Leon's eyes shook, as if he had not expected such words to come out.
"…What on earth is it?"
"So, make a promise first."
He's not the type of person to go around spreading other people's stories without making any promises. That's why he's been by the protagonist's side for over ten years.
Still, we need to know what kind of weight the story we are about to hear carries.
Leon looked at me with doubtful eyes and sighed deeply.
"I promise. In the name of God."
"I don't think it's necessary to bring up God, but okay. I'll explain it briefly, so listen carefully."
Leon nodded with a solemn expression.
"I was born with the strongest magical power in our family, and I hope my older brother will inherit our father's title and become the head of the family."
"…end?"
Even as he said that, Leon's face darkened as if he had already noticed what was happening.
I nodded to him.
"You know that usually the right to succession is given in order of magical power? Now you know how things went."
"…What you're saying is, you couldn't use magic because of your brother?"
"Yeah, if you write it you'll die."
"Is your brother coming to kill you?"
Leon said that because he couldn't believe it rationally, but I couldn't help but smile bitterly knowing that I would truly be killed in the future by my brother's hands.
I stopped by the dorm at dawn, took out a crystal bottle from the bag I had brought, and held it up to Leon's eyes.
"What kind of medicine do you think it is?"
Leon squinted his eyes as he held the bottle up to the light.
"What? What did you extract that makes it glow like this? It looks just like ink."
"This is the medicine that my brother sends me every month. You probably don't know, since it's made with ingredients that have never been officially distributed in the empire."
Why on earth is the medicine sent by my brother, who wants to become the head of that household, made of a substance that has never been officially distributed in the empire?
Leon's brow furrowed at the ominous combination that anyone could see.
"no way…."
"Yes. If you drink this, your core will be completely blocked, so you will feel a shock the moment you use magic."
"Wait a minute, we're still family. If a wizard's magic stops flowing through his body, he dies. How are we supposed to live if that's blocked?"
"What do you think? My brother wants me to die as soon as possible. Isn't it obvious that he wants me to die by giving me this medicine?"
Leon's face lit up with shock.
That face, as if I had never imagined it before.
Leon, who grew up in a warm and harmonious family, would not understand.
Leon, who had been looking confused the whole time, opened the bottle cap and slowly blew air into it to smell it.
"Since when have you been drinking this?"
"Were you ten years old?"
"From then until now, it's been a period of growth. The most important time for a wizard, like this…."
"...."
Leon gritted his teeth, seeming even more aggrieved than the person who took the drug.
I laughed in vain.
This guy seems to think that the most serious problem is that I haven't grown in terms of magic.
I don't know how much of the magic of Lucus that I saw as a child was still strong enough to cause this reaction.
"You couldn't not drink it? Your father…."
"I skipped a week when I was twelve. Then I fainted at some point, and when I opened my eyes, my brother told me that I had eaten a squirrel. The rest was predictable."
"What happened?"
"Every time I said I didn't want to drink tea, I was locked in my room. They didn't even give me food. It was my brother and father's orders."
As far as I remember, it was like that.
Leon clutched his head as if he had heard the crazy situation.
"…I'm sorry to ask this question in this situation, but did you really eat this?"
"I have no idea. I have no memory of anything after losing consciousness."
"This may be a bit presumptuous, but is there a possibility that you lied, hyung? Honestly, even if you use magic, how can a child that young be able to handle it? It wouldn't be a problem to make the situation look real."
"Not enough."
"Then the rumors about your blood sucking and your connection to the Pleroma… it's possible that your brother spread them."
"okay."
Leon buried his face in his hands.
After groaning for a while, he raised his head with a haggard face.
"…This is crazy. This is a problem that needs to be reported to the Imperial Investigation Team immediately."
"I'm not going to report it."
"Yes, you shouldn't move rashly yet. Your brother probably didn't prepare for that."
"I know right."
As expected, the main character's friends are all different.
It was convenient because we could communicate well.
