A/N:
And it turned out to be the next chapter, lol.
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Nathaniel's golden eyes stretched wide.
"Ah…"
As if the world was slowing down, he could see how the sword in his grasp moved swiftly and grazed a boy's body in front of him.
Red liquid jumped out of the wound and splattered on his face.
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"!"
Nathaniel's eyes snapped open and abruptly sat on his bed.
He covered his face with both hands and was gasping for breath.
"Haa… haa…"
Cold sweat drenched his whole body and his heart was pounding so hard that he could feel it in his throat.
"Are you alright?"
Lowering his hands, he glanced at the voice but he could only find darkness.
Soon, a fireball conjured in the air and the dark room gradually lighten up.
There, across from him, Nathaniel found Adrian, he was seen sitting on his bed.
"Yeah…"
Nathaniel ran his fingers through his hair and began to regulate his breathing.
Upon sensing something hurtled to him, he deftly caught it.
—Clutch!
Nathaniel unclenched his grip and a bottle of water was visible.
He darted at Adrian and smiled.
"Thanks."
Adrian shrugged nonchalantly and Nathaniel began to sip it.
Distancing the bottle from his lips, his golden eyes rolled at him.
"I'm sorry, I woke you up."
His voice dripped with guilt.
"No, it's alright."
Honestly speaking, he didn't mind at all, instead, he was grateful to be able to witness this scene.
Here he thought it would be difficult to prove that Nathaniel was a Regressor or not.
But who would have thought it would be this easy?
Guess, he worried for naught.
"Catch."
Nathaniel flung the bottle back to him and Adrian seized it effortlessly.
"By the way, any words from Asher or Fredinand?"
"No, not yet."
Adrian shook his head and Nathaniel nodded in understanding.
"I see."
He ordered Fredinand and Asher to scout the forest because if not, Nathaniel would eventually go.
Simplicity, he just knew his brother too well—thanks to the novel.
As soon as the sky darkened, Fredinand and Asher set out into the forest.
"Anyway, let's go back to sleep, it's late."
"Yeah."
Nathaniel pulled the covers and went back to sleep.
"Good night."
"Good night."
Putting back the bottle into his Magical Sphere and dismissing the fireball, Adrian lay his body.
His cerulean eyes rolled and peeked at Nathaniel from the corners of his before cursing.
'You Regressor, bastard.'
Over the years, Nathaniel continuously had the same dream that haunted him every night.
It was the day when he killed his brother.
Despite the passage of time, he could never become accustomed to it.
The memory of his actions remained fresh in his mind.
It continued to plague him as a constant reminder of the irreversible consequences of his actions. ?
Those lines of sentences from the novel served as a clue for him to uncover Nathaniel's biggest secret.
And the fact that he had that nightmare even though Adrian was still alive here, the answer was pretty much obvious to him.
Now that one truth had been revealed, all that was left was that shitty book.
Well, Adrian didn't care about the reason why Nathaniel turned back in time—and didn't want to know it either.
However, despite numerous opportunities for Nathaniel to kill him, he didn't take them.
Instead, he treated him well this time around.
Although he was annoying at times, Adrian could say that Nathaniel was kind in his own unique way.
The white-haired boy breathed out a sigh.
Perhaps…
He could trust him a little bit…
Just a little bit…
With that thought, Adrian closed his eyes and decided to call it a day.
.
.
.
Hearing some noise, Nathaniel blinked his eyelids several times before fully opening them.
His yellow eyes took in the surroundings and dim light illuminated the room.
Not too far away from him, he saw Adrian wearing his training suit and above him a fireball hovering as a source of light.
Nevertheless, Nathaniel couldn't help but furrow his forehead.
He forced himself to sit up and let out a long yawn.
"Yawn~ Morning, already?"
Adrian turned to the voice and Nathaniel could be seen stretching his arms, his mouth wide open.
"What's with the un-Princely behavior?"
Adrian bit his tongue, it rolled by itself.
Nathaniel immediately shot him a death glare and hissed.
"Shut up."
Adrian shrugged insouciantly and put on his shoes.
Nathaniel got up from the bed and marched toward a basin to wash his face.
"I don't know if you're doing some sort of secret training."
"Yeah…"
Well, it explained a lot about why Adrian had a sudden increase in his strength, which was good.
It meant he didn't have to babysit him.
He grabbed a towel and wiped his face before turning to his brother.
"By the way, what time is it?"
