Artreus wasn’t expecting this.

The kitchen used by the bandits is surprisingly amazing.

At first he was worried that by cooking inside a cave, they might be at risk of suffocation due to the smoke. But looking at the ceiling of the cave, there was a magic circle carved on it with a few mana crystals embedded at the corner of the circle, apparently to power the circle. Its purpose was to cleanse the air and smoke in the kitchen area, eliminating the risk of suffocation by smoke.

Even the stove was sporting amazing technology. Upon the stone was another carved magic circle. Put in a mana crystal and it will produce fire. It will continue to be able to produce flames until the mana crystal was spent.

Such technology… Were this stolen by these bastards and used for their own, or were someone supplying them with such tools?

He just shook his head to get the thought off his head. This was not the time to think about things like that. He has stomachs to fill.

+++

Raising the ladle towards his lips, Artreus tasted the vegetable soup in the pot. Smacking his lips, he savored its taste. He frowned as he realized that it lacks some salt, so reaching to the sack, he added a few pinches of salt to the pot and stirred it once more. Proceeding to flip the slab of meat in the pan, the smell of herbs and spices wafts in the air, awakening his hunger.

“Wow. That smells good Mr. Artreus.” Estella commented at the side. She choose to stay behind after she returned with Micaela earlier.

“If you’re impressed by the smell. Just wait till you get to taste.” He says, which earned him a smile from the sweet woman. His eyes then wandered towards the longsword leaning against the wall, he still couldn’t believe that she would give her such a valuable gift.

It was definitely a high quality sword. A mithril longsword forged by dwarven blacksmiths. She said that it was supposed to be a dowry from her father to her future husband before she ran away from home. When she did, she took it with her, reasoning that it would be given to who she will be married, and since she has no plan of getting married, it would technically fall on her hands sooner or later. So why not sooner? Taking a dimensional bag filled with her belongings and a pouch of gold, she ran away to live a life free from her controlling father, but everywhere she goes, she is recognized by people. So she started to throw away everything that may give her away, only keeping a few important things, like a locket with the picture of her and her parents, the dress his father gave her on her birthday, and the longsword that is a constant reminder on why she had to leave. She then boarded a carriage, determined to go to a place where her father’s influence would not reach.

How unfortunate. Running away to find freedom, only to meet a terrible experience.

“Am I troubling you Mr. Artreus?” She cocked her head and asked.

“Not at all. I am just thinking of something. But it’s nothing really, no need to bother yourself with.” He says as removed the meat from the pan and placed it on a plate before putting the next batch. “It’s just… Are you truly fine giving me this sword? It seems really important to you.”

“It’s fine. It already lost its meaning.” She muttered in a sad tone. “It was supposed to remind be why I want to run away from home. But, I am not going to run anymore.” Seeing Artreus’ questioning look, she continued. “I plan on returning home.”

Stirring sound stopped as Artreus paused the moment he heard her, then he continued.

“I’ve learned something in my short journey away from home.” She continued, her eyes gazing at a direction as if she is trying to see through the cave walls. “I wanted to see the world. Experience new things. Go in an adventure just like the heroes and heroines that I have only read on books. Meet different people, find new friends, those who wouldn’t treat me differently because I am the daughter of a rich and powerful man. A dream that will surely be out of reach once I am married.” She smiled sadly. “But the world is a scary place. I kept on running away, thinking that I was surviving on my own power. Now that I think about it, I have been so naïve. A lot of times I faced challenges out here, and all of those times I got through them I thought it was due to my own power. How wrong I was.” She closed her eyes as she looked back to her memories. “Days after I ran away, I was wandering around the city of Lazlie when I got my dimensional bag snatched away from me. Luckily, an old woman quickly caught the man who tried to fight her off but was quickly slammed to the ground. There was also a time I went through an alley while I was wandering through the water town. Two men tried to rob me when suddenly a brick fell to their heads, giving me the chance to run away. There were a lot more times I met challenges, hurdles I jumped over, thinking that each time I thought that it was due to my skill and luck.”

Artres listened in silence, only the sound of the boiling water and sizzling meat broke the silence.

