Beta Testing the Apocalypse 023 (Patreon)

Leaving the church after a brief chat with Ion, Leon wasn't surprised to discover Miyako standing outside, waiting patiently with her eyes closed and hands folded over her lap.

"I'm guessing Yamato returned to the east...?" asked Leon.

Nodding in affirmation, Miyako replied, "While he was thankful for your Lordship's offer, he said he couldn't be slacking off while everyone else was working hard."

"Sounds about right," said Leon, offering a slight nod before stepping past Miyako and heading toward his manor with her matching pace behind him. He could have teleported to his destination directly, but as he got a sense of fulfillment seeing how things were developing, Leon chose to walk and enjoy the scenic landscape he had a personal hand in creating.

"So, did you enjoy your lunch date with Yamato...?" asked Leon, catching Miyako a little off guard.

"Indeed..." answered Miyako, a faint blush coloring her cheeks and a faint smile blossoming across her face as she appended, "And I have you, Lord Leon, to thank for that..."

"Don't mention it," said Leon, raising his gaze skyward, specifically at the Tower. "Our goal may be to reach the top of the Tower, but this is also an opportunity to live and experience things we missed out on in life. I know you have a lot of competition, but I hope that you, Yamato, and everyone else hailing from your world can find peace and happiness here..."

"Lord Leon is very kind..." replied Miyako, her blush fading but keeping her smile.

Reaching the stone steps leading up to his manor, Leon surprised Miyako by saying, "Take the rest of the day and tomorrow off. Tell Yamato I said to give everyone else some time off as well, courtesy of House Asheford. If he asks for a specific number, tell him I'll shave six thousand fragments off your group debt."

Perking up considerably, discarding her usual cool, borderline apathetic mask, Miyako responded with a cheerful, "Thank you, Lord Leon~!" before taking off at a full sprint. Several 'waypoints' had been set up around the town, near the entrance of the Tower, and several other places, so while she probably could, Miyako was spared from having to run the near-two-hundred-kilometer distance separating the manor and where most of her friends resided.

"There she goes..." mused Leon, observing Miyako's departure with a nonexistent smile before making his way up the steps connecting to the manor's central courtyard. Mordred's team was still in the Tower, so the grounds were fairly quiet until he entered the manor proper, unsurprised to find a slender woman with short brown hair and hazel eyes waiting for him, decked out in the same Maid attire as Miyako.

"Welcome home, Lord Leon," said the woman, bowing her head low and respectfully, her hands folded over her lap.

"I'm giving everyone the next two days off, paid," replied Leon, causing the woman, Azumi Oshitari, to raise her head and respond, "I'll be sure to let everyone know. But before I release them, do I have your approval to keep one person around to aid in taking down and folding the laundry we set out earlier today?"

"Of course," replied Leon, smiling as he added, "You're the estate's Chief Maid, so act at your discretion."

"By your leave," replied Azumi, offering another bow before turning and departing with swift, controlled steps. Leon knew she would most likely be making a beeline for the Tower the moment laundry was folded, but as it was better for their burgeoning economy if people were out making and spending money/fragments, he had no intention of stopping her. Instead, he made his way toward the Library, a specialized facility that was one of many optional extensions that could be made to the estate, much like the Roman-style bathhouse near the back.

Opening the door to the Library, a vast collection of books that even he couldn't access without paying a non-negotiable fee, Leon garnered the attention of the Library's overseer, a petite girl with blonde hair fashioned into distinctive 'drills' that framed both sides of her doll-like face, kept in place by large pink ribbons.

"You've come, once again, I suppose..." said the girl, raising her peculiar pink and blue eyes from the book she was reading. Her pupils resembled pink pixies or butterflies surrounded by shimmering watery blue, but they were far from the child-like girl's only unique trait. Her outfit was like a mix between Gothic Lolita and something someone might wear to a Christmas party, and she had striped, purple-and-lavender stockings and bright pink Mary Jane slippers.

"Checking on my people to ensure they're happy and healthy is one of my most important duties," contended Leon, tentatively approaching the girl, Beatrice from the world of Re: Zero, to ask, "What are you reading today?"

"If you must know, it's a story called Sleeping Beauty," answered Beatrice. "It's a tale about a Princess cursed by an evil and jealous witch to perish on the eve of her sixteenth birthday..."

Though he was tempted to point out that he was familiar with the story, Leon offered a slight nod and remarked, "I've noticed you read a lot of stories about Princesses and Witches. Anything you want to talk about?"

Furrowing her brows, Beatrice replied, "I do not, I suppose. Now, please leave if you're not going to check anything out."

"Sure," replied Leon. "I just came by to tell you I'm giving everyone the next two days off. You should take Petra on a walk around town or invite Subaru to take you to a late lunch or early dinner."

"Why would I want that Bakaru to take me out...?" asked Beatrice, but her expression and behavior betrayed her as she averted her eyes and began to fidget uncomfortably.

"Ask him or don't," mused Leon, shrugging as he added, "Either way, I'm ordering that the Library be closed for the day. Go outside and get some fresh air."

"Then I suppose I have no choice..." said Beatrice, snapping her book shut, an action that caused it to vanish into motes of bluish-white light. In the very next moment, she and Leon were standing outside in the hallway, as, once the Library was 'closed,' it expelled everyone within and became completely inaccessible.

