Zeke and Leo arrived at a deserted hallway. Here, the yelling of the crowd was only a muted noise in the background. Leo looked around and stopped, content with the location. He turned and waited for Zeke to catch up. The other boy trailed a couple of steps behind him.
"So, why are you down here, Leo?" Zeke asked after joining his friend a moment later. "I mean, I most certainly have no problem with spending time with the common folk, but all your friends are up there. Not to mention, the smell down here is..."
Here, Zeke let his voice trail off. He didn't think it was necessary to add any explanation. Leo nodded with a grimace on his face.
"Yeah, it doesn't exactly smell of roses, does it?" Leo teased, "But I smelled worse growing up, believe me. Did I ever tell you about how I once got lost in the sewers?"
Zeke looked at Leo with a searching gaze. He felt like his friend was trying to avoid the topic. Instead of dancing around the subject, he asked Leo directly.
"Cut the crap, Leo. Are you going to tell me why you are down here or not?" Zeke asked.
Leo frowned. He had not expected Zeke to ignore his attempts at changing the subject so bluntly. With a sigh, he decided to be straightforward as well.
"Ok, ok, you win. I swear, you are like a blood wolf that has scented a trail - Impossible to get rid of. I am down here because I had a meeting with the patriarch of the Steiner and Feurkranz family earlier," Leo admitted.
Zeke had seen Leo talking to the two men with his own eyes, so he was not surprised by the admission.
"So? Are you down here hiding from them or what? I don't see any relation between this and that," he asked.
Leo smirked at the idea. He was picturing himself hiding from two of the most powerful men of the empire by sitting between two fat fishermen. However, his joyous expression returned to a somber one mere moments later.
"No, nothing like that," Leo explained. "They both asked me to join them in their private lounge, but I turned them down. Now I feel like it would be rude to accept someone else's invitation. Wouldn't that be rude? I am not well-versed in noble etiquette. Even so, I am pretty certain that would be considered an insult to their honor or something like that.
As Zeke thought about it, he had to agree with Leo's assessment. He didn't know much about the Steiner Patriarch, but Richard Feuerkranz seemed to him like a proud man. The Feuerkranz patriarch would not have been happy to be turned down. If he saw Leo accepting the invitation from somebody else now, that would only add insult to injury.
"Why did you turn them down then?" Zeke asked.
"It's because I have no intention to join either of their families. If I had agreed, that would show them that I was open to the idea at least." Leo responded.
"But you aren't?" Zeke asked, incredulous.
Who else was Leo going to join if not the two great families associated with his own affinities? Hadn't he stated to Jorgel that he had already made his choice?
Leo shook his head and replied, "No, I'm not. If you asked me, the Great families are all the same. Do you think I would want to be one of their henchmen? A disposable tool for them to use and discard as they please?"
Zeke had not known that Leo had such strong opinions about nobles. Still, there were not many options open to a commoner like him.
"What are you going to do then, wait for a saint to come along and adopt you?" Zeke asked with a teasing grin.
"Well, it worked for you, didn't it?" Leo shot right back.
Zeke was taken aback by this reply. He had merely been jesting earlier, but Leo seemed serious about this. Zeke didn't think that this was a good strategy for his friend. Over time, the two great families would just ramp up the pressure. On top of that, it was also unlikely for a savior to appear for Leo. The reason for Maximilian's initial interest had been because of Zeke's tri-affinities. The two would never have met otherwise.
"You shouldn't bet all your cards on the off chance that a mysterious stranger comes along," Zeke said hesitantly. He felt like a hypocrite. This was after all exactly what had happened to him.
"Doesn't sound as convincing coming from you, does it?" Leo teased with a grin. "But don't worry, that was never my plan. I wasn't lying when I said that I have already decided in my heart."
"That's a relief." Zeke said, "I was afraid you would just sit around and wait for your own 'Maximilian' to come along. So, who are you going to join?"
Leo's grin faltered slightly and he looked down. He didn't answer the question right away and seemed to contemplate something instead. Zeke didn't want to interrupt and waited. For some reason, he had the feeling that he had said something that upset his friend.
"You know that I grew up in an orphanage, right?" he asked finally.
Zeke merely nodded. He had heard a little about Leo's background before. However, his friend had not gone into any more detail before. He was curious as to why he would bring that up now.
"I lost both my parents before I even turned 6 years old. I don't remember everything anymore, but I can still recall that my father was a soldier. He was not one of the elite Mage troops that are deployed at the border, but a regular foot soldier. He had been recruited as a boy, probably around our age.
"For over ten years, he served at the western front. He didn't earn a lot of money, but it was enough for me and my mother to live a decent life in the capital. From what my mother told me, he had always wanted to work as a crafter. But he just didn't have enough money saved up for him to stop working as a soldier."
