45 – 45. Leon
Leon Loaderdale, a second-year student in the Academy’s fencing department.
Although he missed the opportunity to raise his reputation by defeating the villain (me) who was selling op*ium wine to the students, and missed the opportunity to attract attention from the nobles while having a relationship with the third princess… Still, Leon was the most famous student in the academy.
During his freshman year, he had even received recommendations from professors to drop out, but the turning point for him came shortly after entering his second year.
He single-handedly apprehended a devil worshiper who had infiltrated the entrance ceremony venue, casually dismissing his exploits as a mere coincidence, and engaging in a dispute with the top student of his grade, easily coming out on top.
Originally, the next episode was the op*ium wine incident, but I messed that one up.
However, I wanted to leave the resolution of the conflict with the elves to Leon.
“It’s not a bad thing for him.”
In the original work, Leon begins his journey after visiting the Great Forest.
Thanks to him, the elven conspiracy of the Woodriss family, who tried to interfere with the saint’s mediation attempt, was crushed, and he heroically subdued the aggressive elf warriors rushing in. Without his exploits, a war might really have broken out.
The reward for his actions was quite generous.
“Leon Loaderdale. If it weren’t for you, a war would have erupted in the realm of Mother Tree. You might not have been defeated by the inferior races, but preventing the devastation of the forest would have been difficult. Thanks to your contribution, we could avoid the disaster. …As the saint requested, I will actively participate in peace negotiations with the empire.”
Impressed by Leon’s actions, the elves, despite their pride, bowed down and entered into negotiations with the empire.
“Leon Kyeong. Ah, not Kyeong? hahahaha! It will be soon. The proposal for the awarding of a medal of merit is already under discussion by the 3rd Princess. It’s the highest honor that can be received in civilian status. …Not only that, you will also be granted a title. Since you stopped the war with the saint, isn’t it a reward that is not enough?”
The empire, which had successfully negotiated with the elves on favorable terms thanks to Leon, rewarded him with medals and titles.
Even though Anais had left for the monastery this time, wouldn’t it be a good thing for Leon as well? After all, he’s not the only woman in the world.
There is also a candidate for the main couple narrative leading a triangular relationship with Anais… Or maybe he can just find a good woman and meet her. After all, once he succeeds, female students will naturally flock to him.
“It’s right for Leon to go to the Great Forest.”
Since there is no guarantee that he will go on his own, I decided to keep a close eye on it.
Attempting to gather information about people is not difficult. Or I could call the professors of the swordsmanship department and inquire about Leon.
But the method I chose was to visit the academy in person.
Confirming things in person is the most reliable.
If it seems like Leon isn’t following the original plot, I had the thought of subtly manipulating the situation to push him forward.
If he doesn’t step up, eventually I’ll have to get involved. It’s predictable what kind of situation will unfold if that happens.
I wanted to avoid that if possible.
…
Two days later, I headed to the academy.
The pretext for the visit was that I wanted to personally sponsor Leon Loaderdale.
Sponsoring a student wasn’t a common occurrence, but it wasn’t impossible either.
Considering that Leon was already a renowned genius, I decided to offer a generous amount. Money wouldn’t be an issue as long as I could get him to follow the saint and go to the Grand Forest. After all, I could easily earn the money by selling potions.
**
Your acting is truly beautiful. Fluffy, curly, and it feels like it would be soft to touch.
But why are you so beautiful?
Why? There must be a reason, right?
No answer?
…
Leon’s expression subtly twisted as he enjoyed the smoke that filled the dorm room. He lowered his hand, which had been reaching out to touch the smoke.
“Are you ignoring my words…?”
Originally, Leon was a gentle person overflowing with consideration for others. It wasn’t self-praise, but a fact.
Even the trash that had subtly ignored him last year would have been forgiven after being beaten up a few times in the training grounds.
He didn’t even lay a hand on the swindlers from the Department of Magic who shamelessly extorted 550 talers per bottle of health potion (the price had skyrocketed a few days ago).
I don’t know about the former, but the latter was a real scoundrel. Still, I just paid them without touching them because I had money left over from the nobles’ sponsorship in the first semester.
But there was no forgiveness for a friend who talked too much.
Once or twice might be considered a mistake, but from the third time onwards, it was blatant disregard. Just doing it without reason? Maybe if it were just that, they would have laughed it off, but outright lying was a bit too much.
The closer the friend, the more one should be courteous.
“Yeah. Let’s have a talk.”
Leon, who had been lying down, tried to get up to show his determination.
…But he gave up because it was too bothersome.
He tried to at least sit up, but unfortunately, that too was too much trouble.
The only consolation was that he still had the will to turn his body to the side. Leon succeeded in turning over and lying down again, like a dying trout. Even though it was just turning his body, there was a considerable sense of accomplishment.
He originally intended to face his friend seriously and say something, but his mood improved, so he decided to let it go.
“Yeah. You can talk sh*t too.”
