At noon, the bright sunlight came in from the skylight and fell on the face of the boy who had been sleeping for a long time.
Suddenly, the eyelashes moved, and Garlan slowly opened his eyes.
The familiar bedroom scene was reflected in his eyes, and the tip of his nose faintly lingered with the smell of a strong soup medicine.
He wasn't lying down, it seemed that someone helped him up from his sleep and sat on the head of the bed.
He turned his head and looked out the window.
The sun was shining outside the window, and by the pool in the courtyard, the large lavender hyacinths swayed gently in the warm wind.
A stone statue of the star goddess Isdar stands in the center of the courtyard, and a fountain falling from her is scattered in the air.
When Garlan looked out the window at the beautiful scenery shrouded in sunlight, a golden pottery bowl filled with pitch-black potion was handed to him.
He turned his head subconsciously, and saw the female officer who brought the medicine bowl to him standing by the bed, her eyes slightly bent at him.
“Tapti…”
Tapti just helped Garlan up, and then turned back to carry the bowl of steaming potion.
As soon as she turned around, she saw Garlan staring out the window with his eyes open.
Startled for a moment, a slight smile appeared on Tapti's face. She didn't call him out, but walked gently to the bedside and handed the medicine bowl to the prince.
The female officer looked at Garlan gently and said, "Prince, drink the medicine."
Garlan hummed, took the medicine bowl, and drank all the bitter potion from the big bowl.
The potion was so bitter that his tongue felt numb. He put down the bowl and his beautiful face was wrinkled.
Tapti, who took the bowl, smiled, and as soon as he reached out, he stuffed a small piece of sweet cheesecake into the wrinkled boy's mouth.
The rich milky fragrance opened in the mouth, sweet and savory, covering the bitterness of the mouth.
Garlan leaned on the bed, chewing the cake in his mouth obediently.
The sweet taste seemed to relax his whole body, bringing a warm feeling together with the sun.
Suddenly, someone's face flashed across his memory.
"… Tapti."
"Yes?"
"Heimos...he's been here the whole time, hasn't he?"
"Yes, prince, he has always been by your side," Tapti replied, "only just before you woke up, his subordinates came to see him, so he just went to the next room."
She asked, "I'm going to call him over for you now?"
Garland shook his head.
"Tapti, just wait here."
After he finished speaking, he got out of bed and quickly walked out of the bedroom.
In order to cover up the news of his illness, the maids and attendants were strictly ordered to stay outside the palace and could not easily come in without permission, so at the moment the hall was empty and there was no one else.
Garlan looked around, then walked straight to the only room on the left side of the hall with the door closed.
Just as he walked to the door and reached out to push the door, a rather intense voice came out.
"Are you really going to give up like this—"
Garland's hand was already on the door, but he stopped and didn't push hard.
He stood at the door, feeling a little overwhelmed, feeling that he couldn't advance or retreat.
Unlike the huge doors outside the palace, the doors inside the palace are mainly beautiful and light, and most of them are hollowed out and carved with patterns, which hardly block the sound.
Therefore, at the moment when he hesitated, all the following conversations were passed into his ears.
"... I feel bad."
Finally, the familiar low voice came from inside.
Garlan paused with his hand on the door.
After a while, he withdrew his hand and turned to leave, as if he had never been here before.
…
Let Suojia leave, Heimos returned to the bedroom, opened the translucent gauze curtain, and looked up at the golden pupils that looked at him in both directions.
Bright eyes, like golden gems placed in the sun.
It was noon, when the sun was at its brightest, and the whole room was bright.
The boy was sitting on the bed, his complexion was fair, and his long golden hair was scattered from his shoulders, reflecting the sunlight, as if the boy sitting at the moment had a golden shimmer all over his body.
That scene was indescribably beautiful.
The corners of Heimos' lips raised inaudibly, he stepped forward, stood beside the bed, and leaned down.
He put his hand on Garlan's forehead and tried the temperature there.
