Leonel stood in silence for a long while. He tuned out the world, lost in a bit of a daze.
Whatever nonsense Gregwyn was talking about reaping what you sow wasn't even worth listening to. Goggles' actions had nothing to do with Gregwyn or his words. Just logically speaking, that was a foolish conclusion to draw.
If Goggles was stupid enough to believe the words of a scorned fool, then he wouldn't have been nearly as close to Leonel as he was. Originally, he was Leonel's trusted aid. Because of his Ability Index, he almost had no choice but to be intelligent.
The more information Goggles had on hand, the better he could predict the future.
Honestly speaking, Leonel could understand if someone drew the conclusion. Technically, Goggles would be able to grasp that Gregwyn was technically telling the truth with his Ability Index.
But the fact Goggles only chose to withdraw now was the final nail in the coffin.
He wasn't leaving because he felt that Leonel wasn't worth following due to Gregwyn's words, he was leaving because he had already made an assessment. In fact, he had likely already made the choice to betray Leonel before he even stepped foot into this place, and he had always known that he would be able to protect his life.
From the very beginning, this was what he wanted to do. nove(l)bi(n.)com
Nature versus Nurture.
It was a line of thought that Leonel had wanted to ignore, that he had forced himself to ignore, that he had stuffed away into the recesses of his mind.
He was too intelligent not to see it, he just didn't want to see it.
Was a person's personality set from birth? Would they almost certainly become one way or another? Or were they shaped by their environment?
Almost anyone would tell you that it was a combination of both, it had to be both... whether that was for the world to make sense or for you to keep your own sanity.
The betrayal was only the first layer, but the festering wound he had ripped open was the true reason for Leonel's reaction.
If even Goggles could change so much, what about his father? If he somehow twisted fate and reversed reality, bringing his father back from the dead when it should have very well been impossible...
Would Velasco even be Velasco anymore?
Would he still be his father? Or would he have done all of that to bring back a man who shared the same flesh as his father, but none of the same mind, none of the same soul... none of the same heart?
Standing there, watching Goggles leave, it was like Leonel was watching his father die again.
The final strands of hope he had been holding onto drifted away and something in his chest seemed to break.
The pain came in relentless waves until streaks of black came from his eyes.
There was so much darkness, so much grief.
Flickering lines of smoke came from his eyes as the black streaks drizzled down his cheek, forming droplets that dripped downward.
BANG!
They landed on the floor with a resounding boom.
The killing intent that filled the air was so violent that Eamon, who had been worried for Leonel's safety, lost consciousness, his eyes turning red and then rolling to the back of his head.
The crown of Dream Sovereignty appeared above his head, but it flickered. From a radiant gold and silver color, it danced between that and a dark black and maroon as though a demon emperor had descended.