{9}“Leo”

  ***

  "Have you heard of someone named Leo, Calia?"

  Weren't they just talking about Haderian? Calia tilted her head at the unexpected name that came from Rin's mouth.

  "Is that another famous person at the school?"

  "Yes."

  "That guy...."

  Ned cut in.

  "He's a protégé of Dr. Gernshvatz from the Engineering Department."

  Of course, as a freshman, Calia had no way of understanding what that meant.

  "He's such a cheerful guy that I'd like to become friends with him... but it's just impossible to get close. Too dangerous, you know?"

  Dangerous? The son of the Laurenta Thieves' Guild Head considered someone else dangerous? Calia was suddenly intrigued.

  "So is he from an even more dangerous background? More than you?"

  "No."

  "No?"

  "Dangerous? No... he's from an orphanage."

  "An orphanage?"

  Leo, currently an upperclassman in the Engineering Department mainly helping with research, came from an orphanage in a village at the border between Renbania and Valserun. From a young age, he showed exceptional dexterity and intelligence, creating many ingenious things. Thanks to his demonstrated talent, he was recommended by the orphanage director and entrusted to the Academy.

  "That doesn't sound like a problem at all?"

  Rin nodded.

  "Of course. It wasn't a problem at all... it 'wasn't'."

  The issue was the first 'prototype' he completed after coming to the Academy.

  "Prototype?"

  Calia's eyebrows rose. Ned smirked.

  "He considers everything he makes as potentially marketable products. So he calls all his inventions prototypes."

  His talent was extraordinary, even at just fifteen years old when he was recommended for admission. His manual dexterity in creating simple tools and machines exactly as he envisioned was truly a gift from the gods. When Dr. Gernshvatz saw him complete a casting process perfectly on his first attempt, he immediately said, "You, be my assistant."

  And so Leo began assisting Dr. Gernshvatz with research. His 'prototype series' made its public debut two years after his admission, at the 'Academy Combat Tournament.'

  "Combat Tournament? You have that too?"

  Calia asked in surprise. Ned replied with a somewhat proud tone.

  "Of course. There are quite a few famous swordsmen and generals among our alumni."

  Why is someone from a thieves' guild proud of that? Calia wanted to ask but held back. Rin continued the story with a serious expression.

  "They don't use real weapons with actual blades, and protective gear is required for the competition. Still, it's incredibly dangerous. Last year was my first chance to watch it... and that was the tournament where Senior Leo competed."

  Elvlin Academy's Combat Tournament is renowned for its realism. It's so intense that every year, various institutions from across the Northern Continent send representatives to scout promising talents.

  Sharp-edged weapons are prohibited. Besides that, the rules are very liberal – 'if an individual can carry it,' any weapon is allowed.

  As a result, all sorts of weapons appear, and injuries are inevitable in this perilous contest of skill. When news spread that Leo would unexpectedly be competing in such a serious arena, there was widespread ridicule from the Swordsmanship Department and various military and tactical studies departments.

  Lupren, the ace of the Spear Arts Department at the time, publicly mocked him, saying, "How dare a bookworm who just tinkers with metal scraps in his room? I'll humiliate him for generations to come!"

  In the tournament-style Combat Tournament, the weapon Leo brought to his first match was 'armor.' And not even full-body armor – it had most of the vital body points exposed, while the gauntlets, which should be light, were strangely oversized and blunt.

  Coincidentally, his first opponent was Lupren, who predictably scoffed at the armor Leo wore. As soon as the match began, Lupren launched an attack with great confidence, and everyone watching was certain the match would end with that one strike. But Leo dodged it with remarkable ease.

  "Dodged?"

  Calia seemed confused. Had he incorporated some special mechanism into his armor, befitting an engineering student?

  "Senior Leo's movements when I first saw him were... almost at the level of a wild animal. Everyone was caught off guard by the stereotype that an engineering student would obviously be physically weak."

  "Haha..."

  Most disappointingly for Lupren, Leo easily avoided every thrust of the spear. His stamina was so good that Lupren, carrying both armor and spear, tired first. Eventually, an angry Lupren threw away his spear, forcing the match into hand-to-hand combat. At that point, Leo, who had been running away to stay out of the spear's range, could no longer escape and began exchanging blows with Lupren.

  "Senior Leo was not at all overwhelmed in hand-to-hand combat."

  Finding himself pushed back by an unexpectedly skilled opponent, Lupren, blinded by the pride of being the Spear Arts Department's ace, committed an irreversible foul. He pulled out a hidden 'sharp-edged' dagger from his waist and stabbed with it.

