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There were not many ways to defeat an Angel, nor were there many existences capable of killing one. Even so, no matter how powerful someone became, death was never something they could escape.
Time had always been the strongest enemy of every living being. No one could exist forever, and Angels were no exception.
Leonard had lived for a very long time, longer than most, longer than he could even remember. He had watched nations rise and fall, seen civilizations appear before disappearing into history, and witnessed one epoch replace another. He had fought countless battles, stood against calamities that threatened the world, and watched generations of Beyonders grow before eventually fading away.
He had experienced despair, suffered losses that never truly left him, questioned the cruelty of fate more times than he could count,
At the same time, he had also been grateful for the life he was given, grateful that it had allowed him to stand where he had always wished to be, protecting those who needed protecting.
His life had been... a good one.
The little orphan from Tingen would never have imagined living this long, seeing this much, or becoming someone worthy of carrying the Church on his shoulders. Looking back now, Leonard thought that child would probably be proud of the man he had become. And Leonard was proud of himself, too.
Looking back on everything, he realized he had very few regrets.
He had found friends who stayed by his side for centuries, served his Goddess until the very end, protected the people he wanted to protect, and helped the world survive its darkest times. He had laughed more than he thought he ever would, mourned those who had left before him, and carried every one of them in his heart.
It had been a life worth living.
Well...That wasn't completely true.
There was still one thing he had never let go of.
Klein or perhaps... it's the Fool now.
His oldest friend and oldest partner. The person who had quietly become part of every day of his endless life before Leonard had even noticed it. They had met as Nighthawks in Tingen, got separated, survived, reunited, and walked through centuries side by side.
They had shared victories and defeats, simple conversations over tea, and countless ordinary days that slowly became more precious than either of them realized.
Somewhere along the way, Leonard had fallen in love, but he never found the right moment to say it. Perhaps there had never been one, and now there never would be.
Sitting beneath the old tree in Tingen Cemetery, Leonard leaned against Captain Dunn's grave. Somehow, this was exactly where he wanted to spend his final moments. The question no longer seemed important. They had already shared one lifetime. Whether they had remained friends or become lovers, would a different title really have changed what Klein meant to him?
Maybe, or maybe not.
Some feelings did not need an answer. Some love did not need to be spoken aloud to have existed.
The breeze stirred gently through the leaves above him as his body slowly dissolved into countless specks of shimmering light, drifting away with the wind like stardust returning to the world that had borrowed it for so many years.
The breeze gently rustled the leaves overhead as Leonard felt his body slowly dissolve into specks of light. There was no pain, only a strange sense of lightness, as though he were finally putting down something he had carried for a very long time.
"Guess I kept you waiting long enough, Captain."
When he looked ahead, he saw them.
Captain Dunn was standing there with the same warm smile Leonard remembered. Miss Daly waved at him with a grin, Old Neil laughed as loudly as ever, and Rosanne, Frye, Kenley, Seeka, Royale, and so many others whom Leonard had outlived were waiting nearby. None of them looked any older than the day he had lost them. They simply smiled and reached out their hands, as though welcoming him home.
Leonard stood and took a step toward them, then he stopped.
Turning around one last time, he saw himself still sitting beneath the old tree, peacefully closing his eyes. Beyond the cemetery stood the Church of the Fool.
Klein…
Leonard realized he would never see him again…There would be no next meeting. His endless tomorrow had quietly ended today.
Leonard lowered his eyes for a moment before smiling.
Klein would be alright.
He still had a world to protect, believers who placed their faith in him, and companions who would continue walking beside him. Leonard had once been one of the Fool's anchors, but he had never been the only one.
That thought was enough.
Leonard smiled, the same carefree smile he had worn since he was a young Nighthawk in Tingen, and without fear or hesitation, he stepped forward.
The wind carried away the last fragments of light, and the world quietly said goodbye to one of its guardians.
—-
Tears silently streamed down Klein's face.
He didn't know why.
It was an ordinary day. He sat above the gray fog in Sefirah Castle, answering prayers and dealing with endless reports just as he had done for centuries, when tears suddenly began falling one after another. A hollow feeling spread through his chest until it became difficult to breathe, as though someone had reached into his body and torn his heart away. He couldn't understand where this panic came from. He had not felt fear for a very long time.
Only one name echoed in his mind….Leonard.
He needed to see him.
Now.
Klein immediately reached for the connection between them, expecting the familiar response that had always been there, but all he found was silence. He called again, then again, yet nothing answered him, and with each passing second, the uneasiness in his heart became something far worse.
