Chapter 10 - Those Entrusted With the Dreams of Others (NEW)

Warning: Contains sensitive content such as relationship abuse and physical violence

Livy’s life had settled into a routine, wherein he would train for three hours in the morning, then return to his room to fall onto his bed, and sleep all afternoon until it was dinnertime.

To be honest, he was starting to feel the stagnation of his blood as well, and he felt suffocated by the seeming lack of stimulation in his life, ‘Oh God! Other than sleeping and training, have I done anything else?’

He also hadn’t been in touch with Sharon since their fall out, and Livy was desperate to find himself a new conquest.

When he arrived at the bar he frequented, he was greeted by a few of his drinking buddies. They started asking him why he hadn’t shown up at said place during the last few days, and from there their conversation naturally progressed until eventually the whole group had settled into a light and aimless chattering. For a while, they were engrossed in their respective half-drunk conversations, until they heard the sound of a glass bottle shattering on the floor. The sudden disturbance caused everyone’s attention to shift in the aforementioned direction.

When Livy saw a woman with teary eyes and disheveled hair, he couldn’t help but gape in surprise, “Sharon?”

His confusion only deepened when a young man dressed in a military uniform suddenly roared, “You just said we broke up! When did we break up?!”

“Yes, Gorin, we’ve broken up! Ever since you were promoted to captain, your whole demeanor has changed. You became this stuck-up, inconsiderate, and self-righteous human being. I’ve long disliked you! Now that you’re a captain, please stop harassing me. There are plenty of other women who will fawn over you!” Sharon’s back was straight and she appeared rather confident, but her eyes glistened with fear.

Livy did not rush up. Instead, he stuck his hands in his pockets and stared at Sharon. When the woman in question glanced over at him, her expression immediately became embarrassed.

Suddenly, Captain Gorin grabbed Sharon by her arms and shook her violently like a ragdoll, “Just say it! You’re with another man! Right?!”

As he watched the scene, Livy couldn’t help but wince. His expression contorted in sympathy for Sharon who was being treated so callously by another man.

A staff sergeant next to Livy leaned over and whispered to him, “Hey, why do I seem to recall that Sharon was with you recently?”

Though he spoke in a hushed tone, everyone on the sidelines—excluding the currently raging male protagonist of the incident in question—heard him.

“Yeah, Livy. Why don’t you go and help her?”

Livy sighed.

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The truth was, he knew the real intention behind his drinking buddies pushing him to be Sharon’s ‘knight in shining armor’. The simple reason behind their pushiness was because they themselves dared not risk confronting—and hence offending—Captain Gorin, so they hoped that Livy, the nominally ambiguous ‘boyfriend’ of Sharon, would step forward to rescue the distressed beauty instead.

God knows just how wronged Livy felt! There were so many chances he let roll off his shoulders to get Sharon in his sheets, because all of those moments had been interrupted by Claude.

From the corner of his eyes, Livy could visibly see that Sharon had been standing her ground and pretending to be strong as she confronted her ex-boyfriend. However, her strong resolve was not enough; her knees were shaking so much that she eventually buckled down and lost her bearing. She ended up falling unceremoniously to the ground; however, she tried to maintain her dignity and raised her chin up as she continued to stare up at the captain.

Livy grabbed at his hair and pulled it in distress. He wanted to scold Sharon in his heart: ‘Alas, stop being so stubborn; don’t you know that by acting this way you’re just causing that chauvinistic pig to feel you aren’t giving him ‘face’ ¹ Face, or 面子 (miàn zi) in Chinese, describes one’s reputation or dignity in social contexts. It’s used a lot in professional/business settings, particularly when differences in rank are involved. I’m not sure if there’s an official English translation for this word, but giving someone ‘face’ is kind of like honoring or respecting them in public and not making them look bad in front of others. ?! You’ll only make him more furious……!’

It was at this moment that half of the crowd’s eyes had fallen on Livy. They seemed to be waiting to see him ‘step forward’ and defend the lady.

Captain Gorin also gradually noticed this shifting of attention and looked in Livy’s direction, “Why are they all looking at you?!”

