Leone felt very unhappy looking at Esdeath, who was sitting at the table with a matter-of-fact expression, waiting for dinner to be served.
After all, the other party's disdain when she saw the steel collar on her neck before was almost undisguised.
Although it had been a few days since she became a 'slave', she still hadn't gotten used to her current identity. If Lancer hadn't returned in time, she would have probably already started cursing.
Leone had been timid and submissive ever since she started following Lancer, but that couldn't change the fact that she had been living in the slums for so many years after her family passed away. In terms of foul language, Esdeath, who was only good at fighting, couldn't even compare. But it was also a good thing she didn't curse, otherwise...
But compared to Leone, who was constantly glaring at her, Esdeath's attention was focused on 'Tigre', who was walking out of the kitchen with Lancer, carrying a plate of food.
It was obvious that even she, the daughter of the most famous Dangerous Beast hunting tribe in the Empire, had never seen such a strange Dangerous Beast before. But unlike ordinary girls who would be more interested in Tigre's cute appearance and curious about its paw pads, Esdeath was more curious about the strength of this strange Dangerous Beast, because she could actually feel that this strange Dangerous Beast was giving off a strange aura. It was truly interesting.
Esdeath's unexpected early visit was a surprise to Lancer, but in reality, it didn't have much of an impact on him, except for their daily matches in the morning. But it was obvious that while Esdeath could cause Lancer some trouble at this time, she was still far from being able to defeat him.
"Bang~!!"
The wooden lance struck Esdeath's abdomen fiercely, and although she was not knocked down, the two furrows she dug into the ground with her feet and the bruises on her crossed arms proved that Lancer strike was definitely not holding back.
"Alright, it's time for me to go to the palace. You rest for a bit, and then have Leone help you with the medicine later."
Lancer gaze toward Esdeath was a bit complex. After all, he could clearly feel that Esdeath's strength was continuously increasing with each battle, and the speed of her progress even surpassed his training speed.
"Huff~ huff~ Let me rest for a bit first!"
Although she was extremely stubborn during their battles before and would get up even when she knew she would lose, after a few matches with Lancer, she was able to calmly face her defeat.
Of course, this didn't mean that she had become 'soft'. It was simply because she had acknowledged his 'strength'. But her 'acknowledgment' was not respect; it was to continuously improve herself until she could defeat the other party!
Looking at Lancer, who was walking toward the bathroom in a vest, Esdeath couldn't help but lick her lips. But at this moment, an angry voice came from her ear.
"Hmph~! You idiot can't win against 'Sir' at all!"
If it had been anyone else, Esdeath might have already swung the wooden sword in her right hand at them, but this time, she just showed a mocking smile.
"Hehe~ I told you, I'm not interested in men who are older than me. He's just my prey! But I'm so curious~ what does the blood of such a powerful man taste like?"
"Who... who cares about you! I'm just telling you not to do useless work! Hurry up and put your clothes on! I'm going to put medicine on you!!"
Leone rough actions made Esdeath frown, but she kept a smile on her face. There was no doubt that the strong-willed Esdeath would admit defeat in front of Lancer, who was stronger than her, but she would never show even a hint of weakness in front of the 'weak' Leone.
"Haha~! Great! You are indeed my most perfect creation!!"
The man with glasses looked at the naked body of the man on the operating table with an excited expression. He involuntarily caressed the other party's flesh, but at the same time as he was in a state of rapture, his face also showed a strong sense of loss.
'His body is exactly the same as that man's, but his combat power is so far behind. I'm so curious! I wonder why that man is like that? But what a pity~'
As the chief scientist of the Empire's research department, he had great authority. Logically speaking, besides the royal family, there was no corpse that he couldn't get his hands on, but this time, he probably wouldn't succeed, because without a doubt, the other party would probably be turned into charcoal.
But just as he was admiring his work with a face full of rapture...
"Bang bang~!"
A sudden knock on the door came, and his expression immediately turned very ugly.
"Who is it?"
This was Dr. Stylish's private laboratory, and the people who knew about this place were all his close subordinates, and they all knew his habits in the lab. Logically speaking, they shouldn't be disturbing him unless the matter was truly very important, but when he heard the voice outside the door, his expression became very ugly.
"Dr. Stylish, Mr. Honest sent me here to ask you about the matter we agreed on before..."
"Whoosh~!"
The laboratory door was yanked open, and Dr. Stylish, whose face was livid, didn't even look at the blond man who was squatting in front of him and instead looked behind the other party, where there were many people lying unconscious.
"The person you want is inside. Go get him yourself!"
"Thank you, sir."
And the blond man didn't waste any time. He walked straight inside, rolled up the unconscious man in a cloth, and then carried him out.
It wasn't until the other party had completely disappeared from his sight that he woke up his subordinates one by one.
He knew the other party's purpose. It was undoubtedly to show him a sign of power. The other party's actions could be said to be justifiable, but understanding it didn't mean that he was willing to accept it.
'One day, I will get you onto my operating table! At that time, I'd like to see if you can still be like this!'
Ever since he became obsessed with 'human modification', Dr. Stylish had used his personal authority to modify many people. Some were dead, some were alive, and their strengths varied. But he had never 'used' a Teigu user before.
But he also knew that this was just a thought. Although both sides were Teigu users, compared to his gloves, which were more for support than actual combat, the other party's 'demon sword' was a real combat weapon. If he were to start a fight with the other party, his chances of winning were slim, unless... unless he prepared in advance.
But after his anger, he looked at the distance with a complex expression.
As a researcher, the fact that he was able to get the right to use a Teigu undoubtedly proved his ability and status. Logically speaking, an ordinary person like him, who had no foundation before, should be filled with gratitude toward the other party. In reality, that was the case, but unfortunately, 'gratitude' lost to 'curiosity'.
Because his human experiments had been rejected several times and he had even been hinted at not to do similar experiments anymore, he had to do this if he wanted to continue his experiments in the Empire!
In the end, he closed the door of his laboratory again with a complex expression.
No matter what, the rest was up to that man's operations.