Capítulo 1: Chapter 1

'Here I was, in a foreign or rather enemy land, teaching some students that may turn out to be my future enemies,' I thought.

I was in my room at the Central Academy of Alacrya, playing the role of a teacher, hoping to rid myself of any suspicion—a no-bloodname and an ascender.

It's been a few months since I came to Alacrya. At first, I thought about killing any possible threats. Truthfully, I was disgusted when I saw Alacryan people... They were my enemies, the ones responsible for the war and the bloodshed of innocent people in Dicathen. The same people because of whom my father died.

But living and spending some time here while observing the people has changed my mind a bit. They're all just people, being manipulated by Agrona. Agrona doesn't view them as his own; he thinks of them as disposable pawns, just a means to gain power and defeat the asuras. It isn't the people's fault they were born here. They're just like any others in Dicathen, living their lives happily with their families and friends.

The ones who made me realize this were my companions, Regis and Caera. Regis has been with me ever since I got transported to Alacrya's relictomb. I may not show it, but I'm really thankful to him. Because of him, I stayed sane. He was more than just a weapon created for me—he was a true friend who accompanied me through everything here in Alacrya.

Caera… Caera Denoir, an Alacryan noble I first thought about killing. But over the course of the time we've spent in the academy and the relictombs, she became someone I could trust... someone I could depend on, someone who could fight by my side. Of course, she wasn't anywhere near my level of strength, but she was strong enough to protect herself, enough so that I didn't worry about her while fighting. Not to mention her swordsmanship, which was similar to mine.

Even in Dicathen, there weren't many people I could fully trust. That I could trust to have my back. Maybe the lances? But I didn't get many chances to get close to them. Some hated me, one betrayed the continent, and some I couldn't even get a mission with.

Then there was Tessia, my childhood friend, to whom I confessed my love. Sure, she was immature for her age, but I guess that's what made her attractive.

But over time, my feelings became conflicted. What if Tessia had just done what I told her? When I came to Alacrya, a part of me felt unsure… If she hadn't tried to fight by my side and had just left through the portal like the others, could I have made Sylvie leave me and protect the others? I knew it wasn't entirely Tessia's fault, but I couldn't help it.

Would it have been possible that, by sacrificing myself, Sylvie could have survived?

Even without me, she could've lived her life with Tessia, who she viewed as her mother, right?

A part of me didn't want to believe it… but what if the truth was that I never viewed Tessia as a romantic interest? Of course, I told her at the wall that I loved her as a woman... but what if I was just deluding myself into believing that? When Sylvie hatched from her egg, she believed and called me and Tessia her parents. Then there was Gramps, who always teased me about being a couple with Tessia. In my previous life, I never had a lover or a true friend. I had Nico and Cecilia, but after that incident, I never really saw Nico again... and I killed Cecilia with my own hands. After that, I locked my emotions away and just... hah, and here I thought that with a new chance in life, I could be myself and not King Grey. But here I am, turning into Grey again.

In this life, as Arthur Leywin, Tessia might have been my first friend. With Sylvie and Virion, I might have obliged myself to believe that I loved Tessia at some point. I never viewed other girls my age as potential lovers. How could someone who's mentally over 40 years old love a teenager?

But with Tessia, I tried to forget that. I thought that if Sylvie viewed her as a mother, maybe, over time, I could develop romantic feelings for Tessia... But with the war going on and everything, I wasn't mentally stable.

Why am I thinking about this? It's because of Caera. When I first met her, she saved me from being killed. Over the time we spent in the relictombs, I grew closer to her. She told me all of her secrets—how she was afraid of her own horns, how she didn't have anybody she could call a friend. She even told me she could be her real self with me—just Caera, not Caera Denoir of the Highblood Denoir.

When she told me that, I was happy that I had someone who felt comfortable around me. As much as I wanted to tell her everything about myself… I was scared that she might view me as a monster, someone who used her to gather information about his enemies. Though our relationship is built on lies, I want to tell her everything—from my past life to being the strongest lance of Dicathen, Arthur Leywin. But I'm afraid of what kind of look she would give me... just like when I told my parents about my past life and they almost disowned me.