She let a bitter laugh slip her lips. “But I was just fooling myself. I was fooling myself that I was able to survive with my power. Mine. But deep inside I knew… I knew that it was because of my father. His influence stretches far and wide. His subordinates in every city, every town, making sure I was safe. Maybe that is the reason why I wanted to go to this fringe village. To escape his invisible hands, so that I could finally say to myself that I could stand on my own feet, without receiving help from anyone.” Her bitter laugh turned into sobs. “How wrong I was. I was powerless. I can’t do anything on my own. The men who kept me safe in the shadows, I saw them cut down by that brute. They saved me countless of times, and I got them killed just for my ego. I tried standing up to them. I tried to be a hero. I told the bandits to leave the others and take me instead for I have more value as a hostage than all those girls combined. But they just laugh. And… And…”

Artreus could hear Estella cry from behind him. As much as he wants to comfort her, he just couldn’t. His own ghosts would not let him. So instead he stayed quiet until she settled down.

“All those times, those times that I was suffering. I regret standing up. If I haven’t stood up to them, then I might have never experienced that hell. Some other woman might’ve piqued his interest. I wished, I prayed for it to stop. For someone else to take my place.” She continued, with tears streaming down her face. “I am such a hypocrite. I am no hero. I can’t even stand without the help of others.”

Estella stood up and walked towards Artreus and held his hands. “But then you came. You saved me from the darkness. I was seriously thinking of ending my life. But when you said what you said to the others, I felt it. Your voice splashing cold water in my soul. My frail ego was broken down. The hypocrisy in my heart revealed. I was brought low by my naivety. But even as I lie on the ground, broken, you gave me hope that I could stand up once more. You made me understand my weakness.” She says as her grip on his hands gets tighter. “I am going home, not to run away from the world like I did with my father. I am going home to become stronger. So that next time I go out, I would finally be able to stand on my own feet.” She stared at his eyes, her gaze quivering. “Do you… Do you think I could do it?” She asked.

Gazing at her eyes, gone was the look of someone who have lost the will to live when he healed her earlier. What replaced it was the look full of resolve. The sight stirred something within him. Memories when he took his first step towards the light.

Smiling as he gripped her hands back, he replied. “Of course. There is no doubt about it.”

Hearing his reply, she flashed him a smile, the first genuine smile she showed today. “Thanks. Your words mean much to me.” Still holding his hands, she continued. “I know you wouldn’t want to travel with me back to my home. The air around you tells me that man like you would like to travel, to save more lives like me. I also know that the way I am now; I will only drag you down if I try to follow you on your journey. So…” Hesitation flash over her face for a few seconds as she gathered her courage to say her next words. “So… When I get stronger and our paths meet again. Would you let me join you? I want to see more of the world, but no longer with these naïve eyes of mine. I want to travel and right the wrongs of the world, so that others will no longer suffer the same fate as mine, and there’s no one I would want to have this journey with more than you.”

It was hard for Artreus to refuse her, not with those look on her eyes. He knows that look. Eyes that are dead set on achieving their goals. There is doubt in his mind that this woman will be stronger the next time they meet. Still… He couldn’t in, his good heart, put her in danger. “It would be dangerous.” The Gods never thought the world was in peril when it was plunged in endless wars during his time, who knows what level of danger the world is in if a Goddess determined that it is in danger. That means, to be with him, one will be in constant risk of death.

“I don’t mind.” She replied. “There are things in this world worth risking your life for.”

Sensing that she wouldn’t be persuaded whatever he tries to say to her, he nodded.

Smiling at his approval, she picked up the sword and presented it to him once more. “Then it is a deal. So for now, take this. I may not be able to be of use to you right now, but I would be happy to give you something that will aid in protecting you.”

Artreus hesitated but after all this, he couldn’t refuse her. So grabbing the sheathed sword, he uttered a word of thanks.

“If you still don’t want it, then give it back to me. In the future, when we meet again. That time, I will make sure that I will be more useful than this sword on your hand.” Giving him a wink, Estella ran away, probably to accompany Micaela who was guarding the other women, leaving him in the kitchen with the now burnt steak, which he proceeded to throw to the trash.

