Those in the arena found it difficult to wrap their heads around what had just happened. They had all thought that some knight in shining armor was planning on swooping in, yet after 'saving' Sael, this mysterious person hadn't done anything else.
No one was sure how this person appeared, or how they even managed to stop Aphestus' furious kick without suffering severely for it. It was as though he had simply teleported to the location.
Of course, there were some who made the connection between this mysterious person and the posters that had been recently taken down. By extension, they also realized that it was this young man who was meant to be considered their public enemy at the moment.
But, this only made things more confusing.
On the surface, it made sense. Since Valiant Hall and this young man were in cahoots from the very beginning, didn't it make sense for him to save Sael?
But, on a deeper level, this was pure nonsense. Raylion had painted a much different picture. The narrative he had formed wasn't one of mutual interest, but rather one of a man with a powerful background preying on the corruption of Valiant Hall.
If this latter story was the truth… Would the arrogant young master described ever care to save anyone useless to him? In fact, shouldn't he be raging about since his name being swept through the mud?
The odd shift in the atmosphere occurred without a single word being exchanged. But, what was done was done. The moment Sael was unable to battle, Hero Peak had already won and the changes they wanted to implement to Valiant Heart Mountain would soon rule all of their lives.
Yet, in the moment he should have been basking in his victory, Raylion's expressionless gaze flickered.
Only the well learned, thoughtful, and intelligent would be able to reach the second layer of analysis needed to understand the underlying oddity of Leonel's actions. The vast majority of people were not this and still felt that Leonel had acted because he was allied with Valiant Hall.
But, the support of such people was meaningless to Raylion. Such fools who could be so easily swayed could just as easily be swayed in a new direction tomorrow.
…
Even as the first to leave the arena, allowing them to walk through the empty streets of the city, Aina was still fuming.
Though her enraged expression was hidden beneath her mask, Leonel still thought that it would be boundlessly adorable.
"There's no need to waste your emotions on them." Leonel said with a chuckle.
Still, in thanks for his efforts, he received a glare in return.
Aina wasn't wrong to feel this way. Leonel always saw blood when someone poked at Aina, yet now he was telling her to not feel enraged for the vice versa. He was definitely being a hypocrite.
Still, Leonel continued to chuckle. He really didn't care about this very much. In fact, he was almost happy it happened. He found this to be much more interesting. He could even see a quicker path toward curing Aina now, how could he not be happy?
Seeing that Aina was still upset, though, Leonel sighed.
"What I did at the end was really the most I could do under those circumstances. Proving my strength or displaying my Force Crafting ability wouldn't have been as impactful as you think.
"In the story he painted of me, the Raylion guy implicitly acknowledged my prowess. How can someone who is weak kill three Hero Peak members and destroy King of Ores faction? What infuriated the people most was my sense of superiority, so how would proving my superiority all the more help me?
"It would at most be short term satisfaction that could easily be spun on its head, especially since I had no legal pathway to participate in these matters."
Aina bit her lip beneath her mask, knowing that Leonel was correct. holds © this.
Had Leonel been a part of Valiant Hall, things might have been different. In the worst case, he could just battle Aphestus personally even though he had apparently underestimated the strength of this Vice Leader.
"None of these are reasons to be smiling." Aina finally said.
"How could I not be smiling? They're about to give me exactly what I want the most." Leonel grinned.
Aina looked up toward the side of Leonel's face in confusion.
"Think about it, Hero Peak has already effectively been the ruler of the Peaks for a long time now. They control 20% of the resources just like Valiant Hall does and no one can challenge their position due to their apparently undefeatable leader.
"With their strength, they have the power to sway the politics of Valiant Heart Mountain any way they please. And, those elders have apparently already decided on Raylion being their next Head so they're allowing him to do whatever he wants.
"Knowing all of this, what else could Hero Peak possibly want? Where is there more power for them to grasp? What could they do to claim more strength for themselves?"
Aina's eyes narrowed. "Weaken the other Peaks."
"Exactly. They don't care to take over Valiant Hall's position. What would that do for them? They already control much of everything without the forced label of having to be neutral.
"In that case, their goal is to break the balance and weaken their opposition and the best way to do that…
"Is to abolish the Peak system entirely."
Aina's pupils constricted.
"Just snatching away more resources for Hero Peak wouldn't work. Raylion would just end up fueling the discontent of the more common talents of Valiant Hall.
"In that case, he has to 'snatch' those resources away using an above board manner.
"In order to stop the laymen from realizing what's happening right under their noses, he'll abolish the Peak system, opening up Valiant Heart Mountain.
"In the old system, Hero Peak would always be capped at 20% of the resources. But, if there is no longer a Hero Peak, it becomes a free for all and suddenly that hard cap becomes much larger."
Aina calmed, her irises flickering. "He wants a place where the law of the jungle truly rules."
"Exactly.
"You don't have enough resources? You must be too weak. Why would you blame others for your own failures?" Leonel said in a steady tone. "But, why would I fear such an environment?"
At that moment, Leonel suddenly heard the sound of a sneer.
"You certainly talk a lot for a freshman without a Peak."