"What on earth am I supposed to do here…. You want to get away from me too, hyung? You've definitely changed. This time… um, you've changed your behavior a bit, and from what I can see from the magic you're using, you seem to have stopped taking your medicine. To be honest, this is the first time I've had a conversation with you without stopping."
"Of course. I want to live."
"You adjusted your power too… You wanted to change, but you were afraid that Hyung would notice, right? Is that right?"
"Yes. That's over now. If we continue like this, I might arouse your suspicions."
"…I didn't even know that, so what did I say to you…."
Leon buried his face in his hands again in frustration and looked back on the past.
As I searched my memory, I remembered everything that happened in my first year of high school, when I had been giving Lucus's a lot of hints.
I couldn't help it because I didn't know the circumstances at the time, but then again, it may not be something I should blame myself for… After hearing the story, I felt sorry and regretful.
'I just… wanted him to use his magic properly.'
I didn't want to admit that the person I had admired my entire life, the person who had changed my future, was being trampled on by others.
I thought I was too easily discouraged by hardships.
I thought I was weak, even though I had the weapon to overturn public opinion.
It was only later that my face felt hot.
I judged other people's lives too easily.
For a friend who was already suffering from family problems, school became a place of suffering.
Even though I wasn't the only one who made it so that the whole school hated Lucus's, it's true that it influenced the atmosphere.
Leon apologized without meeting her eyes.
"I'm sorry. I didn't even know there were such circumstances…."
"I want to hear exactly what you're sorry about."
"…I didn't even know you well, but I treated you rudely throughout the last school year, and I suddenly called you out yesterday and started a fight, all of that."
I carefully searched through Lucus's memories.
Leon played a big role in making Lucus's school life even more bleak.
There is no way a person who is hated by the popular students can do well in school.
'Of course, even if Leon hadn't shown up, Lucus would have had the same image here… .'
I laughed in vain at the sad reality.
Leon only added fuel to the fire by going around showing off how much he despised Lucus.
But the fire was already burning brightly from the first day of school.
'But that doesn't mean I wasn't hurt at all.'
As I was quietly watching Leon, Leon lowered his head.
"I'm sorry I'm late, but I'll do whatever I can to help."
"Well, can I postpone forgiveness until later?"
I am not Lucus. The one who has been living off the favors up until now is not me, but Lucus.
If I ever leave this body, it will have to figure out what happens after that.
So, I wanted to leave this at least for Lucus to choose for himself, if nothing else.
Leon nodded at those words.
"Of course. You don't have to accept it. It wasn't an apology intended to burden you. It's just that, no matter what the circumstances, you must have had a reason why you had no choice but to live that way… I'm sorry for showing my displeasure all this time."
I quietly watched Leon as he continued to ramble on and on.
Actually, this time should have come 10 years later, when I was dealing with my brother.
Thanks to the change in the flow, I was able to hear a sincere apology from Lucus while he was still alive.
You may be feeling all sorts of emotions right now, but it would be better for Leon to let it out while the other person is still alive rather than apologizing to their grave.
Above all, even though it could have been buried in the school atmosphere, seeing him feel guilty about such an act and apologize on his own shows that he was not a bad person.
I studied Leon's face carefully.
I feel like I've been stagnant for too long.
Now, let's lighten the mood a bit.
"Okay. How would you not know if I didn't tell you?"
"So, even if you didn't say anything, there must be a reason why people live like that, but I just put my feelings first…."
"…I know, Inma. I told you to stop thinking about it."
I noticed this yesterday when he started spewing out words without choosing his words, but it seems like his special trait is that he doesn't know what he's talking about.
I nodded, suppressing the urge to hit him.
I gave him time to think alone, but even after time passed, Leon's face still looked ashen.
'This won't work.'
If you dig this deep, it's going to be difficult for you and me.
I didn't want to bring this up, but I had no choice.
"Don't blame yourself too much about this. In fact, you just wanted to see my proper magic, regardless of my attitude in class or anything. Right?"
