Arthur Pendragon thought he was going crazy.

The last time he felt this way was when he was seven years old, when Uther brought back the Great Demon King of Mojana and declared it to be his own sister. The woman, who did not look like a woman, cut off all his philatelic books at the first meeting, and laughed loudly at Arthur's hobby of "being like a shy girl"—yes, he would always remember the way Mojana smug said it, and thus laid the foundation for them to be cynical about each other for the next dozen years, never giving each other a good face.

And now, just as he wanted to throw the young Mojana out of the window, Arthur now wants to kick Merlin out of the lavish duplex.

"Even if you stay here, that guy won't pop out under the bed or in the cupboard."

Extremely helpless, he looked at the archmage who was lying motionless on the sofa of West's house, and his eyes did not know where to fall. The former King Camelot persuaded him to no avail, and in a fit of rage, he dragged the man's collar and pressed it directly to the sink in the bathroom:

"Sober, Merlin?! If you don't have any people, look for it, Oxford, London, New York, whatever you want. What the are you going to do if you're half-dead like this?!! ”

"Do you think he didn't look for it?"

Single-mindedly entrenched in the bar in the living room, eating seafood. Ever since he found out that there was his favorite Noka chocolate in the refrigerator of the hermit's house, Gao Wen entrenched himself in the boy's house under the banner of taking care of Merlin, relying on the fact that the master was not in the mood to care about the mage, and secretly gnawed all of West's snack stocks, which was simply a clear stream in the gloomy Oxford town recently.

and pry open a bottle of apple juice, and he drank with the relishing of Arthur's eyes that hated iron and steel:

"The day after West's disappearance, I accompanied Merlin to turn the whole academy over, and his tutor said that he took leave and returned home, but he didn't know where his home was, how to contact him."

Sympathetic to the mage who was choking half dead in the bathtub, Gao Wen shrugged: "The text messages are not returned, the phone is not answered, and his student files and basic information are confidential, and they cannot be accessed without a valid reason...... To be able to do this, that West guy is really ruthless. ”

"Ahem, ahem, ahem......"

Being poked sadly, Merlin wiped his face hard, feeling that the water he spit out had turned into drops of blood.

"He only left me a word." Thinking of the whispers that he heard faintly in the deep kiss at that time, the archmage who had no master of the six gods lowered his eyes, preferring to believe that it was not a lie he had imagined: "He wants me to wait for him." ”

So, he waited at his house. Open the door every morning until you leave in the evening, and repeat the same expectations and disappointments the next day. The boy's disappearance without saying a word was a big blow to him, but Merlin also knew that it must mean that what he was going to do this time was extremely dangerous...... He knew exactly what kind of person West was. As long as he cherishes it in his heart, there is never a bottom line for the sacrifices he can make.

He told me to wait for him, okay, I'll wait.

He wouldn't tell me, okay, I don't ask.

But he must not just disappear from his life. Just like on the shores of Lake Avalon thousands of years ago, in the name of his good, he self-righteously decides everything.

"Speaking of which, what the hell did you have with West, and how did it feel like he was avoiding you?"

Sighing, he neither approved of Arthur's excessive violence, nor did he expect Gauvin to do anything substantial other than eating. Lancelot, who had been pulled by Arthur to 'unravel' the mage, finally couldn't stand it anymore, stepped forward, and helped Merlin, who was soaked in water, from the bathroom:

"He's not like someone who disappears for no reason, right? Could it be that you're in trouble, but don't want to drag you down? ”

This is indeed a speculation that is infinitely close to the truth, and the Archmage knows it. Whether as Colin or Merlin, he had a faint glimpse of the shadow of the old enemy that the hermit was so jealous of. And based on the same mood of gaining and losing, West's scruples can be more or less guessed, and when it is possible to expose the weakness in front of the enemy, everyone's first reaction will of course be to hide without hesitation.

Before reuniting with that magical boy, Merlin never imagined that he would one day become someone's weakness. He is the only archmage in the world, the son of the sky, the earth and the sea, who has survived the baptism of the past thousand years, and Amorris's magic is no longer comparable to that of the little manservant who still had to rely on books and staffs. Not to mention a Yi Laizhe, even if the entire Hydra tried its best to chase and intercept Merlin, it might not be able to hurt a finger of him.

However, this kind of power carved by time, West did not know.

He has protected too many people, and there are too many people who need his protection. This seems to have become an instinct engraved in his bones, and no one can make him feel at ease and trust, let alone entrust him with a heavy burden.

"I'll have a good talk with him."

Talk about it forcefully and without leaving any room for it. Even if he used some violent means, as long as he could make the boy submit to the facts, he would be able to compete with him, and any method mage could try one by one.

