Chapter 1291: 49. Human Progress

"So peaceful."

In the morning light, the silhouette of the entire city appeared majestic and imposing.

Perhaps because it was still early, the greatest city on the continent had yet to display its usual noise and bustle. A faint mist rose from the Glein River flowing beneath the city walls, making the city seem ethereal and tranquil, as though it were part of a painting.

Everything around them was silent, yet for some inexplicable reason, Muen's heartbeat began to quicken.

"What's wrong?"

Hamreign tilted her head slightly, having also noticed Muen's unusual state.

"It's nothing."

Muen took a deep breath and gave her a reassuring smile. "Nothing at all."

"Really?"

"Would I lie to you? This is Belrand, the place I'm most familiar with. What could possibly happen here?"

That's right.

This was Belrand.

If nothing else, it could at least be considered Muen Campbell's home turf. If he encountered troublesome enemies elsewhere, he might still chicken out a little, but here, he was basically in a state where he could walk sideways without fear.

Otherwise... did they think House Campbell could no longer lift its blade, or that the Lion King's fists had gone soft?

Put it this way: the Salvation Society had once chased him until he fled with his hands over his head. If they had the guts, why didn't they come to Belrand and try that here?

In this place, even that old bastard Kaya Gaius, the Holy Lord of Salvation himself, would have to keep his damn head down.

"Huh, wait. Why do those last two sentences sound so familiar?"

Muen frowned. For some reason, the thoughts that had just passed through his mind gave him an intense sense of déjà vu.

Ah, whatever.

In any case, if Muen had to choose the safest place in the entire world for himself, he would pick Belrand without the slightest hesitation.

That's right, Belrand!

His beloved hometown!

Coming back here filled him only with the joy of a wanderer returning home!

There wasn't even the slightest bit of cowardice or fear!

With that thought, Muen immediately straightened his back, lifted his head proudly, and led Hamreign toward the city gate.

Click, click.

Suddenly.

Like a scene from some horror movie, a silver-white figure in a flowing dress flashed through Muen's mind.

"Hm?"

Muen jolted in fright and immediately widened his eyes, looking left and right.

Fortunately, that figure was nowhere to be seen, nor was anyone watching him. There were only a few soldiers stationed at the city gate, yawning as they prepared to inspect those entering the city.

It had purely been his imagination.

But even though it was only his imagination, the heartbeat that had just calmed down began accelerating uncontrollably again.

"Um..."

Muen suddenly turned around.

"Maybe we should disguise ourselves first?"

"Isn't this the place you're most familiar with?" Hamreign asked, somewhat puzzled.

Who returned to their own hometown only to hide their face and conceal their identity?

"Familiar... It's definitely familiar. But precisely because I'm so familiar with this place, I don't want to cause too much commotion here, right?"

Muen gave an awkward smile and explained, "Miss Dragon might not know this, but I have a tiny bit of fame in this city. I'm afraid that if I enter just like this, too many people might gather around to watch me. If it causes traffic jams, stampedes, or something like that, it wouldn't be good. So it's better to keep a low profile."

"Fame?"

Hamreign thought for a moment before realization dawned on her.

"Is it still because of what I did before? Sorry... It seems abducting you in public back then really was a reckless thing to do."

Muen's eyes widened in astonishment once again.

What had he just heard?

Miss Dragon...

Was apologizing to him?

She had clearly dismissed that sort of thing without a care before. Why had she suddenly changed her tune?

Could something incredible really have happened while he wasn't aware of it?

Otherwise, why would Miss Dragon...

"Is there a problem?" Hamreign's gaze turned cold.

"No, no, no."

There it was.

That was the Miss Dragon he knew.

Muen immediately felt comfortable all over again.

"Then let's enter the city."

The two returned to the carriage and quickly disguised themselves.

Muen slightly altered his clothes and facial appearance. There was no need to conceal himself too thoroughly; he only needed to make sure other people could not recognize him as Muen Campbell.

