Chapter 141 - 120: Professional Ethics and Cunning

Chapter 141: Chapter 120: Professional Ethics and Cunning

Roy carried the wild rabbit, still dripping blood, over to the campfire.

He first placed the rabbit in front of Margery, then handed her a leather pouch.

"What’s this?"

Margery took the pouch and asked immediately.

"Seasonings,"

Roy replied.

Seasonings?

Margery and her two companions looked surprised.

Before Margery could ask anything else, Roy said slowly, "I’ll provide the ingredients. You do the roasting."

Margery opened the leather pouch and glanced inside, finding it filled with common seasonings.

To be precise, it contained small bottles of salt, pepper, black pepper, cinnamon powder, honey, and so on.

’Where did this pouch come from?’

Seeing the small bottles and jars inside the leather pouch, Margery looked at Roy, her face a mask of confusion.

She was certain that Roy hadn’t had the pouch on him before.

Roy noticed her confusion but had no intention of explaining.

As Margery watched, he sat down by the campfire.

Margery said nothing, merely turning to give Brook a meaningful look.

The two of them then picked up the rabbit and walked toward a nearby stream.

Born into the Royal Family, Margery and Brook had practically been raised with silver spoons in their mouths.

However, dressing game was a task well within their abilities.

Margery might not have known how, but Brook certainly did.

Hunting was a common recreational activity for the nobility.

Beyond the hunt itself, dressing the kill was, in a sense, a required lesson for the children of nobles.

This included skills like how to perfectly skin the animals they had personally hunted.

As Margery and Brook headed to the stream to prepare the rabbit, their mother, Miranda, sized up Roy with great interest, her thoughts impossible to guess.

After nearly half a minute, she spoke. "Isn’t it uncomfortable wearing that mask all day?"

"No,"

Roy replied.

"You could take the mask off, you know. You’re so powerful that even if people knew what you looked like, they wouldn’t dare do anything to you,"

Miranda continued.

"I only take off my mask in front of people I trust,"

Roy said slowly.

Hearing his reply, Miranda immediately frowned.

A few seconds later, she went on, "Rumor has it that you never take off your mask because your appearance is a bit..."

Roy knew exactly what Miranda was plotting.

He cut her off before she could finish, speaking coldly, "Goading me won’t work. Don’t waste your breath."

"Furthermore, I don’t have the best temperament. I can be provoked at any moment."

"For your own sake, as well as for Margery and Brook, I’d advise you to drop any ideas you shouldn’t be having."

Although Miranda was a graceful, beautiful noblewoman with a dignified air, she wasn’t Roy’s type.

It wasn’t an issue of age; he just disliked overly manipulative women.

Roy didn’t know which family Miranda hailed from, but he was certain of one thing: she was definitely not as harmless as she appeared.

To have survived this long under the Queen’s jealousy and oppression, and to have borne William II a son and a daughter—it didn’t take a genius to know that Miranda was no innocent flower.

Miranda fell silent at Roy’s words.

Although she had never met the Dark Night Knight before, she had heard plenty about his deeds in recent months.

She hadn’t expected the Dark Night Knight to suddenly arrive at Iron Armor Turtle Castle today.

She was even more surprised that he would accept Margery’s commission to escort them to the Sal Empire.

However, after Roy led them away from Iron Armor Turtle Castle, her mind, so accustomed to the intrigues of the Royal Palace, naturally began to hatch some ill-advised schemes.

For example, getting the Dark Night Knight to pledge his allegiance to her, or to the siblings, Margery and Brook.

If they could win over the Dark Night Knight, not only would they no longer need to flee to the Sal Empire, but they might even have a chance to supplant the Eldest Prince and become the new masters of the Royal Army.

Even though Roy had seen through her scheme, Miranda didn’t give up. Instead, she decided to lay her cards on the table.

Under Roy’s gaze, her expression became incredibly serious. She spoke quickly, "What price must I pay for you to assassinate the Eldest Prince?"

"You can’t afford my price."

Roy replied without a moment’s hesitation.

"How do you know I can’t afford it if you won’t name your price?"

"I may have fallen on hard times, but that doesn’t mean I have nothing left,"

Miranda pressed on.

Roy could understand Miranda’s persistence.

If their positions were reversed, he wouldn’t be willing to just flee the Laine Kingdom in disgrace either.

But understanding was one thing, agreeing was another.

He still had no intention of making any deals with Miranda.

"Give up. I won’t accept your commission."

"This is your final warning. Don’t entertain those thoughts. My patience is limited."

With that, Roy ignored Miranda and turned his gaze back to the campfire.

Seeing Roy’s growing impatience, Miranda wisely dropped the subject. Like him, she stared into the fire, waiting for Margery and Brook to return.

「More than ten minutes later.」

Margery and Brook finally returned to the campfire, having finished preparing the rabbit.

What followed was simple.

Roast the rabbit, eat the rabbit, rest.

Then, back on the road.

They traveled through the night, finally stopping in the early hours of the morning.

"We’ll rest for six hours, then we keep moving."

Without waiting for Margery’s reply, Roy dismounted and tied his horse’s reins to the carriage.

Once that was done, he went to a large tree beside the carriage and sat down, his back against the trunk.

Seeing him begin to rest, Margery and her companions didn’t waste any more time, huddling together inside the carriage to rest.

Roy didn’t sleep. Instead, he quietly began his Cultivation of the Purgatory Dragon Meditation Method.

Although the efficiency of Cultivation in the real world was far inferior to that in Chaos Square, it was better than doing nothing and wasting time.

When dawn broke on the horizon, Roy woke Margery and her companions, and they continued on their way.

「Noon.」

They arrived at a small town on the border of the Iron Armor Turtle Domain.

After having lunch and purchasing some supplies in town, they set out again and entered Wodun Province.

Even though they had left the Iron Armor Turtle Domain, the Iron Armor Turtle Marquis’s men were still stuck to them like glue.

At first, Roy hadn’t planned on dealing with them.

However, upon discovering that the men were getting closer and closer, he changed his mind.

He showed them no mercy, killing them as easily as if he were crushing ants.

「Evening.」

After dinner, Roy lay in his tent, mask on, cultivating the Purgatory Dragon Meditation Method.

The tent was one they had just bought that afternoon.

It wasn’t a high-quality tent, but it was perfectly adequate for resting.

He had been lying down for less than half an hour when a slender, graceful figure appeared outside and pulled back the tent flap.

"Um... may I come in?"

Margery asked, standing outside the tent.

"Just say what you want. What is it?"

Roy sat up and gave Margery a once-over.

Margery was no longer wearing her golden Light Armor. Instead, she wore a form-fitting white gown with gold trim that perfectly accentuated her alluring curves.

At his words, Margery’s expression became a little awkward. A shy yet alluring blush instantly crept onto her delicate, fair, oval face.

She didn’t say a word, but from her expression alone, Roy immediately guessed her intentions.

"Go back. I’m not in the mood right now."

Clearly, Margery had come to offer herself to him.

Whether it was her own idea or Miranda’s, Roy didn’t know.

But regardless of whose idea it was, he wasn’t in the mood for it tonight.

Despite his rejection, Margery didn’t leave.

A few seconds later, as if having steeled her resolve, she ducked into the tent while Roy watched.

’What is she doing?’

’Is she trying to force herself on me?’

Roy’s brow furrowed instantly.

...