C 131: Iona O’valley
Leo didn’t intervene because he was worried about the girl in front of him, it was rather the opposite.
“How did you know?”
“How can you not know when you are showing it openly? Of course, the idiots just now didn’t even know the blade was near their necks.”
“I didn’t mean to kill them. I was just going to set an example.”
“Oh, really? So you meant to kill at least half?”
“……So, what are you going to do now?”
Leo frowned at Iona’s wary question. She did not seem to realize it, but before she knew it, her golden pupils were vertically divided, like a beast.
“Hey, don’t stare at me like that. Do you think I was trying to blackmail you?”
“Weren’t you?”
“No, I wasn’t.”
“Then why did you stop me?”
“I shouldn’t say anything but if you are going to do it, at least don’t do it in public in broad daylight.”
“…….”
Iona’s eyes returned back to normal. She looked at the little boy, who spoke with annoyance before her, with a questioning stare.
Leo was furious at the gaze.
“What?”
“Aren’t you scared of me?”
Leo suddenly wondered what it was, but immediately understood why she asked this question.
“Did you think I’d discriminate against you because you’re a Suin?”
“Most people here hate me or are scared of me.”
“That’s because they don’t know anything.”
Leo answered grumblingly. He wasn’t like that originally, but after hanging out with Aidan, his personality changed.
“Fear comes from ignorance. On the contrary, if you know something, you don’t have to be afraid of it. You said your name was Iona O’valley, right?”
“Yes.”
“You’re a Suin but have a surname so you must be from a very powerful family. Considering that the average Suin is hostile to humans, your coming here is probably not the will of the whole tribe.”
“Right.”
“Nevertheless, coming to Theon…….”
Iona listened to Leo in silence. There was even a feeble expectation to what the little boy was saying.
“You’re here to learn about humans and about the wider world, aren’t you?”
“…….”
Iona was silent at Leo’s words because everything he said was correct.
“Right, how the hell did you know?”
“Well, that’s easy to understand. I’ve heard how the Suins live.”
“It’s amazing. Ordinary people think of us as barbarians.”
“That’s because there’s still less information about ethnic groups. Now a racial discrimination law is about to be implemented, but the dirty aristocrats are desperately trying to prevent it.”
Leo’s tongue twitched as if his teeth were grinding just by thinking of the nobles. For him, who loathed the nobles, it was natural to stand against racial discrimination, which the nobles hated the most.
“So, don’t get me wrong because I only helped you because I don’t like them.”
“Pequina Solda, you are a good person.”
“What?”
“You are a good man…….”
“No, not that. What one said before, Pequina, what does that mean?”
“Pequina Solda. It’s our tribal language. In your words, it means little brave warrior.”
“What?”
A vein popped on Leo’s forehead at Iona’s honest words. She only complimented purely, but what she said touched Leo’s heart.
“Hey, I’m warning you, don’t say that I’m small or something.”
“Why?”
“Because.”
Are you asking because you really don’t know that? Leo tried to say, “Look at me.” There is nothing more miserable than to explain it with your own mouth.
Leo was always shorter than children his age due to the lack of proper nutrients from an early age. Born to be small and unable to eat much, he had no choice but to have a small body, which was nothing short of Leo’s complex.
“Are you saying that even after seeing my condition?”
“Ah.”
Iona also noticed the meaning of Leo’s words.
“I do not understand. Why are you so obsessed with such trivial things?”
“It’s trivial?”
Leo laughed at the remark.
“That’s because you’re a Suin. Suin people are naturally tall and have superior physical abilities. Do you even know how small people feel?”
“It doesn’t matter if you’re short or tall. It’s the strength of the heart that counts”
The strength of the heart. What kind of fairy tale are you talking about? Leo stared at Iona with suspicious eyes, but her expression was more serious than before. Those unshakable eyes were telling him that Iona was serious now.
“Pequina Solda, you just helped me even though it was a dangerous situation where I could’ve fought other students.”
“If I would’ve left it alone, something worse would have happened. Besides, it was just because I hated them.”
“If you were a really bad person, you would have left me alone. Rather, you could have encouraged me to harm the nobles.”
“…….”
Each word of Iona penetrated Leo’s heart. Leo felt something ticklish on his skin. It seemed unpleasant but somehow pleasant, which was quite a familiar sensation. Yes, it was similar to the sense he had often felt since he was close to Aidan, that idiot who’s uselessly nice and nosy.
“So you don’t have to worry too much about being small.”
“……OK.”
Leo sighed while getting angry at Iona, who immediately closed her mouth when he said it was okay.
“Just call me Leo.”
“What?”
“I mean my name. I’m not Pequina Solda. If you are going to call me in the future, please call me by my name.”
“From now on?”
“All right, all right. Anyway, I’m done with my business, so I’ll go.”
Leo tried to leave, waving his hands moderately. He thought he’d feel weird if he was with her for no reason.
Doesn’t it matter if you’re short? What’s important is the strength of your heart? He laughed at the words, but ironically, they were the words that most penetrated Leo’s essence and comforted him.
The fact that she was comforted by the manly girl who came alone to a faraway country touched Leo’s long-hurt pride.
‘She doesn’t seem to care about that.’
He didn’t intend to pretend to know much after anyway, so he just pretended he didn’t.
Leo’s footsteps, which were moving with that intention, recognized who was approaching from a distance and stopped at the welcome cry.
