Chapter 98

EP.98 Prophecy-3

"…There's no need for you to come…"

"I can't possibly let you go there alone."

While Leonardo was worried because it was 'that place,' Aria's concern lay elsewhere.

'…If I meet a woman like that in a place like that…'

Drinking alcohol in such a pleasure district would be a natural thing, and once under the influence, one might not even notice if someone carried them away.

In such a state, any loose woman could take them to a bed, undress them, and spend the night without them even realizing it.

Especially if it was a female from another family who came to cause trouble.

'Rather, with Leonardo's personality, even if he doesn't like it, he might feel responsible…'

No, wait.

Aria's thoughts momentarily froze.

Responsibility? Taking responsibility meant, whether one liked it or not, taking on the consequences of an intimate encounter with a woman.

Even if it was the 'young lady' he served.

It wasn't necessarily a bad thing.

After all, alcohol was merely a stimulant that awakened instincts and didn't plant false emotions.

Therefore, it was absolutely nothing to worry about.

So, it would certainly be fine to drink their first alcohol together after four years and end up making a 'one-night mistake' due to overdrinking.

'…No, it might even be good…'

Aria smiled lewdly and lasciviously, saliva almost dripping from the corners of her mouth.

"…Your girlfriend… is she okay?"

Perhaps due to Aria's status, Dean asked Leonardo cautiously, using a slightly formal tone.

It was scary to see the girl who had just vented her anger at a rival now grinning with a strange expression.

"Well, to be honest, it's strange for a hero to go to such a place."

The Aleo Street they were heading to was not just a pleasure district but a place where beasts in expensive suits indulged in desire and madness.

On one hand, he was worried, but on the other, he was excited. That was the light and shadow of a pleasure district.

"…That's not what I meant…"

"Actually, bringing the young lady here was a bit much."

Even if it was a licensed pleasure district, that was only on the surface. Most people would think more and create their own gossip.

People believed what they saw more than facts or evidence.

Thus, Luminé, the representative of the temple, couldn't possibly come, and Ain, who looked like a child and would easily absorb strange knowledge, couldn't be part of the group.

As a result, apart from Anus and Dean's group to meet the prophet, and Leonardo and Aria, no additional members could be added.

Moreover, having too many people would only increase the sense of unease.

[Does it sound like that's what your brother is talking about?]

<Is there anything else?>

To the Sage, it was all about that, and it was hard to believe anyone wouldn't know.

"…There it is. Over there."

Anus pointed to the street of pleasure that shone brightly in the darkness.

"Let's… go in…"

"Wait a moment."

Just as they were about to step into the street, Leonardo stopped Aria with a serious expression.

His expression was so serious that Aria, thinking her lewd intentions had been exposed, shouted in a slightly flustered manner.

"I wasn't planning to do it right away!"

"…Pardon?"

To others, her lustful thoughts were obvious. Blushing and making such an embarrassed excuse was a dead giveaway.

"No, I think it's better to do it right away."

"…Right… right!?"

Do that? Like a rutting beast, thrusting and shaking and moaning?

Right now?

At the thought, Aria's face turned completely red.

"That… doing it… is… nice… but… there are too many people… here, right?"

Aria, almost giving up on hiding, twisted her thighs and arms seductively, pretending to be shy.

In fact, if Leonardo had suggested it, Aria would have gratefully undressed and let him do it without a second thought.

So, ignorance was bliss.

"No, it's better to use the disguise spell in a group. That way, we won't forget about the group."

And, as someone who had lived for over a hundred years mentally, Leonardo was free from such sexual taboos.

What was more important to Leonardo was the risk of his or Aria's face being recognized in such a pleasure district, so he wanted to use a minimal disguise.

[...Sigh...]

"…Tsk…"

"…Oh dear…"

They were now at a level of shock where even words failed them.

"…Right… the disguise spell… then… that's it… I knew it…"

She pouted, as if to express that it wasn't what she wanted.

"Then let's start."

Leonardo first changed his hair color, then his skin color. While he couldn't alter his bone structure like clay, he could change his appearance by overlaying pigments, which even his limited mana could sustain for a long time.

His black hair turned white, his skin, which was close to a deep peach, turned completely brown, and his red eyes turned black.

Leonardo's usual appearance was now distinctly different.

"Remember this look. It will be hard to find us if we get separated."

"It doesn't matter. I remember by scent anyway."

Indeed, as a wolfkin, Dean's sense of smell was superior to most. He was probably as sensitive as a shark detecting a drop of blood in the water.

"Typical dog nose."

"Who's a dog?!"

That wasn't meant to be a literal dog nose. It was a metaphor. Of course, he had thought it.

"…Sigh…"

While the brothers were bickering, Aria swallowed and looked at Leonardo.

'Same

white hair… Did he do it on purpose? His muscles stand out more with his dark skin. His abs must be impressive too…! And with black eyes,

his gentle side is more prominent… Ha… Why is Leonardo so lovable…!'

Aria's infatuation, clouding her judgment, continued to stimulate her overflowing love for Leonardo without his knowledge.

"Are you not going to do it, Miss?"

"Um!? Ah… I will."

The real Aria hurriedly disguised herself. First, she asked the spirits to alter her basic appearance like Leonardo, then used divine magic to hinder recognition, so that even those with keen senses wouldn't notice her.

"…I see, you were well-taught by the spirits."

Of course, he wasn't talking about spirit magic but also about sex education. The problem was that both were learned too well.

"Shall we go?"

"Do we not need to disguise ourselves?"

Looking at the disguised Leonardo and Aria, Dean wondered if he should cover his face.

"Have we ever been in the newspaper? Dean?"

"Oh."

Indeed, Anus and Dean had never been in the public eye. It wouldn't be a problem if they didn't recognize Leonardo and Aria.

