LHAHS Chapter 363
A beautiful golden liquid flowed into Leo's mouth.
The surrounding female students froze as they watched.
Gulp.
His throat moved smoothly as he swallowed. A refreshing scent spread through his mouth, and at the same time, he felt his exhausted body recovering from training. His muscles loosened, his energy returned, and his body felt lighter. Just as he was about to speak…
"Don't look! Don't look at anyone else!" Celia panicked and clapped her hands over Leo's eyes. "Hey! All of you, back off! Don't even think about making eye contact with Leo!"
Celia was known for being meticulous in everything. As a direct descendant of the Zerdinger family, maintaining the image of a flawless honor student was her motto. Yet here she was, shaken to her core.
"Leo! How could you drink that?!" Chelsea rushed forward, flustered.
"Back off! Shoo! Shoo!" Celia flailed her arms, keeping Leo's eyes covered while swinging her legs, as if warding off some dangerous wild animal.
Chelsea frowned slightly at the bizarre sight but stepped back as Celia instructed. Right now, Leo was the priority.
"Aren't you overreacting?" Leo asked, amused.
"Overreacting?! You're a direct heir of Zerdinger and our Student Council President! You can't go around doing weird things!" Celia snapped, gripping Leo's head firmly as he tried to pry her hands off.
Eliza, having stopped her fight with Chloe, smirked. "This should be interesting. Might as well see how effective that so-called love potion really is."
"Oh my." Chen Xia covered her mouth, her tone elegant and ladylike, but her gaze was sharp as a blade. "You find this amusing, Miss Eliza?"
Eliza avoided her eyes.
"Carl, hurry up and make an antidote," Chloe ordered.
Carl scratched his head awkwardly. "There isn't an antidote… but doesn't it just wear off after a day?"
At Chloe's chilling stare, Carl quickly added, "How about this? Other than Eliza, no one here is planning to do anything weird to Leo, right?"
He grinned. "Since it's already happened, wouldn't it be fine if just one person sticks to Leo all day?"
"What?"
"I think Chloe would be a good choice. She's the dorm leader of Glory like Leo, and they've been close since first year."
Carl's sly suggestion made Chloe's face flush red. "W-What nonsense are you spouting?!"
"The effects only last for a day, right?"
"I can take good care of Leo too," Chen Xia added.
"I was in the same class as Leo all of last year," Chelsea interjected.
Celia scowled. "Don't even dream about it!"
"Then why don't you do it, Celia Zerdinger?" Eliza smirked.
"Don't be ridiculous! Leo and I are cousins!" Celia snapped.
"…Celia," Leo's calm voice cut through the commotion. "I'll keep my eyes closed, so move your hands already."
Celia nodded stiffly and removed her hands.
They resumed discussing what to do with Leo.
"Leo, why did you even drink that?" Mid-conversation, Chelsea approached to pour Leo a drink.
"Chelsea."
"Hm?"
Turning to face Leo, Chelsea felt her heart drop. His striking red eyes were fixed on her.
"W-W-Wha…" Chelsea stammered, unable to form proper words.
"Leo and Chelsea made eye contact!" Carl gasped.
"Hey! Chelsea Lewellin!" Celia shouted, her eyes blazing.
Flustered, Chelsea waved her hands in a panic. "No! It's not like that! Leo looked at me—ugh! Seriously!"
She stomped her foot, utterly lost on what to do. Then, stealing a sideways glance at Leo, her cheeks burned red.
Leo simply chuckled and reached out, patting her head as he always did.
Chelsea's eyes widened.
"There's barely any effect," Leo said.
Everyone gawked.
"Leo, you feel fine?"
"Yeah. Perfectly fine."
"Thank goodness." Chloe let out a deep breath of relief.
"So it was a failure after all?" Celia, arms crossed, narrowed her eyes.
Carl scratched his cheek. "Seems like it."
"Hmph. I can't believe I even considered it for a moment. How ridiculous," Eliza scoffed and turned away.
Now that the incident had settled, Carl laughed in relief. "Phew, thank god it was a failure! Hahaha! Now let's go break up the rest of the chaos."
Just as he was about to move on, Chloe reached out and grabbed his ear.
"Ow! Ow, ow, ow!"
"You really think you can just walk away after causing all this trouble?"
Celia ran a hand through her hair. "How do you plan to take responsibility for this mess?"
Chelsea cracked her knuckles, her sharp gaze locked onto Carl. "You better be ready for this."
"Hey! I swear I didn't know things would get this bad!" Carl protested, his face pale.
Watching from the side, Chen Xia smiled softly. "Let's not be too harsh, everyone. We can't punish Carl personally, after all."
"Chen Xia!"
"I'll bring it up in the student council and let them handle it. Carl, if I remember correctly, you were already warned after being caught for manufacturing and selling illegal potions, weren't you?"
Carl's face drained of all color.
"I'm the one who challenged Carl to make it, so I'll report it to the student council myself. No one expected things to spiral like this, so don't blame him too much," Leo added.
