A week came and went in the blink of an eye.
The SS-grade Zone found by the Slayer Legion was under strict protection. While the clearing of Zones was important to the evolution of Earth, they also provided boundless prospects. The rewards for clearing such a Zone was beyond the imaginations of most.
In truth, one shouldn't take Leonel as the standard. To most, C-grade treasures were a luxury. They were already enough for many to fight over. The only reason the base weapon given by the Slayer Legion during the Gathering was of the C-grade was because the Promising Youths were also considered elites among elites.
Above that, B-grade treasures were practically national blessings while A-grade treasures and above were enough to start fueds over. From this, it could be said that Big Buddha had truly shown a lot of restraint when Leonel's abode treasure was exposed.
Knowing all of this, one could imagine the kind of uproar an SS-grade treasure could cause. The fact that this was a Sub-Dimensional Zone with a 12 entry limit meant that at a minimum, 12 treasures were available for the taking. Even to the Slayer Legion, this was a great level of wealth.
The location was yet another island. The Zone itself stood quite beautiful, radiating dark blue lights as it swirled silently amidst a large clearing. It could easily be told that this clearing hadn't been here in the past. In all likelihood, when the Zone appeared, it had ripped out several trees in the surroundings. But now, it had a calmness that said it wouldn't harm even a fly — though, no one would be naive enough to believe such a thing.
The Slayer Legion had long since erected a network of Force Disruption Towers in the vicinity. Like this, the appearance of this Zone didn't cause another beast horde and allowed the island to remain peaceful.
At that moment, the entry candidates for the Slayer Legion were undergoing final check ups. Leonel could only sigh as his treasures were taken inventory of one after another. It really felt like he had never left The Empire. He wouldn't be surprised if the Slayer Legion tried to 'buy' his rewards after he exited as well.
'Whatever, it doesn't matter. It was they who found the Zone so I guess it's fine if they take some benefits. All I want is the teleportation ticket to Terrain. If they dare to take this away, I wouldn't mind falling out with the Slayer Legion.'
Though Leonel would feel a bit bad for Old Hutch, he hadn't known the old man for long, nor had the old man ever really done anything for him. In fact, it was the old man who owed him for kidnapping him all those weeks ago.
It wasn't his fault if the Slayer Legion thought of him as one of their own. He had said multiple times that he had no intentions of joining. If they really tried to think that they could just order him around as they pleased, they would be in for a rude awakening.
"Alright, I'm sure you all know about the rules. The Slayer Legion has a list of treasure types it's especially in need of. As long as you can claim one of these treasures for the Legion, you will be awarded the aforementioned merit points.
"Violet Rain and Big Buddha will be the leaders of this mission. Their commands are undeniable. Should they disagree, the decision will be left to a majority vote.
"Should anything happen to the both of them, commanding rights will fall to Badger, Mayfly, Mountain and Sea Eel. The same rules apply to them as well."
Leonel sent a casual glance toward Mountain and Sea Eel. It seemed that their standing within the Slayer Legion didn't lose out to Badger and Mayfly at all, it was just that they were from the Eastern Lookout instead and as such, were under the jurisdiction of Supreme Monet rather than Supreme Hutch.
If the four of them weren't so young, it was likely that they would have already been promoted to the Star General ranks. But, instead, they held a special title reserved for the most talented youths of the Slayer Legion. They were part of what was called the Reserve Generals.
According to the old man, as long as they turned 21, they would immediately be promoted to One Star General, a rank a single step above the Commander rank.
Leonel shook his head. He wasn't interested in such a thing.
The Slayer Legion had disappointed him too many times already. It seemed that they made even more mistakes than he did at every turn. So, even though he found out that their true talents were hidden away from public view, he hadn't really changed his opinion of them.
As things stood now, he didn't have a fond impression of either The Empire or the Slayer Legion. He wasn't sure what to do with these emotions for now, and he was even more uncertain of his future on Earth as a result of these emotions, but he simply chose to ignore them for now.
He only had two goals in mind: Find Aina and destroy the Royal Blue Fort. He was a simple man who wanted simple things.
If others knew he was describing such things as simple… who knew how they would react?
Just as Leonel was lost in his thoughts, he sensed a change in the atmosphere. When he looked over, he found that the change was due to the appearance of a person he had never seen before.
She was a middle-aged woman who carried a mature valiant aura that outshone Mayfly by several levels. It was clear that she had tempered her disposition over many years, giving her an innate advantage over a young woman of not even 18 years old like Mayfly.
She wore a silver chestplate with etchings of a spiraling phoenix on it. Her long black her swayed to her waste, waving in the wind and along with her every step.
Despite her clearly being in her 40's, she still had an intoxicating beauty. Though, it was difficult to tell whether or not their attraction to her was due to her demeanor or her actual looks. Even Leonel, who usually showed no reaction to women other than Aina, couldn't help but be moved. This woman was truly something…
While Leonel was distracted, he didn't notice Big Buddha's complicated gaze sweep over him. In the end, the large Commander shook his head an sighed. Compared to his own discomfort, his loyalty toward the Slayer Legion was several levels more important.
Leonel didn't know who this woman was, but how could he not? This was none other than Supreme Monet.
Big Buddha had long since passed down all the information he gained from Pisces on to her and left the final decision to his Supreme. As a Commander, he normally wouldn't even be allowed to meet such a high ranking officer, but this time, he had had no choice but to do everything he could to see her, and he eventually succeeded.
But, for some reason, she hadn't made any movements in the last week, so he thought that she had decided not to make a move against the young man. This had made Big Buddha sigh a breath of relief, at least now, he wouldn't have to fight with his own conscience.
Unfortunately… It seemed that rather than not acting, his Supreme had actually been waiting for an opportune moment.
"Who is Leonel Morales?"
Supreme Monet's voice was just as valiant as her appearance, making one inadvertently want to follow her every command.
Leonel frowned, wondering why this woman was looking for him. Even more oddly, why was she saying his name like this? In the end, he chose not to mind it. After all, he had already long since exposed himself. So, who cared if she used his name?
"That would be me." Leonel stepped forward.
Supreme Monet looked Leonel up and down before nodding.
"The treasure you call a dictionary, are you willing to hand it over to the Slayer Legion or not?"
Leonel's eyes narrowed. Why did it seem like she wasn't asking a question at all?