RSTUM 101 (Patreon)

101: Homecoming (1)

Traveling as fast as they can across the main road, the group of six was ever so silent since yesterday.

Leon left them with only one thing to think about and made a deal they do not ask any questions. This made them keep thinking of what the hell they just saw and they couldn't calm their thoughts.

The Medjay, a group of killers that worked for the Holy Temple, was targeting Leon. This is a confirmation that nowhere is safe.

But why? What did Leon do to incur the wrath of the temple? And why is he aware of things none of them is aware of?

What was Leon's life like? Why is he skilled in things no one can even comprehend? Why is he so cold and very calculative? Why is he always drawing a separate line between the past and the present? And why did he agree to come with them?

As Leon wasn't going to answer anything unless he wanted to, all of these questions were aimed at Vadim.

In truth, Vadim only knew so much. He observed Leon and all he could tell is that Leon is very perceptive and cunning that he can't be compared to the innocent kid they once knew.

Also, he has not a single notion of nobility. He doesn't mind sleeping on the streets, stealing food, fighting dishonorably, and has a knack for finding troublesome people.

Eleanor was the only one brave to ask whether this Leon is the real Leon or someone else. Of course, this question was met with disdain but it was logical to ask. The Leon they once knew had no talents or abilities, he was one of them and they loved him nonetheless but he was simply a cripple in their eyes.

Still, there was not a single precedent in history where one man has increased his talent by not even a single 1%. No one learned any magic he wasn't destined to learn.

The Talents that are revealed at a young age are Absolute.

It is only natural to think of him as someone different.

But what if Leon had this potential from the start?! Maybe the Light Temple was threatened and wanted to make people believe that he is not talented… and maybe when he discovered his own talent, they plotted to kill him!

That, of course, was Lance's conclusion.

But maybe Leon has undergone some sort of experiment that led to him having this talent! Maybe there is more to this regarding plots and secretive research.

That was Lara's conclusion.

"I appreciate the fact that you are trying to make sense of my situation but believe me when I tell you this, it doesn't make a shred of sense." Leon, who was hearing all the whispers going on, turned to them, "I am trying to make heads and tails of my situation as well."

"But we need a way to explain it to our minds." Lara replied, "How do you expect us to wrap our heads around your situation when you are refusing to answer any questions."

"There are two things you were wrong about." Leon pointed out two fingers, "One, assumed that I am expecting you to wrap your heads around my situation, I am not. Two, I am not refusing to answer, it is more like I don't have all these answers either. And let me add Three as a special one-time offer, I am not sure I want all the answers myself."

"Don't people who lose their memories at least attempt to regain them?" Lance asked.

"The way I see it, every time a memory of the past surfaces through my mind, something vile and dark comes up with it." Leon said then made a cup with his left fist and covered it with his right palm, "Imagine the old Leon as a Cup of filth and hatred and all the negative emotions you know and imagine me as the Lid covering that cup. Why do you want what's underneath me out?"

"I've seen it." Eleanor then spoke.

She remembered what she saw when she met Leon in the goblin cave.

It wasn't pleasant how Leon looked, how he called her a traitor.

"Let's change this unpleasant subject then." Vadim rode his wolf close to Leon, "Eleanor, you have received a report this morning from your messenger bird. What does it say?"

Since last night, Eleanor was awfully quiet but since she read the report that comes to her every morning from the Godfrey Intelligence Operatives, she was brooding and thinking all day.

Vadim's question made her turn to Vadim before turning to Leon who was riding beside him.

"Karanberg dockyard was burnt to the ground. The protestors were quelled by the efforts of the mages and the knights but fire is still breaking out every now and then. The High Council is discussing full isolation of the Northern District and erecting a new city wall along the river."

All eyes turned to Leon after that.

"Nobody told that stupid Edward to command his knights to kill the protestors in the street." Leon said, "For goodness' sake, he's a moron."

Shameless and thug-like. Leon pushed the entire blame on Prince Edward who was having a bad day and completely forgot that he was the one to supply Eden Newman with Molotov Cocktails.

"You have given the commoners a very volatile and dangerous tool to fight the system, Leon. This may turn one day against us." Eleanor said.

"Vive la Révolution!" He replied.

"Don't you feel responsible for the lives that are being taken?" She asked him.

"Why don't you complete the rest of your report? Something about what happened at Fort Marth?" Leon asked with a cheesy smile.

All heads turned from him to Eleanor. They were all curious about it but it left Eleanor wondering how he managed to know what was in the letter that she burnt.

"Fort Marth had a great fire that couldn't be put down until many water mages were summoned from the Marth Estate!" Eleanor said, "The estimated loss of life is around 30 to 40 men and a few Knights let alone the Baroness of Marth and her second son."

"That fire was what drew us to the Fort." Vadim commented, trying to shift any blame from Leon.

"Understanding your abilities, couldn't you have done it quieter?" Eleanor asked, "You could have snuck through by night."

"The area beyond the fort was packed with guards." Leon replied, "I thought about traveling under the bridge but aside from my instinctive fear of trolls, I lacked all the proper means to do so."

