"Chief! You... huh?"
Without knowing what happened after he left, when Leon caught up with the startled woman and explained the situation to her, he returned to the chief's office only to find it empty, with nothing left but disorganized docunts on the desk and a large pile of empty bottles by the sofa.
Leaving so soon? Did your replacent arrive and you left already?
Utilizing the soul vision of the Black Goat, Leon checked and confird that the red-haired chief had indeed departed, causing him to shake his head in resignation. He then went upstairs to check on the Ant Nest situation, just to be sure.
And as it turned out, the chief was quite reliable when not drunk.
She likely left the access permissions for the Virgo Palace as well, as a dense mass of Slaughter Blood Hair, slling of the sun, sealed off the fifth and sixth floors of the sub-division far more thoroughly than usual, by a factor of ten tis.
Judging from the aura emitted by the Slaughter Blood Hair, her successor could probably wait a month before coming. The power left by the chief would last until then, and even if ten to eight True Gods ca down, it would take them at least a week or two to break through.
Alright then...
Seeing that the chief had made adequate preparations, it didn't seem like a rushed decision, so Leon said nothing more.
Given the chief's level, and with the Slaughter King Association lying low and the Realm of the Dead undergoing shifts, the present world was as safe as a back garden to her. As long as she didn't stupidly charge into the lair of the Ten Offsprings of the public court, there was no danger, and he needn't worry about her.
Hmm... Speaking of worrying, I've been away for several months, and Anna must have been quite stressed handling two little devils on her own. It's ti to go ho and check on them.
After tidying up the empty bottles in the chief's office and casually taking them to the garbage collection point at the police departnt, Leon found a corner where nobody was looking and stepped into a window.
Although there were public carriages to go ho from the bureau, this way was faster and saved on fare, so traveling through the mirror world was more pleasant.
However, after Leon made several transits through the mirror world and erged from a small mirror at a stall around the corner of Bridge Street, he was startled by what he saw.
Sohow, Bridge Street, which had always been quiet due to its location in the old city district of the capital, suddenly beca lively. Though it wasn't bustling with people, its appearance was markedly different from before.
The stone street, once marked by moss on both sides, seed to have undergone a thorough cleaning and scrubbing. The slippery moss was scraped away, and even the uneven bricks worn smooth by pedestrians' years of treading were ticulously repaired.
This once-bumpy road that I always dreaded while taking a carriage has been transford, and the sowhat shabby facades of shops along the road have been mostly renovated, with the weathered signs replaced by sothing like glass lightboxes.
Moreover, the large open space originally occupied by a factory, occasionally emitting machine roars, had disappeared, replaced by a new Charl Departnt Store branch. The bustling sounds of sales promotions, laughter and chatter of pedestrians, and the clatter of passing carriage wheels and hooves filled the air.
If not for so shop fronts remaining unchanged, the happiness apartnt with freshly painted outer walls still standing, and occasional familiar faces seen on the street, Leon might have thought he had co to the wrong place.
...
Good heavens... such a drastic change? I was only away for a little over two months, and it feels like two or three years!
Perplexed, he erged from the small mirror. After nodding apologetically to the stall owner sitting dumbstruck on a small chair, Leon carried the gifts he brought for Anna and headed briskly towards the Happiness Apartnt.
"Snap."
As Leon walked to the entrance of the Happiness Apartnt, a familiar snapping sound ca from the little garden, as expected. A scar-riddled, muscular old man, with a lollipop in his mouth and a cool expression, stood up from behind the fence, gesturing with his garden scissors.
"Uncle John, you've grown even stronger."
Smiling, Leon nodded at the strong old man and handed over the bags he was carrying, warmly greeting:
"Thanks for looking after those two brats while I was away. I brought you a woodworking set and a pack of flower seeds that I asked a shop assistant to select. They said the buds are twice as big as other types. Please take them."
"Snap."
"I'll just leave them here then."
Being the 'disliked' bad guy of the Happiness Apartnt, Leon didn't expect any reply. Smiling, he hung the gift on the fence and walked towards the foyer on the first floor.
As Leon entered the foyer, a breeze carrying a raspy old voice wafted over, reluctantly brushing past his ear.
"Thank you."
"?"
Surprised, Leon turned to look, finding the strong old man in the garden had disappeared, and the bag hung on the fence had vanished too. If not for the fact that he was indeed holding fewer gifts, it would seem as if nothing had transpired.
"That old fogey!"
Accompanied by a familiar complaining voice, an elderly curly-haired lady with white hair erged from the duty room, setting aside her seemingly endless knitting, and pulling Leon's arm with slightly misty eyes explained:
"He was thanking you... After the new Poverty Relief Institute was built and attached to the apartnt's side wall, he gradually regained his ability to speak. Though speaking in fragnts, he's more human than before."
"That's good news!"
Listening to the caretaker's explanation, Leon's eyebrows raised slightly, and with a touch of surprise, he laughed:
"Now I won't have to worry about being snipped when I co back late… Aunt Mary, here's a gift for you~"
"Alright, I accept."
Receiving the small bag from Leon, the caretaker didn't rush to see what it was but examined Leon's figure, patted his arm, and cheerfully but with a hint of regret remarked:
"You seem a bit sturdier and taller since your work trip... Hmm... I'll have to adjust the sweater I knitted for you."
"Then I won't be modest with you."
Smiling, Leon promised to accept the sweater and chatted a bit more with the caretaker. Just as he was about to head upstairs, she held him back and playfully hinted:
"You seem to have brought too few gifts!"
"Huh?"
"Your wife just went up with two accountants, supposedly to see your brother and sister, and to check the accounts."
"Huh???"
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