Chapter Text
A typical family gathering.
Benson and Lucy sat on the right, looking every bit the father and mother of the family. Melissa, seated beside them, resembled the eldest daughter. Opposite them, Alice, Klein, and Leonard appeared as the youngest children.
Ever since Klein could walk the earth by manifesting his true body through avatars, the Moretti family had developed the habit of gathering at least once a month.
Benson and Lucy had become Beyonders after the apocalypse but remained at lower Sequences. Alice, upon reaching adulthood, had also decided to enter the Beyonder world and was now a low-Sequence Beyonder. However, unlike her parents, who planned to stop at Sequence 8 or at most Sequence 7, Alice was more inclined to follow her aunt’s path and become at least a mid-Sequence Beyonder. For now, she hadn’t decided whether to aim for higher Sequences.
Naturally, Mr. Fool’s family didn’t have to worry about losing control or lacking potions for advancement. Their choice to remain at mid or low Sequences was simply a human one.
Tonight’s dinner, as usual, was mostly prepared by Klein himself, with Melissa and Leonard lending a hand.
In addition to the classic dish of mutton stewed with peas, he had selected a few recipes from the era of the dream city, drawing from Zhou Mingrui’s memories. He also made some specialty dishes Gehrman had encountered while at sea. No matter the type, every dish received unanimous praise from everyone at the table.
For dessert, they had mooncakes—a pastry that had recently become all the rage. Capable of being shaped into various forms and available in multiple flavors, it had quickly swept through Backlund since its introduction. Although it came in many shapes, the classic form was round. According to the baker who came up with it, the round shape symbolized family reunion—a perfect fit for today.
Klein had initially frowned slightly upon seeing that the most popular flavor was chocolate, but after tasting it, the Mr. Fool—protector of all things sweet—nonetheless gave his approval.
After the meal, the Moretti family sat on the sofa chatting for a while before Melissa spoke, a hint of hesitation in her voice: “Klein, there’s something I’d like to talk to you about alone.”
Even though they were well aware of Mr. Fool’s identity as a deity, the Moretti family still called him by his name when no outsiders were present.
"Alright." Melissa's rare serious expression piqued the Lord of Mysteries' curiosity. However, even though he could easily divine—or even steal—Melissa's question, he refrained from doing so in front of his family. Instead, he chose to let the conversation unfold naturally.
Downstairs, Leonard was chatting with Alice about his latest poem. Despite years of practice, the Poet remained a rather unskilled creator. Still, his ever-radiant face and pleasant voice provided solid support for his pursuit of poetry.
"Leonard, I'm going to talk with Melissa for a while. We'll head home afterward."
Here, "home" meant returning to Sefirah Castle. Naturally, Saint Leonard had not only his own church in Backlund but also private residences, but since their wedding, Leonard spent almost all his time in Sefirah Castle unless duty called. Occasionally, he would visit Pallez, his former teammates, or other Tarot Club members—and of course, when Klein's condition didn't allow him to walk the earth, Leonard would help by bringing Mr. Fool's avatar to visit the Moretti family.
Although never explicitly stated, everyone in the Moretti family was well aware of the relationship between Leonard and Klein.
"Alright," the Star looked up, flashing a smile that nearly dazzled Klein. "I'll tell little Alice more about the poem I wrote a few days ago."
The Poet truly is as charming as ever… Even after all this time, I still can't fully get used to his face. Or maybe he's getting better-looking? Is he still on the Sleepless path? He hasn't secretly switched Sequences without telling me, has he…
After muttering a few more complaints internally, Klein maintained his gentle expression and followed Melissa upstairs.
"Klein, this conversation might be me overthinking, but I'm a bit worried about Leonard…" Since the Lord of Mysteries was already seated beside her, Melissa went straight to the point without any preliminaries.
Hearing that the subject of the conversation was actually the Demonic Wolf still laughing downstairs, Klein's expression turned serious instantly—disregarding the fact that Melissa was sitting right in front of him, he flipped a coin, glanced at the result, and then turned his attention back to Melissa.
"I just divined. Everything's normal. So what's happened?"
If any outsider unaware of the situation were present, they would be astonished—the famously zealous and efficient hound of the Goddess, the Angel of Darkness of the Church, one of the few Sequence 2 angels who might be advancing further soon, His Holiness Saint Leonard, was actually a source of worry for a mid-Sequence Beyonder. And that worry had even caught the attention of a Great Old One.
"It's just… though I hate to admit it, your acting is exceptional. Even as your family, Benson and I can't tell whether it's you or your avatar visiting us if we aren't informed beforehand."
