"Haah."
Standing in front of a huge metallic gate, Leon studied his surroundings.
After the interview, he had parted ways with his maid, and also told the carriage driver not to wait for him.
It had only been a few days since he transmigrated into this world, and he'd spent most of his time trying to forcefully awaken Leon's powers, attending a banquet, and sitting through an interview.
Because of all that, he hadn't had much time to explore the surroundings.
'So, this is the famous Hausen Market?'
Now that he'd been accepted into Eclipse, he decided to do a little window shopping.
And what better place to visit than Hausen Market… the biggest marketplace in all of Shinra, the capital of the Liora Kingdom?
The estate of House Nightson and many of the business-oriented noble houses were based here in Shinra.
It was the heart of the Liora Kingdom, where most of the major trades and big-shot businesses happened.
'Now, where should I start?'
Just past the gates, hundreds of shops were lined up along both sides of the road.
From simple pins to the most luxurious items, Hausen Market had it all.
And due to its popularity worldwide, Leon spotted several foreigners in the crowd as he stepped in.
'They are not from here…'
Indeed, the build of those men was different. They had dark skin and naturally broader frames.
They were people of the Ajin Kingdom, situated not too far from Liora. Due to their climate and lifestyle, most people born there developed strong, muscular physiques.
The other kingdoms referred to them as warriors, thanks to their natural physical prowess.
They reminded Leon of a certain someone.
Leon grinned, recalling his interview with the Headmaster.
'Knowing the guy, he must've hired her to keep an eye on me.'
There was no way Raizen would overlook Leon's sudden burst of intelligence.
'Well, she won't do much without Raizen's orders.'
Due to his current terrible rank and strength, Leon couldn't confirm for sure if Raizen had really sent someone to watch him.
"Doesn't matter." He muttered.
Whether he was being spied on by Raizen or even Eula, it didn't change the fact that Leon had deliberately exposed himself to them just to plant himself in their minds.
'It's called psychology.'
As he walked past one of the stalls, he overheard a conversation.
"Did you hear? Another man's body was found last night," one vendor whispered over his shoulder.
"Again?" the other leaned in.
"Yeah. Just like the others, this body was dried like a fish with several bite marks left behind."
"Guh! That's terrible," the first man shivered. "I tell ya, our city's got monsters underground."
He hugged himself, pointing toward a nearby manhole.
"I occasionally hear screams from those things."
"Woah, for real?"
"There's nothing 'woah' about it."
"Still... you really think it's monsters? Even with all the security, how'd they get into the capital?"
"Beats me," the man muttered. "I just don't go out at night anymore."
Leon listened carefully to their conversation.
'A dried up corpse, with bite marks?'
He frowned, pressing his brain to recall.
'It seems familiar…'
"Ah."
Then, it clicked.
'But why is this happening now?'
In the game's original storyline, there was an incident that occurred within Eclipse Institute, where several bodies were discovered in the student dorms.
They too had the same traits: dried up body, with several bite marks.
That incident had caused a nationwide uproar. Headlines dominated the newspapers, and the scandal brought Eclipse to its knees, especially because all the victims were commoners.
Due to which, Eclipse Institute faced huge backlash from the general public, which resulted in them nearly closing down the Institute.
Noble children escaped unscathed, which only fueled the public's rage.
The Eclipse Institute nearly shut down.
It was the game's protagonist, with his close companions, who eventually uncovered the truth and exposed the real perpetrator.
But…
'This wasn't supposed to happen yet.'
And certainly not outside Eclipse.
That was how the story was designed. That was the original script.
Then…
'What the hell is happening now?''
Haru narrowed his eyes, letting his designer's mind run through all the possible scenarios.
And, he reached only one conclusion.
'The perpetrator of that story's arc must be doing his experiment in the capital, before making it big in the Eclipse.'
If that's true, then Leon already knew who the mastermind was.
'Should I expose him?'
It would be easy, he could give Eula just a small nudge, a tiny hint, and she'd handle the rest.
But he couldn't do that directly. If he spoke the name outright, Eula might start asking how Leon knew in the first place.
The first time, he only escaped because Eula was confused.
'Then what other choice do I have left?'
He neither had the ability, nor had the men under him to pull off this task himself.
Leon sighed, thinking about the situation.
"Sigh, that's problematic…"
He was still only a 1-Star Awakened. All he could do was puff out a bit of flame from his fingers.
And his newly acquired skill, Voiceless Incantation, was completely wasted if the best he could cast was an F-rank spell.
At this rate, he couldn't do anything…
He'd die in a simple fistfight.
He needs to level up, if he truly wants to handle this kind of situation all on his own.
"Haah… what am I even worrying about," he murmured as he passed the gossiping men.
A few minutes later, he stopped at a roasted corn stall.
He dropped two copper coins onto the counter.
"One roasted corn, please."
"Here, sir!"
He sat on the wooden chair near the stall, crossing his legs, he looked up to the sky.
In the original timeline, Leon Valentine dies at the end of the first semester.
'Leon Valentine was supposed to be a villain.'
If Leon will change his destiny…
'If I want to rewrite his fate… how long can I even keep him alive?'
"..."
'Till I reach beyond 3-star, I won't push myself directly in any dangerous situation.'
That was his rule.
To survive, he needed to grow stronger.
To grow stronger… he needed to go through hell.
"Heh."
'And what better hell then Eclipse?'
Clearly none.
That place had more situations than the outside.
Checking the time from the pocket watch.
It was well past afternoon.
The day after tomorrow, the academic year officially begins at Eclipse.
All students were expected to arrive one day early to settle into the dorms.
"I need to pack up my stuff."
He took a bite of corn.
If hell awaited him… he'd walk in smiling.
"Ah, it's hot!"