Leonel's aura blazed like the sun. Somehow, even with a beauty like Syl standing by him, she was the one who was overshadowed.
"Who is that…?"
The crowd had fallen into a temporary silence before they suddenly erupted with discussion.
"Am I seeing things? Did the Kaefir family marry my goddess away?"
In the minds of those on Terrain, the only reason a male could be sharing a carriage like this with the younger sister of the Kaefir family Heir could only be this. These big families cared too much about their reputation to allow even an inkling of rumors to start without adequate cause. This meant that even if these two weren't betrothed now, it wouldn't be long before they were.
Of all those here, Syl seemed to be the one who understood this the most clearly, especially after she realized her sister-in-law was actually blocking Rie from exiting the carriage.
Even if Rie's appearance wouldn't completely quell the rumors, it would at least calm some of the heat she was feeling now.
Leonel, however, seemed oblivious to all of this. He took a step forward, his gaze sweeping over the youths who had descended from their war horses. He could easily sense the hostility in their eyes. But, surprisingly, Zilar, who should feel the most wronged, was silent and refused to meet his eyes.
"I can tell that you all are unsatisfied."
Syl blinked, not expecting Leonel to be so direct. The version of Leonel she knew was closed off and restrained. She had no idea that this wasn't the real Leonel.
Leonel wasn't a cold or arrogant person. He liked to think of himself as social and lively. But, circumstances seemed to constantly be pushing his true self away.
Hearing Leonel's words, as though they held some compelling spell to them, the youths who were glaring at him still couldn't help but listen.
"And, though I know you all don't want to hear it, I'm sure you also understand that it wasn't my choice to be here either, right?"
Zilar clenched his fists.
"Hey, watch your words!"
A petite young woman stepped toward Leonel. Clearly she didn't like Leonel's words.
What worse thing was there to hear after losing something that the person who got it didn't even appreciate it? In some ways, that felt worse than said person just gloating.
That said, how could Leonel not understand this?
He swept a glance toward the petite young woman, causing her next words to get caught in her throat. For whatever reason, beneath Leonel's direct gaze, she couldn't seem to muster up any courage to continue her tirade.
"I don't say this to belittle Zilar, I say this so that we can get an understanding of one another. Those were simply my feelings in the past. Now that I've seen those city gates and laid eyes on the war scenes it depicts…"
Leonel's hair billowed beneath his aura, his eyes blazing like two torches. He couldn't help but grin, the rushing of his blood sounding like crashing waterfalls in his ears.
"… I have not a single intention of giving my spot up."
Leonel's almost fiendish grin caused the petite woman to stumble.
"You seven and Syl are my teammates. I hope that instead of letting animosity get the best of you, you'll realize that sabotaging me is the very same as disrespecting Zilar."
The young woman and the others were stunned.
That was right, if they could get enraged simply because Leonel said that he didn't want the position to begin with, how much worse would it be to ruin the opportunity he had?
Suddenly, the petite young woman felt as though she had fallen into a trap she couldn't get out of.
Leonel smiled. "Let's go."
Leonel turned toward the gates. Despite the fact they were half a kilometer away, it felt as though they were bearing down on him. This level of majesty was far beyond anything he had seen in his lifetime before.
Syl and the others subconsciously followed his steps, not realizing their actions until Leonel suddenly stopped and looked back toward Zilar.
Zilar stood with his fists clenched, looking toward their backs as blood trickled between his fingers. He was the first person to not avoid Leonel's gaze when he met them.
"Second place was never an option for me." Leonel said plainly.
At first, it sounded as though Leonel was leaving behind some scolding words for Zilar. However, what Zilar heard was completely different. What he heard was a promise.
Syl blinked, not really believing what she was seeing. How did he rein in these arrogant geniuses? Even she could hardly do it, and that was only because of her family background while the other half of the reason was because they wanted to marry her. Plus… How did she suddenly become a background character?
Before she could realize what was happening, their group had caught up to the Swan family's.
Leonel stood at the helm with Syl by his side. Young Miss Swan stood at the forefront of her own group, looking toward them curiously.
All of them stood at the demarcation line. Those without talent didn't dare to cross this 500 meter mark from the Brave City Gates. If they dared to do so, they would only be asking for death.
Young Miss Swan blinked. "Is this your man, Little Syl? He's quite good. I'm a little bit jealous."
Leonel pretended as though he hadn't heard anything, but Syl suddenly became flushed.
The men within Young Miss Swan's group stared daggers toward Leonel. It seemed they didn't quite like that their goddess was praising another man.
A particular large one amongst them, standing a head taller than even the already tall Leonel, shot an aura of competition toward him.
Leonel planned to ignore this and take the first step forward, however, it was then that a rush surged through the crowd once again.. It seemed that another City Lord power had appeared.