Cyan signaled Will.

Will tucked both his hands in his coat and walked inside the space which just opened.

The moment they stepped inside, the distorted space closed behind them.

They found themselves in a narrow corridor lit by dim blue light. The walls were lined with pipes and wiring running along the ceiling.

It smelled like rust and oil here.

This was one of the hidden passages that connected the underground facility of Akashic Record to different parts of the ruined city.

Irene had mapped out every single one of them over the years. They were the only way to move without being detected by the rebel patrols.

Will walked ahead while Cyan followed behind.

"How is Irene holding up?" Cyan asked without turning back.

Will thought for a moment before answering.

"Same as always. She sits beside Leon every day. Talks to him like he can hear her. And..."

Will said nothing for a few seconds. Then asked Cyan.

"Do you think Leon will wake up?"

Cyan did not answer immediately. He had asked himself that same question countless times over the past seven years.

Every time he saw Irene sitting beside that bed holding Leon’s hand. Every time Dr. Anise ran another test and found nothing wrong. Every time another year passed and Leon remained exactly the same.

"He will." Cyan finally said.

"How do you know?"

"Because he promised. You don’t know Leon. He must have had a plan. Otherwise he wouldn’t have said that to Irene to take care of his body."

Will glanced back at him with a questioning look.

Cyan continued. "As you know, before he collapsed. He told Irene he would fix everything. That he had a way to fix it. Leon is not someone who makes promises he cannot keep."

Will turned back forward and kept walking.

"Then let’s hope you are right."

If Will had to add, then all of it sounded impossible. How would one fix this to begin with?

There was nothing left to fix. The entire city was about to go extinct. They could not go outside without the fear of getting killed either.

It was not like they could not fight back. It was just that they did not want to fight them. If something major were to happen to anyone in the process, if they were to lose anymore men they had right now, then there would be no hope left.

Even if it meant dying, then till their last breath they would keep an eye on Leon till he woke up.

Beep.

The door to Dr Anise’s lab slid open.

The interior did not look as high-tech as it used to be. The equipment was old too.

According to Anise, this was the laboratory which she once used when she was building the Akashic Record with her team. And this place even had a few control units similar to the one in Akashic Record’s headquarters from which the Record got operated.

At the centre of the room was placed a tube filled with yellow chemical, where a man was suspended with blonde hair and green eyes.

Dreamweaver’s frozen body was brought here by Dr Anise to run some tests on.

"Any luck today Doctor?" Cyan asked the elf lady seated near the desk.

She raised her head toward them. Her dull darkened eyes met Cyan and Will.

"I am sorry..." Anise replied with a quiet tone.

Hearing that, Cyan and Will’s faces drained.

"I tried all the wavelengths the Record can support but still it seems impossible to make communication outside."

Anise thought she would send an encoded message to the space outside in any direction and let people with highly sensitive mana affinity get attracted by it. But she had failed to do so.

"It works on a different principle than this. The Time devices here were an end point which was the only possible computational device known to understand the transmission. And there are only two that exist like this and both are here with us inside Evana. Without anything similar outside..."

"I understand." Cyan said, stopping her from explaining further. "You look tired Doctor. Get some rest. We will discuss this later."

Anise wanted to say something but Cyan and Will had already left the place.

They were heading to meet Leon now.

The corridor was empty and only two or three people were sighted here. Over the years they had lost so many that the remaining could be counted on fingers now.

"It’s pointless." Cyan muttered. "Communication won’t work. It’s better to change the direction now."

He had to make a decision soon. He would ask Irene about their next approach.

They both stopped in front of the door. Cyan entered the pin and the door slid open.

Unlike before, this place was not grand. It was a small room where three beds were lying with all occupied.

Cyan spotted Leon’s bed at the first.

He walked towards it.

He looked down at Leon. Leon had grown a beard now and his hair was getting a bit longer too.

Then Cyan’s eyes shifted toward Leon’s hand where a slender arm was still holding it by the wrist, the same had which had a silver ring on it.

Irene rested her head beside Leon and seemed asleep.

She had lost quite her weight from not eating. Even Cyan could see she was slightly thinner than before.

This made him bite his lips in frustration.

Noticing their presence, Irene finally blinked her eyes and straightened herself.

"How are you doing Irene?" Cyan said.

Irene rubbed her eyes and yawned.

"Mhm.. fine?"

She was still holding onto Leon’s hand.

Then she blinked several times and hurriedly stood up as she realized.

"Oh no. It’s time for him to eat."

Irene rushed to the tray to her side and poured something liquidify into a bowl. She brought it to Leon.

She sat and with one hand she parted Leon’s lips open and with the other she poured spoon by spoon and fed him.

"Heh." Cyan had to chuckle.

Irene shot him a glare.

"What’s funny here?"

Cyan coughed.

"Ah, no nothing. It was just that this bastard would be overjoyed to know he gets fed by a beautiful lady. Ack!"

Irene hit his leg.

"Shut up."

Cyan rubbed where she hit and grinned.

"You are doing well Irene."

Irene went quiet, she glanced at Leon’s face and then at his ring finger.

"Nothing changed though." She said. "But... I believe he will wake up soon."

"Hm?" Will titled his head, "how come? Did he finally shoed any movement?"

Irene shook her head.

"Nothing like that." she pressed her own lips tightly and said, "But... I can feel his hands warmer every passing year."

Will and Cyan exchanged looks. They thought the same thing. But decided to keep it to themselves.

"Cough..." Will coughed to get their attention. "Madam Irene, the rebels are planning to break into the Akashic Record building by next week."

"That quick?"

"Yes. Uhh... their leader believes that we used the Akashic Record to escape Evana."

"Haaah..." Irene sighed. "Bunch of fools."

Irene had known this would happen sooner or later, but she was not worried. It would be impossible for them to break into the Akashic Record on their own. It needed Queen Anise’s DNA signature to enter the floors, and even to operate the devices.

They would just be wasting their time.

Hours passed by and they chatted sitting beside Leon. 𝙧𝙚𝙚𝔀𝒆𝓫𝓷𝙤𝓿𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝙤𝓶

Cyan had told Irene some stories about Eclipse and about Leon.

"Huh? Who is this Alice?" Irene’s eyes narrowed as she asked Cyan.

"Huh? You did not know?"

Irene shook her head.

"Well, she and Leon were rumored to be a couple."

Cyan saw her face drain suddenly and he had to correct himself quickly.

"I... it’s fine. They were just rumors. And Alice herself cleared it up later."

Irene’s face slightly lit up again.

"Cough..." Irene coughed. "W-well... I am around his age too if you do not count the loops."

To her words Cyan suddenly recalled something.

"Ah, haha this reminds me, Irene. There were also rumors that Leon was into older women."

This made Irene pause.

She literally stopped moving. Looked at Leon’s face. Then said quietly.

"Actually... if you consider the loops, then I am older too."

Cyan blinked. Then realized what she just implied.

"Wait. Irene. Do you..."

Irene’s face flushed slightly red. She turned away and focused back on Leon’s hand.

"I did not say anything."

Will, who had been standing by the door this whole time, covered his mouth to hide his grin.

Cyan just stared at her for a moment before shaking his head with a small smile.

"Well. When he wakes up, you should tell him."

"Shut up." Irene said.

As they were chatting, the ring on Leon’s right hand started to glow.

"Hm?"