Chapter 526 - Whats Going On? (1/2)

Lionel's face was exceptionally pale. One couldn't call him either handsome or ugly, but simply average. Though, it was a bit difficult to tell if this was the best he could do, or if it was simply because he was malnourished.

With how sunken his cheeks were, it was clear that he had never had enough to eat. So, though he looked quite plain now, he may very well look different if he finally began to receive enough sustenance.

However, this wasn't the reason Leonel felt he looked nothing like him. The truth was that with Leonel's senses, it was quite easy for him to fill in Lionel's features and extrapolate how the latter would look. But, even then, they were nothing alike.

Lionel's jaw wasn't as sharp as his own, his cheeks weren't as high, and his nose was far more prominent and pointed. In addition, Leonel was only just about two meters tall now or 6'6. He had grown a few inches since his last day at Royal Blue Academy… But, Leonel could tell that if Lionel stood straight, the latter would be over seven feet tall, a full head taller than Leonel.

Whether Lionel and Leonel looked the same was hardly relevant on any other day. But, when the first words out of Lionel's mouth was that they were identical… It left Leonel at a loss. Just what was that supposed to mean?

The truth of the matter was that other than the color of their eyes and the fact Lionel had the same messy, dirty blond hair Leonel once had before he activated his Metal Synergy Lineage Factor… They were quite literally nothing alike.

And, as though to drive this point further, Leonel kept getting an uneasy feeling from the vacancy in Lionel's gaze. Lionel sounded so cheerful and his words even seemed to carry the hint of being pleasantly surprised... all while his gaze remained as deadpan as could be.

This reality only made Leonel feel more uneasy.

”Stay alert.” Leonel said softly. His words were only heard by those to his back.

Lionel continued to observe Leonel curiously, a faint excitement that never reached his eyes dancing across his expression.

”… Are we related? Are you my brother perhaps? A cousin who happens to look a lot like me? Are we … Ah, sorry, I forget the word. I think it starts with a 't'? Tweens maybe? Twines? Ah, forget it. My mother, do you know her?”

Leonel's frown deepened.

'His social awareness is severely lacking. His expressions all seem to be slightly off. The only way he'd think we look the same is if he had never seen himself in a mirror before… But, even then, why would that be the conclusion he jumped to? Even if he had never seen himself in a mirror before, where would he get the thought that I was who he looked like? Where would he have seen me before?'

The more Leonel thought, the more he came to understand that Dark Cloud Prison wasn't as simple as he originally thought. The only obvious conclusion he could make was that these men and women before him were actually prisoners.

That much was obvious. After all, they all wore the same garbs so this wasn't a hard conclusion to come to. What was more damning was the fact that these prisoners acted as though they had never seen the light of day.

Leonel shook his head. It seemed he was too naïve. There was no way that The Empire' Prison would be as perfect as they tried to make it seem to be.

”… He's dangerous…”