# Chapter 15
At first, he thought what he saw above him was the ceiling of the tent house. But as his eyes adjusted to the darkness, he could make out the contours of someone’s face.
Overlapping that face were the countless faces he had seen in his dream. Cold sweat spread across Ion’s face, and his golden eyes, engulfed by darkness, trembled like aspen leaves. He couldn’t move, as if pinned down by sleep paralysis. The sound of rain hitting the dirt floor outside sounded like fingernails repeatedly scratching at the tent entrance, bringing extreme terror.
Just as he was repeatedly commanding his frozen body to move—
BOOM—!
With the sound of a massive thunderclap outside, his vision brightened for an instant. Thanks to this, Ion could identify who was in front of him.
Levi, sleeping like the dead.
As soon as he confirmed Levi’s face, his breath returned along with an overwhelming sense of relief. To Ion, who was breathing roughly like someone who had run a long distance without rest, the rain sounds outside that had seemed frightening until moments ago suddenly transformed into calming, peaceful music.
“Haah…”
He exhaled deeply, finally calming down. The remnants of fear that lingered inside scattered outward through his long breath.
Ion, lying side by side with Levi in the cramped space of the tent house, bitterly wiped his forehead with his left hand. The cold sweat that had seeped out while dreaming was quite abundant.
After vigorously wiping the sweat on his clothes, Ion pulled up their only blanket to his shoulders and shivered. The forest barely received sunlight, and with the heavy rain pouring down plus his cold sweat, it was naturally colder than usual.
Since the sleeping space was narrow, if he curled up due to the cold, he would inevitably touch Levi lying beside him. Not wanting to wake someone sleeping peacefully, he just wrapped his arms around himself and tightly closed his eyes.
‘Will I be able to sleep…’
By his estimation, dawn was still a while away. Though he felt he should sleep more, given his recent nightmare and his chilled body, it seemed impossible to fall asleep.
As he was contemplating whether to stay awake all night, suddenly an arm wrapped around his waist.
He was startled, but only for a moment.
Levi, who had awakened at some unknown time, pulled Ion into his embrace.
“They say you die if you’re cold.”
Hearing Levi’s voice, Ion found the situation of being trapped in his arms somewhat bewildering, then chuckled. Levi was still earnestly trying to keep him from dying, solely because Ion had expressed a desire to live.
“You’ve held me like this before, right?”
“Yes.”
“Is it your hobby to embrace people who are lying down, Levi?”
“No. But you’ll die if you’re cold.”
He’s the kind of person who doesn’t understand jokes, after all.
Ion smiled broadly, already forgetting the fear from his nightmare. But once cold has set in, it doesn’t easily fade. As he was trying to suppress his body’s slight involuntary trembling, he felt the blanket being wrapped tightly around him.
“What are you doing?”
“You’re cold.”
“That’s true, but…”
Levi, who had wrapped the only blanket around Ion like a pillbug, sat up. Then he lifted Ion’s body onto his thighs.
“Levi?”
Ion, seated sideways on Levi’s thighs, felt his head touch Levi’s shoulder and made an embarrassed face. The posture somehow resembled a child in their mother’s arms.
“You don’t have to go this far.”
“But.”
Levi’s hand touched Ion’s eyes. Moisture he hadn’t even realized was there was swept away by Levi’s fingers.
“They say you should do this for someone who keeps crying even after being comforted.”
Though his voice still conveyed no emotion, the reason behind it was clear.
“Who’s crying all the time…!”
Ion felt Levi’s fingers also wiping the corner of his other eye and tightly closed his lips.
Thanks to the tightly wrapped blanket and Levi’s close proximity, the trembling of his shoulders soon stopped. When he gently rested his awkwardly positioned head against Levi’s shoulder, he felt a comfort entirely different from lying down alone with his eyes closed. His entire body felt pleasantly languid, and if possible, he wanted to fall asleep just like this.
“…Who taught you this?”
Whoever taught him, the effect was remarkable. Until just a moment ago, he had been too frightened to close his eyes because of the nightmare, but now he could feel the memory of the dream already becoming blurry.
“Hest.”
“…I didn’t hear that wrong, did I?”
That guy, who’s even bigger than Levi, on these knees…
Does he have no shame?
