Chapter 1 — The Prelude to the Prelude (8)

"That's right. A jester. Hahaha," he continued with a mocking tone, relishing in his verbal attack. "You are nothing but a joke, Leon. Just like your father. Now, I see why you are such a disappointment. So you really are his son. As expected, you truly resemble your father in both incompetence and foolishness."

The words cut deep, and Leon felt his anger rise like a burning flame. He pulled himself back to his feet the moment Hughes said that. "What did you say?! I don't care if you're the Head of the Lios house! Take those words back right this instant!"

Hughes let out a low chuckle, clearly amused by Leon's words. "Oh? Are you going to challenge me to a duel too, just because I'd insulted your father? How simpleminded. You are too weak and too incompetent to even hold a candle to me. Don't embarrass yourself further, Leon."

Leon's fists shook with rage, his vision blurring with tears. "You have no right to speak of my father that way," he said, his voice shaking with anger. "He may not be perfect, but he is still my father. And he has always been there for me, no matter what. He taught me to be strong and to never give up on my dreams. And I will not let you or anyone else tear him down like this."

Sir Hughes chuckled dismissively. "Your naivete is amusing. Your father was a fool who threw away his potential for the sake of his own desires. And as for that demi-human, well, who knows what diseases or curses she carried. Your father's reckless behavior has tainted your bloodline, Leon."

That seemed to be the last straw for Leon. His face contorted with rage, and he roared at Sir Hughes, "Don't speak ill of my parents!"

Without another word, Leon charged forward, his sword held high and ready to strike. As he came within reach, he swung his blade with all his might, hoping to land a devastating blow on his opponent.

But Sir Hughes was too quick, too skilled, too experienced. He didn't even flinch as Leon's sword came hurtling towards him. Instead, he merely flicked his right hand in a casual gesture, and the sword was deflected with ease.

Leon stumbled forward, off-balance and vulnerable, but he quickly regained his footing and lunged forward again. His movements were fueled by anger and desperation, but Hughes remained calm and composed, barely even breaking a sweat as he easily dodged and parried Leon's attacks.

"Leon! Stop this at once!" Sirius intervened, but Leon was too preoccupied with his anger towards Sir Hughes to listen. Sirius tried again, "Do you even know who you're attacking? If grandfather finds out, he'll be livid!" But Leon's fury was too intense, and he continued to swing his sword towards Sir Hughes.

Sir Hughes deftly avoided each attack Leon threw at him, gracefully moving his body out of harm's way with ease. Despite Leon's relentless assault, Sir Hughes didn't seem to be breaking a sweat. After some time had passed, Sir Hughes let out a disappointed sigh, as if to indicate that this pointless exercise had gone on long enough.

He unsheathed his sword from his cane, the glint of metal shining in the light. With a swift and almost imperceptible movement, he sliced his wooden sword into four pieces, the sound of wood cracking filling the air. The display of skill and precision left Leon stunned, his anger momentarily forgotten.

"That's all? Is that really all you have to offer?" Sir Hughes asked, his voice cold. "And you have the delusion of achieving greatness and realizing your dreams? With what? With your feeble sword skills and lack of strategy? You couldn't even handle a simple insult without losing your temper. How do you expect me to believe that you are a son of a prestigious family such as the Asura house? All the members of that household know how to at least wield a sword, but what about you? You're nothing but a disgrace to their name."

"I-I don't believe that! I can improve, I can get better!" Leon protested, his voice trembling with emotion.

But Sir Hughes just let out a scoff. "It's too late for that, Leon. You've already proven yourself to be a disappointment. You'll never be able to live up to the reputation of the Asura house."

"You're indeed a son of the Asura house but that's all there is to it. Without that name to carry you, you're nothing," Hughes continued, adding insult to injury.

It seemed that Leon couldn't argue any further. All he could do was hang his head in defeat. Hughes was right. Without the Asura name to back him up, he was nothing.

Leon bit his lower lip and began to tremble. He looked like he might start crying at any moment.

Sir Hughes regarded him coolly, unimpressed by his display of emotion. "Now, do you understand?" he asked, his tone cold and unsympathetic.

Leon remained silent, unable to utter a single word. He didn't want to make eye contact with anyone, let alone Sir Hughes.

Sir Hughes sighed, clearly impatient with Leon's lack of response. "If you get it, disappear from my sight. You're an eyesore," he glared at him, making no attempt to hide his displeasure.

With that, he strode purposefully towards the exit of the courtyard, Marcus following closely behind.

Before leaving, Marcus turned to take one last look at Leon. The expression on his face was a mixture of amusement and disdain, as if he was holding back a fit of laughter.

