“Young Master Leon, please forgive my previous disrespect!”
Inside the manor's main hall, Aurora bowed deeply to Leon, her face filled with apology.
Even her way of addressing him had changed from “Leon” to “Young Master Leon.”
Behind Aurora, the group from the magic research team stood with apologetic smiles, eagerly presenting the gifts they had prepared to thank Leon.
They had already heard the news that the Black and White Hand's operation this time was specifically targeted at them, the mages.
Had Leon not taken swift and decisive action to track down the Black and White Hand's stronghold and instantly kill their Bishop, Martin, the fate of these mages would have been unimaginable.
After all, without Leon, it would have been up to their group of mages to deal with a peak Gold rank expert who also possessed an elemental body!
The strongest among them was their captain, Tobias, a peak Silver rank mage.
A peak Silver rank fighting a peak Gold rank?
They would be lucky not to be pounded into meat paste, and only because they didn't have enough fat on them!
So, when Aurora prepared to apologize to Leon today, they had also followed the suggestion of one of their members and brought thank-you gifts to express their gratitude for saving their lives.
“No matter,”
Leon unwrapped a lollipop, popped it into his mouth, lit up a Light Prayer Orb, and readily accepted their apology.
A child being naughty?
A good beating would fix that.
Seeing the respect on Aurora's face now, Leon knew he had made the right call in letting Alicia have a “friendly sparring match” with her.
Besides, Leon was not a petty man who would hold a grudge over a single comment for months.
He was actually quite magnanimous.
Having delivered their apologies and gifts, the magic research team politely took their leave, not wanting to disturb Leon any further, and quickly left the manor.
“Some of... them... are wrong.”
Just then, Alicia, who was standing beside Leon, suddenly spoke up.
Her words instantly put Leon on high alert. He asked quickly:
“Wrong? Who? What's wrong with them?”
“That... male... mage... wearing... white... shoes,” Alicia said.
“The way... he looked... at you... was off. Hidden... hostility.”
Hostility?
Leon had absolute faith in the Alicia-brand sensor.
Although she lacked his wide-range perception abilities, her sensitivity to emotions was practically abnormal.
She could clearly perceive even the slightest fluctuation in Leon's emotions.
Fortunately, she was a simpleton. Otherwise, Leon felt that her ability to “read faces” would rival that of the Sage King.
“Get into my shadow.”
Leon lifted his priest's scepter, soared into the air, and flew out of the manor with Alicia.
“Mr. Tobias, please wait a moment.”
Leon quickly caught up with the magic research team and landed from the sky.
Seeing Leon flying after them, Tobias was taken aback and asked:
“Young Master Leon, you are...”
“Just looking to have a chat,” Leon replied casually.
A chat?
Tobias was completely baffled, but in the next second, he heard Leon speak.
“Mr. Hillier, will you confess on your own, or do I need to use my methods to make you speak? You should have seen what I am capable of.” Leon turned his head and looked at the male mage wearing white shoes.
Hearing this, the mage named Hillier showed a brief flash of panic in his eyes, which returned to normal in the next second. He asked with a look of confusion:
“Young Master Leon? What are you talking about—”
“You're the insider for the Black and White Hand, aren't you?” Leon coldly interrupted Hillier.
“You were responsible for sending messages to the Black and White Hand's Bishop, informing him of the magic research team's real-time location.”
“Only by knowing your real-time location could they wipe out both the magic research team and the city's mana-sensing devices in one fell swoop.”
“After all... even if the mana-sensing devices were destroyed, who's to say someone on the magic research team wouldn't be able to repair them?”
Saying this, Leon looked at Aurora.
Although this young lady was stubborn, she was indeed capable. After all, she came from a marquis family and had been personally trained by a Diamond-rank mage.
Mana-sensing devices were essential magical items for high-ranking mages, used in various magical research.
Having been trained by a Diamond-rank mage, Aurora had likely worked with mana-sensing devices before and might have been able to repair one if the damage wasn't too severe.
Although it was only a possibility, the Black and White Hand had deployed so many personnel and even sacrificed a Bishop. They would definitely want to leave nothing to chance.
To minimize the risk of failure, planting a mole within the magic research team to coordinate their actions was highly logical.
“Furthermore, I am not surprised that Aurora came to apologize to me today,” Leon said, turning to Tobias. “But it does surprise me that your entire group thought to come and thank me.”
“It is indeed unexpected, because Mr. Tobias is not exactly known for being socially adept or tactful.”
Tobias couldn't even control Aurora, letting her make a scene in the council chamber. This showed that he was not a meticulous or thoroughly considerate person by nature.
That being the case, how could he have proactively thought of coming to thank Leon?
Even if Tobias knew the Black and White Hand's target was the magic research team, he might not have immediately realized that—
Leon's operation to wipe out the Black and White Hand had actually eliminated a fatal threat to them, saving their lives in the process.
It wasn't that he was ungrateful; it was just that, given his inability to even keep someone like Aurora in check, he simply didn't have the wits to think of this connection on his own...
“Wait! How did we think of preparing thank-you gifts for Lord Leon in the first place?”
“I think... someone suggested it?”
“The person who suggested it—Hillier!”
Hearing Leon's words, the other members of the magic research team also recalled that the reason they had followed Aurora to thank Leon was because someone had pointed out that Leon had indirectly saved their lives.
And with a bit more recollection, they remembered that the person who had pointed this out was indeed Hillier!
In an instant, everyone on the magic research team turned to look at Hillier with shocked, disbelieving eyes.
Seeing this, Hillier immediately panicked:
“D-Don't look at me like that! He hasn't presented any evidence! Why do you believe whatever he says and doubt me? We are companions who spend every day together...”
But the more Hillier tried to explain, the more terrified his companions became, and some even began to look at him with indignation.
Because...
“Do I need evidence to do things?”
Leon said calmly.
As soon as those words fell, Hillier looked like a drake caught by the neck. All the excuses and denials he wanted to spit out were choked in his throat, unable to be voiced.
Indeed, for Leon, he didn't need any evidence at all to suspect someone.
And this realization was already an unspoken consensus within the magic research team.
Yet now, Hillier actually thought Leon was framing him just because of a lack of evidence?
This directly exposed his guilty conscience!
Under normal circumstances, if suspected by Leon, anyone else would have immediately worried whether they had accidentally fallen into the Black and White Hand's schemes and leaked information.
After all, if they didn't doubt themselves, could they really doubt Priest Leon first?
Rate on N.U.
