At 8 PM, Leo headed to the campus hospital to find Elias, who hadn't been in class all day.
He already knew the room number from the note Elias had sent tied to a bird's leg.
Leo got permission at the desk and opened the door to the room at the end of the hallway.
Creak―
"Long time no see, Leo."
A relaxed greeting came as soon as he opened the door.
Elias, lying back on the bed, raised his wine glass slightly in greeting.
Leo looked down at him and sighed softly.
"Why did you do it?"
"What do you mean, breaking my leg? Or the first-year?"
"I want to ask about both, but let's start with the latter."
"Would you have just stood there after hearing something like that?"
"…I would have told the professor."
"Ah, that's just like you. Makes me feel like I'm back home. Unfortunately, I'm no saint."
Elias grinned and drank his wine.
"Instead of nagging, why not welcome me? We haven't seen each other in months!"
"I did feel like you were right beside me with all the letters you sent every other day."
Elias chuckled despite Leo's sarcastic response. Leo nudged an empty wine box on the floor with the tip of his shoe.
"What's with the wine?"
"Call it 7% alcohol water. I can't really call it wine."
"Good grief…."
"Want a glass? It's the same alcohol content as the aperitif they serve in the cafeteria, so it's fine."
"I have a lot to do. You drink up."
Elias snapped his fingers as if satisfied with his answer and took another sip of wine.
Leo shook his head and sat down on the chair next to the bed.
"What about your punishment?"
"None. You can tell since I'm still here. I just pretended to be shocked and insisted on being hospitalized. They let me stay without any fuss."
"That's not true."
At Leo's brief remark, Elias closed his mouth.
"You're sharp as always. But it's true I didn't get any punishment. The words I heard weren't ordinary. I came here to get some magical treatment."
"Well, it's a relief you didn't get punished. How long until you recover?"
"It's bad enough that even with magical treatment, it'll take over two months. If it were someone like Wittelsbach casting the spell, who knows."
"…When did you get injured…."
Elias took another swig of wine and pointed his chin at Leo.
"The day you went to Mepen with your kingdom's mage instead of me. Feeling guilty enough to stick with me now?"
Leo frowned and clamped his mouth shut.
Elias chuckled and poured more wine, prompting Leo to ask.
"Stop joking. Answer seriously."
"I'm serious. I went to a restricted area yesterday. An upper-level one."
"...."
Leo looked at him as if he were beyond help.
Half-reclining, Elias brandished his wine glass and sat up.
"Hey, don't you trust my skills~? My evaluation scores might be lower than yours, but my magic power is way better!"
"Then why come back injured?! Get your story straight!"
"There was a contaminated boar there. Really fast, too. I fell while dodging it."
"You mean a wild boar."
"Yeah, I know."
Leo pinched the bridge of his nose, trying to hold his temper, and turned away, only to sigh and sit back down.
"Why didn't you use magic on the boar?"
"I got poisoned by the contaminated air. It made me pretty drowsy."
"But you managed to use magic while falling."
"I had to survive, didn't I? Breaking one leg to save my life is a fair trade."
Leo looked at Elias's left leg and the crutch by the bed, then sighed deeply, lowering his head.
"Yeah, at least you came back alive."
"Wow, you're being honest for once."
Elias grinned.
"Now I feel like taking it back. Anyway, why didn't you get magical treatment sooner?"
"No money."
"A royal has no money? Are you kidding me?!"
Leo rubbed his increasingly aching forehead and continued.
"I'll contact Mother. She's been asking when you're coming."
"Great. Make it a month from now; she must be busy."
"With your injury, she'll make time anytime."
Elias shook his head.
"No, there are some people who need to see me like this. So, how useful is the mage you hired that you left me for?"
"Useful… well, I haven't really thought about it that way. The mage was the one who wanted to go."
"What?"
"They suggested going."
"…You just go along with what others say?"
Elias asked in disbelief.
Leo, equally taken aback, shrugged.
"What do you think of me? Anyway, since we're talking about it, I should get going."
"You're leaving already? Stay a bit longer."
Leo shook his head.
"No, you need to go too. Can you warp in that condition?"
* * *
"Impressive. A strategy meeting room?"
"Right."
"Oh."
Elias, who had just warped into the meeting place, whistled as he scanned the numerous maps and notes plastered on the walls. He was holding a glass filled with wine.
"Nice analysis. Looks better than the imperial archives."
Then he turned to me and tilted his head.
"And… Lucas, right? Hello."
"Hello. We met this morning."
"That's right. Thanks to you, I wasn't late today. Appreciate it."
Elias, supported by Leo, sat down and counted the large table and the accompanying chairs.
"There must be a lot of people, huh? This place looks like a secret meeting spot with all the underground setting, magical locks, and numerous analysis materials. Am I being included~?"
