Rey silently watched Leon from across the room as Leon laid in bed doing absolutely nothing but stare at the ceiling as if it was the most interesting thing ever.

It has been a couple days since that night, and though he didn't get a single word out of Leon, Leon had struck a deal with him.

If the fairy falls in love with Rey, then Leon will tell him what happened in those few months.

Of course, Rey beat him up that night.

Which was the exact reason why Leon was still laying in bed.

Rey didn't want to involve the fairy. She was kind enough to not only take them in from the forest, but to also provide them a safe place to rest. Why couldn't Leon just tell him what happened? Why was he making this so hard?

Well, in the end, here Rey was. Sitting in front of the fairy, helping her peel fruits, and having small talk.

Honestly, Rey doesn't know how to make someone fall in love. He thought people were suppose to just let nature take its course. How was he going to do this?

But Leon seemed absolutely positive that Rey could make her fall in love.

If this was going to keep Leon alive a little longer. Then there's no harm trying.

Leon would laugh if he knew that the protagonist wasn't confident in making someone fall in love. The protagonist literally has a harem of all kinds of ladies. It's like he's just going around collecting them all. He could have lived lavishly with all these women, but instead he chose to be with only one.

How romantic.

That is, if you ignore the fact that he's slept with many other women already -_-

"Oh, cute," Fay smiled.

Suddenly interested, Leon turned his head to look.

Rey slightly twitched his eyebrows. This friend of his was truly annoying. He only ever paid attention if the fairy was going to do something or had something to say. If anything, Rey would sooner believe that Leon wanted the fairy to fall in love with him and not Rey.

Rey sighed and glanced at his handiwork.

"Thanks," he mumbled.

He heard that fairies liked flowers. So, he might as well try to impress her. It wasn't anything fancy, just an apple cut and placed into the shape of a rose. Totally nothing fancy about it.

". . . It's for you," Rey slid it over.

Leon could almost cringe. Hell, Rey could feel Leon cringing.

If it wasn't for this deal, Rey would have gone to beat him up once more.

Unexpectedly, Fay stood up with the gift and walked towards Leon.

"It's for you," she smiled.

Both Rey and Leon were shocked in place.

". . . thanks," Leon reluctantly accepted it, "but, I don't need it,"

Fay furrowed her eyebrows in confusion, "But we were peeling fruits for you. And Rey worked so hard to make this, you even turned around to look,"

Leon should have guessed this was going to happen. The protagonist wasn't putting his whole heart into impressing the fairy, instead he was confusing her with his actions.

Who makes a flower out of apples for a lady when your eyes are peeled somewhere else?!

Fairies are sensitive to emotions!

It's no wonder she's confused!

Leon sighed deeply and looked at Rey, eyes telling him to work harder. Rey only shrugged and continued peeling his fruits.

Fay could feel that Leon truly didn't want the plate of apples, so she just placed it beside him. Maybe he'll eat it when he's not so upset.

"I'm going out to gather some herbs, I'll be back soon,"

"Take Rey with you,"

Rey furrowed his eyebrows. Sometimes, he wondered if this deal was even a deal. Leon is constantly trying to make himself lose.

Sensing that Rey didn't want to go, she was going to just make her way out.

"He'll keep you safe," Leon stated, stopping her in her tracks.

Fay awkwardly smiled, ". . . well, I've lived in this forest for-"

"-It's the least he could do. You already helped us so much,"

Rey and Leon were stuck in a staring contest, leaving Fay to stand uncomfortably in her own house.

". . . uh, I-"

"-Please wait outside, Fay," Rey interrupted her, "I'll be with you soon,"

Fay felt as if she was the guest and they were the homeowners, but nonetheless, Fay did as instructed and went to wait outside.

Inside, Rey walked over to Leon.

"I don't know what you're thinking," Rey glowered, "but if this is some kind of trick, don't think that I'll let you off easy,"

Leon rolled his eyes, "Can't I just have a moment of peace and quiet without you constantly looking over my shoulder?"

Rey hmphed. Then, with a flick of his fingers, he casted a spell.

Leon knows this spell. It's an invisible spell that keeps a person within a certain range. Rey had used it many times to hold his enemies captive.

Leon chuckled, "Are you treating me like a prisoner?"

"If that's what you think," Rey turned around and left.

This way, Rey could keep Leon safe and continue the deal.

"I'm ready,"

Outside, Fay stood waiting. From just one look, she could feel that Rey was reluctant to leave.

"You don't have to come,"

"I want to,"

She sighed, 'What's wrong with these pair of friends?'

". . . I won't stop you then,"

She led them to an area flourishing with herbs. You can tell that they've been taken care of very well.

Rey was bored so he also helped pick up a few. And like this, they passed the time in comfortable silence.

When the sun was high in the sky, they decided to take a break. They strolled over to a nearby creek to wash their hands and sat down for a quick snack.

