Chapter 7: Karma 

Did people know what the term karma meant? I thought of it as being related to destiny or fate. Apologies for the lack of information, but anyhow, doesn’t the word karma  sound neat? It carries a lot of weight to it. 

“Am I unable to escape from the karma called being a mob?” 

As if intending to set something straight, Luxon corrected me in a  straightforward manner. 

[Karma relates to actions committed in a former life, doesn’t it? Cause and effect──there are consequences to one’s actions. I believe what you said just  now was strange.] 

Did this thing know how it felt to be corrected after saying a cool phrase? 

──It felt extremely embarrassing. 

“Pretend that I didn’t say anything.” 

[As you command.] 

I was standing on top of the deck. 

Under the cold sky, there were three airships from the duke household that  were flying alongside Partner. 

Furthermore, facing us were warships──a fleet of flying battleships from the earl household. 

Basically, the earl household wanted us to hand over the sky pirates we captured. 

The duke household wondered if they were idiots for wanting us to give them the sky pirates after a house under their guardianship made a request to be saved from them. That was the kind of attitude they had. 

The earl household was desperate since they didn’t want us to find evidence of them having collaborated with the sky pirates. 

However, that wasn’t possible once the duke household dropped by, so they instead came for discussions. 

I handed Olivia over to Anjie, and they went to her own airship. 

Seeing Olivia cry, Anjie got angry and slapped me while having a sharp glare. 

[Leaving that aside, was what you chose to do fine?] 

“Entrusting negotiations to someone else? Do I look like someone with high negotiation skills? It’s fine to leave it to the duke household.” 

I requested the duke household to have negotiations with the earl household. 

I guessed that there would be a couple demands after negotiations were over. 

I was rich right now, so it wasn’t a particular problem, though. 

I snatched the armor, airships, and treasure of the sky pirates along with capturing the sky pirates themselves. 

There was nothing that could go wrong. 

[That’s not it, I was referring to the feat you’ve made. Why did you give Brad and Greg the credit for it?] 

“I’d be grateful if those two returned to their original positions. Don’t they seem like people who could protect Olivia? Even if that doesn’t turn out to be the case, they’re still people who are reliable in a time of emergency.” 

The story had deviated quite a bit already. 

I was frightened about what would happen in the future if I didn’t correct it at least a bit. Even if the two didn’t return to their original position, it would still be better than what the current situation was. 

The two did their best this in this event. I thought that was pretty good on its own. 

[You’re cutting ties between Olivia and yourself. You’re giving those two the credit, and you’re only leaving behind a few items for yourself. Have things returned to how they originally were?] 

Did this thing not include the treasure and armor inside the airship into its  calculations? 

“It’s enough. This is enough for me. I’ve got you, after all.” 

Thinking hard about it, Luxon was a lost item that Olivia could have  potentially found. Considering that I robbed her of a cheat-class spaceship, my own hardships shouldn’t be considered. 

When I said that, Luxon said nothing. 

[Anjelica got angry when Olivia cried.] 

“A rich, pampered girl can be hard to please. It seems that she hates me now.” 

[Are you also going to keep your distance from Anjelica?] 

“I would say that I’ve been too close to her up until now.” 

I had to keep a reasonable distance from everything. 

As I waited on top of the deck, the fleet of the earl household changed directions and left the scene. 

It seemed that discussions had ended. 

◇ 

The duke household’s airship. Livia was invited to a room prepared for Anjie. There, Livia sat while cradling her arms around her knees. Anjie was amazed by what she heard. “You’re partly to blame too, but Leon’s just acting pathetic.” Anjie was blind to her own shortcomings, but Livia contemplated over  them. “I’m a terrible person. I vented my anger on Leon and now he hates me.” Anjie reached out her hand in order to comfort her, but she paused mid¬ way and stopped herself. (Do I even have the qualifications to criticize Leon and be friendly with 

Livia?) She thought about what she had said, and felt regretful. As a result, she couldn’t convey her feelings to Livia. “Get some rest for now. We’re going to return to the academy soon.” Anjie didn’t know what to do. Livia wasn’t a follower nor a friend granted to her, but a friend she made  through her own effort. However, Livia was a commoner, and she didn’t know how to properly interact with her. The relationship between the three had broken down. 

◇ 

The royal palace. 