Sharon hurriedly stood up and blocked Gorin’s view and tried to push him off course, “What are you doing? Don’t involve him in this and make things difficult for him!”

“What do you mean what am I doing; what are you doing?! Are you protecting him?!”

Gorin’s voice volume rose so much that even the bartender felt compelled to step in between them and act as a mediator, “Captain, you ² This is the courteous form of you, 您 (nín), which is a little different from the regular form of you, 你 (nǐ). It is often used in the service or sales industry and is a method of address that respects the client. just received a promotion. I am sure that headquarters won’t want any negative press being released about you.”

Gorin shoved the bartender away with one hand, “Beat it! This is my business!”

The poor bartender stumbled but his almost fall was cushioned by Livy, who broke the heated exchange with a laugh and stepped forward, “Then it can’t be helped. If Sharon gets together with you again, you’ll only become even more overbearing.”

“What did you just say?!” Gorin grabbed Livy by the collar, and the air inside the pub began to sizzle with tension.

Livy’s eyes darkened as he stared at the captain’s whitened knuckles, “I said you’re a coward who wants women to be submissive towards you. You can’t even accept the fact that you’ve been dumped. Rather than consider the problem within yourself and the reason as to why she left, it is easier for you to shift the blame onto someone else and make that person your scapegoat and the reason as to why your relationship ended. The irony is, we all know that no matter what she says or does, Sharon has no real way of going against you, because you are a captain and she is just a warrant officer. Moreover, you are a man and she is a woman, but she was the one who dumped you in finesse, while you can only put yourself in the role of the sorry victim.” Livy’s voice was so calm that it was terrifying.

‘Bang!’ The crowd was rendered speechless when the other party slammed a fist into Livy’s face.

He staggered backwards and was caught by the people behind him.

The crowd suddenly erupted in fury and tried to step in to defend him; however, Livy waved them off. He shook his arms and straightened up, then casually wiped the trail of blood that had started to spill from the corner of his lips with the back of his hand, “Oh, I forgot to tell you—Sharon’s boyfriend is someone whom you simply can’t afford to offend.” Livy laughed heartily, with a hint of gloating.

“Oh? Who is it? Are you trying to tell me it’s you?” The captain was looking down at him, “…The rank slide on your shoulder strap seems to suggest that you’re merely a second lieutenant! Therefore, you still have to use ‘sir’ when you address me!”

“Of course it’s not me, sir . I’m talking about Claude Sien, the major general of Zone Z. Take a look at the rank slide on your shoulder strap when you meet him; I think the one that’ll have to salute and use the word ‘sir’ is you, sir .” As soon as Livy’s words fell out, the entire bar was plunged into deafening silence.

Everyone’s mouths were hanging open, as if they were still processing what Livy had just said.

“I’m not lying. Many people witnessed Major General Sien and Sharon eating together yesterday.” Livy continued building up his lie and set into motion the beginnings of a ‘rumor’ with a straight face.

Sharon, as one of the subjects of his ‘rumor’, could not help but also exclaim, “What? Major General Sien and I?”

However, Livy ignored her and continued talking, “Would you like to go to Zone Z, grab Claude Sien by the collar, and tell him that if he touches your girlfriend again, you’ll beat him up? Ah, sorry, I should have said ‘ex-girlfriend’.”

Livy knew that Sharon probably never loved him. He also wasn’t some big hot-blooded man with a hero complex who needed to save every damsel in distress. To be honest, he was afraid of trouble and found it bothersome to deal with people like Sharon’s ex-boyfriend.

Nevertheless, not being a coward didn’t mean that he had to be tough. If using Claude Sien’s status and prestige could solve the matter, then Livy was more than willing to drag his name through the dirt, so to speak.

Captain Gorin was dumbfounded, and he had an embarrassed look on his face. Livy walked over and patted him on the shoulder, “Forget it, man. Even I can’t steal a woman from that guy.”

Livy then turned on heels and started walking towards the bar door in grand style.

The moment he stepped outside of the door, however, he heard the captain’s angry roar coming up from behind him, “Don’t you dare f*ck with me—!”

