When Leonel reappeared within the cave, several eyes looked toward him at once. Their reactions were so quick that Leonel could practically here the wind their spinning heads caused.
Toward such a reaction, he could only smile bitterly. It seemed that they really had been waiting for him. Not a single person was missing from the time he had left to now. What else could they be doing if not waiting for him?
"Have you all come to a decision?" Leonel asked.
The youths looked at one another, but it seemed that the answer to the question was no. They had likely just gotten tired of arguing and let the matter rest for now. At least… that was what Leonel had thought before he realized that many of them were even avoiding his gaze as though being embarrassed by something.
"What about you all?" Leonel asked with narrowed eyes.
Though it was the same question, this time, Leonel very obviously aimed it toward the six others who could be considered near his level of strength.
Pisces stood upon hearing these words, walking toward Leonel with a confident expression. Though there didn't seem to be disdain in her gaze, this was only because she knew that Leonel was much more powerful than she was. However, there seemed to be something that had greatly boosted her boldness regardless.
"While you were away, we came to a consensus as a group."
Leonel looked past Pisces, sending a questioning gaze toward the others.
He only got a shrug from Roaring Black Lion. Thunderous Clap avoided his gaze as though he too was embarrassed. As for Chasing Wind, though she met his gaze, there was a tinge of guilt within her eyes. But, for some reason, she would feel even more guilty not meeting Leonel's gaze, so she put in effort to not look away. As for Flowing Wind, she was observing the situation as though she was a passerby, happy to see the world burn.
Though Leonel couldn't see their faces, making it difficult to tell their true intentions, he still had a good idea.
Roaring Black Lion didn't seem to care about what was going on. He only shrugged to show that he had nothing to do with what was happening, but he couldn't do much to change anything either.
Thunderous Clap likely put the most effort into trying to stop what was happening, but he too couldn't move the needle. He seemed to take this much harder than Roaring Black Lion, something that made Leonel smile beside himself. He found this Thunderous Clap to be quite adorable.
As for Chasing Wind, her gaze seemed to make it seem like she had made the most logical decision for herself. As such, though she felt 'bad' for Leonel, it wasn't to the extent of changing her decision. Her actions of meeting his gaze was to let him know this.
'Interesting, interesting…'
The last person Leonel looked at was King of Seas, he seemed to have the most sour look in his eyes as though he was losing out even more than Leonel. After seeing this, Leonel had a decent idea of what 'decision' these people had come to.
Before Pisces could even explain what was going on, Seer suddenly called out.
"I don't agree either."
Precious Moment affirmed Seer's words.
The two of them had been saved by Leonel at a critical moment. Had it not been for Leonel, they would be dead. How could they agree to this?
In truth, it wasn't just them that had been saved. Even setting aside the fact that Leonel taking the vanguard had kept their casualties to a minimum, there were many others he had directly saved just like the two of them.
"Your opinions were already heard. We came to a consensus as a group. Further words are meaningless. I'm sure you already remember the vote totals." Pisces spoke coldly, not allowing the two to say any more.
She swept a glance of indifference toward them before looking back toward Leonel with her lofty expression as though everything was playing to her tune.
"In your absence, we decided that our best chance at survival was for you to hand over the SS-grade Beast Crystal to me. As long as I ingest it, there is a high chance my ability will mutate to gain some characteristics of the coy fish. In that case, maneuvering through these tunnels will become much safer for us all and we'll be able to follow the advice your treasure gave us."
That day, they had all heard the words of the dictionary. So, they knew well the importance of approaching as closely to the Force geyser as possible before facing its direct might. If Pisces could awaken this ability, it really would be their best chance.
Leonel didn't have much of a reaction to this. Instead, he looked toward King of Seas.
"And why did everyone choose you and not him?"
A tinge of red flashed by King of Seas' gaze. It seemed that he now hated Pisces just as much as he hated Leonel. But, there was nothing he could do about it anymore.
Pisces sneered, thinking that Leonel wanted to sow discord. But, she replied calmly as though everything was still easily within her grasp. In her opinion, the big obstacle had been King of Seas, not Leonel. It wasn't because the former was more powerful than the latter, but because only the former could sway public opinion away from her.
"It's simple, really. King of Seas' affinity with water can only be considered auxiliary. His main ability is his transformation into a merman. This allows him greater defense, strength and speed, in addition to a boost to these things while in the presence of water. Of course, he also gains the ability to breathe under water as well."
Pisces explained patiently and without hurry.
"However, water manipulation is my main ability. Compared to him, the likelihood of my ability mutating is far higher. So, if we were to take a chance on anyone, it should most definitely be me."
Numerous people nodded to this, even Chasing Wind. It seemed that she had also been swayed by this logic. It did indeed make sense. And, in Chasing Wind's opinion, it would be quite selfish of Leonel to refuse. After all, he didn't have a water ability.
"I hope you don't take offense to this." Chasing Wind suddenly spoke. In fact, if Leonel thought about it, this was the first time he had ever heard her voice. "We are only trying out best with what we have. Had you had a water ability, none of us would have agreed to this."
Leonel nodded toward this. He indeed didn't feel angry about this. That said…
"I understand where you all are coming from and there isn't anything wrong with your line of thinking."
Pisces' smile bloomed when she heard this, almost as though the Beast Crystal was already in her hands.
"Unfortunately, I still can't agree."
Toward this, Pisces' expression could only darken.