  "What? My goodness! What happened to this Leo person?"

  Though the story had wandered quite far, Calia was now fully engaged. As if to answer her enthusiasm, Rin suddenly stood up and exclaimed:

  "Justice Enforced!"

  Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.

  With a serious face and furrowed brows, but given her slender frame, it came across as somewhat awkward.

  "What enforcement?"

  "Justice Enforced! That's what Senior Leo actually said at that moment."

  And indeed he had. The moment Lupren thrust forward with his concealed dagger, Leo suddenly shouted, "Justice Enforced!" Just then, from the armor connecting his gauntlets behind his back, there was a loud boom as enormous smoke poured out. At the same time, his right fist whirled like a tornado, directly hitting Lupren's chest.

  When that strange gauntlet contacted the metal armor part, a sound similar to a cathedral bell rang out, and Lupren's body was 'launched' into the air at an unbelievable speed, 'flying' quite far.

  "...Did he die?"

  Rin smiled awkwardly at Calia, who asked with sparkling eyes.

  "No. He's still alive and well."

  Leo called the device "Justice Enforcement Machine No. 1." In his words, Lupren became the official first sacrifice to the Justice Enforcement Machine series in Ascalian history. This sparked a debate within the Academy about whether using mechanical devices was against the rules, eventually exceeding the authority of both the Military Studies Department, which hosted the tournament, and the Student Council.

  Finally, after thorough deliberation in a board meeting that included all professors, the conclusion was that "if projectiles like arrows are already permitted as non-bladed weapons, there's no reason to prohibit mechanical devices."

  Given the tournament's emphasis on practical combat, they considered such devices to fall within the category of weapons.

  "Then is there a No. 2 as well?"

  To Calia's natural curiosity, Ned answered:

  "According to rumors, he's now far beyond No. 10."

  With official permission to use mechanical devices from the school, Leo went on to win match after match, advancing to the finals. And waiting for him in the final match was none other than the Swordsmanship Department's ace – Haderian Rashat.

  When the gong signaling the start of the finals rang, Leo immediately charged forward saying, "Hehe. You look so sturdy, I'm relieved." Haderian responded with solid defense. Using a longsword almost as tall as himself, his swordsmanship was known not only for its offense but for a defense so impenetrable it often demoralized opponents. However, today he seemed somewhat off.

  As Leo rushed in at incredible speed swinging his fists, smoke hissed from the mechanical devices on his back and gauntlets, and each time Haderian blocked, there was a tremendous impact sound. After continuously blocking Leo's relentless attacks, Haderian became exhausted before he could launch a proper offensive.

  "This is where Mr. Haderian's nightmare began again after a long while," Rin said.

  "He had gradually realized during his time at the Academy that his previous misunderstandings were truly the result of misinterpretation upon misinterpretation. By the time he was recognized as the Swordsmanship Department's ace, he had completely regained his confidence."

  To make a long story short, Haderian suffered a crushing defeat to Leo that day. Unable to launch a proper attack, he focused solely on blocking the fierce onslaught from the strange gauntleted 'Justice Enforcement Machine No. 1' until he eventually depleted his stamina, took a decisive blow, and collapsed to the ground.

  During the award ceremony, in his victory speech, Leo simply said, "Experiment successful," and coolly left the podium. He didn't even glance at Haderian, who was still trembling from the shock and barely managing to stand on the second-place podium.

  It was the greatest legend in Elvlin Academy Combat Tournament history and the beginning of Haderian's new nightmare.

  Afterward, Haderian frequently skipped meals and practice, living almost like a shut-in. Despite encouragement from those around him to recover his spirit, it was useless.

  As he began to skip practice, he suddenly realized he had too much free time. Previously, his days consisted of waking at dawn to swing his sword until sunset, constantly sweating. Breaking from that routine suddenly left him with nothing to do.

  Tired of being confined to his dormitory room, one day he headed to the library for reasons unknown. And there, he saw Rin organizing books for the first time. Recalling that day, Rin frowned.

  "Before then, I'd only seen him walking with the Swordsmanship Department group, looking very gallant and neat... but now he was thin, slouching, unwashed, unshaven... anyway, it took me a while to recognize who he was."

  At that time, Rin habitually asked, "Can I help you?" and Haderian shook his head saying, "No one can help me now." Of course, they were talking past each other, but not realizing this, Rin responded in typical librarian fashion:

  "If we look, I'm sure we'll find something. Would you like to search with me?"

  Saying that, Rin led the way, and Haderian followed as if entranced. As it was right after final exams with vacation approaching, they were able to browse through the books together in an empty library.