Perhaps sensing Leon’s gaze, unlike Leon, who was spread out on the bed, his friend Rudy, who had been sprawled out on the floor, slowly turned to look this way.
The sight of friends whose hearts were connected, smiling with raised corners of their mouths. Leon also smiled, and Rudy smiled even more brightly.
“op*ium, huh? Not bad, huh?”
Rudy’s question, Leon couldn’t deny it, so he nodded his head.
“Yeah… It’s good.”
Leon sighed and looked at the peculiarly shaped stove placed in the middle of the dorm room. He didn’t know the principle, but it was a tool constantly emitting op*ium smoke. A device that allowed one to enjoy op*ium comfortably without a pipe.
However, just inhaling the smoke was not enough; every hour, one had to drink a rum made from palm trees to fully feel the effects.
“Leon, only half a sip of alcohol…! Got it? If you drink more, it dulls the senses.”
“Yeah. Got it.”
“If you do it like this, it’s not much different from syrup… No, right…?”
Than syrup?
Well, I couldn’t agree with that at all.
Leon had started smoking op*ium at the suggestion of his friend Rudy since this morning. He had skipped meals and was languishing in the smoke for nine hours straight. Occasionally, he would eat.
There was nothing special about the reason for seeking op*ium.
It was just that health syrup was too rare and expensive.
Originally, a few third-year students of the Department of Magic would secure a supply and sell it to students, but since it became prohibited, the prices had skyrocketed. Although there were still 15 bottles left from the stash they had hoarded… it felt uncomfortable every time he consumed it.
Too wasteful.
He didn’t know how to cope when it ran out completely.
When he was feeling overwhelmed and sighing, Rudy taught him the method of op*ium and rum. He said that this way, one could become happy at a lower cost.
“…But it’s still different from health syrup.”
Leon’s mutterings. Rudy, unable to refute him, let out a damp sigh. Even though he said that, syrup was probably better after all.
“Leon’s right. …Syrup is better.”
“Syrup, the best!”
“Syrup, the best.”
Finally, they obtained Rudy’s acquiescence, but it only made Leon more melancholic.
The bleak reality of the difficulty in obtaining health syrup remained unchanged.
That’s why the efficacy of health syrup was missed even more.
When consumed with about nine spoons mixed in water, a drowsiness and dizziness would come together, which was just perfect.
From Noble mtl dot com
Being intoxicated with that feeling, after swinging a knife like crazy for about two hours in the middle of the night, the mood would improve even more. The feeling of the heart pounding as if it would burst and the spine tingling…! Just imagining that it couldn’t be experienced again was heartbreaking.
“Could I soon be unable to eat?”
There is nothing in the world that should not be attempted, so there must be some way.
But I was worried that the moment of finding it would be too late.
Whether it was securing a substitute for the syrup or wiping out what little syrup remained, if I didn’t come up with an alternative, all that awaited me was a dark future. A life without syrup. I couldn’t bear it with just a little op*ium.
“I need to find a solution quickly. Now is not the time to be doing this.”
Leon sighed deeply and suddenly took a sip of alcohol.
While the syrup was important, preventing a decrease in the number of doses was also a serious matter. But perhaps because of the longing for the syrup, the pleasure of op*ium and rum began to decline rapidly. It was somewhat trivial.
In any case, it was better than doing nothing, so Leon lay down absentmindedly and stared into empty space.
Even while lying still, he prayed for a solution to come on its own.
But there was someone who disturbed that desperate prayer.
Bang bang!
“Leon Loaderdale! Are you in your room right now?”
It was the voice of the assistant professor of swordsmanship.
“Just when I was already upset… Ah, did the professor send them because I missed class?”
Leon had skipped all of today’s classes and only smoked op*ium.
It was something that didn’t happen when he was only taking health syrup. On the contrary, he was so energetic that there were times when he would challenge the professor to a sparring match after class and completely defeat him.
Skipping class was definitely wrong. But it wasn’t such a big mistake to warrant them coming here like this. Besides, he was stronger than the professor, so there was nothing he needed to learn.
“Just ignore it.”
They’ll eventually go away.
After making up his mind like this, he heard a familiar sound.
“…Leon. Someone wishes to sponsor you with cash. It’s Alan Kyeong from the Royal Guard. He mentions an amount of 50,000 dollars. However, he wants to have a brief meeting with you before deciding on the sponsorship.”
50,000 dollars?
In his loosely relaxed eyes, the glint of determination began to return gradually. 50,000 dollars meant a substantial sum that could secure a large quantity of the rare syrup. With that money alone, satisfying his cravings with op*ium would be within reach.
‘Thank the heavens. Much appreciated.’
Finally, in that moment when a beam of light shone through,
Leon felt his chest swell with emotion as he retrieved the carefully saved syrup.
In the meeting with the sponsor, he intended to borrow the power of the syrup to present himself as sharp-witted, even if just a little.