"You know, the kids at the village really like me." Hedin chuckled as he walked along the dirt path. Right beside him was the blue haired maid, Rem.
The sun had slanted west and sent lengthened shadows across the land. The trees on both sides seemed like towering behemoths standing in protection against the unknown. A wall of defence.
They walked down towards the only village in the vicinity, Arlam Village.
"I believe you." Rem said professionally. "Kids tend to like people that look cool."
"Thank you for the compliment." Hedin chuckled, holding his hand and keeping it to his chest.
Rem's small smile couldn't be mistaken.
One of the maids' would go to the village every three weeks to restock on food and other supplies. Today just so happened to be that day and Hedin, having nothing to do until his language lesson later in the evening, decided to tag along.
"The village is quite nice." Hedin said, donning his hat again. He was in his hunter outfit. At this point, it seemed natural on his body. Anything else felt wrong. It didn't help that he didn't have his weapon with him at all times. He had not even had the need to use his pistol since arriving here. "Just a small little settlement on the countryside. It's peaceful here. Far from the usual chagrin of the big cities."
"Many in the village wish to move to a large city. Some adults even want to move to the capital." Rem chimed.
Hedin gave her a side long look.
"You talk to them?"
"What is that supposed to mean?" Rem, although still kept her voice professional, couldn't hold the slightest playful edge in her tone.
"You seem a bit too professional to talk about anything but your work. With the villagers no less." Hedin said with a chuckle.
"I assure you, I am perfectly capable of socializing with seeming too uptight."
"Somehow, I don't doubt that."
Hedin looked to the sky. There, a black bird was circling. Raven was always with him.
Such feathered companions were like another sense to the hunter. They gave information where the hunter wasn't able to gather it. It, of course, made it all the better that they could clone themselves.
Magic is pretty useful huh. Hedin remembered Roswaal flying to the capital just earlier today. It was a mix of Earth, Wind and Yang magic.
Maybe if I contract some spirits, I might eventually be able to fly too... might need to delve into spirit arts. While flying using glory was plausible, it was not for his level of skill.
I should ideally discuss it over with Emilia. Hedin decided. His interactions with Emilia had become a regular thing. Every morning, they would sit in the garden and talk about random topics. He would tell her tales of his own world - the history of the Order of the Hunt and she would tell him of her usual routine and new things she learnt everyday.
At this point, everyone in the mansion had been made aware that he had come from beyond the great waterfall. Beatrice was pretty stoked to hear that Hedin's world was round. Now imagine Hedin's surprise when he found out that this world was a flat disk.
He did not know the specifics, but he was sure some laws of science were being violated here.
Then again, magic and the miracle weren't very scientific in the first place.
Wait, weren't the scientists doing something like trying to harness the miracle to power machines? Something about making stars trapped in bottles or making perpetual motion engines? Or something like that? In all honestly, it was all hocus pocus to his ears. He understood the miracle pretty well, but if someone told him to explain it to a child in quantifiable and logical ways, he would definitively fail.
Miracle was hardly, if ever, logical. The people that sought to find logic in it were idiots.
In just a short 10 minutes of walking, they had reached the village.
The houses were made out wood with the foundation laying in stone. The settlement was sprawled over an area of about 700 meters in length and 500 meters in width, at least in raven's eyes. Sometimes, it was hard to tell from so high up.
"I will go and get everything ready." Rem bid him goodbye and he was left alone.
Instantly, the villagers noticed them and came to greet.
"Oh! Hedin! How have you been? You didn't come in the morning so we were worried you were sick or something!" An elderly woman came forward and offer him and appa. It was none other than Milde Arlam, the head of Arlam Village.
"Don't worry, grandma. It's not easy to get me sick." Hedin chuckled and took a bite.
The villagers were very kind and offered all kinds of treats whenever he came over. Especially the elderly. He had learned on the first day how difficult it was to reject them.
"The kids were plenty bummed out about it. You better make it up to them! Hahaha!" A bearded man with hair like steel ringmail laughed. He patted him on the shoulder and Hedin chuckled along.
"Speaking of, where are they?" He asked.
"They're on the other side of the village, near the edge of the forest." One of the villagers replied and after bidding them goodbye and getting another appa handed to him, he walked away.
Absently, he took another bite and prompted raven to tell him where the kids were.
They were a rowdy bunch. His first day, they had tried to take his hat off and run away with it. He had played along out of curiosity and they hid the hat away, claiming that it was taken by a 'witch beast' and that he should 'slay the monster to get it back.'
Lucas and Dine wanted to be great warriors and to join the knight order. They were an energetic bunch. Cain wanted to be a merchant and Mild wished to adventure far beyond Lugunica and travel the world. As for Meina and Petra, their goals hadn't been defined yet.
Hedin envied that child like wonder about the world. Each dream so grandiose, each aspiration dreamt without shame and so hopelessly hopeful about the future. Here they were, unburdened by the world, unbroken.
He truly envied it.
"Hello people." Hedin greeted the kids as he walked out from behind a house.
Aah~
The kids screamed out in surprise as they collectively turned around.
And as they did, Hedin suddenly noticed another one among them.
Meili, he thought to himself. He had seen her yesterday. She was a traveller's daughter and would staying in the village for another day.
"Big bro!"
"You scared us!"
"You bully!"
The kids whined in protest as they saw him approach.
Some of them ran over and pulled on his trench coat.
"Why didn't you come in the morning?"
"We were waiting to play!"
"My training would fall behind!"