"Shall we go then?"

"Anyway, the guy is in a secluded spot, but he has a fortune-telling booth near the entrance, so it won't take long."

Anus, making this promise, walked towards the pleasure district, cane in hand.

***

Aleo, despite its reputation as 'illegal,' was a bustling street filled with people.

There were no visible signs of criminal types, and instead, well-dressed people wandered the streets, adorned with luxury and high-end items.

If one didn't know the name and only saw the background, it would seem like a glamorous commercial district, not a place where illegal activities were tacitly permitted.

"Hmm… It doesn't feel as criminal as I thought."

"That's one of the reasons the Empire tolerates it."

Black markets and some illegal activities were often tolerated as necessary evils by the authorities. Aleo was probably one of the most lenient places in terms of legal constraints.

"…But even so…"

Thud

Leonardo caught the wrist of a pickpocket who had just reached into Anus's pocket.

"…Eek…!"

"There are still crimes, though."

When Leonardo let go, the child ran off into an alley, shaking his arm.

"Do we need to catch him?"

"Maybe not. He didn't steal anything, after all."

Anus chuckled, showing a sense of mercy. As a strong adult, he felt a sense of pride.

"You've grown so much, now you're just like Ren."

"…Like Mom?"

"Don't you remember? The first time we went to town."

Now that he thought about it, that had happened. Ren had caught a pickpocket from behind.

"…That was surprising even now."

"Why? Didn't you say 'Mother' was skilled?"

Aria subtly emphasized the word 'Mother' in her question.

"At the time, I was surprised, but now, it's surprising in a different way."

Usually, a knight trained in mana has a sixth sense in addition to the five senses. This allowed them to detect the mana of living beings and prepare for ambushes.

"Does Mother know how to use mana?"

"That's the thing, she doesn't."

Ren, Leonardo's mother, was not someone who used mana. In terms of total mana, she was similar to Leonardo before his regression, around early teens. Like him, she had no connection to mana cultivation techniques.

"…Then how…"

"She just caught them. She said she felt the wind move?"

Thinking about it, Ren had shown physical abilities superior to even the wolfkin Dean.

One memorable incident was when Leonardo had scraped his knee a week ago, and Ren had scolded him for not speaking up properly just by smelling the blood on his pants.

The problem was that the pants had been washed clean with no trace left.

Another incident was when she caught at least ten mosquitoes in three minutes on a completely dark night, effectively eliminating all mosquitoes in the village.

"Hmm… Maybe Mother has a similar constitution to me?"

Aria thought this calmly. It was possible that Aria could do the same.

"Miss, your physical abilities are enhanced by your innate mana. But Mother's mana was ordinary."

Thinking about it now, it was indeed strange.

Why hadn't she learned mana cultivation with such a constitution?

'…With such a body, even a cheap cultivation technique would make her incredibly strong.'

And why hadn't he inherited such a constitution?

'Actually, I even suspected she might not be my biological mother when I was young.'

But that suspicion faded as he grew older, for various reasons.

"Do you have a picture of Mother? I'd like to see it."

"There's no need to see a picture. If Leonardo grows his hair, he looks like Ren."

At this, Dean chuckled in agreement.

"Exactly, if Leonardo had been born a girl, he would have been Ren."

"What? Mom is pretty, you know."

At this moment, Dean and the Sage, though unseen, shared the same thought.

'That liar.'

"I'd like to see her. Can I?"

"The pictures are stored separately. Maybe later…"

[Why not use that?]

The Sage casually suggested an absurd idea.

<…Are you serious?>

The final escape technique, which was humiliating even mentally?

[Didn't you say, 'I can do anything for Miss'?]

Leonardo realized that the Sage could even pronounce the honorific 'yo' in such an unpleasant way. It was probably a skill only the Sage could pull off.

<…Fine, once should be okay.>

[And this time, let's try the female…]

<Shut up.>

Anyway, just looking at the Sage made him feel like he was corrupting in real-time.

…Well, once should be fine. Just changing his face should be okay. It's not like his body would turn female.

Miss would be curious, and seeing this transformation would be helpful in terms of knowledge and experience.

"…Please wait a moment, Miss."

"Huh? What for?"

Leonardo covered his face with his robe. He returned his eye and hair color to their original state, then, inspired by the principle of disguise spells, used aura to slightly feminize his skeletal structure, and finally, used polymorph magic to refine the appearance.

"Something like this."

When he removed the robe, Leonardo's face was that of a black-haired, red-eyed woman.

"…Wh… What?!"

Anus and Aria were shocked, their expressions and exclamations showing their surprise.

"Disgusting!"

Dean was horrified, finding it revolting. While being surprised was understandable, calling it disgusting seemed too harsh. In many ways.

"It's not that bad to be surprised, but calling it disgusting is a bit much."

"Still, it's creepy. The hair is like Ren's, but the body is still yours."

That was a valid point. A female face on a male body would be unsettling.

"And why are you so detailed about the smell? It's kind of weird."

"…Smell? Why the smell?"

"Didn't you make it smell like Ren? I could smell it faintly just now."

Dean sniffed, his nose twitching. There was a distinct, strong metallic smell, like Ren's unique scent of fresh blood.

"No way. This magic can't change the smell."

"…Really? That's strange… I definitely smelled Ren…"

"Maybe you're just tired. Let's go into the fortune-telling booth."

Anus pointed to a tent squeezed between two large buildings.

"…Alright."

[…Don't tell me…]

The Sage looked around nervously. The crowd made it impossible to distinguish individuals. Leonardo, more concerned by this action, said firmly.

<…There's no way. Before the regression, I couldn't even find one body.>

There was no way.

After two years of intense searching, and even seventy years of wandering, he couldn't find his mother's body.

There was no way she would appear now.

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