Now, Rey was internally puzzled. Before, he hadn't spoke since they were both busy picking up herbs, but now they had free time. He needed the fairy to fall in love with him, but he had no idea where to start.

". . . Fay," he spoke, but had absolutely nothing to say.

The fairy glanced at Rey, feeling his struggle to start a conversation. She sighed. He doesn't look like the type that likes to talk, so she doesn't understand why he is trying so hard. But she guessed she could amuse him if that's what he wanted.

"Your friend is an unusual human,"

". . . . yes, he is,"

"I take it he wasn't like that before,"

Rey glanced away, "No,"

"Something must've happened then, huh?"

". . . yes,"

She knows Rey wants to talk, but he makes it difficult to continue the conversation if all he says is yes and no. She also isn't fond of talking herself. There's a reason why she lives alone in the forest.

Fay sighed deeply before giving him a gentle smile.

"Look, you don't have to force yourself to talk. I'm fine with sitting in silence, I enjoy it actually,"

"Please talk," Rey said shamefully, internally chanting curses at Leon.

Fay looked at with an incredulous expression before sighing again. Why does she have to be the one starting the conversation?! He's the one who wants to talk!

". . . . So, how'd you . . . . meet your friend?"

"We met ten years ago, he lost a fight to me,"

. . . .

Fay sighed for the thousandth time, "I don't think this is going to work, let's just sit quietly,"

"No, sorry. I'll talk,"

---10 years ago---

There were four main kingdoms in the Human Realm, Exethia being one of them. Every ten years, the four kingdoms come together to host a global entrance exam for the Academy of Magic. The entrance exam was not just a fighting competition, but also a show of skills for those who excel at other things. Anyone could enter this competition, it didn't matter about their race, social status, or history. The only thing stopping them would be the age requirements. Only those between fifteen to eighteen years of age can enter this competition. Apart from that, they would have to rank within the top five hundred.

Having to leave the orphanage, Rey decided to take part in this competition. He had trained for months before he began making his journey towards the Academy of Magic. It was during this journey that he saved Evelyn, his one true love, from a group of bandits.

Evelyn was a Northern Elf. She had years of knowledge and skills that she was proficient in. However, her sense of direction was absolutely horrible. She had traveled passed the Academy of Magic and continued in the opposite direction. She was also more of the healer than a fighter, but that didn't necessarily mean she was bad at fighting. She just preferred to heal.

And from there, they traveled together, saving people along the way, and training to get stronger.

When they made it to their destination, the competition had already started. They were only able to take part in the competition, because Evelyn's parents were highly known and had help funded the school. And since Rey was her savior, he got in to.

The competition had many stages, from casting magic, to welding, to alchemy, and many more all the way to the final stage which was combat. This was the most exciting stage of the competition, because usually, those who've won always got accepted into the school. Of course, as long as they were in the top five hundred.

It was during this stage that Rey and Leon had fought each other.

It was an exciting match between magic and strength.

Rey casted spells one after another, all failing to catch Leon. Leon, in turn, used his speed and strength to attack, only to be met with barriers and illusions.

"Come on!" Leon yelled, "Stop hiding behind magic!"

"Stop running then!" Rey spatted back.

Two pure-hearted boys from unimpressive backgrounds shocked the judges and spectators. People were cheering for both sides, not knowing who was going to win.

Eventually, Leon was low on stamina and Rey was low on mana.

As they both went in for their final attack, Rey was able to outwit Leon. Instead of magic, Rey had thrown a punch, shocking and knocking Leon out at the same time.

At the end of the match, Rey and Evelyn went to the medbay to look for Leon.

Evelyn further healed Leon, wanting to wake him up quicker as Rey waited.

When Leon did wake, Rey was thrilled. He was going to make this person his friend.

"I'm Rey Atland,"

Leon smiled brightly, "I'm Leon,"

"You're annoying, but you fight good,"

Leon was dramatically offended, "I only lost this time because you tricked me! Next time, it'll be you laying in this bed!"

"Well, you better work really hard then,"

And like this, they became friends of ten years.

---Present---

"Leon was a happy person," Rey stated.

"Hmm,"

"There was nothing that could faze him. He literally fought through life with a smile planted on his face. For everything that's gone wrong, he never changed. He's been like that for ten years!"

"Hmm,"

"So, I don't understand why he's suddenly acting like this. When we parted ways, he was still celebrating,"

"Uhuh,"

"The moment I figure out who caused this, I will make sure they suffer even after death,"

Fay watched undisturbed as Rey emanated a dark aura.

"Do you really think a person can go ten years with only a smile on their face," she said as she went to go wash her hands in the creek, "Surely you couldn't, I haven't seen a single smile from you yet,"

". . ."

"I hope this was enough talking for today, I would like to continue gathering herbs,"