It was the third day of travelling. Satos felt that the party was coming closer to exiting the forest, judging from the remnants of human activity along the route that was somewhat new. Also, a dirt path has appeared which meant they were getting closer to the entrance of the forest. Perhaps, in half a day or so, they would be able to leave the forest.

Actually, the reason why they were getting closer to the exit so easily was because the group had not met any harm or accidents along the way. The way back was comparable to a walk in the park compared to the time when they had entered the forest.

Satos casted a side-long glance at the girl happily skipping in front of him.

Suddenly—

“?!”

The girl suddenly collapsed.

She fell directly, face-first to the ground.

“—Are you alright?! Hey, wake up!” Hunter A quickly reached for the girl, shaking her unconscious body urgently.

Even after a few moments of violent shaking, the girl still did not show any movements. She appeared as if she was in deep sleep.

“We’re close to the exit! Let’s hurry up!” Being the leader, Satos did not lose his cool. Immediately, he carried up the girl in his arms.

“Leader, go take her to a healer first! We’ll follow behind.” Hunter B who was supporting their injured comrade responded.

Satos nodded. Hunter A snapped out of his daze and ran after his leader half a beat later. A slight hint of discomfort flashed in his heart, but he quickly shook it off as there was more pressing matters at hand. He felt worry over the unconscious girl.

They ran at full speed non-stop for almost an hour. Soon after, a large wall overtook the scenery of the horizon, signifying that they have almost arrived at the town’s gate facing the forest.

“Make way!” Satos loudly shouted as they closed the gate. The gatekeepers jumped in fright but quickly moved out of the way, leaving them to freely pass through the gate.

Without a pause in his steps, Satos deftly followed the directions in his head. He had become Argen Town’s permanent resident many years ago and thus was familiar with the place. Although Argen Town was not as dangerous as the main frontiers, it was still considered to be a dangerous place as it bordered the Argen Hollow Forest. He frequently joined parties and expeditions in the forest, thus he was quite familiar with the healer’s clinic.

After almost running into the clinic’s front door, he quickly hollered for a healer.

A woman in a white robe lined with gold soon appeared. As the clinic was owned by the Church, the healers all wore the robes of the Church members.

“Healer, please take a look at this girl,” Satos said in between laborious breaths.

The healer did not mind his hastiness, and immediately casted a spell to check the girl’s condition. After confirming her wellbeing, she creased her eyebrows. It seems like nothing is wrong?

“She’s fine. There’s nothing wrong with the girl.”

“But that’s impossible! Healer, she suddenly collapsed a while ago and is not waking up at all,” Hunter A’s eyes widened. He saw the girl fall unconscious without any rhyme or reason with his own eyes, how could he not worry? He persistently inquired the healer to inspect her condition again.

“It seems like she’s just asleep. Perhaps she will wake up soon,” the healer assured them.

After being repeatedly coaxed that nothing was wrong with the girl, the two was finally chased out. The healer did not even bother to collect her check-up fees from them.

The two walked desolately over to their designated inn.

Satos still held the girl in his arms. Suddenly, he felt as if people were watching them. He glanced around, thinking that although they were dirty and unkempt after travelling through the forest for a long time, it was not like it was rare for dirty adventurers and hunters to roam the town. He almost forgot that the girl’s features were not very common. Though her face was shielded by his arms, her long, white hair and dainty legs could still be seen.

Unbeknownst to him, the gazes of the public was not the only thing he should be guarding against.