Chapter 113: The Everlasting Puppet (Part 3)
The Everlasting Puppet (Part 3)
Deep within Leandro’s heart...
There had always been an alarm bell.
A warning that never truly went silent.
Not once.
For nineteen years, it had never stopped ringing.
In that endless dream...
Through the inheritance he had received...
Leandro had experienced countless betrayals, schemes, and desperate struggles.
He had seen friends become enemies.
Allies had sold him out for profit.
Warm smiles had hidden cold blades.
Promises had been broken without hesitation.
Trust had slowly become a luxury he could no longer afford.
That endless nightmare had carved one belief deep into his soul.
Trust no one.
Always keep another escape route.
Always leave yourself one final chance to survive.
That was how he had lived.
That was how he had survived this long.
Even now, standing before the Patriarch of the Salvatore Family, that instinct should have remained.
If anything...
It should have been screaming louder than ever.
Warning him.
Something was wrong.
At least...
That was what the instincts buried deep inside Leandro kept telling him.
Don’t lower your guard.
Don’t trust anyone.
Be careful.
Yet...
For some reason...
None of those warnings came.
The alarm bell was silent.
Completely silent.
For the first time in nineteen years...
Leandro felt no danger.
No uneasiness.
No suspicion.
No fear.
Only an unfamiliar sense of peace.
It was so strange that even Leandro didn’t know how to react to it.
His gaze slowly fell.
The jade box rested quietly in his hands.
He stared at it.
For several moments, he said nothing.
Then something occurred to him.
Something that even he found difficult to believe.
This...
Was the first gift he had ever accepted without preparing for betrayal.
Normally, things were never this simple.
He would inspect the object first.
Formations.
Talismans.
Spiritual senses.
He would check every possible method of detection.
If that wasn’t enough, he would use a puppet to open it.
He would prepare escape routes.
Not one.
Several.
Sometimes, he would even hide his true body several kilometers away before touching something suspicious.
That was Leandro.
That was how he survived.
That was how he had lived for nineteen years.
Trust always came last.
Survival came first.
Always.
But this time...
He had done none of it.
He had simply accepted the box.
Nothing more.
His fingers tightened slightly around the smooth jade.
The cool surface pressed against his palm.
Yet his mind remained strangely calm.
For the first time...
He wasn’t thinking about how to survive.
He wasn’t thinking about how he could escape.
He wasn’t wondering what trap might be waiting for him.
He simply stood there.
Holding the gift.
After a long silence, Leandro slowly raised his head.
His emerald-green eyes met Victor’s.
They were different now.
Before this moment...
The respect in his eyes had been nothing more than courtesy.
Victor was the Patriarch of the Salvatore Family.
Showing proper respect was simply expected.
That was all.
But now...
Something had changed.
The respect in Leandro’s eyes came from somewhere deeper.
It wasn’t forced.
It wasn’t calculated.
It was sincere.
It was genuine.
Leandro took a slow breath.
His chest rose and fell quietly.
Then he stepped forward.
He brought his hands together.
His expression became solemn.
And he bowed deeply.
"I, Leandro Salvatore..."
His voice was calm.
Yet something firm rested beneath those words.
Something real.
"...thank the Patriarch."
He remained bowed for a moment.
Then he slowly straightened.
His emerald eyes remained fixed on Victor.
"I dare not swear eternal loyalty to the Salvatore Family..."
He stopped.
His fingers tightened.
Then he continued.
"...but as long as the Patriarch does not abandon us, I will never leave."
The words were simple.
Almost too simple.
To an ordinary cultivator, they might have sounded like a cautious promise.
Victor knew better.
He understood exactly what Leandro had just given him.
For someone who had spent nineteen years trusting no one...
For someone who had made caution part of his very nature...
For someone who prepared ten escape routes before taking a single step...
This was not a small promise.
It was probably the greatest promise Leandro could give.
Victor understood that.
A gentle smile appeared on his face.
"Go cultivate."
Victor’s voice was relaxed.
"If you have any questions, come find me anytime."
Leandro nodded.
"Yes, Patriarch."
He turned around.
He was about to leave.
Then Victor’s golden eyes shifted.
They fell toward Leandro’s sleeves.
A faint smile appeared on his face.
"Oh."
Leandro stopped.
Victor tilted his head slightly.
"And one more thing..."
Leandro slowly looked back.
Victor’s smile grew a little wider.
"You’ve been holding that Escape Hand Seal this entire time."
His gaze moved toward Leandro’s sleeves.
"Doesn’t it get uncomfortable?"
Leandro froze.
His entire body went stiff.
For several seconds, he didn’t say a word.
Then his lips twitched.
"...Ah."
He finally realized it.
His hands had been hidden inside his sleeves the entire time.
And they had never moved.
He had been holding the Escape Hand Seal from the moment he entered.
All the way until now.
He hadn’t even noticed.
It had become instinct.
A habit.
Something his body did before his mind could even think about it.
The tips of Leandro’s ears slowly turned red.
"Old habits!"
His voice came out much louder than he intended.
"OLD HABITS!"
His face turned completely crimson.
The embarrassment was almost painful to watch.
Victor stared at him for a moment.
Then he couldn’t hold it back.
A quiet chuckle escaped his lips.
The tense atmosphere finally broke.
Leandro looked away.
He clearly wanted the ground to swallow him whole.
Victor didn’t tease him any further.
Instead, he gave him a few more words of guidance regarding his cultivation.
His voice was calm.
Patient.
He pointed out a few things Leandro needed to pay attention to.
He also explained where Leandro should focus his efforts next.
Leandro listened carefully.
This time, both of his hands remained outside his sleeves.
When Victor finally finished, he gave a small nod.
"That’s all for now."
Leandro immediately straightened.
He bowed respectfully.
"Thank you, Patriarch."
Victor returned the gesture with a small nod.
Leandro didn’t say anything else.
He simply turned around.
Then he quietly walked toward the exit of Sovereign Peak.