Endless World: The Rise of Leonard Lawson

Leonard began to relay what Regina had told him previously to Shirley.

The reason behind it was that Shirley seemed to know about Regina. He could have her verify whether their words were true or not.

"Regina is indeed more knowledgeable than I," Shirley admitted. "I've always found her suspicious for being so resourceful and almost carefree. The guards also didn't seem to be disrespectful to her either. Instead, they carried traces of fear."

"Hoh, and you never tried to investigate further?"

"I wasn't in the position to do so, Master."

Realizing that his question was somewhat offensive, Leonard promptly apologized. His emotion was still a mess after learning some explosive revelations.

Sometime later, Leonard began to search around the area and then followed the path that Regina took to escape.

Unfortunately, she was very shrewd and destroyed her escape path to prevent anyone from following her.

"The fish seemed to have eaten the bait and fled unscathed." Shirley teased.

Pap!

Almost immediately, her buttocks were slapped by Leonard, who simply gave her a glare.

"Try and tease your Master one more time. You're going to get it!" He warned coolly.

"This servant is already yours," Shirley responded coyly.

Leonard was dumbfounded. He raised an eyebrow. "Aren't you disgusted by men? They haven't treated you well one bit and always tried to lust after your body."

His old habit as Vincent kicked in unconsciously when he slapped her butt as a punishment. But it was only for that brief moment, and he already realized what he had just done.

Hence, he tried to warn her as a way to cover his action.

He didn't anticipate that Shirley would not only mind the action, but she even seemed to be actively seeking his comfort by behaving in a coy manner.

The demeanor and mindset didn't match what she had experienced.

"Master is correct." Shirley didn't deny her hatred of men. "I have a deep hatred for men who patronize pleasure houses, especially those who even operate them. But Master is different. Your eyes are clear and hold no lust."

"I'm into women…" Leonard coughed.

What did she mean by he holds no lust?

He loved women, beautiful ones at that!

He simply didn't let lust control him because there were too many other important things for him to deal with.

"I know," she nodded and giggled.

"The Master might not know, but your recent actions have warmed and melted some of our deep hatred. We all thought we would become a plaything for someone influential and live a hellish future. But the Master had not once done anything offensive, and even treated us like regular humans."

Although being in the Rosalia Troupe made their status somewhat different from other female dancers, they were still the same in a sense. In the eyes of many, they were still nothing but courtesans or prostitutes.

Their body remained safe and sound, but the verbal abuse they received from the lustful men who couldn't ravage them was dampening.

"I'm not a good guy." Leonard lightly said.

He wasn't a hero or a villain.

He was someone who only acted on his belief.

"I've allowed an innocent woman to be killed prior to meeting you because my hands were tied. Once this outbreak is over, you and the others from the Rosalia Troupe should leave Velastra. I'll give you sufficient money to start anew elsewhere." He turned his back toward her and declared.

The innocent blood that spilled on his hands was no less than that of these villainous scums who operated the Slave Coop.

This was something he had long known and accepted.

Shirley's complexion was complicated. She felt like Leonard was purposely trying to push her far away from danger by revealing such information.

Almost everyone would have felt their heart turn cold after hearing how Leonard allowed an innocent woman to be killed in front of him.

However, there were bound to be exceptions.

"I'm sure the Master must have his reason to stay his hand," Shirley said.

"All along, our Rosalia Troupe only seeks a glimpse of survival or to be sent to a decent Master. We have nowhere else to go. Many years had gone by, and none of our family had attempted to rescue us. This meant that they had given up on us, and so did our hearts."

She then extended her hands and held on to Leonard's arm. "We know that we can't be your official women, given your status. But we will definitely do our best to serve you. We don't seek any status, just a comfortable place beside the Master."

Leonard was silent after her declaration. It would be a lie to say that he didn't have his needs as a man.

A beautiful woman like Shirley was practically throwing herself at him.

Who could possibly resist?

'Sigh, if only I didn't experience the backstabbed incident.' Leonard ultimately decided against it. He could have easily taken pleasure in Shirley and then sent her away for safety, but he just couldn't bring himself to do it.

Such actions were only for the scumbag of a man!

"I won't take advantage of your body, Shirley," Leonard said softly.

"You and the others in the troupe are still clean. You could still find another partner to marry and have a happy life. My status is sensitive, and danger lurks around every corner. Accepting you, even if it's only for pleasure, will still cause you to become a target of danger."

Almost as she expected such a response, Shirley didn't appear shocked or anything.

"Precisely because the Master uttered such a statement, that made me more determined." Shirley smiled gently. "As long as the Master doesn't kick us out, we shall remain by your side."

Knowing that she was equally stubborn and resilient, Leonard didn't attempt to persuade her further.

He already said his piece and inner emotion about his unwillingness.

'The women I left behind in my old world… Hopefully, they are faring well even after my death.' Leonard didn't want to hold such lingering regret in this world as well.