Andreas, leaning against the gate wall, blew cigarette smoke into the purple sky. He had long since grown tired of watching the clouds drifting leisurely. At his feet, over a dozen burnt-out cigarette butts were already rolling around.
A guard member, unable to stand it any longer, swept away the cigarette butts with a broom while giving him all sorts of glares. His expression seemed to ask if Andreas knew how sacred and great this place was. Yielding to the pressure, Andreas put out his cigarette with an embarrassed face and moved away, saying he was sorry.
Having lost his only source of amusement, he sauntered towards the stone gate. How grand of a farewell were they making that it was taking this long? The Commander hadn't come out for over an hour already.
'Are they kissing or something?'
Anyone who had seen the two of them would think that was quite plausible. Of course, given the Commander's personality, such a thing would never happen, but...
Andreas chuckled alone at his own silly thoughts. Just then, with perfect timing, light began to pour out from the stone gate.
"Oh, it's moving."
"Everyone gather!"
The exhausted members all turned towards the stone gate at once. Along with a strong wind, the sound of rock splitting – pssst – was heard.
Stone fragments scattered, and as the gate shook, the gap in the center slowly widened. Andreas, who had been right in front, furrowed his brows and turned his head away, having suffered the brunt of it.
Loren, who had been sharpening her sword blade with a whetstone, quickly got up and dusted herself off. The scattered escort team and guards uniformly assembled, forming ranks in four columns.
A moment later, a blurry figure gradually became clear through the gate opening, just wide enough for one person to pass. Hugo, who had returned crossing the waiting room, revealed himself in front of his comrades, brushing back his hair.
"Commander!"
"You've arrived!"
Flynn was the first to run and greet him. The thunderous voices of the guards echoed once again in front of the stone gate.
Andreas, wearing a displeased expression, put his hands in his pockets and thrust his face forward.
"Why are you so late? The sun's about to set."
Hugo, fixing his loosened tie, looked at his watch in response to his colleague's complaint.
"Was I gone for long? I'm sorry for making you wait."
He was about to habitually wipe the watch face, seeing faint fingerprints on the glass, but stopped abruptly. Regardless, Andreas, tired of waiting, sneered at him thoroughly.
"It felt like half a day. I thought you two were sleeping together or something."
For a moment, the guards' eyes flashed coldly. It was a look that said they wouldn't tolerate any more disrespectful remarks towards their lord.
Noticing the atmosphere, Andreas trailed off and muttered quietly.
"I'm just saying... can't say anything around here."
"Did you send him off?"
Loren, who had sheathed her sword, also approached the two and asked. Hugo made a light gesture as if to say he had finished it well. However, his expression was far from relieved for someone who had resolved a three-year task.
"One big task is done. We probably won't run into each other for a while now."
"...Well, I suppose so."
Loren had meant it as words of encouragement, saying he had done a good job, but a bitter smile briefly spread across Hugo's face. He somehow looked like he had a story to tell, or as if he had just composed himself after being overwhelmed. Loren scanned his disheveled navy hair and crumpled uniform jacket, then casually added:
"But it seems the wind was quite strong over there."
Just then, the stone gate closed tightly with a heavy sound. Andreas and Flynn also scanned Hugo's appearance at her remark.
As the three gazes focused on him, Hugo cleared his throat and called the guard captain, pretending to have business.
"Captain, come here."
"Ah, yes!"
"Um... lift the control around the gate in about 30 minutes. And make sure to brief the personnel rotating at other gates about what I mentioned."
"Yes, understood!"
Hugo's white cape, revealed as he half-turned his body, was crumpled as if someone had clutched at it. It was a somewhat unnatural trace to be caused by wind. Andreas slowly turned his head towards Loren.
He seemed curious about why she had brought it up. However, Loren flatly ignored his sinister gaze and approached Hugo.
"Commander, I have something to report briefly."
Hugo, who had patted the guard captain's shoulder, turned around with a gesture as if to dismiss him.
"What is it?"
"We received a call from headquarters earlier. The nearby passages were paralyzed with citizens and newspaper employees. It's been alleviated now as control has been completed, but I hear the internal atmosphere is still unsettled."
Hugo furrowed his brow with a tired face.
"I expected it, but... they're really quick to respond in times like these. Has the return route been secured?"
It was a sarcastic remark about the council members who had been dragging their feet on Leonardo's release. Loren nodded in agreement and twisted the button on her uniform sleeve cuff 180 degrees. It was a type of concealed artifact.
"That's not the problem, but before the escort team departed from the imperial capital, we subdued a newspaper employee who was lurking nearby. We confiscated his belongings under the pretext of preventing information leaks, and found this."
Loren reached into the small interdimensional space and pulled out a photograph. Hugo, who naturally received it, looked down with a puzzled face and then visibly reacted.
"This is..."
"I was going to submit it as an official report, but hearing that things were unsettled internally, I thought it would be better to deliver it directly. I hope I didn't do something unnecessary."
Having said that, Loren took a step back and crossed her arms as if she had completed her task.
Hugo's pupils trembled slightly. He couldn't take his eyes off the photograph for a while.
Andreas glanced at him, examining his unfamiliar expression. He seemed a bit surprised, and his emotions looked complex. Wondering what was causing this, Andreas peered around and then sneakily looked at the person in the photograph.
"Oh, this."