"The fever has subsided."
He said, sweeping the room.
"What about Tapti?"
"... She guarded me for two days. It was too hard. I asked her to rest."
Because he wanted to speak to Heimos alone, Gallan deliberately sent Tapti away.
Heimos hummed casually and didn't ask any further. In fact, he didn't care about the whereabouts of the female officer, and the reason why he asked was simply because he couldn't see that Gallan had no one to take care of him.
He retracted his hand, and suddenly saw a tinge of crimson on his fingers from the corner of his eyes.
He raised his hand to look, then looked up at Garlan again, and suddenly smiled.
Garlan was still wondering what he was laughing at suddenly, Heimos had raised his crimson fingers to him.
"Look, you burned the Shamash rune on your forehead to melt."
Because of the constant low fever, the temperature of Garlan's forehead was not low, and sweat was seeping continuously, which actually smudged the crimson pigment that was not easy to fade.
Heimos rubbed his eyebrows.
"I don't know if there is any infection here," he said.
When Heimos said this, Garlan subconsciously looked at Heimos's forehead.
The jet-black forehead was pushed away by Heimos's own fingers, revealing the blue god of war rune depicted on his forehead.
Looking at it, Garlan was embarrassed to find that the cyan rune was indeed stained with a touch of crimson.
Fuzzy crimson traces and cyan lines intertwined, instantly reminding Garlan of last night.
At that time, when he couldn't control his tears, Heimos kept pressing each other's foreheads, as if passing power.
His hand had been holding his cheek, as if supporting him silently.
The more you are cared for, the more vulnerable you are.
Perhaps it was because the hand that was stroking his head was so gentle that he couldn't stop his tears.
[From now on, you can only be subservient to others—you who should look down on all living beings can only kneel at the feet of that person and look up at him humbly.]
This sentence suddenly rang in his ears again, causing Garlan's chest to tighten suddenly.
"Heimos."
"Um?"
"You said you wanted the throne."
"Yes, I said it."
"… "
Garlan was silent and did not continue to speak.
Heimos is very clear about his obsession with the throne.
This mighty man was never one to be subservient to others, and the bottomless ambition and desire in his body made this man long for the throne.
Even though he has become the crown prince, Heimos has never given up the idea of getting it.
This time it would have been an excellent opportunity.
Because he presided over the defense of the royal city, the entire force of the royal city was completely controlled by Heimos.
Although he led the army back, it would be difficult for him to take over the royal city for a while, and the royal city was still in the hands of Heimos. Especially when he came back and fell ill immediately and fell into a coma.
At that time, as long as Heimos directly disclosed his condition, and then imprisoned his sick self in the name of recuperation—for a very legitimate reason, it would be difficult for them to resist.
Back then, the throne was within reach for Heimos.
However, Huymos gave up this opportunity.
best chance.
Maybe the only chance.
And that reason...
Garlan raised his head and looked into Heimos's eyes.
Those golden red eyes are like gems burning in flames, beautiful but extremely dangerous.
It seems that in the next second, it will be swallowed up by that dangerous cluster of flames and burned to the ground.
But those dangerous eyes, when they looked at him, always wrapped him very tenderly.
[You gave up the throne for that person, but you may not be able to get that person in the future - won't you be unwilling?]
"Heimos, what you do to me... I know."
Garlan's fingers clenched the thin blanket on his body slightly, and he lowered his eyes, for some reason, he did not dare to meet Heimos' eyes again.
"But, I'm still..."
he whispered,
"I still… "
This man gave up the throne at his fingertips for him.
It would be impossible to say that he was not touched at all by this.
For so long, he and Heimos have always been closely entangled, whether it is the fear and hatred of the previous life, or the release of this life and the gradually rising concern about it.
His feelings for Heimos were really mixed with too many things, so complicated that he couldn't understand them himself.
So his choice was to stop.
He chose to stop at a safe distance.
However, in contrast to his stagnation, Heimos has always put all his warm feelings in front of him without reservation.
