As he stepped into the front garden of his adoptive family's home, Leon felt his heart warm for a brief moment, a feeling he made sure to hide so it wouldn't show on his face. The memories of that body remembered that place perfectly. Everything Leon had done up to that point had been for a single purpose: to strengthen the Everhart family. Every one of his plans, every effort, and everything he had endured had been to build the best possible place for them to live.
'But I'm not the real Leon, so I can't feel proud of it... And, to be honest, I don't even want to.'
[That's a good thing, because if you did, it would cancel your current mission.]
That was true. The mission of fighting Rank Ten users had not yet been completed. He had already found a few to fight, but in the middle of a war, it was extremely difficult to convince an ally to participate in a battle where both of them could end up seriously injured. That was also the reason he still hadn't sought out a sparring match against the Five Elementals.
'I need to find one more Rank Ten enemy. How many are left?'
[Just one more, and you'll complete the mission.]
'Great. I'm praying to every constellation to help me this time.'
[Massaging their egos isn't going to increase the level of the reward you're going to receive.]
Leon looked away with a hint of disappointment, but soon noticed Rebecca and Elara talking about the garden as they walked toward the inside of the mansion. The atmosphere between the two of them was, honestly, strange. Leon was not the type of man who was completely clueless when it came to relationships or emotions. On the contrary, he usually noticed people's feelings with ease, and that was precisely why he immediately realized there was something unusual about that conversation.
'Her behavior... The eagerness she showed to see me and how happy she was when I said I'd come visit had already been bothering me because it was much greater than in the story. Now, seeing the way she's acting around Rebecca, my suspicions are practically confirmed.'
The current Elara liked Leon. At the same time that his body seemed to want to react with happiness upon reaching that conclusion, his mind completely rejected that possibility. Even so, after observing her behavior, it became impossible to keep denying reality. Especially after hearing the next part of their conversation.
"Leon personally helped me build my room."
"That's wonderful, Miss Elara. A brother should help with things like that."
"I'd rather not call him my brother. We don't even share the same blood. To me, he's the most important person in the world... and I'm sure he feels the same way about me."
If looks could kill, bolts of lightning would have been flying between the two of them at that very moment. The tension was even greater than the one that had existed between Alistair and Kae. Leon had managed to calm that situation down, but he wasn't even considering trying to do the same now.
'This is unbelievable... but she really does like me.'
[You know... I hate you.]
He had seen this kind of rivalry before. At Astrong Academy, Serenya and Valença were the ones who competed the most for his attention, and after they started spending every day with him, he came to understand even better how intense female rivalry could be, especially when two people liked the same person.
"Leon lived in this house with me and my parents for a long time after it was built. So I hope that one day he'll come back to live here..."
'With me, of course.'
The true meaning of those words remained only in Elara's mind. She carefully watched Rebecca's reaction. The young noblewoman maintained a calm expression, but it was obvious that, deep down, she was irritated.
'As always... it's so easy to irritate her.'
"Well, even if he comes back to live here, he'll take me with him. After all, I'm his wife. Isn't that right, dear?"
"Yes. I'll take you with me."
Leon's immediate reply made a victorious smile appear on Rebecca's face before she resumed walking. For a brief moment, Elara shot him a threatening look, but she soon returned to her polite smile as though nothing had happened.
'I'm sorry, Elara... but she's my wife.'
[Enrico... what do you think of this Elara? She's very different from the Elara in the story where she was the protagonist, and also from the story where Valeria was the protagonist.]
'I'll find out later. Be patient, because I have a lot of questions too.'
The mansion's front door was opened by the butler, who had already been waiting for Leon's arrival. Inside the residence, several maids were tidying up the place, while a line of guards stood at the entrance to welcome him. Seeing that reception, Leon let out a faint sigh. They were treating him as if he were a king.
"Welcome back home, my son."
"We've been waiting for you to come visit us ever since you returned."
Standing before him were his adoptive parents, Richard Everhart and Isolde Everhart. Without a doubt, they were the two most responsible for all that exaggeration. As far as Leon could tell, the family no longer faced any hardships that would require them to resort to an arranged marriage. After all, all the wealth he had sent, combined with the countless merits he had earned during the war, had greatly increased the Everhart family's prestige, and it had grown even more since the story in which Leon was a villain had changed.
'I was actually surprised. In the original story, they really did consider an arranged marriage.'
"Look how healthy you are, dear. I thought you'd come back from the war much thinner, but I see I didn't need to worry."
Isolde gently held his cheeks, making Leon blush faintly. Receiving that kind of affection, knowing everything that would happen in the future, felt strange. It was the same uncomfortable feeling he experienced when he realized that the current Elara liked him.
"Well... you were the one who told me to take good care of myself."
"And that's why you're a good son."
'This is only making me feel even more guilty, ma'am... please stop.'
Calmly, Leon held Isolde's hands and replied with a small smile before continuing to talk with the two of them. However, his mind was already returning to the matters that truly mattered. From that point onward, he would have to stop the enemy's next plans while also investigating what was really happening with Elara.
'He looks so adorable when he's embarrassed.'
Elara watched Leon with one hand resting against her cheek, but her eyes grew slightly colder when Rebecca approached Richard and Isolde to introduce herself, right after Leon called her over.
"This is my wife... Mother, Father."
"It's a pleasure to meet you, dear."
"You found yourself a beautiful wife, son."
"Thank you very much for the compliment. The pleasure is mine to meet you. My name is Rebecca Solfyr."
Isolde brought one hand to her mouth in surprise, while Richard showed a clear look of admiration. Even before the wedding, Rebecca had already introduced herself using the Solfyr family name. Upon hearing that, Elara let out a quiet snort of irritation.