The light gray eyes are slowly covered with a little red, and even the most tolerant sea will always have a rough day. Merlin's gaze was calm now, so calm that there was not even a hint of anger, but it was more terrible than a furious rage. In fact, both Gauvin and Gaius, even Arthur, who was the most familiar with him, were very unfamiliar with such an archmage, which was a silence that rarely appeared in his eyes for a long time, and under the calm, there was all the unknown stubbornness and possessiveness.

Lancelot shuddered suddenly.

I don't know if he felt something, he put his hand on Merlin's shoulder, and always felt that some people who didn't know whether they were alive or dead now might be unlucky.

… …

"You're about to be out of luck."

Magneto's somewhat gloating voice came from his phone. Westson rolled his eyes and wanted to scold, but he was afraid of the other father who was still listening on the other end of the phone, so he couldn't help it.

"If you're not going to talk properly, please give the communication to Charles."

Gritting his teeth and trying to convey his contempt for Eric in his voice, the hermit took a deep breath and his face was extremely ugly: "At the very least, you have to let me know what is going on at the school first. ”

"It's not as bad as you think. Although it was attacked by bionic soldiers, fortunately, it was precautionary and the loss was not large. ”

At the mention of this, Eric's tone also deepened. Received Black Knight points on the streets of London in West. After the news of the war, the mutant school in the United States was directly attacked by Hydra. However, although the incident happened suddenly, with the X-Men in charge, it did not let the opponent take advantage of anything. However, as a direct consequence of this incident, Magneto gave up on the British side of the hunt for Elizhe, and hurried back to New York, deciding to join forces with Professor X to fight off the 'Tower Project' that had begun to use bionic soldiers to destroy all superheroes.

And without Eric in charge, Elizhe's movements suddenly became rampant, and it was not so incomprehensible.

"So, if I can't get out of New York, that madman in England will have to find a way to deal with it...... And your boyfriend who was being targeted. ”

The pause was subtle. Magneto's expression was even more ugly than West's, and he still couldn't bear the never-ending reprimand:

"I told you a long time ago, don't have too deep contact with ordinary people, but not only did you not listen, but you also made such a show for me - now I know that I am scared?!?"

…… You're endless.

The rolls of the eyes are rolling more diligently. If it weren't for the next blockade that would have been crucial to him, he would have wanted to hang up the phone directly. West snorted coldly, and just wanted to sneer at him, but Professor X had already kicked Magneto out of the brainwave control room and directly connected with the teenager.

"I got his head out. Mobile phone radiation can affect the operation of Cereboro, especially since now is not the time to talk nonsense. ”

“…… Every word Eric said to me boiled down to crap. ”

Suppress the instinct to erect a mental barrier, and let Charles's consciousness connect with himself. West didn't have to get used to the voice that came out of thin air in his head, and he was soon able to talk to his adoptive father without any problems.

"Sometimes, though, I'm still curious about that Merlin, have you ever considered taking him back to the United States?" With the addition of Professor X's powerful psychic abilities, West was able to 'see' a wider range than usual. It was easy to spot the figure of the reformed man who had recently appeared on the outskirts of Oxford, and Charles was busy and did not forget to care about his son's love life that did not seem to be going well: "He has a lot of suspicions, and you have hidden too much from him." If you don't figure this out, you won't be together for long. ”

"Of course I do." Listlessly ascertaining all the possible routes of his opponent, and finding that he was indeed in the right place, West simply sat on the railing of the bridge, dangling his legs and looking at the gurgling stream under the bridge, "You can see him now." Anyway, it's in my house, not far away, but I don't know if you can hear his thoughts. ”

"I'm even more curious when I say that."

After a pause, the power belonging to Professor X was withdrawn from his mind, apparently following West's instructions to watch the archmage. However, it didn't take long for Charles to reconnect with the hermit's consciousness, and his tone became a little subtle: "It's not easy for him to block my abilities as well, but he's not a mutant. ”

Shrugging, West was noncommittal.

"And I feel as if I've seen him somewhere...... No, no, not in your memory, my brain hasn't aged to that extent. After thinking about it for a while, not knowing what to remember, Professor X choked up visibly, and his tone became more incomprehensible: "It should have been earlier, when I was still studying in Oxford. ”

“…… Are you sure?! ”

Although it is very rude to doubt the memory of a psychic person, this news is too shocking, West straightened up suddenly, and the whole person almost fell off the bridge: "Charles, that was decades ago, how can he always be in his twenties all the time?" ”

"It's weird sure, but I can't be mistaken." Still confused, Professor X muttered to himself, "I went to the bar for the first time, had some drinks, saw him sitting alone at the bar, and ......"

