“Ric!”

It was because Hildebert had come walking diligently toward the smoking area.

“I heard from Jonathan that you were here.”

The white-haired junior suddenly appeared from behind the wall.

Ricardo blinked and stared at Hildebert.

He hadn’t expected to see him here at all. Shouldn’t he still be stuck in the hospital wing?

Only after confirming that the stubborn junior who never listened actually looked perfectly fine today did Ricardo extinguish his cigarette between two fingers.

“You’re walking pretty well~?” 𝐟𝗿𝐞𝚎𝚠𝐞𝚋𝕟𝐨𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝕔𝕠𝚖

“Ah.”

Hildebert’s face lit up with happiness.

Ricardo frowned at that peculiar expression. But regardless, Hildebert placed a hand over his chest with a touched look.

“As expected, there’s no one but you, Ric. I came all the way to HQ just to show off that I can walk again, but Yun said it was sloppy, and Jonathan almost dragged me back to the hospital.”

“Well.... I kind of want to shove you back into the hospital too~.”

“I got discharge approval!”

Hildebert shouted urgently.

“Samuel told me himself! From now on I just need outpatient treatment. And I can eat outside food now.”

“Oh~ really~? That was fast....”

“Yes.”

His golden eyes curved softly.

“I worked hard on my rehab. I didn’t want to worry you anymore.”

Ricardo stared at Hildebert.

Holding the extinguished cigarette in his hand, he didn’t move for a moment. There was a lot he could say, but he chose not to say it now.

They had plenty of time to talk from here on.

A breeze swept through the smoking area at headquarters.

Hildebert, faintly smiling, broke the silence first.

“I’m truly sorry for making you worry.”

Ricardo let out a heavy sigh.

“That’s enough~. You can stop apologizing for that.... Just don’t cause trouble anymore~.”

“Yes.”

“You always answer well....”

“Ah, sunbae. From now on, my actions will match too. Really.”

“Well.... we’ll see.... Going back to the cabin~?”

“Yes. Jack is coming. Ah! Later, please invite me to your new place. I can’t repay you right away, but I’d at least like to bring a housewarming gift....”

“Think about that later~. You just got discharged, don’t rush things....”

After dispersing the cigarette smoke, Ricardo walked over to him. Hildebert smiled awkwardly.

Then he stepped closer and started pestering him to show pictures of the house.

When Ricardo said he could just see it in person later, Hildebert insisted on at least seeing a teaser.

Unfortunately, when this junior let his guard down, all his thoughts showed on his face.

He was probably planning to look at the photos and then go buy whatever furniture was missing.

Ricardo decided he’d have to tell him later that it wasn’t necessary.

Anyway, when he showed him the photos he had taken for arranging furniture, the junior peered at the phone intently.

After admiring them and finishing his inspection, he glanced at Ricardo again.

Ricardo, who had been observing the crutches, quickly realized that the other still had something to say.

He said he could eat outside food now.

Was he about to say he wanted to eat gnocchi or something?

Anything was fine—as long as he didn’t try to apologize again. Thinking that, Ricardo raised an eyebrow, signaling him to speak.

At that moment, Hildebert turned his head slightly like a guilty puppy, only moving his eyes to gauge his mood.

What?

Ricardo’s brow twitched.

That expression only appeared when he had something seriously weighing on him.

He had just been discharged—what kind of mistake could he have already made?

Ricardo’s expression turned ominous.

And the moment Hildebert realized his senior’s mood had worsened, he quickly confessed.

“There’s a new menu item at Lexic Noodles.”

“...Why would I need to know that.... no.... ha.... what is it?”

“Lexic pasta.”

For a while, Hildebert had to desperately beg for his right crutch to be spared.

***

Kairos burst out laughing after hearing how the left crutch had been broken.

“That one’s on you!”

“I knew he’d get mad.... I figured I’d get ahead of it before he got even angrier for not telling him....”

“What does a new menu item have to do with you getting in trouble?”

“I was worried I’d get caught if I went to eat it.”

Leaning against the passenger seat, Hildebert slowly stroked Milk, who was sleeping on his lap, as he replied.

Kairos let out a short ah as if he understood.

The red-haired man kept his eyes on the road as he drove.

“That makes sense.”

Hildebert let out a long sigh.

Then he began to grumble in bits and pieces, and Kairos listened with a faint smile. About how Yun had finally pulled out the Body Forfeit Agreement—he couldn’t tell if it was a joke or not, but the more time passed, the more it seemed like Yun meant it seriously, which was terrifying. About how he had gone around proudly showing off, only to run into Jason Trevain and the seniors close to him and hear, “You’re still walking with crutches?”

As he listed these small complaints, Hildebert eventually fell silent.

Kairos let him remain in his thoughts for a while.

As expected, the white-haired knight only broke the silence slowly when the car entered the bridge.

“I heard everything about you.”

Hildebert said it while looking out the window.

“From Luke and Hesh. They said you pushed yourself to the limit using your power, coughed up blood, and collapsed.”

“It wasn’t just me. Everyone was fighting with their lives on the line. I wasn’t anything special.”

“I know. But seriously, for a while, please don’t overuse your power.”

Turning his head, Hildebert started lecturing—then closed his mouth again.

The moment Kairos sent him a questioning glance, he spoke in an awkward voice.

“Well, it’s already been seven months. But I heard from Ami that you’ve been busy with reclamation work. So please don’t overdo it. Sometimes I’m terrified you’ll lose your remaining eye.”

“I’m far healthier than you are right now, so there’s no need to worry.”

“Hey. You try lying down for seven months and then getting up! Honestly, even among our kind, my recovery speed is among the best!”