  Rin, who had heard a little about Haderian's recent situation, recommended books about 'individuals who overcame adversity' whenever spotting one. The strange thing was that Haderian silently accepted each recommendation. Eventually, when the books he held exceeded ten, Rin stopped making suggestions.

  He finally left after checking out a total of twelve books. A few weeks later, surprising news spread: Haderian had regained his former vigor.

  He attended practice regularly and swung his sword with even more energy than before, amazing those around him. The only difference was that he had developed a habit of reading in his spare time. He appeared before Rin again just one day before the book return deadline.

  "Miss Rin. I've read all the books you recommended."

  When she saw him again, he stood tall with shoulders straight, handsome and neat in appearance, exuding confidence.

  "All those books?"

  "Yes. They were perfect for me."

  Then he handed Rin a flower. Of course, Rin gladly accepted the gift, she said.

  "...That doesn't seem like a problem?"

  Calia meaninglessly swirled her empty cup.

  "If anything, isn't he rather romantic?"

  Rin and Ned looked at each other. Rin seemed unwilling to continue the story and turned her head away, so Ned took over.

  "Yes. And that romance... became somewhat repetitive."

  "Repetitive?"

  Haderian sought out Rin the next day too, offering a flower. And the day after that, and the day after that, and still the next day. Every single day.

  "Are you kidding? If she doesn't like it, just refuse, right?"

  To Calia's reasonable question, Rin spoke again.

  "Of course I refused. I said it was too burdensome to keep accepting..."

  Then Haderian began bringing different gifts instead of flowers, but he still kept coming. If she said no, he would simply change the gift again.

  This was the beginning of what students at Elvlin Academy still talk about today – the legend of the 'Man Who Doesn't Know How to Give Up.'

  Just as his persistence in swordsmanship had been remarkable, his obsession with love was equally relentless.

  Dean Lidia, who had come after hearing the rumors, tried to explain the female perspective in great detail, being a woman herself, but couldn't persuade the stubborn young man. Since such persistent expressions of affection weren't specifically prohibited either in the Republic of Ascalia or at the Academy, there was no means anywhere to forcibly stop his behavior.

  "It's been a year like this already."

  Rin's face couldn't have been darker as she said that. Of course, just hearing this far wouldn't reveal how serious it was, but Calia had already witnessed Haderian's current state firsthand.

  "Wait! Rin isn't at fault at all, right?"

  "Still, I did cause it in a way."

  "Are you kidding? He fell for you on his own and keeps bothering you even though you've refused him?"

  At Calia's forthright words, Rin's face brightened somewhat.

  "Thank you, Calia."

  "That's not the point."

  "Pardon?"

  "What are you going to do now?"

  "What...?"

  "About Haderian. Are you just going to leave things as they are?"

  Rin was a bit startled when Calia became serious.

  "Well, it's not like Mr. Haderian is doing anything particularly bad to me..."

  "You're so frustrating! Hey Ned! How do you handle situations like this?"

  "Huh? Us?"

  Ned thought seriously for a moment before answering.

  "In cases like this, secretly sending an assassin..."

  Smack!

  "Ow! I was joking, why did you hit me?"

  Ned frowned, his shoulder suddenly struck. Calia raised her hand threateningly again.

  "Joking? Do you think that sounds like a joke knowing who you are?"

  Ned looked extremely wronged.

  "Despite appearances, I was raised to listen well to my father (the head of the Northern Continent's largest thieves' guild)."

  Calia ignored Ned's protest.

  "So the essence of the problem is this: finding a way to stop a troublesome person when they've created their own faction."

  Hearing that, Ned fell into thought again and after a while, as if recalling something, he spoke up.

  "Come to think of it, about four years ago? A new organization emerged in Laurenta."

  "And?"

  "We sent spies to sow discord among their members."

  At this, Rin became serious.

  "Wait a minute! We can't do such things to the Swordsmanship Department people just because I'm uncomfortable!"

  "Calm down, Rin."

  Calia's tone had become composed.

  "I'm just hearing opinions. I wanted to compare them with the method I came up with."

  "What?"

  This piqued both Rin and Ned's curiosity.

  "What method did you come up with?"

  "Ahem!"

  Unexpectedly, Calia tensed her facial muscles. It was an attempt to look dignified, but with little effect. Just a few wrinkles between her eyebrows and slightly flared nostrils.

  "In our Sian Empire, we have a saying."

  She put down her cup with a loud thud.

  *BANG!*

  "The enemy of my enemy is my friend!"

  -To be continued-