Would she tell me to leave her? Would she still consider me her friend? I don't want to break her heart, especially when the only person she could call a friend is an enemy spy from another continent.

But if I leave her, wouldn't she be in danger because of me? I don't want her to be put in harm's way just because she didn't know who or what I was. What if Agrona captures her to get information about me?

"Shut up, princess! My head hurts from all the thoughts you're thinking!" yelled my companion Regis, who was resting inside me.

"Sorry, Regis. I'm just too overwhelmed by everything that's going on," I said in a calm tone. "How long have you been listening to my thoughts, Regis?" I asked.

"Just a while back. I absolutely heard EVERYTHING!" he said. "Look here, my pitiful masochist of a master, I may not be the best one to give advice about relationships and all, I was created to help you as a weapon. But if I had to say something, I'd suggest you tell our horned goddess everything. For how long we've observed her... she isn't the type to hate you for these things. Of course, she might need some time to recompose herself after you tell her, but you don't even need to tell her everything—just start with a bit about yourself. We're both alive and breathing here because of her... she had the chance to kill you but didn't." He said through mental transmission.

"I don't know if your dense head has noticed or not, but I guess she has feelings for you. She's been with us from the beginning of our journey here in Alacrya," he continued. I was quite surprised to hear that Caera had developed feelings for me. "Princess, listen, I may not know romance that well, but I think you should tell her how YOU feel about her."

"But what about Tes-" I was interrupted by Regis.

"That crybaby who has a brain without brain cells? I think you already realized it, but you don't want to admit it. You, Arthur Leywin, don't have any feelings for Tessia right NOW. A part of you is thinking about killing her if Cecilia doesn't leave her body. I don't think that, in love, someone could think of killing their partner instead of finding a solution to bring them back."

"In my opinion, you never really viewed that elf princess as a romantic partner. You were confused between the feelings of a childhood friend and a lover... because you never really had a lover. And as for a childhood friend... you lost Nico and Cecilia, and after that, you locked your emotions away."

"In this world, you just wanted to experience the things you couldn't as King Grey. Tessia was your first friend in this world. You were just confused about what your feelings for her were. And you knew she had romantic feelings for you, but you weren't ready back then. At the same time, you were scared to lose your childhood friend... You didn't want her to leave just because you didn't share the same feelings she held for you."

"Right now, here in Alacrya, after locking your emotions up AGAIN, you're slowly opening them. Who do you think is the reason for this? It's her. It's Caera. You're enjoying your time with her, and you're regaining your emotions—slowly, but surely. She was there for you when you needed someone, by your side during the toughest times of your life, knowingly or unknowingly. Although she wanted to know about you, she didn't push or force you to tell her anything. So Arthur, I think you should trust her... if she really likes you, she wouldn't be bothered by these things and would accept you for who you are—not for your past. If she doesn't, then you'll have your answer," said Regis.

I was surprised that he could give such a long explanation about this matter.

"I... I think you're right, Regis. Caera deserves to know the truth. I'll speak to her about this when I see her again, and I can only hope she doesn't see me as a monster... If she does, then I'll do whatever she wants and won't bother her anymore..." I said, though while saying the last part, my heart ached... Am I really that scared of losing her?

I know I have feelings for her, but I didn't want to admit it... What would happen to Tessia if she finds out after regaining her body? How would Sylvie react, knowing that the one she views as her father doesn't love the person she views as her mother?

"She'll understand, Arthur. She's your daughter; you just need to break it down to her slowly," said Regis.

"Yeah, I guess you're right, Regis," I said.

"You know what, Regis? You said you weren't knowledgeable in these matters, but you explained this pretty well," I said while chuckling.

"Yeah, now that I think about it, I did really well... OF COURSE, THAT'S WHY I AM THE MIGHTY, ONE AND ONLY, MAJESTIC AF REGIS!" he replied, to which I couldn't help but chuckle.

"Yup, let's leave this matter at that and focus on this," I said while pulling out Sylvie's egg from my dimensional rune and started pouring aether I had collected into it. I just hope I can see my daughter soon