“That may be true for your muscles. But your severe heart injury hasn’t fully «N.o.v.e.l.i.g.h.t» healed yet, has it?”

At Kairos’s calm words, Hildebert fell silent.

The white-haired man turned his head as if he had nothing to say.

He remained quiet until the residential district reflected in the car window, then muttered:

“That will get better with time as well.”

A wound inflicted by a blade wrapped in aura wouldn’t heal easily.

“It’ll take longer than limbs, but....”

“But there’s no need to rush anymore.”

Kairos said it quickly.

Hildebert, who had been blankly staring at the quiet and tidy neighborhood, turned his head.

The summoner smiled at him, his orange eyes meeting Hildebert’s golden ones.

“No one is chasing you anymore.”

Hildebert immediately let out a bitter smile.

“That’s true. But I made all of you wait too long again. There must have been a mountain of aftermath to deal with....”

“Hilde. No one contributed more to this war than you did. It was more than manageable for us to handle the aftermath, so please—let go of that burden and get some rest now.”

“Okay.”

Hildebert answered obediently.

Kairos chuckled softly at that response, and Hildebert, still slowly stroking Milk, added:

“Thank you for waiting again.”

Milk’s ear twitched under his hand.

“I won’t make you wait that long again.”

Instead of replying, Kairos simply smiled gently.

The former F1 driver’s car arrived smoothly at the cabin.

***

Yehyeon was standing in front of the cabin.

“Yehyeon!”

Hildebert brightened at the sight of the man smiling warmly at him.

“You’re off work!”

“Yes.”

Yehyeon walked toward him with a smile.

“I heard you were discharged, so I left early today. Black, good work on the reclamation mission the other day.”

“Thank you for your hard work.”

After offering a polite greeting, Kairos smiled faintly and returned to his own residence—

leaving behind the words that once Deltei, Igor, and Yoow arrived, they would all come to the cabin together.

After thanking him for the ride, Hildebert entered the cabin with Yehyeon.

Currently, the Supreme Commander of the Black Badgers was Ska Owen.

A lot had happened while he was in his deep sleep, or so he had heard. But in the end, that was how things had turned out. Ska Owen had safely taken over the position after Yehyeon, and while Ska himself had fallen into despair upon appointment, Yehyeon was happy to have finally escaped reappointment.

Of course, that didn’t mean Yehyeon’s life had become idle.

The title of advisor was not just for show. On top of that, Yehyeon apparently felt a great deal of guilt toward Ska Owen, so whenever Ska sent out an SOS, he rushed over.

Even so, his work-life balance had improved significantly.

“Thanks for taking care of the cabin even though you must’ve been busy.”

The moment he sat down on the beanbag, Hildebert spoke.

“Ami said you were working overtime yesterday too.”

“Ah, that wasn’t anything serious.”

“Really?”

“Yes.... well, apparently they’re holding a sports festival.”

Hildebert blinked.

“A sports festival?”

“Yes.”

For some reason, Yehyeon looked slightly exhausted as he quickly tidied up the cabin.

True to the claim that he had practically been the main caretaker while Hildebert was asleep, Yehyeon moved naturally, opening and closing shelves as if this were one of the rooms in his own home.

After cleaning everything up in a single sweep, he soon brought over a cup of warm tea.

When Hildebert tried to get up to help, Yehyeon firmly stopped him. Giving up, Hildebert thanked him and accepted the cup.

The white-haired man lifted his head and met Yehyeon’s gaze.

“I’m really getting better, so don’t worry. I’ve been hearing that my expression looks much better lately too.”

“It really does.”

“Really?”

“Yes. It’s fortunate your muscle recovery is so fast. I didn’t expect you to be walking this soon.”

“Impressive, right?”

Hildebert smiled broadly.

“I worked really hard. Even if Yun doesn’t acknowledge it.”

“No, he does.”

“He said my walking is sloppy.”

“He didn’t say it was slow, did he? Yun knows. There’s no way he wouldn’t. He saw Ami walk again.”

Yehyeon studied Hildebert carefully, then let out a soft laugh.

“The time you spent lying down is different, but even considering that, you’re recovering incredibly fast. It’s impressive. Rehab must have been really hard.”

“Not at all.”

Hildebert replied.

“It wasn’t hard at all.”

Yehyeon smiled faintly.

Then, for a moment, he simply watched Hildebert drink his tea.

Perhaps feeling a bit embarrassed by the gaze, Hildebert asked, “Aren’t you going to sit?” Only then did Yehyeon shift his body.

“I have something to give you.”

Hildebert immediately understood.

He slowly set the mug down on the side table.

His golden gaze followed Yehyeon as he went to retrieve something. The man disappeared into the space beneath the cabin stairs, then returned carrying a long bundle.

Hildebert smiled.

The pale Badger approached, holding the bundle with both hands.

“I’m glad I could return it safely again this time.”

“Thank you, as always.”

Hildebert accepted his sword.

Slowly unwrapping the bundle, he looked down at the blade, neatly preserved.

He gently ran his hand along the hilt, and only when Yehyeon’s expression darkened slightly did he lift his head.

Then, with a genuinely curious look, he asked:

“By the way, what do people usually do at a sports festival?”

Yehyeon’s expression darkened again—but in a completely different way.

***

In the meantime, Igor had gotten himself a house.

That’s what Deltei had told Hildebert.

“With that balance, how did he manage to get a house?”

Now moved onto the bed, Hildebert looked at his kin with raised brows.

“It’s not like his balance suddenly increased in seven months after not changing for fifty years.”