The person's eyes were filled with melancholy, gazing at something distantly. And the Commander looking at the photograph wore the same expression. Andreas clearly remembered this scene in the photograph.
"Isn't this right before the arrest in the northern grand plaza?"
Loren nodded. The person in the photograph she had handed over was Leonardo after he had saved a child during the fierce battle in the imperial capital's grand plaza.
He was probably watching the child and the child's mother safely escaping from the battlefield. Though it was unclear how they had managed to take a picture in that chaos, the distance between the photographer's position and the subject wasn't too far. Amidst the completely ruined, colorless background, he alone shone golden there.
Hugo suddenly felt a burning sensation in a corner of his chest, as if it had been scalded. While others might not, for him who had directly witnessed this moment and received considerable shock, it was an unforgettable sight.
A bittersweet smile spread across his lips as he briefly indulged in reminiscence. He gently, yet firmly, rubbed his thumb over the photograph as if caressing it.
"...To think I'd see this image again."
It was the moment a low sigh scattered. Hugo, who had quietly lowered his eyes, quickly composed the expression he didn't want to show as a superior.
"The film, was it confiscated?"
"We've handed over what was found at the scene to headquarters for now, and we've sent an investigation team to search for the remaining film and photographs."
"I see, well done. He still needs a little more time. If his face becomes known to the public right away, it will be an obstacle to him living freely in the future."
Both Loren and Andreas nodded in agreement. Leonardo Blaine's appearance was so striking that once seen, it could never be forgotten. The fact that he was a handsome man with golden hair and golden eyes had become known to the world through this incident, but there's a big difference between word-of-mouth descriptions and having his face plastered all over the newspapers.
Hugo once again looked at the man in his memory, with the now darkening sky as a backdrop.
The sun of that day, the wind of that day, vividly brushed his skin and took him back to that moment.
"Until perceptions change... we need to put in a little more effort."
Although it was inevitably revealed to the Council's internal personnel and citizens who attended the trial, for Leonardo's safety, there was a need to protect him from further exposure to the public. He was strong, but there were still unhealed wounds in his inner self. Even though they were apart, Hugo wanted to be a safe and reliable fence for him to tend to his remaining wounds.
"I'll handle this photograph. Gather all the films confiscated hereafter and deliver them directly to me. Ah, and send investigation teams to thoroughly check not just here, but all other newspaper companies as well."
If it goes up as a report item, the photograph would be classified as material for the agency itself to review and would belong to the Council. He didn't know if Loren had taken it out knowing this, but Hugo gratefully put the photograph safely in his inner pocket, appreciating her judgment.
"We'll do that."
"But... even if a verdict has been reached in this situation, will perceptions really change? Honestly, I'm worried about my own livelihood now."
Andreas sighed complainingly, recalling the uproar in the courtroom. Hugo smiled faintly and patted his shoulder.
"If you get suspended, I'll use you in my knightly order in the meantime, so don't worry. And perceptions don't change by waiting, they change by actively changing them."
"...What do you mean?"
Hugo put his arms around Andreas and Loren's shoulders and led them to where the escort team was gathered.
"Leonardo faithfully completed his mission as instructed, so he has done his best to make amends. Now it's our turn to make amends. Come on, let's go back right away and prepare for tomorrow's press conference. Send urgent letters to all the journalists. Tell them there's a scoop."
"What? No, we're about to get disciplined, and you want us to go and do more work?"
Andreas argued in an exasperated tone. Hugo gripped his forearm tightly and smiled gently.
"Do you still not know your superior's style?"
"..."
"And as battalion commanders of the Council, we should be prepared to work day and night for the imperial citizens. Our heroes fought risking their lives on the peninsula."
"Ugh... Commander, I think I need to rest for a while."
"Ah, this would be a good article title."
Ignoring Andreas's complaints, Hugo recited a couple of article titles he had in mind. Loren seemed to think they weren't great, but she didn't bother to object.
After all, once tomorrow passed, phrases that flowed from his mouth would be splashed across the front pages of newspapers throughout the empire.
The two, pushed by their superior, mounted their horses again with slightly tired faces. Following the commanders, the escort team quickly prepared to depart. Finally, with the Commander-in-Chief on his white horse at the lead, the escort team turned their bow towards the imperial capital.
***
The Council's main building was quiet yet seemingly noisy. Outside the walls, crowds following the control measures stretched out in a long line. Armed members were safely guiding citizens trapped in the passageways after arresting certain individuals who were inciting disturbances.
Gazing at the chaotic scene briefly revealed between the curtains, Meterion murmured into the communication magic tool in his hand.
"Yes, they've left."
He tapped the pipe in his other hand to shake off the ash accumulated in the bowl. Leaning against the wall in his vest, he took a short puff of smoke and then exhaled it slowly.
"By now, they should have passed through the gate... I think. Either way, we've laid out pursuit teams, so we should get word by tonight."
His deep green eyes stared at a picket sign flickering among the crowd.
'Fair Trials Now!'
Meterion snorted derisively. The person on the other side of the magic tool must have asked why, as he was about to take another puff of his pipe but stopped to answer.
"It's nothing. Just saw something amusing. Anyway, as soon as we succeed in making contact with the guy, we'll get in touch from our side. Let's discuss the details then."
Having briefly concluded the conversation, he tossed the now-silent magic tool onto the table. The magic tool rolled across a map before stopping midway. It was a map marking all the routes connected to the gates of the Agrizendro territory.