Boss

"Ok, moving on. For real this time."

Leon again tried to move the conversation towards another direction once after he saw how they were running out of jokes at Blaine's expense. This time they actually quieted down and allowed him to take control of the conversation. At least they had the tact to know when he was being serious and the time for messing around has passed.

"I've been holed up in the Clan for the past two weeks and I mainly came out today to find something to entertain myself with. Just go ahead and start throwing out some ideas."

The room went into complete silence as everyone was busy using their brains to cook up different ideas. Leon almost suspected that this was the most that these fellows had ever exerted their mind in their life, maybe with the exception of Caleb. At first he was confused why they were taking the matter so seriously, but then he remembered how when he first arrived they didn't seem the closest of friends. The only reason they probably hung out before was to utilize the status of each other while also forming connections for the future.

Now however, Leon showed that he was at least slightly capable and appeared as someone who was reliable. The reason they were expending so much effort on this little task of his was so that they could get in his good graces most likely. Alright, if that was how they wanted to treat this matter then Leon would just play along and treat it as some game, if anyone gave a well thought out answer he might even keep them in mind as someone who could be utilized in the future. Hmm, this was almost like when he had to give a presentation to the higher ups in old life and hope to gain their approval.

Maybe due to the imagery popping up in his head without him even noticing it Leon sat up a little straighter and his eyes became sharper. While to the others it was like his gaze pierced right through any falsehood, they didn't know what was different about their Boss but they all felt that his presence became far scarier than a moment ago. Strangely enough, they even thought that he was scarier now than when he confronted Blaine. Even the silent companion of his standing guard outside the door had an unreadable expression as he felt this change in the person under his protection.

One of them gathered his courage and for reasons unknown to even himself he raised his hand shakily. After getting a nod of acknowledgement he put his hand back down before presenting his ideas before the Boss.

"Well, if we're talking about entertainment in the city, then the Arena would be the go to spot."

Someone opened their mouth but hesitated and instead raised their hand up. It was an amusing sight to see a bunch of Young Masters that everyone in Phoenix Cry City would dread to run into acting like a bunch of school kids. Maybe this proved that there was always a bigger fish, so what if they're problematic Young Masters of big Clans, before them was the Pariah of a Major Clan. However, if anyone were to ask any of them their thoughts on the matter, then all of them would tell you that it wasn't his status or reputation that subdued them but something else entirely. Sadly, even they didn't know what it was about him that made them act like so.

"While the arena might usually be a good choice, lately there haven't been any big fights, none of the popular fighters have been participating nor have there been any promising rookies either. All the fights that have been happening lately felt very underwhelming, I felt that even I could have just gone down and beaten the participants."

The Arena? He was still interested in seeing cultivators fight, but it was something else that was said that caught his interest. None of the more popular fighters were participating? If they weren't fighting down at the arena, then what was keeping all of them occupied? Leon saw how none of the others were speaking up about the matter so maybe he was just overthinking and creating his own fantasy. Otherwise, Leon was too afraid to accept the alternative and what it would signify.

Again, another person raised their hand, but this time it was to bring up a different option for Leon.

"There's always the Theatre; oh, but all of the plays that are being shown there are things that we have already seen. You know what, just forget I ever said anything."

This time no one else had to give their own take on the suggestion as the presenter himself shot his own idea down. A second later a few hands went up this time which caused Leon to blink. He ended up just choosing the person who Leon had the strongest impression of from the group, Caleb.

"If you wait three weeks then it's been said that famous zither player, Aria, will be playing at the Music Hall in our Phoenix Cry City. I heard that it's really hard to get a ticket to watch her since her performances are usually sold out, but with our status we shouldn't have any such problem."

A few glares were thrown his way by the others who hadn't gotten a chance yet to present their own ideas, while those from before seemed to be angry at themselves. This reaction really surprised Leon, he could infer that all of them believed that this was the answer that would have hooked the original for sure.

Did the original actually have a hobby of listening to music? Or was it due to that Aria person? Was he a fan? Strange, Leon couldn't remember having seen anything related to music or anything connected to someone called Aria in the original's room. While Leon wasn't that interested in going to see the performance, he didn't note that it would happen after the Heavens' Chosen arrived. There was the chance that the Chosen would go to see the concert themselves. As for Aria being the Heavens' Chosen? That could be denied seeing as how her arrival and the Chosens don't line up.

"Alright, that sounds good. Really good, but I'm still gonna go ahead and have everyone present their own ideas. I'm also interested in experiencing something either new or giving stuff I wasn't really interested in a second try. By the way, you're not limited to just one, go ahead and just throw out whatever comes to mind."

While the enthusiasm died down due to what they believed to be the best choice having been already presented, they still complied and started to rapidly fire out options for him to choose from.

"I heard the Phoenix Cry Auction House has been accepting items to put up for the next big auction, but they haven't released the date of the actual event yet."

"There's a traveling troupe that came to the city about a few days ago, but I haven't really heard news about if they're good or not. I've never heard of their name before, so I don't think they're that famous. I recommend giving it a few more days and at that point public opinion of them should have formed by then."

"A new restaurant opened up. Boss, I really think we should go check it out."

"Damn it Drew, that's what you want to do. Stop trying to mislead the Boss with your own desires."

"Umm, there's always the different art galleries around the city that you could go to. I heard that at the Stanley Art Gallery the Vale Clan is showing off a part of their collection for the first time. Gar Robinson also produced a new sculpture and it's being displayed down at Carved Glory."

Hmm? What a surprise, Leon hadn't expected one of his underlings would have a taste for something as sophisticated as art. If he remembered correctly this guy's name was Victor. Maybe he shouldn't be surprised, even with their personality they are still part of the upper echelon of society. Those kinds of people are usually attracted to such things, like the original's possible attraction to music.

They continued to throw out a few more ideas, but it was clear that the more popular and famous locations had been introduced already. The presentations ended up devolving into just bringing up different casinos and brothels. While Leon himself might not have had any interest in going to such places, he couldn't ignore that the places he might have to go to the future wasn't up to him but the Heavens' Chosen. Even if the one that was due to arrive in a little over two weeks might not have any desire to visit any such places, there were always the ones that would come after that he had to keep in mind.

"Alright, that's good. I said you're good, you can stop now. I think I'm just gonna continue to wander around the entertainment district for a little while longer. I might check out a place or two while I'm at it, but I don't have any plans to stay out late tonight. I'll probably go visit some of the places you all brought up the next few days."

After that everyone finally relaxed. Why were they so exhausted just from using their brains a little? Leon couldn't help but ridicule them a little in his thoughts seeing how tired all of them looked. What he misunderstood was that rather than the thinking, it was the pressure that he had unknowingly given off that made them end up like this.