Stell's golden eyes stared, cold and emotionless, at the young girl Takson was now holding in his arms.
"Ahaha... um... Teacher," he stammered, "I can explain."
He quickly recounted the story. The girl's name was Alice. She was the daughter of a traveling merchant. Her family's caravan had been attacked by a pack of powerful monsters, and the hired guards had been overwhelmed.
Her parents had ordered one of the adventurers to take Alice and flee. She hadn't wanted to leave them, but they had forced her. In the end, the adventurer had sacrificed himself to hold back the pursuing monsters, telling Alice to run and not look back.
And that was how Takson had found her.
He had gotten the story from the girl herself. Its veracity was, of course, yet to be determined.
Throughout his explanation, Stell had remained silent, her attention divided between listening to her apprentice and running a detailed scan on the girl in his arms.
"That's everything," Takson finished, a hopeful look on his face.
"Affirmative," Stell replied. "Data acquisition complete. Your report is consistent with the subject's physiological and emotional state."
Takson breathed a sigh of relief. The misunderstanding was cleared.
"Addendum: We will discuss the matter of the girl tomorrow. For now, collect the reward."
"Right."
Carrying the now-sleeping Alice, Takson followed Stell back to the village. He presented the monster's remains to the chief as proof of the completed commission.
...
"Thank you, thank you, reliable adventurers!" the old chief exclaimed, his face beaming with joy. "Please, wait here a moment while I fetch your payment."
He was astonished that they had completed the task so quickly. He happily paid them and confirmed that they could stay the night.
After bidding the old man goodnight, they went to the small hut that had been prepared for them.
"Teacher, what should we do about her?" Takson asked, looking at Alice, whom he had gently placed on one of the beds. He had acted on instinct, on a simple impulse of kindness. He hadn't thought this far ahead.
"Answer: You will sleep in my room. I do not require 'sleep.'"
"I guess that's the only way." After all these years, Takson was well aware of his teacher's unique nature. He didn't argue. He simply moved his things into the room that had been assigned to Stell.
As for Stell, she spent the night on the roof of the hut, a silent, motionless figure watching the moon.
….
The Next Morning:-
Sunlight, bright and warm, streamed through the single window of the small hut, falling across the sleeping girl's face.
"Nngh..." Alice murmured in her sleep, rolling over to bury her face in the rough-spun pillow, trying to escape the morning light. She was still exhausted, her small body seeking the comfort of a few more moments of rest.
But a second later, her body went rigid. Her eyes snapped open, and she shot up in bed, her heart pounding.
She looked around, her gaze darting from the strange wooden walls to the unfamiliar, dusty furniture. This wasn't her room. This wasn't her family's caravan.
"How did I...?" she whispered, her voice a hoarse croak.
Knock, knock, knock.
The sound from the door was sharp, sudden. It startled her, pulling her from the fog of her confusion.
...
"Alice, it's time to wake up!" Takson's deep, cheerful voice called from the other side of the door.
Stell stood silently behind him, her arms crossed. Her internal scanners had already confirmed that the girl was awake and that her vital signs were stable. Takson, however, was operating on normal human senses.
"Strange," he muttered to himself, scratching his head. "Is she still asleep? I wasn't that quiet." He glanced at the sun, now high in the sky. He had been up since five-thirty, his usual two-hour morning workout already completed. It seemed impossible that the girl could still be sleeping.
Then, his own keen senses, honed by years of training, picked up the faint sound of movement from within the hut. Someone was approaching the door.
Click.
The wooden door creaked open, and the small, blonde-haired girl appeared before them, her eyes wide with a mixture of fear and confusion.
….
"I see. We understand your situation now," Takson said, his voice gentle, filled with a sympathy that was all too real. "I am so, so sorry for your loss."
At the villagers' insistence, they had all stayed for a simple breakfast of bread and cheese. Stell had no objections. A single meal was not a significant deviation from their schedule, and Takson needed to eat.
Alice sat across from them at the small wooden table. Her back was ramrod straight, her posture stiff and unnatural. She kept her head bowed, taking tiny, bird-like bites of her bread, as if she were afraid to make a sound.
"So, Alice," Takson began, setting down his fork, his own hearty meal half-finished. "What are your plans now?"
He hesitated, choosing his next words carefully. "I know this is a difficult thing to hear, but... your parents... it's very unlikely that they survived."
Even Takson, who always tried to look on the bright side, knew that the odds were slim to none. An entire merchant caravan, overwhelmed by a pack of powerful monsters... it was a death sentence. If they were lucky, there might be something left to bury.
Alice, of course, had already reached the same grim conclusion. But she wasn't ready to give up hope. Not yet.
"..."
She said nothing, but a single tear traced a path down her cheek, falling onto the table with a soft plip. Seeing her pained silence, Takson felt a sharp pang of empathy. He knew this feeling all too well. He had lost his own family, not to mindless monsters, but to the calculated cruelty of demons.
He glanced at Stell, who had remained completely silent throughout the entire meal, a silent, unmoving observer. His eyes were a silent plea for help, for guidance.
Stell, who had already analyzed her apprentice's intentions, offered no assistance. She simply returned his gaze, her own expression unreadable, her golden eyes as empty as a clear sky. The unspoken message was clear: You brought her here. She is your responsibility.
As the two of them engaged in their silent, one-sided conversation, Alice, with a strength she didn't know she possessed, made a decision.
"Um..." she began, her voice small but clear, cutting through the heavy silence. "You're adventurers, right?"
The question pulled Takson from his thoughts. "Yes, that's right. We are."
"Then..." She took a deep breath, her small hands clenched into fists in her lap. "Can I hire you?"
The words were exactly what Stell's processors had predicted. Takson, however, was taken completely by surprise.
"Hire us?" he asked, his curiosity overriding any thought of payment. "Hire us for what?"
Seeing a flicker of hope, a chance, Alice looked up, her eyes shining with a desperate, determined light. "I want..."
….
If you want to read 15+ chapters ahead and unpublished fanfics you can check out my patreon or just take a visit.
[P].[A].[T].[R].[E].[O].[N]
http://patreon.com/Kazuma_trash
&
you can join my discord server: https://discord.gg/5Y7uZ2kN2Y
Or in short just click in join via invite link in your discord and enter this code: 5Y7uZ2kN2Y