Endless Leveling Done Right!

Chapter 680: I Think You Should Give Him Some Space

After saying everything he had in mind, Alex bade goodbye to Astrea and stood up.

However, just as he was about to walk away, a soft and delicate hand grabbed his wrist.

Alex looked at the young lady, wondering if she still had something to tell him.

"I... I don’t know what came over me," Astrea said in confusion. "My body just moved on its own."

"Oh." Alex blinked.

He didn’t really know what to say in response to her words, so the atmosphere quickly turned awkward.

Astrea reluctantly pulled her hand back and apologized to Alex. The young man assured she had nothing to apologize for and that what happened could happen to anyone.

He then walked away, intending to visit Fran’s farm to look for Dim Dim. Familiar with the little bun’s schedule, he believed it might have already finished patrolling the academy with Daisy and Rex and might be having an afternoon snack with them.

Astrea had a calm gaze as she watched him go, but she was far from calm. She didn’t understand why seeing Alex walk away made her feel sad.

This feeling was a first, even for her.

Feeling confused, she decided to return to the Music Hall to talk to her brother. Unlike her, Cassian was very smart. She believed he might have the answer to her question.

"Brother, are you free right now?" Astrea asked. "Can we talk?"

"Of course, I’m free," Cassian replied. "Even if I’m not, I’ll make sure to spare some time for my dearest sister. Alright, what can I do for you?"

Cassian led his sister to the corner of the hall so they could talk in private. Everyone was busy rehearsing, so the noise in the background would block anything they would talk about.

"Something happened a while ago, and I don’t understand what it meant," Astrea said. "Alex and I were casually chatting earlier. But, when he bid me goodbye, I suddenly reached out to hold his wrist and stopped him from leaving.

"Then, when I finally let him go, I felt like I lost something important. I don’t understand why. My chest also hurts when I think of him. Brother, am I sick?"

Cassian blinked once, then twice, before scratching his head. "Is the blacksmith already closed? I think I need to buy the sharpest sword they have for sale."

This time, it was Astrea’s turn to blink. She had no idea why her brother suddenly mentioned buying a sword, as it was very unrelated to the conversation they were having just now.

"Brother?"

"Ah. I’m sorry. Can you tell me what you and Alex were talking about earlier before he said goodbye to you? Maybe that will help me understand the situation better. It will also help me decide on what method I will use to kil—err, help you with your problem."

Astrea nodded and narrated everything that she and Alex talked about.

She said Alex looked troubled, so she pestered him to share his problem to lighten his burdens.

"He asked me what impression I had of him, especially since he’s branded as a womanizer in the academy," Astrea explained innocently.

"I see." Cassian narrowed his eyes. "And then?"

"Then I told him that you warned me about him being a womanizer," Astrea replied honestly. "Then I asked him if he really was one, which Alex didn’t deny."

Cassian scoffed. "At least he’s honest. What happened next?"

The young lady paused a bit as she tried to recall the conversation. After organizing her thoughts, she resumed her story telling.

"After that, he told me he still planned to have more lovers in the future."

"... What a piece of sh*t."

Astrea giggled after hearing her brother’s reaction. A part of her was happy that Cassian hadn’t been there when she talked with Alex. She had a feeling that the young man wouldn’t have opened his heart if her brother was there.

"Then I asked him if he has the means to support many lovers since he is a commoner," Astrea added. "I also asked him if he planned to let his lovers support him financially like a kept man. However, he looked more like he planned to support his lovers no matter how many they were."

Cassian’s frown deepened after hearing her sister’s statement. Alex Stratos was notorious in the academy.

There were even rumors flying around that sometimes, Vaan looked pale during the mornings. Because of this, people started thinking that she was suffering from morning sickness after getting pregnant with Alex’s child.

They didn’t know that Vaan wasn’t really a morning person to begin with!

’She’ wasn’t pregnant!

Yet, everyone seemed to be living in the fantasy that she was, and that Alex was the father of her child!

"After that, he asked me what my ideal romantic partner was," Astrea stated.

Hearing this, Cassian immediately sat up in attention. He was already beginning to think that a sharp sword wasn’t enough.

’Maybe I should also commission a spiked mace as a backup plan,’ Cassian thought. ’Pounding someone to death seems more satisfying than hacking them to death.’

Astrea had no idea that her brother was already thinking of 101 ways on how to eliminate Alex without leaving any evidence behind.

She continued to tell her story as best as she could.

"When I asked if he was planning to make me one of his targets, he said ’No comment’." Astrea smiled. "So, I told him what my ideal man is."

The young lady then told Cassian her ideal lover, which made the young man think that her sister was looking for a perfect man who didn’t exist. However, that was fine with him.

His sister was so precious, and any man short of perfect didn’t have the right to even hold her hand!

"I also think that my idea of a perfect boyfriend is unrealistic. That he might not exist in real life," Astrea said. "I told Alex that if I really find him, then I will be the happiest and luckiest girl in the world."

"And what did he say to that?" Cassian asked with genuine curiosity.

"He said that I’m already the luckiest girl in the world," Astrea replied.

"He’s not wrong."

"Mmm?"

"Nothing." Cassian shook his head. "Please continue."

Astrea nodded. "Then, I asked him if he was seriously trying to court me. Do you know what he said, brother?"

"No." Cassian looked at her sister with a serious gaze. "What did he say?"

"He said, ’I just thought I might be a little too greedy for my own good’," Astrea answered. "Then I told him that greed is bad, which he agreed with. After that, he said something along the lines of it being the time for him to let go as well."

The young lady then placed a hand over her chest, because remembering that scene made her chest ache a bit.

"For some reason, I felt sad when he said that he was letting go," Astrea admitted. "Maybe that’s why I reached out to him when he was about to leave."

"Hmm..." Cassian crossed his arms over his chest and pondered for a while. "Astrea, what do you think of Alex?"

"A mysterious person whom I seem to get along with very much."

"I see."

The young man gave his sister a long and hard look. He was confident that his sister wasn’t in love with Alex. Though, she was now more conscious of his existence.

He didn’t know if that feeling would grow into something else. But for now, he told Astrea to stay away from Alex for the time being.

"I think you should give him some space to think about what he wants to do in life," Cassian said. "That is for the best."

"Really?" Astrea blinked.

"Yes," Cassian answered. "Although I said you should give him some space, I’m not telling you to avoid him completely. Just... don’t actively look for him, okay?"

Astrea really didn’t understand what her brother meant, but she still nodded to acknowledge his advice.

For now, she decided to give Alex some space, hoping that the young man would feel better. Perhaps that would allow him to be at his peak performance when the inter-academy tournament began.

Cassian, on the other hand, planned to have a word with Alex and get to the bottom of this.

He was very thankful that he saved him and his sister in the Dungeon of Beast. But that was that, and this was this.

His sister was very important to him, which was why he wouldn’t allow someone with malicious and perverted intentions to get close to her.

This was especially true if that person was a womanizer. One whom he didn’t want to be hovering around his sister like a fly that needed to be eradicated.