Leon looked slightly puzzled at those words, then nodded.
"…To some extent. It was annoying that you could use magic but had to accept the ignoring of other kids. Actually, I saw your magic when I was little. I thought that kind of magic would solve everything…."
"It's different from what I know."
"hmm?"
"I think I said something like, 'I can't believe I can see this again. How I've been waiting for this day.'"
"I?"
The bastard's eyes were shaking like crazy.
'I wasn't in my right mind back then.'
"I guess I misspoke a bit. It's not like that…."
"No, you said you started magic because of me."
"uh?"
There was only silence.
Leon, who had been unable to close his mouth, spoke as if he was embarrassed.
"Wait a minute. Who, who did that…."
"…If you were going to be so flustered, why didn't you just deny it right away?"
Even though I was the one who threw it out first, seeing that shocking reaction made me laugh out loud and feel sorry.
Even if I tried to catch it, it wouldn't have been meaningful.
Anyway, I can't say I read it in a book. I just opened my mouth calmly.
"You told me that just before you collapsed yesterday. Shouldn't I know?"
At those words, all the color drained from Leon's face.
Leon shook his head, trying to answer as normally as possible.
"No, no. It's okay to know. Just don't tell the other kids."
"Don't say anything. By the way, it's an honor. You started magic because of me."
Lucus needs to know this.
If Lucus really knew, how would he react to this?
As I smiled with that thought, the guy glared at me with a flushed face, as if he thought I was making fun of him.
"Aren't you going to class? And to be exact, it wasn't you who started it, it was thanks to your magic. I didn't even remember your face. I just remembered your name."
I wanted to ask where my magic just appeared out of thin air, but I brushed it off for now.
"Okay, I understand. That's enough. I just need to ask you two questions. I need your help."
"Why even decide on a quantity? Just tell me."
Leon answered curtly.
I just ignored the tone that didn't match the content. Anyway, it was a good sign that he was willing to actively cooperate with me.
"There is a medicine I am looking for. Please bring it to me."
"Are you in the Empire?"
"huh."
He took a note out of his pocket and handed it over.
Since I couldn't remember the exact names of the medicines in the novel, I looked through the books whenever I had time. Fortunately, I was able to find some familiar names in the herbal medicine book.
Leon nodded as he received the note.
"It's common, so you should be able to receive it in a week. I'll tell your family. What's the second one?"
"Spar with me every day."
"uh?"
Leon's face brightened in an instant.
He must have thought, "Oh no," and tried to control his expression, but it was already too late.
I burst out laughing without realizing it.
"…Sigh…."
"…It seems like you keep making fun of me, but it's just because I haven't met a friend on the same level yet. You know?"
"Do you think I'm on your level? Don't make excuses. So, can you listen to me?"
Leon averted his eyes and closed his mouth at those words.
In fact, even if it was just empty words, it couldn't be said that the level was right. It was because his magical power was extraordinary, but his magical skills weren't outstanding.
Leon recalled memories from last year.
Developing my skills with the person who set me on this path.
It was something I had been hoping for since I heard the rumor that he was going to be admitted here.
'No, maybe it's something I've been wishing for for ten years.'
From the day I saw Lucus's' magic, I worked hard to build up my skills to be able to stand shoulder to shoulder with him.
So this wasn't a favor he had to do, it was actually a favor I had to do.
Leon nodded.
"Yeah. Of course."
Tiring!
As soon as Leon answered, pure white letters flashed before my eyes.
Congratulations!
'Proposal: Make 'Leonnard Wittelsbach' your colleague.' Success!
'Chapter 2. If you help yourself, God will help you (2)' Completed!
'Route 1 — 〈Chapter 3. Continuous water droplets pierce the stone (1)' 〉 is confirmed.
「 Chapter 3. Continuous water droplets pierce the stone (1) 」
'hmm.'
Okay, I'm satisfied.
It looks like the foundation has been laid.
This proposal seemed quite important, but has anything changed?
I called up the status window.