451 Aria's Pleasant Arrival

Amidst the burning flames and scattered carcasses on the ground, Leon continued to cut down every Wingrat before him, quickly shaving away their numbers.

Supreme Elder Haldir did not remain idle on the Great Wall and descended on a long vine, joining Leon in cleaning up the remnant vermin on the field. 

At the same time, the elven supreme elder recollected his thorny vines blocking the rathole, which had become blackened by the fire.

However, after it was infused with Wood Energy, the thorny vines regained their green luster and liveliness once more.

Sometime later, Leon finished cutting down the last Wingrat. 

Afterward, he waved his hand, summoning a large wave of scorching hot flames to clean up the battlefield littered carcasses and blood. 

Everything was reduced to black ashes except for a few selected carcasses, including the Grizzly Bear's giant carcass for study purposes.

But before Leon could inspect the preserved carcasses, a thin figure fell from the sky, casting a shadow over the ground. 

Leon turned his head and glanced up to look.

Aria had leaped off her ice-lightning sword upon arriving and was seen freefalling towards him, causing Leon to be immediately startled. 

Leon quickly exerted some strength in the sole of his feet and lightly leaped into the air to catch Aria in his arms.

They spun a few times in midair as Leon dispelled the force of Aria's fall before they descended slowly and landed safely back on the ground.

Shortly after, Leon immediately nudged Aria on the heading with a gentle chiding tone, "What were you thinking, jumping down like that? Didn't you know it was dangerous?"

"I knew you would catch me." Aria softly giggled, laughing it off lightly, but it also showed her unreserved trust in Leon. 

After wrapping her arms around Leon and enjoying his warmth for a moment, they separated.

"Don't be silly. I might not catch you next time." Leon smiled, giving her a light bump on the head before asking, "Why did you come here?"

"I wanted to follow you. Wherever you go, I want to be by your side. Is that not allowed?" Aria glanced up at Leon with watery eyes.

After being taken aback for a moment, Leon smiled warmly, "Of course, it's allowed! I'm sorry for leaving you behind."

"I got some things for you," Aria said.

Her Interspatial Ring shortly flickered, and a bunch of contents was emptied onto the ground, including Leon's Tier 4 Bone Spear.

Leon picked up the bone spear and flashed Aria a look of surprise.

"Where did you get these things?"

"I picked them up along the way after disposing of the person that hurt father-in-law, the king," Aria answered.

"Well done, Aria!"

Leon was pleasantly surprised.

He started to feel bad, leaving so suddenly upon returning—bringing back another woman, no less. 

At the same time, a small blush appeared on Aria's cheeks.

"Ah, right. Congratulations on reaching Transcendence." Leon suddenly said after storing the items on the ground, intending to inspect them later.

He was quite surprised to find out Aria reached the Western Frontier so quickly. It seemed that the Transcendent Realm had granted her an impressive boost in movement speed.

"Mm."

"I don't mean to interrupt your moments, but what plans do you have now, young prince?" Supreme Elder Haldir asked, feeling slightly awkward at the side.

Seeing that the elven supreme elder appeared to be troubled by something, Leon asked, "What's the matter, Marquis Haldir?"

"If my service is no longer need here, I would like to resume my journey back to Elvengarde. I am rather worried about my people, considering the situation that transpired here." Supreme Elder Haldir said.

Leon was surprised.

He glanced at the remaining carcasses and contemplated for a moment before he said, "The General Marquis should be able to settle the matters here. On that note, you will not mind if I accompany you, right? Marquis Haldir?"

"Not at all! In fact, I will be overjoyed to have your company, young prince." Supreme Elder Haldir said.

Leon nodded and asked, "Do we have an airship?"

"Yes, young prince. His Majesty and the Duke was kind enough to lend us one on our travels. Right now, it should be docked somewhere in the north…"

Supreme Elder Haldir slowly stopped talking, suddenly.

A figure was seen descending towards them from the Great Wall.

The person was immediately stunned after Leon turned to face the person. However, the person quickly recovered and saluted respectfully to Leon, "Greetings, Your Highness!"

"Greetings to you too, General Marquis." Leon nodded in return before adding, "I trust that I can leave things here to you?"

"Are you leaving, Your Highness?" General Marquis Hendrick quickly asked.

"We will be taking the airship and head for Elvengarde," Leon admitted while casually sending out his divine sense.

He swept the area underneath the surface and detected the large underground passageway used by the Wingrats. 

Large numbers of charcoal-black carcasses could be seen buried underneath, densely packed together like coal towards the rathole. 

Nevertheless, Leon could not see the subterranean world's depths with the full range of his divine sense.

Leon slightly furrowed his brows. 

The subterranean world simply exists everywhere; it was concerning. Was it formed by something? Or did it already exist during the previous era?

Looking at the large ring of debris floating in the orbit of planet Gaia in the void, a large amount of Gaia's resources was definitely used to construct those remnant infrastructures.

"Is something wrong, Your Highness?" Asked General Marquis Hendrick, noticing Leon's subtle expression.

"It's nothing." Leon shook his head and said, "I trust you will make the right decisions, general. However, I do suggest you seal up the rathole quickly and abandon any thoughts of exploring it."

"Of course, Your Highness." General Marquis Hendrick patted his chest and said, "I always put the safety of the kingdom before anything else." 

"That's good to hear."

Shortly after, the airship was called over.

After Supreme Elder Haldir boarded the airship, Leon stabbed the two rat carcasses on the ground with his black spear and carried them.

Aria shortly tugged on his cloak, causing him to turn around and glanced at her questioningly with a smile, "What's the matter? You don't want to come with me anymore?"

When Aria heard Leon, she quickly shook her head and stuck close to him.

Leon held her hand firmly before they boarded the airship together.