Chapter 164: Even If It's the Abyss, I'll Go With You |
Seeing Rena's reaction, Weiss widened her eyes and looked at Leon.
Leon could only respond with a bitter smile.
Only then did Weiss realize that Leon had not told her about those matters yet and immediately understood the implications of her accidental slip.
“What is it? Is it something that's difficult to talk about?” Rena's expression darkened further.
Under Rena's gaze, Weiss became increasingly embarrassed.
Whether it was biting Leon's neck to drink blood or transforming into a naked statue and allowing Leon to manipulate her position, all of those incidents could be explained.
There had been reasons for everything.
But if she were being completely honest, it was not as though she had felt absolutely nothing during those moments of intimate contact with Leon.
Thinking about it that way, she found herself unable to explain it in front of Rena, Leon's lover.
“You should let him explain it to you.”
Leon immediately felt Rena's grip on his arm tighten painfully.
“Miss Weiss, are you determined to throw me directly into the fire?” Leon asked helplessly.
“Sorry...” Weiss looked away.
“So when you were recounting everything earlier, you conveniently left out some very interesting details?” Rena raised her head to look at Leon while leaning against him. Her gaze was extremely imposing.
“I'll explain it properly when we get back,” Leon said. He felt awkward discussing it in front of Weiss. If Rena lost her temper after hearing everything, things could become unpleasant.
“Sure. I'll definitely be listening very carefully later,” Rena replied, temporarily suppressing her anger.
Leon could already sense the coming storm.
All he could do was silently pray that he would still be allowed to sleep in bed tonight.
An awkward silence settled over the room.
After a while, Weiss picked up a test tube and attempted to change the subject.
“I improved part of the Magical Potion production process just now. This is Mandrake Grass essential oil. After refining it with my method, the concentration of active substances should theoretically increase by twenty percent. If it's used to produce Magical Potions, the effects should improve accordingly.”
“Oh, then by mixing in some ordinary essential oil and keeping the potion's effectiveness the same as before, the production volume would increase, right?”
Leon smoothly picked up the conversation and took the test tube from Weiss to inspect it.
Weiss was briefly left speechless.
At that moment, Rena finally managed to calm herself somewhat.
Looking sideways at Leon, she commented,
“The way you're talking now makes you sound like a profiteering merchant.”
“We shouldn't recklessly increase the potency of our Magical Potions right now. Otherwise, people outside might notice that we've suddenly gained an exceptionally talented apothecary.
“And Weiss, any Mana you refine can only be used for developing the Special Medicine. The improvements here are mainly to help you produce that medicine more efficiently.
“If there's any chance outsiders might see this place in the future—for example during inspections—we'll even have to restore the laboratory to its original appearance,” Leon explained.
Both Weiss and Rena immediately understood.
This was all to prevent the Earl's forces from discovering their activities too quickly.
“Sorry. I thought you wanted me to improve your potion production,” Weiss said, thinking she had done unnecessary work.
“No. Once we eventually deal with the Earl, we'll need these techniques to seize market share.”
Leon handed the test tube back to her.
The moment he said that, both Weiss and Rena looked at him with surprise.
Sensing their stares, Leon looked puzzled.
“Why are you both looking at me like that?”
“Leon... what exactly do you mean by ‘once we deal with the Earl’?” Weiss asked cautiously.
“Shouldn't that be obvious, Weiss? The Earl is practically digging three feet into the ground trying to find you right now. If you want true safety in the future, what other option is there besides killing him?
“Didn't I already say we'd deal with the Earl together?”
Leon spread his hands.
Strictly speaking, Weiss should have even more motivation than he did to kill the Earl.
So Leon had naturally assumed that even if they had never specifically discussed plans to eliminate the Earl, Weiss would understand.
Instead, Weiss looked at him with confusion.
“But killing the Earl is far easier said than done. Why are you already discussing what happens after he's dead? Did you and the Earl have some kind of personal grudge before?”
Even after learning that the Earl had framed her, Weiss had only thought about how to protect herself and, at most, worry about her father.
She had never Sallyously considered retaliating against the Earl, much less killing him.
Because rationally speaking, such a goal was extremely difficult to achieve.
Yet Leon spoke of killing the Earl as naturally as if it were already on his schedule.
“Not really.
“He pushed me into a corner before, but in the end he let me live.
“He invested in me because he saw value in me, and I repaid him by producing results beyond his expectations.
“We don't really have any personal grudges. It was just a transaction.