Hamreign's disguise was even simpler. Just as before, she merely cast a spell on herself that made her appear to outsiders as an ordinary young woman.

"This isn't bad either."

At this moment, Miss Dragon appeared average in height, average in looks, and average in presence. To outsiders, she was nothing more than an utterly ordinary person.

But in Muen's eyes, she was still that tall and breathtakingly beautiful dragon girl.

It gave him a strange sense of exclusivity, like possessing a treasure only he knew about.

"Then, please, my beautiful lady."

After a simple inspection, the carriage quickly passed through the city gate and entered the city.

Muen found a place with fairly pleasant scenery, stepped out of the carriage first, and then, like a gentleman, proactively extended his hand toward Hamreign inside.

There was a brief silence.

Then a fair, jade-like hand reached out and gently rested in Muen's palm.

That increasingly familiar sensation instantly reminded Muen of their intimate contact the night before.

What had once been nothing more than an innocent act of holding hands between companions, something he had long since grown accustomed to, inexplicably made his mouth feel dry.

It was as though that fragrance, that warmth, and that exquisite sensation of being enveloped had once again occupied every nerve in his body.

Both of them paused at the same time.

To conceal his fluster, Muen gave Hamreign a gentle smile.

But the instant their gazes met, they both looked away at precisely the same moment, as though by perfect mutual understanding.

Both were behaving slightly strangely.

Yet both acted exactly as they always had.

Forcing himself to maintain his elegance, Muen gently helped Miss Dragon down from the carriage.

She cooperated obediently. That small hand, capable of easily destroying all of Belrand, was so soft that it seemed boneless.

"This is..."

"An inn."

"An inn?"

Hamreign raised an eyebrow.

"We're not going to your home?"

She had been looking forward to seeing what her companion's home was like.

"My home... Of course I want to take Miss Dragon there, but right now I don't even know what kind of situation it's in. Let me go back and investigate first, then we'll talk about it."

Muen gave a bitter smile.

"It's clearly your own home. Why do you make it sound like a dragon's den or a tiger's lair?"

"...It's about the same."

Muen sighed.

Judging by the current situation, his home might not literally be a dragon's den or tiger's lair, but it was definitely under close watch.

His beloved father had once said that no matter what happened, he would always shelter Muen from the wind and rain.

But as circumstances changed, that statement had long since been swept into the trash.

The fact that his father had actually become an accomplice during that forced wedding last time was proof enough.

That's right.

At present, the Lion King's authority and fatherly love probably only applied when dealing with people who couldn't beat the ducal estate.

As for the handful of people in this city who could beat the ducal estate...

Sorry.

House Campbell was currently a humble and insignificant little family with no voice whatsoever.

"Understood."

Since her companion had said so, Hamreign did not ask any further questions.

Trust was also one of the virtues necessary between companions.

"Let's go. I deliberately found a pretty good inn. It overlooks the river, the scenery is beautiful, and there's a famous commercial street in this district not far away. It's especially suitable for your goal of properly seeing the human world, Miss Dragon."

"Mm."

And so Hamreign allowed Muen to hold her small hand as they walked into the inn.

"Welcome."

The young woman at the front desk immediately came over with a brilliant smile.

"Will the two of you be staying with us?"

"That's right, we... Hm?"

Muen was just about to continue when he suddenly felt the smooth little hand clasped in his palm pull free.

What was wrong?

Muen glanced back in confusion, but he could not see anything unusual on Miss Dragon's face.

"How long will the two of you be staying?"

"We'll stay... Let's book three days for now. Mm, one room is enough. Something a little nicer."

Muen did not let his gaze linger for long and turned back to answer the receptionist's questions.

"Certainly. I'll reserve our finest couples' double room for you..."

"Wait."

Hamreign suddenly interrupted her.

"What kind of room did you just say?"

"A couples' double room..."

The receptionist blinked in confusion.

"Aren't the two of you..."

"A couple? Do we look like a couple?" Hamreign asked with a stern expression.

To outsiders, her current face looked completely ordinary.