Leo paused in his story, merely staring ahead into the darkness of the hallway. Zeke was content to give his friend a moment. Now that Leo had finally decided to open up about such a sensitive topic, he didn't want to push. A few moments passed in silence. Zeke could hear the people's cheers increase in volume. It seemed like a winner had emerged in the arena. The cheering seemed to get louder and louder in the silence that had descended.
It took a while before he could make out the people's screams with any clarity. He was soon able to make out one single word among the deluge of cries: 'Steiner'. Zeke smiled, his prediction had been right once again. With this, he had finally gotten his full 10,000 gold.
It took around a minute, but Leo finally snapped out of whatever thoughts he had, a frown on his face. Upon noticing that Zeke was still waiting, he gave his friend an apologetic smile and continued his story.
"My father would always return in the same way, you know. He would enter our home with a smile on his face. I still remember it like it was yesterday. One of the few memories that have not faded with time. He would strut through the front door with his chest puffed out and always say the same thing. 'Guess who's home!?' was what he used to yell. I don't know how, but he always managed to leave the horrors of war behind. Whenever he was home, it was as if he had never left." There was a gentle smile on his face as he talked about his family.
"But one day, he did not come back anymore," Leo said, his voice turning somber. "Instead, we were visited by two men in uniform. They dropped off my father's outstanding salary for the month and left. And that was it. Over ten years of service, spilling sweat and blood for the glory of the empire, and that was it? No kind words for his widow? No piece of gold to tide us over? Just nothing?"
Leo had gotten enraged at his own words and was pacing up and down in front of Zeke, punching the air in impotent anger.
"What was mom supposed to do? I was only five at the time, and my mother had left her hometown to be with my father. We didn't even have the money to return to the village she hailed from. What was she supposed to do?" Leo asked the question a second time as he whirled around to face Zeke as if expecting an answer. But an instant later, he responded to his own question as he started pacing again.
"I'll tell you what she did. She worked herself to the bone, is what she did," he said. "I don't remember much anymore, but what I do remember is how useless I felt at the time. I could do nothing but watch as the person who I loved most worked herself to death."
He stopped his pacing and looked at Zeke. In his emotional state, he wanted to say something but caught himself at the last moment. Instead, Leo sat on the ground, his face buried in his hands.
Zeke had not expected the conversation to go in this direction at all. He had just wanted to know what noble house Leo was going to join. But for some reason, Leo had decided to talk about his past instead. Zeke was sure that his friend had a good reason for that. He didn't want to rush him, but he had a feeling that it was important for Leo to finish telling his story.
"It didn't end well, did it?" Zeke asked with a calm but inquisitive tone. Leo glared up at him but softened his gaze immediately after. With a sigh, he continued his story.
"No, it did not," he said. "You see, my mother had two or maybe even three jobs at the time. One of them was as a part-time maid in some noble's mansion. It was the best paying of all her jobs and she didn't want to lose it, but something was clearly wrong. I often found her crying after she'd come home from work. Of course, she never told me the reason, but I eventually managed to piece it together."
Leo splayed his arms and struck a pose for Zeke. He was showing off his well-defined muscles and his chiseled jawline. He looked like an arrogant young aristocrat in the way he looked down his nose at Zeke.
"You can probably tell by looking at me, but both of my parents were quite good-looking. My mother especially was far more beautiful than a commoner had any right to be." Leo said in a sarcastic manner.
Zeke, however, could see through the bravado. What he glimpsed behind the facade was deep-rooted helplessness and self-loathing. Zeke stared back into Leo's eyes. Instead of the judgment or scorn his friend had wanted to provoke with his flippant attitude, he only had sympathy and understanding in his gaze.
After a moment, Leo averted his eyes and stayed silent. It took him a while to bring his emotions under control. With a deep inhalation of air, he continued where he had left off.
"One day, my mother decided to quit. She didn't tell me the reason, but I had not seen her this happy in a long time, so I didn't care to ask either. She was going to inform her employer the next day," Leo explained. Here, he paused, letting the silence build for a moment. He met Zeke's eyes again before continuing.
"This time the two men who visited the house were even worse. They claimed that my mother had tried to rob the lord of the mansion. She was killed in her attempt to flee, apparently. Never, in my entire life, will I forget how they tossed her body onto the floor like a piece of trash."
A heavy silence descended upon the two after the tale ended. Zeke didn't know what he was supposed to say. Never had he experienced something that came even close to Leo's story.
"Do you know the worst part?" Leo asked. His eyes had gotten red during his retelling. He was clearly struggling to hold back tears.
"What's the worst part?" Zeke asked. He didn't really want to know. This story was depressing enough as it was. But even the slight chance of lessening Leo's trauma was reason enough to indulge his friend.
