Then Leo asked casually, tilting his head,

"By the way… are you a paedophile?"

A brief pause followed.

"What's that?" Leon asked, genuinely confused, his brows knitting together.

"People who are attracted to little kids," Leo explained, his tone flat. "But not in a good way. You should know what I mean."

Leon sneered, a sharp curl of contempt forming on his lips.

"Bastard, what do you take me for? And isn't she above 18? I mean, only people above 18 can even join the academy."

"Well," Leo replied, giving him a slow side glance, "her looks are well below 18… I'd say around 16."

"Above 18 is above 18," Leon snapped, his voice rising. "Don't fuck with me."

Leo nodded vigorously, his mouth slightly open in a dumb little 'o,' as if accepting the logic wholeheartedly. It was only then that Leon realised his blunder.

"So you do like her—"

"Shut it, you bastard!"

"Hahahahaha!" Leo burst out laughing, clutching his stomach as his laughter echoed. Teasing Leon was way too fun. The man reminded him of his old comrades back on the battlefield—rough, blunt, and far too easy to provoke.

---

___Next Morning___

"Did he join the territory?" Lily asked while eating cooked meat from her bowl, the rich aroma wafting deliciously through the air around them.

"Yeah," Leo replied, nodding. "I convinced him. We got a strong companion from now on."

Both Leo and Lily noticed Miho, who was sitting nearby, subtly perk up her ears when she heard Leon had joined the territory.

"Where is he now?" Lily asked, glancing around.

"I don't know. He hasn't come out of his shed yet," Leo said.

"Must still be sleeping. Wait, I'll go call him."

Just then, Miho stood up abruptly.

"Master Leo, you eat. I-I will call him," she said quickly. She didn't even wait for Leo to respond and darted off toward Leon's shed in the distance.

Since the plateau was a safe place, the sheds were built relatively far apart so 'certain' noises at night wouldn't disturb others.

Lily watched Miho's retreating figure, then turned back to Leo.

"That man… is he good?" she asked quietly.

"Yeah. He's a good man," Leo replied without hesitation. "Don't worry about it."

"I'm just worried about Miho…" Lily murmured.

Leo frowned slightly. "How did Miho take being beaten up like that?"

"She's surprisingly unbothered by it," Lily said. "More like she's motivated to another degree to get stronger. Not to mention she got a distraction in the name of Leon." Lily shot a sharp glare toward Leon's shed.

"He's a good person, at least that much I can say," Leo replied. "And don't worry, I have something he needs. He won't betray us."

Lily nodded, trusting Leo's judgement.

"What are you going to do to that Nord Birel? You seemed very pissed." Leo asked.

"Oh, him? Don't worry about him. I have everything planned for him. Oh yes, since we are at it, could you please tell Howl to make a hidden room somewhere in the territory? I want to do something..." Lily said, her face unconsciously forming a smile that would sent shiver down anyone's spine.

Leo nodded unconsciously, not even bothering to ask what she will do in that room.

Miho soon returned, her face flushed with a heavy blush. Leo blinked in confusion and instinctively looked toward the shed.

There Leon stood—shirtless, perspiring from head to toe, a towel draped around his neck as he wiped his face. His muscles were tense, skin glistening with sweat, as if he had just finished an intense workout. He looked just as stiff as Miho, but seeing Leo giving him a disgusted look, sneered and went back

Lily shook her head slowly, feeling like Miho was slipping out of her hands. Leo, on the other hand, shook his head at the maniacal, masochistic man in front of him.

Leon quickly freshened up and joined them, introducing himself properly as everyone did the same. After Miho once again made sure he was completely full, they settled down and chatted leisurely.

"Wouldn't this make us the strongest fresher group in the academy?" Lily asked enthusiastically, her eyes bright.

"Yes," Leo said after a moment's thought. "I suspect we could even be the strongest in all the academies."

Leon shook his head at that.

"No. That might be true here, but not the strongest overall," he said seriously.

"This term is special. There are many freshers at my level in Velerath Grand Academy and Valencrest Royal Academy." He then turned toward Leo.

"And I can confidently say one of them is at your level too."

Leo raised his brow, clearly surprised.

"My level? I haven't even seen sophomores or juniors at my level yet, and you're saying there are freshers like that? And what's so special about this term?"

Leon nodded.

"Though I don't know much, I think the Imperial princes and princesses have taken part." Leon said, feigning ignorance

"And don't judge the top 3 academies on a surface level. Till now, what you've seen are the weak students who live by doing miscellaneous tasks. Elite students are sent directly outside the academies for missions. Some are even sent into dangerous secret realms."

He leaned forward slightly, his voice firm.

"Juniors(3rd Term) not at your level? Listen carefully—many junior elite students can go toe to toe with professors, and senior elites can even tackle Vice-Principals. As for you meeting them? It's so rare you'd have to bet your whole life's luck on it."

"They train, and train, and train," Leon continued. "There's nothing in their minds except growing stronger. I know a student who went into seclusion in his late sophomore year at Low 4-star rank and came out directly in his late senior year at Intermediate 5-star rank."

"They don't indulge in petty squabbles. As for credits? Competitions are orchestrated by the academies with generous rewards, but most of their income comes from being territory leaders—collecting taxes and taking a cut of the revenue generated by selling the products made within a territory."

"So don't get high in your shoes," Leon finished. "Low 4-star is just the beginning."

Leo was stunned. His mind reeled from the information. But before he could ask further, a message from Howl appeared.

His expression instantly turned serious.

"Get ready," Leo said. "People have attacked our territory."

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