What a tiring journey, what a grueling quest, but it was finally over. The troubles with the Moonlight Fae had been resolved, everyone had returned to their own places, and peace had been restored.
Leon spent the next two days catching up on things in the real world. He worked on his university assignnts, resud his training after skipping a few days, and rembered that it wasn't really a vacation he'd been on, but rather a trip to visit Maylock's wife, which had kept him away for a while.
The unexpected "break" had stretched to five days, since Leon had been too caught up in the Moonlight Fae quest to focus on anything else until it was truly finished.
He stepped out of the martial arts training center, where Freya was waiting for him in her car. It was the end of December, and the snow was piling up thickly on the streets.
As he climbed into the car, she was already behind the wheel. "Oh, looks like I got VIP treatnt today," he said, glancing at her with a grin.
"Nope, you'll need to pay double for this ride."
"Oh, right, I forgot how I begged you to co pick up."
"Yeah, don't forget how much you owe ," she replied with a smirk. "Rember all I've done for you, okay?"
"Yes, ma'am."
The car moved smoothly as they settled into an easy conversation.
"Cedric and the others are in Slumdon now," Freya said.
"Do they like it there? It's probably the first ti they've seen so many people outside of the Fae."
"Yeah, Cedric's adapting quickly. He's always been good with people," she replied with a smile.
"I think Cedric's the right choice to lead the faeries now that they're without a tribe leader."
"I agree," Freya nodded. "And Cedric has real combat prowess. He even ntioned wanting to join the Knights."
Leon sighed. "Who knows how many years he spent by Cecilia's side, his only family."
Freya nodded thoughtfully. "He seems to be pretty good at hiding his feelings."
After a few minutes, Leon spoke up. "What about Maylock, Maylon?"
"He hasn't logged in since the battle at Deadbay," Freya replied quietly.
Leon nodded slowly. "This must be a very difficult ti for him."
He wondered if they should start visiting him regularly, to show their support.
The car pulled up in front of the lobby, and Leon opened the door.
"Want to co up for a bit?"
"No, tired."
Leon grinned. "Alright. Bye," he said, closing the door.
As Freya drove off, Leon felt his phone vibrating in his pocket. He glanced at the screen. "Olivia?"
It had been a long ti since he'd last heard from her. The last ti they'd been together was during the battle against the Nad Demon Duke Gremory in Hell.
Afterward, Laura had ntioned that Olivia was still there, lingering in Hell, though she hadn't explained why. Laura herself seed to have her own reasons for staying, though what
exactly she was doing there remained a mystery as well.
Had Laura really still left the Copy of Charlyn in Hell?
The phone rang, it was Olivia calling.
Leon picked up the phone. "Hi, Olive..."
"Oh... a famous person actually answered my call. I'm so happy," she replied, giggling.
"Hi, long ti no see. How are you?"
"Oh, so you still rember ? And you even got my na right," she teased.
"Yes, I've got you saved as Olivia - Marlene in my contacts, so don't worry, that's enough to jog my mory."
"Oh, right. What's your na again? I only rember everyone calling you Mr. Playboy!" she shot back playfully.
They went on, trading playful remarks back and forth.
"I'm visiting your city in a few days for the New Year's break."
"There's nothing here worth seeing. Go sowhere more interesting."
"You're there, so that's all the entertainnt I need."
After a few more minutes, they wrapped up the call, just as Leon was walking through the hotel lobby.
And there, he saw soone waiting. A woman with wavy blonde hair, and when she noticed him, she smiled and stood up.
Leon walked over to her. "Laura? What are you doing here?"
"Hi... sorry... umh, I sent you ssages, but you didn't reply, and... I figured you were at training, so I thought I'd wait here until you got back."
"Ah, right..." Leon replied with a grin. "Sorry, I just finished up and got here."
Laura lifted a box in her hands. "I was trying out so new recipes and thought maybe you'd
want to taste-test. And... I made extra, so maybe Lily can try so too."
Leon chuckled. "You ca all the way here just to bring food? But hey, I appreciate it, and sorry, I didn't see your ssage sooner."
Laura smiled and nodded as Leon took the box from her hands.
They stood in silence for a mont.
"I should get going," Laura said with a small grin.
"Are you driving? Want to give you a ride?"
"No, I'm good. I already ordered a taxi. Bye."
Laura waved with a warm smile as she walked away, and Leon watched her go, sighing softly. He pulled out his phone again and noticed a string of unread ssages blinking on the screen. Leon headed toward the elevator, thinking how it was Saturday night. Maybe he'd brought Lily to hang out at the rooftop café, unwind, and catch up a bit.
When he opened the door to his hotel room, he was greeted by a lively voice.
"Leon!"
To his surprise, soone else was inside, a girl with wavy brown hair, around Lily's age.
Hazel.
Hazel started to run toward him, arms open as if to hug him, but Lily grabbed her arm, pulling
her back.
"Leon, I missed you..." she said with a giggle.
"Hi, Hazel." Leon tapped her forehead gently before setting down his bag and Laura's food
box, then took a seat in the corner chair.
"Didn't know you'd be visiting."
"See? Your sister is so heartless," Hazel complained dramatically. "She kept trying to kick out, even though I'm only here because I was lonely."
"You look more like you're here to flirt with Leon than because you're lonely," Lily shot back
dryly.
Leon shared the food Laura had brought with them, and there was surprisingly quite a bit to
go around.
"Oh, this is really good..." Hazel said, taking a bite and giggling.
"Yep, but you've got a lot of work to do if you want to compete with all the other girls trying
to win Leon over," Lily teased.
"Oh, no worries. I've already bound him with the Bond of Desire," Hazel replied, leaning comfortably against Leon. "After he's experienced all those level boosts, he'll keep coming back for more, won't you, Leon?"
Leon chuckled. "Can't deny it... that Lust Blessing of yours is pretty amazing, Hazel. But it does an you're kind of tied to others too, doesn't it?"
"More like I get others to follow my wishes," she replied with a smile, giving him a playful
wink.
They continued the evening with a board ga, a strategic one that took quite a bit of ntal
effort to play.
"You sure know how to wear out, Lily," Leon sighed, having lost three tis in a row.
"Looks like challenging your brother with a ga like this is the best way to beat him, huh,
Lily?" Hazel chid in, smirking.
"Yeah, he's better with his muscles than his brain," Lily teased.
"That's a harsh thing to say about your dear brother, isn't it, little sister?"
"You lost again, Leon!" Hazel announced, giggling.
Leon sighed, accepting his fate as the punching bag for the night. Yet despite the relentless
defeats, he realized he was genuinely enjoying himself. Monts like this, just laughing and having fun together, turned out to be exactly what he hadn't realized he needed.
***
(Author's Note:)
Finally, a quiet night for Leon... or at least as quiet as things get with Hazel and Lily around to roast him! Gotta love their sibling energy.
But with Olivia showing up soon, it feels like this peaceful mont is about to go poof. What do you think will Olivia bring more trouble, or could it be... romance?
Let know what you're hoping for! And hey, if this chapter gave you a laugh or two, hit that Golden Ticket and keep the good vibes going!
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