“Looking for me?”
Neo heard a familiar voice.
He turned around and saw Leonora.
She had grown, emotionally and physically, after spending months in Underworld.
Physically, the biggest change were the two thick horns on her forehead.
“Oh…” Her eyes widened, and she let out a smile. “Neo?”
“Yeah, it’s me.”
Leonora passed a bag to the spider-shaped monster next to her.
“Can you get these materials checked on the counter while I talk to him?” Leonora spoke to the spider monster, Selene, who was her teammate.
“O-okay,” Selene answered, her voice trembling slightly.
Leonora beckoned Neo to come out of the building to talk and went out first.
Neo followed behind her.
As he passed Selene, he spoke up, “It’s nice to see you.”
“S-same.”
Selene struggled to speak.
Neo’s aura was too powerful.
The others in the hall were the same, unable to handle Neo’s presence.
Even though he kept his presence at a minimum at all times, he was still a Heavenbreaker.
It was normal for low-ranked beings to feel afraid of him.
The outside air was cooler.
Neo found Leonora at the stall next to the Reaper building.
“Selene is your teammate now?” he asked as he approached her.
“Yes, we became teammates when I found her along with Gwen.”
“Gwen? How did you find her?”
Before Neo entered the Shadow Trail, he had met Selene in Underworld.
Together, they had defeated a powerful monster who managed to turn Gwen di Langley and Kendrick di Valemont into his puppets.
“I was searching for Gwen and Kendrick, and…”
Neo nodded while listening to her explanation.
Gwen di Langley, Leonora von Villers, Kendrick di Valemont, Christian von Hasburg.
These four died during the S-rank Shadow Window mission.
Among them, Christian entered the cycle of reincarnation after being judged by the Jury of End.
Kendrick entered the cycle of reincarnation after Neo used Judgment on him.
Gwen was in Leonora’s Soul Hunter team.
Leonora had become a successful Soul Hunter, thanks to her sky-high talent.
At the pace she was progressing, she could soon become a disciple of a Grim Reaper.
In fact, she had completed the requirements to become a disciple already.
Right now, she was waiting for a Grim Reaper to approach her and make her their student.
“I thought you were dead too,” Leonora spoke.
“Why?” Neo asked.
The two strolled the streets while chatting.
“Gwen said she saw you in Underworld. I asked Selene, and she said the same,” Leonora paused before she continued. “But I never found your name on bulletin boards.”
Names and pictures of souls who arrived in Underworld were posted on bulletin boards.
Soul Hunters would choose one of the souls for their mission and find them before the souls got turned into monsters due to Underworld’s corruption.
“I never found out why your name was missing, and the Grim Reapers refused to answer,” Leonora said.
She scratched her cheek with a smile and added,
“I was worried something might have happened to you. It’s good you are safe.”
Neo found it surprising that Leonora was taking the initiative to locate her academy friends and protect them in Underworld.
She must’ve matured after her death.
Neo didn’t know how to feel about it.
Should he be happy she matured, or feel conflicted because that maturity came through suffering?
Leonora’s expression was calm.
But her eyes held a depth of emotion that hadn’t been there before.
Neo couldn’t help but notice how much she had changed.
“I am the son of Hades, and I can travel freely between Underworld and the World of the Living,” Neo explained. “My name was not on the bulletin boards since I never died.”
“So that’s why the Grim Reapers were hiding information about you.”
Leonora smiled bitterly.
She didn’t say how she had been snooping around the residents of Grim Reapers and other officials.
She had been worried they were using Neo’s soul for something nefarious, and it was the reason why they were hiding information about him.
“You don’t look surprised by my bloodline,” Neo said.
“I am surprised. It’s just that I’m more relieved that you are safe.”
The two continued to talk on the stroll.
It seemed like Leonora had settled in the Underworld perfectly.
When some time passed, Neo decided to be direct.
“Do you want to return to the World of the Living?”
“No.”
For the first time today, he saw Leonora’s smile disappear.
Her face scrunched up.
“I don’t want to go back there. Too much work in that world.”
“….”
Neo didn’t know whether to laugh or cry.
Just when he was thinking she had matured, she said she didn’t want to return as they would make her work in the World of the Living. Discover hidden stories at My Virtual Library Empire
“Isn’t being a Soul Hunter work too?” he asked.
“It is. But here, I can take a mission, spend seven days resting, and use one day to finish my task, and no one complains.”
Leonora’s tone was light, but her eyes held a glimmer of mischief.
Neo couldn’t help but chuckle at her response, realizing that while she had grown, some parts of her carefree nature remained unchanged.
“You sure you don’t want to be resurrected?” he asked again.
“Yes, I’m sure.
“Besides, it will become a problem for you if you broke the rules of Underworld and tried to revive me,” Leonora answered.
Even though she said that, Neo could tell the main reason was not her concern for him, but her reluctance to work.
She had always hated the unnecessary attention she got as the child of the Poseidon Clan’s clan leader.
Suddenly, Leonora frowned.
Neo didn’t use Intent to read her thoughts, but he could guess what she was thinking.
Why did her father, who used to dote on her, not try to rescue her?
Poseidon Clan had the highest number of time mages.
They could’ve saved Leonora from dying.
Of course, Leonora was happy she wasn’t saved, but it didn’t change the fact that something was wrong.
“What about Gwen?” Neo asked.
“I doubt she wants to be resurrected either.”
“Why?”
“She says she wants to find you and kill you for killing Kendrick. Until then, she be Grim Reaper or monster or anything that lets her remain in Underworld.”
“….”