[BL]The Hero and his Party Won't Let Me Go-Chapter 205: Ch : Comfort and Loneliness

"Wait-! I need to see more. Don’t go..."

Shuu tried to hold on to that memory, but it was fading away faster than he could keep up with it. In the end, the memory disappeared and Shuu felt like he was falling from the sky.

He could not see an end to the fall but he knew that it would hurt whenever he would hit the ground. But someone caught him right before he hit the ground.

Shuu’s heart skipped a beat at that close brush with death and he almost did not want to open his eyes. But he decided to open them in the end and light filled his vision immediately. 𝓯𝓻𝒆𝙚𝒘𝓮𝙗𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝒍.𝙘𝓸𝙢

In front of him was a huge garden with a lot of trees and flowers. It felt calming and Shuu felt the desire to rest on the grass and not wake up. His heart was beating fast in excitement and he took a step forward as soon as he was steady on his feet.

It all looked...so familiar...

"This palace is..."

Shuu questioned as he blinked.

"It’s the Holy Temple of Arcana...or it used to be before that demon king scorched it to the ground to fight against the goddess’s influence over this world. In the end, we all perished in that fight and the goddess was forced to flee."

"You did your best in that fight as well, but you were sealed away in the demon’s world as his plaything. See...it’s already happening. The temple we all cherished is falling apart."

The voice spoke and Shuu could feel a presence behind him this time. He wanted to take a peek and finally put a face to this voice. But the scorching feeling in front of him demanded his attention.

Shuu looked at the fire that was consuming everything. But he did not feel afraid of it.

Instead of wanting to run away, he wanted to head toward that fire and submerge himself inside it. He wanted to let that fire wash over him and perish in those flames...

He did not even realize when he took a step. But only when someone grabbed his shoulder did Shuu realize that he had even moved.

"Where are you going? Do you want to perish in those flames? Did you...get enchanted by them once more? Ah, my poor little bird. You saw the first sign of freedom and wanted a taste, not knowing how bitter it was."

Shuu felt like he was stuck in place once more as the fire burned around him. He felt like he could still hear the people screaming and his head was splitting open. He needed to move and get out and also-

"You chose that monster, so you need to see it all as well. You need to know that this happened and you still chose to go with the person who caused all this suffering. Only then will you make the right choice when the time comes."

The more Shuu heard those words, the more he felt like he was losing his will to continue. He no longer wanted to see it all.

’Don’t show me more. I cannot take it anymore, so don’t show me more. I...’

Shuu would have yelled if he could. But even his voice felt muted. He was burning...no, he was drowning...no floating and-

"Tsk, it’s time for me to go. But don’t worry. We will meet again soon, once it’s time for you to make your choice. Just...ensure that you don’t make one you would regret later."

The voice told Shuu and the presence behind him suddenly vanished before he could reach out and see who it was.

Shuu felt unstable and he tried to control his fast-beating heart. But it felt impossible to do and made Shuu feel sick as well.

A hand touched his eyes lightly and Shuu immediately opened them to see who it was.

Kaiden’s familiar face came into view and then Shuu noticed his hand reaching for Shuu’s face. That helped Shuu relax and he allowed Kaiden to touch him.

"Are you feeling alright? It looked like you were asleep and having a nightmare. Your body was tense and it looked like you were about to hurt yourself. So I decided to wake you up. But are you alright?"

The emperor asked in a hurried voice.

Kaiden looked a little panicked as he hovered around Shuu and that made Shuu let out a startled laugh. He could not help himself and Shuu closed his eyes to get rid of the lingering feeling of discomfort in the back of his mind.

"I...am alright. I just had a nightmare. But it is not a big deal. Just give me a few minutes and I will be back to normal-"

Warm arms pulled Shuu into a hug and his hand rested against Kaiden’s chest. He clutched the fabric and only then did he notice that the fabric felt much more luxurious than any other day.

Kaiden had already changed...and yet, he was allowing Shuu to crumple his clothes by clutching at him like this.

It made Shuu feel guilty, but he did not want to miss out on the free comfort he was being provided.

’Just a little more...I just want to be selfish for a little longer. After that, I will let Kaiden go...’

That was what Shuu promised himself. But he did not even realize when his ’little while longer’ became a whole minute and then half an hour.

He likely would not have let the Emperor go if not for the knock at the door reminding them that it was late and the ceremony was about to start.

Shuu pulled back first and he sighed while looking at the emperor. Kaiden had an almost disappointed look on his face when Shuu pulled back.

"Is this fine? Are you sure you do not want to hug me for a little longer?"

Kaiden asked and Shuu shook his head.

He did want to hug Kaiden for longer. But that was a luxury he could enjoy later. After all, he had all the time in his life to do that.