But the oppressive force behind her presence remained as powerful as ever.

The receptionist immediately panicked.

"Y-You don't? But the two of you clearly walked in holding hands just now..."

"Hmph. Vulgar."

Hamreign snorted coldly.

"We merely held hands. Is that enough to prove we're a couple?"

That was the problem with humans...

Most of them were creatures who surrendered to lust and instinct.

Not only did they surrender themselves, they also judged others by their own standards, assuming everyone else would surrender just as easily.

"S-So you're not a couple? I'm terribly sorry. I misunderstood."

Cold sweat appeared on the receptionist's forehead.

But anyone capable of working at a high-class inn naturally possessed a certain degree of professionalism. Her thoughts turned rapidly, and suddenly, she realized something.

They behaved so intimately.

Yet they weren't a couple.

And merely hearing the word "couple" had caused such a strong reaction...

Her gaze secretly swept across Hamreign and Muen's faces.

After a moment of contemplation, realization struck her.

An affair!

Of course!

That explained everything!

"I understand. I'll reserve a different room for the two of you immediately."

"An ordinary suite will be fine. Preferably one with a nice view."

"I understand, I understand. An ordinary room, and one facing the Glein River. We're very experienced with arrangements like this."

The receptionist worked quickly, recorded the false identity Muen provided, and then led the two of them to a room on the top floor.

"Here's your key."

"Thank you."

"I hope you enjoy your stay. If you need anything, please feel free to contact us at any time."

The receptionist offered the key with both hands.

Muen reached out to take it, but just as he leaned forward and extended his hand, she suddenly stood on tiptoe and whispered into his ear.

"Sir, please remember that the back exit is hidden in the compartment to the left of the balcony. It leads directly to the riverbank, and we've already prepared a small boat there. When the crucial moment comes, make sure you don't run the wrong way."

"???"

Muen was completely baffled.

Yet the receptionist gave him no opportunity to respond.

She winked repeatedly at him with an expression that clearly said, I understand everything, then gracefully walked away.

Leaving Muen standing there in complete disarray.

"What back exit? Why would I need a back exit? Is something wrong with that receptionist's head?"

Muen didn't know whether to laugh or cry, but he did not pay much attention to it. He took the key and opened the door.

Then the overwhelming amount of purple nearly blinded him.

???

What the hell was this now?

Muen rubbed his eyes hard before finally managing to clearly see the contents of the room.

Obviously, this really was not a couples' suite.

But the deep-purple decorations, the carpet covered in flowers, and the seductive translucent curtains all made the room's true purpose painfully obvious...

This fucking thing was an erotic suite.

Only one word differed, yet the difference was heaven and earth.

At the very least, ordinary couples probably didn't play dangerous games requiring all kinds of little toys.

Cold sweat appeared on Muen's forehead.

As he entered the room, he casually swept one foot sideways and pushed the box filled with various purple little implements beside the large purple bed underneath it.

Terrifying.

What exactly was that receptionist trying to accomplish?

Did she want an embarrassed and furious Miss Dragon to slap him to death?

"Miss Dragon, wait here. I'll go ask them to change the room right now..."

"Hm? Why change rooms?"

Hamreign entered a step behind him.

"Isn't this place quite nice?"

Muen's expression immediately became indescribable.

"Miss Dragon... You really think this room is nice?"

"It's not bad. At the very least, I rather like purple."

Hamreign walked over to the large purple bed and pressed down on it with one hand, apparently quite satisfied with its softness.

Then she lifted the gauzy curtain.

The moment Muen saw the several restraint devices on the bed, his heart nearly stopped.

Yet Hamreign merely pondered them briefly before nodding approvingly.

"Hm. Tools meant to stop someone from rolling over in their sleep and breaking the bed? Thoughtful."

"When I was still in Tars, I used to break beds while sleeping quite often. It troubled me for a long time back then."

"Though I suppose I haven't slept in a human bed for several hundred years now."

Hamreign looked toward Muen.

"Judging from this, human progress truly has become rather impressive."