Grand Return System

A Technique Beyond Words

Maya sucked in a sharp breath.

"Gasp... Drake Rampage?"

Her lips parted slightly, shock flickering across her face. The name alone carried weight—ancient, oppressive, like something that did not belong to ordinary techniques.

A technique named after a drake...

And not just named—but spoken with that kind of certainty.

It wasn’t arrogance.

It was... fact.

She turned to look at him this time.

Really look.

For a brief moment, the playful man from earlier—the one teasing her, making her lose composure—seemed to vanish.

What remained...

Was something deeper.

Calm. Vast. Unfathomable.

Like a quiet ocean hiding storms beneath.

"...That’s not simple at all," she whispered.

Back then, Maya thought of anything linked to a drake or dragon as wild - crushing, fierce, impossible to halt. The moment Leon brought it up, her mind jumped straight to violence, raw and unrelenting.

But now...

The way he spoke...

Hardly a simple feeling back then. Still, something about it stuck around.

Beneath what he said, a different meaning sat still. It didn’t shout. It waited.

Some things just slipped through her fingers, no matter how hard she tried.

A tight pull of wonder filled her ribs, sharper now. It pressed harder than it had earlier.

Her body tilted forward a little now - calmer, yet nearer than allowed.

"Junior Brother," she asked, her voice softer now, almost coaxing, "what’s so special about this move? Quick... tell me."

That faint, teasing tone slipped out again without her realizing.

Leon felt it.

And for just a moment—his breath paused.

This woman...

He steadied himself.

"Special? Hmm..." he murmured.

He didn’t answer immediately. Instead, he let the silence stretch just enough to pull her in further.

Then—

Calmly.

"Senior Sister," Leon said, voice low and steady, "once I use this move..."

A small shift of his head, like memory pulling him sideways.

"...it’s like walking across a silent silver plain... every step uncovering something hidden."

Her eyes fluttered open, sound pulling her attention tight.

"...like reaching into a sea of stars," he continued, "touching something distant... something you shouldn’t be able to grasp."

Her brows slowly knit together.

"...or standing at the peak of a mountain," Leon went on, "looking down at everything beneath you... completely within your control."

A soft wind slipped by, touching her hair, yet she remained unaware.

"...and sometimes," he added, voice dipping just slightly, "it feels like diving into a deep ocean... exploring mysteries that only reveal themselves the deeper you go."

"Hiss..."

Maya drew in a breath.

The more she listened...

The stranger it sounded.

This didn’t feel like a normal Sacred Art.

It sounded like comprehension.

Like something touching the edge of a higher truth.

Could it be...

A god-grade technique?

Leon glanced at her from the corner of his eye. He saw the confusion. The fascination.

And a faint smile tugged at his lips.

"The power of the drake is unstoppable," he continued, tone steady. "Once this move is used... even those high above would hesitate to descend."

Maya’s lips parted slightly.

Even the strong... would hesitate?

How domineering was that?

Her thoughts tangled.

Her heartbeat quickened.

She stared at him, trying to process everything.

This man...

How many layers did he have?

She couldn’t tell.

And that made her even more curious.

If I were the one facing this move...

Could I withstand it?

The answer came instantly.

...No.

She didn’t even need to think.

Her fingers tightened slightly.

A strange feeling rose inside her—half curiosity, half something she couldn’t name.

"What else?" she asked quickly, unable to stop herself. "What else? Tell me more."

Her voice carried urgency now.

Gone was her usual calm elegance.

Leon rubbed his chin lightly, pretending to think.

Then—

A subtle smile appeared.

Not loud.

Not obvious.

But there.

"Dancing with the flow... erupting within chaos," he said slowly. "This move doesn’t just strike."

"It overwhelms."

He paused briefly, letting the words sink in.

"Once it locks onto its target... it drives forward in a single line."

Maya’s brows furrowed slightly.

"...A single line?"

Leon nodded calmly.

"You can’t hesitate. You can’t pull back. Once it begins... it continues until the end."

Her expression shifted.

Something about that... felt strange.

She couldn’t explain why.

Leon continued, tone steady—

"It penetrates directly through the opponent’s defense... reaching the core in one motion."

Maya froze for a fraction of a second.

Her ears slowly turned red.

"...Reaches the core?"

Leon didn’t stop.

"The deeper it goes... the stronger the impact becomes," he added casually. "At its peak... the force spreads outward, collapsing everything from within."

Maya’s breathing hitched.

This...

This definitely sounded strange now.

But she couldn’t point out exactly why.

She turned to look at him, eyes narrowing slightly.

"...Junior Brother."

Leon looked back, completely calm.

"Mm?"

"...Why does this sound... strange?"

Leon blinked once.

Then smiled faintly.

"Strange? It’s just a technique."

"...Really?"

"Of course."

She stared at him.

He didn’t look away.

Didn’t flinch.

Didn’t explain further.

After a few seconds—

Maya turned her face aside slightly, lips pressing together, her cheeks still faintly flushed.

"...You’re definitely hiding something."

Leon chuckled softly.

But didn’t deny it.

Instead, he simply met her gaze for a brief moment—calm, unreadable... almost amused. That silence lingered just long enough to make her feel it.

Not an answer.

Not a denial.

Just enough to make her more certain.

And somehow... more curious.

Maya’s fingers tightened slightly at her side. She wanted to press further—to force the truth out of him—but something about the way he looked at her made her hesitate.

Like stepping one inch too close would reveal something she wasn’t ready for.

Leon, on the other hand, had already moved on as if nothing had happened.

"Dancing in the wind and erupting in the chaos," he repeated, this time more direct, his tone steady and grounded.

"Taking out thousands of enemies... isn’t difficult."

His eyes shifted briefly toward the arena, but his words carried a quiet weight.

"This move can strike straight through formations... and eliminate the strongest among them."

No teasing now.

No hidden curve in his voice.

Just clarity.

And that... made it feel even more real.

"This move can strike straight through formations... and eliminate the strongest among them."

His voice returned to calm clarity.

No ambiguity.

No teasing.

Just power.

Maya blinked again.

And this time—

She didn’t recover.

Her elegant composure slipped completely.

Her usual calm, distant gaze softened, unfocused for a moment—like her thoughts had been pulled somewhere deeper, somewhere she couldn’t quite follow.

Her lips parted slightly, as if she wanted to speak but couldn’t find the words.

She looked... unexpectedly soft.

Unprotected.

Real.

Leon’s eyes lingered on her for just a second longer than they should have.

There was a quiet shift in the air between them.

Something unspoken.

Something fragile.

It made one want to lean closer.

To close that distance.

To see what expression she would make if he did.

To test that reaction.

Maya seemed to feel that shift too.

Her heartbeat quickened.

She lowered her gaze slightly, then forced herself to look back at him—trying to regain control, trying to steady herself.

"Junior Brother..." she said finally, her voice softer now, almost careful, "this move... it must be very powerful, right?"

She hesitated.

Just a little.

"...Is it a God-grade Sacred Art?"

Her eyes held his this time.

Not just curious.

Searching.