By the time he arrived in Tingen Cemetery, he already knew.
Captain Dunn's grave and Miss Daly's grave are lying there like normal…but beside them stood another gravestone.
Leonard Mitchell
The Best Poet.
The Best Partner.
The True Guardian.
Klein stood there for a long time without moving. Then he slowly raised his hand, and the earth quietly parted before him as the coffin emerged from the ground.
The coffin opened; Leonard lay inside as though he were only asleep. His eyes were peacefully closed, and having the faintest smile on his face, making it seem as if he had simply decided to rest beneath the old tree after a long journey.
"When did this happen?"
His voice was quiet; Klein already knew who had appeared behind him.
"Two days ago," Amanises answered. "The Church held his funeral yesterday."
Klein lowered his head.
"Why did you hide me?"
There was no reply. He asked again, his voice trembling this time.
"Answer me, Amanises."
"It was Leonard's wish."
Klein carefully reached into the coffin and lifted Leonard into his arms. His movements were gentle, almost afraid that he might disturb the peaceful expression on Leonard's face, while tears continued to fall without stopping.
"I could have saved him." His fingers tightened around Leonard's coat.
"I could have fooled time. I could have extended his life. I could have changed the ending."
His voice gradually broke.
"So why didn't he come to me? Why didn't he tell me?"
Rain slowly began to fall over Tingen Cemetery, soaking the black clothes of the Lord of Mysteries as he held the person he loved most in complete silence.
After a long while, Amanises finally spoke.
"He knew you could."
"That was why he chose not to tell you. He had already lived long enough, fulfilled everything he wished to accomplish, and accepted his own ending. He didn't want you to change that."
Klein lowered his forehead until it rested against Leonard's, as though trying to remember the warmth that had already disappeared.
"I wasn't ready..." The words were barely louder than a whisper, "I thought... we still had time."
No one answered him.
Only the rain continued to fall, washing away the tears that refused to stop, while the Lord of Mysteries held onto the man who had quietly walked beside him for centuries, only to discover that even He could not deceive time after it had finally come to claim someone who had willingly accepted its embrace.
—-
Klein brought Leonard's body, along with his Beyonder characteristics, back above the gray fog. Amanises didn't stop him, nor did she try to. Some grief could not be comforted, and some farewells could only be faced alone.
Leonard lay quietly upon the long bronze table; Klein sat beside him. For a very long time, he said nothing.
He was filled with regret.
He had always believed they still had time. He was the Lord of Mysteries, Leonard was an Angel, and although their lives were not endless, they were long enough that tomorrow had always seemed guaranteed. Centuries had passed in the blink of an eye, and before Klein realized it, he had begun believing that another century would always follow.
He had forgotten that Leonard's time and his own were never the same.
They had spent centuries together. They had traveled through cities that no longer existed, watched the world change again and again, and argued over trivial things. Somewhere during those ordinary moments, friendship quietly became something else.
Klein had fallen in love, but he never said it.
Not because he didn't want to, but because there never seemed to be a perfect moment. Every time the thought crossed his mind, he simply put it aside. There was no rush. Leonard would still be there tomorrow, and if not tomorrow, then next year. If not next year, then another century from now. Without realizing it, Klein had mistaken "not today" for "not yet."
After all, they already shared everything.
They knew each other's darkest secrets. They trusted each other more than anyone else in the world. They stood beside each other through wars, through loss, through the apocalypse itself. Klein had once wondered if a confession or a title would really change anything between them.
Family.
The word quietly surfaced in Klein's thoughts.
It had always been something precious, and something that never stayed with him for long. His parents were gone. Dunn, Daly, Old Neil, and the Nighthawks had all become memories. Benson and Melissa had eventually left him as well, just as every ordinary person was destined to do, and time had taken every family he had ever loved.
Perhaps that was why he hesitated.
He had been afraid that saying the words aloud would make them real, and that one day he would lose Leonard too.
So he waited, and he kept waiting. Until one day, he finally convinced himself that he was ready.
Klein slowly reached into his pocket and took out a small velvet box.
Inside was a simple ring.
There were no dazzling jewels or extravagant designs, only a polished band with a single topaz set neatly in the center.
Klein looked at the man sleeping before him and forced a small smile.
"Leonard..." His voice trembled. "Will you marry me?"
Klein waited. Even though he already knew there would never be an answer.
With trembling fingers, Klein gently took Leonard's hand and slipped the ring onto his finger. It fit perfectly, as though it had always belonged there.
Klein lowered his head, holding Leonard's cold hand between his own.
"When I finally stopped waiting..."
"...you had already left me."