Chapter 357 - 357 - The Immortals Arrayed Thick as Hemp

Leon didn't really take Laurier's gloating to heart.

Besides, she had a point.

Walk by the river often enough and you're bound to get your shoes wet, right?

Over these three years... with Demeter Familia at his back, plus his own brand of "steady and cautious" maneuvering, he'd dug quite a few pits for people on the sly.

Like that set of black armor worth 49,900 Valis that he'd nominally gotten as a "lucky find," or the stretch when he'd spotted that Airmid was young, easy to fool, and desperately short on materials, and offloaded recovery-type ingredients and Drop Items on her at jacked-up prices...

Looking back on all the "good deeds" he'd done over the years, they really didn't seem all that aboveboard.

Leon guiltily rubbed the tip of his nose and tried to change the subject:

"That, um."

"What's done is done, let's eat first?"

...

...

The next day, just as the sky was beginning to lighten.

Leon, who'd always loved sleeping in, was up bright and early for once.

He dressed quietly, then bent down to gather the "spoils of war" scattered across the floor: torn black-and-white stockings, side-cutout heels knocked every which way, slim-heeled tall boots, and those innocent-yet-sultry, dainty little camisole dresses, picking them up one by one and tossing them into the rattan basket beside him.

"Margaret, Iri, Kureha, I'm heading downstairs."

Whether they heard him or not, Kureha rolled over with the blanket clamped between her legs, leaving him only a languid, alluring view of her back.

"Mm..."

His eyes lingered on Kureha's long, beautifully toned legs and slim waist, then drifted across Margaret's flushed, lovely face still carrying the afterglow, and over to Iri, who'd passed out completely, silver hair spread loose like a doll that had been played to pieces...

He straightened his back, the corners of his mouth lifting into an unconcealable smugness, and like a general returning from a victorious battle, he eased the door shut and strode out in high spirits.

...

"What? It's this late already?!"

A startled cry came from the washroom.

Leon poked his head out with a toothbrush in his mouth and a blank look on his face, and the instant he caught sight of the magic-stone clock's hands on the wall, a flicker of panic crossed his face.

Watching his flustered scrambling, Rose pressed a hand to her forehead and sighed, her voice full of exasperation:

"My dear Mr. Leon, I have no idea what you've been dawdling over all this time."

"You're the one who got up earliest, aren't you?"

Leon: "..."

In the living room, Jeanne and Rose, who were about to head to the meeting with him, were already dressed and ready, sitting quietly on the sofa, waiting on this "very busy man" with zero sense of time.

Jeanne shot him a look:

"Up at dawn, late to the fair."

She paused, as if something had just occurred to her, and turned her gaze toward Margaret, Iri, and Kureha, who were sitting in a row beside her, well-behaved as students in a lecture.

"Eeep!"

Margaret was the first to crack under that loaded stare, her pretty face flushing scarlet in a flash as she hurriedly ducked her head.

As for Iri and Kureha...

One was already a "veteran player" and didn't bat an eye, while the other...

"I remember... when Leon got up, he was full of energy!"

Iri blinked her clear eyes, her tone innocent and blunt:

"He even had the energy left to pick on Margaret one more time!"

Then she added:

"I saw it with my own eyes!"

Everyone: "..."

Jeanne looked at Iri, the corner of her mouth twitching faintly, momentarily at a loss for words.

But then she thought of Iri's origins and background...

She opened her mouth, swallowed the words back down, and in the end it all came out as a barely audible sigh.

"Coming, coming!"

Leon came rushing out, knotting his tie haphazardly with a slice of toast clamped in his mouth, and quickly pulled on his suit jacket.

"Let's go, if we don't hurry we'll be late..."

"You don't want to make a bad impression on the other familias' representatives by showing up late to your first formal meeting, do you?"

As Rose spoke, she briskly handed him his coat, fedora, and staff.

"We're off!"

Leon spun around in a hurry, then turned back as if remembering something to add:

"Watch the house, all of you. And also..."

"Lydia, don't just bury yourself in studying, make sure you set aside time to finish your meditation and magic training."

"Margaret, Iri, Aura, I'm leaving the task of guiding her to you three, that's all right?"

Lydia froze completely, having never expected... that she'd be starting formal training after only two days of laying the groundwork.

"Le..."

Bang!