Infected by that warm feeling, occasionally, he seemed to feel a little heartbeat.
But he knew it was just a point.
The complicated feelings about Heimos overwhelmed that little heartbeat.
Now, there is still a little more guilt.
"Sorry, I can't answer you."
Garland whispered.
"I don't know what the future will be like. I don't know if I will have the same mind as you in the future... I can't guarantee all of this."
"So, I still can't..."
Heimos gave him a lot, so much that he felt unbearable.
Sometimes he couldn't help but think that maybe there was nothing wrong with accepting Heimos.
However, that thought was only fleeting.
He understands.
His reason for wanting to accept Heimos was indeed heartwarming, but it was more because of guilt, and he wanted to make up for what Heimos had done.
He didn't want to do such a stupid thing.
If he really accepted Heimos for this reason, it would be the most cruel act.
Garlan shook his head and said softly, he lowered his head and couldn't see Heimos's expression at the moment.
But now he has a feeling that he can hardly breathe.
"You heard my conversation with Suojia?"
Heimos's voice came from above.
Garland paused for a while, still didn't look up, just gave a low hum.
"Yeah, you heard that, so you feel sorry, because I gave up the throne for you, and you feel guilty about me, don't you?"
"… "
The young man pursed his lips and clenched his fingers against the blanket on his body, without saying a word.
"Gallan."
Heimos leaned deeply, his hands on the edge of the bed.
He leaned forward and stared at Garlan with his head down.
"Have you ever thought about..."
The corners of his lips twitched suddenly.
"You can hear voices in the door, and the people in the door..."
He said, with a little smile in his eyes.
"Don't forget, my hearing is far better than that of ordinary people, including you."
In a word, Gallan raised his head suddenly, his eyes widened and he looked at Heimos in astonishment.
"You, you... know me, I..."
He was so startled that he started to stutter.
"Well, I know you're at the door, and I hear your footsteps."
Heimos simply admitted.
He looked at the young man's dazed appearance, put his face close, and brought his lips to the ear with the rough lapis lazuli earring.
"… 'I feel bad'."
he said softly.
The low, hoarse voice became more and more demagogic.
The man's inexplicably dangerous voice was accompanied by the breath from his thin lips, as if it could penetrate into the deepest part of the eardrum, causing the brain to be paralyzed for a moment.
Garland's whole body suddenly froze.
The next second, he almost reflexively covered his ears and shrank to the side.
"Don't talk in my ear!"
He covered his right ear and glared at the guy who deliberately leaned close to his ear and spoke in that very seductive tone.
He gritted his teeth angrily, and the fingers of his right hand tightly covered the tips of his ears, which were hot and red from the heat spitting out of the other's lips.
"Did you tell me that on purpose at that time?"
"Actually, it wasn't intentional."
Heimos shrugged his shoulders and answered unabashedly, "It's just that he didn't hide it."
Garlan came or didn't come, he answered Suojia with those words.
He looked at Garlan and said, "I just think that it's the truth anyway, and there's no need to avoid you deliberately so that you won't hear it."
Heimos's words made Garlan startled for a moment, he hesitated for a while, but he didn't know how to answer for a while.
"You pay, but you deliberately hide it from the other party, so that the other party doesn't know your contribution... This kind of idiot who only moves himself, do you think I will do it?"
"… "
Absolutely not.
"So, I'll be frank about what's on my mind and let you know, what's wrong with that?"
"… "
Well, it seems like... indeed... there's nothing wrong with that.
Garlan always felt as if his thinking was being swayed by the plausible Heimos.
He shook his head to clear his mind.
He said: "But, Heimos, you..."
Garlan's words had just started, when he was interrupted by the other's outstretched hand.
Heimos leaned over the bed, his eyes on Gallan's. He stretched out his hand and stroked Garlan's cheek, dipping his fingertips into the golden hair behind his ears.
"Gallan, giving up the throne is my own choice."
