Leonel quietly observed his grandfather. This was the first time he was meeting the man, yet he somehow felt a sense of familiarity with him.
At first, Leonel thought that this was his Dream Force dragging up memories for him once again. But, after a while, he understood that this wasn't actually the case.
Dream Force helped his memory to be near infallible. Yet, even with it, his recollections of the man before him were blurry at best.
Something like that seemed impossible to Leonel. With the presence of this man, how could he possibly ever be forgotten? He had an air that seemed to outshine the sun itself. It felt as though even if he was in the depths of space, without even the slightest hint of light, he would still radiate with his own brilliance.
The longer Leonel observed him, the brighter Emperor Fawkes amiable smile seemed to become. He felt more and more satisfied with every passing second.
Leonel's uncle, however, frowned at the current situation.
Standing before the Emperor without a word or even an attempt to bow. This was no small amount of disrespect.
If it was anyone else, the Prince would have long since lashed out. But, this time, he refrained for no other reason than the fact Leonel was his nephew. That said, that didn't stop his impression of Leonel from taking a large dip downward.
Bowing in this situation was more than about showing respect to an Emperor, it was also a means of showing respect for your predecessors. But, clearly Leonel didn't have this modicum of respect.
Leonel, however, wasn't thinking so far. It was just that after his experience with King Arthur, he had gained a dislike of kneeling and bowing. In addition, he hadn't grown up in the same culture as this uncle of his. Leonel had never bowed to even his own father a single day in his life, but this was also part of the reason he hadn't taking kneeling or not kneeling very seriously in the past.
In fact, even now, Leonel didn't think kneeling was a big deal. It was just that he had gained a subtle dislike for it, the same way someone might not like a flavor of ice cream. There was no need to do it if he didn't care for it, the same way there was no reason someone wouldn't go out of their way to eat a flavor of ice cream they weren't fond of.
Soon, the odd atmosphere was suddenly broken by Emperor Fawkes' laughter.
"It seems you've grown up well. You're still quite weak minded, but you shouldn't be very far from a breakthrough in that respect. You're only in need of a little push…"
Leonel's brows rose. What was any of that supposed to mean? He wasn't quite sure, if he was being honest.
Was he weak minded?
Well, he couldn't exactly be objective in answering this question. But, from an outsider's perspective, the answer was most definitely yes. Leonel had yet to truly mature yet and his reaction toward Shield Cross Stars coming after him in such a fashion only painted this truth clearer.
However, despite the fact he was practically blatantly insulted to his face, Leonel didn't have an adverse reaction.
Emperor Fawkes' gaze shifted to Aina, a light smile on his face. Despite the fact she had put her mask back on, she still felt as though she was being seen through completely. She couldn't help but shiver slightly, her grip on Leonel's hand tightening.
The action startled Leonel a bit. This wasn't because Aina used too much strength but rather because… he had almost completely forgotten she was by his side as though his grandfather had become his whole world.
The Emperor chuckled.
"There's no need to be nervous, little girl. Though I know about your family, I'm also aware that you want to see them destroyed just as much as I do. In such a case, why would I do something to a young lady my grandson has taken a fancy to?"
For some reason, despite the words of comfort, Aina's grip on Leonel's hand only tightened as though trying to remind him not to forget her again.
Emperor Fawkes turned his attention back toward Leonel.
"So, you've angered Shield Cross Stars?"
Leonel remained silent for a while, but in the end, he could only nod. That was the only explanation for what had just happened, right?
Emperor Fawkes chuckled.
"Shield Cross Stars does indeed have the capital to ignore the wishes of the Morales Clan to a certain extent. But, I'm afraid that they didn't enter this situation knowing they were facing a potential Heir. They are still treating you as a normal talent of Earth. However, they seem to believe that you've gained favor of a much larger entity. Unfortunately for them, this belief leaves many loopholes in their approach."
Leonel's gaze brightened slightly.
"It seems you understand already." Emperor Fawkes said with a light smile.
"Your strength isn't small." Leonel finally spoke.
"A grandfather hearing such words from his grandson should be grinning ear to ear, but why is it that I don't feel as happy as I should?"
Emperor Fawkes' teasing words were clearly aimed for Leonel. Though Leonel's words seemed to be praising him, they carried a hint of melancholy and a blaming tone.
But, how could they not?
The Emperor's words had an obvious hidden meaning to Leonel. He was saying that Shield Cross Stars was making use of their subordinates as scapegoats to deal with him. When it came down to it, they would just hand over the 'culprit' and wipe their hands clean.
But, by taking this approach, they had to veil their movements.
What did this meant? It could mean anything from only releasing information about Leonel to a small segment of the universe to strong arming a weak world like Earth into handing him over.
Clearly, the second option had failed, so they would very likely progress to the former, all to maintain the illusion that these were the actions of a rogue subordinate and nothing else.
However, the reason they had failed in their first attempt couldn't have been clearer.
The Fawkes Family was far more powerful than they had initially thought.
But, that truth left another elephant in the room.
Once again, Emperor Fawkes had so much strength at the tips of his fingers, but he was more than content with allowing those he could have protected to die one after another.
And this time, people Leonel once called friend were among them.