With the suppression of the sky pirates being a success, Greg and Brad had returned to the royal capital and were summoned to the royal palace in order  to discuss about the future. 

However, the government official in front of them was at a complete loss. 

Brad slammed the desk. 

“What on earth are you planning to──ouch, that hurt my arm.” 

His recently treated arm was in pain after slamming the desk. 

Though Greg was amazed at Brad acting that way, he glared firmly at the  government official. “We weren’t the ones who suppressed the sky pirates. As if we can accept  this kind of reward when all we did was assist!” 

The reward for the two was to officially appoint them as knights. 

In addition, they were paid remuneration for the suppression of Winged 

Shark sky pirates. 

Brad protested with teary eyes. 

“Don’t look down on us! The one who defeated them was Baltfault. Are  you saying that you’re going to deprive him of his achievement?!” 

The government official was stupefied. 

“It’ll be troubling if you don’t accept. The report from Baron Baltfault said that he only assisted you two. A, also, you two currently aren’t knights and don’t have any court rank or class. It would be nature to place more faith on Baltfault’s report since he’s in the upper sixth rank and is a baron. I, if something’s wrong, we could do an investigation, though.” 

The government official stuttered on some of his words. 

It was bewildering that the two wouldn’t accept their rewards. 

Normally, people would want both recognition and remuneration. 

Yet, in an unbelievable turn of events, the two refused to accept. 

If Leon was the one snatching away someone’s achievements, then the  government official would firmly order for an investigation. However, Leon said that those two were the ones who accomplished the feats. 

The official just wanted the two be obedient and accept the rewards. 

Greg folded his arms. 

(That idiot’s doing something strange.) 

Taking a deep breath, Greg told the government official everything. 

“We only helped out. The one who defeated the sky pirate group was Baltfault, and we didn’t do anything worth gaining recognition for. At the very most, we were just there on the battlefield. We would accept rewards for participation, but nothing more.” 

Brad nodded. 

“We didn’t really take an active role. We can’t accept this kind of reward.” 

The government official breathed a sigh. 

“I was forbidden to say this to you two, but Baron Baltfault’s planning  something with your households. Perhaps he wants your disinheritances to be reconsidered.” 

The two were surprised, and soon made complicated expressions. 

“W, why would he do that?!” 

While Greg stood up in surprise, Brad made a face as if he couldn’t understand. 

“R, right. What reason would he have to do this for us?” 

The government official exchanged glances with the two while replying. 

“I don’t understand the baron’s feelings, but he sent corresponding funds to the royal palace. Something about a befitting amount of money and goods being bestowed upon your households as well. How about just complying and accepting the rewards?” 

After saying that they could return the favor in the future, the official left the room. 

◇ 

The royal palace’s courtyard. 

Greg and Brad both sat on a bench. 

Neither of them could sort out their feelings. 

Greg had a disgruntled face, and Brad hung his head with a slightly  gloomy face. 

Julian appeared in front of the two in such a state. 

He rushed over after spotting them. 

He had a slightly exhausted face, but showed a bright smile after seeing the  two. 

“You two, I heard the news!” 

It seemed that he had heard about their services. The two made complex  expressions. 

“Your Highness?” 

As Brad raised his head, Julian got excited and began to speak. 

“It seems you’ve successfully suppressed the sky pirates! Furthermore, you did in front of that Baltfault guy! Doesn’t that make this our win? I even heard that your households have a better opinion of you two now that this matter has come to light. Perhaps you’re close to become heirs again.” 

Greg spoke in a low voice toward the pleased Julian. 

“That’s not it. We couldn’t win against him. He had both strength and  spirit. Furthermore, we lost in terms of endurance.” 

Brad didn’t object. 

“Your Highness, we’ve decided on something.” 

“What have you decided on?” 

Brad and Greg stood up. 

“We want to win against Baltfault. It’s not like our goal is his defeat. What  we want is to win in terms of being more of a man.” 

“Right. We can’t compete with him at this rate. He’s an amazing knight. From the very beginning, we weren’t people who could be his opponent.” 

The two, thinking that they couldn’t just keep hanging their heads, soon  began a new course of action. 

Brad made a request to Julian. 

“Your Highness, could you arrange a meeting with the queen?” 

“Mother? I think I can make it work, but what are you guys thinking?” 

Greg made an awkward smile. 

“We’ve received so much. We can’t be men if we don’t return a favor.” 

