Chapter 19 - Departure

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After reaching his room, Leon quickly discarded the soiled clothes and wiped his body clean with a towel. Then, he rushed towards his private bathing room and washed his body with 3 buckets of water, thoroughly cleaning his body.

After drying his body with another towel, Leon opened up the dresser and chose the most comfortable clothes that he could find. The previous Leon was too obsessed with extravagance and luxury. As a result, his cupboards were filled with all kinds of trendy and stylish outfits. However, Leon didn't want to attract any needless attention on himself and decided to dress modestly instead.

After making sure of his appearance in the mirror, Leon hurried out towards the mansion gate, only to find his sister-in-law already waiting for him there.

She had changed into a vermillion red dress that had a white colored flower pattern around it. She wore it in such grace and style that Leon wanted to draw a portrait out of her and store it somewhere hidden away from the rest of the world.

'Sister-in-law is.. really too inciting! I just hope that she hadn't found anyone for herself yet.' Leon thought to himself as he approached the waiting beauty.

Malisa turned to look back at the approaching Leon. Upon looking at his dressed-up appearance, she couldn't help but recall his earlier state, as a small laugh threatened to escape her lips again..

She controlled her emotions and wore a stoic face again. However, deep inside she was already looking forward to their next sparring session.

"You are here. We must leave now, otherwise, mother-in-law would be too worried without you being around." Malisa spoke thus far and started to walk away as she led the way towards their destination.

Leon followed closely by her side. Although he could have trailed behind her and ogled her sweet butt all the while, Leon was afraid of being discovered by her. Knowing her temperament, he didn't want to soil his reputation and cordial relationship with his sister-in-law.

As Leon walked beside Malisa, he couldn't help but ask her about their journey.

"Sister-in-law? How far is that place that we are going to? Would we be able to get there just by walking? Is it somewhere nearby?" Leon probed her to get an idea of their trip.

"Of course not. Firstly, we would have to get to the nearest Town. Then after securing a horse for ourselves, we would travel through a secret route that would lead us to the auction site." Malisa continued to walk while talking, as her cool and calm vibe drew Leon even closer to herself.

"I see." Leon stopped himself just in time, before being swept away by his feelings. He knew that he might end up talking a bit too much. As such, he diverted his mood and started to enjoy his walk alongside the breathtaking beauty.

...

After some time, the two finally reached the nearest Town of Aragon. The town was essentially a border town nearest to the vast wilderness. Every year, multiple teams of adventurers were sent here, as they undertook the important task of reducing the overwhelming number of monsters.

However, despite their mission and rewards, they only acted in the outer periphery of the wilderness, as anyone who dared to become adventurous and ventured towards the inner area of the wilderness never returned back.

After losing some very precious few of the adventurers, the Noble family overlooking the mission stopped trying to conquer the wilderness and now were only concerned of protecting their prestigious Cities from being attacked by the rampaging beasts.

Aragon was devastated every time a monster tide appeared, and by now, every citizen of this town was used to building the place back up in the aftermath of a monster tide as quickly as possible.

Only those who dared to accept such dangerous work were sent here, with the hope of collecting a hefty sum of gold. Alas, not many lived to enjoy those riches.

Since there hadn't been a monster tide in months now, the guards and the citizens were too relaxed with the checkups. As soon as they saw the two humans approaching, they carelessly let them slip inside as the guards continued their gaming session in the cabins.

They were in the borders, and as such, they were only used to guard the place against monsters. The few people who choose to live here or around this place were often people they didn't want to mess with.

As Leon entered the town, he started to understand the architecture of the town. Even if he had the memories of the previous Leon, recalling something from the memory and experiencing something were two completely different concepts altogether.

The building was built sturdily to resist the damage from the monster attacks and the design was simple and practical. Even if the residents made a killing by providing their services here, nobody wanted to invest their hard-earned money into such a volatile place.

Leon noticed how different the path that led them to this town was. Nana had previously led him through a path from the woods near the backyard of his home to the main City. The main City was truly very far away, as the two had walked all the way there back then.

But, in comparison, the distance to the main City from this path seemed to be even larger. Leon noted mentally to only take the secret detour in case he wanted to visit Benica again.

The two went all the way to a clothing store, where Malisa bought two simple cloaks and made Leon wear one around his body. Although the cloak seemed cheap, it still did its job very well and hid all the distinguishing features of a human body.

As Leon wore the cloak, Malisa adjusted his hood and covered his face properly, before she wore her own cloak too.

The two cloaked individuals then went towards a place called the 'Milly's Ranch', as Malisa went inside the building to talk to the owners. After a while, Malisa returned, as a stubby old man followed behind her. He also brought a healthy horse along with himself as he continuously whispered something to the horse.

