Vol 7. Chapter 45: Necessity

Leon walked over to the starting point of the track and sat down, squinting as he waited for Noa.

It didn’t take long before she completed another lap. At the starting line, she spotted her dad sitting there.

Jogging over, she was just about to ask why he was here at this hour—but the moment she got close, Noa caught a whiff of alcohol.

“Dad, how much did you drink?”

Leon waved a hand lazily. “Not that much. I was out schmoozing with Principal Wilson and the others. Had a few drinks—it happens.”

Noa bent over, resting her head against the towel draped around her neck, tilting her head slightly.

“Does Mom know?”

Leon shook his head.

“I thought stuff like this only happened in those cheesy workplace romance novels Aurora reads.”

Leon let out a helpless laugh and wiped his face.

He was drenched in sweat, and being built the way he was, ended up just lying down right there on the track.

Noa didn’t sit or lie down immediately—she had just finished her run and needed to cool off a bit.

“So, what are you doing out here, Noa? It’s the middle of the night and you’re out running alone. Something on your mind?”

It had been a long time since Noa had snapped back with the same old emperor-level sass. She didn’t even mutter “I’m running away from home.”

But something had definitely shifted.

Once her breathing calmed, Noa sat down beside Leon. Her deep blue eyes stared at the field lights. After a moment’s thought, she nodded.

“...It’s about Helena.”

Leon raised an eyebrow. “Did you two fight?”

Noa scratched her temple awkwardly.

“I’m not sure if it counts as a fight. These past few days, I’ve had a bunch of classmates—even kids from other classes and grades—coming to talk to me, giving me gifts, saying they ⊛ Nоvеlιght ⊛ (Read the full story) want to be friends and all. You know I’m not into socializing. But there were so many of them, and the gifts kept coming. I couldn’t even keep up with saying no. And in the middle of all that... I guess I ended up ignoring Helena.”

She pulled her knees up and hugged them, resting her chin lightly on top as she continued.

“We were supposed to go watch the sunset together behind the hill tonight. But I got stuck with those other students, and couldn’t get away. By the time I made it, the sun was already down. Helena looked really upset. She said this wasn’t the first time I’d bailed on her lately, and that I didn’t care about her anymore. ...But I do care, Dad.”

Noa turned to Leon, her voice quietly pleading.

“I really, really care about her. I didn’t ask for those people to come talk to me, and I told them no as soon as I could... So why is Helena still... so upset?”

Gifts. “New friends.”

Even with his head spinning from the booze, Leon instantly understood what was going on.

Noa was going through the same thing Muse had faced.

The moment people found out she was the daughter of the new vice principal, their parents pushed them to cozy up to Leon—through his kids.

Leon closed his eyes and rubbed his face with both hands, letting out a long, weary sigh.

Back when he was running for vice principal, he hadn’t considered this side effect at all.

After a pause, Leon sat upright. He looked at Noa and spoke slowly.

“This isn’t your fault, Noa. It’s not Helena’s fault either. And it’s not those other students’ fault.”

Noa blinked. “Then whose fault is it?”

“...Probably mine.”

Or, more accurately—the fault of the vice principal’s seat under his butt.

Noa paused, then suddenly shook her head.

“No, no, Dad—I don’t care who’s at fault. I just want Helena to know I still care about her.”

The crown princess, though excelling in nearly every area, struggled when it came to relationships.

Maybe it was because Helena had been the one to barge into Noa’s world, kicking down a door she hadn’t even realized was half-open—

And became her very first real friend.

That’s why Noa had no idea how to react to Helena’s disappointment. Why she’d been so upset, running laps by herself in the middle of the night.

“Well, hmm...”

Leon thought for a bit, then offered:

“You could invite Helena over to our place this weekend. That way, without all those other kids around, you’ll have time to really explain things to her.”

What seems like a big mess to kids is often pretty simple in an adult’s eyes.

Noa’s eyes lit up.

“Okay! I’ll ask her tomorrow—tell her to come to our place this weekend.”

She paused and looked at him.

“Dad, you’re coming home this weekend too, right?”

Leon blinked.

“Of course. Of course your old man’s coming home.”

...

“You’re not coming home this weekend, Vice Principal...”

Samantha’s normally soft, gentle voice now sounded like a devil’s whisper.

“Saturday morning, you have the committee’s executive session. In the afternoon, you’ll be doing an on-site inspection of the Academy’s facilities—including but not limited to the library, classrooms, and training grounds. Sunday, you’ll be—”

Leon slammed his forehead against the desk, raising a hand to stop her.

“No need to continue, Samantha. I accept my organizational fate.”

Samantha arched an elegant brow, giving him a resigned smile.

“The first month is always the busiest, Vice Principal. Please hang in there.”

“...Is it really only the first month?”

Leon stared at the new schedule she’d just handed him.

Why did it feel like he was going to be drowning in this for the next six months?

He sighed, slumping into his office chair, staring up at the ceiling.

If he did the math... his daughters were probably arriving home around now.

He’d promised Rosvisser and the kids he’d be home this weekend. But...

sigh.

Leon closed his eyes, trying his best to suppress the wave of guilt.

At the Silver Dragon Sanctuary.

When Rosvisser found out that Leon wouldn’t be coming home this weekend because of work, her smile froze in place.

“I see...”

A rare moment—she allowed a flicker of disappointment to show in front of the maids and children.

But she quickly regained her composure. She reached out and gently ruffled Muse’s hair.

“Go play in the backyard with Helena, alright? We’ve got a big dinner tonight~”

The girls were used to seeing their dad at the Academy every day. So when they heard he wouldn’t be home this weekend, they were a little sad—but not as deeply affected as Rosvisser.

What they didn’t know... was that it had already been over a week since their mother had last seen him.

Once the girls had run off to the garden, Anna approached Rosvisser and asked quietly,

“Your Majesty... are you alright?”

Rosvisser stared at her for a moment, then slowly shook her head.

“I’m fine. Go prepare dinner, Anna.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

After Anna left, Rosvisser climbed the stairs and sat back down on her throne.

She touched the cold armrest and gazed out at the empty sanctuary. Her silver eyes quivered slightly, her gaze unfocused.

As if lost in thought... or caught in a memory.

This wasn’t the first time she and Leon had been apart. And each time, there had always been a necessary reason.

But this time... Was it really necessary?

Rosvisser leaned back in her throne and slowly curled her body, resting her head on her arm.

On that towering royal seat, she looked like a small, fragile figure curled in on herself.

Decades of work had never made her feel tired.

But tonight...

She felt so tired. So empty.

If only Leon were here.