West was still waiting for the rest of the episode, but Charles suddenly got stuck, and he was silent for a long time and refused to say anything more. Apparently remembering something very difficult to speak, his expression gradually became strange, embarrassed and embarrassed.

"And then what's wrong?" And the hermit was about to be driven crazy by this half-talking: "Don't rely on me to not be able to brainstorm you, just play me like this!" ”

What good things would he have done in bars when he was younger, can that be said? West was not so angry that he jumped off the bridge.

What's more, he seems to be ...... in the end

His lips moved, and he finally realized where his familiarity with Merlin came from, and Professor X almost wanted to laugh now.

"If you want to know, go back and ask your boyfriend, he will definitely want to tell you."

I made up my mind not to open this mouth. Charles coughed lightly, directed his consciousness in another direction in the face of his adopted son's instantaneous collapse, and said solemnly:

"And now, you still have something to do...... Didn't you keep saying that you wanted to protect him? ”

"If I'm distracted in the middle of a fight and get stabbed to death, it's all your fault, Charles."

Choked and vomited blood, but there was no way to refute it. Feeling the information fed back to him by the air currents around him, there were already ill-intentioned brain waves entering his hunting range, West got up and stood on the narrow bridge railing, looking at the dense and dim woods not far away, and the corners of his mouth provoked a cold arc.

Whoever wants to attack Merlin must first step over his corpse.

And Yi Laizhe doesn't have this ability.

… …

After accompanying Gaius to the supermarket, the black-haired mage walked home with a shopping paper bag. The moonlight on the horizon was cold, sprinkled on him, leaving a long shadow on the ground.

Just like Merlin's mood now, it was dark, low, and uneasy, and the fear of possible loss was growing day by day. On the seventh day of West's disappearance, he finally began to wonder if what he had seen was just a hallucination that was too real.

He is not without such precedents. For a thousand years, sometimes Arthur and the others were not reincarnated, and he could no longer bear the loneliness, so he would use magic to construct a wonderful dream for himself in order to escape reality. Otherwise, even a powerful mage like Emmoris would have been killed by loneliness.

Now, then, is he once again crushed in hopeless waiting, losing all courage in his daily search, and unconsciously imagining such an addictive reunion?

- Merlin can't believe himself anymore.

"He'll be back, Merlin."

Walking side by side in the street, of course, you could see the Archmage's depressed mood - in fact, it was to relax his mind that Gaius would pull him out for a walk - the old doctor still smiled and patted the boy's emaciated shoulder, but he was very optimistic about it:

"West is not a man of his word. Since he can offer to be with you, he will definitely not give up halfway...... Maybe he'll be waiting for you in the living room when we get home? ”

"Yes." Not thinking it was funny, Merlin just barely hooked the corners of his mouth.

Gaius had always been keen on West's affairs. When he returned to the palace with Arthur from the shores of Lake Avalon, his heart felt as if a piece had been stripped away, knowing that he might have forgotten something, but he couldn't remember what part of his life was missing. Knowing that West had done this and that he had no intention of coming back, the old doctor didn't say anything, but silently covered up all traces of the boy in their lives, and kept his mouth shut in the face of his questioning, and never revealed anything until he finally died suddenly.

So, that's probably why he's sure West will come back.

If there is a real determination to disappear from a person's life, that person can definitely be more decisive and ruthless than he is now.

Thinking of this, the mage finally felt a little better.

The road back to the residential area from the supermarket is not too far, even with the old man's footsteps, it only takes ten minutes. Merlin and Gaius did not say anything more, but walked silently through the streets, counting the white and hazy moonlight all the way.

However, when they walked to the bottom of the apartment, they all stopped involuntarily.

"Did you turn off the lights while we left?"

Glancing at the bright lights peeking out of his living room, the old doctor turned his head and asked with some confusion.

"Of course."

Frowning, he clearly remembered that he had not only turned off the light, but also locked the door. Merlin had a hint of caution in his eyes and motioned for Gaius not to speak first, while he himself stepped forward silently and gently pushed open the hidden door.

Although those who are familiar with it know that the key to the house is pressed under the flower tray on the windowsill of Gaius's house, it is generally not visited at such times. And every time before going out, in addition to locking the doors and windows, Merlin will also secretly place some small magic at the door to prevent thieves, if it is not recognized by him, as long as he is close to the house, he will be attacked. It stands to reason that it is difficult for anyone other than him and Gaius to come in with such a swagger.

Of course, there are exceptions.

Seeing the figure in the living room clearly, the mage was stunned for a moment.

A faint smell of blood wafted through the air and lingered on the tip of his nose. In the warm orange-yellow light, West, who had been missing for a long time, hugged Gaius's long-haired Ragdoll, pinched one of its paws and raised it, and greeted him with a smile:

"Meow~"