As soon as the doors slid shut behind Leo, the staff work room erupted in a clutter of voices.
The tension that had gripped the air moments earlier dissipated and it was replaced by a mixture of relieved sighs and frantic chatter.
Staff members huddled together, their faces pale, their hands still trembling from the encounter.
"Captain, I don't know how you kept your cool," Raya said, her voice shaky as she leaned against a console for support. "He's completely unhinged! Did you see the way he held that dagger? He was ready to kill Raven on the spot."
"That man has lost his mind," Raven snapped, rubbing his neck where Leo's fingers had dug into his skin. "He's a lunatic! He spared me today, but how long will it be until he actually hurts someone?"
"I can't believe we're stuck on a ship with him," another staff member muttered. "This isn't Terra Nova Online. There are laws here—rules. He can't just go around threatening people like this!"
The frustration in the room boiled over, and the staff quickly turned their attention to solutions. Voices overlapped as they threw out ideas, some more drastic than others.
"We need to lock down the VIP sector," someone suggested. "Restrict his movements to his manor. Revoke his access to the rest of the ship."
"That won't be enough," Raven argued. "We should report him to the Universal Government. What he did today was criminal—holding someone at knifepoint, damaging ship property? He should be flagged as a threat the moment we land."
A murmur of agreement rippled through the room, though a few staff members looked uneasy.
"Are you insane?" Raya interjected. "Flagging Leo means making an enemy of TheBoss. Do you really want to do that? He's the strongest player in the game and, let's face it, probably the most dangerous person on this ship."
"Better to make an enemy than to wait until he snaps," Raven shot back. "What if he decides to take his rage out on someone else next time? What if it's one of us?"
As the debate escalated, Captain Kid raised a hand, commanding silence. The room fell quiet almost immediately as all eyes turned toward him.
Despite the turmoil raging inside, Kid kept his expression calm and his voice steady.
"Enough," he said firmly, his tone brooking no argument. "I understand your frustration, but I need everyone to take a step back and think carefully about this."
The staff exchanged uneasy glances, but no one spoke as Kid continued. "Yes, Leo's behavior today was extreme. But it's not who he is at his core. He's under immense pressure, and while that doesn't excuse his actions, it explains them. Reporting him or locking him down won't solve the problem—it'll only make things worse for all of us."
"But Captain—" Raven started, only to be cut off by Kid's sharp glare.
"No," Kid said, his voice cold and unwavering. "Let me make this clear: if anyone here takes action against Leo without my approval, they will answer to me. Do I make myself clear?"
The weight of his words settled over the room like a heavy blanket. Some staff members nodded hesitantly, while others simply looked away, unwilling to meet his gaze.
Raya, however, broke the silence. "You're incredible, Captain. After everything he's done, you're still willing to defend him?"
"Yeah," another staff member chimed in. "Most people would've folded, but you… you're something else."
"Truly a captain worthy of respect," someone muttered, and the sentiment quickly spread.
Kid forced a modest smile, inclining his head slightly. "It's not about defending him," he said. "It's about keeping the peace. We all want to make it to Terra Nova safely, and that won't happen if we're at each other's throats."
Inside, however, Kid was far from calm. His outward composure masked the storm of nerves churning in his gut.
He knew the real reason he couldn't let Leo be punished was not out of some heroic nobility, but because if Leo fell, Kid's carefully constructed safety net would crumble with him.
Without Leo's implicit protection as 'TheBoss,' and his status as an important talent and genius, Kid stood to lose his leverage with the Mu Clan, which was an outcome he was unwilling to accept.
Every word he spoke now, every decision he made, was driven not by nobility, but out of self preservation.
When the staff finally dispersed, Kid returned to his private quarters instead of his work-cabin, the weight of the day's events pressing heavily on his shoulders.
Closing the door behind him, he leaned against it, letting out a shaky breath.
For the first time since the encounter, he allowed himself to feel the full extent of his anxiety.
"They think I'm a hero," he muttered, a bitter laugh escaping his lips. "If only they knew the truth."
His gaze drifted to the hidden compartment where Leo's meditation manual was securely tucked away. Its presence was a constant reminder of the web of lies he had spun.
The staff's admiration, their misplaced trust—it all felt like a cruel joke. But as much as he hated the deception, he knew he had no choice.
Kid sat down at his desk, rubbing his temples as the adrenaline began to fade. The game he was playing was dangerous, and the stakes were higher than ever. One misstep could unravel everything, and yet he couldn't stop now.
"Just a little longer," he whispered to himself. "I just need to keep this going a little longer."
For now, at least, he was still in control. But for how much longer, even Kid couldn't say.
He had promised Leo that he would find his manual within the next 48 hours, but he wasn't sure on how to do it?
He couldn't just place it back into Leo's apartment and pretend like it was never lost, as that would only make Leo even more paranoid.
And he couldn't not give an answer either, as the mad man was ready to kill over it.
Either way, he was in big trouble.