"Thankfully, nobody can trace this to Leon." Lance came up and defended his brother, "Capable as he is, I don't think anyone would believe it was done by a lone infiltrator. While I trust my brother's newfound talent, I hope he uses it for good from now on."

Lance was jumping on every opportunity to leave a good impression with Leon which the latter was just baffled every time he heard.

"Let's not forget how much of a diplomatic problem this will turn out to be." Lara, however, was a realist, "A non-combatant aristocrat lady was killed."

"Hanged by a rope which broke her neck." Eleanor explained it as written in the report.

"Wrong." Leon objected, "I broke her neck first then hanged her to lure the guards and the knights in. Worked like a charm."

"I don't believe it is right to condemn Leon's actions in such an emergency." Lara said, "Baroness Marth has left the safety of her residence in the Marth Estate and chose to come to the frontier. Her aim was to see her son avenged but she got caught in the crossfire. The only legal blame here is on her husband who didn't provide her with enough security… thankfully."

"You know your laws. I like!" Leon immediately turned to Lara with a double thumbs-up before exchanging a high-five.

"I am not condemning or anything. If he could kill the rest of them, I'd be glad if he does." Eleanor said, "However, your actions might have put you in grave danger. We wouldn't know how to face your mother if something were to happen to you."

"Sigmund was tracking this night." Vadim said as he rubbed his wolf's head, "You could have just waited for an extra hour and we would have found you and teleported quietly across the ravine."

"Enough with that." Leon said, "How long do we have until we arrive?"

"Plotting the route isn't easy." Eleanor said, "I am not sure what to do since the Temple of Light can travel freely in our lands. Also, once we enter the Dark Duchy, things won't be easy with the Elders of your family."

"Do we have to do everything by the book?" Leon asked.

"If you want to seek your family's protection, we have to convince the Elders of your family that you need to return to your mother and you no longer wish to stay in Karanberg." Eleanor said.

"Will this work?" Leon turned to Lara.

"I highly doubt it." She shook her head, "However, the alternative is that you will be forcibly shipped back to the Royal Academy and you will be treated like a defector."

"Laws suck!" Leon massaged his temples, "My whole objective is to meet with… Leon's mother. That's all."

The group turned to him and made weird faces. He never says "mother" as it seemed and he will give them a tough time trying to convince him otherwise.

"At least you will be with her. That's all we ask you for." Vadim said.

"Don't get me wrong." Leon shook his head, "It is just one meeting. I'll ask her a few questions, answer hers. Depending on what she says and what happens…"

Leon let out a long exhale and seemed that he had his own plan in mind.

"You want to leave again?" Lance asked.

"I was thinking of taking a ship and traveling to another nation under a different name." Leon said, "I don't care what happens so long it is as far from all this trouble as humanly possible."

Leon's words made Lance and Lara frown but surprisingly; Eleanor, Erielle, and Vadim had these similar smiles on their faces. They didn't say a thing but they all definitely had the same idea.

Days passed…

The group split into two teams to not attract any unwanted attention. Leon, Lance, and Vadim were in one group; Lara, Eleanor, and Erielle were in another group.

Leon started learning about these people and they started to heavily observe and learn about him.

Vadim and Leon were quite the dynamic duo which was also the case between Vadim and the past Leon.

Leon learned that Lara is married to Erielle's son, which is why she was calling Erielle "mother". Lara was more calculative and colder than anyone around which made her get along very well with Leon. Her morality was always grayish and she didn't mind his roguish decision-making and attitude.

On the other hand, Lance was a very emotional older brother who is extremely overprotective of Leon. It seemed that in the past, their mother always relied on Lance to take care of his brother and he aspires to live up to the mission. However, the current Leon found Lance to be a hassle and avoided him more than most.

Unlike how it went with Vadim, in the past Leon had a different relationship with his siblings. He always feared the strict Lara and was always in Lance's shadow.

But that wasn't as problematic as Leon's relationship with Eleanor.

Eleanor's way of showing care wasn't strict but she was trying to take the role of the educator with Leon. She tried to make him fix his language, behave in certain manners, and become less violent and more inclined to take peaceful approaches. Long story short, it backfired.

Leon, however, was more willing to learn from Erielle, the mad scientist. She had a very faulty moral compass which seemed to set well with his busted one.

These two relationships between Leon and the two ladies were also flipped from the past Leon.

It goes without saying that after they arrived at the mountain pass that leads to the Dark Territory from the Godfrey Territory, the group had an understanding of who this new Leon is and how he thinks and operates.

Aside from this and that, the Dark Duchy was the farthest land on the eastern side of Amber. In other words, all the travel roads end here. And just like the Marth Bridge, which was a main checkpoint on the road, the entrance to the Dark Duchy is also considered such a checkpoint.

Still, Leon is now in his homeland, a prince among his people. Even though he fell from his father's favor, he is legitimately a young lord in this land.

Lance and Lara Dark are also of the same status and past that point, they will have a lot of influence. The problem is the opposition that was established by the Duke and the Elders of House Dark who are part of the Crowns Faction.

They will come after Leon to chase him out of the territory for sure. And right now even if he wants to sneak into the territory unofficially, Eleanor was adamant about doing everything by the book in order to appease the political opinion about Leon.

They will have to face the tyrannical arms of politics head-on.