Thursday. A few days before the festival.

I sat on one of the benches around the campus, waiting for someone. I checked the time. It was just about 3 P.M.

I couldn't stay here for long. I had a place to be in a few hours.

Thankfully, I didn't have to wait for long.

He appeared not long after.

"You came."

Wearing the same academy uniform as I did, Leon greeted me with a flat look.

"Did you expect me to ignore your message?"

"....."

His lack of reply was all that I needed to hear. So he did...

"What do you see me as?"

This time, I could see a reaction from him. Disgust? And... A little bit of fear?

"What..."

"No, stop."

He held his hand in front of me.

"I come in peace."

The fuck is this guy on about? In peace? In peace from what?

"....I need your help."

An unexpected set of words came out of his mouth and I frowned.

"You want my help?"

"Yes."

He quietly nodded his head as he sat down on the opposite end of the bench. He was behaving quite strangely today.

"What do you want me to help you with?"

".....You wrote this, right?"

Extending his hand, he passed me a familiar piece of paper. I took a casual glance before understanding his intentions.

"Wrong person to ask. I'm no-"

"I'll teach you."

"Hm?"

Surprised, I looked at him.

Teach me?

"Why would you....?"

"I think you're talented."

"Talented?"

I almost laughed. This guy... He had really lost his mind. I was just about to stand up and leave when he held me down.

"I'm serious."

I took a good moment to stare at his face. I was really having a hard time taking him seriously, but looking at his expression which seemed absolutely serious, I had no choice but to sit back down.

"So you think I'm talented?"

"I do."

"....."

Perhaps because he had been with me since the start and had seen my progress, he thought that I was talented. But what did he know?

He knew nothing about the struggles that I had to go through to just barely reach an acceptable level.

I was still levels behind this guy, and our gap was only widening.

If there was one truly talented person, then it had to be him.

I still decided to hear him out.

"Let's say that I'm talented. What does that have to do with you wanting to teach me?"

"....."

Leon pursed his lips and briefly looked down. Falling into his own thoughts, he only looked back after a short while.

"I've reached a bottleneck."

"Hm?"

"It's just like you said. I've been trying my best to fix the missing parts that are within the art that I'm practicing. I've spent the past two years trying to fix the problem. I thought I had done a good job at hiding the fact that the technique was incomplete, but..."

He paused there, but his meaning was clear.

"You think I'll be able to think of a way to fix it?"

"...."

He didn't respond, but his expression yet again told me everything that I needed to know.

Haa. This time, I really wanted to laugh. This guy has totally lost his marbles.

"I'm not expecting you to pay me back or anything. I am willing to teach you the technique for free. If you can't perfect it, then that's fine too. I won't blame you for it."

I massaged my forehead.

My head was throbbing.

Of all the people he could've asked, he asked me...

'This is stupid.'

There had to be some sort of intention behind his actions. I refused to believe it was just because he thought I could complete it.

".....Fine."

Despite all the doubts that I had, I still accepted the offer.

It went without saying that I accepted. It was simply an extremely advantageous deal for me.

The only problem that I had with this offer was the fact that I truly didn't understand where this guy was coming from.

Could I truly trust him....?

"...."

I looked at his face.

It looked stupid.

As if perhaps sensing my thoughts, Leon frowned.

"What are you thinking about?"

I was taken aback.

"What are you?"

"...."

'So he really did read my mind."

"Your face looks stupid."

Oh, shit.

I covered my mouth.

"I wasn't meant to say it out loud."

My true thoughts had slipped.

Leon blinked, and just faintly, his stoic expression cracked. I closely observed his expression. Was it going to crack...?

The answer was no.

With a sigh, he slowly got up from the chair.

"I'll slowly start teaching you the art when we have time. I'll take my leave now."

With a slight bow, he was prepared to leave. I looked at his back which was now facing me, before opening my mouth to say a name,

"Alexander Harrington."

His steps halted.

I continued.

".....Pay attention to him."

***

'Alexander Harrington.'

Even as he distanced himself from Julien, the name continued to ring in his mind. He had asked for clarification, but all he was met with was a simple,'Keep an eye out for me.' before he left.

The name didn't ring a bell, and regardless of how hard he tried, he couldn't recall such a name.

Still, he was planning on finding out.

In any case, the talk went better than expected.

'He accepted.'

Quite honestly, Leon didn't hold a lot of expectations in his attempt at trying to solve the puzzle that had been plaguing him for the past few years.

However, he had grown to a point where he was starting to become desperate.

To the point where he even thought of teaching Julien his technique so that he could help him find an answer.

"Haa."

Leon found himself blankly staring at the sky.

The bottleneck.

It had appeared the moment he reached Tier 3.

The bottleneck wasn't yet apparent. It was faint, but Leon could feel it.

Were he to continue down this path, he was sure that by the time he reached Tier 5 and higher, his growth would completely stagnate.

The fact that Julien had managed to pick up the flaw within just a few hours of observation was enough for Leon to understand something.

'He's talented.'

Perhaps he himself hadn't noticed, but Leon certainly saw it. If he were to train a little further, then...

"It's worth the shot."

Plus, it wasn't like he was going to teach him the entire thing.

Just the movement art which was what he needed.

But...

Leon suddenly frowned as he thought back to something.

The more he thought about it, the more annoyed he became. He tried to ignore it, but the words would just continue to nag at the back of his mind.

