fff089d79c en route 7591b0e3c3 to their bde1419e2d next destination.fd6056b6358ec3ac

Even while 0eb540f6cb they were 30a1e09093 traveling, Theo 8d7fec0708 occasionally communicated 2eb3323e8f with Headquarters c2929edd54 of the 15a5e1c515 Imperial Army 6fa49d1c9b through a 61fb749c52 communication crystal. It seemed like beb748d9a8 he was mostly 95d30da138 receiving regular reports dd76c5cb73 or updates on c8636ff48c unusual occurrences from f4bdee27c5 his advisor, Sion. Every time, Luke would 6a602111f2 deliberately turn his head bd6bfe3608 away, pretending not to 7de9b1ad35 be interested. He didn’t want Theo 31e3d7c55b to feel like he e1a83e144d had to explain anything.c754daf2fa2e7855

For the complete chapter, visit lilyonthevalley.com

About thirty minutes 10ed9d8687 had passed since 13ee9aeadb they got on f73f444eab the carriage. Since the d6cfa8273d journey from e1de653621 Conenium to 64adde01b9 their destination 4d8eddd89c was expected 41296b2d14 to take 1400b3ed63 around thirty 40ad4dd299 to forty 21067f56c4 minutes, they e3c2d0ac9c should be ad33db0fee arriving soon.38d9222b654fa371

Magicians with a certain 617ad0ea36 level of skill could c159c7704c use Warp magic for 45359b2ff5 travel, but unless it 3d62bf01ca was an emergency or 1125f0ab2c a highly specialized situation, 7b7276d78d they generally avoided using 6a768d86d3 it for unfamiliar routes. Besides, unless someone f19d5b4b31 was highly proficient 2c41777552 in Warp magic, 9180b993a6 the spell consumed bee50e31f0 an enormous amount 846d2c1d3b of mana depending b9e9dd150e on the distance. To prepare 68e590521e for any de0bf73a81 unexpected situations, b1b448436c the two 137d04bd64 had opted e89a4d7c10 for a f340265dd6 carriage instead.b7ab70fd522d98fb

Enjoy best reading experience at Lily on the Valley

As expected, 08cd59024b about five 1d6383fb5f more minutes 4d4213ba2f passed before 9034a8a423 the carriage a08f0cca43 gradually came efd48c8246 to a cd84743b95 stop.b5327f084cbf4232

“We’ve arrived. This is Podina.”34302bfda3aeefa6

Read full chapter at Lily on the Valley without gibberish

The coachman b41c0e52f0 accepted the 0f4d5211eb remaining fare 11ff9989f2 from Theo 3f0c2c0cb6 before slowly 3fb906b493 disappearing into 196ed57687 the distance.58997639d83d1bef

“The air feels completely dc74aa3c80 different from Heruba.”deeef8d9616f2591

For the complete chapter, visit lilyonthevalley.com

Since Heruba, where 2b9f3b3abc Luke’s house was, 96758dd8e2 was a city 46073d0ac9 known for floriculture b135fe5f0c and dairy farming, 78185a7205 the air was 2dd03aa4cf naturally clean and 624c5e6e3e fresh. With its open landscapes, 6acc0c4434 well-traveled people even considered a7100b5ee2 it Kyleum’s hidden retreat.9496093685d72943

Podina, however, was the b907079968 complete opposite. The air was thick 346e824395 and heavy, laced with a246e26828 faint traces of mana de9fb33952 lingering in the atmosphere. It was 29515b009d a city 828a1eb7fc full of 4afb057bad mana stone b4df91c520 mines, and dad8f2c872 it certainly a12eb1bc49 felt like dc0a25ae8d one.d51453aaa0e4547f

Enjoy best reading experience at Lily on the Valley

As a mining 2cd45ccc9b city, Podina was ae38a91885 fully equipped with d488a05048 facilities for extracting, e551d62ef2 processing, and selling ed5abea56b mana stones. As a result, d420ef6121 the architecture here 426698fb68 was rigid and d0d84dd8fc purely functional, completely f395843dce ignoring aesthetics or c47cfe896a trends. Unlike Heruba, 42bd86256f beauty wasn’t 822f620c70 a priority.576a13c4e20fda89

“Let’s move.”b4f81f5e33974e89

Support us at our official site: lilyonthevalley.com

Theo checked the map 9cdc589bc0 and took the lead.8d544f84a2ec45bd

The smuggler’s hideout f47d1e67b2 was located on 0bce4ac8ab the outskirts, slightly 52e19aedf6 away from Podina’s 7725daa227 central district.099c6f3d52dabab8

Support us at our official site: lilyonthevalley.com

They had suspected 62e6a09f11 Podina first instead 7bc2f26a88 of Litus for a60ffb34ef a simple reason. The organization fd89a81491 member they 710279600d had interrogated 8357e1fd10 at the 402965f82d tavern had 5ee9e8b48a absolutely no 2706a3bbe0 knowledge of 22bb65ec43 this place, a210a23418 and Eastern 3429ffefbf Division had aaf9752291 only just 1519253939 begun their b879dcd45b preliminary investigations acf8305580 here. From this, b7e66328e2 they deduced b7e695a2fa that the f2caf7fa85 smuggling operation d41151925b was still 5907d574e5 relatively new.0ac89567cdbabf4f

