Elizabeth was shocked beyond belief that the man before her was Leonhart, the same Leonhart who was scorned throughout the empire for his behavior. Was it the real Leon? Then where was the other one whom she had known for 20 years? She had never seen him once being sympathetic towards anyone or being emotional enough to cry.

She always thought that he had a heart of stone, but seeing him now it was not the case anymore. He really was sobbing like a child and what was he even talking about...? Who died and how he became hopeless...? There were thousands of questions but there was only one man who could anser all that and he was just beside her.

Suddenly Leon got up from and where he was lying and tried to move away from the princess. He still didn't want her to see the pathetic sight. He was crying once again for those long-lost memories. But suddenly he felt a gentle tug on his hand and turned around to the see Elizabeth standing there. And before he could say anything, she just embraced him with all her might.

"Wha-t... a-re...?"

"It... Ok. You can cry."

"..." No words left James's mouth as tears slowly came out and to his surprise, within a minute, he was crying once again. This was the very first time someone embraced him, sympathising with his pain. This warmth was what he longed for, which he desperately needed. And how he got it, from a complete stranger, whom he never knew.

Elizabeth's mind was in conflict as to what to do in this situation...? And seeing Leonhart going away, her heart ached. He was in pain, but she couldn't do anything. So she did what he wanted the most, a hug. Moving behind Leon, she gently tugged his hand, and when he turned around, she gently embraced him, but the words escaped on her own. She didn't know why he was in pain, but she did the best in her capabilities to comfort him.

And soon Leon also did the same by embracing her, which she didn't expect. She had been hugged by her family for countless times, but this time it felt different. Her chest tightened and heart started beating like crazy. It was the first time she had been held by someone else besides her family, and she liked it. She liked the warmth, the sweet scent.

Elizabeth wanted to stay like this for a bit more, but Leonhart pulled away, grabbing her shoulders and looked her in the eyes. Seeing his deep blue eyes, which were reddened from all the crying and his handsome face up close, her cheeks reddened a little unbeknownst to her.

"Thank you..." said James in a thankful tone. He really was grateful to her as she hugged him. It was one of the many things he desperately needed to calm him down.

"I don't know why you are sad, but I am certain of one thing: that you are not hopeless. You have done many things which are beyond questionable... still, I think you can change."

"..." James just stood there saying nothing, just looking at her.

"And Leon, things may seem hopeless, but they won't be there forever. Eventually, they will fade away and new things take their place. We have to accept that fact and move on... We have to let go... So we can catch new things... Explore new places... Find happiness..." said Elizabeth with a smile. These were the things she learnt throughout her life in the palace that there would be always light at the end of a dark room. There would be always hope.

And Leonhart could change. He could become someone worthy of the title Duke. It was a just matter of time and determination. She had absolutely zero idea about why he was sad or what he just told about death, but the one thing was sure that he was not lying. His expression, words, tears, those things couldn't be faked that easily.

"Let go..." whispering the words, James' eyes widened, as the thought of what his father said hit him.

-------------------------------

"You know, James... Sometimes you have to just let go of the handle and let the wind carry you..."

"To where..."

"To wherever she desires..."

-------------------------------

James was always stuck in the past, trying to figure out a way to get back... But why... Was there someone waiting for him... No, there was no one. But here there were many people who needed him, cared about him. Still, he was stuck on going back, ignoring the things which made him who he was.

James was not the same as before. He was Leonhart who had a family... He could live the life of him. He just had to let go of that past, that world where he lost everything... and begin once again... Just had to try... Just had to let go...

Now everything felt clear. James' mind was not blurred anymore, but was clear of every thought. He finally understood what his father meant by Let go... He never appreciated his words and always thought of him as a philosophical geek, but now everything struck him. Jonathan told what he wasn't able to see in that moment but would understand years later. He was always 10 steps ahead of him.

"Yes, dad... I will let go..." said James, looking at the beautiful starry sky as a smile appeared on his face.

"..." Elizabeth, who was looking at the unfolding scene, was genuinely happy to see Leonhart's visible changes. He was not crying anymore, but looked happy. Soon, to her surprise, Leon hugged her once more, this time more closely. And her calming heart started beating like crazy once again. Still, she didn't detest it but could feel something strange, as if a subtle warm feeling washed over her body.

"Thank you..." said James once again as he pulled her once more into his embrace. He was honestly thankful to her beyond words. Without her, he wouldn't be able to realise the words of his father. She was someone whom he had never met before, for no reason, but still she gave him a helping hand. Hugged him without caring about what others would say, listened to his illogical blabbering with no question.

"Leon..." whispered Elizabeth in a very tender tone. His embrace was not suffocating, but they were outside and she was a girl and Leon was a boy. It would create baseless rumors if anyone saw them in this state, which won't be good for both of them.

