"In any case, you would soon realize that no matter how hard you try, you cannot defy the fate given to you" the God of Light said before the ball of light exploded and covered the entirety of Nath's body, sending him away from this place
As much as Reif hated this outcome, he still knows that even if Nath is far weaker than him currently, he would still not be able to kill him easily
The unknown force in this world would always help Nath escape from Reif's clutches
Defying one's fate is not an easy thing to do and even Reif has failed countless times already
Reif turned to look at his big brother's slaves that were unconscious thanks to his eruption of power
He can't help but feel that Khaknur and Agui were useless. They weren't able to protect Rhash properly
If not for Reif waking up in time, his big brother would have been dead already
Even then, those two still have some use as loyal servants that would never be able to betray their master. They can handle the bothersome miscellaneous affairs and Reif decided to bring them with him
The man sent two crimson beams of light close to the unconscious slaves and the space instantly cracked
A spatial portal was created by Reif that sucks the body of those two. After that, Reif created another spatial portal for himself
When Reif exited the portal, he was already in a green and lush valley. The site was nothing but beautiful
Below Reif, he saw the three unconscious people that he just saved. Out of the three, only one really matters to him
Reif descended down and he can sense how weak the lifeforce of his big brother is
Earlier, what he did was merely a 'first aid'. The situation was dire and Reif only prevented Rhash from dying
The long time that Reif is in a coma has accumulated a lot of injuries and fatigue on Rhash. He also run out of blood that is the only thing that could sustain his life
Although Reif was a bit guilty that Rhash almost died because of the body he had given him, he still can't help but agree with the decision of the other versions of himself
He wants Rhash to only need him. Without him, that man would die. As long as Rhash needs his blood, that man would always seek and need him
Reif know that his line of thought was twisted and obsessive but he doesn't plan on changing himself
The only thing that is keeping his sanity is Rhash. If he were to lose his light in this lifetime, there is no more chance for him
With that in mind, Reif controlled his big brother's body and he carried the man in his arms
The sleeping Rhash's face was still as charming as before despite the visible fatigue and skinniness
Seeing that, Reif can't help but frown a bit. He carried Rhash only using one hand and he created a wound in his wrist
He had the sleeping Rhash drink his blood. Anyway, with his current power and the influence of the shard of life, he could speed up his blood production
Reif has Rhash drink as much blood as he could. His mind can't help but think how he became part of his big brother by feeding him blood and his eyes glowed in delight
———
It took one whole month before Rhash has woken up. His body healed easily thanks to Reif's blood that is of a much higher quality than it was years ago but his mind was severely fatigued. As such, he only woke up now
As soon as Rhash opened his eyes, the first thing that he saw was Reif's face happily looking at him
Rhash's head was resting peacefully at Reif's thigh, painting a heartwarming scene between the two
Before Rhash could even register all the events that happened, he already threw himself at Reif
His face was buried into the other man's chest as rivers of tears came out from his eyes
Rhash sobbed loudly, showing his heartbroken he was
For the past years, Rhash has to be always firm and strong. He cannot falter even once as that would be a fatal thing to do
However, that doesn't mean that his heart was at peace. In fact, his heart was in complete chaos
He can't help but blame himself for being powerless to do anything in Reif's condition
As such, he has a lot of tears to cry with as he holds himself back for years
Reif's chest was already drenched with tears but he merely use one hand to rub Rhash's back and another hand to play rub on the man's head
This was Reif's way of comforting the crying man
"It's okay big brother, everything is fine now. I am here" Reif spoke in a gentle tone
His heart was also pained at seeing Rhash in this condition but a part of him was also happy
He can see that Rhash really cared for him. Otherwise, he wouldn't be this heartbroken just because Reif went into a long coma
It took a long time and great effort on Reif's part to stop Rhash from crying. But even then, Rhash still has a pitiful look on his face as if he would cry again any time from now
'Cute' Reif thought. Rhash's misty and reddened eyes were simply too mesmerizing
No matter what Rhash does, he would always look good in Reif's eyes
"II was really worried!" Rhash spoke after he calmed down for a bit and Reif kissed him on the forehead in return
"I apologize, I made you worried" Reif's tone was still as gentle as before but Rhash notices that something is different from him
Somehow, Rhash felt like Reif has become more mature than before and he doesn't know why
"Hmph! You should be, you don't know how much I worried for you!" Rhash replied with a snort
The bitterness he had gained for the past years erupted. He was more than happy that Reif has woken up but he also couldn't help but resent him for making him feel that worried!
"Right, right, I was really at fault. I hope big brother would forgive me" Reif accepted the scolding as he rested his forehead with Rhash
His eyes were filled with tenderness as he stared at his light affectionately
Rhash doesn't know why Reif suddenly becomes much more affectionate than usual and he can't help but become flustered
"Y-you ..." Rhash wanted to say something but the way Reif looks at him with those two black orbs of his was sucking all his words away
His mind failed to function properly as his cheeks turned red. What's wrong with Reif? Why does he feel different than before
"I'm sorry, I won't do it again" Reif apologizes and this time, it was Rhash's nose that he had kissed
Rhash's mind turned into a mess. He had already entangled with Reif in the bed countless of times before but that gentle kiss hits different
He doesn't know what is happening with him but Rhash could only move away from Reif while trying to calm his loudly beating heart
Compared to Reif that already realizes his own feelings, Rhash is different. His mind never thought of thinking that he would have a romantic relationship with Reif
He was too focused in wanting to do everything that would make Reif's life a good and happy one
Although the physical affections came in first between them, Rhash's thinking ended up on it feels good and that is the reason why they were doing it
It's not like he wants to prevent himself from falling in love with Reif. It's just that his mind thinking never went into that direction
In other ways, Rhash was just clueless and naive
"Big brother, we should go sightseeing. I heard that there's a small town near here that is famous for their hot springs" Reif suggested
It was inevitable that Rhash would have some psychological scars especially now that the incident is still very fresh
Reif could only try his best to divert Rhash's attention into other things
"Nah, that's too risky. Going into a human society would make it easier for the church to find us. Wait, what exactly happened after you woke up? How are you in peak condition this fast?"
Only now did Rhash remember that even if Reif woke, he should be in a weakened condition
He was in a coma for years while he was being killed from the inside. Although the shard is healing his body, its rate of healing was slower than the rate of destruction
That was the reason why Reif turned into a bag of skins and bones. How come that he is not perfectly healthy?
Not to mention, even if Reif woke up, shouldn't his strength stagnated? How did he get away from Nath and the clergy?
Nath's power was much stronger now compared to Reif's power before he fell into a coma!