"Do you finally understand now, Leon? How much of a jester you truly are?" he asked with a tone of mock concern, shrugging his shoulders in an exaggerated manner. His words were like salt on an open wound, emphasizing Leon's failure and incompetence. "Well, you proved that you're truly a jester. Your lack of skill with the sword and inability to control your emotions make you nothing but a clown in the eyes of others." He paused for a moment, taking in Leon's defeated demeanor, before continuing with a cruel grin. "I suggest you stick to juggling and performing tricks for the amusement of others. At least then you might have a chance at succeeding."

Then, Marcus turned on his heels and made his way towards the exit, his laughter ringing in the courtyard as he left.

The spectators were now openly mocking Leon, shouting insults and taunts at him. They found his efforts to land a hit on Marcus or Sir Hughes to be highly entertaining, and they weren't afraid to say so. It was almost uncanny how Sir Hughes had called Leon a clown, as his actions during the match seemed to confirm the comparison. With his clumsy movements and ineffective attacks, Leon had unwittingly provided the audience with a comedic show.

Leon slowly got to his feet and stumbled out of the courtyard, his head hanging low in shame. As he walked towards the exit, he couldn't help but feel that everyone was watching him, judging him. He felt like he had lost everything in that one moment. As Leon continued his walk, he tried to ignore the laughter and insults hurled his way. But they only seemed to grow louder and more cutting. It was as if everyone was out to get him, to make him feel as small and insignificant as possible. And in that moment, they had succeeded.

The tears that had been threatening to spill over finally escaped, streaming down his face unchecked. Leon was crying, and he couldn't stop himself. It was a pitiful sight, one that only served to amuse the onlookers even more. He had become a subject of ridicule, a person who was viewed as incompetent and a failure.

Honestly, it pained me to watch. Then, before I knew it, tears welled up in the corners of my eyes as well—though I wasn't entirely sure why.

"Oh, what a pitiful sight," came a girl's voice beside me.

Turning towards the origin of the voice, I saw a black-haired girl looking at Leon with a wide grin on her face. Although her clothes were revealing and not suitable for her young appearance, no one took notice of her or paid any attention to her, despite the fact that she could have stood out. However, what was truly peculiar was that out of all the people gathered there, she was the only one I could not recognize. Despite that, I couldn't shake the feeling that I had seen her somewhere before.

"It seemed mortals really like to relish at the failures of others. How very interesting," the girl beside me began to chuckle, as if finding the whole spectacle rather amusing. I had no idea what she found so amusing about all of this, though.

I couldn't help but wonder who this girl was and why she was here. I shifted my gaze towards her, trying to observe her closely and find some clues.

Suddenly, she turned towards me, her eyes meeting mine, and gave me a beaming, innocent smile. At that moment, I had to blink my eyes and do a double-take.

Huh? Wait... Did our eyes really meet just now? Had we really made eye contact?

I couldn't believe it.

Perhaps it was just my imagination playing tricks on me, or maybe it was just a momentary coincidence.

"So this is what happened during your childhood, Leon. I see. That's why you've isolated yourself from the outside world," she said with a tone of sympathy.

The tone of the girl's voice as she spoke made it clear that she wasn't simply talking to herself. Rather, it seemed as though she was addressing me directly. Now, I knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that our gazes had truly met.

"Don't you remember?" she asked me, and I was caught off guard by the sudden question. Confusion clouded my mind as I struggled to recall what it was that she was referring to.

"Huh?" I responded, still trying to piece together the fragments of my memory. Remember? Remember what? What was she talking about?

She then pointed towards Leon and uttered the words, "You're him."

As soon as she spoke those words, everything suddenly fell into place. It was as though a switch had been flipped, and my memory had been awakened.

"Oh, that's right. I remember now," I muttered, slowly coming to terms with the reality of the situation. "This is not a dream—it's my memories playing back in my mind."

As I looked around, I noticed that everything was still and frozen, as if time had been paused by some unknown force.

I realized that what I was experiencing was a fragment of my memory. It was an unwelcome memory, one that I had long buried deep within my mind. I had done my best to suppress it, drowning it out with feelings of inadequacy and self-doubt. For two years, I had managed to convince myself that it had never occurred. But now, it was all coming back to me, in vivid detail.

That's right. My name is Leon Asura, the third son of House Asura. I wasn't dead; I was trapped in a memory.

Turning to face the girl, I found her smiling at me. "It seems you remember now," she said, her voice tinged with a hint of amusement.

Yes, that's right. I remembered. I nodded slowly, acknowledging that I had indeed remembered. But even as I did so, I couldn't help but wonder why I was having this dream now, after all this time.

Suddenly, I heard a sudden snap, and my surroundings began to blur and shift around me. The sensation was disorienting, and for a moment, I felt like I was spinning out of control. When I finally came to a stop, I found myself standing in a completely different room.