This was followed by Sharon’s sharp scream.

Livy reflexively turned around, and the beer bottle collided against the door frame adjacent to him; the crumbling shards rushed straight into his eyes.

“Ah…” Among the millions of scenarios his mind had conjured while he was contemplating whether or not to intervene in Sharon’s situation, this was the one outcome he would have never thought of.

The shards flew across his cheeks and eyes. The glass dug into his flesh. Livy covered his eyes with both hands as the pain was quickly becoming unbearable. It seemed to be pierced inside of him and sunk deep into his bones. It was the most excruciating thing he had felt in all of his life.

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The barista and several of his drinking buddies quickly rushed over to his side. A chorus of his name spilled out from their lips and reverberated across the room, “Livy!”

The shocking incident seemed to have sobered everyone up. Even Sharon stood frozen in her spot for a few seconds before she finally broke the silence and muttered, “Oh my god… oh my god! You actually hurt him… his eye. That’s his eye!”

“So what? He’s the reason you betrayed me, right?” Captain Gorin spat back. He was still in the peak of his anger and therefore felt no regret for his actions, “Do you think I was really that stupid to believe Major General Sien would like you?”

“Right now, it doesn’t even matter if Major General Sien likes me or not.” Sharon gave her ex-boyfriend one last look of indifference and slowly moved backwards, step by step, “…Because Major General Sien will not let this go. The entire Zone Z and even Lieutenant General Montel will not let you get out of this unscathed. Do you even know how valuable those eyes are? He set a new record for the Pure-Hued Lady’s simulation system! He’s the hope of the entire Zone Z!”

“He’s… is he Livy Van Perle?” Captain Gorin’s face went pale as he realized that he had gotten himself into a big mess.

Livy just leaned his head against the door and covered his eyes; the warm crimson liquid flowed through the cracks between his fingers and dyed his hand red. It even seemed that something important inside of him was also slipping out; it was spilling out uncomfortably and even though he tried so hard, it seemed as though he could not suck it back in.

In less than ten minutes, Livy was taken and admitted into the military’s most prestigious hospital. As soon as they had arrived, the top doctors in the field of ophthalmology began circling around him and started an emergency treatment after running several tests.

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Claude had been debugging the system in the research room when he received the call from the hospital. His pupils unnaturally dilated.

“What did you say?” Claude asked rhetorically.

‘It’s the eye; his vitreous humor is flowing out…’

“Which hospital is he in?”

After he hung up the phone, Claude ignored the system that was still updating and rushed out the door. However, after only two or three quick steps, his anxious heart prompted him to pick up his speed; his orthodox uniform felt too constricting, and with a clatter, he ripped open the buttons and threw the shirt at an approaching officer.

[99]: Do we really believe that a button-up shirt is getting in the way of running? Author, your fanservice is showing hahaha…

[Lucia]: Ah, I probably should have translated this as ‘lab coat’ instead of ‘uniform’, hehe. Sorry! The pervert is actually me… (/ω＼)

The other man looked at Claude’s retreating back with a surprised expression painted on his face.

“What’s wrong—?”

What could possibly have made Claude Sien give up all his poise and run in an unseemly fashion?

When Claude arrived outside the operating room door, there was a terrible and suffocating silence permeating the air.

Just then, two nurses came out of the operating room, and Claude immediately asked them, “How is his real condition?”

“Major General Sien?”

“Is Livy Van Perle in this operating room?” Claude’s face no longer had that jaded smile; it was as cold as the wintry ice of the polar night.

“Yes……he is.”

“How is the eye that he injured?”

“The lens is damaged; his vitreous humor is—” Claude held up his hand to stop the rest of their words from continuing.

“You just need to tell me up to what extent the surgery can go to; whether or not his eyes are in danger; and whether or not he can continue being a fighter pilot in the future!”

The two nurses had never seen such an impatient expression on Claude’s face before and suddenly didn’t know what to tell him, “Ah, that…”

Realizing that they only had useless information for him, he waved his hand and gestured for them to leave. He then slowly sat down on one of the chairs outside of the operating room door and cradled his head in his hands.

