Chapter 352: Madwoman and Madman (2/2)

In the end, she smiled lightly. Though she did, with her demeanor, it was no more than the slightest curl of her lip.

”Leonel, you are quite patient. All this time, you haven't asked what it is you'll be participating in.”

Leonel blinked out of his thoughts and looked toward the future Matriarch of the Keafir family. This was the first time she had spoken with him since he entered this carriage.

”… I figured you'd tell me when it was time.” Leonel finally replied.

Heira's beautiful blue eyes fluttered. Then, without responding directly to the question, she looked toward the city in the distance.

”Do you know what that city represents?”

”Bravery.” Leonel said without hesitation.

Heira seemed surprised by this answer before she smiled lightly. This time, her smile seemed much more obvious than it had been in the past.

”That's one answer.” She said noncommittedly. ”My answer, though, is even simpler than that. It's Survival.”

Leonel's heart stilled for a moment. A flood of unknowable emotions surged through him, causing his blood to rumble once more.

”You say bravery because you have the strength to say as much. To those without power, it's never about something so idealistic. All they want to see is their next day, their next meal, their next breath. It's not about anything more than that.”

Syl's eyes glittered as she looked toward Leonel. Is this boy really powerful enough to gain such an evaluation from her sister-in-law?

As for the simplest among them all, Rie, she almost couldn't refrain from harrumphing. She clearly didn't like anything that praised Leonel. What powerful man would bully a young, beautiful girl like her? More pointedly, what powerful man would have such a slave brand?

Leonel didn't respond to these words.

This wasn't the first time he had run into such a problem. His talk with Roaring Black Lion all those months ago still resurfaced in his memories from time to time.

”You could say that this is a matter of survival for our family. So, I hope that you'll treat this with the appropriate amount of seriousness.”

It was only now Leonel realized that he was dealing with a mad woman.

This woman knew nothing about him. Yet, she directly snubbed a genius likely handpicked by their family in favor of him, a man branded with a mark that might as well have assigned him as a slave.

If she wasn't mad, then how else would you describe it?

Yet, Leonel couldn't help but find himself grinning.

If he couldn't find Aina, the next best option was to raise holy hell until she caught wind of him being here. If this place was really so important, wouldn't it be perfect for him?

He was beginning to think that Heira might have taken a liking to him because he too was a madman.