Leonel walked into the city to find it quite silent. It was clear that Tyrron and the others had done an excellent job.
By now, the patrolling troops had been replaced with officials of Earth, a stark change from the 500 youths that had been tasked with maintaining order previously. Though these men and women were less powerful, their training was more substantial and, most importantly, there were far more of them.
Seeing Leonel's entry, the Head of the patrol units came forward quickly, saluting respectfully.
"Prince!"
Leonel still couldn't quite get used to this form of address. But, he thought it would be a bit ridiculous if he asked them all to call him Captain, so he let it slide.
"The patrol --."
Leonel shook his head. "It's fine, you don't need to explain these things to me. I'll be headed to the City Lord's mansion. Just be prepared to see to my orders. Here."
Leonel handed the Head patrol guard a talisman that would make communication smoother. To Leonel, drawing such a talisman was as easy as breathing.
Though Leonel hadn't had any formal training in talisman drawing and it could be considered a profession outside of Force Crafting, their roots were practically identical. In fact, Leonel was probably better than most low level Talisman Crafters thanks to his ability.
The profession relied on precision and accuracy, and these were things that Leonel was best at.
The Head patrol guard was bit taken aback by Leonel's dismissiveness. But, he still respectfully accepted Leonel's talisman and watched as the pair began to walk around the city seemingly without aim.
Every so often, the patrol units would come across Leonel and Aina. Without fail, each would immediately respectfully bow before continuing along their patrolling routes.
What none of them expected, though, was for this stroll of Leonel's to last so many hours.
Initially, many of the patrol guards couldn't help but compare Leonel to Tyrron. If one were comparing the two, it was obvious who was the better at administration. Leonel couldn't even bother to listen to the layout of the City even to the point of not even asking for a map.
In truth, many of the patrolling guards thought that Leonel had lost his way to the City Lord's mansion and was now far too embarrassed to ask.
But, as Leonel continued to walk around the city, the expressions of the patrolling guards only became weirder. Whereas before they thought that Leonel was aimlessly wasting time, now they weren't so sure.
Even if someone wanted to waste time, shouldn't they do it with something enjoyable?
Of course, Leonel was having great idle chatter with Aina. Every so often, her laughter would ring through the empty streets and catch the attention of the citizens peeking out their windows with hostile expressions.
But… Even if Leonel's goal was to enjoy his time with Aina, wouldn't they have been better suited in… a bedroom?
There wasn't even anything to see on the streets. By now, all the stalls were empty, the restaurants were closed, and the citizens were closed off in their homes without the option of stepping out.
Just what could there be to see?
Yet, Leonel obviously didn't explain himself. He walked down street after street, having a nice chat with Aina.
In truth, this had been the longest time Aina spent relaxing in a very long time. Though she felt one part guilty, she couldn't help but feel another part ease as well. This feeling was completely new to her, she couldn't help but enjoy it. Her hand felt very secure in Leonel's.
…
"… I'm serious." Leonel said sternly.
"You're insane." Aina rolled her eyes. "No person in their right mind would agree with you."
"It's perfectly logical!" Leonel stood his ground.
Aina stopped walking, her gaze locking onto Leonel's.
"Only psychopaths put milk in first."
"Oh come on! Think about it!" Leonel refused to back down, his eyes lighting with a wild light. "If you put in milk first, you can control the amount of cereal. If you put in the perfect amount of cereal, you can finish it all before it gets soggy. Then, you can incrementally add more cereal! You can savor your meal in peak condition!
"If you put in cereal first, then pour in the milk, unless you're a speed eater, by the time you get to the bottom, you'll have nothing but soggy cereal left! It's practically science!"
"There's nothing wrong with soggy cereal, it's a way of life. Next thing you know you'll be saying that peanut butter is more important in a peanut butter and jelly sandwich!"
"Well…"
Aina was stunned. "You've got to be kidding me. Pretend like you don't know me."
"Hold on!" Leonel protested. "Jelly is like the icing on a cake. Even though it's good, you can't just make a cake entirely out of icing, right? Peanut butter is the foundation! You have to have more of it!"
"I'm done with you." Aina walked away, pretending to ignore Leonel.
"Aina! Don't walk away! We need to seriously talk about this! Our children need to be educated properly!"
Aina turned back, a furious blush hiding behind her mask.
"Who's going to have children with you!?"
Leonel grinned, his smile lighting up the night sky.
"Good, at least I've still got your attention. I'll slowly teach you the right way to view the world. I can compromise on the PB&J, but I'm drawing a hardline at milk first. I'm trying to start a revolution!"
Aina shook her head, giggling. Seeing Leonel treat something so trivial so seriously made her oddly happy.
After pretending to be angry for a while, Aina eventually let Leonel take her hand again as they walked down the streets.
"Done."
Leonel walked to a dead end with Aina by his side. By now, he had walked down every street the City had to over and mapped it all in his mind. He hadn't missed out on a single detail.
"Is it possible?" Aina asked.
"… It should be." Leonel responded after a long while. "It will depend, though."
"On what?"
"On how many spies Terrain left in this City."