"The man was not even a Feuerkranz, Steiner, Wellenrufer, or Windtänzer. He was just some nobody from a nobody family. But no matter who I told, how much I begged, nobody would do anything about this. They all acted as if nothing had happened. After all, who would stand up against a Mage, just because some commoner kid lost his mother?" He asked sarcastically.
"But what about now?" he asked in a mocking tone. "Nowadays, two patriarchs come looking for me personally. Nowadays, they are talking about benefits. Nowadays, they are suddenly very interested in what I have to say. I can't even go take a fucking piss without a member of the great families trying to recruit me!"
"But where were they when I needed them?" he asked. "Where were they when I screamed my throat hoarse at the injustice they let happen? Let me tell you where they were: nowhere! They were nowhere to be found! Not a single fucking Feuerkranz or Steiner was anywhere to be found back then! I would have sold my soul just so they would hear me out..."
Zeke put a hand on his friend's shoulder as Leo slumped to the ground. The emotional rollercoaster seemed to have drained Leo of his strength. Zeke didn't know how to comfort his friend in this situation, but he felt like he had to say something. When Zeke had been at his lowest, it had been Maximilian and Viola that had pulled him back.
The cheerful Wind Mage always managed to cheer him up when he was feeling down. What would Viola do in this situation? After a moment of silence, he decided to try for a bit of levity.
"So... is that a yes or no on the Feuerkranz family?" he asked with a fake inquisitive tone. "You didn't make that clear enough yet."
Despite everything, Leo snorted at the terrible joke. He looked up at Zeke with disbelieving eyes before they both broke out into muted chuckles.
After a moment, Zeke asked, "So, what are you going to do? After that story, I can't see you joining the nobles any time soon."
Leo's mood had improved considerably already. Slowly, he began to talk, "You see, the thing is... There is something I wanted to ask of you... I would understand if you were to turn me down... I mean, there isn't really anything in it for you, so I would completely understand if you were..."
"Enough! Are you going to ask, or are you trying to talk me to death?" Zeke interrupted, getting annoyed. "Leo, I consider you a friend, and if you feel the same, then for the love of the arcane, will you spit it out already?"
Leo looked a little embarrassed at Zeke's words. This was such a sharp contrast to his earlier demeanor that Zeke couldn't help but smile. Now more than ever, he marveled at the level of innocence Leo had managed to preserve. After being dealt such a hand, not many would be able to still remain so positive and upright as his friend had.
"Ok, I will. But for you to understand my request, I'll need to tell you what happened after my mother died. Is that ok?" he asked.
Zeke nodded. His gut feeling told him that he would soon learn the reason why Leo had decided to share his tale.
"Even during my time at the orphanage, I did never give up on bringing my mother's murderer to justice. I managed to convince an old woman working there to teach me how to write. After that, I would write letters to every noble house in the capital. I never got a response, but still, I didn't stop. I was convinced that there had to be at least one noble house in the capital that still believed in justice. That at least a single person would do the right thing, you know?"
"After a year, I was about to give up. I had spent every scrap of money I could earn, steal or borrow on paper and ink. At that time I had completely lost all faith in the nobles of the empire. But then it happened..." Leo exclaimed. He rummaged through his bag and took out a wooden case. He seemed to treat the wooden container as if it was the most precious treasure in the entire world.
"I actually wanted to show this to you after the tournament, but I guess now is as good a time as any," he said as he handed it to Zeke.
Zeke opened the box with care. There was nothing inside but a sheet of paper and a single gold coin. His eyes focused on the piece of parchment. It was thick and well-crafted. He took it out of the case and studied the elegant strokes. He immediately recognized the handwriting of the letter. With a slight hitch to his voice, he began to read the letter out loud.
My dearest Leonard,
It is with deep regret that I learned of the grievous loss you have suffered and the injustice that has befallen you. I have taken it upon myself to investigate the matter you raised in your letter concerning Oliver Liebknecht.
Upon delving into the matter further. It has come to my attention that your mother was not the first nor the last unfortunate victim of this man's heinous crimes. I have uncovered that a total of 8 women had met their untimely demise due to his unbridled desires.
My heart aches for you, and I offer my sincerest condolences for the loss you have suffered. I hope it will bring you some comfort to know that your letter has prevented any further harm to innocent women at the hands of this criminal.
I give you my solemn word as a nobleman that justice will be served. He will not live to see another daybreak, on this you have my word. I will take care of this matter... personally.
May fate bless you and guide you through these trying times.
PS: It is not much, but I have added some money in the hopes that it will prove useful in reaching your dreams.
Zeke could feel a lump forming in his throat as he got to the last line of the letter.
"Sincerely, Maximilian Bombastus von Hohenheim." he finished.
Leo nodded, with a somber expression on his face. They both remained silent for a moment, each lost in their thoughts.
"Now, let me make my request," Leo finally said. "I want you to help me to get adopted by Maximilian. Will you help me?"