Chapter 542: The Wealth-Bringing Maiden: Leonie Hoffman

Leech had expected to be greeted by the square-jawed Baron’s scowl the next day. Instead, he received news that was anticipated, yet not entirely welcome.

The Duke was dead!

The last time they met, the man had been old and ailing, yet his spirit was still strong.

‘Life is so fragile.’

The atmosphere within the castle was still calm. In just one night, not even a raven with a magical bloodline could deliver the message in time.

It was only because Leech happened to have a large number of Corpse Ghosts under his command, as well as an entity named Isis who functioned like a Corpse Ghost information processing terminal, that he could receive such vital news.

In the past, when he had to do everything himself, he would have slept right through such important news and missed it forever. The Corpse Ghosts were diligent tools, but they would never undertake a task without being ordered.

Seated in the arena, Leech had no interest in the slaughter below. His mind was elsewhere.

‘The Golden Stallion is by no means a suitable liege lord to pledge allegiance to, but he is the liege lord I must serve.’

Who else could he swear fealty to? He was an East Gorge man through and through. If he were to abandon the East Gorge now, he would be no different from an oathbreaker, and even his own men would likely lose respect for him.

But with enough power, he could at least secure the advantage of being able to pick and choose which of the Golden Stallion’s orders to obey.

Leech’s gaze drifted back to the arena floor below. Two burly men with spiked maces worked together to smash in the head of a strong barbarian. The explosive spray of blood and gore drew gasps and a cascade of screams.

He quickly scanned the audience. He saw fear in the eyes of the young noblemen, but even more excitement.

The older ones, however, roared with laughter, as if watching a colony of ants fight amongst themselves. Some even took a few swigs of wine in their delight.

Most of the ladies let out frightened screams, though it was hard to tell if they were genuinely afraid or just seizing the opportunity to appear pitiably delicate.

The sickly, delicate beauty was still the mainstream aesthetic in this world.

Leech, on the other hand, watched the slaughter below with disgust. A battle to the death with no meaning, staged purely for entertainment.

His eyes suddenly fell upon the square-jawed Baron. He was speaking to Charming with great confidence about something, but Charming’s expression was extremely forced. Even her good temper was starting to wear thin in the face of her fiancé.

A man who chattered incessantly and loved to boast was indeed hard to tolerate. The worst part was that he was completely unaware of it.

The square-jawed Baron also noticed Leech’s gaze and looked over. Their eyes met.

“Hmph!” The square-jawed Baron snorted coldly, his nostrils flaring. He then turned his head back, put on a smiling face, and continued speaking to Charming.

‘A true master of changing faces,’ Leech mused.

In that short time, the performance in the arena had come to an end.

The sole survivor, and thus the sole victor, was declared the champion. All the other contestants had lost their lives, and most of their bodies were no longer intact.

After a simple luncheon, people began to take their leave. Leech also decided to return to his own castle to await further news. If all went as expected, he would need to make a trip to East Port in a few days to attend the Duke’s funeral.

As he was leaving, Leech ignored the frequent glances from Charming, choosing to feign ignorance of her hints.

Then there was the square-jawed Baron, who seemed even more interested in Leech than his own fiancée. His eyes were practically glued to Leech’s back, making Leech wonder more than once if his own charm was a bit too potent. Or could it be that the square-jawed Baron was actually a tsundere, deliberately causing trouble just to get his attention?

He shuddered at his own terrifying thought. ‘The kingdom certainly has its share of… forbidden passions.’

As a result, Leech led his retinue out of Iron Stone City at a gallop. It wasn’t until they were halfway on their journey that he remembered he had completely forgotten to ask about the Hunter, Ramsnor.

‘I’ll just send someone back to ask about her after I get home.’

Leech glanced back at Iron Stone City, basking in the noon sun, then gripped his reins. “Giddy-up!”

…

「Nightfall.」

Leech’s party had stopped to rest by the side of the road.

The rapid development of Porcupine Territory had spurred improvements in many surrounding facilities. For example, this temporary rest stop had seen significant changes to its environment due to the large number of merchant caravans that stopped here to rest, and the beginnings of a waystation were gradually taking shape.

The caravans would also build their own shelters, and Leech was now resting directly inside one of the small huts.

The accompanying Soldiers didn’t have such fine accommodations. They found a place sheltered from the wind and huddled around a bonfire for warmth.

The bonfire blazed, its flames CRACKLING and POPPING.

The night wind was somewhat wild, and being not far from the sea, the air was also quite damp.

The cold of winter could still easily claim a person’s life.

But no one noticed that the Lord, who was resting alone inside the hut, had vanished.

In the Rift Cave of the Koso Mountain Range, an underground world.

Leech had already changed into a set of gear. The Black Dragon Du Ao found a comfortable spot on his shoulder and narrowed his eyes.

A black mist swirled around, concealing Leech’s aura.

‘How did she get here?!’

The turn of events was somewhat beyond Leech’s expectations. He had let ‘Vito the Cunning Barbarian’ go, thinking he would have a period of peace.

From what Leech had heard, the situation at Giant’s Foot was quite troublesome. Prince Hoffman’s violent rule had won him a group of supporters, but where there was oppression, there was resistance. In particular, Prince Hoffman’s radical policies had harmed the fundamental interests of a certain group, and the resistance was growing more intense. She should have been completely swamped with work.