Key of Souls: Twisted Wonderland

Chapter 54: A Dangerous Discussion

3rd POV

It was late at night in the Savanaclaw Dorm; Leona was in his room lying down on his bed. He was dressed in his Dorm Uniform which consisted of a dark yellow, sleeveless shirt with a deep v-neck. On top of his shirt, Leona wore a black leather vest. He wore worn-out grey jeans, with faded brown chaps on top; Leona also wore brown shoes. Across his belt are a variety of fabrics and a yellow bandana with the Savanaclaw logo on it. Leona wore various accessories like a loose beaded choker and a golden necklace. Leona had two bracelets that had the same beads as his choker and a golden bracelet with a similar plating to his necklace. In addition to these accessories, Leona wore black gloves and had a lion tattoo on his left arm.

The silence in his room would normally be bliss for him at the moment, but his mind was thinking about that herbivore who had the guts to stand against him; this was the second time that girl looked ready to put herself in the ringer no matter what happened. While he was amused by how bold she was, what intrigued him more was how she spotted his little move that obliterated the Heartslabyul team during their Magift game. 'That girl... She looks like the naive type, but she sees things that others would not notice until the last second.', he thought. Leona knew fully well that no person should be underestimated even if they don't have magic; for a girl like her to have that kind of awareness is someone he needs to be careful about. He also remembers how the scent of that girl was like mint and wildflowers, which was surprisingly pleasant to him.

Just then, Leona's door was opened and Ruggie came inside with a food tray. Ruggie was also wearing the Savanaclaw uniform as well. Like the standard uniform, he was wearing a short-sleeved dark yellow shirt which looked a bit big on him, a black, unzipped vest, and sitting on top of the vest was a yellow scarf with patterns implemented. Underneath his vest was a necklace with different colours of beads. He was also wearing a glove on his right hand.

Ruggie approached Leona on his bed as the latter just sat up on the edge of it. "Leona, good evening. I brought your dinner. And I took care of another job.", said Ruggie as he placed the tray on Leona's desk.

"Ahh. Aren't you an efficient one, Ruggie.", Leona told him.

"Well naturally. If it's for you Leona, it's easy.", Ruggie said with a wide smile. Leona shook his head as he smirked; he easily saw right through Ruggie's little facade, knowing his true intentions. "Ha, don't flatter me. You're doing this for yourself.", he told him.

Ruggie's smile dropped the moment he heard his boss say that. "...Oh no, Leona. This is for us, y'know. Everyone wants to turn this world on its head. The hyenas in the legend of the King of Beasts followed him because they wanted to improve their lives. I'm just doing the same.", he said.

"Hmph. Then be discreet while you "hunt". Don't leave evidence.", Leona ordered him.

"Shishishi! Of course. It's hyena policy to never leave a scrap of their prey behind.", said Ruggie while he laughed. "By the way, Leona. For the next prey, which dorm and who should we target?"

"Let me think.", Leona said, taking a moment to say what he wanted next. Then his eyes shifted towards his doorway. "How about a wolf that likes to sneak around eavesdropping on others?"

"Huh!?", Ruggie exclaimed as he wondered what Leona meant by that. Leona soon got off his bed as he gave a hard stare at the closed door in his dorm room. "I know you there, fresh baby. You might want to find a new hobby with those giant ears of yours.", Leona said, knowing full well who's behind the door, listening in on this conversation.

Soon, the door opened and the individual stepped inside Leona's room, which turned out to be the first-year Jack Howl; as he walked in, he gave his two seniors a firm, cold stare in anger. "What do you want this late at night? Are you homesick and need a lullaby?", Leona mockingly asked him.

"Shall I sing one for you? Shesheshi!", Ruggie laughed.

"Tell me the reason. Why are you guys doing something like this?", said Jack, getting straight to the point.

"I see. You're looking for a bedtime story. Alright, I'll tell you one.", Leona said, staring down at the wolf-eared boy with his arms crossed as he explained. "For two years in a row, we played against Malleus and Diasomnia in the first match of the tournament. The result, we were crushed. A participation trophy. Savanaclaw has taken down opponent after opponent, but even we were like newborn kittens who haven't even opened their eyes. That unsightly state was broadcast to the whole world. Do you know what happened in the end? The Dorm Leader was branded as incompetent and scouts from pro leagues and sponsors dried up."

The anger in Leona's eyes was clear as crystal to Jack as he listened to his senior's story; he understood why Leona would be doing this, but this didn't sit well with him at all since this was cheating. "That's because... you just weren't good enough...", Jack tried to argue.

"That's precisely it. Until last year, we literally weren't committed to personal affairs.", said Leona as he continued. "Having lost an honest match with that monster-like opponent without coming up with something in advance was stupid. We knew we'd lose, but we still didn't come up with a plan. To hear that about Savanaclaw, the dorm that is founded on the persistence of the King of Beasts, it must have been a shock."

"That doesn't make the cowardly way you're attacking people any less wrong!", Jack yelled.

"It's wrong?", Leona questioned him as he glared down at the wolf-eared boy. "Jack... Do you know that I'm only thinking about what's best for all the members of Savanaclaw? If we shoot down Malleus, we'll get revenge for all of that and the value of Savanaclaw will be restored. It's already decided that if we don't win this year, Malleus will be entered into the Hall of Fame." Leona walked up to his freshman student as he spoke; his eyes not breaking contact with Jack as he glared at him. "This is our last chance. But do you want to give it up for your sense of justice? Do you want to destroy your upperclassmen's futures?"

"Th-that's...!", Jack tried to talk, but he couldn't find the right word against Leona's reasons.

"Using your head when chasing prey is the basics of hunting. There's nothing cowardly about it.", Leona told him.

"Shishishi! In this school, it's survival of the fittest. Goodie two shoes can't survive here.", Ruggie added.

"Dorm Head, if you gave it your all, you would have no problems against Diasomnia! I still remember your play from three years ago. I...!", Jack shouted. He recalled how he watched Leona play in the Magical Shift tournament three ago at Night Raven College. He remembered all the power and drive his Dorm Leader had when he dominated the competition and won for Savanaclaw; it was that match that inspired him to attend this school so he could meet his idol and one day challenge him in a game as well. He hoped Leona might see reason if he heard it from him.

Leona suddenly shouted, "Don't talk like you know everything! Give it my all? Utterly foolish. Even if I did, nothing would change." He gave Jack a vicious glare and said, "...Leave. If you want to see the morning sun."

".........", Jack couldn't say anything after his Dorm Leader's outburst; he now knew that nothing he says will change his mind about his actions. All Jack could do was give his senior a disappointed look of betrayal before walking out of the room. Ruggie looked on as he saw Jack closing the door before turning to his boss. "That guy's a liability. Should I get rid of him?", he asked.

"No, wait. Even if he goes and tells Crowley, he has no evidence. That and we need him to crush Malleus. Keep a close eye on him.", said Leona.

"Ye~s.", Ruggie said as he gave a lazy salute and bid his senior goodnight as he left the room. Leona turned around and walked out to the veranda, staring out at the wild plains of his dorm. He gripped the rails as he gritted his teeth; Jack's words rang out in his head which really pissed him off and made him remember his life back home. "...Tsk, damn fresh baby... Sounds just like my brother.", he muttered as he looked at the moon, knowing his time would finally come.

*Drip, drip...*