◇ 

Was this a case of returning favors with spite? I was at the academy, where classes were going to resume tomorrow. After being able to come back in time and returning to my room within the  boys’ dorms, I clutched a letter sent from the royal palace. 

“Brad, Greg──I see, did they hate me that much?” 

The grip I held with my trembling hand created a crease in the letter. 

It said that I had been allowed to be “promoted to the lower fifth rank”. 

My upper sixth rank within the royal court had risen one step further and  upgraded to the lower fifth rank. 

The suppression of the sky pirates had been credited to Brad and Greg, so that couldn’t be the reason. There was also no way that it could be because of me helping them reconcile with their households. ──I couldn’t believe it. 

“Who’s the person pulling the strings here? I, I can’t allow this to happen. Why am I in the lower fifth rank? My father is in the lower sixth rank, so  what’s going to happen now that I’m two steps above him?!” 

Was being promoted something to be delighted about? 

Incorrect. At the very least, I wasn’t delighted by it. 

Being promoted meant new responsibilities that corresponded with it. 

I had wanted to confine myself within my territory and live carefree, but I  didn’t know what to do now that I had been promoted. 

With a high enough royal court rank, one would get summoned many times. 

I didn’t want to get involved with the royal palace, so I had assisted those two. Now I was being promoted without even knowing. 

Normally, one would have to build up more achievements before being promoted by the royal palace. With rigorous checks on territory size, the royal palace was strict when it came to raising someone’s rank. 

While I was resentful of this unreasonable treatment, Luxon swerved to my behind and peeked at the letter. 

[I never thought you would get promoted. You’re really good at moving outside of my expectations, Master.] 

“What do you mean by that?! I didn’t think I would get promoted either! There wasn’t anything to promote me for at all! There’s going to be a whole bunch of people who want to know how I got promoted!” 

In the first place, it was very difficult to get promoted to the sixth or fifth rank. It was impossible to get promoted by suppressing sky pirates just once. 

It was necessary to perform large achievements, like doing massive deeds on the battlefield or serving for many years. 

So why was I promoted?! Other people should have been promoted instead! 

While I was making a clamor by myself, I heard a knocking sound. 

When I opened the door, a staff member of the boys’ dorms stood there while nervous. The staff member was a woman, and she bowed her head in front of me. 

“Baron Baltfault. A L, letter and a gift have arrived.” 

“A Letter and a gift?” 

“R, right. We can’t deliver them to your room, so they’ve been arranged  outside.” 

“Outside?” 

Once the staff member led the way to the gift, there stood an air bike. 

It was quite the extravagant, large air bike. 

I soon understood that it was an expensive one. 

The air bike seemed to be more expensive than armor, and the letter was  sent from the “Atlee family.” 

I took out the letter and read it. 

“Aaaaaauuuuuuuuuugh!” 

When I screamed, the nearby staff member’s shoulders trembled. 

The contents written inside the letter were an apology. 

The letter was sent from the Atlee family, Clarice’s household, and was an apology concerning what happened at the school festival, along with a word of thanks for returning their daughter’s liveliness to her. It seems that was what the air bike was for. 

Since boys yearned for air bikes, at least a little bit, they made for pleasant gifts. 

However, the problem was what came after that. 

“No way. This can’t be real. Does, does everyone hate me that much?” 

Seeing that I was crying, the staff member bowed her head, said something, and then fled the scene. 

Tears dropped onto the letter, smudging the words on it. 

There was more to the letter. 

‘Since we were told that you wanted to wait for a while before being promoted, a promotion from the lower fifth rank to the upper fifth rank awaits you upon graduation.’ 

──That was what it said. 

The Atlee family was an earl household of the royal court. 

The family held distinguished people, such as ministers, and had a high royal court ranking. Perhaps their daughter felt a sense of gratitude towards me and said that I should be promoted. Just the air bike would have been fine, though! 

“Why?! Why are people trying to promote me?! This is bizarre! Don’t they know that I’m mortified by all of this?! How could they do such cruel things? 

I’m only human!” 

A floating Luxon inserted a cord into the air bike. 

[This engine is different from the air bike you used at the school festival. 

The parts were carefully crafted, and it’s quite superb.] 

“What are you doing?” 

[I’m modifying and taking control over it.] 

It looked like it was doing something cruel to the air bike. Luxon looked  like a villain. 

I collapsed to my knees and looked at the air bike. 