"Leo! You're the best!" Carl looked ready to cry at his friend's support.
The girls, seeing Leo's stance, seemed to calm slightly.
"But why did it turn out to be a failure?"
"Because Carl made it," Chelsea said flatly, arms crossed.
With that, the matter was put to rest.
As Leo headed back to his dorm, he muttered under his breath.
Carl actually made it properly.
He glanced down at the potion bottle in his hand.
Whether it's 5000 years ago or now, people always assume it's something you drink.
Leo chuckled.
The love potion that Dweno created wasn't meant to be ingested.
He recalled an incident from 5000 years ago.
Clink.
That day, after a meeting in Godthrone about their future plans, only the five Great Heroes remained in the conference room. Dweno placed a small vial of golden liquid onto the table.
"What's this?" Lysinas asked, puzzled.
"A love potion."
Lysinas, Aaron, and Kyle all stared at Dweno in disbelief.
"Some fool kept nagging me to make it, so I finally gave in. It only lasts for a day, but the effects are guaranteed."
At Dweno's serious tone, Aaron widened his eyes and turned to Kyle. "Who the hell would do that?"
"Exactly. Who's the idiot who thought up something this dumb? If they like someone, they should just confess," Kyle scoffed.
"Kyle, while I fully agree with you, hearing it from an idiot like you makes it unbearable."
"The hell is with this dwarf starting a fight out of nowhere?" Kyle scowled.
Lysinas, meanwhile, stared pointedly at Luna.
Luna avoided her gaze, feigning interest in something else.
"You actually wasted time making something so ridiculous? That's unexpected," Lysinas remarked.
"I had no intention of making it at first," Dweno admitted. "But think about it! Love is a truly beautiful emotion, isn't it? As someone who reveres beauty, I couldn't ignore such a concept. So, I made it."
"I don't even want to know what kind of perverted logic you used to justify that," Kyle muttered.
Before anyone could respond, Luna shot up from her seat. "Since we have it, let's test it out. Kyle."
"What."
"Drink it."
"……" Kyle scrunched his face in disgust and glared at Luna. "And why the hell should I drink this suspicious crap?"
"Because you're the perfect test subject." Luna smirked and stepped toward him, the vial in hand. "Come on, say 'ah'…"
"Get lost, you moron," Kyle snapped.
"Just drink it!"
"As the leader, I can't stand by while a party member takes something this stupid. Luna, throw it away."
"Hmph!"
Instead of obeying, Luna popped the vial open and lunged at Kyle, trying to force it down his throat.
Kyle, however, snatched the vial from her hands and shoved it into her mouth instead.
"Mmph?! Mmmph?!"
Luna's eyes widened in shock as she thrashed, trying to escape. But Kyle wrapped an arm around her back and held her still, his grip firm.
At first, she struggled fiercely. Then, as her ears turned red, she slowly went limp.
Lysinas opened and closed her mouth wordlessly. Aaron's eyes nearly popped out of his head.
"You drink it. Don't go around forcing it on others," Kyle muttered.
"Huuugh—!"
Letting out a strange noise, Luna broke free from Kyle's hold, her face flushed.
"Kyle! How could you make Luna drink that?!" Lysinas exclaimed.
"If I hadn't, she would've just used magic to force it on me. What, was I supposed to just take it?"
"I mean, that's true, but…"
As Lysinas and Kyle bickered, Luna's eyelashes quivered. She hesitantly glanced at Kyle, looking uncharacteristically tense… and a little flushed.
Kyle leaned in. "Well? Feel like falling for me?"
"Kyle…"
"Luna! Wait…"
Before Lysinas could stop her…
Thud!
Luna headbutted Kyle in the face.
"You little—!" Kyle groaned, clutching his forehead.
Ignoring him, Luna turned to Dweno and demanded, "What the hell?! Nothing happened! This is a total failure!"
Dweno looked at her with sheer disappointment. "There is no such thing as failure in my craft. And certainly not when it comes to art."
"What?"
"Trying to drink it? How primitive. It does restore stamina, but that's not its true purpose."
"Then what is?" Luna narrowed her eyes.
Dweno's eyes gleamed. "You spray it! The moment it touches the body, it returns you to the state you were in at birth!"
"……" Luna blinked, not comprehending.
Lysinas also looked utterly lost.
Aaron, however, turned bright red. "Wait… You mean it dissolves clothes?"
"Exactly! You get it, Aaron!"
"That's not a love potion, that's just some perverted nightmare!" Luna shrieked, her entire face burning red.
"You don't understand! Imagine a pair of young lovers alone in a room, suddenly stripped of all barriers! Forced to witness each other's purest forms for an entire day! How could love not blossom in such a setting?"
"How the hell is that a love potion?! You perverted dwarf!"
"You just have no appreciation for art," Dweno sniffed.
Lysinas groaned and buried her face in her hands. "These people… are supposed to save the world."
Well… I'm the only one who actually knows the truth.
Leo shrugged.
Carl probably won't try making it again anyway.