Chapter 203 Hoping Beyond Hope
Before starting his tale, Ethan went to look for the Prefect of Dud Manor, Henry, and told him that he was still tired from his journey and thus couldn’t join them for the party they planned to hold for his return to the academy.
Henry apologized to Ethan because he should have allowed him to rest before proposing to hold a party. Because of this, he said that he would delay the party for a day or two until Ethan was feeling better.
“Thank you, Sir Henry,” Ethan said. “And sorry.”
“How many times must I tell you to stop calling me Sir Henry?” Henry shook his head helplessly. “Just call me Henry, okay?”
Ethan smiled bitterly. “I will try.”
“Good.” Henry patted Ethan’s shoulder. “Spend some time with Chloe and Luna. Those two really had a rough time while you were gone.”
Ethan responded with a nod and returned to his room.
Luna and Chloe were currently seated on his bed, waiting for him to tell them everything that happened after he and Lily entered the Nexus.
The young man didn’t hold anything back and told the two everything that happened, including the things that he didn’t tell Professor Rinehart back in the Headmaster’s Office.
Ethan told the two about his other half, as well as how he suffered after the battle ended, not forgetting to tenderly share how Lily helped him recover.
He then talked about their battle against the Necromancer, who wanted to possess his body. When he reached the part where Lily was stabbed by the warrior possessed by the Necromancer and what happened afterward, Chloe’s and Luna’s faces turned pale.
They now understood how Ethan received the scar on his back. It was due to him using his body to shield Lily from the Necromancer’s killing blow.
He included the part where he ingested the Blood Essences of the Tide Bringer and used his blood to help Lily recover from her injuries.
The teenage boy didn’t shy away from telling them that, on the same night, he and Lily made love to each other for the first time.
Ethan thought that by saying this, the two girls would be angry. But contrary to his expectations, Chloe’s and Luna’s faces were flushed, and even the tips of their ears became red.
After a few minutes, he continued his narration of the last battle against the Necromancer.
Ethan made sure to tell the two ladies that when the color of his eyes turned purple, the one who was in control of his body was his other half and not him.
“My other half is a very arrogant and confident person,” Ethan stated. “But I’m sure that he will not do anything to hurt you. However, that doesn’t mean that you should trust whatever he is going to say. Treat his words with caution, okay?”
The two young ladies nodded their heads in understanding and promised Ethan that they would be cautious when dealing with his other half.
Ethan heard a snort inside his head, but he ignored it completely. He knew that his other half was very annoyed with how he talked about him, but he didn’t care.
Even though they were sharing the same body, he would not sit idly if his other half made any moves to harm the two ladies who were very important in his heart.
The handsome young man then summoned the Sea God’s Trident and asked Sebastian to momentarily reveal himself, surprising the two girls.
The Guardian of the City of Zentris then told Chloe and Luna what happened after the Necromancer was defeated.
How Ethan and Lily lived for more than a year in the past, and how the people in the Lands of Alastor revered them.
When Sebastian finished his story, he returned to the gem embedded in the Sea God’s Trident.
“I’d appreciate it if you keep this a secret to everyone,” Ethan said as the trident returned to his left hand. “I only showed Sebastian to you because I trust the two of you with all of my heart.”
When Chloe and Luna heard Ethan’s words, their expressions softened a bit as they nodded their heads.
“With everything that happened between me and Lily, I wouldn’t be able to call myself a man if I didn’t take responsibility for her,” Ethan stated. “Know that if the same thing happened to either of you, I would do the same.”
Ethan then closed his eyes and sighed. “If I had known that Lily and I would be trapped in the past, I would have already confessed my feelings to the two of you before our missions started.”
The bodies of the two ladies stiffened after hearing Ethan’s statement. They didn’t expect the handsome young man to say such a thing, which caught them by surprise.
“Chloe, Luna, I like the two of you very much,” Ethan stated. “When I thought that I was about to die in the past, my greatest regret was that I was unable to tell both of you my feelings.
“Even before Lily and I became lovers, the two of you already held a special place in my heart. Even now, my feelings haven’t changed. However, I do know that I have hurt the two of you with how things ended.
“But I will tell you this. I will not give up. I want our relationship to be more than friends, and that of lovers. Even if it takes me years to make the two of you fall in love with me, I will do my best to make it happen.”
Deep inside his Sea of Consciousness, Ethan heard someone applauding him.
“You sound so scummy right now that even I feel embarrassed to share the same body with you,” Ethan’s Other Half said in a teasing tone. “To be fair, this much courage is needed to make those two stay by your side. Being wishy-washy and just letting things go with the flow will make Chloe and Luna drift apart from you. In this regard, I commend your straightforwardness.
“But you could have worded it better, you know? Right now, you just sound like one of those second generation nobles who promises girls that they will treat them well if they choose to marry you despite already being married.”
Ethan had no comeback for his Other Half’s words.
Indeed, he could have worded it better.
He could have sugarcoated his words in order to make Chloe and Luna stay with him, using the feelings that they already have for him. But Ethan didn’t want to do that.
The teenage boy wanted to tell them straight what he felt, without using flowery words.
If they still decided to leave him after he bore his heart to them, there was nothing he could do about it. At the very least, he did his best and told them his true feelings.
The words of his other Half were similar to Nicole’s words. Right now, Ethan was a nobody.
Sure, he was a Double Pillar holder in Brynhildr Academy, but aside from this title, he was a nobody.
Ethan was a country bumpkin who had recently discovered magic and had no lands of his own.
He was also not a Noble, which many thought should be the first requirement to be able to have multiple wives and mistresses.
Without power, money, and influence, he couldn’t possibly make more than one girl happy.
But he didn’t give a damn.
After everything that he had experienced in the past, he didn’t want to have any more regrets.
Most relationships end because of misunderstandings.
It was one of the main reasons why lovers and even married couples end up drifting apart. No matter how big or small it was, the strain caused by it would gradually stack until it became unbearable.
Ethan didn’t want to have any misunderstandings between Chloe and Luna.
He wanted them to know where they stood in his heart and how he felt about them.
A few minutes of silence descended inside the room, as Ethan looked at the two ladies who had lowered their heads, and seemed to be deep in thought.
“We will come back later tonight,” Chloe said after a while as she lightly squeezed Ethan’s hand. “Thank you for telling us everything.”
Ethan nodded before closing his eyes.
Faint rustling sounds reached his ears, and he knew that the two ladies had stood up and were about to leave the room.
However, it was also at that moment when Ethan felt a pair of hands wrap around his head, and pulled him close to something soft.
Ethan didn’t open his eyes. He was already familiar with this feeling, so he didn't move, allowing Chloe to hold him tightly.
“Regardless of what happens from here, know that I am very happy that you managed to return to us,” Chloe said softly before planting a kiss on Ethan’s head. “Thank you for coming back to us, Ethan.”
“Mmm,” Ethan replied.
A few seconds later, Chloe pulled back and left the room with Luna.
The moment the door closed behind them, the handsome young man sighed deeply before looking at the ceiling of his room.
He didn’t know how his relationship with the two girls would change after his confession, but he hoped beyond all hope that all three of them would not drift apart from each other and be able to rekindle the feelings that they shared before Ethan’s journey to the past.
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