“Alright. Let’s go on a trip. Let’s embark on an adventure towards some  unknown country.” 

[You have classes starting tomorrow, so that’s impossible.] 

“Right. Damn iiiit!” 

Why did I have to suffer through so much? There were so many other  people who actually wanted to be promoted! I didn’t want to be promoted, though! 

◇ 

Coming back from his household, Chris had a tired face. 

Chris, who had been nearly severed from the family, was summoned in order to deal with some procedures and for them to lecture him. 

Chris was told to never show his face at the household again, and although he was prepared for that to happen, it was still very intense for him, causing  him to be exhausted. 

(That Baltfault guy, why is he sitting down like that?) 

When he returned to the boys’ dorms, he saw Leon feebly sitting there, not  speaking. 

When he returned to his room, a letter was there. 

When he picked up the letter from the floor, he saw that it was from Marie. 

With a grin, Chris adjusted his glasses and read the letter. 

“Marie went to a dungeon during the holiday? I, is she okay?” 

The letter wrote that when he came back, they should meet up, so Chris  hurriedly straightened his outfit and rushed out of his room in order to find Marie. 

The letter said that there was something she wanted to show him. 

Chris, forgetting about what happened back home, went to meet Marie. 

◇ 

It was the next day. 

I slumped over on my desk with a look of despair. 

During break time, Daniel and Raymond approached. 

“You look terrible.” 

“How about cheering up a bit?” 

Perhaps with the rumors already spreading, Brad and Greg, who successfully suppressed sky pirates, had gotten popular with the girls. There was not an ounce of praise directed towards me, though. 

Olivia and Anjie hadn’t gotten in touch with me, so there was no female  presence around. 

“I didn’t want to get promoted.” 

Daniel understood and made a worrying smile. 

“I know how you feel. Things get tough when your rank is high. Your rank  is at the level where you would have people under your guardianship, have retainers, and gather a fleet to command as a feudal lord.” 

Having a high rank demanded a corresponding amount of work. 

As Daniel had said, when barons reach around the lower sixth rank, it was suggested for them to send out airships, even just one, during war. However, it was mandatory for ranks above that. 

Those of higher ranks had an obligation to dispatch appropriate war potential. 

There were many nobles who despised this and didn’t want to be promoted. 

On the other end of the spectrum, nobles who aimed for promotion flaunted themselves by accumulating airships. 

Raymond turned his attention towards some nearby girls. 

The girls who looked at me seemed to have very complex facial expressions. 

“Though, if it’s certain that you’re going to be in the upper fifth rank, you won’t have trouble getting married, right?” 

──Marriage. 

I suppose he had a point. That was the reason we were in the academy. 

“Aah, right. You’re definitely, right. Though, the whole matter’s  troublesome.” 

Raymond smiled. 

“There will be field trips at some point, and when those happen, there  might even be some girls who will get in touch with you. I envy you.” 

If any girl got in touch with me at this point, they were the kind of girl who was basically saying “I’m only here because of your status.” 

No wait, I was mistaken. Those were the only kinds of girls at this  academy. 

Daniel seemed disheartened. 

“So it seems I’ll be in a different group from you guys. How unfortunate.” 

The academy had a field trip each year. 

The three grades traveled in unison, but there were three different  destinations. The destinations rotated each year, with Daniel, Raymond, and I having different ones. 

The students in the whole school were divided into three groups, each enjoying their own field trip. 

In the game, the protagonist went to the same destination as the capture target they were aiming for, giving them a chance to earn favorability. In addition, there existed items that could only be retrieved in that location. 

My destination was a floating island which contained an item that piqued my interest. 

“Expect some souvenirs.” 

When I said that, the two replied with “We’ll look forward to them,” while smiling. 

This was my everyday life that wouldn’t change. 

I thought of it as very valuable due to my previous life. In my past world, I didn’t notice how luxurious this kind of thing was. 

Raymond looked at me. 

“Leon, let’s talk about those two people who were on your airship. Why don’t you apologize and reconcile already?” 

“Why are you making me out to be the bad guy?” 

Daniel was surprised. 

“Well, weren’t you the cause of the trouble, Leon?” 

“He’s right.” 

Raymond agreed. It seemed that I needed to have a thorough talk with these two about what kind of person they saw me as. 

◇ 

It was the day of the field trip. 

