Monts before the sun set, Alex finally arrived at Oak Village.
"That was a long hike," Alex said as he walked toward the entrance of the village.
By the entrance, there was a rampart. A villager stood on top of each side, both holding an unloaded bow.
Even at the sight of Alex, they didn’t nock any arrows into them, thinking Alex was just a pitiful soul who got lost in the mountains and stumbled upon their village by pure coincidence.
However, they still didn’t open the gate, nor did they ask who he was.
Until Alex got too close.
"Halt, who are you?" one of the villagers asked. "Are you lost?"
"I’m not lost, Sir," Alex replied. "My na is Alex Stratos, and I have co to fulfill the mission I received from Frieden Academy."
"Frieden Academy?" The villager looked at Alex in surprise. "Are you talking about THAT Frieden Academy?"
"Yes, Sir," Alex answered. "I am a First Year student of Class 1-C. I have co to investigate the reason for the sudden increase in monster sightings in the Ashenbark Forest."
After he laid out all the details, the villagers finally believed that Alex had co for the mission they had commissioned in the Adventurer’s Guild.
However, seeing Alex was so young, they were in doubt, believing he might not be qualified to take the mission, given how dangerous it was.
Regardless of what they thought, they still let him into the village. The sky was darkening, and they knew better than anyone how dangerous the outside could be around this ti. Not to ntion, it was inappropriate to treat soone who wanted to help them so harshly.
"I’ll take you to the house of the Village Head," said the villager nad Mark.
He seed to be in his mid-twenties, and judging from the way he carried himself, he must be one of the Hunters of the village.
"Thank you, Sir Mark," Alex replied.
"But you should leave when morning cos. The Forest is dangerous right now, and going alone will endanger your life."
"Don’t worry, Sir," Alex answered. "I’m not alone. I have Dim Dim with ."
"Dim!" Dim Dim nodded.
"... No offense, but what can that little thing do?" Mark asked. "Will you use it as monster bait?"
"Of course not," Alex chuckled. "Dim Dim may not look like it, but it is a very dependable companion."
"Ahem!" Dim Dim raised its body proudly, wholeheartedly agreeing with Alex’s statent.
"Well, it’s your funeral," Mark stated.
Clearly, he didn’t want Alex to go alone with Dim Dim inside the forest, knowing it was teeming with monsters.
They even spotted several Rank 2 Hobgoblins during the past few days, and the Hunters had been on edge upon discovery.
Convinced it was no longer safe, the Village Head had started contemplating sending all the won and the children to Poca Poca Town, where they would be safe, while the rest of the villagers dealt with the monster problem.
Stopping before a house, Mark knocked on the Village Head’s door.
"Old man Simon, we have a visitor," Mark shouted. "He has co here because of our commission."
A few seconds later, the door opened and revealed an old man with white hair and beard, who looked at Alex with a smile.
"Welco to Oak Village," the Village Head, Simon, greeted Alex with a smile.
But that smile soon faded when he saw that no one else but Mark and Alex stood in front of his house.
"Young man, where are your companions?" Simon asked. "Don’t worry. My house is big enough for ten people to stay in."
"It’s just , Sir," Alex answered. "I ca from Frieden Academy to accept your commission."
Simon frowned before shifting his gaze to Mark, who only gave a casual shrug.
"Told you, old man. The pay you offered is too small to attract competent Adventurers," Mark comnted. "Anyway, let him stay for the night. He traveled a long way to get here."
"I’m sorry, where are my manners?" Simon opened the door and made a gesture for Alex to co in. "Please co in, and thank you for coming. My granddaughter will prepare your dinner."
Alex thanked Simon and entered the house. Just as the old man had said, the house was big enough to allow guests to stay inside it.
It seed that the Village Head’s house was commonly used to accommodate those who visit their village for a short period of ti.
"Alicia, we have a guest," Simon said to his granddaughter, who was cooking in the kitchen. "Add one more serving for dinner."
"Okay, Grandpa," Alicia replied before peeking out of the kitchen to see their guest.
Her eyes widened a bit when she saw a handso young man, who then smiled in her direction.
Alicia’s face reddened as she once again disappeared into the kitchen, returning to her cooking.
Simon smiled faintly after seeing this scene.
"Please forgive my granddaughter. She is very shy toward strangers," Simon said. "Also, she’s off-limits. Dare you do sothing to her, and I’ll bury you six feet under. Do I make myself clear?"
"Sir, I’m already taken," Alex replied.
"That doesn’t make feel any better," Simon stated. "City folks like you have a habit of picking wild flowers wherever you go."
Dim Dim blinked once, then twice, before wondering what Alex was talking about. It had been with Alex since he appeared in Arcana, and as far as the little bun knew, the young man was still single.
He wasn’t aware that Lumi was already inside the house and was just invisible. When she heard that Alex was already taken, she imdiately arched an eyebrow, wondering who that person was.
"Are you telling the truth?" Simon was overly protective of his granddaughter and had also dealt with a fair share of trouble—thugs liked to approach Alicia whenever she accompanied him to Poca Poca Town to buy their village’s supplies. "What is your lover’s na?"
"Her na is Lumi," Alex answered without batting an eye.
He didn’t dare call any of his Queens his girlfriends at the mont, but when push ca to shove, he thought of Latifa’s Alter, who usually didn’t get along with him.
Since he was very far from the academy, he didn’t hesitate to use Lumi’s na. Chances were slim that she would know about this discussion.
He was wrong...
Dim Dim sensed that sothing was about to happen, so it didn’t hesitate to jump off Alex’s head, abandoning its friend without hesitation!
"What did you say, you bastard?!" Lumi materialized right beside Alex and gave the young man a slap. "When did I beco your girlfriend, huh?!"
After being slapped silly, Alex staggered a few steps before disbelievingly looking at the beautiful fox lady, who glared at him with a beet-red face.
"L-Lumi?!" Alex gasped, nearly forgetting the pain of getting slapped. "What are you doing here?"
Lumi paused because she had forgotten that she was supposed to just observe Alex incognito.
The young man’s reply to the Village Head had made her feel embarrassed, so she acted before she could even think about it!
Simon was equally surprised after seeing the fox lady appear inside the living room of his house. He then glanced at the red mark on Alex’s face before sighing in his heart.
’Ai... he reminds of when I was young,’ Simon thought. ’I was also very popular with the ladies back then.’
In the end, Simon no longer worried about Alex making a move on his granddaughter.
He might be old, but he had seen many things in his life.
A glance was enough to tell him that the girl nad Lumi didn’t really hate Alex. In fact, he could see that the young lady seed to like him in her own way.
In fact, he even planned to give Alex so love advice later so he would be able to make up with the young lady, whose handprint was visible on the young man’s right cheek.
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