Chapter 167: Sovereign Fragment [3]

Brandon wanted to leave.

To see his sister, and to finally see his friends.

To let them know of his survival.

"Don't you want to use this opportunity?"

"Opportunity?"

"You're not bound by your connections anymore. You can use this opportunity to grow."

That...

It was a proposal that left him to ponder. There were merits to Ciel's statement.

But still.

He felt compelled to at least let them know of his survival.

But it seemed as though Ciel was able to tell the conflicted look on his face as she spoke her next words.

"If you want to heed my advice, then you can tell your sister. For the others, it's up to you."

"...."

And with that, Brandon began to ponder.

Certainly.

For the rest, they could live without his presence for the time being. The most important one was Belle.

Ah.

And that was when he recalled a certain someone.

'Rachel...'

The last thing he could recall was how complicated the situation was regarding her.

If Rachel was doing well now, then his appearance would impede her of some sort.

The same went for him.

He could recall how uncertain his plans became when Rachel got herself involved.

She was a variable he couldn't take into account, no matter how much planning he did.

This was especially so with her complicated family matters.

In the not so distant future, he could picture just how a burden they would be to each other.

It's better to leave her in the dark for now.

Just until he was strong enough to ignore these variables.

Thinking of such thoughts might've made him feel ungrateful, after what Rachel did to save him.

But in the first place, everything was taken into account.

On that very same day he almost died, Jin was there.

He had sensed his gaze on that day. The only reason the situation escalated to a near-death situation was because of Rachel's appearance.

Jin couldn't just abruptly show up in front of Rachel.

But besides that, they were good friends.

He couldn't obstruct her current state, just because of her feelings for him.

And truth be told,

...He was quite unsure of his feelings for her now.

Everything happened so abruptly. From the way she lashed out at him back in the shady coffee shop with Zed.

It was as if he hadn't done what he did, then things would've been worse for Rachel.

He didn't want that.

She was part of the main cast.

But in compensation, he knew his next course of action.

And it was still the same.

To somehow save her father from the organization.

Was the organization even still under operations, after the calamity?

He was unsure.

But he would soon find out with just one phone call.

After pondering, he voiced out his response.

The Imperial Army's failure was a deep loss to humanity.

But for both Amelia and Brandon, they had also lost their fathers.

And though Brandon wasn't particularly close to Omar, the thought of his death had still affected him somewhat.

"...!"

All of a sudden, Amelia's shoulders began to tremble as she lowered her head, averting her gaze.

Brandon was at a loss for what to do next.

And with such thoughts, he stood still and allowed his senior to cry in front of him.

The two stood still at that moment. Silence permeated the room. Even Ciel didn't speak as she gazed outside the window.

Shortly after, Amelia's voice reached his ears, cracking.

"...Sorry. I got a bit emotional there."

He shook his head.

"I'll look away this time."

"...."

And so he did.

***

Sob. Sob.

The occasional sound of sobbing broke the silence in the room.

For Amelia, she had to steel herself, despite her father's death.

Imperial Army members would offer their empty condolences, but in the end, would return to the topic of finding a replacement for her father.

Though Amelia understood how dire the state of the human domain was, it felt disrespectful.

They had even asked her to fill his role while she was grieving.

...As if her father had never meant anything to the army.

He was that easy to replace.

Her thinking might've been selfish. But she couldn't help it. She was nothing but a daughter who had lost her father.

***

June 2, 2149.

3:00 PM.

It was a Sunday.

And a sunday entailed going to church for the Locke family's religion.

Clapping her hands, she offered a prayer. Beside her was her mother. The two kneeled as they offered a silent prayer.

Her prayers were the same as always. For the deity to protect them, guide them, and for everyone in the world to find peace.

And also...

In hopes that her younger brother and father are somewhere up there.

Time passed.

They finished their prayer.

The mother and daughter conversed after, roaming the halls as they made their way to the exit.

It seemed like her mother was finally recovering.

"Haaa..."

Belle breathed out a sigh. Realizing her mother was ahead of her, Belle tried to catch up to her.

But when she realized her mother had stopped walking, Belle tilted her head.

"Mom?"

Her mother's attention seemed to be fixed on the far–end corner of the halls.

Following her line of sight, Belle turned her head in that direction.

"...!"

A silhouette emerged amidst the shade.

Gradually, his features became visible. Belle's mouth formed an 'o' shape, and here eyes shot wide open.

No way.

There was no way.

"...Brandon?"