"The uniquely nad Summoner Slayer," Ryder mused aloud, his mind working through the bombshell. "Does that an you were actually a killer? Like, professionally?"
"Yes, I was," Leo responded, his playful character diminishing again.
There was no pride in the admission, no sha either. Just the simple acknowledgnt of a truth he'd carried for over a century.
Brok stole a quick glance then quickly turned away, hoping it wasn't noticed, but he was caught red-handed by Leo who wasn't even staring at him.
Those enhanced silver eyes missed nothing, a fact Brok was beginning to find both impressive and unsettling at the sa ti.
"Worry not, big guy," Leo spoke with a slight grin, though there was understanding in his tone. "Don't worry, I'm not going to suddenly develop a taste for friends' blood or anything dramatic like that."
Brok attempted a nervous laugh that ca out more like a strangled cough. "Right, of course not. It's just... you know... 'slayer' is not what I had assud it to be."
"I thought you were being referred to with that na just to seem flashy, I never thought it was so real."
"You see, I'm from the underworld and none of the people I've known have been able to make a big killer na like that for themselves," Brok explained with rapid words as he scratched his head nervously. "None are as popular either."
Leo burst into laughter upon hearing Brok go on, however, this wasn't the usual playful laughter... This was quite mature. A part of Leo that Brok really wanted to stop seeing.
Lucky for him, Ryder had spoken to divert Leo's attention, sparing him from awkwardness.
"If you were a killer, why were you feeling worried about the portal from earlier hurting the villagers?" Ryder pressed, his mind working through the clear contradictions between what Leo claid and how he behaved.
"Why were you worried about the lives of the villagers? Your reaction when that old woman died—that wasn't the response of soone who's comfortable with death."
Leo remained silent for a while, like he was hesitating and carefully selecting his next words. The weight of years of experiences pressed down on him—mories of fights he'd rather forget rushing back, of necessary kills that he had to make.
"Because I am not actually the kind of killer I am assud to be," he finally said, his voice quieter than usual.
Brok perked up, sensing there was more to the story. Despite his nervous comnt earlier, he was genuinely curious to know more about Leo. "What do you an?"
"You see, 'Summoner Slayer' isn't actually the right word to describe ," Leo explained, his pace slowing as they walked. "To be more appropriate, I should have been referred to as 'Familiar Slayer' because that's what I specialize in exterminating."
"Most of the ti, summoners do not attack directly but they use their familiars, and so I mostly kill familiars."
He paused, watching a bird circle overhead for fleeting monts. "You have to understand, back in my day, there were a lot more... let's call them 'problematic' summoners around.
People who used their familiars to terrorize others, to settle personal scores, to commit cris and most importantly, ss with because they thought they could get away with it due to them having powerful familiars."
"The authorities were often either corrupt, too weak, or simply didn't care about what happened to ordinary people. So soone had to step in."
Ryder found himself trying to picture Leo's past in his head. "So you were like... a vigilante?"
"I suppose that's one way to put it," Leo chuckled, though it wasn't really with amusent this ti. "Though I never saw myself as so noble hero. I just... couldn't stand watching innocent people suffer when I had the power to stop it."
"I know what it is like to feel bullied. After all, I am a blind man that can barely see objects with my natural sight and at a point in ti, I was blind and still hadn't unlocked the Silver Gaze."
"There are only a few tis I have killed summoners," he continued, his voice taking on a more serious tone. "And every single ti, it was because they left no choice."
"I carefully select the reason I kill, ensuring there is a valid reason for it. I don't take lives lightly—never have, never will."
Brok nodded slowly, beginning to understand. "So when their familiars were defeated..."
"You see, so summoners who can't control their emotions beco enraged after they lose their familiars to , instead of feeling fear," Leo explained. "They attack with the intention to kill, and that's why they ended up dying by my hand."
"It's always self-defense?" Ryder asked.
"Always," Leo confird firmly. "I may have killed familiars for what I would call justice, but I've never killed a human being who didn't try to kill first or kill others. That's a line I've never crossed and never will."
"I believe you can testify, Ryder, I tried to kill you only because you had caused so much destruction and was seen as a potential danger to the life of ordinary folks."
Pointing forward, Leo questioned despite the absurdity of the situation he was seeing.
"Where is my house!"
It was supposed to beco a comical question but Brok and Ryder couldn't seem to laugh. The scene before them was too unsettling for laughter.
"I think you should be shedding tears, Leo, not acting surprised," Brok spoke, sniffing in place of Leo.
The area where Leo's apartnt was previously stationed was completely deserted.
For several yards there were no buildings, just a plain leveled land that seed surprising and impossible. It wasn't just that the building was gone—it was as if it had never existed at all. The ground was smooth, unmarked, with not even rubble or debris to indicate that anything had ever stood there.
"It was here a while ago and now it's no more. What the hell happened?" Leo muttered, walking to where his front door should have been. "There were no violent explosions of so sort; the battle we were fighting earlier clearly caused more scene and noise than whatever transpired here."
Ryder knelt down and touched the ground where Leo's sitting room should have been. The earth was unnaturally leveled, sothing definitely went on here.
"Everything seed so surprising. Everything," Brok spoke again. He'd grown fond of Leo's cozy apartnt during their brief stay.
Everyone was lost except Leo, who suddenly straightened up with a look of grim understanding crossing his features. "Now I know where the aura was coming from."
Ryder and Brok both turned to listen as Leo faced them, his expression serious. "Rember the heavy wave of gamma energy that caused the portal, the one I've been telling you about since the start?"
Like a light bulb, the realization flashed in both Brok and Ryder's minds. The pieces of the puzzle were finally clicking into place.
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