Suddenly, the soft clicking of steps from further down the hallway grew louder and louder; it was Lieutenant General Montel.

The lieutenant general looked down at Claude’s slouched figure pensively for a moment, lost in thought, before carefully taking a seat beside him.

“I have always disliked you. Many times, you are too calm to be a young man of your age.”

Claude smiled bitterly at his statement but did not look up.

“Even when the Pure-Hued Lady’s design was questioned, your confidence never wavered and seemed big enough to overcome anything. But now, you are worried and afraid.”

“Because…” for the first time in Claude’s life, he didn’t seem to have a witty retort, “…it’s pathetic to pin one’s own dreams on another.”

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Lieutenant General Montel laughed, “Did you pin your dreams on him, or did he find them for you?”

Claude tilted his head up to face the elder who had survived the vicissitudes of more than half a century.

Lieutenant General Montel cleared his throat and told him calmly, “There is nothing to worry about. If it had been fifty years ago, maybe it would have been difficult to recover Second Lieutenant Van Perle’s eyesight again. However, in these times, this can be considered to be a small to medium-sized operation. The attending doctor told me that the operation would be time-consuming but not too difficult to perform. The first step they’ll do is clean the eye, then replenish it with artificial vitreous, and then suture it. They can even adjust his vision in the process. In three days, Second Lieutenant Van Perle will be able to remove the gauze, and in half a month, he will be able to resume his training inside the Pure-Hued Lady. Perhaps, he will even be able to see more clearly than before.”

Claude’s fingers combed through the bangs that covered his forehead. He showed a hopeless expression on his face, “This is the most idiotic day of my life.”

Just as Livy was being wheeled out of the operating room, Miller arrived, “How’s that dumbass’s eye?” He had just arrived at his house to have some dinner when he was informed of the news. He didn’t expect Livy to be able to get himself in trouble even in such a short time frame; the lad had really outdone himself.

The attending doctor hurriedly spoke out to comfort the group after they had settled Livy in the ward, “Don’t worry, everyone. I can guarantee to you that Second Lieutenant Van Perle’s eyes are absolutely fine.”

Seeing that the crowd was relaxed, he continued updating them on Livy’s condition. “In order to clean out the residual glass fragments stuck in his eyes, we have given the second lieutenant an anesthetic so that he could have a good night’s sleep. But, you don’t need to worry and speculate. I promise you that this anesthetic will not have any negative impact on Van Perle’s bodily functions and his brain’s responsiveness.”

Miller looked at Livy who was lying on the hospital bed and remarked, “Nothing in this world is absolute.”

“There cannot be any problems with his eyes or his brain. There cannot be any problems with any part of his body.” He quickly added.

“We’ll put him in the intensive care unit until we’re sure he’s fully recovered.”

As they discussed his condition, Livy remained in a catatonic state. He was still deeply asleep with his eyes covered in gauze.

Claude stood at the foot of Livy’s bed, and the only sound in the entire ward was the dripping of fluids from various hospital instruments. The world around them seemed to stand still; however, he remained focused on Livy’s shallow breathing.

Claude took a deep breath and let out an amused laugh, “You’re sleeping so comfortably, not knowing that you’ve made a mess out of everyone else.” He unconsciously stretched out his arm and allowed his fingertips to trace the tip of Livy’s stubborn nose.

<b>[Lucia Rose]:</b> Aw, poor Livy… (ó﹏ò｡)

**Special Note: Image by Sasin Tipchai from Pixabay

To access the unedited version of Chapter 10, please click here .

1

Face, or 面子 (miàn zi) in Chinese, describes one’s reputation or dignity in social contexts. It’s used a lot in professional/business settings, particularly when differences in rank are involved. I’m not sure if there’s an official English translation for this word, but giving someone ‘face’ is kind of like honoring or respecting them in public and not making them look bad in front of others. 2

This is the courteous form of you, 您 (nín), which is a little different from the regular form of you, 你 (nǐ). It is often used in the service or sales industry and is a method of address that respects the client.