Food, booze and... Sarah?

"Will this house do?" the village's elder asked after leading Leon toward the edge of the area.

'He either wants to spare me the sight of the burned parts or expects another attack to come from this direction,' Leon thought. 'He either fears me or fears those raiders.'

"It's whatever," Leon replied, cutting the bullshit short. "I just need a place to rest," he added only to turn his eyes towards the old man. "What about food? Drinks?" Leon then pressed the topic.

The elder let out a nervous chuckle. "Don't worry," he assured. "You will get everything you need."

"Good," Leon nodded his head. "And what about the person I asked for?" he pushed further.

"Oh, that!" the elder suddenly remembered. "I will see into it but..." the old man hesitated. "Could you please give us some time, good sir?" he asked, clearly struggling to gather the courage to outright refuse Leon's demand.

"No," Leon said, flat-out denying the request. "I will have someone to serve me by this evening," he said, putting the elder before an established fact rather than a choice.

The village elder let out a forced smile. "Of course, of course," he meekly agreed.

"Until then," Leon said, turning his eyes towards the door of the house he was given.

"Until then," the elder repeated, taking the hint. He then headed towards the center of the village only to be intercepted by a young man who looked to be around the same age as Leon.

"What are you going to do?" the young man asked, cutting right to the chase.

"And what do you think I should do?" the elder asked in a provocative tone, far different than the one he used with Leon. He then rolled his eyes. "I will tell everyone and then we will decide," the old man gave the only answer he was willing to spare. He then pursed his lips before heading deeper into the village.

'Interesting,' Leon thought, pretending not to hear those words as he closed the doors behind him.

Leon then found himself in a typical yet well-kept shack. It was built on a plane of a simple rectangle. Its interior was split into two square halves, one of which housed a fireplace, storage, and all the other utilities while the deeper half appeared to be the living area.

'That should do,' the bloodmancer thought, stepping towards the beddings at the far end of the shed.

Leon sat down on the bed. He then reached out with his hand to his stomach, rubbing his belly for a little. 'I would really use some proper, nutritious meal right now,' he whined in his thoughts, finally allowing himself the tiniest bit of rest.

His hunger was a direct sign that Leon used way too much blood during his escape. And now, his body craved nutrients necessary to rebuild the stock of the life-giving crimson in his veins.

Leon calmed himself down with a few breaths. And soon, he could hear the noises of people moving all over the village. Those who weren't helping to put down the fires would busy themselves with gathering the corpses or looting the raiders that Leon took down. And surprisingly, this busy and noisy atmosphere made Leon's eyelids fall down.

'I guess that's the air I'm used to,' he thought, falling down on his back and stretching his legs on the bed. Before long, his eyelids slid down his eyes, shutting Leon's vision and lulling him to shallow sleep.

"Hello..." a voice reached out to Leon, interrupting his short moment of rest.

The blodmancer opened his eyes to see a girl standing next to the bed. She appeared to be in her early twenties, although the harsh life of a peasant clearly left its mark on her face. She was dressed in a simple yet modest outfit that covered all the important parts but left her figure for all to admire.

"Who are you?" Leon asked, sitting up and leaning his back against the wall.

"My name is Sarah," the girl introduced herself. "I've been sent here to serve you," she said, taking a step towards the bed.

"Great," Leon muttered, not doing anything beyond taking a quick glance at the girl's features. "Where is my food, then?"

"Right here," Sarah took another step forward and handed Leon a plate with some bread and a piece of meat on it.

"About time," Leon muttered, taking the plate from her. He then dug into the meal without any hesitation.

"Don't you want to know anything about me?" Sarah asked while watching Leon devour the meal.

"No," Leon muttered, glancing at the girl before moving his attention back to the food.

"But--" Sarah tried to say something but failed to find the right words.

"Listen," Leon interrupted her. "I don't care who you are and what you have been through," he said, finally looking at her with a cold stare. "I just need someone to serve me, understand?" he asked, making it clear that he had no wish for any personal attachment.

Sarah looked down, avoiding Leon's gaze. "Yes," she muttered in a barely audible voice.

"Good," Leon said, turning his eyes back to the plate. He then continued to eat in silence.

"Is there anything else you need?" Sarah gulped her saliva down and asked while sneaking short glances at the content of Leon's platter.

"That's right," he replied while swallowing a mouthful of food only to then stuff his face with even more of it. "I need a lot more," he revealed. "Especially meat if that's possible," he then added, pointing his greasy finger at the piece of smoked beef. "Oh," he then smiled gently, "don't forget to bring the booze too."

"Yes, sir," the girl nodded her head before retreating a few steps only to escape out of the doors and disappear. Yet, she quickly proved to triumph over her own fear when she returned with two sizeable bottles and a straw basket full of smoked meat.

This time, however, she didn't wear the same plain clothes as before. Contrary to that fact, she donned nothing but a thin skirt that only pretended to cover her features. This thin piece of material stretched from her shoulders all the way to the back of her knees. With how light it appeared to be, Sarah's every step would make it dance on the air, teasingly showcasing just a little bit more skin than it theoretically should.

'Adding the intense blush that she came here with, I think the village elder misunderstood my intentions a bit...' Leon thought as his expression darkened.

"Will that be all... sir?" Sarah mumbled. She ended up biting her lips in hopes of stopping her teeth from clattering against each other.

"Yes," Leon said, courtly moving his eyes. He then turned to the side and pointed towards the bedside stool. "You can put it over there," he instructed, turning his eyes back to the girl.

Sarah hesitated for a moment before slowly moving forward with unsteady steps as she continued to blush intensely. She then carefully placed both bottles on the table next to the bed before turning around and heading towards the door only to be intercepted by Leon who firmly grabbed her arm.

"Oh, one more thing," he said, stopping her in her tracks and making her look at him with rouge cheeks that perfectly contrasted with her deep blue eyes.

"Yes...?" she asked hesitantly while swallowing hard.

"I want you to stay here with me tonight," Leon said in a low voice as he pulled her closer while locking gazes with her deep blue eyes that started watering up due to how close they were now.

Sarah tried to say something but failed miserably as she couldn't find any words that would be able to escape past the lump in her throat. She could feel herself trembling under his touch and gaze but was completely helpless against it. 'W-why is he doing this t-to me?' she asked herself over and over again but found no answer that would satisfy her racing thoughts. Yet, as tears started to well up in her eyes...

"Wait, that came out wrong," the bloodmancer retracted his earlier statement. He then shook his head before nodding it in apology. "I come from a very far away so I need someone to ask about this place," he explained, only to pinch at the sleeve of the girl's thin clothing. "Also, I understand that the fire made you warm," Leon leaned his head to the side. "But I believe you should wear something... warmer."

Sarah let out a deep breath she didn't even realize she was holding in. "Y-yes," she muttered, finally finding her voice. "I understand," she said before turning around and heading towards the door.

"Oh, and Sarah?" Leon called out to her just as she was about to leave the shack.

"Yes?" the girl responded without turning around, still not trusting herself to face him just yet.

"Thanks for the food," he said, raising a piece of meat that already found its way to his hand only to stuff it into his mouth right away.