I observed Leon approaching the double doors, but the retainers assigned to open it remained motionless, glaring at him with contempt. He attempted to push the doors open, but the retainers' lack of assistance caused him to lose his balance, resulting in a sudden fall that left him sprawled on the ground.
Leon quickly placed his palms on the ground to lift himself up, all the while shooting an angry glare towards the retainers who had neglected their duty. However, upon meeting their hostile gaze, he averted his eyes, as if intimidated. He rose to his feet and briskly walked away, without another word.
"Let's follow him, shall we?" the girl next to me spoke up, gesturing towards the double doors. Without hesitation, she strode towards the exit and I trailed closely behind.
Stepping outside, a low rumble caught my attention, and I gazed upwards to find grey clouds gathering overhead. It seemed as though the rain could start pouring down at any moment.
As I looked towards Leon, who walked ahead of us, I noticed his gaze was distant and unfocused, as if he were lost in thought and not fully present in the moment.
Suddenly, a heavy raindrop landed on Leon's shoulder, startling him into awareness. The pitter-patter of rain began to fall, but soon it intensified into a downpour that instantly soaked him through. Walking in the rain, he appeared like a lost child abandoned by his parents. He continued to wander in a daze, lost in his own thoughts and oblivious to his surroundings.
Then, in a quiet voice, Leon asked himself, "Am I truly that incompetent?"
There was no one around to answer his self-questioning. All he heard in response was the pattering sound of the raindrops.
At that moment, I found myself wondering about the complex mix of emotions that must have been consuming him. Was it anger, sadness, frustration, shame, regret, or a combination of all of them? Although I sensed intense emotions emanating from him, I couldn't quite put my finger on which ones were truly running through him.
As he was about to step off the estate's lawn, he glanced back one last time. Curious, I followed his gaze, only to realize he wasn't looking at anything specific. He seemed to be checking if anyone from the estate was coming to stop him from leaving, but no one appeared.
Leon eventually mustered the courage to step outside, but his legs buckled beneath him as if the strings that once held him up had been severed.
Now drenched in the rain with no means of returning to the shelter he had once called home, he simply stared at his reflection in a puddle formed by the downpour.
"Why... why did this happen?" he whispered to himself, his eyes transfixed on his own reflection. "How? Why did it come to this?"
In that moment, I couldn't help but question it all myself. Why did it have to come to this? Why did they cast me aside like a worthless piece of rubbish, not even fit to be thrown in the trash? Hadn't I been a part of their home, their family?
And why were they treating my hardworking father with such contempt? Why were they treating him with such disrespect, preventing him from returning home simply because he pursued his dream of becoming an adventurer?
And my mother, why were they looking at her like she was some kind of monster just because she was a demi-human, just because she was different? None of this was their fault; it was simply the hand fate had dealt them.
As for me, all I desire was to restore my father's honor that was unfairly taken away from him when he left the Asura household to pursue a career as an adventurer. My father, a man of great strength and kindness, was the most deserving candidate for the head of the Asura house position, and his disownment was a grave injustice.
I cannot accept that the title of successor was handed over to Marcus, who in my eyes, does not deserve it. So, I challenged him for the seat, claiming that I wanted to prove my competency. But in reality, I was driven by desperation to make things right for my father.
However, Marcus showed no respect for me or my cause. He merely smirked at me and looked down upon me with his nose, as if I were beneath him.
As all of this came back to my mind, Leon let out a cry of frustration and pounded his fist onto the ground. However, he wasn't punching the ground—he was punching his own reflection. "Why?!" he shouted. "Why did it have to turn out like this? Why did things have to end up this way? Why? Why? Why?!"
Leon's face was drenched with a mixture of rain and tears, his emotions overwhelming him. He cried uncontrollably, like a child who had lost their way. His frustration had built up to a point where all he could do was weep. The tears flowed down his cheeks, intermingling with the raindrops and forming rivulets that ran down his face.
As I looked at Leon, my face twisted in a mix of emotions. It was clear that he was refusing to face reality. He hadn't acknowledged the fact that he had been disowned, and instead was denying everything and screaming like a child. It was a pathetic sight to behold, to say the least.
As I looked down at the ground beneath me, a puddle of water began to form due to the heavy rain. As I caught sight of the reflection in the puddle, I saw a pained expression on the face staring back at me. It took a moment for me to realize that the face reflected in that small pool of water was not just any face—it was my face.
I have crimson hair and eyes, with an androgynous face that even I couldn't distinguish whether it was that of a boy or a girl. As I looked over at Leon, who was punching the ground, I realized that my reflection actually looked like him. No, it was more accurate to say that I looked like Leon.
Just then, I gasped as a realization hit me. The discomfort I had been feeling since seeing the girl in the courtyard finally made sense. I realized in that moment that the person I had been watching, Leon, was actually me. I am Leon Asura.
"Ah, it seems you've finally come to realize your true identity," chimed a delighted voice. I spun around, searching for the source of the sound, but found no one in sight.
"I'm up here!"
As I gazed upwards, I discovered the source of the voice: the enigmatic black-haired girl was floating in mid-air, just above me. However, I attempted to avert my eyes from the slightly indecent view of her undergarments that was visible from my angle.
"Oops, it looks like you're not falling for that trick," the girl said with a mischievous grin. In a flash, she appeared in front of me, and I found myself face to face with her, her face just fingers away from my nose. The suddenness of it all caught me off guard, and I recoiled slightly, surprised by her lightning-fast movements.
But then, I quickly realized something peculiar. If this was either a dream or a recollection from my past, there was no logical way for me to communicate with someone who existed solely within that realm. As far as I understood, I was merely an observer of this surreal experience. So how was it possible that I could speak to her?
The only logical explanations that came to mind were that either she, too, was an observer in this dream or memory, or she was the one creating and showing me these events.
I looked at her grinning face and asked, "Who are you?" It was the first time I had spoken since I arrived in this place, so I was a bit surprised that I could still speak.
"Me? Oh, I'm just a mere nobody," the girl giggled mischievously. "I'm just here to deliver a message, that's all."
"A message?"
"Yes. A message. But before I convey it to you, I must ask: will you be able to deny reality when it's staring you right in the face?" The girl's voice took on a serious note, though the mischievous glint in her eye remained.
"Huh? What are you talking about?"
"I'm speaking of your reality, Leon. After seeing these memories I've shown you, have you finally come to terms with how miserable and pathetic you truly are? Or will you continue to deny your reality?" The girl's mischievous smile remained, a stark contrast to the weight of her question. She then materialized once again directly in front of me, her face a mere finger's length from my own.
I took a step back, attempting to create some distance between myself and the girl. "Uh...I'm afraid I'm not following you," I said, my voice betraying my unease.
The girl, with that impish grin still plastered on her face, twirled around from me and took a few steps forward before coming to a sudden halt. In that instant, the world around us blurred and before I could comprehend what was happening, I found myself back in the white space once more. She turned her head slightly to glance at me, her back still facing me, then with a mischievous twinkle in her eye, she declared, "You're lying. You know precisely what I'm talking about."