An Unexpected Bond

After the battle, I took the knife from the skinny one and the sword from the bandit leader, then wiped the blood off both weapons with his shirt.

I looked toward the little child. Her long black hair was a mess, and I could see her body trembling in fear. Poor thing, having to witness such brutal cruelty at such a young age.

I walked past her. I didn’t have to take her with me, right? I had already saved her life, and besides, staying with me would only put her in danger. Yeah… this is better. I just hope she can grow up on her own in this forest.

“Uwaaaah!”

Suddenly, I heard her cry. Her wailing was so loud that my steps halted, and I couldn’t help but turn back.

When I looked at her, for some reason, it felt like I was seeing my past self. That tragic event that took my parents away and shattered my life.

I walked past her again and approached the bandit leader’s corpse, rummaging through his pockets before pulling out a pouch of coins. This wasn’t for myself—but if I had to take care of a child, at the very least, I needed money, didn’t I?

The child slowly stopped crying and stared at me in confusion.

“What are you looking at? Let’s get out of here.”

After saying that, she clung to my clothes and followed me as we left the village behind. I could barely take care of myself, and now I had to look after someone else’s child. Well… so be it.

The sky was beginning to darken, and I figured continuing the journey now wasn’t the best idea. I gathered firewood and built a campfire by the river deep in the forest, using nothing but primitive means. I could hear both my stomach and the child’s growling. She must have been hungry, having not eaten anything all day. Well… what could I do? I hadn’t found any animals to hunt, and I had no idea how much longer it would take before we reached another village or town.

Come to think of it, calling this kid just “girl” or “kid” didn’t sit right with me.

“What’s your name?”

She looked up at me.

“Rin… my name is Rin. Uncle, what’s yours?”

U-uncle?! Do I really look that old?

“So your name’s Rin… I’m Rei. And I’m not that old, so it feels a bit weird if you call me uncle, okay?”

Rin smiled.

“Uncle Rei.”

This kid’s pretty cheeky, huh.

“Haah… whatever. Just do as you like. For now, you should sleep. Tomorrow morning I’ll try catching some fish in the river for us to eat.”

Rin nodded and curled up to sleep beside me.

At first, I worried she might take a long time to get over what had just happened. Not that she could ever truly forget, but at least I hoped she wouldn’t drown in grief for too long and let it shatter her spirit. Turns out, this child had a surprisingly strong heart.

The sun had begun to rise, and the sound of birds chirping in the morning woke me. I saw Rin was still asleep, so I decided to go catch some fish first. Thanks to the clear water here, I could see several fish near the riverbank. I caught a few and roasted them over the fire. Before long, Rin stirred awake.

“You’re up? Go wash your face in the river, then eat this fish.”

Rin nodded.

Unlike most kids her age, Rin was surprisingly obedient. After washing her face, she ate the roasted fish, clearly starving from the way she devoured it. Once we had eaten and gotten ready, we continued our journey.

We walked quite a distance until finally, a massive gate came into view ahead. It had to be a city.

“We’ll be there soon. Do you still have the strength to keep walking?”

Rin nodded, striking a pose as if to say she was plenty strong.

“Haha, alright then.”

When we reached the city gate, I saw countless merchants passing in and out. We lined up to wait our turn to enter. But when it was finally our turn, the guard looked at us with a rather unpleasant gaze.

“It’ll cost two gold to enter Gravendor. If you don’t have it, you’d best head to another city.”

I forced a smile, though my fist itched to hit this guard. Did he think I was some beggar just because of my ragged appearance?

I took out the coin pouch I’d taken from the bandit and opened it. The guard’s eyes went wide in shock when he saw the pile of gold coins inside. With a bright smile, I handed him two gold.

“E-ehm, forgive me, sir. Before you enter, may I ask who you are and where you’ve come from? Not to be suspicious, but we’re required to record the identities of those visiting Gravendor.”

“I’m Rei, a wanderer from a small village in the East.”

He gave me another once-over, and his gaze eventually landed on the sword at my side.

“That’s a fine blade you’ve got. Are you here to register as a hunter?”

“Well, that’s exactly right. You’ve got sharp eyes.”

Hunter? I had no idea what that even was, but I figured I should just go along with it.

The guard’s eyes shifted toward Rin, who was hiding behind me. She still seemed too frightened to interact with strangers.

“Is she your daughter?”

“Papa!”

Before I could answer, Rin called me that with a smile. I had no idea what was going through her head, but whatever—it’s not like I could scold her for it.

“Oh, what a sweet child. Please enjoy your stay in Gravendor.”

The guard stepped aside, letting us pass. As we walked through the gate, I couldn’t help but marvel at the medieval European-style buildings. The streets bustled with people coming and going. A lively, thriving city.

For now, I should look for an inn, gather as much information as I can, and also grow stronger. I don’t know when those bastards from Alphenia will show up in this city to hunt me down.

But before that… I noticed Rin’s eyes fixed on the food stall over there. Looks like I should buy her something. After she ate, she looked so happy—and without realizing it, I found myself feeling happy too.

Still, it seemed that breeze of happiness wouldn’t last long.

“Green Valley is under attack! Green Valley is under attack!”

What…?