"I'm going..." said Beatrice, turning away from Leon and moving in what the latter presumed to be Subaru's direction. Beatrice was a high-tiered Spirit even before coming to Purgatoria, so she and Subaru had a contract that allowed her to know his location at all times. Thus, by following her, it wasn't long before Leon encountered a young man with somewhat spiky, slicked-back black hair and sharp eyes, garbed in a Butler's uniform.

Blinking in surprise, the young man, Subaru Natsuki, asked, "Is that you, Lord Leon...?"

Before Leon could respond, Beatrice approached Subaru, grabbing his sleeve and staring up at him with a paradoxically blank yet pleading look as she said, "Take me out to eat..."

"Huh...?"

Piggybacking off Beatrice's words, Leon said, "I'm giving everyone the next two days off and suggested that Beatrice ask you to take her out to eat, fully comped. You would both benefit from some fresh air."

Though he looked like he wanted to argue initially, Subaru exhaled a tired sigh when Beatrice pulled on his sleeve and said, "Let's go..." with slightly shimmering eyes. He wouldn't even be 'alive' if Beatrice hadn't summoned him, so after a brief bout of hesitation, he smiled, patted the centuries-old lolita's head, and answered, "Well, if it's fully comped, it would be a waste 'not' to go..."

"Have fun, you two," mused Leon, stepping past the duo and climbing the nearby flight of stairs, intending to relax in his room at the end of the hall. He felt a little sorry for Subaru, as the young man 'only' had eyes for a girl from the same series, namely Emilia, but since Beatrice wouldn't leave the manor unless it were with him, sacrifices had to be made...

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Setting his mechanical body down in the corner of his spacious master bedroom, Leon moved over to his beyond-king-sized bed and plopped down onto his back. He hadn't once slept since his arrival in Purgatoria, but he still enjoyed lying down and closing his nonexistent eyes, even if it did nothing to obstruct his vision.

*tok* *tok* *tok*

"It's open..." droned Leon, prompting the person who had knocked to enter.

"I was told you were giving everyone time off," said a young woman with distinctive, purple-pink eyes and honey-blonde hair that extended to her lower back. Her side bangs notably framed her nearly flawless face, and since she was the Head Chef of the estate, she wore a double-breasted chef's coat and pants, both pure white.

"Ah..."

Rising to a seated position and meeting the blonde-haired woman's, Erina Nakiri's, steely gaze, Leon adopted an imperceptible, apologetic smile and said, "Mordred and the others will likely be disappointed, but I'll take care of them. Feel free to take the rest of today and tomorrow off."

Crossing her arms and closing her eyes, clearly annoyed, Erina replied, "I speak for my team when I say we would greatly appreciate it if you didn't make such decisions on a whim, Lord Leon. We spent the past three days preparing a cassoulet dish and intended to serve it as the main course for tonight's dinner. Please be more considerate in the future..."

"Then have your team prepare some additional dishes I can place in my Storage, and then inform me when it would be most convenient to give you and everyone else some time off," countered Leon. "You take your job very seriously, and I greatly appreciate it. However, you're also young and likely still acclimating to this world. You'll never do that if you stay cooped up in the kitchen. Go out and meet people."

"Is that an order...?" asked Erina, narrowing her eyes and adopting a faint but noticeable frown.

"It's a suggestion," replied Leon, lying back down and closing his eyes as he added, "You might be my Head and future Royal Chef, but before that, you're a beautiful young woman. I'm speaking from experience when I say you'll regret it if you focus your time and effort on your career and neglect forming connections and finding someone to share your life with..."

"..."

As she wasn't used to receiving such advice, especially from a guy, Erina stared at the impression on Leon's bed in silence. In truth, she was using her job as Head Chef to distract herself from the reality that she and most of the people she knew had died in a plane crash. There was still a lot she had wanted to do back in her previous world, so while she was excited by the prospect of working with new and fantastical ingredients, she couldn't deny she felt a little lost and lacking purpose.

Noticing Erina lower her gaze and adopt a somewhat distant look, Leon exhaled through his nonexistent nose and took a moment to consider his words before proposing, "If you can't think of anything on your own, how would you feel about hosting Shokugekis as a form of entertainment? We could even implement an official ranking system and reward present and future chefs with increased pay, opportunities, and titles. How does God of Cooking sound? Though, in your case, I suppose it would be 'Goddess of Cooking.' You certainly look the part..."

Blinking in surprise, Erina asked, "You want to implement Shokugekis as a form of entertainment...?"

"Wrong," replied Leon, correcting, "I'm asking if 'you' want to organize and host them. They likely wouldn't take place until we have more people, but I read somewhere that a healthy food culture is the backbone of a healthy and happy populace. I hope you'll at least consider it."

Adopting a faint, nearly imperceptible smile, Erina replied, "I will..." before closing her eyes, bowing her head, and adding, "And I hope to have Lord Leon as a judge when we host our inaugural event..."

"You have no idea how much I'm looking forward to eating your cooking," responded Leon, exhaling a light chuckle. Erina's smile became marginally more prominent in response, but since her bangs obscured her face while she was bowing, he wasn't fortunate enough to see it...

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