“She got me there.” Unsheathing the sword, he admired its workmanship. Even with the soft glow of the torches, the unblemished blade in his hands shone brightly. He gave it a few swings, he glided along the kitchen floor, mixing his attacks with his footwork. Overhand chop, horizontal sweep. A quick stab followed by an upward slash to a beheading strike. From the weight distribution, to the point of balance, everything was made to perfection as the sword felt weightless in his hands. With an overhand slash, he split a stone in two, revealing its sharpness. “The drwarves do know how to make weapons. This weapon… Even in the Order of Brilliant Moon, only the Grandmaster have such sword. To hold something equal to it… It feels surreal.” His muttered as he traced the blade with his fingers.

The sound of the pot boiling over shook him out of his fugue and he ran towards the magic circle and pulled out the mana crystal, cutting of the supply of mana and extinguishing the flame. He grabbed some clothes to use as a mitt and carried the pot to a makeshift table that he made by carrying the empty crates from the storage. No way is he letting the women eat on that stinky dining hall. Preparing all the food in the crates, he also placed the eating utensils that he Purified earlier on top of it.

He then walked towards the post where he tied up the heavily wounded bandit. “One more for the road.” He told him before punching the bandit so hard in the face that he spits his own teeth. “There. You look better now.” Smiling devilishly, he continued to punch the bandit until he lost consciousness. Stopping before he accidentally kills him, he whispered. “I hate ruining your looks, but I don’t want to get nagged by that woman if she caught you looking like this.” He says as he muttered a short prayer and casted a healing spell upon the bandit, healing most of his wounds, but not at a hundred percent. “Now that I relieved some stress. I should go fetch the ladies here. I am sure they’re starving.” He said to himself before walking off towards the holding cells.

+++

“*Munch* *Munch* Wow. You do know how to cook.” Micaela says with a mouthful of food. “*Slurp* *Munch* *Munch* This soup is rich, the vegetables are crunchy and sweet, and the meat is juicy. Honestly, you should teach Claus how to cook. He always burns our food to crisp when he cooks.” She continued to talk while devouring everything in her plate. Upon finishing, she raised her plate towards him, asking for more.

“Why don’t I teach you?” Artreus replied as he filled her plate and bowl with more food. A smile was painted in his face as the sight of the women they recued eating his food with smiles on their faces filled his heart with joy.

“I am practicing my swordsmanship. I don’t have time to learn how to cook.” She says while shoveling food in her face. To see the fierce red-haired woman eating like a hungry barbarian and not diminish her beauty as she does was a puzzle to him. “Honestly. How were you able to cook this good?”

“Practice I guess.” He answered while filling the bowl of the others. “Keeping the body properly nourished is a must in the battlefield.”

Micaela paused from eating and shot him a serious look. “Are you still spouting nonsense that you are a part of the Paladins? Honestly, if you don’t want the Orders hunting you down, stop it. They don’t take people posing as one of them lightly.”

“Oh? Are you worried for me?” He teased her. She was continually giving him shit up to now. He thinks he earned the right to tease her also.

Micaela snorted a reply. “Heh! I don’t care a lick about your perverted ass. I just don’t want to get associated with a heretic if ever you get caught. It will hurt the reputation of the White Wolves for sure, so I want to avoid that if necessary.”

“I’ll put that in mind.” Even if Artreus was a part of the Order, it was all the way back a hundreds of years ago. Saying that he was a Paladin from the past, revived by the Goddess was something hard to believe, so he will avoid revealing that information from now on. He would die a thousand deaths before he gets chased around and branded as a heretic. He wouldn’t have a face to show to his comrades if that happen.

They continued their meal in silence, well, a form of silence as Micaela continued to gobble up the food like a whirlpool. Honestly, this woman could eat. Suddenly, she stopped.

“Hey. Did something happen between you and Estella while I was gone?” She asked him, her eyes alternately staring at him and then Estella.

“Nothing really. Why?” Why the sudden question? Artreus thought.

“Nothing.” She continued to eat, but this time she was slower. “Nice sword by the way.”

“Thanks. It was a gift from Estella. It’s a mithril sword.” Artreus held the sword up for Micaela to see.

