Simple words, a clear stance.
Kallen knew that Sleepy Girl, Philomina, was very strong. In the York City District selection, she should have been tied with him as the strongest. After all, she had been the only one who could still converse fluently with him at the very end, even though one of them had ranked fourth and the other fifth.
But Kallen was unwilling to team up with her, because from the very beginning, she had shown no desire whatsoever to band together. She had not made the slightest gesture.
Of course, it was perfectly normal for her to act haughty because of her strength. It could even be called only natural.
Individual strength was, after all, the capital that allowed someone to reject so-called "ineffective" and "meaningless" socializing, and the confidence that let them live frankly and as they pleased.
However, under normal circumstances, the proportion of people willing to force social connections was actually very small.
Bart, who came from a Knight Order family, had lowered his head. Aisili's parents had even come calling in person to build a relationship;
The pastries Ventura had brought were very fresh. One glance made it clear that his grandmother had stayed up into the early morning making them so Ventura could bring them for his companions to try.
If Philomina had so much as taken a bite of the cake Ventura offered earlier, or refused by saying she disliked sweets, or taken the initiative to sip some water from the waterskin Bart had borrowed, Kallen would have accepted her now.
Strong people were entitled to special treatment, but the prerequisite was that they had to offer an opening themselves.
Everyone knew that being aloof and haughty felt comfortable, but they had to bear the price of that comfort.
Kallen was