Chapter 782 Uncle, are you crying?
"You''re alright," said us, offering ude a warm smile as he knelt on his knees while the little prince was sitting on the edge of the bed. "That madwoman won''t do anything to you. Just… just… stay here for now. This ce is safe for you."
us ruffled the young boy''s hair in hopes that wouldfort him a bit. Being back in time and staying in the royal pce was not the best time for the two of them. Even though Stefan and Samael were now on the same boat, things for this child were still the same, and us would still say the same things he used to tell his nephew. But us had to. He had to repeat these painful words, which only reminded him and ude how little their world was. That in this world, the surface was thin as eggshells. Hence, each step should be careful and their weight calcted.
Hence, it had always been safe for ude to stay within this cold pce where no one ever bothered to go. ude''s safe zone.
"Uncle, are you going to leave now?" asked the young boy after mustering enough courage to speak. "Mhm." us nodded, smiling subtly at him. "I need to do something."
ude''s little mouth opened, only to close it again. His uncle hadn''t been on good terms with the king, but even so, us had always followed Stefan''s orders without questions asked. us was a good man; he was the only nice person in this ce. And because us cared for him so much, he had to do things that were out of his principles for ude. "Will you be away for a long time again?" came out his tiny voice, and heaved a sigh of relief when us shook his head. "I''ll just be around for a while." us retrieved his hand from his nephew''s head, and then rested his arm on his leg. "Don''t worry. I''lle and visit you every day."
"Really?" ude''s eyes glimmered; unlike the sharp look he cast at Silvia, ude was just like any other boy with his reaction. "Of course! Since when did I disappoint you?" us chuckled, tapping the surface of the bed. "ude, remember. You have me. Always. Even if I go on a mission, I will surelye back and apany you here."
ude''s expression softened as he nodded. "Once I grow up, I will always go on a mission with you."
"Haha! Well, I do not mind being the mentor of the crown prince." us winked yfully. "I''ll make you a great man!"
Both of them smiled at each other for a moment before us tapped the soft bed again. "Now, time for you to sleep," said us, pushing himself up while ude crawled to his spot. After us tucked the little boy in, he sat down on the edge of the mattress, eyes on ude. "Bedtime stories?" he asked the little boy, only to see ude shake his head. "Uncle, can you take me out of the pce one day?" ude inquired curiously. He had outgrown bedtime stories but had grown fond of talking to us; asking questions to sate his curiosity. "Of course. I told you. I''ll take you out of the pce one day." us smiled. "One day, ude. One day."
He then slowly peeled his eyes away from the little boy to look around the chamber. His hands were on either side of him, pursing his lips into a thin line. "Someday… I will take you on an inspection with me," us continued with a hum along with it, recalling that time the two of them went to Cunningham. That was probably the turning point for the two of them, meeting Lilou for the first time, whom both of them were so fond of. us couldn''t help but smile as he looked back at ude. Even though many things happened after that event in Cunningham, the result was overall good. ude would break free from his royal duties as a prince and would get the title of the earl in Monarey. Monarey might be a ce where it was cold all year round, but they had a good time there. There might be problems here and there, but the two of them managed.
Staring at ude''s young and adorable face, us couldn''t help but feel a little sentimental. The older ude grew, the more he had be mischievous, having Fabian as his role model. But at the same time, ude might be mischievous, but he had also be a fine young man; an earl everyone, even in the south Minowa, admired. "We''ll be fine, ude." us sniffed hard as he fixed the nket over the boy''s chest. "Uncle, are you crying?"
"No, of course not."
"Who made you sad?" "No one. I''m not crying." us chuckled as he forced a smile on the young boy''s face. "I''m just… very proud of you — that''s all."
"What did I do to make you proud?"
Many. That was the first word that came into us'' head upon ude''s curious question.
"For existing." us''s expression softened, knowing how this child went through so much at such a young age. Yet, ude didn''t let everything drag him down. And that… bring equal pain and relief in us'' heart. Because the current ude, the one he left with Lilou and Samael, med himself for their situation right now. ude even lost a good friend, but he couldn''t even grieve properly.
Life surely has a sick and twisted sense of humor. It wouldn''t even cut them some ck. ude smiled, moved by his uncle''s short yet heartwarming answer. No one had ever thanked him for existing or appreciated his existence. Hence, this meant a lot to him. "Don''t cry, uncle. I am a La Crox, and I will surely make everyone proud and love me." ude sported a reassuring smile. "Until then, I will stay safe in the cold pce." n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om
"Mhm." us ruffled his head. "Good boy."
us fixed the nket again properly and inspected the room lest there was an open window. The night could be very cold, and leaving one open would freeze ude to death — he was exaggerating. After snuffing out thest candle, us bid his nephew a good night and left. Standing in front of the door with his back against it, a deep exhale slipped past his lips. "I will surely make everyone proud and love me." ude''s remarks hovered over him, causing us to reveal the bitterness in them. ''There''s no need to feel sorry,'' he told himself as he took a step away. ''He might not achieve that in this ce even if he does everything, but Lilou would surely love him at first sight.''