"Here. This baby is yours now. Make sure to feed it well and keep it alive." The old man oddly caressed the horse, before he handed the reins to Malisa, as he turned away and walked back into the ranch.

Leon was very familiar with horses and soon had the urge to take the reins by himself. Alas, the previous Leon was scared stiff of the horses, ever since he was kicked by one in his early childhood.

"S-Sister-in-law... why don't you take the horse. I-I can walk alongside you!" Leon tried to appear weak and scared as he hoped his pitiful act would fool the cold-hearted woman.

Malisa looked at the hesitant Leon and sighed lightly before she jumped over the saddle and gestured for Leon to come closer. Then, she grabbed Leon's hand and pulled him over the horse.

The end result was sweeter than he had imagined though. Malisa had made him sit in front of herself, as her soft breasts stuck closely to his back. Leon swore in his mind that he could even feel her nipples brushing against his back.

A very sweet aroma of herbs and soap came from her body while her hot breaths flew out around his neck.

'S-sister-in-law.. isn't she a bit too bold here? Well.. let's enjoy this treatment while it lasts!' Leon rejoiced to himself as he tried not to unnecessarily move his body, in case he provoked the wrath of his sister-in-law.

Malisa didn't notice Leon's turbulent emotions, as she whipped the reins and started to direct the horse toward her destination.

The two soon exited from the Town's periphery and took a path through the jungle. It would have been a tough task trekking through the path, but the horse was used to traveling around this region and adjusted its speed according to its new master's intention.

Malisa wasn't just controlling the horse though, as she was busy scanning the area for any strong monsters or worse, human bandits.

The bandits that tried to escape the claws of the law were often found in such desolate places, as they bide their time until the arrival of their new unsuspecting victim.

Although Malisa wasn't afraid of such bandits, she didn't want to take any unnecessary risk on the account of having Leon by her side.

Luckily, there wasn't much trouble for the duo as they safely traversed the path, and were quickly approaching their destination.

It was already very dark now since the sun was already setting. Knowing how to deal with this circumstance, Malisa had already used a spell to help the horse and herself see through the darkness.

It was an advanced active support spell called 'Eyes of the Night Owl' that consumed the Mana of the caster continuously, but it had its own benefit amidst such circumstances. A simple light spell would have illuminated the area around her easily, but that would expose them to the predators hiding in wait for them.

"No!...leave me alone.. save me!"

At that moment, there was a shrill cry amidst the woods as a desperate voice cried out in agony. Leon and Malisa both heard the voice and Malisa's brows twisted in thought. It wasn't long before she made the decision on what to do. Malisa made the horse continue to trek through, despite the repeated calls for rescue and help.

"Sister-in-law.. aren't you going to save them?" Leon was surprised at Malisa's action since according to the memories, she was very active in helping others in such circumstances.

"I might have looked into it before.. but not right now. I won't be taking any unnecessary risks this time." Malisa spoke to Leon, as her eyes kept looking out for them.

"I-I see.." In the end, Leon decided to let Malisa do her thing, as he too hoped to reach the auction place soon. However, he still couldn't help but pity the person who cried out earlier.

If he had the strength to help them, he would have tried to go there too. But he was as weak as a common human right now. He would die too easily against common swords and didn't want to play hero, only to make the situation much worse.

And if Malisa was by herself earlier, he knew that she would have gone to help too. It was only for the sake of his safety that she had chosen who she wanted to save.

...

After the two rode away, a few men walked out from the shadow of the trees, as they spat in frustration and glared at the horse's departing figure.

"Fuckin Dammit! We almost had them!" A tall and muscular man cursed out in anger as he plunged his broadsword into the ground. His eyes had already turned red in fury.

"It couldn't be helped though. Not everyone is easy prey after all." A bald guy spoke as rubbed his head. He smiled bitterly to his companions as they would have to return empty-handed.

"Hahhh.. so, how about we enjoy our spoils from earlier?" Unable to control himself properly, the muscular man diverted his mind to something much more enjoyable.

"Hahahaha. You read my mind completely." A seemingly younger man spoke as he laughed in delight.

"It's a pity that the boss gets to 'enjoy' the goods before anyone though.." The bald guy sighed in defeat as he couldn't help the situation. He absolutely hated having 'sloppy seconds'.

"I-It couldn't be helped! We would get our chance later on though." The young man tried to raise everyone's spirit as he tried to cheer them on.

"What a catch we got today! Hehehehe..." Another man spoke as his hands started to itch for that night's event. His hairy body was starting to become restless as he imagined the fun he would be having soon.

The men rubbed their hands in anticipation as they left the spot and turned back to walk back to their base.

Their tough and harsh daytime was over, and their delightful nighttime was to begin.

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A/N: ... I don't like dark stuff... give me some fluff instead...