[BL]The Hero and his Party Won't Let Me Go

Kaiden’s hand touched Shuu briefly, and Shuu’s eyes furrowed. His sleep looked uncomfortable, and that made Kaiden immediately hold his hand tighter.

This small action had proven that Shuu did feel his touch, and he liked to touch him back as well. But something was preventing Shuu from being able to wake up.

The thin barrier of power that surrounded Shuu felt dangerous, so Kaiden did not touch it immediately. He did not want to risk Shuu falling into even more danger.

Instead, he navigated around it until his consciousness found Shuu’s, and he was pulled into Shuu’s inner world. It was time for him to go and find Kaiden now.

He closed his eyes as he was pulled along the currents. But when he opened them, he was in a familiar place. He was also wearing familiar armor, and in front of him were familiar people.

"Demon King, we are ready for the next attack. When should we launch it?"

A demon asked, but Kaiden no longer recalled his name. All he could recall was that this was a battle he had fought a long time ago. And this was also the first battle where Shuu had appeared.

He would see Shuu once more soon, and he could not wait.

__________

"-Be careful. We will strike here and make sure we cut off the enemy line. Is it alright with you, Shuu? This will be your first battle. I don’t want you to do too much."

Shuu blinked as he looked up from the map and toward the female who asked this question. The female in question was beautiful and commanding. She had introduced herself as Shuu’s master, but something about that felt...wrong.

But since Shuu did not have knowledge of anyone else being his master, he had accepted that claim and thus had allowed himself to be guided.

Goddess Astoria, his current master, had told Shuu that he had been born for a way, and it was his duty to see it through. He was born for great things, and he would do great things. That was what he was being told. But honestly, it was hard for him to believe these words. 𝒻𝑟ℯℯ𝑤𝑒𝑏𝑛𝘰𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝒸𝑜𝘮

At least, at the moment.

His senses were telling him that this was all an illusion and that this was not where he was supposed to be. But trying to recall anything felt like such a pain that he did not want to do it.

Soft hands touched his hair and ruffled it. It made Shuu immediately look at the goddess and her easy-going smile.

"Are you thinking about something, Shuu? If you have concerns, then you don’t have to think about them at the moment. Just focus on me and my voice. It will guide you through the fog."

It was hard to concentrate when the voice kept telling Shuu to give up. Giving up also made things easier for him, and he allowed himself to sink deeper into that feeling.

As long as he followed that voice, he did not have to think about anything else. That made him feel better, and he chose that option without hesitation.

"Good. Now that you have come to my side, it is time for us to start our march. We will show the Demon King’s forces just how strong we are."

Everyone cheered, and Shuu joined as well. But he did not feel the same spark as the others felt in their hearts. Instead, he felt hollow, almost as if he was missing something important in his life.

Goddess Astoria had promised him that he would find whatever he wanted through this war, and Shuu believed her...for now.

He did not have a choice but to believe her.

"Let’s go. The war has started. We will bring glory to Goddess Astoria."

The general yelled, and Shuu walked out of the gates with the army as well. It was finally time to fight.

In the field, the two armies clashed, and Shuu prepared his spear to charge through space. His eyes kept looking for an opening, and before he knew it, he had wiped out more than half of the army.

"Y-You are...who are you?"

Demons kept asking, but Shuu did not reply to them. His heart felt cold, and his hands kept moving. He was not thinking of anything, and he was not seeing anything either. His weapon was moving through the air until something blocked it.

Shuu finally blinked and paid attention to a handsome face in front of him. Sharp features looked at him, and he felt his heart skip a beat at the familiar intensity in those eyes.

The warrior’s blade had blocked Shuu’s spear before he was pushed back.

"You are..."

Shuu’s own voice felt unfamiliar to him, and he raised his spear toward the other man with a frown on his face. Something about this situation was hitting him in the back of his head and reminding him that it was not a good idea to engage in this fight.

But he still pushed forward, his body moving along. But his head was not able to keep up.

The beautiful demon kept up perfectly with Shuu, and he even fought back against him. Their interactions made Shuu’s heart beat faster and faster. He felt like he needed to keep going...

And finally, his spear broke through the formation, and his heart dropped in his chest as he grazed that shoulder. His body stiffened, and the familiar, battle-hardened hands grabbed his wrist and knocked him off balance.

"I finally found you, honey. You sure made me work very hard to come to you. But now that I’m finally here, I am not letting you go."

Kaiden whispered, and Shuu blinked up at him. Awareness started to creep into Shuu’s mind, and he felt embarrassed over what had happened.

"I..."

"Shh, don’t speak. It is not your fault you are stuck here with no way back. I will break you free right now. You don’t have to worry about a thing anymore."