Counterparts
Leonel tilted his head upward, not even the slightest hint of a rippling wave to be found within his irises.
"Get the fuck out of my way."
Despite what one would expect, there was nothing different about Leonel's voice. It hadn't deepened, it wasn't hoarse, it didn't carry any rage or forcefulness… One would have thought he was speaking about the weather.
Fluttering Star Order was stunned by the evenness of it all at first. In fact, she was so stunned that she didn't' register what was said until a moment later. It was only then that her stunned expression warped toward the edge of shock and then unbridled rage.
No matter how mild tempered Fluttering Star Order was, how could she still remain so now? Even her enemies didn't dare to speak to her in this way, least of all a junior she could kill with a single palm.
Below, Riah's own expression changed. Did Leonel not understand the situation he was in? Even if her grandmother had no intention of saving him, she was still his only hope at coming out of this slightly less scathed. To slap the face of your potential benefactor like this, what was he thinking?!
"Junior, do you have any idea who you're speaking to?!"
Fluttering Star Order's words boomed, violent Wind Force spiraling about the surroundings. She bobbed in the skies as though she was as light as a feather, her fury on full display.
"Isn't it all the same?" Leonel replied plainly. "Aren't you all the same? Just more worthless people overvaluing themselves above others. Even I don't deem myself to be above another, what right do you have to?"
Noah's expression changed wildly for the first time. His gaze snapped to Leonel's side profile as though he was looking at someone he didn't recognize in the slightest.
Why did it feel like these words were both spoken by Leonel and someone who was decidedly not Leonel? It was as though he had taken on the character of someone completely different, but it was impossible to tell until he opened his mouth to speak.
"What did you just say to me?!"
Fluttering Star Order couldn't withhold her fury any longer. Her palm raised into the skies with every intention of obliterating Leonel where he stood. However, Leonel's words seemed to continue like a slow stream, unhurried and unbothered.
"I don't know much about Force Pill Crafting, but I can recognize Breaking Force when I see it. To have prepared so many Force Herbs infused with such Force, what were your plans exactly? To squeeze out all the potential of us 'branch family' members?"
Fluttering Star Order froze.
"And then what? Have us ride the wave of excitement, being ever thankful to the Luxnix main family for our rapid improvement? Maybe we would even be so grateful that we would lay our lives on the line for the sake of glory your granddaughter would be the greatest partaker of?
"Now that I think about it, maybe those of us that died would be the luckier ones, because those who survived would soon find that they wouldn't be able to progress even a single step afterward. They would probably end up thrown to the side like useless trash after you were finished, right?"
Fluttering Star Order's lashes fluttered. She was ultimately not a person who was so ruthless. It was easy for her to deal with the guilt when no one else was aware of it, but having things so blatantly laid out like this, she felt a deep shame. Nôvel(D)rama.Org's content.
Leonel had simply learned too much about Breaking Force in recent months. And, using his Dream Sculpt and Dream Simulation abilities, deducing the end result was as easy as breathing. Not all Breaking Force was created equal.
Leonel completely ignored Fluttering Star Order's internal struggle, his foot lightly tapping the roof of the large mansion.
In that moment, the ground began to rumble, four enormous pillars beginning to rise up from the earth. They all shimmered with a blinding silver luster, etched with all sorts of ancient and enigmatic patterns.
"You…" Fluttering Star Order's expression changed. She couldn't really grasp what was going on, but as someone with high Snow Force affinity, her Internal Sight was likewise powerful. She gained a general understanding in just a breath.
Leonel breathed out a heavy breath, showing the first signs of an emotion for the last several moments. However, it wasn't anger, relief or happiness. Rather, it was just fatigue, something so rudimentary that even a beast could have displayed it.
And yet, right then, an inconspicuous neckless around his neck began to glow as Force surged toward it, slowly replenishing Leonel.
"When you go," Leonel began to state plainly, his palm flipping over to reveal the Northern Star Pendant, "tell your counterparts that I've come for what's mine."
'When I go…? Wait, is that—?!'
At that moment, a gripping force took hold of Fluttering Star Order's body. A strong spatial Force caught her completely off guard. Before she realized what was happening, her body flickered and disappeared.
When Fluttering Star Order reappeared, she found herself in a random corner of the Luxnix estate, an expression of shock plastered onto her wizened features.
'… My counterparts? What counterparts do I still have?'
…
"Grandma?! What did you do to my grandmother?!"
Riah's shrill cry came from below. But, if even a Star Order elder could be teleported away, if Leonel didn't want her to move, she wouldn't' move.
Leonel stood atop the mansion as though he hadn't heard a thing Riah said. His expression was just as indifferent as always, the abyss that was his gaze staring off into the distance. No one could tell what he was thinking.
Noah's looked toward the pillars. He could tell that even now, Leonel hadn't quite recovered from summoning them, but this only left him speechless. Just what was Leonel planning on doing here, exactly?
At that moment, a commotion in the distance was stirred. Two familiar figures leading a group of at least 20 quickly closed the distance, their expressions livid.
Riah's face warped, her heart skipping several beats. She recognized many of those seniors. What they lacked in talent they more than made up for in seniority and time spent practicing. Among them, there was even the current Head of Alfin's division of the Healing Arm, the Quasi Sixth Dimensional Division Head Therin.