“Oh! Leo! You’re here!”
Aidan was approaching him with a smile like a big dog and Next to Aidan was Tessie with a coy expression.
“Aidan.”
“I’m on my way back from receiving the framework with Tessie. Oh, of course not me, Tessie. But when I heard that you received it first, I thought you might be nearby, so I followed you right away…….”
While speaking, Aidan found Iona standing behind Leo.
“Oh, come to think of it, your name is……Iona?”
“It’s Iona O’valley.”
“Oh, I see. Nice to meet you, Iona.”
“Hey, Aidan, what are you doing?”
“Huh? She’s a friend who listens to the same lecture.”
Leo’s face twisted at the word “friend.”
“What do you mean friends? We’re just classmates.”
“Isn’t that a friend?”
“What do you mean….?”
“Ah! Do you want to come with us if you don’t mind? We’re supposed to have lunch together. Since we’re eating together, it’s better, right?”
He already knew that Aidan was nosy but Leo didn’t expect he would say something like that.
Leo looked back at Iona with a slightly uneasy look.
“Well, wait a minute, Aidan. You want her to go with us? That’s not right, is it?”
Tracy also tried to dissuade Aidan.
“Huh? Why?”
“It’s just that it’s kind of weird to eat all of a sudden with someone you’re not close to…….”
At Aidan’s innocent face, Tracy shoved the words into her throat. It wasn’t because she was scared or hated the Suin people. It was just that she didn’t want Aidan to naturally encourage another girl to eat with him.
“Wait. Why don’t you like me?”’
When Tracy, who didn’t understand why he was annoyed, was torn, Aidan waited for Iona’s answer.
Iona nodded to Aidan’s suggestion.
“Good.”
“Really? That’s a relief! Let’s go together! It will definitely be more fun if there are many people.”
“Oh!”
“This.”
Tracy and Leo, who couldn’t find the right time to stop Aidan, exclaimed with regret. But it was already spilled water.
This was the moment when a new member was added to the usual three musketeers.
* * *
Elisa Willow was constantly busy processing the paperwork that filled the president’s office. The documents floating around with mana circled around Elisa and her golden eyes moved quickly and scanned the passing documents at once.
Several pens emerged and signed the documents. Normally, she would have done it with ease, but the amount of documents that she has received has more than tripled recently, so if she doesn’t do this, the work will not be finished.
The morning work ended only when the floating documents piled up one by one and approached the high ceiling of the president’s office.
“Whew!”
Elisa stretched out her arms vigorously and Wilford, who had been waiting calmly, approached.
“Are you done with your work?”
“Not yet. I’ve only done half of it but I’m going to rest a little now.”
“You’re going through a lot.”
“I’ve prepared myself to be in the position of president. But I can’t deny that it’s been particularly difficult because of recent events.”
Elisha grumbled but grabbed some of the papers she had set aside and waved them.
“I’m telling you, I don’t know why they’re asking for help with a case they have to deal with.”
It was a direct request from the city of Leathervelk to Theon.
“Is the situation that serious?”
“It’s certainly a big deal that the Beast of Gévaudan has appeared, but that doesn’t mean they should just ask for help. Not just students, but graduates and teachers with whom they have connections.”
Elisa let out an irritating sigh and wrinkled her forehead.
“That’s a little too much. It seems they’re in a hurry.”
“How can they be lazy when such an incident occurred. Even so they have crossed the line.”
The atmosphere in Leathervelk was quite chaotic after the Beast of Gévaudan appeared. Citizens were afraid that the Blood Nightmare would suddenly come back, and as a result, the vitality of the city itself was bound to decrease.
“But isn’t it better now?”
“Hopefully, I didn’t know that they would have the support of the Bretus Kingdom.”
After calling for help from the capital, a group appeared in Leathervelk. The people who wore white uniforms were not from the Exilion Empire, but from an island country far away.
The Holy Knights of Bretus.
With white and warm energy, they immediately roamed the city, reassuring and invigorating the citizens.
“Isn’t that a relief?”
“It will be fine for now. But the problem is The Bretus Kingdom has started moving.”
“That’s true.”
The image of Bretus would usually be reverent and beautiful, but in reality, it was not. Bretus was an outdated nation and their true self emphasizes a doctrine and makes people reluctant because of excessive fanaticism.
Therefore, the first emotion she felt when she heard that the Bretus Holy Land supported Leathervelk was anxiety, not relief.
“If the atmosphere in the city is bad, we will be affected, too. No matter how much Theon is recognized as a separate administrative district, it can’t be completely separated from Leathervelk.”
“The students and the employees were quite upset, too. That’s why the paperwork has increased a lot.”
“Yeah, we’ve got a lot of work to do at once.”
“Well, then, since you’re taking a break, would you like to see this?”
“What’s that?”
Elisa looked at the paper Wilford handed her, and her eyes stood out.
“Oh, this is Rudger’s class material”
“Yes.”
“Thank you for taking care of me, Wilford.”
Elisa smiled and checked Rudger’s class materials handed over by Wilford.
Recently, Elisa has a hobby to relieve work stress and relax and that hobby was to directly check Rudger Chelici class materials. It was her favorite thing possible under the authority of the president.
“Wow. Such a magic circle.”
Just a moment ago, Elisa, who was frowning and organizing the documents, began to check the materials joyfully like a child who received candy