"…"
"…"
(What?!)
Hearing the words of Alice, I stared at her intensely; her pink-coloured eyes had a tint of resolve presented within them.
(Is she serious?)
I wondered. As I subconsciously turned my head towards Alya, who went silent. The front bangs of her long green hair were covering her face, making it difficult to see her expression. However, for some reason, a chill went down my spine from the pressure surrounding her body.
"So… what do you say? Will you help me?"
Alice asks sincerely.
"…I?"
I froze, unable to come up with an answer.
"Hey, don't you think you're getting a little carried away. Why do you think we will accept a reward like that?"
Alya said with a smile that wasn't an actual smile. Alice gazed at Alya with a determined look.
"I'm certain I could make Sir Haruto happy, please, I don't want any more of my precious villagers to be hurt."
She said as she lowered her head. Hearing her words, I made a contemplative face. While I could easily tell she was genuine about her wish to save her village, I honestly couldn't tell whether she was genuine about her decision to offer herself as a reward.
"Listen here, little miss. He already has an amazing partner, me! Haruto doesn't need anymore."
Alya said in a somewhat annoyed tone. Seeing the two of them arguing, I sighed quietly before stepping in between them.
CLAP, CLAP!
"Okay, that's enough, you two. We will talk more about this later. So, can you lead us into the directions of your village?"
I said, changing the topic. Alice's eyes sparkled brilliantly as she held my hands.
"Please follow me."
She said, before pulling me into the western parts of the forest.
"Hmph."
As she led the way, I pretended not to hear Alya snorting with a displeased face. When I glanced over my shoulder, I saw her following us silently from behind.
We started walking in the direction where many rays of sunlight could be seen passing through the tree gaps. After walking for approximately 20 minutes, a nearby village became visible to my eyes.
Though the village seems to be in rather bad condition if I'm to be honest, we were now 40 feet away from the village. It had many old and dirty pieces of board separating the village from the outer perimeter of the forest.
However, I couldn't help but feel a despondent atmosphere when I took a closer look at the field within the village.
The plantation fields were all dried up, and there were many dead plants everywhere I looked. The villagers all wore old and torn clothing. And looked like they were suffering from starvation.
"Hmm… things seem as bad as I thought."
I muttered out loud. Alya, who was standing on my left, nodded her head, though she didn't say anything.
"It looks like they are still there."
Alice said as she gazed at her village in the far distance.
"Hmm… how do you know that?"
I ask curiously.
"You see, it became hot at this time, the villagers would always be working on the garden, but the fields are completely deserted, which means those adventurers were most likely still there."
She explained.
"I see, so those guys are still here then… good, that means I can at least persuade them to leave."
"I highly doubt they will be so cooperative, though."
Alya said. I could only nod my head, agreeing with her.
"Mm"
Suddenly, I felt danger as I looked behind us and promptly turned my head.
SWOOSH~
Suddenly, a knife came flying straight at me at high speed. However, with quick movements, I casually caught the knife between my middle and index fingers.
(If my magic sense wasn't active, I wouldn't have noticed someone was behind me.)
I thought as I looked in the direction from which the knife came.
"I already know you're hiding behind a tree. Why don't you come out?"
I said, gazing at the tree where I felt the two mana seconds ago. Alya also looked at the large tree straight ahead before making a small gesture with her hands. She swung her delicate hand softly. No sooner than she did, a strong gale flew towards the tree.
SWOOSH~
The giant tree, which stood tall as a mountain, was severed cleanly in half from the trunk.
BOOM!!!!
The upper body of the tree was then tossed and sent flying deep inside the forest. All that was left was the lower body of the tree, which measured 4 cm; the body of a man could easily be seen standing where the tree once stood tall.
"…. Wasn't that a bit much?"
I said with a wry smile, meanwhile, Alice had a dumbfounded look on her face as she gazed at what used to be a large tree measuring approximately 50 cm.
"Although I don't know who you are, or what your intentions are, I'll turn you into mincemeat if you don't apologise to my partner right now!"
Alya declared in a strong tone, as her killing intent spread through the forest.
After 10 seconds of silence, the sound of footsteps was audible to my ear. Soon, the silhouette of two figures became visible, and they continued walking until they reached a distance close enough to converse.
Their facial features were now clearly visible. One was a skinny bald man with a scar on the left side of his eyebrow, while the other was a man with slightly long brown hair, wearing a suit that was clearly made for adventuring.
(So, they're the ones that had been tailing us since we met Alice; their aura is strong. I can easily tell there are no amateurs)
I thought as I approached them.
"Excuse me, Mister… I'm Haruto. I'd like to ask if you could please not bother the village anymore."
I said while showing a friendly smile. I honestly hope we don't have to fight. Hearing my words, the two men looked silently at each other.
"Hah, bwhahaha."
"Haha... kukukuku."
They both let out hearty laughter. Alice, Alya and I made a confused face.
(Did I say something funny?)
I was completely confused. After laughing for a few minutes, they finally showed a serious face.
"Hey, kid, you seem to have dressed well; you also have quite a lot of luggage there. Leave it and get lost if you don't want to die."
The bald man with the split eyebrow said in a strong tone.
(Hmm… even after seeing what Alya did to that tree, they still have this much confidence)
"As for that woman with the green hair, I want you. You seemed to have a strong personality. But it's good, we'll see how strong your personality is when I'm done."
The skinny man with brown hair said as he licked his lips. A shiver went down Alya's spine when seeing that. I position my body at an angle where Alice would be safe behind me. I also send my mana through the atmosphere from a range of twenty kilometres, with this, it should be impossible for us to get sneak attacks even from behind.
"So, you're not going to leave here quietly? It's a pity, but it seems I'm really going to have to sully my hands."
I said in a disappointed tone. Hearing my words, the man's face became red with anger.
"You! What did you just say, kid?! I'll kill you—!"
SWOOSH~
The brown-haired man roared when his word was cut off by an object that was sent flying in his direction at great speed. Before he could finish, I threw his knife towards his left ear, which managed to graze it slightly. Half of his ear was completely separated from the rest. The brown-haired man held his left ear as he felt pain.
"Sorry, it was my bad. I wanted to aim for your head; it seems I still have a long way to go."
I said sarcastically. My aim was actually perfect. If I had really wanted to go for his head, I doubt I would have really missed.
"Tch, bastard!!"
He shouted as he grabbed his sword, which was sheathed on his back. He then ran towards me with brisk steps.
With quick motion, I drew my sword that was sheathed on my waist before clashing with his sword. Sparks flew as our sword made contact.
"Well, Missy, it seems it's your unlucky day. I'll be dealing with you personally for that attack you fired earlier. And just so you know, I won't hold back just because you're a woman."
He said as a strong glint was present in his eyes. Alya watched him with an uninterested expression.
"Why don't you go find the hair that is supposed to be on top of your head? Maybe because you bark so much, your hair got sick of your yapping and ran away."
Alya said in a mocking tone while gazing at his bald head, which seemed to clearly reflect the light of the sun.
"What did you just say?!!!"
The bald man's figure completely disappeared from his spot. At least that's what it looked like to Alice, who was looking at the surroundings confusedly. However, Alya could easily see his movements. She promptly moved her head to the side, and as soon as she did, the sound of something cutting through the air became audible as a broad sword missed her by a hair's breadth. She jumped backwards to distance herself from the bald man.
"Hm."
Alya gazed downward and saw strands of her long green hair lying on the ground, and frowned.
"It seems I underestimate you, but now you just made a wind spirit mad."
She said, as her lips twisted into a cold smile, which appeared on her face.