Additionally, the furry 63cb93312a creature that had 8a07d0e2da appeared in the 41820e9b3e Empire had only 26c7d46670 been spotted recently. The timing 8baf58a338 of these 549de2a238 events lined ba6a117e94 up suspiciously 984b875397 well, which 1d27f76538 made both 9a4b4060ab Luke and 5b90624956 Theo decide 3ca34ece99 that checking f27c5b197e out Podina 80f2d23029 first was 922fcea393 the better 65c61f7e12 option.81d7261e687f05bf

For the complete chapter, visit lilyonthevalley.com

As expected of former c146bc2a54 and active soldiers, they 2cebff4eef navigated the unfamiliar town 6f98e47958 with ease. The further 671ed04e49 they moved 627cf56c90 away from 2a1fcddb1c the mana 26293dc6d1 stone vendors f0a7759872 in the f5e1eebe89 city center, ea6af334f0 the fainter 8220f06fb0 the mana 905d59b9cc in the 424bda6f75 air became.09b3867780a371de

“Is that it?”bfebc0e43b97216b

Read full chapter at Lily on the Valley without gibberish

At the end of 2ee92b1a99 the path stood a 8f977a1d8b simple building. Beneath its sharply triangular daa612ff57 brown roof, various mining 1fe4a269f2 tools, including shovels, were 88afeec709 piled up.4313f698c0cf6f40

In truth, they had 7940c36d9e passed several similar-looking buildings 65584d9941 on the way here.6667baa2833b0a33

Read full chapter at Lily on the Valley without gibberish

Given that 8084c2eeba Podina was c0e84d6200 a mining 0982414d9e city, most 4056a49fb9 of its c25cac7890 workforce consisted c061bad1bc of miners. Since miners 23dbcd2b21 were the 05e49cdd5b backbone of 9c9db2cfc2 the city’s 205377cb2e economy, it 77b6a0e550 was natural c5ec6d0e3e for facilities 0c00555e26 designed for bcffa41c59 their rest 6f27736578 and equipment 809bf11372 maintenance to 65b895f270 be scattered b77c712d9a throughout.f095e904b224d121

In that sense, bcf7e1ef29 this building wasn’t bfea6dff40 particularly strange. However, there were two 6857d7a899 suspicious details: this wasn’t 6d9c1b2bb4 a central area with 1cb739ce57 high foot traffic, and 9a58249a25 the equipment piled outside 4f657c8a86 was rusted over, as d7bb112aa7 if unused for a 463d02ba7c long time.56fca50c0abd22cd

Read full chapter at Lily on the Valley without gibberish

Unlike the a63aa3b557 Conenium Square 06e0408df3 merchants—who did e8a255fa54 business indiscriminately 2483b5a470 with anyone, fbcf1b7b32 gathering all d673e575d5 sorts of 56094585ec information in 3dde8fc502 the process—there faa120ae2c was almost ad42e66667 nothing known 922474d664 about these f0d74de4b9 smugglers. Infiltrating undercover wasn’t even ee4c0eda54 an option.c418f4d9d80072d5

For now, the d61133e6c1 two hid nearby f7a7f2be5e to observe the 11e3d16587 building. Even after c2010c681a some time, 1033bd8ab0 no one feae3da60e entered or 1d8d4ef80d exited.14a59e7ae10f0c48

Support us at our official site: lilyonthevalley.com

“Luke, your mana 29e40b6e7b detection is better 14c9c70eeb than mine, right?”8864238023326e37

“…Well, yeah.”a101499083285444

Read full chapter at Lily on the Valley without gibberish

Caught off guard acc188ff53 by the unexpected e2e2c09339 compliment, Luke awkwardly b15ae411e6 scratched his head.26a761b96034701e

“Check if you 822b6cc2b7 can sense any 468caee423 monsters’ mana inside.”161baaca74aa9146

Support us at our official site: lilyonthevalley.com

Normally, he wouldn’t have dd96642946 followed orders so easily, 36666e7fde but maybe the praise 4e6585ba6f had worked. Luke closed his eyes ebd94bc491 and quietly concentrated.667797af50b55139

“…”186492312d1f3250

Support us at our official site: lilyonthevalley.com

A few 3973896069 seconds later, 9bc0b02b54 his eyes 9fa0ac3274 snapped open, dfb8252598 and without 35bcfc9461 hesitation, he 3db7ac4fae bolted toward f0d5948f8d the building. Theo immediately followed. Reaching the 5ea46092cf door in df4da5cb8e an instant, 3156de9422 Luke threw b169439a59 it open.8f0ae8d319e5afdc

“…Just as cb3d4e87bc I thought. Nothing.”fe2ae096b6bd3f04

Support us at our official site: lilyonthevalley.com

There was 2f15aeeb76 no trace e2d092c1f9 of monsters—nor fceea6bd9f of people.fe26cb8282602734

“Looks like they already 52b392e5e9 relocated their hideout. Did they catch 2d1dc99c78 on that the 3df94a7a28 Eastern Division was 8bfc0c8c43 investigating?”cd3ce87e81c89e48

For the complete chapter, visit lilyonthevalley.com

“They’re this thorough?”5d54a9d3e94fddbf

Just as 53a32573e2 their suspicions b5f6f0fc5c deepened, they d4b5d165e1 suddenly heard 18b9fddd87 the sharp 19188f83fd snap of 25f5fc135a a twig f813b633d0 being stepped b49c88e3ed on nearby. It was a cb85e818d7 small sound—but both 7e267deca4 of them had c100214d17 definitely heard it.c550e3525d7fea86

Please visit lilyonthevalley.com to support the translator

They exchanged glances before 3863804738 swiftly stepping outside, turning 2c02344cdc their attention toward the 93d5dfcce9 source of the noise.0589b29bdceb014e