Dimensional Descent

[Official artwork for Leonel's Dark Ice Armor is now live on my instagram >> @awespec_ :) ] 

It wasn't long before Leonel had left the Sith family Faction, another million Void Points poorer. He was certain it shouldn't have cost this much, but there was nothing else he could do if he wanted solid information.

As for what had changed, it seemed that Treanna's Faction had finally been promoted to Silver Grade, and as such, its wealth and power had substantially increased, as had its territory and influence. This made Leonel's brow furrow a bit, but that was all.

Silver Grade Factions had more leeway and could also have their own territory. These territories were the very same neighborhoods Leonel had mentioned before.

In the Void Palace, outside of a few places, the regions were all controlled by students. Everything from city planning to even some laws were set and decided by the Faction of a given area.

Of course, there were also some neutral areas where lower class students who couldn't afford to live in these higher class areas could use. In fact, these neutral areas were precisely where Aina had chosen to buy their home before it was burned down.

Living in a Faction's territory didn't necessarily mean that you were part of a Faction, but in partaking in their benefits, you did have to pay taxes and, of course, rent. Many higher class territories even required entry fees. As for why you would pay just for a temporary stay, though the effects weren't as exaggerated as with the Spear Faction, there were many benefits.

For example, there were certain specialties you would only find in certain areas. Just one potential thing were restaurants run by high level Force Pill Crafters. Factions of high levels would either recruit or rent such experts to run popular food stops in their territories. If you wanted to partake in such luxuries, you would have to pay just for the chance to enter.

Of course, Leonel wasn't interested in this as there was no better cook than the woman by his side. But, that didn't mean there was nothing that could tempt him at all.

Some special training regions, some exclusive areas of the Void Palace, and even some of the prime living locations were mostly cornered off by high level Factions.

As nice as he thought Aina's choice in home was, he had no intention of letting her live in a shabby place. Leonel didn't usually care about such things, but their earlier spat seemed to have reminded him that he hadn't really done much of anything to make up for his earlier follies. If Aina was trying, then he should at least try in his own way.

To Aina, the way he flipped a switch and suddenly wanted her again was probably odd. Likewise, Leonel wouldn't be surprised if, in the back of her head, she was worried about the day that switch would flip off again.

Leonel knew just how his mind worked quite well. He had never stopped 'wanting' Aina. He had just shifted his priorities and sacrificed her.

His father's words, though, shifted those priorities again. He was probably the only person who could do such a thing outside of Leonel himself.

The question was, could those priorities shift again?

When Leonel thought about it, he realized that the only reason they had shifted in the first place was because he felt that Aina had betrayed him, not in the harshest sense, but enough that he found it unacceptable.

By the time he learned of why and the weight she had carried everyday, it was already too late to turn back. There were sometimes where the timing of things were just wrong and Leonel felt that his focus was better spent on other things.

However, the contradiction was something his mind wouldn't allow him to sit with. He ended up doing things that were completely outside his character, and even acting in a fashion that he regretted.

It was as though even his Tier 4 Ability Index couldn't control what he felt for Aina.

There were many times where Leonel didn't understand something and he allowed it to stop his footsteps and fester in his mind. But, this was something he didn't understand that he fully embraced…

The one thing he never really cared about finding the logic behind.

Aina had just spent the last year by his side in silence, supporting him. But, in the back of her mind, there were clearly still some fresh wounds that couldn't even be considered to have scabbed over. As funny as it was to joke about baby making appointments, Leonel wouldn't even feel right taking that step yet.

Knowing himself, he would probably accept it with open arms anyway, but that didn't mean that it wouldn't be wrong.

He had probably ended up gaining all of his father's and uncle's promiscuity, but he had somehow aimed it all toward one woman. Why it was things were like this, he didn't know. All he knew was that he had never been interested in any other woman. He didn't even feel sexually aroused by other women.

At this point, Leonel couldn't even call himself straight. He was more like an Aina-sexual. He was practically asexual in almost 100% of contexts outside of when he was with her.

Leonel looked away from the pendant in his hand toward Aina and smiled.

"Stop smiling at me like that, I'm still mad at you and I want to stay mad for a little longer."

Leonel burst into a fit of laughter when he saw Aina's pouting expression. He suddenly felt that he never wanted to leave this woman's side.

"Locations by Senate Branches tend to be safer and more convenient areas, so they're also very expensive. We'll need at least 10 000 000 Void Points and I think probably several dozen Void Merits to buy one even in a neutral zone."

"Then more Star missions it is." Aina replied simply.

Leonel grinned, that was right.

But first, it seemed they had some unwanted guests.

Since Leonel couldn't kill, his victim had, of course, been allowed to escape, and that brought trouble to their door. But, this was exactly the kind of trouble he wanted.

From what he had heard in passing, during his and AIna's absence, their generation had begun making waves of their own. In addition, Amery seemed to have stepped out from his tribulation successfully.

It seemed that they had forgotten that there were two other Amethyst Token wielders of this generation. If they hadn't forgotten, why hadn't Treanna's Faction gotten the message, yet?

He wasn't someone they could mess with as they pleased.