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Episode 24 Forever Valentine

( written by Yoshio Nogami )

——The story of a priest and two people who swore eternal love

Apollo, who returned to Rome from the battlefield, was exhausted and sat on the curb of the spring in the center of the city.

When he puts his swollen arm on cold water, he makes a roar because he feels so good.

"Oh, after all, my hometown is good ..."

When he looked up, he noticed that a maiden was by his side with the sun on her back.

She was carefully knitting her long chestnut hair, and she must have been a daughter with a serious personality. A white hemp dress is fluttering in the wind like an angel's robe.

——Am I looking at a phantom? I can't believe there is such a beautiful goddess by my side... After all, I was slaid by the enemy and came to pick me up, didn't I?

No, it was Cynthia, a naive woman who usually doesn't stand out, but spends every day dreaming of creating a happy family.

She felt her whole body getting hot when she was exposed to Apollo's gaze.

It was a conflict between the feeling of embarrassment and the contradictory woman's mind that she wanted her to stare more, and she had a fever inside her.

"Are you a goddess?

No, it must be so."

In response to Apollo's question, Cynthia was just smiling shyly while dyeing pink all the way to her chest.

"Um, please tell me your name..."

Apollo did his best to say so.

He had just returned from the battlefield, and he was afraid that he would make her angry because he probably forgot to treat women.

"Cynthia......"

When she told only her name, she ran away somewhere.

A few days later, Apollo finally found a temporary home until the next departure.

It was a simple apartment that rented the basement of a private house as an inn, and it was just an affordable property that could be rented with rewards on the battlefield of Apollo.

As soon as he entered that room, Apollo fell asleep.

...... He was still fighting in his dream.

I was running away desperately, holding the fear that I would be chopped up.

But my legs don't move as I want.

——I can't do it anymore......

He said that and fell to the ground.

Then, a light came out from the top of his head.

And he saw a white soft hand being extended toward him. That face was definitely her...

He must have been very tired. He finally woke up near noon the next day.

The landlord was just worried about him and was about to knock on the door of the room.

"Mr. Apollo, it's already noon.

Are you okay?

If you don't mind, why don't you come upstairs and have lunch together?"

Apollo's stomach rang. He haven't eaten anything since yesterday.

When he quickly got dressed, he headed to the first floor.

After he knocked on the door, a nice-looking landlord peeked into his face from inside the room.

"Here you go."

The landlord had already confirmed that Apollo was not a rough person.

If possible, he also wanted to hear a heroic story from Apollo.

His wife, brother, and daughter are already sitting in front of the table.

"Oh, you were at that time..."

The girl was Cynthia, whom he met by that spring.

She was staring at the table with her head down, but she slowly looked up and looked at Apollo.

——⭐️✨——

In Cynthia's eyes staring straight at herself, Apollo certainly saw the brilliance of eternal love.

At the same time, Cynthia felt that kindness and happiness were trying to firmly accept her in Apollo's eyes.

At this moment, the melody of love between the two of them began to flow.

——I want to entrust myself to you as it is......

Forever.

That night, the two shadows illuminated by the moonlight remained forever on the cobblestones by that spring......

One morning, while blowing the trumpet announcing the departure, the cavalry captain was strutting his horse to gather the warriors in the city.

After the sound of hoofs passed in front of Cynthia's house, Apollo ran up the stairs.

"What should I do? Cynthia.

I have to go..."

"Is that so?...... Why is that?

Even though we just got together..."

Cynthia remembered the priest Valentine, whom she had heard from a friend before. It is said that the priest will make a vow of monogamous marriage in front of the Christian God who was spreading in Rome.

As soon as Cynthia told the story to Apollo, he clasped Cynthia's hand and ran towards the church.

The two of them ran as if rolling on a long cobblestone slope, and arrived at the church in no time without being able to look at the flower petals blooming on the side street.

The door of the church, which was opened vigorously, hit the kabe and made a loud noise.

"Priest, I'm sorry to surprise you.

Please bless us in front of your God!"

The priest Valentine instantly understood everything about the situation they were in. And when he approached with a smile, he hugged them with both arms.

At that time, the priest decided to hold the wedding of these two.

The Roman emperor told him that the morale of the warrior would decrease, so he should never let the soldier marry in the future, but ...

The priest Valentine was determined.

--Let's make this our last wedding.

Several candles were lit in the chapel, and the ceremony began. Two people wrapped in blissful love swear eternal love in front of God.

The church bell rang loudly in the city without fear.

"That priest is having a wedding again."

The Roman emperor said with anger.

The military police were immediately sent to the church from the Roman army.

In order to be dragged by the soldiers, the priest Valentine is taken somewhere. Even if he was beaten or kicked, the priest was in silence. Before long, the red blood dyed the cobblestones and shone back the moonlight.

"Priest! Oh, I can't believe you're going through something like that for us! Even though you're an innocent person..."

Cynthia, who had been intoxicated at the top of happiness until a while ago, is now half-crazy and trying to run to the priest.

Apollo was desperately trying to stop it, and he was grabbing Cynthia's arm......

The next morning, Apollo was already in the battle.

He managed to forget until yesterday and was trying to concentrate on the battle as a soldier.

After a while, his team began to march towards the battlefield.

From the square, he passed in front of that memorable fountain of love, and eventually, when he crossed the hill with only reddish-brown soil, he heard a sharp sound tearing the air around him.

When Apollo looked closely, there was a large cross on the top of the hill, and a little below it, the priest Valentine, who looked pitiful, was whipped.

The whip attacked the priest's body many times, the flesh was torn, and he seemed to have no power left to stand up.

"Mr. Valentine!"

Apollo has a familiar voice pierced his chest.

Cynthia, who is hugged by her family, is crying.

Apollo continued to march forward, desperately suppressing his desire to run to Cynthia.

——I, I will definitely come back to you.

Apollo had told himself that many times.

And when Apollo went so far away that he couldn't hear Cynthia's voice, suddenly the sky of the hill of the cross became pitch black.

When the light rained straight down from the black clouds, it brightly illuminated the body full of Valentine's scars.

It was so dazzling that even the soldiers around him couldn't keep their eyes open.

When the soldier who had the whip dropped it to the ground, he knelt down and murmured.

"This man was certainly called by God..."

A few months passed, and the warriors who had finally sent troops returned to the city of Rome.

Cynthia has been looking for Apollo since a while ago.

She is sure he was supposed to be among the warriors.

— Because we swore eternal love before God...

She couldn't find Apollo easily, so she decided to go to the tomb of the Valentine priest near here and take a break.

She picked a beautiful white lily flower and offered it to the priest's grave.

The white lily felt perfect for the priest Valentine who dedicated himself to the oath of eternal love without impure to sin.

When Cynthia closed her eyes and prayed to the priest for Apollo's safety, she felt like she could hear the priest's voice from somewhere.

"It's okay. Prepare something sweet and wait for me.'

He seemed to be saying that.

When Cynthia hurried home, she crushed the cacao beans, mixed the milk and butter, and started making chocolate.

That was Apollo's favorite food.

After a while, when Cynthia looked up and looked out of the kitchen window, she saw a figure walking towards her house from a distance.

That is...