"Hey, Leon." Irene said quietly. "You all saved us."

Leon shrugged.

"It was all possible because of you."

Irene slumped down onto the grass outside her house.

She patted the spot beside her and gestured for him to sit.

Leon followed. As he sat down, he felt something soft against his shoulder.

He glanced sideways.

Irene had rested her head against him.

"I believed in you, Leon. Thank you very much."

She paused.

"And also... I love you."

Leon’s body jolted slightly.

Irene felt it too.

She knew he had reacted. But she did not mind it, it was not like it was his first time hearing—

Wait!!

It actually was the first time.

The previous timeline had been rewound.

Her confession at the pond, the cave, the shouted "I love you" through the forest.

None of that had technically happened to this Leon in this timeline.

The version of him sitting next to her had only ever heard "I love you" through her memories transferred via the device.

Which meant.

She had also never actually kissed him in this timeline.

Irene shot upright.

"Leon, I think I went back to square one!"

"Huh? What?"

"T-the part where I kissed you, it did not happen! Oh no no, I thought—"

"Pfttt hahahaha!"

Leon burst into laughter.

This girl... seriously. Even in a moment like this.

Well, that previous kiss was not even a proper kiss either. Her finger had been between their lips the whole time.

So technically her panic was justified twice over.

"But I said I would not rush you." Irene quickly added, her face turning red. "So it is fine... I will wait—"

"Irene." Leon interrupted.

"H-Hm?"

"You said you wanted a hug, right?"

She blinked.

"...Did I?"

"Yes."

"Ah, yeah! I do! I really do!"

She hopped up onto her feet and spread both her arms wide.

"Come!"

She declared like a child waiting to be picked up.

Leon’s eye twitched.

’Is she teasing me?’

He stood up too.

He walked toward her slowly.

His expression was calm, and his hands at his sides.

Irene grinned widely.

She closed her eyes and braced herself for the hug.

Leon stopped right in front of her.

His shadow fell over her face.

She waited.

And then he leaned in.

But not for the hug... His lips brushed against hers.

It was soft, and warm...

For a single second, Leon’s mind went blank.

The faint taste of cherry, and the wetness of her lips.

The warmth of her breath against his, and something in his chest that he had never felt before in his entire life, both this one and the previous, beat slightly.

He had read about kisses in books, and had seen them in shows.

He had even gotten close to one back in his old world.

But none of those had prepared him for this.

It melted his brain for a heartbeat.

He pulled back.

Irene’s eyes were wide open.

Her face had gone completely red, her mouth hung slightly open, and her arms were still raised mid-air for the hug that never came.

"...Wh-what..."

She slowly raised her fingers to her lips.

"That... just now. You... You kissed me!"

Leon winked one eye at her.

"Told you. I would take my revenge."

Irene’s mouth opened. Then she covered her face with both hands.

After a moment, she peeked through her fingers.

"...Then.. that means. You... you accepted?"

"...Uh."

Leon scratched his cheek and he looked away.

In truth, he had never imagined being in a relationship before.

In his old life, even when chances had come, he rejected them all.

This life is not an exception either.

The whole concept of love had always felt like background noise to him.

Irene was not even supposed to be a main character.

He had not created her, and nor did he remember writing her into the game.

And yet.

Standing here, looking at her covered face.

The platinum hair he had memorized over the past few decades, and the golden eyes peeking at him through her fingers.

He realized something simple which he did not have an answer to.

But he also did not want to walk away.

"If you think you can handle me." Leon said quietly. "Then sure, but do not say I did not warn you."

After knowing what Shin did to him, those feelings for Lumina which he thought belonged to him...

Leon also wanted to do this.

Irene’s eyes widened beneath her hands.

A small, hopeful smile started to form on her lips.

But before she can confirmed—

"You two can continue... I will just come back later."

A familiar voice cut through from behind them.

Both Leon and Irene flinched at the same time.

They slowly turned.

Standing a few steps away, arms crossed, looking at them with the patient expression of an older sister who had seen far too much, was Veronica.

"L-Lady Veronica." Irene stuttered. "H-how are you doing?"

Veronica looked between her and Leon.

Then she sighed.

"Seriously...?"

Leon coughed and stepped forward.

"Hello, Sister. It is nice to meet—ow."

He paused mid-sentence.

Veronica had reached out and gripped both his cheeks.

She was now pinching them and stretching them sideways.

"I am wowwy. (I am sorry.)" Leon mumbled through her grip.

She held his cheeks for another long second before she let go.

Irene was looking at the ground in nervousness, her hands folded neatly in front of her dress. She did not know what to say or do.

Her mind was still recovering from the kiss two seconds ago.

Veronica turned to her.

"You can relax." Veronica said. "What you two do is none of my concern here. I am just here to meet Queen Anise."

Irene’s shoulders eased visibly.

"Oh.... right." She bowed quickly. "I will drop you off at Sapphire Castle."

She turned and walked off toward the small stable beside her house to bring her Volstreak.

Now it was just Veronica and Leon.

Veronica looked at her brother for a long moment.

Then she folded her arms again.

"Meet me at the Tower after everything is done."

"Alright."

. . .

. . .

. . .

On the 15th of September, Year 1030 of the Great Calamity Calendar, several people across the Liora and Merlin Kingdoms reported a sudden earthquake.

By the next day, the news had spread.

A massive piece of land had appeared overnight, sitting directly between the borders of the two kingdoms.

A humongous city stood in the center of it.

It was the same city that, until that day, had only existed in old myths.

The lost city Evana had returned.

And by official declaration of three Calamity Towers, the Blood Tower, the Frost Tower, and the Moon Tower, Evana was now recognized as a sovereign kingdom under their joint protection, and officially named...

The Kingdom of Evana.

.

.

[End of Vol 02]

[A/N: I know many of you might be dissatisfied with FL, but well.. it is what it is. And Irene is peak character. I really, really loved writing her! Thanks for reading this far. We will start Vol 03, back to academy, and a little spoiler.... (Leon will kill the King). Now then, if you made it this far, a little gift or GT or PS would do. Bye~]