Klein nodded, not too disappointed—if anything, it would be his own ability he'd be questioning if Melissa and Benson could easily distinguish whether it was the Lord of Mysteries himself visiting.
"But now we can actually tell quite easily…" Melissa paused for a long moment, then sighed. "We just look at Leonard."
The Lord of Mysteries blinked, genuinely puzzled. He couldn't quite understand what this had to do with the Poet.
"Well… how should I put it," Melissa hesitated, searching for the right words before continuing. "We've seen Leonard in many different forms."
There was the Leonard seen at church during festivals and services—Bishop Leonard in his bishop's robes, solemn, quiet, silent. Paired with his exquisite features, he was like a perfect statue, making Evernight believers almost afraid to look up at him. He stood there, barely speaking, but his very presence embodied the Goddess's will.
There was the Leonard who used to visit them from time to time—seeming melancholic, heavy, occasionally smiling but still like a cluster of weathered thorns, as if a stronger gust might make him collapse entirely. His meetings with the Moretti family were less like relaxed gatherings and more like shared mourning.
There was the Leonard who began sharing information about Klein—more smiles, but with lingering sorrow in his brows. Only Alice could laugh freely with this handsome big brother. At other times, when Melissa or Benson saw him, they'd exchange bittersweet smiles.
There was the Leonard after the apocalypse—the previous sorrow had vanished. Slightly more lively than Bishop Leonard, but only slightly. He smiled a bit more when looking at Alice, but otherwise remained restrained and polite, like an aristocrat well-versed in formal etiquette. Even with those close to him, there was still a certain distance. Melissa had accepted this well—after all, Leonard was a high-ranking church official; some distance was natural.
There was the Leonard who later accompanied Klein's avatar on visits—more smiles, harmless jokes, casual and relaxed conversation. He was beginning to feel like an intimate friend, almost impossible to imagine as a Sequence 2 angel. He seemed more like a close neighbor dropping by often.
"And then there's the Leonard from today," Melissa recalled the green-eyed young man at the table. Whenever Klein was present, aside from occasional chats with Alice, most of his attention was focused on no one else—only on the Lord of Mysteries, gazing with those green, gemstone-bright eyes.
He was smiling almost the entire time—gently, radiantly, as if beholding all the treasures of the world laid before him.
If placed next to Bishop Leonard, no one would think they shared any commonality beyond appearance. The Leonard of today was so vivid, so full of life, like an entire spring, not a cold, lifeless sculpture.
But Melissa knew all too well—he and He, they were the same person, the same angel.
"I've heard that at higher Sequences, humanity inevitably erodes. So seeing Leonard like this—the difference between when you're present and when you're not—to be honest, I'm a bit worried about his humanity…"
The Lord of Mysteries was silent for a while before speaking slowly.
"Melissa, suppose I were making cakes. If I only had one jar of sugar but needed to make many cakes, I'd probably put a little less sugar in each. The results might be a bit bland, but still edible. Of course, for the ones I particularly liked, I'd put more sugar in their cakes, trying to give them something close to normal sweetness."
"Overall, I'd try to distribute my sugar evenly so that my cakes are relatively balanced, each with a bit of sweetness."
"Leonard simply made a different choice from mine."
Melissa understood almost instantly what the Lord of Mysteries hadn't said directly—
Leonard made a different choice—he took his remaining jar of sugar and poured almost all of it into Klein's cake. Perhaps he sprinkled a few remaining grains into the cakes of others He cared about, but among all his cakes, only one had normal sweetness—perhaps even too sweet. A few more might have a hint of sweetness, but the rest had no sugar at all.
She felt sad, though she wasn't sure what she was sad about.
The one favored was her brother; she should have felt relieved.
"Well, it's getting late. Leonard and I should head home." Klein paused, then continued, "But there's one thing I need to tell you—the cake I give Leonard is also the sweetest one I have."
He thought it was only natural. Klein might want to distribute his extra sugar evenly between Leonard and the Moretti family, but Zhou Mingrui's sugar, Sherlock's sugar, Gehrman's sugar… the extra sugar from all those other parts mostly went to Leonard.
"That's only right!" Melissa wiped the corner of her eye and smiled. "If you don't treasure him, even if you're my brother, I'll still punch you."
Klein reached out and hugged Melissa. His gaze, however, pierced through the floor to the Poet still laughing downstairs. As if sensing his gaze, Leonard, who was chatting with Alice, looked up.
He smiled again.
And so, the faint unease the Lord of Mysteries had felt since Melissa began speaking was calmed by that gaze.
This is my family.
He thought.
Not Klein's, not Zhou Mingrui's, not any single part's—but mine.
Mine.