Arc 3 is here! 
Yuichiro awoke to the worst kind of awakening, due to someone’s arms that tightened, squeezing tightly around his body. He then wearily opened his fatigue eyes and tilted his head to the side. Immediately, within his proximity, there was a figure of Noah sleeping, embracing him like a pillow. Looking at the contented sleeping face, he felt his entire body weaken. While still in his exhausted state, he only moved his gaze around. Following that, he saw an image of Temeraire pouring water into a glass.
“Hey…”
Perhaps he had miserably cried the night before, his throat was parched and his voice cracked. Temeraire then approached the bed in a leisurely gait, holding a glass in one hand.
“Good morning, Here is a glass of water, if you like.”
When the glass was offered to him, he reached out one hand to take it. Nevertheless, because his body was exhausted to its limit, it did not move as he wished. He dropped his one arm which was still slightly raised, onto the bed sheet and said, “Let me have a drink.”
“Yes,” Temeraire answered without hesitation. While sitting on the edge of the bed, Temeraire took a sip of water and leaned his face toward Yuichiro. Water slowly flowed from the crevice of their lips as their lips overlapped. After swallowing the lukewarm water with a gulp, Yuichiro opened his mouth thinly once more, “It’s not enough.”
Temeraire lightly chuckled at Yuichiro’s words, which sounded inviting. As a result, he wore a tender expression, as if he were dealing with a spoiled child. Water poured from mouth to mouth once more. This time around, he stealthily slid his tongue along with the water. Temeraire playfully tickled Yuichiro’s upper palate and middle of tongue, producing vulgar sounds.
Just as Yuichiro was about to leak a small nasal sound, someone grabbed his lower jaw from an unexpected direction. His lips were stolen the moment he was forced to turn his head to the side. Noah locked a piercing gaze on him while kissing him passionately. A small tongue ravaged Yuichiro’s mouth, occasionally biting his lower lip. At the spur of the moment, a mixture of water and saliva dripped sloppily from the corners of his mouth. At this, Temeraire licked them off with his tongue. Despite the fact that it was still morning, an obscene air filled the canopy bed.
Yuichiro snatched the man’s wrist as Noah’s palm crawled across his stomach. As a result, Noah’s lips parted with a visibly frustrated expression. Right before he could say anything, Yuichiro opened his lips, “Don’t be a jerk this early in the morning.”
“It’s your fault for leaving me alone and kissing Temeraire.”
“Why do I have to get your approval? I mean, my body is rickety because of you guys… Give me a break.”
Noah slumped his shoulders openly as if pressing Yuichiro for answers. Yuichiro, however, shifted his gaze to Temeraire, leaving Noah in his depressed state.
We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.
“Temeraire, raise me up.”
As ordered, the man propped his back up, raising his upper body as if being nursed. In the same way, he was also dressed by the man’s nimble hands.
“Would you like to eat?”
“I’m eating. And call Goat for me.”
“Right here?” For a brief moment, Temeraire frowned in grimace.
Yuichiro, on the other hand, shrugged his shoulders and answered, “Thanks to someone, I can’t move, so it can’t be helped. Call him now.”
After Yuichiro said this sarcastically, Temeraire left the room without breaking his scowl. Yuichiro lightly nudged Noah’s shoulders, who was still sulking in the corner of the bed, “My men will see you naked. Hurry up and get dressed.”
After he muttered with a sigh, Noah busily scurried from the bed. The moment he saw Noah’s thin back, he gasped. There were numerous scars on the young man’s back. Burns and cuts mingled distortedly across his back, creating a strange gradation all over his back. Yuichiro unconsciously bit his lower lip at the sight of Noah’s small frame covered in unspeakable ugliness.
“You, is that what they did to you?” his words blurted out unintentionally.
Putting on his coat, Noah then turned his back, looking at Yuichiro.
“It’s a small matter.”
Noah’s unfazed attitude completely baffled Yuichiro. ‘Why would it be a small matter when he was clearly been abused?’ Yuichiro thought.
“Did you get hit by your mother?” When Yuichiro asked this, Noah’s mouth loosened slightly as if he was troubled by the question. However, Noah remained silent.
“Where is your mother?”
Currently, Yuichiro had no idea what he would do if he heard Noah’s response. He was feeling irrationally annoyed. If he ever saw Noah being beaten in front of him, he would most likely break the mother’s arm right there and then.
