Chapter 12: Watchful Eyes
"You must have cheated!" Harley declared with an absurd degree of certainty. "Let me guess... you used the last money you had to hire a guide?"
Immediately, her emerald eyes flicked toward Winston, who suddenly felt a chill run down his spine and instinctively tried to hide behind Leonard.
"Or maybe not..." Harley murmured, noticing the man’s pitiful state.
’Could Leonard have simply gotten lucky?’ She wondered.
"How about you leave me alone?" Leonard’s eyes darkened slightly. "Your baseless accusations are the last thing I wanted to be greeted with after reaching the rest chamber."
His words set off the group who obediently followed behind Harley.
"How dare you talk like that to the future heir of Velmura!" One barked.
"You should grovel just for being in Miss Harley’s presence!" Another demanded.
Leonard wasn’t surprised by their flattering behavior. It was the norm to curry favor with those who held influence in the hope of retaining a fraction of their authority and prestige.
What he couldn’t comprehend was why the esteemed heir of Velmura was bothering him when she already had so many people by her side.
"Hmph!" Harley raised her chin, trying to look down on Leonard.
"Regardless of the method you used, don’t think about proceeding past this point. With your miserable Bloodline and low level, you will only be courting death!"
She flicked her hair and turned.
"Though, I might consider letting you join my party... if you beg hard enough." She left him with those parting words.
Once her group was out of earshot, Winston grabbed Leonard by the shoulders.
"D—Dude! Why did you talk to Lady Harley like you knew each other?" He stuttered.
"Because at one point, she was my arranged fiancée before things broke off. A rumor spread that I didn’t possess the talent I was supposed to inherit, and her family wrote me off without a second thought..." Leonard let out a tired sigh.
"Now that I think about it, it was a blessing in disguise. I want to be the one who chooses who I spend my life with. Not other people."
Winston visibly shook. The Velmura brand was so well known in both the Lower and Middle Sectors of the city that even he, a country bumpkin, knew about it!
Considering the political power at their disposal, why had they been interested in Leonard’s potential Bloodline to such a degree? Perhaps he had been a big shot in the past?
At that point, Winston realized he didn’t know anything about his teammate or where he had come from.
For a moment, he thought about asking, but then reconsidered. If Leonard wanted to share, he would do so on his own accord. Probing while they were still in the depths of a Grade 1 dungeon would be ill-mannered of him.
Settling on a free spot, they let their mana and bodies gradually recover.
"I hate to admit it, but Harley might have had a point." Winston said somberly. "Think about it. I’m still Level 5, and you’re Level 2. With just the two of us, it would be too dangerous to attempt the hardest portion of the dungeon."
Naturally, Leonard understood his teammate’s concerns. But he couldn’t back down, not because of pride, but because of necessity.
The dungeon’s Golden Hour had ended a long time ago, and the monster remains he had gathered weren’t nearly enough to cover the rent that was due in mere hours.
It was one thing if he were to become homeless, but Miranda? The woman he cherished like an older sister, who had sacrificed so much for his sake, to be left without shelter and potentially worsen her condition because he had been too incompetent to gather enough funds?
Out of the question.
He had been a burden for far too long. Now that he had been given a second chance with his Primordial Bloodline, he was determined to do everything in his power to repay the help he had received.
What was the point of power if he didn’t use it for what truly mattered?
"How about we give it a try and see how it goes?" He suggested. "We might be pleasantly surprised and find the monsters there are weaker than we expect. If not... we’ll figure out a countermeasure along the way."
Winston contemplated the idea. Truth be told, he was fearful of what might lie ahead...
However, during the few short hours they had spent fighting together, he felt as though they had become brothers in arms, a kind of warrior’s bond he had never experienced before.
It was to the point where Winston genuinely believed Leonard would have his back even in the most deadly situations.
He smiled and gave a thumbs-up, prompting Leonard to let out a sigh of relief.
They spent an hour resting. Although their mana needed only a fraction of that time to recover, their bodies and mental awareness took longer to fully restore.
Additionally, it was wiser to let the awakeners who had entered the dungeon during the Golden Hour period to return first, reducing the chances of accidentally bumping into another party in the wild and causing complications.
With their equipment in order, they got ready to depart.
"Hm? Lady Harley is still here." Winston remarked. "She couldn’t be scheming an ambush for us, right?"
Leonard shook his head confidently. "I doubt it. She clearly despises me, but she’s not the type to trap someone in a dungeon. If she wants to inflict harm, she’d do it openly, in front of an audience."
He spared her a glance, noting that he was being watched. Harley quickly broke eye contact, pretending she hadn’t been observing him at all.
"Let’s go."
The pair was about to venture into the wide passage when a man with black hair and green eyes interrupted them.
"E—Excuse me! Are you perhaps planning to go deeper? My party was overwhelmed and decided to head up earlier than planned. I was actually looking for any party that wouldn’t mind me tagging along. I carry a Rare Bloodline, Level 6, and I dual-wield daggers."
Leonard and Winston exchanged a glance, neither detecting any trace of ill intent. The likelihood that the man had ventured this far alone just to take advantage of others seemed slim, and in truth, they could use a third member for what lay ahead.
"Sure, but keep in mind that you won’t be altering the structure of the party or how we operate. Any attempt to take command will not be tolerated." Leonard replied in a cold tone.
"O—Of course, I wouldn’t dream of it, especially when you’re doing me a service!" The man laughed, shaking hands with the two. "You may refer to me as Martin."
Leonard nodded, keeping a close watch on the man. He wasn’t about to trust someone so easily.
With the party size increased to three members, they entered the hardest portion of the dungeon.
Discreetly shifting his eyes, Martin glanced backward, noting how Harley was staring at Leonard’s back.
"Tch."
From then on he kept silent.
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