After Leonardo comforted the two maidservants, he proceeded to send them away with the permission of allowing the Qing procession to enter the Ye Estate.
As for Leonardo, he made his way toward the casual gazebo located in the grace of sunlight nearby. Fresh air, gentle trees, and lush grassy albeit artificial hills surrounded the gazebo, and it was located not far from the shade of one.
Another maidservant was standing in the shade of the gazebo next to a cozy, laid-back chair. She held a plate of moistened fruits and fresh juice the color of apricot in her hands. This one in particular seemed composed— very professional. Not panicky but also not reckless or haughty.
Her cultivation wasn't low either— she was actually a 6th-tier cultivator, just like Viola's subordinate, Attendant Rue. To have a 6th-tier as a maidservant; that's extravagant.
Leonardo's feat of destroying Silent Melody or standing up to the sword projection from City Lord Huang wasn't brought up in the circulating rumors as no one wanted to get involved with a 9th-tier cultivator or earn the ire of the Qing family to an unrepentant decree.
As for Leonardo, he too wouldn't go around boasting about overpowering a 9th-tier cultivator.
He could still remember how the projection of Junior Brother's sword destroyed an entire sect the size of a medium city with one attack— formations, artificial mountains, rebirth realm cultivators; all of them were gone with one strike. The shockwave even swept through the outer regions of the sect, blasting tens of thousands of disciples to their deaths.
Keeping in mind that the attack wasn't an area-focused attack yet the remnant, borderline 'harmless' shockwaves when compared with the epicenter was almost as powerful as one of Leonardo's most powerful attacks.
Perhaps if Leonardo was in the 7th-tier of singularity or 8th-tier of inception, he might stand a chance in a full-blown battle against a 9th-tier Star Lord.
Until then, he should tread carefully on eggshells in these fortified cities and dangerous waters.
"Your fruits, Attendant Ye," cold yet soft was her voice when she spoke, her slender fingers squeezing gently a piece of round fruit as she led it to Leonardo's mouth.
Subconsciously, Leonardo opened his mouth and took a bite, his lips grazing the edges of smooth, tender fingers.
The hand shook eve-so-slightly, but it calmly retreated afterward to pluck yet another fruit from the plate.
Clear eyes flashing with the multi colors of rainbow gazed down on Leonardo's creased brows, a clear indication of the man's troubled mind. Ever since she saw this man, his brows were in a constant lock, never unfolding from one another. This truly represented the pinnacle of a scheming advisor, always lost in an ocean of thoughts.
Light footsteps broke the serenity of this moment as Lady Viola, Attendant Rue, and a few older men, some of them looked to be in a senior generation while some looked to be from a generation even past that.
Among the procession was another young man who shared some resemblance to Lady Viola, though it wasn't too distinct.
Leonardo's eyes swept the group once and unbeknownst to anyone watching, a swirl of darkness revolved once in his eyes as bits of black lightning crackled, and a touch of a smile surfaced on Leonardo's face when he discovered the expected. Then, that smile disappeared as quickly as it came while he rested his head back, mouth open ever-so-slightly.
The maid understood, albeit somewhat uncomfortable and confused. Nonetheless, she proceeded to slide a piece of fruit down Leonardo's throat, and the latter enjoyed the taste.
Lady Viola and Attendant Rue didn't find this sign of disrespect as anything unexpected. In fact, they had assumed they'd face more humiliation than this when they first set off. Lady Viola, in particular, had to swallow a stomach of anger as she gestured to one of the men behind her.
"Grab us some seats… Unless, of course, Attendant Ye doesn't welcome us seated?" Lady Viola attempted to draw Leonardo's attention with her sarcasm, but her only response was another piece of fruit sinking into the bottomless hole that was Leonardo's throat.
Despite her anger, she didn't speak again. To her side, Attendant Rue was very worried her lady might do something to antagonize Leonardo; last time's lesson was still itching within her very soul.
This man may seem laid back and casual, but he could get pretty damn ruthless when ticked off. Not wanting things to escalate, she took the initiative to rush off and come back with another chair— a replica of Leonardo's.