The quietness of the surrounding seemed off to him.
"Around 3 am."
Nathaniel shut his mouth and looked at his brother with a grim expression.
"Goddamnit, Ian! It's still night!"
He shouted and threw the towel to the floor in frustration; realizing that he had missed his deep sleep.
Adrian looked at his brother in disgust and spat his mind.
"What is wrong with you?"
Nathaniel tried to open his mouth but a knock on the door interrupted him.
—Knock —Knock —Knock
"Your Highness, we have returned."
As a familiar voice pricked their ears, the two shared a serious look before nodding their heads and Nathaniel answered.
"Come in."
The door swung open and Asher along with Fredinand entered the room.
The two bowed and greeted them.
"We greet the First and the Second Princes of the Aeon Empire."
The boys nodded in response and Nathaniel took out a small device from his Magical Sphere.
—Click!
He activated it and placed it on the table.
Soon, a transparent dome resembling a giant soap bubble materialized and enveloped them.
It was a silent magic device.
Only those inside the dome could hear their voices, preventing outsiders from eavesdropping.
"Please, tell us what you witnessed."
Asher took a step forward and started to explain.
"We discovered four additional clearings that resembled the one Prince Adrian found previously."
"Are you exploring further into the forest?"
Nathaniel asked and Asher nodded.
"Yes. We also found soldiers, lots of them."
And just like Adrian had predicted, they moved deeper into the forest.
Still, he was curious about what made them do so.
Brushing aside his thoughts, Adrian posed another question.
"Are you sure they are soldiers, not some bandits or ragtag?"
Asher shook his head and answered confidently.
"I'm afraid that they are not bandits nor ragtag, because they are wearing Kearny army uniforms."
"They what?"
Adrian furrowed his forehead.
However, before he could ask more, Nathaniel jumped in.
"Did you save their camp's location?"
"Yes, we did. If Your Highness wishes, I can promptly send it."
"Please."
"As you wish."
Asher and Fredinand hastily sent the pinned location to the Princes.
Adrian raised an eyebrow in surprise as he reviewed the pinned location on the map displayed on his Telesphere.
There were five Kearny army camps scattered throughout the forest, encircling the Refugee Camp.
Ho, it seemed the enemy planned this out thoroughly.
Asher continued whilst they studied the map.
"Each camp approximately consists of 2,000 to 2,500 soldiers."
"I see."
When Nathaniel showed him around, he stated that there were around a thousand Knights stationed here and two thousand refugees.
The fact that the atmosphere inside the Refugee Camp was relatively calm, it looked like they didn't know that 10,000 soldiers were hiding under their noses; ready to slaughter them.
So, it was 1,000 vs 10,000, huh?
'Interesting.'
Somehow his heart fluttered in excitement.
Ah, he missed the feeling of standing at the forefront of the battlefield.
"Ian."
Adrian turned to the voice and Nathaniel looked him straight in the eye.
"It's not too late for us to escape. It's too dangerous here."
Huh?
'Wait. Why did he say that?'
Adrian frowned.
"What about the people here?"
Nathaniel shook his head.
'…what?'
The wrinkles on his forehead deepened.
'So, we're just going to let them die here?'
Wait a minute.
Somehow Adrian couldn't comprehend this situation.
Previously, he had assumed that Nathaniel would insist on staying here to save the lives of the refugees.
But, that was not the case?
Nathaniel was somehow a little different from the novels he had read, was it because he was a Regressor?
What the hell?
Seeing Adrian's perplexed and anxious expression, Asher bowed and conveyed his mind.
"Your Highness, Prince Adrian, I understand your concern for the welfare of the Empire's citizens. But what His Highness Prince Nathaniel said is true, we must leave this place with the Royal Princes and Royal Princesses."
What nonsense was this again?
He didn't give a fuck about the refugees, but damn…
This was the perfect opportunity to test out his magic!
Because it was not every day Adrian could get this chance!
As his Lord remained silent, Fredinand took a step forward and bowed.
"Your Highness Prince Adrian, I hope you will consider what His Highness Prince Nathaniel said."
After a brief silence, Adrian sighed and eventually answered.
"But what if… that is exactly what the enemy wants?"
"..."
"..."
"..."
Silence.
No one answered.
Regardless, Adrian continued.
"Not that I want to be here either, I'm just saying what comes to mind. But—"
Adrian paused for a moment before continuing.
"—what if I said I could guarantee the victory of this battle?"
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