The Royal Military Academy's Impostor Owns a Dungeon [BL]-Chapter 924: Gushing Pipe

Hands on his face, a kissy sound that was impossible to ignore, and all his dignity later, Curtis finally realized his soul had returned to his body.

It had been a big smooch. Not subtle. Not fleeting. The kind that left no room for plausible deniability.

When their lips parted, the surprised deputy found himself slightly hunched, as if someone had physically knocked the air out of him. His mind lagged behind reality. For a few suspended seconds, he simply stared at nothing, dazed, trying to reconcile the fact that Eden had truly just done that.

He didn’t see the cadets’ stunned expressions. He didn’t notice the way Princess Kira had nearly combusted. He didn’t register the collective intake of breath around them.

All he could hear was the echo of that kiss.

All he could feel was the heat still lingering on his lips.

He opened his mouth, fully prepared to launch into a tirade about god knows what.

But before the words formed, he looked down.

Eden was smiling.

Honestly, he wasn’t sure what kind of smile she was sporting because it felt foreign.

But sure enough, it didn’t last.

The edges trembled. The curve faltered. And in the span of a heartbeat, the smile collapsed into something fragile.

Her expression shifted so quickly it felt unreal. She tried to contain it, jaw tightening, shoulders rigid, lashes fluttering as if she could force everything back into place.

But she couldn’t.

The dam burst.

Her hands flew to her face, and she started crying.

Not quietly. Not neatly.

She cried like a child who hadn’t allowed herself to cry in a very long time. The kind of sob that seemed to come from somewhere buried deep and long ignored.

Curtis watched the change as if the world had slowed down just for him. One second, she’d been bold and unhinged. Next, she was unraveling in front of him.

Panic replaced every sharp retort he’d been about to deliver.

"Hey," he said, and the word came out softer than he intended.

Curtis was realizing it was somewhat easier to deal with Imperial-level crisis than this. Because while fear and anger were things he had long learned to handle, he’d never been great with heartbreak.

So what should he do when those tears made him feel like being impaled over and over again could be considered a lighter sentence?

The unsure deputy leaned forward and pulled her into him, arms wrapping around her as if collecting and holding on to all the unraveling pieces. She pressed her face against his chest, fingers clutching at his clothes like she needed something solid to anchor herself.

And she sobbed harder.

Her shoulders shook beneath his hands. The sound was muffled against him, but it was relentless.

Curtis tightened his hold, one hand sliding up to cradle the back of her head as if he could shield her from something he couldn’t see.

He couldn’t even dare say comforting words like, "It’s okay". Because that would just be plain bullshit.

Ever since her life crashed and burned, none of them had been okay.

Eden felt like a leaky faucet.

No, that didn’t feel right.

She was more like a gushing pipe.

She couldn’t turn off the waterworks. It was as if everything she’d been holding back for years had finally found an exit, pouring out of her in one unstoppable surge. All those nights she had gaslit herself into staying sane. All those times she’d swallowed doubt and forced herself to function.

For years, she’d told herself that her brother couldn’t possibly be dead.

See, hearing about the disappearance of so many people, including her brother, rocked their lives like no other. But at that point, people rallied behind them, supporting them through such a trying time.

Eden trudged along despite feeling all hollow and restless.

But then Tavian, who was mourned like all the others for every day they were gone, suddenly returned with news that changed it all.

Overnight, the missing Orell was hailed a survivor, a hero, while Enzo suddenly became a deserter.

Yes, their family name crashed and burned, and she became worse than a nobody. But even then, she could still take it.

Even when she had to grit her teeth while people insisted Enzo was a deserter, she’d still preferred that version of events. Because, as humiliating as the accusation was, it was better than the alternative they’d started whispering about later. The version where those who attempted to flee never succeeded because their escape pods were blown apart mid-flight.

Suddenly, her family wasn’t just facing criticism and judgment. All of a sudden, they were facing the permanent loss of a loved one whose body couldn’t even be recovered.

So hearing, even for a moment, that there was a possibility her brother was alive felt like validation she’d convinced herself would never come.

Of course, she’d done everything she could to look for him. Even when everyone thought she was crazy. Even when the looks turned pitying. Even when doors quietly closed.

After graduating as a mecha pilot, she’d quickly realized she was powerless in a place that wouldn’t dare recruit relatives of proclaimed deserters. The path she’d once trained for simply wasn’t available to her anymore.

So she left.

It was sudden. Unexpected. And absolutely announced.

Eden just vanished. Left all the people she knew. Her friends, remaining family, and Curtis.

She used that time to learn something else. Tech. Cybersecurity. Anything that would let her pry into places that refused to answer her questions. If no one was willing to help her, then she’d become someone who didn’t need permission.

And yet today, the same man she’d hidden from during those lonely years had handed her something she hadn’t dared to expect.

Hope.

Enzo wasn’t stuck inside an escape pod. Instead, he was inside an actual mecha.

At that point, she was certain she’d catch a bullet for the guy.

She was filled with so much hope that she still hadn’t been able to recover even after they left.

But who could blame her when Young Lord Luca, as well as D-29, also said they would continue the search, mainly through mapping, simulation, and prediction.

Because there could only be so many places a mecha could go, depending on its capacity. If they don’t get information about his whereabouts, they could at least make reasonable estimates to narrow down their search.

And then, as if that wasn’t enough, the Imperial Crown Prince himself had authorized the search.

Eden didn’t know how she was supposed to stay upright after that.

She felt like a giant pile of goo.

Curtis had practically hauled her out of DG’s booth before she dissolved entirely in front of everyone.

That was how they ended up in Curtis’s hovercraft.

Just sitting there.

Staring at the city stretched out before them.