The last sentence was said by none other than Lucas. He had playfully decided to give them some sword training. At least to the extent he could teach a child. Turns out, he was not a very good teacher.
"I wasn't able to come today." He chuckled. "I had some boring reading to do."
Hearing his words, they instantly cringed. Books. The bane of all children.
"Hmph! Still! I won't talk to you now!"
Meld, the chubby kid turned his back with a snort. Mimicking him, many of the others also did the same.
Hedin and Petra exchanged a glance and then collectively sighed.
"Alright then! What can I do to make up for it?" He smiled.
"Piggyback!" Instantly, like sharks smelling blood, the kids turned with stars in their eyes.
Hedin smiled wryly.
"What are you waiting around here for?"
"There was a small puppy here." Petra replied, pointing further into the forest. "It ran away into the woods. We were wondering what to do."
Arlam Village was at the edge of a Wolgram nest. Actually, most forests in Lugunica were reduced to mabeast breeding grounds. They were culled on a regular basis to make sure no lasting damage occurred but Arlam was one of those villages where one could never be too sure.
The forest around was dense and pressed in on each side. Some Wolgrams would always be missed.
As such, the village was lined all around by magic barriers. Blue stones that repelled witch beasts.
Hedin's expression instantly turned a bit serious as he looked into the forest where Petra had pointed.
"A puppy, you say?"
"That's right!" The kids exclaimed collectively.
It ran away huh...
Hedin couldn't accurately rely on Raven to scout the woods. That is, unless he made him split.
The forest was dark to begin with. And with the slanting sun, the lengthening shadows made it all the more menacing and hard to see.
But what was the dark against a hunter?
Shiiii!
A sun bloomed inside each of his eyes and the shadows receded from his vision.
Everything became bright as day and his gaze pierced into the woods.
There, lying at the base of a tree was a small dog with a bald forehead. It looked at him standing in the light with a strange gaze.
Hedin instantly got a bad feeling from the dog.
It's not rabid is it? It might bite one of the kids. He thought worriedly but then shook those thoughts away.
If it was, he would simply have to put it down.
Rabies was not a laughing matter.
With measured steps, he moved between the trees. His eyes scanned the barrier. An amorphous dome that surrounded the village, semi-fluid like in nature.
He felt himself pass through, and instantly, felt a chill down his spine.
Whoooo~
The wind suddenly began to howl in his ears and his instincts reacted. He looked towards the deepest recesses of the forest. There, a pair of glowing eyes watched him.
Hedin snorted at the dog like beast and pointed a finger at it. And his lips moved in synchronicity.
"Jiwald."
The word cut through the air like a blade and a bright light flashed.
Shiiii!
The sound of hot air.
The dog fell over, a hole in it's skull. The skin around it had been charred and the tree right behind it was pierced right through, sizzling from the attack.
There was no big wind up. A flash of light and a life taken.
"Magic sure is convenient." Hedin muttered to himself. If the hunters had to use long range attacks they would often use their pistols and channel bullets made out of the light of dusk. Magic only made it easier. Only a single word had to be spoken.
"Woooow!"
"So cool!"
"Big bro can also use magic!"
"What did he shoot at?"
Behind him, the kids buzzed with activity in the safety of the barrier.
Hedin turned around and gave them a thumbs up with a smile.
Then, turning around, he walked to the puppy and kneeled down. The bald dog looked at him with a blank gaze, it's tongue still flopped out like any other dog.
He couldn't help but narrow his eyes.
This is... strange. He did not know why, but the dog triggered all the wrong buttons for him. Perhaps it was just his paranoia acting up.
He had seen plenty of situations where blasphemous beasts would hide as helpless creatures. As he sat there, genuflecting, he could not get himself to extend his hand.
Finally, he held out his hand to pat the dog.
Woof!
Instantly, the dog barred it's teeth and snapped at his hand.
Smack!
"It is rabid. Good thing it didn't bite any of the kids." Hedin looked at the dog in his hand. He had grabbed it from the neck and was holding it right up to his face.
The dog flailed it's small appendages all around, trying to get free.
"Sorry little friend. I have to put you down." He sighed and activated the light of dusk.
Just then, he stopped.
Probably not a good idea to do it in front of the kids though... He smiled wryly.
Duuuuun!
He turned his face, so fast that looked as if he had twisted it. His hackles stood on edge and a deep sense of foreboding began to bloom in his chest.
Sweat began to form on his head.
Speaking of... why was that mabeast so close to the village? Shouldn't the barrier keep them away?
Just then, a thought blossomed.
Fuck. His eyes lit up like two miniature suns saw through the forest. Hundreds of eyes lay in wait in between the trees, slowly inching closer and closer.
He had failed to notice them.
Again... just because I'm so used to sensing blasphemy, I overlook the others dangers that are here...
He looked at the dog that was still snapping it's head at him.
"Drop the act." He called out. The dog flailed around harder. "I know what you are. I can sense the same aura around the others that you have."
He might have mistaken the aura around one dog. But such a large bunch?
The dog stopped it's act. It laid in his hand, without moving. It's blank eyes were especially eerie.
"The real question is..." Hedin stood up, his trench coat straightening out. With his free hand, he shifted his hat to sit better on his head. The shadows fell all around him, enveloping him in the darkness. And then, with his glowing eyes, he gazed out towards the village. "Who was it that messed with the barrier?"
...
Throw some stones plz.
Get this fanfic into the top 20 of the rankings! Common people! Put your backs into it!
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A/N: Read upto 10 advanced chapters on my patreon: patreon . c o m/Yesnth Just remove the spaces from between.
Cheers~