Hearing her words, James awoke from his daze and realised what he was doing. So he eased his hands away and made some distance between them. Thinking about what he just did, James appeared flustered as the tip of his ears were slightly red. He had never even touched a girl, let alone cuddle with one. And now he did the things which definitely would have made her uncomfortable.

"I am sorry..." said James, bowing down as he was sure that she felt uncomfortable by his sudden actions.

"No... It's fine." replied Elizabeth, as her expression was also not any better than Leon. Her cheeks were now completely red as her heart was still beating wildly. She couldn't put her finger on what was happening to her, still it was not a bad feeling.

And soon silence descended upon the area as none of them spoke anything. But soon Leonhart broke the silence by pointing his head towards the sky, trying to change the topic. He was pointing towards Polaris, the north star and the brightest star in the constellation.

"That's Polaris..."

"Polaris..." Elizabeth was confused, as she had never known about a star named Polaris.

"Yes... It's also called north star. The brightest star in the north."

"Oh..."

"It's beautiful... Isn't it..." asked James as it was one of his favourite star and always appreciated its beauty.

"Yes... It's beautiful."

"And that's called Pleiades, or seven sisters. That's Draco &that is Cassiopeia," Said James, pointing toward various groups of stars. As a stargazer, he had learnt about all these things from the Internet long time ago and now it served its purpose.

"Wow..." The princess was amazed by seeing how much Leon knew about stars, as she had only seen them at night but never thought about their names.

"Hey Leon... Is every star has a name...?"

"No... Not particularly. And we can give any name to them, as they are endless."

"Really..."

"Yes... Like from now on, that star's name is Eli." said James, pointing towards the North star.

"But you told that's north star..."

"It won't be a problem as we give them names and can change them however we want."

"Oooo... Then that star name is Leon..." said the princess, pointing towards a particular constellation.

"I think... That's Hercules."

"Whaa...? You just told we can name them however we want."

"Yeah... But..."

"Come on...."

" Yes... Yes... That's Leon then... Happy now."

"Yes..." replied the girl with black hair with a giggle. For the first time in a while, she was enjoying something, and it honestly was fun naming things.

"Hey, that looks like a cat"

"No... That looks like a bear..."

"That's a cat..."

"A bear..."

"Come on..."

"Ok... Ok..."

And soon the entire area was filled with laughter as both of them enjoyed naming the endless stars unbeknownst about someone watching from a far.

***

Inside the large corridor of the mansion, which was illuminated by the torches and the moonlight coming from the window, two individuals could be seen walking side by side. One was a man with blue eyes and blonde hair, and another was a lady with silky black hair and sapphire blue eyes. They were the duke and the duchess of the Esper duchy who were discussing their son's future.

Every duke's son was trying his best to impress the princess, but he had done nothing or was even doing nothing. Just wasted time on useless matters. It was getting a headache for both of them as it would be a shame to the duchy if they won't be able to get Elizabeth as the next duchess.

They moved a bit more, two maids came in to view. It seemed like they were watching something or someone outside the enormous window as it directly overlooked the garden. They had massive grin plastered on their faces as if they were seeing something interesting.

"What are you two doing...?" asked the Duchess, moving a bit closer to them.

Hearing the words of the Duchess, both the maids were startled as they do not know when she even approached them and in confusion and fear, one of them spilled out the truth.

"We were.... Watching Lord... Leon and Lady Elizabeth..."

"What...?" asked Mellisa with a skeptical expression. Her son with the princess. It had to be a joke.

"Yes... They are in the garden."

"Let me see..." with that, the Duchess moved near the window and the duke followed behind.

And soon their mouth were hung open by seeing the events that transpired in the next couple of minutes. Soon, the duo looked at each other with the same shocked expression on their faces. Both of them couldn't believe their own eyes as to what they had seen.

Elizabeth hugged Leonhart... It had to be a dream, right? And in the next moment he hugged her, to which she responded like nothing. She didn't slap him, but acted like a maiden in love. Now they were watching stars. NO... Something was wrong... That was not their son. He couldn't do something like that. It's just impossible.

"Heinrich...?"

"Yes..."

"What is happening...?"

"I don't know..." Honestly, he did not know about what to say on this matter. He had not expected his son to be able to do that within a day. Still, he was proud of him. It took them one step closer to their grand achievement.

"He is still our son, right...?" asked the duchess in a worried tone. As it was impossible for her son to change his year long habit within a couple of days. And when did he like stars...?

"He is. And I am proud of him."

"Yes But..."

"Listen, you two... Don't dare to say anything about this and warn the others who had seen it. If I ever hear about this from elsewhere, then it would be the end of all the staffs. Remember...?" said the duke in a cold tone, which was more than enough to scare these maids. He did this because he couldn't take the risk of others finding about as they would definitively try to break the relationship.

"Yes Lord..."

"Now go do your job..."

With that, the two maids left in fear and the duke and duchess kept looking through the window where James was teaching Elizabeth about the stars.