"It's alright. It's alright."
Two clear tear tracks slid down Old Master Timefield's face, dripping one by one onto the back of Geno's hand.
There was not the slightest pretense in any of it. His care for Geno — all of it — was laid bare, plain as day.
It was the first time Geno had ever felt, in this world, love from an elder.
Something shifted inside him, and he stopped caring about everything else that had been weighing on his mind. He placed his hand over the old man's and quietly began to comfort him.
"It's alright, Uncle Timefield — isn't this good news?"
"Yes, yes, it is. It really is."
Old Master Timefield tilted his head back, trying to stem the flow of tears that way, while his grip on Geno's hands tightened — as though terrified that Geno might vanish the moment he let go.
"A happy ending for everyone. A happy ending for all."
Head butler Arnold wore a wide smile as he gathered up the medical staff and ushered every last doctor and nurse out of the ward, leaving the two of them alone.
Coming back to himself, Geno looked at Old Master Timefield — who still hadn't quite composed himself — and after a moment's thought, decided it was time to come clean.
"Uncle Timefield, the truth is, I—"
"I know. You're not human, are you?"
"...?"
Geno's pupils contracted on the spot, and the hand resting on the old man's stiffened just a fraction.
Sensing Geno's reaction, Old Master Timefield's lips curved into the faintest of smiles. The warmth in his eyes did not waver by a single degree.
"Old as I am, and as worn-down as this body has gotten — the mind and the eyes still work just fine. The way you looked earlier, at first glance it seemed like severe Corruption. But there wasn't a single corresponding symptom to go with it."
A faint flicker passed through Old Master Timefield's eyes as he traced back through the earlier details.
"It was only because everything happened so suddenly that I lost my head. But thinking it over carefully — you had already woken up while I was holding you, hadn't you."
"Yes. I had already come to by then."
Geno gave a small nod. Seeing the admission, Old Master Timefield's expression settled into one of quiet, unsurprised satisfaction.
"Just as I thought. Combined with how you have conducted yourself throughout — and the fact that since the moment we met, that bracelet on your wrist has never once come off."
"Add to that the combat ability that far exceeds anything a normal person could manage, and the capacity to materialize weapons out of thin air — all of that is what led me to conclude that you are no ordinary human."
Of course, the most critical piece was that Geno had shown none of the symptoms of Ether Corruption whatsoever — that was what had first planted the seed of doubt in Old Master Timefield's mind. All the other clues had simply confirmed what he had already begun to suspect.
Hearing it laid out like that, Geno couldn't help but marvel. Truly, old ginger bites hardest — from nothing but scattered, minor details, the man had pieced together his entire identity.
And he couldn't help the quiet pang of self-reproach that followed: he really hadn't been careful enough.
"You're not wrong. I'm indeed not an ordinary human."
Geno dipped his head with honest humility, acknowledging the truth — a gesture that only made Old Master Timefield's expression grow all the more pleased with himself.
"Don't worry, child. This old man holds no prejudice against you. Whatever you are, human or not — none of it changes the fact that you're already the grandson I've chosen to call my own."
"Uncle Timefield..."
"~ Still calling me Uncle, are you? Walk out that door and you can call me Uncle Timefield to your heart's content — I won't say a word. But right now, in this room — what should you be calling me?"
"...Grandpa."
"There we go! Good boy!"
Old Master Timefield's mood at that moment could have launched him clean off the ground. He happily ruffled Geno's hair, as delighted as a child who happened to weigh three hundred pounds.
On Geno's end, the sensation on top of his head was a little embarrassing at first — but it had been so long since he'd felt that kind of elder's warmth that he settled into this strange new bond faster than he expected.
"Grandpa Timefield — since it's come to this, I won't hide anything from you. My true identity is..."
As he spoke, Geno let his arm shift back into its Ethereal form.
"My true identity — I'm an Ethereal."
Even as he said it, Geno snuck a glance at Old Master Timefield's face. Not a single flicker of change — still that same expression, steady as a mountain.
Can't say I'm surprised, he thought privately. That's Grandpa Timefield for you — hears something this earth-shattering and doesn't even blink.
Inside, however, Old Master Timefield's thoughts were a very different story.
Holy —! This kid is a fing Ethereal?! I was bracing myself for an android — a cyborg — something along those lines — but my poor, fragile sense of reality!*
But surprise was one thing and reason was another. He had watched Geno's every action with his own eyes. If the boy truly meant harm to humans — then why had he put himself in danger to protect them?
On top of that — Ethereals could not leave the Hollow: that much was common knowledge. Yet there was a small number of people who knew the deeper truth, that within the Hollows, there did exist certain... exceptional cases.
Perhaps this kid was one of them. Though judging by the look of him, he didn't yet seem to fully grasp the significance of his own existence.
Having quietly steadied himself, Old Master Timefield gave his head a small shake and tucked all of that away, back down where it belonged.
Whatever else was true — right now, Geno was simply the grandson he had just claimed as his own. And his granddaughter's fiancé. Nothing more, nothing less.
"Xiao Jie — remember: you must guard your secret with everything you have. Never let it fall into the hands of anyone who would use it against you. Do you hear me?"
Geno nodded firmly, a warmth spreading through his chest once again.
To hear Grandpa Timefield's quiet concern — not panic, not fear — Geno felt himself growing even more attached to the old man.
The two of them kept talking after that, but not another word was said about Geno's identity. By silent, unspoken agreement, it had become a subject that simply did not exist.
"So what do we do next..."
♪ No more promises brushed aside — no more honest hearts misread ♪
Geno's phone had survived that entire battle completely unscathed. The ringtone now filling the air was the one Belle had stubbornly pre-set for him without asking — supposedly sung by some big celebrity.
Geno wasn't the type to follow celebrities, but it really was a decent song, so he'd never gotten around to changing it.
Still, he found himself a little puzzled by this particular call.
It had barely been dawn — who on earth would be calling at this hour?
He glanced at the screen.
Belle?
He gave Old Master Timefield a quick look of acknowledgment, then answered.
"Hello? Belle — what's going on?"
"You've got some nerve! Geno! How could you do something like this!"
A big thing? Me? What big thing did I do?
Utterly baffled, Geno listened as Belle unloaded on him from the other end of the line — a torrent of vivid, inventive language pouring from that honeyed little mouth of hers, so relentless that Geno felt like his ears needed a thorough wash.
"You shameless, disgusting, depraved little —"
"Stop! Calm down! Even if you're going to tear into me, at least tell me why!"
Geno cut her off, his mind a solid wall of question marks.
Why — why on earth was Belle suddenly going off on him like this?
Even if he was about to be torn to pieces, he at least deserved to know the reason!
____
👻🔥+40 ch: Walnut-chan🔥👻
🔥 New history: Reborn as Naoya I Really Am Here for Revenge!
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