Thinking about it, the only people Levi could have learned this from were the shantytown residents or Hest. Since the shantytown people would either tremble or hide when they saw Levi, the answer could only be Hest.
“He said he did this to comfort me when I was crying before I lost my memories.”
“How old is Hest now?”
“21 years old.”
“…”
Ion’s face subtly contorted.
Assuming this happened around two years ago when Levi lost his memories, Hest would have been 19. Even if it happened earlier, considering Hest’s much larger build compared to Levi… it’s still disgusting.
Estimating ages made Ion curious about how old Levi was. Because he had lost all his memories except for a few things so cleanly, he gave the impression of a child with only a large build, but in reality, he must have lived many more years than Ion. Just as Ion’s mother had told stories about Levi as if they were from long ago.
‘It would have been nice if Levi had his memories.’
Then he could have heard how Levi was born and lived, and even memories with Ion’s mother, which were now unknowable.
‘Mother’s life-saving benefactor…’
It was truly amazing. That his mother’s life-saving benefactor was now protecting him like this.
“Hey, Levi.”
Ion, leaning his body more into Levi’s embrace, asked with his eyes closed.
“If I no longer have to run from those people… if I can live well without hiding anymore, what will you do?”
After saying it, he felt a forgotten chill seep back in, making his spine shudder.
Feeling the small tremor, Levi comfortably embraced Ion’s body with both arms, as if to reassure him.
“Do whatever you want to do.”
“…”
Ion couldn’t respond to Levi’s words.
He didn’t know what it meant to do whatever he wanted. If the slave traders stopped chasing him, he would feel unburdened and free, but that was all. He couldn’t quite grasp what he wanted to do or what he should do.
On the other hand, part of him wanted to stay with Levi just like this.
Though they had been together for only a short time, Levi’s existence was inseparable from Ion’s thoughts. When he opened his eyes in the morning, Levi was naturally lying there; when they ate meals, though unnecessary for Levi, he would always eat together as if it were natural; and he showed childlike interest in even the smallest actions or words.
And just like now, he tried to protect and comfort Ion, albeit clumsily.
Ion didn’t want to be separated from that warmth.
Even if he left this place to meet new people, find things he wanted to do, and discover enjoyable pursuits, he hoped Levi would always be firmly by his side.
Now that his mother, his only family and sole pillar of support, was gone.
For Ion, Levi was the only reliable person he could depend on.
Lying completely in Levi’s arms with his eyes closed, Ion felt strength leaving his body as he accepted his situation both rationally and emotionally. Perhaps because Levi’s embrace was almost excessively warm and comfortable, sleep that had shown no sign of coming now poured over him.
“Levi… you said you save me because I want to live, right?”
“Yes.”
“Why do you do that? Even if I want to live, I’m still another person. Since I’m someone completely unrelated to you… you could just let me survive on my own.”
Rubbing his sleepy eyes against Levi’s shoulder, he waited for his answer.
What would he say?
Maybe his usual “I don’t know,” or, though Ion wouldn’t like it, “Hest told me to do so,” or something along those lines.
As he waited for the answer, he began to drift into sleep.
“Because I… also want to live.”
Levi’s words at that moment were infused with a hollowness and poignancy Ion had never felt from him before.
Several hours later.
Ion, who woke up feeling refreshed, immediately froze.
Having fallen asleep with his head resting on Levi’s shoulder in his embrace, Ion discovered Levi’s face touching his forehead. Levi’s head, having fallen asleep in a sitting position, looked precarious, as if it would tilt sharply if Ion moved even slightly.
Unable to move and with his head still resting, Ion could only roll his eyes, deciding to remain still a little longer for the sake of Levi, who had endured discomfort during the night.
Naturally, this led to boredom, and Ion decided to alleviate this tedium by examining Levi’s face in detail.
A well-contoured forehead, a straight nose bridge that was neither too high nor too low, black eyelashes that seemed quite long for a man, pale skin without any color, unusually red and soft lips, and a distinct jawline.
Before he knew it, Ion became so absorbed in studying Levi’s face that he couldn’t take his eyes off him.
Somewhere inside him, something tickled. He thought he could hear a sound that matched the sensation.
That sound grew even louder when Levi slowly opened his eyes.
