The Silence Beneath the Night

"Wait... I think I understand. But also don’t." 𝒇𝓻𝓮𝓮𝙬𝙚𝒃𝒏𝓸𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝓬𝓸𝒎

Leon stared at him expressionlessly.

For a brief second, the only sound between them was the soft crunch of dry leaves beneath their footsteps as the cold wind drifted through the dark forest.

Then—

A faint twitch appeared at the corner of Leon’s eye.

For some reason, he suddenly felt a headache coming.

"Sigh..."

Leon rubbed his forehead helplessly.

This child truly had no future.

Maybe he should speak with Harrier Taylor someday.

Otherwise, the Taylor family’s future might genuinely become tragic if Harry continued growing like this.

Leon glanced sideways at the black-haired youth walking beside him. Harry looked excited, energetic, and absurdly proud of himself despite understanding less than half of what had just happened earlier.

His talent wasn’t terrible.

But his brain...

Leon suddenly understood why Harrier Taylor always looked exhausted whenever his son was mentioned.

Harry had always been like a slowly filled oven fed drop by drop. It was unbearably slow. Yet somehow, he remained incredibly confident. He was quite skilled at pretending to be impressive. As for everything else...

It was a complete mess.

Still...

Leon’s gaze softened slightly.

There was still time to train this little fellow. He was still young and capable.

At the very least, his heart was not bad.

That alone was already rare enough in this cruel world.

"Alright, there’s no need to discuss this anymore." Leon waved his hand casually and continued walking forward.

His midnight robes fluttered softly in the wind, the thin amethyst embroideries reflecting faint light beneath the moon. His shoulder-length black hair swayed calmly behind him while those deep purple eyes remained indifferent, almost detached from the mortal world itself.

Harry hurried after him.

Only now did he finally react fully to what had happened earlier.

Although he still didn’t completely understand Leon’s reasoning, he understood one important thing.

"An expert is indeed an expert," Harry muttered with admiration. "The way he thinks is completely different from ordinary people like us."

The more he thought about it, the more excited he became.

His blood was still boiling from the confrontation earlier.

A Sage Realm expert suppressing two empires alone...

How domineering was that?

Harry clenched his fists excitedly.

"When we get back, we must tell Sister Rias what happened today. If Sister Rias knew that Senior went against two dynasties for her, she would definitely be extremely touched."

As he spoke, he even started imagining the scene in his head.

Rias crying emotionally.

Leon standing calmly with his hands behind his back.

The entire Drake Empire trembling.

Harry suddenly felt goosebumps from excitement.

"What happened just now was truly incredible..." he muttered to himself. "It’s a pity we couldn’t fight. What a pity..."

Leon heard everything clearly.

The corner of his mouth twitched faintly.

This idiot...

Was fighting really the only thing in his head?

The two continued deeper into the Mystery Woodland.

Night slowly fell.

Dark clouds drifted across the moon, swallowing the last traces of silver light.

Soon, the Mystery Woodland fell completely into darkness.

The air here was cold.

Not ordinary cold.

It was the kind of chill that seeped silently into bones.

Dense fog spread between the ancient trees like drifting ghosts. Visibility became lower and lower with every step forward. Even the sound of insects had disappeared completely.

Too quiet.

The silence itself felt unnatural.

Harry subconsciously moved closer to Leon.

Even someone like him could feel that something about this place was wrong.

The wind passed gently through the forest, causing the branches overhead to sway softly.

Rustle...

Rustle...

The sound echoed through the darkness like whispers.

Leon’s expression gradually became serious.

His spiritual senses spread outward silently.

The deeper they entered, the stranger the atmosphere became.

It felt as though countless unseen eyes were watching them from within the fog.

Meanwhile—

Far away in the Southern Ridge Region, beside a quiet lake hidden beneath the mountains, a group of cultivators surrounded a bonfire.

The orange flames crackled softly in the darkness.

Sparks drifted upward into the night sky before disappearing among the stars.

The nearby lake reflected the firelight like flowing gold, yet the surrounding forest remained pitch-black, eerily silent.

Among the group sat Fairy Fiona.

She sat quietly beside the fire with graceful posture, one slender leg folded gently beneath the other.

The faint firelight illuminated her breathtaking beauty.

Her long azure hair flowed down her back like a waterfall beneath moonlight, strands of blue silk swaying softly whenever the cold wind brushed past. A few loose strands framed her delicate face, giving her an almost dreamlike elegance.

Her teal eyes shimmered beautifully beneath the firelight, deep and clear like crystal lakes hidden beneath ancient glaciers.

She wore a dark blue robe tailored perfectly to her slender figure, tied at the waist with a white sash embroidered with silver flowing-water patterns. The robe hugged the curves of her body naturally before flowing downward in elegant layers.

The slit along her robe revealed her long smooth legs whenever the wind shifted the fabric.

Her thighs were fair and soft beneath the firelight, while the curve of her hips and ass beneath the robe created an alluring silhouette without appearing vulgar.

Her chest rose gently with each breath, full and proud beneath the fitted upper robes, giving her an aura both mature and breathtakingly feminine.

Yet despite her beauty—

Her expression remained uneasy.

The flickering firelight reflected inside her eyes as she stared silently toward the dark forest ahead.

The surrounding atmosphere made her uncomfortable.

Too quiet.

Far too quiet.

No beast cries.

No insects.

No movement.

Only silence.

An oppressive silence.

Even the air itself felt heavy.

Beside her sat Uncle Jadis.

His weathered face remained calm, though his sharp eyes were also observing the surroundings carefully.

The old man slowly added another piece of wood into the bonfire.

Crackle—

The flames rose slightly higher.

Fairy Fiona hugged her knees lightly as the cold wind brushed against her exposed legs.

A strange uneasiness grew stronger inside her heart.

She couldn’t explain why.

But ever since entering this region...

She had felt as though something terrifying was hidden within the darkness.

The faint light of the fire illuminated Fairy Fiona’s beautiful face as she sat quietly in front of the bonfire. Her big bright eyes blinked slightly as she looked at the forest in the darkness. She felt uneasy. She had a bad feeling and felt that the silence in front of her was too strange. "Uncle Han, don’t you think this place is a little strange?