“But now his revenge against your father has affected that transaction.
“At the time, I didn't have much time to think. I've already made my choice.
“Now that we've come this far, we can only prepare for the possibility that the Earl discovers the truth.
“And when that happens, we'll have to kill him.
“Isn't that obvious?”
Leon looked directly at Weiss.
“I suppose...” Weiss blinked. “But I don't think ordinary people would reach that conclusion so decisively.”
Even with her rational mindset, she could not entirely keep up with Leon's train of thought.
More accurately, she sensed a subtle inconsistency in his motivations.
If Leon had already thought through all the consequences this thoroughly, then he must have considered them while rescuing her.
In that case, what exactly had motivated him to save her despite knowingly placing himself in a position where he now had to contemplate killing the Earl?
“Leon, why are you willing to go this far? Is it really only because of the medicine I developed?” Weiss looked at him in disbelief.
“Wasn't it also to save you?
“I already told you before. Our friendship wasn't fake.
“You helped me before, and I don't want to watch you get framed for no reason.”
Leon answered simply.
Yet Weiss's frown did not ease.
Something still felt off to her.
Rena watched Leon with a complicated expression.
She slowly released his arm and suddenly spoke in an unusually calm tone.
“Leon... you've already realized that once the Earl dies, we'll never be able to walk away from this life, haven't you?”
Killing the Earl would mean making enemies of everyone connected to his interests.
Some would seek revenge.
Others would compete for power after his death and view Leon's group as dangerous rivals.
Under those circumstances, they could only continue expanding their operations in order to maintain the strength necessary for self-defense and retaliation.
In a sense, they would lose any opportunity to wash their hands of everything and retire peacefully.
When Leon first spoke of killing the Earl, Rena had not immediately realized this.
But now she understood.
Leon had absolutely considered the consequences.
And yet he had barely hesitated.
“I'm sorry, Rena, I—”
Leon tried to explain, but Rena raised a hand and interrupted him.
“So you never truly intended to retire someday and walk away from all this, did you?”
“No, that's not true!
“I genuinely wanted that.
“Even now, I don't care how much money I make.”
Leon answered firmly.
“Did you genuinely want it?
“Or did you only want it because you'd rather follow my wishes than continue living under the Earl's control?”
Rena stared directly into his eyes.
For the first time, Leon found himself speechless.
At that moment, her gaze felt as though it could see straight into his heart.
And in that moment, Rena found her answer.
As though giving up on something, she laughed helplessly.
“I knew it.
“You've always been this kind of person.”
She had been the one who first proposed that they run away together.
The dream of washing their hands of everything and living a peaceful life had always been her dream.
Leon had merely treated her wish as his own.
Unlike Weiss, Rena had been beside Leon since the beginning of this path.
She understood him better than anyone else and had gradually been influenced by him.
Sometimes, as an observer, she could see Leon more clearly than he saw himself.
When Leon declared that they would kill the Earl, she had only been shocked by the difficulty of the task and his boldness.
She had not felt any inconsistency in how quickly he reached that decision.
To her, the man she loved was unquestionably a good person.
Yet buried deep within him was a dangerous instinct that sought victory through risk.
After all, the very fact that he had chosen this path proved he was never the sort of person content with a quiet life.
But that was exactly the kind of man she had fallen in love with.
The first time she truly fell for him was when he pointed a gun at Caron to save her despite facing someone far stronger than himself.
When Caron forced Leon to place her on a scale and make a choice, Leon refused to compromise.
He chose her.
Such a stubborn man had later been forced by the Earl into a compromise.
He sacrificed Sally.
And that compromise had also been made to save her.
Yet Leon suffered because of that decision.
His risky agreement with the Earl had been less about saving Sally and more about reclaiming the part of himself that had once compromised.
And now the Earl had placed Weiss and Sally on opposite sides of the scale.
Leon had made the same choice he made when he pointed his gun at Caron.
He had decided not to compromise a second time.
Thinking of all this, Rena smiled with both affection and resignation.
She gently raised a hand and brushed Leon's cheek.
“All right.
“If you're going to kill the Earl, then kill him.
“I'll stay by your side.
“Even if it's the abyss, I'll go with you.”
Beside them, Weiss silently watched.
She had never expected Leon to already have a lover.
Rationally speaking, it should not have affected her at all.
Yet for some reason, the moment she thought about it, her heart felt strangely empty.
As though a piece of it had been carved away.