Before Lydia could get her words out, the door was pulled cleanly shut.

Leaving the several young mage ladies staring at one another.

"..."

...

"Half an hour left, we need to pick up the pace."

The moment they stepped out the gate, the three of them quickened their stride.

Pressed for time, they dropped the pretense and switched on the Falna "switch," letting the power of the Falna start flowing through their bodies.

The next second, their figures turned abruptly light and swift, no longer keeping to the usual paths but cutting through the city by the most direct route. Skimming across streets, lightly tapping off rooftops, they raced toward Guild headquarters at an incredible speed.

Luckily their residence and the headquarters were both in the Seventh District, otherwise they really might not have made it in time.

In the end, after all that rushing, the three of them touched down steadily before the doors of Guild headquarters right as the meeting was about to begin.

"Whew..."

Leon pulled out his beloved old brass pocket watch to check the time, and only then did his expression relax.

"Let's go."

He glanced at Jeanne and Rose on either side, reached up to straighten his tie, gently pressed down the brim of his hat, drew a deep breath, and put his smile back on before stepping into the grand, bustling building.

...

Guild headquarters, the deepest part of the third floor, the secret meeting room.

Creak!

The heavy wooden door, carved with intricate patterns, was pushed open from the outside.

In an instant, every gaze in the meeting room converged on the doorway.

"Apologies, Guild Master, we're running a touch late."

"We're not actually late, are we?"

Leon removed his hat and smiled in greeting to the room, his composed bearing giving no hint that this was his first time attending a meeting of this caliber.

Seated at the head of the table was the Guild Master, the man known as the "Fat Pig," Royman Mardeel, who kept a stern face and deliberately drew out his words:

"You're a minute short. I must say, Mr. Leon Hart, you really are a man who 'keeps strict time.'"

Leon of course caught the barb in that.

But then, who was he?

He paid it no mind at all. Those thorny remarks went in one ear and out the other.

Meanwhile, his attention had already turned to the figures seated around the table, the familia representatives who stood for Orario's top fighting strength.

Seated right at Royman's left hand were, naturally, one of Orario's two pillars, the Braver and the Nine Hell from Loki Familia.

"We meet again, Finn, Riveria."

Looking at Leon and Jeanne and Rose behind him, the two smiled and nodded in reply:

"Hello there."

Next he turned his gaze toward the girl with blazing red hair, and the petite Pallum woman beside her whose eyes were all but glued to Finn.

"Alise, Lyra, how come Kaguya isn't here?"

At that, Alise lost it outright, snorting out a laugh. Lyra rolled her eyes in irritation:

"What do you think?"

Leon shrugged and shifted his gaze to the intellectual-looking woman with lake-blue hair and glasses.

"Miss Asfi, after the meeting I have a few things I'd like to discuss with you."

"Eh?"

Perseus clearly started, a flicker of confusion passing through the eyes behind her lenses.

Ignoring the bewildered look on Perseus's face, Leon reined in his smile a little and gave a very formal nod to the few seated at Royman's right hand:

"Mr. Ottar, Mr. Hedin, it's been a while."

His gaze then fell on the figure beside the two of them, a "runner" of underwhelming height with a fierce glare and an impatient look on his face.

"And this is..."

Hedin pushed up his glasses and introduced him flatly:

"Allen Fromel."

Leon smiled and gave a slight nod:

"Hello."

"Heh..."

Finally, his gaze landed on the head of the military police, a captain he kept a respectful distance from.

"Captain Shakti, hello."

"Hello, Mr. Hart."

Shakti's reply was perfectly courteous, yet carried the businesslike distance of someone keeping things strictly professional.

Having made his rounds of greetings, Leon finally walked toward the three reserved empty seats. He didn't rush to sit down, though, instead spreading his arms and pulling the easygoing acquaintance in the neighboring seat into a solid hug.

"Tsubaki, how's business lately?"

"Haha, do you even need to ask..."

"As for the reason, well, you know..."

Seeing Tsubaki shooting him frantic looks, how could Leon not get it?

He cut a sidelong glance at Royman at the head of the table, whose face had already gone red as he glared daggers at Tsubaki, and the two of them shared a knowing smile.

With Evilus pounding right on the city's doorstep, if you tried to tell him the arms business wasn't booming, he'd eat his Scholar's Staff on the spot.

"..."

"..."

...

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