(Rodova Military Academy – VIP Room 3)
The moment Leo stepped through the polished double doors of VIP Room 3, he was immediately greeted by a flood of champagne, forced smiles, and polished shoes.
A group of well-dressed Horizon Dominion executives stood waiting, glasses raised, as their assistants unfurled a pristine white banner that read in bold silver letters — "Welcome to the Horizon Dominion Family."
It was a scene straight out of a corporate gala rather than a contract signing, as laughter filled the room, accompanied by a chorus of eager voices.
"Grandmaster Leo! Welcome! We've been waiting for you!"
"Young man, you've made the wisest decision of your life by signing with Horizon!"
"Well done, well done, Rodova's finest!"
Leo kept a blank expression, responding only with the occasional nod or brief word when prompted.
He navigated the crowd with practiced calm, yet inwardly, he was nothing short of uncomfortable. The shallow laughter, the constant stream of compliments, and the clinking of glasses felt foreign and suffocating, but he played his part without a hitch.
Within minutes, the assistants had him standing on a raised platform as they began taking his full-body measurements.
Tailors circled him like vultures, murmuring to each other while snapping notes on tablets, as they debated on what style to dress Leo in, to bring out his natural flair.
"Now, young man," one executive began as another swirled their champagne, "tell us about your preferred weapons. You're a dagger specialist from what we saw in your selection matches, yes?"
As Leo answered calmly. "Dual daggers. Around this length." He gestured with his hands.
"Weight-balanced for both melee and ranged throwing. The handle shouldn't be too grippy, or too slick — I throw them occasionally, so I need the option of a clean release, and a blade design that can travel in a straight line regardless of whether it's thrown straight, or with rotation–"
He explained, as he demonstrated the two different types of motion a dagger can undergo upon release, just to make sure that these amateurs understood what he was talking about.
And just as he expected, the executives exchanged impressed glances as if he'd just revealed some long-lost martial secret.
"Marvelous, marvelous! Quite the professional!"
"We will definitely relay your request to our consortium's TOP weaponsmith. You will find his work very commendable—"
"Joey? Did you note all that down… make sure you don't miss a word"
The executives said, as they smiled at Leo with their big eyes and fake smiles, which secretly gave Leo the ick.
"And your combat gear? We have some wonderful prototypes ready. Some with accented reds and yellows to make those sharp gray eyes of yours pop."
One of them suggested, as Leo instantly felt repulsed by the idea of being dressed in red and yellow.
"No. Black."
"I only wear black—" Leo declared, leaving no room for debate.
"Black?" One of them blinked in confusion.
"As an assassin, black suits me best." Leo doubled down, as although the Horizon company men did not seem too thrilled by his choice, they decided not to antagonise him over it anyways.
"Of course, of course! Subtlety is power! We'll make sure it's sleek, minimal, and perfect for your style!" They reassured, as another hour crawled by, filled with endless rounds of corporate chatter, shallow jokes, and self-praise disguised as conversation.
Leo maintained composure, answering questions when needed, giving technical preferences, and deflecting needless flattery without ever losing his detached calm.
Finally, after nearly two hours, one of the assistants brought out the official Horizon Dominion sponsorship contract for Leo to sign.
Without missing a beat, Leo read through every line with sharp focus, carefully comparing it to the version he had reviewed in Alric's office.
And only after he was satisfied that it was indeed untampered, did he sign it.
"I've signed the contract and filled in the details that I know of, but this section here I'm not sure of right now…," Leo said as he pointed towards the banking details section.
"I'm not sure what my account is, or if I even have one under my name–" Leo confessed, as the executive simply waved it off with a chuckle.
"No worries! We'll handle that ourselves. It's standard procedure to do a background pull and attach the correct account later. You just focus on shining for us at the circuits for now."
With that, the deal was sealed, and Leo officially became a Horizon Dominion sponsored fighter—though, in truth, the glitter never quite reached his eyes.
He felt happy to receive custom gear that would probably fit him slightly better than the Rodova Academy issued gear.
And also felt happy for the money that would help him with his life outside the academy, however, apart from that, Leo found the entire affair just tiring for now.
—-------
(Rodova Military Academy, The Mess Hall)
News about Leo receiving various sponsorship offers spread throughout the academy by afternoon, as somehow, the fact that various consortiums were waiting in line for a meeting with him were leaked in real time.
"Holy shit! Getting a private sponsorship offer from Horizon and that too as a first year? He's getting a better deal than even Yu Shen!"
"Mann, I'm so jealous. I wonder how it would feel to have countless beauties taking your measurements and flattering you with compliments as they design your fit and style—"
"Monarch Talent…. Handsome looks, and now a powerful sponsor? What doesn't this guy have?"
"God… if you're listening, please reincarnate me as Leo Skyshard in my next life. This guy has got it all!"
The students talked amongst each other, discussing Leo's sponsorship offer, as everyone felt excited for the same.
However, it wasn't until Leo walked into the mess hall that the entire place devolved into hooting and clapping, as surprisingly, him getting a sponsor seemed to elicit a bigger cheer from the Rodova crowd than him sealing his spot at the circuits.
"THERE HE IS… There is the new signee of Horizon!"
"Umm, Leo, Me and my friends wanted to congratulate you on your circuit team selection.
If you wanna visit our room tonight, the four of us will be waiting for you….. naked"
"Back off—, There's rumors he's dating the shorty Mu Ryan. Don't break the happy couple—"
"Oh he's not! Mu Ryan was caught giving a blow to Mu Shen a couple days ago, she's definitely not a couple with Su Yang or Leo as you guys make it to be"
Leo almost winced at all the clamor that erupted upon his arrival, as he gave the rowdy crowd a fake smile and a wave, before quickly filling his plate as he took his corner seat, where his familiar friends sat across from him.
"So…. Is it true?" Mu Shen was the first to ask with an excited look on his face, as Leo shrugged back in response.
"I signed with Horizon, yeah—" Leo said, as Mu Shen jumped over the table to give him a hug and a punch to his shoulders.
"You signed with Horizon? YOU SIGNED WITH HORIZON? Motherfucker, that's the dream for warriors like me, show some joy when you say it.
Show some emotion sometimes, you cold, autistic bastard!" Mu Shen said, as he shook Leo violently.
"Congratulations big brother!"
"Congratulations Skyshard, Horizon is not too bad. Not as good as my Crimson Phoenix, but not bad.
They suit your personality—"
Mu Ryan and Su Yang said, as Leo let out a small scoff.
"Thanks I guess—" he replied dryly, as unlike them, he did not think it was a big deal at all.
However, judging by how the conversation about sponsors dragged on throughout lunch, Leo realized that perhaps there was more to this than he was reading into for now.