CHAPTER 1037: CHAPTER 159 - THE JOURNEY TOWARDS THE DWARF KINGDOM (1)

Although it still wasn’t fully confirmed whether the Kingdom of the Centaurs would actually join the unification—turning the entire Great Forest into one massive country instead of a scattered bunch of divided kingdoms—I decided it was time for me to move on to the Dwarf Kingdom, the second-to-last kingdom I hadn’t secured yet. The idea of convincing them felt like staring at a mountain I hadn’t climbed, which was funny, considering their kingdom literally sat on the top of one.

Their entire home was perched so high in the mountains that just looking at the path leading upward made my legs ache. It would have been a stupidly long trek, the kind that would take days if you were lucky and weeks if you weren’t. So instead of risking that, we got Amon to fly the helicopter for us again. At least with that, we could reach the place in no time at all instead of suffering on a rocky slope.

So we stood there, waiting for her to come pick me up.

"Visit me again, Sir Leon," Kali said softly.

After the night I’d spent with her—one that left me exhausted in the best and most sinful way possible—it honestly felt like something shifted between us. We were closer now, undeniably. It was still strange in the back of my mind that I, of all people, had somehow ended up with a centaur lover. But at this point? I couldn’t even pretend to mind. I had many tastes. I was willing to fuck any pussy—as long as it was a pussy, I didn’t think it was even up for debate. Put anything in front of me and I’d probably treat it like some kind of gourmet dish meant for royalty.

She leaned in and kissed me on the lips. She had to bend down just a little since she was taller than me, and that little lowering of her head made the moment surprisingly sweet.

"I promise I’ll come back," I told her. "I mean, I still haven’t given you a child in there yet."

"Fufufu, we can do that at a later date," she teased, smiling. "For now, focus on your mission. I’ll be cheering for you."

Kali was so excessively supportive in everything I did that sometimes it genuinely made me wonder if I deserved that kind of devotion. It was almost overwhelming in a warm, comforting way.

But well, she had her own reasons for wanting this outcome. Her motivations and mine weren’t even close to the same thing.

She wanted this to protect the Great Forest. She knew staying isolated would eventually hurt their land. She understood the danger in refusing to change.

Me? I wanted this because I wanted to carefully worm my way into their trust—so deeply that eventually they’d see me as someone capable of leading their kingdoms. I wanted to earn their favor, piece by piece, until trust came naturally, until they couldn’t imagine their kingdom thriving without me guiding it.

That was my motivation. Just an audacious dream dressed as ambition. But honestly, what was wrong with dreaming a little dangerously?

Lionel and Reilhahand seemed to have settled their issues.

Well... "settled" might have been too generous. You could still feel that lingering tension, that thin line of irritation running between them. They tossed comments at each other like they couldn’t help it, but at least it wasn’t at the "let’s kill each other on the spot" level anymore.

And that alone was the first step. They needed to mend their differences before anything else could happen.

The prince, on the other hand, still had some unresolved beef with me, but I didn’t give him the attention he desperately wanted. Ignoring him was easier.

After a short wait, the helicopter finally descended into the large field, wind whipping around us as the blades sent dust and grass flying.

Reilhahand stared at it with wide, shocked eyes, as if he was witnessing some mythical beast descend from the sky.

"I’ve never seen a metallic creature before..." he whispered in awe. "This is... really something else."

The other centaurs were clearly nervous, even stepping back a bit from the machine as if it might suddenly roar and devour them. I quickly reassured Reilhahand that the helicopter wasn’t a threat, and that I wouldn’t ever use it against him or his people.

The last thing I wanted was to destroy everything I’d worked so hard to build in just a few days.

"Well then, Leon, I will look forward to the day you accomplish what you’re trying to do," Reilhahand said. "I am still considering your proposal, but the probability of me accepting it is very low. Extremely low. But don’t let that discourage you. I want to see what you’re capable of, and if someday I see the vision you’ve been trying to show us, I will not hesitate to agree. For now, I wish you luck."

He sounded like someone genuinely waiting to see what the future might hold. And honestly, since I wanted to see Kali again too, that next meeting would probably come sooner rather than later.

After exchanging farewells, I boarded the helicopter. Amon, who had apparently mastered flying the thing alongside Anne, guided us off the ground and into the air.

"I’m sorry I called you on such short notice," I said. "Especially now that it’s already winter and you’re both busy with the company."

"It’s fine, Master," Amon replied calmly. "I don’t see any issue with coming here at your command. You’re the Master, so naturally I’d come to get you."

Good enough explanation for me.

If you’re wondering about Lionel—he said he’d walk back. He didn’t like using vehicles when he could just run home at full speed. So he and the others who came with him decided to travel back to the Beast Kingdom using their own limbs.

"Oh, and by the way, Filia is here, Master."

"Filia?" I looked around, seeing no one beside me at first. Then I spotted an orange-haired head trying its best to hide at the back.

She was trembling hard, hugging herself tightly like she was about to fall apart.

"Oooh... t-too high... I can’t... I can’t..." she whispered, her voice shaking with fear as the helicopter continued to rise higher into the sky.