Chapter 29: Imperial Army?
After saying that, he made his way towards the hall. But he suddenly stopped, turned his head towards Leon. "If you’re done with this, go and do the patrolling."
The moment he said that, he started walking once again. Now there was only Leon who remained in the garden, alongside him stayed the cold breeze of morning air.
"Tch, I didn’t even have breakfast yet!!"
A small sigh escaped his mouth as he started sweeping the floor. Hands moved faster than usual, the urgency to finish the task ahead of schedule evident in every motion.
When he finished sweeping, he placed the mop next to the tree and stretched his arms up in the air. "Ughhh!! So fucking tired,"
He started walking towards the main gate, as a thought popped into his mind. "I have to finish all this quickly because I have to prepare breakfast too."
Without wasting another second, he made his way to the city. When he reached there, he noticed that the market was back to normal.
Pedestrians walking down the road, murmuring about something. Kids were running behind each other, trying to play something. People were standing in front of the shops to purchase their goods.
A sense of fear lingered over Leon’s face as his brows furrowed slightly. "I don’t want to get beaten up like usual."
A strange image suddenly surfaced in his mind. Kael stood before him, his expression as calm and unreadable as ever. His mana had surrounded him, and the usual calm expression of his face wasn’t there anymore.
He slowly walked towards Leon and struck his fist down towards his head. BONK
And that sudden hit made him come back to reality, as sweat drenched his face entirely. "Mansion lord is scarier than them." He muttered.
Steps started once again; they didn’t feel rushed at all. His gaze swept across the city, but then fell on the group of people who were beating him the day Kael saved him.
Three men stood there, all broad-shouldered, tall, and muscular. At the front was another man who appeared to be their leader. Though overweight, his expensive attire and commanding demeanor made it clear that he possessed both wealth and authority over the others.
Leon gulped, turned his gaze towards the other side of the city. He started pretending as if he didn’t see them.
"Fuck!! Why did it have to be them out of all the people living in this county?!"
He looked at the group through his side eye, but he noticed something unusual. The people who would come lashing at him without any reason were not even bothering about his presence inside the city.
A sense of confusion passed through his face. "Huh?" He muttered; confusion was audible through his tone.
"Is this because of that day? The day when the mansion lord saved me from these people."
His gaze remained fixed on the group for a while, as he saw them walk away without doing anything funny. "That’s the only possible outcome."
A small, yet satisfying smile tucked at the corner of his lips. "Who’ll dare to go against that monster?"
A soft chuckle escaped his lips, but it was soon followed by something he hadn’t expected. His eyes began to well up with tears.
"Accepting that offer... wasn’t such a bad choice after all." He lowered his gaze for a moment. "Sure, he makes me work myself to the bone, but..." A faint smile appeared on his face. "It’s still far better than the life I had before."
Out of nowhere, a sudden realisation hit him as he remembered what he came here for. "You’re walking towards your own death, Leon." He muttered as he started walking towards the inside of the city.
He passed through the marketplace and entered the residential district. The area was sharply divided into two parts. One side was occupied by luxurious houses befitting the wealthy, while the other was filled with modest, rundown homes where the poor resided.
A literal reaction of disgust flickered over his face as he scoffed. "Even societies are divided into rich and poor." He took a small pause as he continued. "How can I expect that these people will treat people like me any good?"
He shook his head lightly and shrugged off. "When they discriminate even between themselves."
Steps started once again, steps remained unhurried. He continued observing the nearby situation when he reached the middle of the residential district.
His gaze fell on a small group of people who were wearing clothes that weren’t too shabby, nor too out of style.
He thought that they were just normal citizens at first, but then a phrase that wasn’t meant to be there caught his attention.
"You know, I heard that the captain of the Third Division of the Imperial Army is currently in the county," a woman whispered, raising a hand to her lips as if afraid someone might overhear her.
Leon’s eyes widened slightly as a thought filled his brain. "A captain of the imperial army in the county?"
Without wasting any more time, he took cover behind the nearby wall, trying to eavesdrop on their conversation.
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A/N
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