The airship prepared was quite luxurious. 

After all, it was a luxury liner. 

We were heading towards a warm floating island in the south. 

It was summer over there, a different season. It was a popular island for a  field trip destination. 

“I suppose it’s like the northern hemisphere and southern hemisphere. Even so──” 

I heard that this would be a field trip, but all I could see were students playing around on the liner. 

I was wandering around the casino with my third-year upperclassman, Rukul, who was in the same social group as me. 

“They said that this would be a field trip, but the class is just messing around. The floating island we’re heading to is a tourist attraction, so it’ll be like experiencing a festival. There’s going to be a unique atmosphere, and it’ll be quite fun.” 

“A festival?” 

“There’s this special aura you feel when in a foreign land. The girls wear yukatas and enjoy themselves in the festival. Boys who can escort those girls can shorten the distance with them considerably. You should do your best as well, Leon.” 

I see. If one was to get married, they would have to work their hardest on this occasion. 

Even so, the popular girls already had boys surrounding them. 

Other girls were surrounded by exclusive servants and were being pampered by them. 

What caught my attention was Anjie talking at the counter. Her unreliable followers were frantically trying to entertain her, but seemed to have trouble. 

Looking elsewhere, I could see Olivia, who seemed to be exiting, perhaps not enjoying the casino’s atmosphere. 

Rukul spoke to me. 

“You’ve picked some difficult partners.” 

“What are you talking about? I’m not in any position where I can go after them.” 

“Yeah, I guess so. We all have our own partners we need to be with. The same goes for the girls. Things get tough when choosing a partner you don’t match with. Though, I suppose I don’t need to explain for you to figure that out, right? Just look at his Highness and the others.” 

Speaking of them, the prince and the others were scattered all over the place. 

Julian and Jilk were together, but Marie was with Brad and Greg. 

Rukul spotted Chris. 

“Oh, there’s the expert swordsman.” 

He was playing poker, and though he seemed to have won the game, he didn’t look happy. 

He left his seat and went elsewhere. 

He wasn’t with Marie and the others, and seemed bored being by himself. 

“Is Chris alone?” 

However, girls then swarmed around him. 

“Chris, what are you going to play this time?” 

“Why don’t we swim together on the deck’s pool?” 

“Forget her, let’s have a meal──” 

Girls were approaching him, but he let out a single sigh. Even though he took that kind of attitude, the girls seemed very delighted. 

If I was the one sighing, they would glare at me with a vein on their forehead. 

Rukul asked me a question. 

“You up for some roulette?” 

“No, I have a doctrine against gambling.” Rukul was astonished. “Huh?” His face told me that he thought I was lying. However, I genuinely hated  gambling. Why fight not knowing whether I would win or lose? It was idiotic. 

──I was a guy who only entered matches I knew I would win. 

◇ 

There was a storehouse in the luxury liner heading towards the southern floating island. 

Two girls were secretly speaking with each other. 

“We’re in trouble if we don’t do this right!” 

“This is the daughter of a duke household we’re talking about, so it can’t be helped, can it?” 

The two were girls that had been Anjie’s followers. 

After the uproar from the duel during the summer vacation, Anjie’s followers were desperate to regain trust. 

However, among some followers, there were people who were making threatening movements. 

These two were the same. 

“My family gave up on the duke household.” 

“Same with mine. After all, his Highness the crown princes’ faction had  collapsed. The Redgrave duke household is now on the decline.” 

Due to Julian losing his position, the duke household that had backed him had their faction breaking down. 

It was a matter of course since Julian, the faction’s objective and backbone, had been disinherited. 

Those who wanted benefits if Julian had become the king in the future naturally left the faction. 

These two were among such people. 

“How do you use this?” 

“You just pull the string and toss it outside. It stands out on the deck, so we were told to throw it from somewhere else.” 

They had some dubious object. 

Once they tugged the string off of a cylindrical object, smoke came out of it, so they quickly tossed it to outside the airship. 

“Do you think this will do?” 

“Won’t it?” 

Not knowing what just happened, the two left the storehouse and returned to where Anjie was. 

◇ 

The school field trip. 

Once Livia arrived at the floating island and borrowed a yukata, she was walking along the evening streets. 

That normally would have been dangerous, but today was the day of a festival in the floating island. 

Stalls were lined up and the light from red paper lanterns made for a unique ambience. 

