Leonard wasn't the only one who didn't like this coronation event; he could hear his neighbors cursing and stomping their legs in anger.
Most people in Britannia had such a reaction. For them, they knew one truth: the moment royalty gets involved, they somehow end up losing.
Despite most not agreeing, no one dared protest openly. After all, such acts could be considered treason, and you don't have to be a genius to know what happens to such people.
Although unlike most of the people, Leonard had the biggest secret to hide; as such, he felt the most pressure.
'A year.'
That was the time he had until the coronation. It wasn't much, especially due to the fact that he lacked resources to flee. The room he was in had already been paid for ten years in advance by his loving mother; as such, rent wasn't a problem for now.
With only his means, Leonard wouldn't be able to survive. He was currently surviving on a thread despite not having to worry about rent.
Running wasn't an option. He had one more option, and that was:
To rapidly increase his strength while showing immense loyalty to the royal families. If he was lucky, once his powers were revealed, they would accept him into their households.
This was what Leonard planned on gambling on.
"He he he," Leonard let out a laugh. Despite being in a troublesome situation, he laughed; his face had a twisted, sinister smile.
'Such a life of living on the edge, pursuing power,' he thought of the illiterates he normally sees—the people who are content with their lives, people who say, "As long as I eat enough, I'll be happy."
Leonard felt disgust by just imagining himself living such a life.
'Such a life seems exciting.'
At this moment, if someone were to witness this, they would probably say that he has gone mad, and perhaps they would be right.
"He he he. Yes, I'm the son of a bloody killer known as the Reaper. How could I be normal?" Leonard's question was directed at himself.
Despite claiming he was the Reaper's son, he didn't admire him, but he felt a strange understanding of his actions. This didn't mean he hated him any less.
***
The next day, Leonard left to work at a nearby construction site. They had already started their preparations for the coronation; the road being built was most likely the one the carriages would pass on. Leonard was wearing a white T-shirt with baggy trousers.
He walked by, passing the people already working, and arrived at a place where three men were drinking. Upon seeing Leonard, they showed disgusted expressions. Leonard looked at one of them who was the most intoxicated.
"Good morning, sir," Leonard said in a polite tone.
"Tch, what do you want?" the man replied. His tone was anything but polite, but this didn't bother Leonard much; he was used to it.
"I need tools to level that area," Leonard replied while pointing at a place a distance away.
"Get them from that corner," the man replied, his voice holding annoyance.
"Thank you." Leonard gave a short bow and left.
"Filthy child."
"Reaper's son."
Leonard heard their remarks, but he didn't do anything; those words didn't bother him.
"Should have died like his whore of a mother," the man Leonard was previously talking to said.
Leonard stopped walking once he heard this. With eyes holding rage, he walked up to the man.
"Uh..." Seeing Leonard approach him, the man showed panic, then rationality.
"Are you gonna cry like the good old days?" the man mocked him.
Leonard's eyes held immense bloodlust.
Arriving close to the man, he kicked the bottles of alcohol close by.
*Boom!*
The bottles broke. All three stood up in rage.
The man who was talking grabbed Leonard by the shirt and attempted to lift him. The other two surrounded him.
A crowd had formed to see what was happening.
"It's the Reaper's kid."
"The son of that demon."
"I pray he dies."
"I bet he started it."
"Just like his father."
The people muttered. Everyone knew that Leonard was provoked, but they chose to believe that he was the one in the wrong.
The man seemed to have gained confidence from the crowd.
"I'll teach you a lesson since your mother couldn't!"
Boom!
A fist hit his nose, breaking it. Blood poured out like a fountain. The two around Leonard were shocked; the crowd was shocked. It was as if time stopped. In the next moment, Leonard charged at the man. The man was grabbing his nose while having a pained expression on his face.
Boom!
Leonard kicked him in the stomach.
"Urgg..." He let out a pained groan, then fell to the ground, seemingly about to vomit. But before he could, a leg stepped on his head. His broken nose made a weird sound of bone breaking.
The man felt a liquid rush up to his stomach, passing through his throat. His mouth was on the dirty ground. He tried moving his head before he vomited, but Leonard wasn't so merciful.
Hot liquids flowed out of his mouth and nose uncontrollably. Tears were dropping from his eyes. He had never seen Leonard fight; as such, he assumed he was weak. Even those who had seen Leonard fight knew he was a terrible fighter, but now he caused a grown man to shed tears of despair.
The crowd and the two surrounding him were speechless. What they saw next frightened them.
Leonard looked at them and let out a sinister smile.
!!
"I'll kill you all if you mess with me, especially mentioning my mother."
Hearing Leonard's words, they felt a chill in their hearts. They couldn't help but think of a similar event.
"Mess with me and I'll do more than kill your children." The person who had once said this was one of the most feared and demonic individuals: The Reaper.
Leonard looked at the man who was about to drown in his own vomit, then at the people. He leaned down to the man's ear and said:
"Meet me at the park, or else." After saying this, he stopped stepping on the man and put his hands in his pockets.
He glanced at the crowd, but they all avoided eye contact. Some were even sweating; some were shaking.
It was not that Leonard completely frightened them; it was that the Reaper still frightened them.