This is just Elias's style of speaking. Just because he asks to be included doesn't mean he'll join willingly without weighing the pros and cons first.
I smiled gently.
"It's a request. How much has Leo told you?"
"He said you've gotten surprisingly close quite quickly."
Before I could respond, Leo frowned, as if he couldn't understand.
"When did I say that? I said we train together after class and run a Pleroma research group in the mornings. Get it right."
"There aren't many people you train seriously with."
Leo waved his hand in frustration.
"Lucas, just ignore him. Once you get used to it, you'll understand what he's saying."
"No, it's fine. I like his style."
I liked it enough to read it to the end. It was a long story with almost ten years' worth of content, mostly unskipped.
Anyway, now wasn't the time to reminisce.
"No need to drag it out. Let's get to the point. As you heard, this is a secret group dedicated to eliminating Pleroma. And I want you to join us."
"Hmm~?"
Elias uncrossed his legs and tilted his head.
"That's quite a surprising statement. Pleroma aiming to take down Pleroma."
"I'm the one surprised. Do you seriously think I'm Pleroma?"
Elias smiled.
"No."
He nodded toward Leo.
"I don't really get it, but you're friends with Leo. And Leo doesn't keep just anyone close."
"Simple and clear."
"Leo is a trustworthy friend. You'd know, having spent time with him. I'd love to offer you some Sanguiaccio Dolce, but let's hold off on that for now."
Leo clicked his tongue in disbelief.
It's understandable. The food Elias mentioned is a pudding made from blood.
Leo might have thought it was rude, but I found it amusing, matching his character from the novel.
Elias seemed to be trying to make sense of the situation, lost in thought as he gazed into the distance.
"If you're not Pleroma, then how did such rumors start? Ah, this is interesting. Shall we analyze it? Naturally, it started with those infamous incidents from your childhood."
He tapped his temple with his fingers.
"Setting aside the truth, none of them were properly investigated. Ah, I need to rephrase. What exactly reinforced the claim that you're Pleroma? Despite having the illustrious name Askanian and the power to suppress scandals and manipulate public opinion, how did it escalate to this point?"
Sharp. As expected of a protagonist.
Seeing this side of him in real life, after reading about it in the novel, felt nostalgic.
He quickly raised two fingers.
"I have two hypotheses."
"I said he was like you."
Leo threw out his words without even glancing at me.
Before coming here, I briefly stopped by the training ground to ask Leo to bring Elias, confirming that the person who sent the letter was indeed Elias.
Elias clapped his hands.
"Like me? I think I'm starting to understand your taste in friends, Leo."
"Enough of that. Tell me what you thought."
"You're in a hurry. Either those childhood incidents, combined with your 'extremely hard-to-get-along-with' demeanor, exponentially magnified the rumors, or Adrian Askanian and his supporters actively pushed those rumors."
Leo opened his mouth, looking like he was about to laugh at the absurdity. I felt the same.
He's not clairvoyant, yet he hit the nail on the head so easily?
Leo quietly asked.
"Why did you think that?"
"There's a guy in my class who accidentally committed murder when he was young. Instead of actively managing his image and explaining the incident, he walks around with a gloomy expression. That's the end of it."
Leo asked about the latter reason, but Elias, not knowing the truth, explained the former.
Anyway, he managed to put it mildly.
With Elias's personality, he could have said, 'Do you think you wouldn't have weird rumors following you if you acted like that?'
Of course, his character would be more confrontational when attacked by a villain, but having read about him in the novel, his current normal demeanor felt strangely unfamiliar.
"Of course, you've changed dramatically now. Without those rumors, you could have lived like your brother. You look alike… Though your attitude is unexpectedly more arrogant and sharp, the Askanian name alone could have solved that."
"What's your reason for the second claim?"
Elias smiled as he slowly rose and clasped his hands together.
"So that's the correct one, huh."
"..."
There was no need to ask why he thought so.
He's someone who can grasp minor clues from his opponent and turn them into a victory, so he must have deduced it from my tone and questions.
We haven't known each other long enough for him to fully understand my personality. It's more common to ask about earlier statements rather than solve immediate questions about personality.
"It's my situation. We all see the world through the lens of our own lives. So… I figured it out because we're the same."
Elias took a sip of wine and smiled.
"Is this why they say to watch your words? Trying to figure out your situation ended up revealing mine. But you're Leo's friend, so it's fine. Lucas, how well do you know the Emperor?"
"Not much."
"He's my uncle."
I nodded silently.
"You were probably wondering how I figured out your situation, right? The question was wrong. It should be, 'How could you make such shameless and outrageous assumptions?' The answer is, that's all I learned from my uncle. My uncle's love for his nephews is utterly dreadful."
Though hidden behind a casual sneer, his words carried a sharp edge.
Elias continued, still smiling as if nothing was wrong.
"I mean, it's literally dreadful."