He said, looking calm.
"Everyone is responsible for their own choices. Now that I have made a choice, no matter what the future holds, whether I can get what I want is my own business."
His golden red eyes reflected Garlan's shadow deeply, he said.
"My decision, I don't need you to be responsible."
…
He has been thinking heavily, and since the end of the battle on the Lomar Plain, he has been struggling and wandering.
The war is over, and the next step must be to decide the ownership of the throne.
Either him or Garland.
If he is really ruthless, he may not be able to grab the throne from Gallan.
He knows Gallan, although Gallan is now determined to sit on the throne, but if he must fight for it, Aaron Landis, who is unwilling to go through hardships, will give up the throne because of the turmoil of infighting.
However, the throne is Garlan's promise to the late King Camos.
If the previous Gallan didn't care much about the throne, then after King Camos left, the throne was already equal to the existence of King Camos in Gallan's heart.
If he takes away the throne, although Garlan will give up, but his feelings for him will probably be lost, and he will no longer be close to him.
Gallan might stay by his side temporarily for Aaron Landis and assist him in governing the country. But when the kingdom is completely stabilized, he will definitely leave him.
Apart from coercive means, he had no way to keep Garlan by his side.
But if he really used coercion... From that moment on, he would completely lose Garlan.
forever.
irreparable.
At this time, he suddenly remembered that dream again.
Under the darkness of night, the sharp arrow that shone with cold light ruthlessly penetrated the back of the young man riding on the horse.
The boy fell off the horse, his blond hair soaked in the mud, blood seeped out, and his body became cold a little...
Garland died in that night.
…
He longed for the supreme throne.
He wants to get it.
Although he is in love with Gallan, he has never thought about giving up the throne for Gallan.
Until the moment when he saw the cold corpse of the boy with his own eyes in that extremely real dream—
Just like what he said to Suojia, who was blocking him, when he chose to return to the king city from the north regardless of everything.
[If he's gone... everything in this world means nothing to me.]
[…including Aaron Landis.]
…
"Heimos?"
Seeing Heimos staring at him without speaking for a while, Garlan called him in confusion.
Waking up from the memory, Heimos raised his eyes, and Garlan, who was sitting on the bed, opened his eyes and looked at him.
The body of the boy he was touching at the moment was so soft and warm.
The golden pupils, bright and alive, clearly reflected his shadow.
It is a being that is more beautiful than all the gems in the world.
Heimos's eyes narrowed slightly.
throne.
Garland.
From the beginning, the two were not equal.
The throne is what he desires, what he wants to hold in his hands.
- But that's just one thing after all.
But the boy who stared at him with his eyes open was his whole world.
"Um."
Heimos hummed, responding to Garlan's voice calling him.
"Don't worry, don't worry, we still have a lot of time."
He said, his eyes soft.
"The future is still very long. In the future, I will always be by your side. I will not force you to do anything. I will wait until the day you accept me."
Garlan hesitated for a while, then whispered, "If I can't accept it all the time... No, if I can't accept your words for a long time..."
"I'll hold."
The young man looked at him, his eyes a little confused.
"Even if... do you still wait?"
Heimos smiled.
He leaned over and kissed the brow with the crimson rune.
He held Garlan's head in his hands, bowed his head, and buried his lips in the soft blond hair.
He spoke in a low voice that was almost murmuring.
"'My heart beats because of you'..."
"… 'My soul exists because of you'…"
These two words come from the legendary song that was born together with Aphdomir, the goddess of love and beauty, and circulated in the land of Aaron Landis.
It was the song of Aphrodite's courtship to the beautiful boy who had taken all her love from her.
The goddess was madly in love with that beautiful boy, and was even willing to dedicate her eternal life as a god to him.
"I'll wait."
Heimos whispered to the man in his arms,
"One year, ten years, one hundred years...even a thousand years doesn't matter..."
The man's cold and stern brows were softer than anything else at this moment.
"I'll keep waiting."