Professor X's expression changed when those words fell. He stared at Cyclops for a long time without speaking.
"No matter what, I am truly sorry." Professor X took a deep breath, and his reason finally returned. Only Schiller read a certain chill in the surging brainwaves around him, like a storm.
Within that brief minute, Professor X regained his gentle demeanor. He even removed the fourth-generation Cerebro Helmet from his head, and his blue eyes grew even deeper, like the crystal lake beside the Royal Court of Krakoa.
"There's no need to be sorry, Professor..." Cyclops instead tried to comfort Professor X. He was someone who understood very well that no one was obligated to be perfect in every way. In his eyes, Professor X was already perfect enough. Any mistake—even one that affected him—should not be harshly blamed.
"That is not what I am apologizing for." Professor X looked at him with an entirely different face—a face without the disguise of benevolence, a truer version of himself—and it nearly stunned Cyclops, leaving him shocked, even horrified.
Because with just that brief instant of eye contact, Cyclops felt as though he had touched a planet. As vast as Earth, and as tiny as Earth. As his senses were endlessly magnified, the existence of his self-awareness gradually shrank. All of it was because an immense, irresistible sensation had invaded everything he was. It was something called the X-Force, rooted in his genes yet never truly acknowledged. At that moment, within Professor X's consciousness, from the entire universe, from among billions of stars, he came to know himself anew.
Cyclops snapped awake and staggered back a step. Gabriel rushed forward to support him, staring at Professor X with eyes full of hostility.
Cyclops patted his hand, stopping him. He panted hard a