KINETIC

"It been a few days already, are they going to attack us or not..." Nila said as she folded her arms.

"It would probably be better for everyone if they didn't attack." Leo replied as he sipped on some tea.

"I don't like waiting like this. If they're going to do it then I'd rather they got on with it already." Nila said.

She was picking at the skin around her fingernails and bouncing her leg up and down the constantly.

"I can tell it's not as simple as impatience, you're clearly anxious or concerned." Leo said, hoping he wasn't assuming incorrectly.

Nila looked down at her hands and realized what she had been doing. She crossed her legs to stop herself from bouncing them and placed her hands one either side of her to stop picking at them.

"How could I be calm in a situation like this? There's so many people in this city and we're expected to keep them all safe. My parents live here, as well as other people I know...

It would be strange if I were calm about it, don't you think? You're unusually calm, not just today but in general. You never seem to worry about this kind of stuff." Nila said.

Leo placed his teacup down on the table infront of him. He and Nila were alone in an office that was given to him for when he's in the capital city.

"As you already know, I grew up as a slave. I never had family and I've lost many friends over the years due to the cruelty of the slavers.

You're concerned about the safety of the people you know and the expectations that others have for you.

The only people I know well enough to worry for are some of the strongest people in the kingdom, so that helps to minimize that feeling.

I also don't care about the expectations others put on me. I'll do whatever it is that I need or want and other people can do the same for themselves." Leo explained.

"If you don't care about what's expected of you, why do you fight to protect the kingdom?"Nila asked with a confused expression on her face.

"I'm fighting for the kingdom because it's a place I am respected and it's where my friends and their families live.

The cult is also targeting me specifically, meaning I would have to fight them anyways. You can think of it like this.

I'm not helping the kingdom destroy the cult, the kingdom is helping me destroy the cult." Leo said with a shrug.

"Then what will you do once the cult has been dealt with?" Nila asked.

"I'll continue to work as a General for Infernum since I have no reason to stop doing so. But I'll never do something that goes against what I want to do, I don't care who it is that wants me to do it.

Right now the kingdoms only concern is the cult and all their actions are centered around dealing with them. When that ends, they will move on to other matters.

As long as the goal is something I agree with, I'll happily assist and do my job, but if it's something I disagree with I'll drop this kingdom without a second thought." Leo explained with a blunt tone.

"What about us then? Would you leave all your friends behind because you don't agree with the overall goal?" Nila asked with an expectant look in her eyes.

"If that happens it will be up to you if you want to join me or stay here. Just like how I won't go against my goals and morals, I wouldn't expect any of you to do so." Leo said.

For a few minutes there was silence. Leo continued to enjoy his tea while thinking about various things.

"What if you had someone you were involved with romantically." Nila suddenly asked.

Leo looked at her with a raised eyebrow. "I don't have someone like that though?"

"But if you did have someone and your opinions differed, what would you do? Would stay with them, even though you would be unhappy, or would you take them with you even though they would be unhappy." Nila asked with a distant look in her eyes as she stared at the table between their two couches.

" I'm this hypothetical situation, I'm assuming that when you say they or I would be 'unhappy', it's only in the context of staying or going, not in relation to out feelings of each other, right?" Leo asked.

"I suppose but it would obviously depend on how the person reacts to the situation if they would become unhappy with the relationship as a whole. Things are more complicated that just yes or no..." Nila said with a playful smile on her face.

Even when Nila showed emotions, it was always less prominent than most other people. In this instance, she was showing more emotion in her face than Leo had ever seen her do before.

He noticed her emotions would peek through more with each conversation they had. He assumed it meant she felt comfortable around him, unlike how the nobles of her childhood made her feel.

Returning the smile, Leo replied "Well in this hypothetical situation I would hope that me and this person could come to an agreement on what to do so that neither of us would be particularly unhappy."

"What if you couldn't come to an agreement?" Nila asked.

"Then it would depend on the severity of my disagreement with the kingdoms goal. If it was a small disagreement and I resigned from Infernum but remained here, it wouldn't make a difference since it wouldn't impact the relationship."

"Then what if the situation was severe and the goal was something you heavily disagreed with?" Nila asked, her smile fading slightly.

"If I disagree with the goal that heavily then I doubt my partner would be willing to go along with it either so I don't think there would be a problem." Leo said with a thoughtful expression.

"Stop dodging my question with logic, Leo. I want to know if you would stay based on your feelings for the person. Could you see yourself loving someone enough to go against your own ideals to be with them?" Nila asked with a serious tone.

"It would depend on the person, wouldn't it? How long we've been together or known each other in general. There's too many factors to..."

"What if it was Rene?" Nila suddenly asked, her tone becoming increasingly frustrated.

"I don't see her that way."

Nilas expression of frustration faded instantly when she heard that and was replaced with surprise.

"Really...? But it always seemed like you two had a thing." Nila said.

"I've had others say that it seems obvious that she likes me that way but I just don't feel the same." Leo said with a shrug.

"I see." Nila replied while looking down. "There's something I need to do so I'll see you later."

Nila suddenly got up and walked out of the room before Leo could even say goodbye to her.

'Hmm, her breathing got faster all of a sudden... I hope she's okay.' Leo thought.

~Sigh~ 'Could you be any more oblivious?' Dreifus asked.

'What's that supposed to mean? Did I miss something?'

'Don't worry about it, kid... I'm sure it will dawn on you someday.' Dreifus replied.

'I can feel her walking back, i could just ask?' Leo said.

'No! No, don't do that. Just leave it alone, trust me on this one.' Dreifus said in a panic.

'Alright fine, sheesh, you don't have to get so worked up.' Leo said.

The door to his office opened again and Nila walked through the door. She seemed to be a in a rush and her expression was serious again.

"We need to head to the city walls." She said.

"The wall? Has something finally happened?"

Nila nodded. "I don't know the specifics but apparently you're needed there immediately."

"Me specifically, not both of us?" Leo asked.

"I'm still going with you, I just haven't been called for specifically. Just get up will you, we should hurry." Nila said, trying to get Leo to act with urgency.

Leo got up from his seat and followed Nila as they moved to the walls. The soldiers all around the city were moving around with urgency and the people were boarding up their homes.

'I should try to end this quickly. If the battle drags on then the city will get damaged unnecessarily.' Leo thought.

After walking through the city, they climbed to the top of the wall using the staircase on the side of its interior.

Upon reaching the top, Supreme Commander Colt was standing near the edge looking out at the area around the city.

Leo walked up and joined him, looking in the same direction as the Supreme Commander. About 100 meters away from the wall, an army of cultists was standing motionless.

Around 20 meters ahead of the cultist army, a man stood alone with no weapons in his hand. A red flag was planted in the ground beside him.

"They're asking to sleek with you. I don't know the reason but you don't have to go. I'm more than happy to order our troops to attack right now." The Supreme Commander said.

"Honestly, I'm curious to hear what they have to say." Leo said.

He stepped up onto the edge of the wall and bent his legs while leaning forward. As his body tilted and started falling over the edge...

[Leap]