Chapter 86: Flora’s Observation
“Hmm? What’s big?” the young woman asked, confused by Leona’s sudden exclamation. Her bosom was indeed well-developed, even larger than Flora’s, much to Leona’s envy.
“Ah? Ah! I meant, this wagon is quite spacious, I like it,” Leona quickly averted her gaze, chuckling awkwardly. “By the way, it’s quite dangerous out here. Those two dwarves we met earlier were robbed clean by bandits and were heading home. We wouldn’t know what to do without you, haha…”
“We’re just ordinary merchants, traveling between the Western and Eastern Empires, trading potions for a bit of profit. We hired these mercenaries from the guild,” the young woman said with a smile, extending a hand to shake Leona and Flora’s hands. “My name is Veronica. The man outside is my father, Santos. It’s a pleasure to meet you.”
“It’s a pleasure to meet you too. I’m Leona,” Leona replied.
“I’m Flora. Thank you, Miss Veronica, for allowing us to travel with you,” Flora said politely, seemingly having shifted her gaze to a more appropriate location.
“We’re headed in the same direction. I couldn’t just leave two girls to face those dangerous bandits. By the way, is this your brother? He’s handsome, but he seems a bit sickly,” Veronica said, looking at Abyss curiously. He did look like a patient, pale and thin. If not for his steady breathing and the occasional movement of his eyes beneath his eyelids, one might mistake him for a corpse.
“Yes, yes, our brother. He suffered a head injury when he was young, so he loves to sleep. And when he wakes up, he does all sorts of crazy things,” Leona said with a laugh, pinching Abyss’s cheek. Her grip was strong, stretching his soft cheek. “Don’t let his current calmness fool you. When he wakes up, he’ll start rambling about intestines and stomachs. It’s quite annoying.”
“You’re taking him to the Eastern Empire for treatment?” Veronica asked, observing Abyss’s face closely. “To see an alchemist?”
“Yes, yes. The Church couldn’t cure him,” Leona said, waving her hand dismissively, pretending to be a concerned older sister. “We have no choice but to go to the Eastern Empire and find a skilled alchemist to heal him.”
“The alchemists in the Eastern Empire are indeed very skilled. We’re also headed there to acquire some high-quality potions for trade,” Veronica said with a smile. “However, I apologize, but I won’t be able to accompany you once we enter the Eastern Empire. Our procurement plan is quite complex, and it wouldn’t be convenient to bring you along. But during our journey together, please feel free to eat and stay with us. We only have some dry rations, but we’ll occasionally buy fresh meat from nearby farms.”
“Nearby farms… That’s the former territory of the Ossi Kingdom, right?” Leona said, thinking. “I heard those Ossi people don’t like Westerners very much. Will they really sell us food?”
“Don’t worry about that, Miss Leona. We’re just ordinary merchants. We’ll pay fairly for any food we buy. The Ossi people won’t harm us,” Veronica said. “Although Westerners often think of the Ossi people as barbaric and uncultured, they’re not unreasonable savages. They’re just straightforward. If you treat them with respect, they’ll make you feel welcome…”
The middle-aged man outside coughed, and Veronica stopped abruptly. “Oh my, look at me, rambling again.”
The Ossi people did have a less than stellar reputation among Westerners. They were known for their rough manners, low literacy rates, and a long-standing dueling culture. Although the Western Empire also valued martial prowess and had its own dueling traditions, they were quite different. Western duels required both parties to wear their finest clothes, use their best or rented swords, and fight under the supervision of witnesses. Ossi duels, on the other hand, involved two men stripping to the waist, fighting with fists, teeth, or whatever sticks they could find. And while the Western Empire valued martial prowess, it didn’t neglect education. Their literacy rate was eighty-five percent, three percent higher than the Eastern Empire, which ranked second.
With both cultures having dueling traditions, the difference in civility was stark. This, combined with the high illiteracy rate in the Ossi Kingdom, led many Westerners to look down upon them.
Leona, however, didn’t care. She stood at the pinnacle of the continent’s fighting force, with few rivals. She wouldn’t bother looking down on those who were weaker than her.
“Veronica, can you come out for a moment?”
The middle-aged man called for Veronica again. It seemed he needed to discuss something with her privately. Veronica smiled apologetically at Leona and Flora, and after the coachman stopped the wagon, she stepped out.
As soon as Veronica left, Leona pushed Abyss’s head down, leaned on his back, and looked at Flora with a mischievous glint in her eyes. “Flora, what do you think? Did Miss Veronica’s chest give you a sense of inadequacy for the first time? Imagine if that lecherous Abyss woke up and saw those magnificent breasts, wouldn’t he fall head over heels in love?”
“Eh? Her chest?” Flora blushed. “No… I wasn’t thinking about that. It’s not like she can control the size of her breasts…”
“Oh my, are you blushing? Come on, let me see how long it’ll take for yours to catch up,” Leona said, reaching for Flora’s chest with a mischievous grin.
“Stop it… Stop it…” Flora said, trying to fend off Leona’s hand. “I wasn’t staring at her chest! I was looking at the pendant around her neck!”
Leona, having enjoyed a good squeeze of Flora’s soft and bouncy breasts, retracted her hand and asked curiously, “Hmm? Her pendant? What about it? Do you like it? Do you want me to ask for it? Although she might not agree.”
Flora shook her head. “No, it’s not that I like it. I just noticed it looks very similar to a pendant I used to wear… And Abyss didn’t take that pendant when he brought me out of my grave…”
“Hmm? Are you saying Veronica might be a grave robber?” Leona asked, her eyes widening. “Who in their right mind would rob a Church Saint’s tomb?”
“I don’t know… I only gained consciousness after Abyss brought me out of the grave. I don’t know what happened to my pendant. I don’t even know if I was buried with it,” Flora said, placing a hand on her chest, her voice laced with sadness. “It’s not important, just an ornament given to me by the Church. I just hope the grave robbers… if there were any… didn’t touch my body… I don’t want anyone but Abyss to touch my body…”
Leave a Reply to Pe551 Cancel reply