'A Man Without Blood or Tears.'
That was what the people of Citera had called Leon Raviaz in Deity Rising, a title that gained even more traction after the news of his betrayal spread among the masses.
With Lucia and Hugo Raviaz out of the picture by then, most assumed there was no one left that Leon cared about, and it was believed that his strange goals were the only thing occupying his mind.
But when the DLC came around, and events were shown from Leon's perspective, many things that had happened behind the scenes were revealed.
Like the fact that on the day Leon betrayed Citera during that fateful battle, he had fought and defeated Louise Bauer first.
Louise was the closest person to Leon aside from his family, and she was one of the first, aside from his father, to see his betrayal coming.
Naturally, she had tried to stop him, even going as far as engaging him in combat to prevent him from reaching that battlefield.
However, she ultimately failed to stop Leon.
But even after defeating Louise, despite knowing she had ways to use magic to contact and warn the Citeran Coalition Force about his impending betrayal, Leon couldn't bring himself to eliminate that loose end by killing her.
And even after Leon left, despite knowing and having evidence of his betrayal, Louise couldn't bring herself to warn the Citeran Coalition Force and have them send out powerhouses Leon couldn't defeat at the time to take him out.
The rain that fell on the day they parted concealed the tears they shed, and not once did they meet again until the final battle within the world of the invaders.
After the DLC's release, many people began to wonder how Louise must have felt having to join hands with the protagonist to end the life of the man she loved.
'And somehow they didn't wonder how Camellya felt as well?'
That thought crossed Camellya's mind, but she quickly pushed it aside and refocused on Louise, who was chatting happily with Leon.
'That kind of future is precisely what I wish to prevent.'
She cast a glance around the hall, looking toward the gallery, and just then, she noticed a trio of individuals coming down the stairs to the ground floor of the ballroom.
Upon spotting them, she lightly tapped Leon, and when he looked toward her, she gestured toward the trio on the stairs.
Camellya was about to speak, but suddenly she felt a cold gaze fall on her.
Being rather sensitive to things like 'gazes', it was easy for Camellya to trace the source, and her head immediately turned in that direction, locking eyes with Louise.
However, Louise looked back at her with calm eyes, not a trace of coldness in her gaze or expression.
"What's wrong?" she asked.
Camellya studied her in silence for a moment before shaking her head and replying, "Nothing."
She then looked toward Leon and said, "It seems they were in one of the resting rooms upstairs."
Leon, who had brought out his phone and was sending a text to someone, nodded and responded, "Yeah, they were."
As soon as he spoke, one of the three coming down the stairs paused and pulled a phone from his pocket. He glanced at it for a moment and immediately lifted his head after, looking straight toward their group.
Leon also raised his gaze from his phone at that moment, waving lightly as he walked up to them.
"My rarely seen friends, good to see you again," he said loudly, drawing a fair bit of attention.
Because of this, others who had already noticed the trio coming down the stairs and were preparing to approach them had to stop, as they couldn't interrupt Leon now that he had spoken.
The only man among the three chuckled at Leon's greeting, extending a hand toward him as he said, "Hello, Lord Leon. How do you do?"
Leon accepted his hand and shook it as he replied, "Doing fine, Lord Tom. Better than ever."
He then turned towards the young woman who came down the stairs right after Tom, extending a hand as he said, "And you, Lady Grace, are as beautiful as ever."
He pressed a kiss to the back of her palm as he spoke, also flashing her a charming smile.
However, rather than feel flattered or blush like most noble ladies would when met with the handsome Leon's smiling face, her expression showed faint disgust as she stepped back and shook her head while rubbing her shoulders.
"Ugh, it's funny when you do that online, but when you do it in person, it's just plain weird."
"Excuse me?!" Leon exclaimed in shock.
Tom and Grace immediately burst into laughter at his reaction, with Leon quickly joining in with a light chuckle.
The young man and woman standing before Leon possessed what most nobles described as a reverse aesthetic.
Tom had quite long hair, even longer than some ladies', and he tied it into a low ponytail, which rested over his shoulder. His facial features were soft, and his light green hair and eyes, paired with that, gave him a gentle air.