“Wow a mitril sword. That’s hella expensive. Better not lose it.” With that she didn’t say another word until they finished their meal.

+++

Dragging the bandit as they ventured outside the cave, a total of 32 people, including Artreus and Micaela finally got out of the dark cave. It was a brutal journey, but they saved a lot of people, all of them women.

“Where to next?” Artreus asked the woman beside him.

“First we will escort the girls to the nearest town. In this case the town of Dorne. Then we will report the cave we have cleared and let the officials take care of the corpses, and the horde of loot within.”

“So you’re just going to give away all the treasures that the bandits stole? I didn’t realize that you’re this generous.”

“It’s not that stupid. Take all those treasures and we will surely find a dagger on our backs. Not from bandits, but from that snot nosed merchants.”

“Miss Micaela is right. A handful of jewels or a chest full of gold might be overlooked. But from what we found in the storage and that bastards personal vault, the amount of gold and goods that they stole was so great that you could open a medium to large business in a large city with change to spare.” Estella explained. “If we don’t return it first to a town, merchants who had their goods stolen will surely hold grudge that you stole from them and retaliate.” Giving him a reassuring look, she continued. “But don’t worry Mr. Cloud. For recovering items from bandits and thieves, the city or town will reward you with a finders’ fee out of their own pockets. The finders’ fee might be a small pittance compared to all the treasures we found. But after a month, if no one claimed the goods with proper documents, all the uncollected items will lawfully become your possession.”

“The White Wolves’ possession.” Micaela huffed.

“Since Mr. Artreus also fought, shouldn’t he get half?” Estella interjected.

Micaela looked irritated, but quickly changed into a smile. “Fine. Let it be known that the White Wolves are a fair Adventurers Party.”

“Speaking about your party. Are you not worried about Drogo and the others? They should be facing a Manticore by now.” He asked the red-hair as the continued their leisure walk towards the town.

“Of course not.” Between Artreus’ confusion and Estella’s gasp of fear, Micaela sighed and continued. “They would handle it. You may think that you are strong, but the old man is times stronger than you. Even if he fail to handle the beast on his own, with Claus’ marksmanship and his beasts, along with Porsha’s magic, a beast like a manticore wouldn’t stand a chance against them.”

“If you say so.” Artreus muttered. Drogo is indeed strong, that was evident when they first clashed. Artreus was using the maximum power his body could handle and it was still not enough to even leave a scratch on the man. The bastard Claus was also skilled. A beast wouldn’t realize that he was there until it get shot by his crossbow. His pets were also formidable. In regards to the eyepatch bandaged woman, he hasn’t seen her in action, but when he looks at her, it feels like he was staring at a deep well filled with water.

They continued their travel when suddenly, he felt an evil Aura coming from the direction where Drogo and the others went to.

Micaela turned towards him, it looks like she also felt it.

Pausing for a moment as they think of what they will do next, Artreus finally spoke. “Escort the women to the nearest town.”

“What are you planning to do?” Asked Micaela.

“I will go check on the others. That Aura was strong enough to be felt this far away. They might need help.”

“Then I’ll go and you take the others to safety.” She says as she stare straight to his eyes.

“No.” He replied. Seeing that she wouldn’t budge, he reasoned with her. “Don’t be stubborn. We can’t both go to their aid and leave these women without protection. I can use support magic. If Drogo and the others are in trouble, my magic will surely help.”

She paused as her mind goes into overdrive, trying to find a reason so that she could go instead of him. But after a minute, she let out a sigh. “Okay. Go. Just be sure to save them if they are in trouble.”

“Mr. Cloud, please be careful.” Estella held her hand in a prayer.

“Of course. Do not worry. Everything will be fine.” Raising the sword that she gave him, he flashed them a reassuring smile before running towards the direction where he felt the evil aura.

Such power. Is what they were facing just a manticore? This strength is times stronger than ones he faced before. Artreus thougt. But even as he marches towards a battle he might not be able to return from, he felt no fear.

Instead, his heart was filled with unwavering courage.

This is why he’s been sent here for.

To eradicate evil from the world. May it be from human or beasts.