While it seemed like Theodore had been sleeping comfortably since facing Pride, he was actually in a lot of danger. The power of Alfred’s soul, fragmented as it was, was beyond the limit that Theodore could accept. If Theo had been greedy enough to try and keep all that power, his ego would have shattered like broken glass. Theo intuitively chose the next best thing, where he gave up on inheriting all of the soul’s power but kept Alfred and Theo’s souls separate.

As he slowly pieced himself together in the darkness of his own mind, Theo gradually noticed that he was regaining his senses. It was evidence that his mind and body had recovered enough to wake up from the forced dormancy.

Is it time to wake up? Thank goodness I somehow succeeded.

Theo looked down at himself with a sigh. It had not been that long since he had stood at the boundary between Alfred and Theodore and been unable to tell who he was. He had barely managed to win by walking a tightrope with a precipice below him. Although Alfred’s life had been...