She meticulously arranged the chair in a mirror reflection position from Leonardo's, where the heads of both seats were very close, and the bottoms spread out like the wings of an elegant swan.
Attendant Rue then helped herself to a serving of cold fruits on the side table and stood respectfully next to Leonardo's maidservant, her attitude and stance impeccable. She didn't know that the person by her side was also a 6th-tier cultivator— not even Lady Viola noticed it.
As for Leonardo, even though he was supposed to not notice either… Who are they trying to fool? He simply acted ignorant of the fact, exploiting this maidservant to the extreme while keeping her in the dark about anything of interest to her.
Lady Viola understood the lengths her attendant went to and thus, she gritted her teeth and told the rest of her entourage, "You can leave now; this conversation is about to be a private one."
The people behind her shared concerned looks.
The young man who shared her resemblance spoke up at this point, "Cousin—…"
"It's Mistress Viola or Lady Viola— don't forget your position just because we're blood-related." Lady Viola interrupted him, continuing, "I want everyone to leave this instance; this includes you."
Her final words were directed at the young maidservant who stood by Leonardo's chair. The maidservant looked up at Lady Viola, and the latter was surprised by the abundance of colors in the former's eyes; they were beautiful. However, not an ounce of emotion, let alone jealousy, could be seen in her eyes.
Leonardo didn't mind and said, "She can go, but your attendant would have to compensate for her lack of presence."
The maidservant was surprised, thinking that her efforts weren't high enough to score a presence in Leonardo's books as an irreplaceable maid yet. Her mission was to get closer to him and wedge herself in his heart as someone he could confide in, open up, and treat like a close confidant.
Yet, despite her attempts at being the perfect impression of an obedient maidservant— something seemed to be lacking.
Lady Viola was stunned… This man desired her personal attendant to stand as his maidservant. Is he nuts?
However, before she could reply, Attendant Rue voiced her agreement without hesitation, "Sure thing, Brother Ye…"
Even as Attendant Rue spoke, she signaled to her lady with her eyes that they had much more pressing matters to care about— these things were no more than little trivialities compared to the greater picture.
Leonardo was surprised, did she just call him Brother Ye? Then again, they were both attendees so it made sense.
Lady Viola was also stunned by her attendant's behavior, but she ultimately thought nothing of it. As everyone else dispersed unwittingly, and most unwitting of them all was Leonardo's new maidservant, he surreptitiously erected an isolation barrier with a wisp of his desolate intent, not allowing anyone to spy on the conversation to unfold.
Far in the distance, among the procession of the Qing family, a couple of expressions twisted in an ugly fashion.
Likewise, the new maidservant with rainbow eyes creased her brows, fists clenched tightly. Exasperated, she could only disappear behind the artificial hills.
Lady Viola removed her long coat, revealing a cut-short jacket and white shirt underneath. Further below, a fit combat pants designed for heavy physical exercise hugged her long legs.
She had a stunning body for a female combatant, though not as comparable to Leonardo's disciple, Wendy.
Lady Viola smoothly walked around Leonardo and took her seat in a relaxed manner, her black hair flowing to the ground, a gust of wind carrying her fresh fragrance toward Leonardo's nostrils even as the sound of her deep breathing tickled his senses.
Was she blatantly trying to disturb his state of mind?
Leonardo almost laughed, thinking that two could play this game. With a teasing glint in his eyes, he rested his head back and closed his eyes, slowly parting his lips.
The ever-observant Attendant Rue noticed this gesture, and since she had observed the maidservant from earlier, she knew what to do. Thus, despite feeling bad for her lady, she plucked a fresh fruit and popped it into Leonardo's mouth. Leonardo's lips clamped shut gently, his lips seemingly accidentally touching down Lady Rue's snow-white fingers.
At that moment, a streak of harmless, black lightning flashed from Leonardo's skin and shook through Lady Rue's nervous system, but the latter only took this as a sudden goosebump that sent her heart aflutter and rocked her knees into weakness.
With a flustered, flushed red face, she withdrew her hand even as her heartbeat pounded hard in her mind.
"What's wrong?" Lady Viola asked, feeling something amiss with Attendant Rue.
The source of this c𝓸ntent is fr𝒆e(w)𝒆bnovel