Chapter 135: A Promise

Leonard stared at Miranda in awe. Subconsciously, he took a few steps closer.

However, before he could get any closer, his skin began to hurt. The heat she generated was so intense that it was slowly boiling him alive.

“S—Sorry, Young Master, I didn’t mean to!” Miranda stammered, reducing the light she emitted.

Most of the heat dissipated, and now her body glowed with a comfortable warmth, a soft light outlining her features.

“It’s fine.” He reassured her with a radiant smile, examining her with great interest.

“Now that you have regained your full power, we can spar to test your limits!” He suggested. “Furthermore, we can go everywhere without having to worry about your life being endangered by mana!”

Sadly, his happiness didn’t last long. Miranda’s next words stunned him.

“Um… Young Master, can you… Leave the room for a bit, please?”

Leonard tilted his head to the side, baffled.

“Huh? Why? Did I do something wrong?”

“No, it’s just…” Miranda averted her gaze, starting to fidget uncomfortably.

“The flames accidentally burned away all of my clothes…” She mumbled. “So I am kind of naked right now.”

He blinked slowly. The only thing covering Miranda’s exposed body was the faint outline of light she emitted?

‘So unless Miranda keeps her mana output in check, we are going to see her nude?’ Leonard realized.

With the way Miranda had teased Elizabeth and Harley still fresh in his mind, Leonard couldn’t help it. His gaze instinctively dropped downward before he could stop it.

Seeing his reaction, Miranda flinched and covered her body with her hands, not that it accomplished much since her figure was still obscured only by the light she emitted.

“C—Could the Young Master… p—perhaps be interested?” She stuttered awkwardly. “Although I got the impression that you didn’t see me that way, I s—suppose it’s the normal reaction of a healthy man.”

Her face seemed to flush. Never in his life had Leonard thought he would see a sun blush until now.

“D—Do you wish to see me dispel the light?” Miranda abruptly asked, surprising even herself.

Everybody’s breathing hitched.

Before Leonard could form a reply, his hand was pulled from the side.

“Okay, that’s enough!” Harley bellowed, dragging Leonard toward the door. “Leonard, you won’t let a dignified woman humiliate herself, right?”

“Of course.” Leonard cleared his throat awkwardly.

Coming out of the room, he shut the door behind him. Never in his life had his heartbeat pounded so loudly in his ears.

Meanwhile, inside the room, the three girls stood silent for a while.

“Would you be so kind as to lend me some clothes?” Miranda managed to ask at last with a stiff smile.

Elizabeth’s eyes narrowed.

“Alright, it’s not like I am going to miss a few attires from my wardrobe.” She shrugged, taking them out of her dimensional storage ring.

“So… remind me again what was that about just being like an older sister to Leonard?” Elizabeth probed. “The relationship between you and your Young Master sure seemed to extend much further than you were willing to admit.”

“My lady, today’s events were just an exception… a mistake, that’s all!” Miranda insisted with a pout, gratefully accepting the clothes.

Elizabeth crossed her arms.

“Nuh uh…”

Her suspicions seemed to have not been completely unfounded after all…

***

Leonard waited patiently beyond the door. While Miranda’s waking had caused quite a stir, Ironstone Fortress was truly vast, so no one had been alerted by her flames.

“The sleep really helped me. Had I not taken the chance to rest, I would have collapsed soon enough.” He mused out loud.

Now that things had finally settled down, the realization that he had killed so many soldiers began to dawn on him. Perhaps because he had been fighting for his life, he wasn’t overwhelmed by guilt. He just felt a little empty.

Regardless, there was one thing he regretted: he hadn’t gotten the opportunity to help Callum level up. The human soldiers had been too high-level for the familiar to handle on his own, while it was too risky to let him get close to the root monster.

Soon enough, the three girls finally came out.

“All good?” He threw a glance at Miranda.

She nodded with a faint smile, her face no longer burning from embarrassment.

Now that every threat inside the outpost had been eliminated, the scholars were able to begin the steady reconstruction of Ironstone Fortress.

Considering that the other first-years were meant to regroup at the outpost before departing on other operations, they had to ensure that the place was in top-notch condition.

However, before Leonard could help with the reconstruction, he had more pressing matters. He headed toward Winston. His friend was surely awakened by now after recovering from his near fatal wound.

Sure enough, Leonard found him in the medical tent, where most of the scholars had recovered enough to walk on their own. Only the most serious cases remained.

“Bro!” Winston called out once he saw him, eager to rise.

“Ugh!”

Yet just as he was about to get up, a sharp pain shot through his shoulder, keeping him in place.

“Didn’t I tell you not to move so much?!” Cassie scolded him for his reckless behavior.

After apologizing, Winston directed his gaze toward Leonard.

“Can you tell me what happened after I lost consciousness?” He pleaded. “I have the most faith in you that you are going to tell me what transpired without omitting any details.”

Leonard heaved a deep sigh and began to recall the tale.

“You came in clutch. You saved Cassie from General Godfrey’s attack. William saved Samantha, but he wasn’t so lucky and died in the process.”

“That explains why Samantha was looking so down.” Winston realized. “It’s all my fault.”

Leonard raised an eyebrow. “How so?”

“I am a Tank. My role is to ensure the safety of others.” Winston spoke somberly. “Had I taken both of his attacks, not just one, William would still be with us.”

“Godfrey was too strong. Trying to stop both of his slashes would have killed you.” Leonard exclaimed.

“Maybe…” Winston glanced at the floor. “Still, that’s what I was meant to do, but I failed.”

“I get you. I also feel responsible for allowing Godfrey to slip away.” Leonard patted him on the shoulder.

“However, that doesn’t mean I will beat myself over it.” His gaze hardened. “Because I assure you, I will kill General Godfrey myself.”