By the time Leon returned, Ais and the others had already made their way back.
Leon looked around at the gathered members and asked, "How did the investigation go?"
"We found it." Loki replied lazily, sprawled across her chair with a look of exasperation.
"Turns out Njord—the mayor of Melen—and the local branch guild leader were secretly smuggling the Piranha Plants. They were trying to use them to help the fishermen here. Unlucky for Ishtar, she got herself tangled up in their mess…"
Loki sighed, rubbing her temples.
"What a headache. I've already sent word to Ouranos. Let him deal with this nonsense."
"Tch. Those sly bastards covered their tracks well." Bete growled from the side. "All the trails end here."
"We've hit a dead end. The only path left is to explore that strange entrance you mentioned on the eighteenth floor. Oh, and don't forget—we also need to search for the rumored hidden entrance to an underground city right here in Melen."
She sounded completely uninterested, but her eyes revealed the weariness of someone who had been running around all day gathering scraps of intel.
Njord and his crew hadn't revealed anything useful. The only significant lead had come from Ishtar.
Unfortunately, she was no longer around to spill her secrets, having been forcibly returned to heaven by Leon and Loki the night before.
And judging from the chaos that ensued, none of her Familia members had any idea about what she had been planning. So that was the end of the trail.
Still, their trip hadn't been entirely fruitless. Loki had managed to acquire a clue from Njord—a portrait of a suspicious figure possibly linked to the underground entrance in Orario. It wasn't much, but it was something.
"Alright, everyone's done well today." Loki said at last, sweeping her gaze over her Familia.
"Let's eat and get some rest. We're heading back to Orario first thing tomorrow." Thᴇ link to the origɪn of this information rᴇsts ɪn 𝓷𝓸𝓿𝓮𝓵※𝓯𝓲𝓻𝓮※𝓷𝓮𝓽
No one had any objections. After a long day of walking and investigating, exhaustion had set in. A warm meal and a good night's sleep were exactly what they needed.
After dinner, Leon returned to his room. But as soon as he stepped inside, a familiar voice rang in his mind.
[Ding!! You have a new mystery box. Please check immediately!]
'Eh? The system… again?'
Leon blinked in surprise.
The system had remained silent for almost an entire month. It only started acting up a few days ago… and now it was pinging him again?
"System, open the mystery box."
[Ding!! The mystery box has been opened. Congratulations to the host for obtaining the Angel Reincarnation Pool!!!]
[Angel Reincarnation Pool: Any person who enters the pool will be reincarnated into a 2 to 8-winged angel, gaining the power of angels. The stronger the potential of the person, the stronger the angelic power granted. Potential increases significantly and growth continues automatically. The highest possible form is a twelve-winged Archangel.]
[Note: Reincarnation requires energy. The greater the potential, the more energy consumed.]
[The reincarnated angel becomes a subordinate of the pool's owner.]
Leon stared blankly, dumbfounded by the description.
"This… This is really tied to the biblical pantheon…"
He had half-jokingly named his Familia Lucifer before, partly with this kind of mythology in mind, but he never expected the system to actually give him something —a tool that could mass-produce angels.
'Anyone who enters can reincarnate into an angel and gain angelic powers…'
Leon knew enough about angels to understand that even the weakest among them—a mere two-winged variant—would already be comparable to a Level 4 or Level 5 adventurer in this world.
This wasn't a gift. This was a weapon. A tool to make ordinary adventurers ascend to the heavens in one fell swoop.
Just as he was reeling from the implications, a knock sounded at the door.
Leon's eyes narrowed. He quickly came back to his senses.
The door creaked open.
He was genuinely surprised. It was already late.
"What brings you here at this hour?" He asked, gesturing for her to take a seat.
Ais stepped inside, but her expression was strangely tense. She didn't sit down right away. Instead, she stood there in silence, her eyes flickering with hesitation.
Leon tilted his head and spoke gently, "Take your time. If something's bothering you, just say it."
This was the first time he'd ever seen Ais so unsure of herself. It wasn't like her at all. Whatever this was about, it had to be serious.
Ais took a deep breath. Then she raised her head, eyes sharp and resolute.
She said, "Leon, I know this might be presumptuous… but can you tell me the reason why you've grown so strong so quickly?"
Her words came out in a rush, but her tone remained steady.
"Even if you can't tell me everything—just a little is fine. Whatever reward you want in return, I'll give it to you."
Leon blinked, stunned by the directness of her request.
He fell into brief silence.
The truth was simple: his growth came entirely from the system's mystery boxes. That was it. Nothing more, nothing less.
But… could he really just tell her that?
He was just about to say that he was just born with great potential when his gaze met Ais's.
The light in her eyes wasn't just serious. It bordered on obsession.
If he tried to wave her off, she wouldn't accept it. Worse, she might spiral into self-doubt or paranoia.
Leon exhaled softly and made a decision.
Instead of brushing it off, he quietly formed a world contract in his mind—binding Ais so that even if she learned his secret, it wouldn't leak or be used against him.
"There's no real secret." He finally said, tone soft.
"If I had to explain it, I'd say… my potential is just that overwhelming. So strong that no one in this world can compare."
"I know it might sound unbelievable, so…"
He stood up, turned around, and pulled off his shirt, exposing the Falna etched onto his back.
Because of the world contract he had just established, Leon wasn't worried about Ais discovering anything dangerous. She couldn't harm him with this knowledge. That safety net allowed him to take this step.
More than anything, he didn't want to deceive her.
He could sense it—if he'd brushed her off or lied, it would've planted seeds of doubt in her heart. Seeds that could grow into something dangerous.
So, rather than play games or drag things out, he chose honesty.
It was a small risk. One he could handle.
He hated needless procrastination the most. So many disasters started with lies and avoidance.
And Leon refused to be the cause of another one.