Later, Noah shook his head loosely from side to side with a troubled look on his face.
“My mother, is already dead.”
“Dead?”
“Yes. She died by jumping off from the top of the castle along with Temeraire’s father. It was during the day when Temeraire was chosen to serve.”
There was not a hint of sorrow in Noah’s calm voice. Instead, there was only voidness—detachment of facts from reality.
“Perhaps, mother couldn’t stand it anymore. Not only was she sacrificed to the oracle, but so was her son.”
After hearing this statement, the word ‘sacrifice weighed heavily on Yuichiro’s shoulders. He suddenly recalled the words written in the goddess’s diary.
Sacrifice
Everyone in this world was a sacrifice. Noah, Temeraire, and all the goddesses before him were all dancing on the palm of someone else.
“My mother used to say, ‘God enjoys playing with us. We are just toys for him to play with’.”
If that was the case, was what he had done in this world until now, was a sports entertainment for God? Was God enjoying himself seeing his pawns stumbling back and forth in this world?
“Do you resent it?”
Noah’s gaze wavered in confusion at Yuichiro’s abrupt question.
“Do you resent your mother, Temeraire… and this world?”
For a moment, Noah’s eyes distorted with sadness as he was barraged with questions. He then briefly remained silent with a sorrowful face. Afterward, he broke the silence by shaking his head left and right.
“I don’t want to resent anyone…” Noah’s voice sounded saddened by his inability to organize his own thoughts. “Temeraire is kind to me. He tries to protect me, like a real brother…” It seemed that he had already known this while muttering bitterly. However, Noah still could not forgive him. He could not forgive Temeraire for monopolizing his mother’s love until the end of her life.
“It pains me that I couldn’t forgive him,” Noah groaned. His small body seemed to be swirling with love and hate—almost bursting. As for Yuichiro, he could somehow comprehend these painful feelings. It was the same for him, who wasn’t able to forgive anyone. Furthermore, he was unable to ever forgive himself. Afterward, he stared at Noah, and spoke, “
“You don’t have to forgive anyone.”
Noah raised his face in surprise at the spilled words.
“It’s because you want to forgive that you are suffering. Don’t pretend to be a good boy. You don’t have to be who someone else wants you to be. Live more selfishly. You can kill whoever you want with your resentment, and you are free to destroy this world.”
At Yuichiro’s matter-of-fact outburst remark, Noah wore a stunned expression. Afterward, Yuichiro added with a smile on his face, “If God is toying with us, then what’s wrong with us toying around with this world in return?” Simultaneously, Yuichiro small laughs escaped from the depths of his throat. As for Noah, he stared at the gleeful Yuichiro dumbfoundedly for a while. Soon, his face gradually reddened. His eyes previously squinted in sorrow were now sparkling with life.
“You, are saying something really scary things, you know.”
“Scary things? I’m talking about fun things, aren’t I?” When Yuichiro replied teasingly, a burst of laughter came from Noah’s lips.
At this sight, Yuichiro widened his eyes. It was the first time he had ever seen Noah laughing so happily. Noah eventually collapsed onto the bed and leaned over Yuichiro’s thighs without hesitation. Before Yuichiro could dismiss him for being annoying, Noah looked up at his face, muttering, “You don’t have to hate me or forgive me.”
“…Just do what you like.” When Yuichiro threw off his remark casually, Noah narrowed his eyes and smiled.
In response, Noah said, “No matter who I kill, even if I destroy the world, it’s my freedom,” and then secretly laughed once again. The sound of Noah’s secret laughter shook Yuichiro’s eardrums faintly. Yuichiro then wondered if it was possible to lead this innocent child astray onto a wicked path. While lying his back on his thighs, Noah gently grabbed one of his hands. The young man caressed his blistered, rugged hand, and muttered deliriously, “Yuichiro is my world.”
Hearing this, Yuichiro imagined to himself what kind of world would it be. Because the only world that floated behind his closed eyes was one painted in black and red.
Translator’s Notes
Sorry for the slightly short chapter. Since the convo between Noah and MC stops here, I didn’t want to abruptly split the next storyline. Next chapters coming soon! Thanks for reading!
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thanks for the chapterr
thanks for the chapter!
Wow, I thought it would take longer for Noah to fall for Yuichiro, but this boy is already madly obsessed.