“──How beautiful.” 

There were the sounds of drums and flutes. 

There were voices of people having fun. 

It was a completely different atmosphere compared to the festivals at her hometown. 

Livia, who felt as if she was experiencing a new culture, walked alone in the festival. 

She had not spoken with Leon since the suppression of the sky pirates. Talking with Anjie was tough as well, and during that time, the distance between them had grown further. 

Anjie was also participating in the festival, but was surrounded by her followers and couldn’t chat with her. 

There was the fragrance of salty-sweet sauce. 

There was also the scent of sugary candy. 

There were various places to have a good time, including a location for target practice. 

Livia stared at a goldfish catching game, and then was moved by fireworks exploding in the sky, also surprised by the soaring noises they made──but she felt deep in her heart that she wasn’t having fun. 

Her sight was once on Anjie──but as she wandered around looking for Leon, she could no longer find Anjie either. 

Ever since that incident, she hadn’t thought about seeking her friends. 

She felt menial after the matter with Cara. 

“Should I even be here?” 

She felt delighted when Leon told her before that it was fine for her to be at the academy. 

She felt embarrassed and pathetic after saying extreme things to him. 

(Why did I even prioritize the opinions of an outsider?) 

She didn’t understand it herself, but she hadn’t been having fun lately. 

As she wandered aimlessly, she separated from the festival venue. 

(Ah, if I don’t get back──) 

However, she heard the voices of what sounded like people fighting. 

The voices were arguing with each other. 

“Listen up, hand them over!” 

“N, no! I won’t give it to you! Not even if you’re a noble! Stop!” 

Hearing that voice, Livia jumped out. 

She had thought that a student in the academy was causing trouble to the locals. 

“U, um──!” 

“What are you doing there?!” 

However, Livia wasn’t the only one there, as Anjie had also rushed in with her yukata slightly disordered. 

The two glanced at each other in surprise, and then awkwardly turned towards the person causing trouble. 

“──Leon?” 

“──What in the world are you doing?” 

Yet unfortunately, the one causing trouble was Leon. Leon glanced around. “T, this is um──” Thereupon, the local, a male wearing a mask, clung onto the two. “H, help me. This noble told me to give him what I had.” The two looked at Leon while the local still clung onto them. it looked as if  an evil noble was trying to steal goods from a weak person. Of course, Leon explained himself. “Y, you’ve got it wrong! I told him to give me what he had because I  would buy his entire stock! I’ve got the money for it!” The man shook his head. “No. There are people in the festival who are looking forward to these! No  matter how much money you have, I won’t let you deprive everyone of their fun!” When looking at what the man had, there were small, unknown objects wrapped in white paper. They were arranged in a box, ready to sell. Anjie asked the man about them. “What are these?” 

Perhaps delighted by her interest, the man explained in a cheery voice. “Look. They’re charms made by my grandmother from home. They’re blessed to make you popular. They’re covered up because they vary in type. 

What you get depends on your luck.” 

Leon soon approached the smiling man from behind. He held a roll of bank notes. “Then sell them. I’ll buy them all. Oh, I’ve got it. I’ll buy them at ten times  the price.” The persistent Leon had prepared a lot of money while saying that he  would buy everything. On the contrary, the man became frightened. “What’s with you?! This is not a matter that can be settled with money. 

This is for the sake of seeing everyone smile!” He wanted to take pleasure in selling charms to the people enjoying the  festival. The man did not yield. Leon took out a pouch containing gold coins. “Look, how about this? Gold coins. There are twenty pieces inside. I’ll  offer this as well.” The man thought for a moment, but shook his head. “My grandmother made these in order to give everyone some joy. I will  not back down on this!” Leon made a telling smile. “You’ve got some nerve. I like that! I’ll tell you what, I’ll prepare a white  gold coin. How about that?” Despite Leon steadily increasing the price, the masked man resisted. 

“Like I said, no can do!” Anjie grabbed Leon by the ear. “Ouch. That hurts, Ms. Anjie!” “You don’t need to address me formally. Drop the honorifics. Anyways,  you can go. We’ll take care of this.” The man thanked them while clutching his important merchandise. “T, thank you!” The man left the scene and headed towards the festival venue, disappearing  into the crowd. While his ear was still being pinched, Leon reached his hand out while lamenting. “Wait! My item!” Livia had no idea how to address Leon after he acted in that manner.