To the point where he found himself stopping a nearby cadet.

"Hey, you..."

"Uh, ah yeah? Me?"

The cadet pointed at himself with a flustered look.

"Yes."

Leon nodded with a serious face.

Then, pointing at himself, he asked,

"...Does my face look stupid?"

***

Today was the first day of practice.

There were only a few days left before the festival was in full swing, and Aoife had spent the last couple of days seriously practicing her lines.

There weren't many. Just a couple, but she had to perfectly display fear and terror in her expression.

From the tremble of her eyes to the pitch of her voice.

Everything had to be perfect.

"Huuu."

Setting the script down, Aoife took a deep breath.

She was currently inside a small practice room by herself.

Soon she was going to meet the man who was supposed to play Azarias. Today was the first time she was going to meet him. Not only that, but she was also going to meet the other actors in the play.

Today was their first reading.

An event where all the actors of the play would meet to familiarize themselves with each other.

There was an undeniable excitement around the rookie actor.

Rumors had it that he had been selected the moment that he had gone to the audition.

With a godly level of acting, the writer chose him on the spot.

'I'm curious.'

But at the same time, Aoife was also nervous.

Would she even be able to keep up with such an actor?

The mere thought of performing with someone like that made her nervous. If it somehow ended up ruining the play, then...

"Let's not think about it."

Aoife became increasingly nervous the more she thought about it. Right, who knows, maybe I'll be able to hold my own.

Gradually, her mind started to calm down and she felt less stressed.

"Alright."

She slapped her cheeks and stood proudly.

"....I've got this."

Collecting herself, she reached for the door and opened it.

"Is everything ready?"

"Do you have the script with you?"

"Yes, I've got it right here. Please wait a moment. I'll distribute them to the tables."

Aoife was immediately greeted with chaos. The reading was set to take place in several minutes, and the staff was busy getting everything ready for the actors and actresses who were going to take part in the play.

The venue wasn't particularly spacious, roughly half the size of the auditorium. Originally designated for storage purposes, its discreet location made it an ideal choice for hosting the reading, given the secretive nature of the script.

Walking around, Aoife managed to catch a glimpse of several famous actors.

As expected, there was a certain aura about them that stood out from the rest. You could tell at a glance that they were the best of the best.

But it wasn't as though her own aura lacked compared to theirs.

Rather, it shined just as brightly, instantly attracting the attention of the actors present.

"Haha, if it isn't our rising superstar."

Aoife was greeted by a tall and strikingly handsome man who introduced himself as Darius Johns, the main lead of the play.

He greeted her with a large smile.

"Are you nervous? Haha, you don't have to be. With me her-"

Aoife was about to respond when she was pulled back.

A crisp voice echoed right after.

"Get your hands off of her. The gap between you two is too large."

"No, I-"

"No!"

Before Aoife knew it, she was surrounded by the main cast of the play.

"Stay away from our little rookie, Darius."

"Don't you know who you're talking to?"

Everyone started to berate him, as he flusteredly looked around.

"No, I was just trying to be friendly..."

"Bullcrap!"

"How are you holding up?"

While this was going on, Aoife was greeted by a stunning woman, whose presence momentarily caught her off guard.

"Have you memorized your lines? If you need help feel free to ask us."

"Ah..."

Despite her efforts to maintain composure, Aoife couldn't help but feel a flutter of excitement at the sight of Odette Ripley, a renowned actress whose performances she had admired in countless recordings and plays.

Aoife was a huge fan of her works, and seeing her in person almost made her squeal.

"Odette, let her go. Can't you see she's uncomfortable with your touch?"

"No, she isn't."

Odette turned to look at Aoife.

"You aren't, right?"

"....No."

"Ha, see?"

"Tsk."

There was an overall pleasant atmosphere around the place. With all actors familiar with one another, the mood was serene.

"Oh, right, do you know who's the actor that forced that woman to change the script?"

At Odette's sudden question, the atmosphere changed a little.

Aoife titled her head. The topic interested her as well.

"I don't know to be honest. That woman refuses to say anything. I've begged her so many times, but she just doesn't budge at all."

"Right, the same is true for me."

"....But is he actually good? I mean, I get that he managed to get that woman to change the script, but could it have been some fluke?"

"No, impossible. You know how that woman is. There's no way she would do what she did unless she was confident."

"Ah, yes... I guess. Well, we'll see during the reading. Whether they are truly as good as they say."

The conversation continued in that direction. Aoife listened quietly from the side, occasionally adding her own thoughts on the matter.

That was until someone announced,

"The reading is about to start. May all the actors get seated."

"Eh? Already?"

"That's fast."

"Hm? But where is the rookie actor everyone is talking about?"

"Ah, he's here."

As the assistant spoke, the door swung open, and a figure walked it. Almost everyone turned their face in the direction of the door.

Aoife was one such person. She was curious. Just who was this super rookie?

Only that...

"No, it can't be."

Her expectations were shattered the moment he entered as she blinked several times to make sure she wasn't seeing wrongly.

Blinking again, and seeing the same figure standing before her with what seemed to be a slight curl of his lips, Aoife swallowed.

"Oh, no..."

The godly actor who had taken the show by storm. The person whom she had to try her best to keep up with, and the person that she was supposed to treat like a master...

"Ah, no..."

It was none other than Julien.