Grace, on the other hand, had her hair cut short, in the manner most men kept theirs. As his sibling, she had the same green hair and eyes as Tom, however, her demeanour couldn't have been more different from his.
From her sharp facial features to her strong expression and the way she carried herself, she was far from what most traditional nobles expected from a young lady of a prestigious household.
She didn't present herself as meek or demure as they would've preferred.
When she first entered high society, she faced backlash from older noble ladies who claimed she behaved too much like a man. However, those of the younger generation were charmed by this character of hers, and it didn't take long for her fanbase to grow large.
In fact, even as Leon was speaking with Grace and Tom, he could feel the glares coming from several young noble ladies who belonged to that fanbase, all of whom wanted to speak with Grace but couldn't interrupt Leon, leaving them with no option but to pressure him through their gazes so he'd wrap things up.
Grace noticed this as well and turned toward some of those groups with a smile and a wave, offering a bit of fan service that satisfied them for the moment and freed Leon from the storm of glares.
"Ah, right. You haven't met her, have you? Our younger sister," Tom suddenly said, turning behind him toward the third person in their group, who was still standing on the last step of the stairs, looking around the hall in silent awe.
When Tom looked at her, she immediately shifted her attention to him before stepping down the stairs, walking up to Leon and lightly pinching her dress as she curtsied while introducing herself.
"Vivian Clemons greets the young lord of House Raviaz."
"Nice to meet you, Lady Clemons," Leon replied.
"The pleasure is mine, Lord Raviaz," Vivian said with a light bow.
At that, Leon waved his hand dismissively.
"Oh, please, just call me Leon like your siblings do."
Right as he said that, Grace placed a hand on her sister's back and pulled her a little closer as she spoke.
"Yes, Vivian, there's no need to attach any titles to this silly boy over here."
"Oh wow. Your sister has barely made her debut, and you're already teaching her to ignore centuries of established noble etiquette. What a model sibling you are," Leon said with a scoff, and Tom instantly burst into laughter.
However, when Grace shot him a silent glare, he quickly kept quiet and turned his gaze elsewhere while whistling.
"Speaking of debutantes," Leon continued, ignoring Grace's pointed stare as he raised his left hand.
His watch face lit up, and a small box appeared on his palm, which he then presented to Vivian.
"It's a bit early, but here's a little gift in advance for the young lady."
Vivian blinked in mild surprise, then quickly composed herself and bowed lightly as she accepted it.
"Thank you very much, Lord Leon."
"Ah, don't mention it. She may be a tomboy, but Grace is still someone I consider a friend, so it's only natural I'd prepare something for her younger sister coming of age."
"Ahem, what did you just call me?" Grace asked, reaching out and grabbing Leon's shoulder.
"Well, I actually called you the fairest lady of the land," Leon instantly replied with a polite smile, quickly changing his tune after feeling Grace's iron grip on his shoulder.
Tom watched the interaction between them with a wry smile, then glanced at Vivian, who was staring at the box Leon had just handed her with curiosity burning in her eyes.
"Do you want to see what's inside already?" he asked.
Upon hearing that, Leon turned toward Vivian and spoke. "Ah, that's not a problem. You can go ahead and open it."
Having received the go-ahead, Vivian carefully pulled at the ribbon, unwrapping the box before opening it to reveal a small silver necklace with an oval-shaped green diamond set into the pendant.
"It's beautiful," she said softly, lifting the pendant. For a moment, she felt like she could make out some writing inside the diamond, but Leon spoke right as she noticed it, pulling her attention back to him.
"I'm glad you like it. Go ahead and put it on. As fate would have it, it looks like it would match your dress tonight," Leon said, glancing down at Vivian's white dress.
"Allow me," Tom said as he took the necklace and moved behind Vivian, unclasping the one she had been wearing before replacing it with the new piece.
It was simpler than the one she had worn earlier, but it still suited her perfectly, its colours matching well with her green eyes and silver-highlighted green hair.
While Vivian was admiring her new necklace in her handheld mirror, a short distance away, Louise and Camellya were engaged in a conversation… if their question-and-answer session could be called a conversation at all.