Leona flinched.
It was subtle—barely there—but I caught it.
I frowned.
"You say that like it’s a complint," I muttered. "But it sounds more like a threat."
Leo didn’t deny it. He just looked at calmly and said,
"I’m stating facts. I’m building a team. And Rin’s part of it."
"And like I said," Leona cut in, sharper than before, "Rin isn’t so kind of object that belongs to you."
Leo’s gaze flicked to her, and he narrowed his eyes in clear annoyance.
"I never said he was. I’m just stating that he’ll be joining my club. That’s all."
"Stating facts, huh?" Leona scoffed. "It sounds more like a command to ."
Leo tilted his head slightly. "What?"
"Isn’t it obvious? You want Rin to follow you around like the rest of your minions. Your little entourage who never speaks unless you do."
That was when the air around Leo shifted.
The warmth—or what little was left of it—completely vanished. He looked the way the novel described him: cold, distant, and terrifyingly poised. The kind of person who didn’t need to raise his voice to scare the hell out of you.
anwhile, I couldn’t help but sigh.
The thing was... Leo’s approach always got misunderstood.
Since the first day at Velcrest Academy, he’d made it clear—he wanted on his team. He saw value in . That was his way of acknowledging soone.
But the way he spoke... his tone, his word choice—it always ca off wrong.
Even now, Leona clearly thought he was being forceful. Controlling.
She hated bullies.
And as for Leo... he didn’t get mad because Leona disagreed with him. No.
He went cold the mont she implied that the people around him were nothing more than lapdogs. Followers with no minds of their own.
That hit a nerve.
"Insulting random trash is one thing," Leo said, his voice low and steady, "but calling my companions ’minions’? That, I won’t tolerate. Apologize."
Leona didn’t budge. "What if I don’t want to?"
"Then I’ll have to force you. It won’t an much... but I will."
"Are you capable?"
Leo’s eyes narrowed a fraction. "Want to find out?"
The tension cracked through the air like lightning. Everyone around us stiffened.
That’s when Ryen stepped in.
"Okay, okay, let’s just stop," he said, holding his hands up between them. "Co on, guys. It’s Rin’s decision. No point in tearing each other apart over it."
He turned to Leona first.
"Leon, you know as well as I do—students can join multiple clubs. It’s not a big deal."
Then he glanced at Leo. "And Leo isn’t the kind of guy who forces people. You might not like the way he talks, but he’s not a tyrant."
Leona huffed but looked away, arms crossed.
Leo didn’t say anything, but he relaxed slightly, the storm in his eyes fading.
I stayed quiet. Honestly, this whole exchange made want to evaporate into the wall. Why were people fighting over ?
Still... it was Ryen who defused it.
Just like in the original story.
Ryen always had that ability.
He wasn’t loud or flashy. He didn’t bark orders or intimidate people into submission. But when he spoke, people listened—not out of fear, but because he made sense.
Even now, his voice hadn’t risen above a casual murmur, and yet the tension in the air thinned just enough to breathe again.
Leo straightened, smoothing the front of his uniform like the last few minutes hadn’t happened. He gave Ryen a nod, brief but respectful.
"I’m not trying to start a fight," he said finally, his voice asured again. "I just don’t tolerate disrespect toward my team. That’s all."
Leona didn’t answer, but I saw her jaw shift, clenched tight behind her crossed arms.
She wasn’t the kind of person to back down, especially when she thought she was defending soone. I knew that about her.
Still, she must’ve realized sothing too—Ryen’s intervention wasn’t about taking sides. It was about reminding them both that this wasn’t a battlefield.
It was just school. Well, not exactly normal school—but school nonetheless.
After a heavy silence settled between them, Leona finally couldn’t stand it anymore. She shot Leo a sharp glare and muttered through clenched teeth,
"I apologize. Guess I went too far."
The words ca out stiff and reluctant, like swallowing sothing bitter. You could tell it wasn’t easy for her to say.
Leo gave a slow nod, barely acknowledging her.
"Hmm. I’ll accept it this ti. But don’t expect a next one."
His tone was cold and confident—almost arrogant—and Leona’s glare deepened, eyes flashing with unspoken defiance.
I let out a tired sigh, feeling the weight of the whole situation pressing down. At least they weren’t about to start swinging swords at each other. That was a small win.
In the original story, Leona had challenged Leo in a duel in a mont like this, with Ryen stepping in to stop it. She lost, badly. Then Ryen had scolded Leo for going too far.l and even challenged him for duel himself.
But just when I thought this was the end of it, Leo wasn’t done.
He looked at Leona with that sharp, calculating gaze, voice calm but cutting:
"Leon Harper. You would’ve been a pri candidate for my team—if you were a little less... emotional. Since I’m respecting your skills, here’s so advice: learn to control your emotions. Especially when you’re facing soone stronger than you."
Leona’s eyes widened, then narrowed fiercely.
"...What?"
Typical Leo—acting all polite and respectful, but still managing to rub salt in the wound.
Leona was proud of her swordsmanship. She wasn’t about to let so fellow student—especially not one who wasn’t even a professor—call her weak like that.
"You...!" she snapped, stepping forward, fingers tightening around her sword hilt.
I held my breath, wondering if this was going to blow up again.
Her hand twitched toward her sword, fingers curling tighter around the hilt as if daring Leo to push her further.
----
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