< 231 Hours, 23 minutes, 20 seconds. >
The countdown indicating when Lux had to leave Leaf Village had started to move. However, the Half-Elf was currently being jostled around the center of the Plaza by his Master, Randolph, who had a merry face, while he held a mug of mead in his hands.
"Hahaha! My Disciple is so awesome!"
"Um. Do you know that this boy is my Disciple? You don't? Well, now you know! I taught this brat everything he knows!"
"Yes. the moment I saw him, I knew he was the one. Because of this, I made sure to teach him the basics, and look at him now, he's so… tall, right?"
"Hahaha! Of course, I was the one that raised this boy since he was a weeee lad. What? You don't believe me? Tsk, can't you see the resemblance of our faces? Both of us are handsome!"
Lux was doing his best to keep the smile on his face from stiffening as his Master paraded him around, bragging to everyone that they met on how he raised him to be a strong adventurer.
Only when Grandma Annie whacked him repeatedly with her walking stick out of irritation, did the old Dwarf stop bragging and leave Lux alone.
The Half-Elf looked at a quiet place as he raised the mug of mead in his lips to take a sip. If his Grandma Vera was there, she would give Lux a disapproving look because he was still not of drinking age.
Even so, since the occasion was special, Lux allowed himself to enjoy this moment, even though the drink he was drinking was quite bitter.
A large bonfire was set up at the center of the plaza, while several smaller ones could be seen everywhere. Half of Leaf Village had been destroyed, and there were many things that needed to be done when morning came.
Giving those who died their last rites, and giving them a proper burial.
Sending the orphaned children to the Stronghold of Norria to be kept safe until the orphanage that Cedwyn had proposed was built.
Rebuilding the houses that were destroyed.
There were so many things that had to be done, but for tonight, everyone was just thankful to be alive.
As the one who played a big role in saving the village, Lux was treated as a hero by everyone. The Dwarves from Elysium and Solais would look at Lux in admiration and respect, which made the Half-Elf feel bashful.
In the past, Lux had hungered for recognition.
He wanted to prove to everyone that he wasn't useless.
He wanted his Grandma to be proud of his achievements as a way to repay her for raising him with love and care.
More than anything else, he wanted to go to Elysium, so that his goals could be achieved.
But, no one knew how hard he worked in order to achieve what he had today.
How many times he risked his life in order to gain the power to protect those that were important to him.
All everyone saw was his greatness, and no one knew about his failures and hardships. Even so, Lux felt that his suffering and hardships had just started.
"Eiko, we'll stay in Leaf Village for a while to help repair the houses that were destroyed," Lux said as he lightly patted the baby Slime that sat on his lap. "After that, we'll go to the Intermediate Town to look for Colette and the others. I don't know if they went straight to Whitebridge City where her sister was, but just in case she didn't, we will meet with them first before we head back to Solais to register for the upcoming tournament in Barbatos Academy."
"Pa!" Eiko nodded her head in agreement. After that she jumped on Lux's arms and moved toward the mug of mead in his hand.
However, before the curious baby Slime could even drink the mead, Lux grabbed her and told Eiko that she was still too young to drink mead. Eiko protested, but after Lux told her that Iris would get mad if he allowed her to drink his mead, the baby Slime stopped being stubborn and crawled back onto Lux's lap, so that her Papa could continue to pat her head.
While the Half-Elf and Baby Slime were having a bonding moment, Cedwyn, the Village Head of Leaf Village, approached Lux with a smile.
"Lux, are you sure you want to give us this Guardian Crystal?" Cedwyn asked as he showed Lux a golden crystal that was a foot tall. "This could fetch a high price, you know?"
"Village head, the lives of the people here in Leaf Village are priceless," Lux replied. "No amount of gold can match Grandma Annie's life, as well as my Master Randolph's life. Knowing that both of them will be safe even after I leave will give me some peace of mind. So, please, take the Guardian Crystal and ensure that Leaf Village will prosper for many years to come."
Cedwyn looked at Lux fondly and nodded his head. For villages located at the edge of the Kingdom of Gweliven, a Guardian Crystal was like a protective charm that ensured that no Monster Outbreaks, or Beast Tides, would dare come their way.
"By the way, Lux, when will you leave Leaf Village?" Cedwyn asked. "Oh, don't misunderstand. I am not forcing you to leave, in fact, I wish that you can stay with us longer. I just want to know so that we can prepare to give you a grand send off before you head to the Intermediate Towns."
Lux smiled as he contemplated a date. In the end, he told Cedwyn that he would be leaving in nine days.
After getting the Half-Elf's promise to attend their grand farewell party, Cedwyn left him alone so that he could have time to himself to think.
After Cedwyn left, several Dwarf children approached Lux in order to have a chat with him.
"It's you guys," Lux said as he looked at the Dwarves who had suddenly appeared near him while he was on his way back to Leaf Village after finishing his last Mythical Quest.
They were the Dwarves that Cedwyn had forcefully teleported away from the village, in order to save them from the monsters that were about to kill them.
These were the same Dwarves that told Lux about the current situation in Leaf Village, which made the Half-Elf use his Boots of Teleportation to arrive at the spawn point of foreigners within the village as fast as he could.
If not for them, he might not have arrived in time to save his Master, Randolph, as well as Grandma Annie and Cedwyn, from the Alpha Monsters' merciless assault.
"Thank you for saving Leaf Village," the Dwarf boy said with admiration.
Lux shook his head. "No. It is me who should be thanking you. If not for you guys, I might not have known that the village was under attack. Thank you very much. Because of you guys, the people important to me are still alive."
The Dwarves then took a log and placed it in front of Lux, where they all sat and asked him to tell them the stories of his travels.
Perhaps due to his good mood, or the effect of the mead he drank, the Half-Elf accepted their request and told them tales about his travels.
Tales of Kobolds, Powerful Orcs, Giant Worms, and Dragons. Tales of hardships and overcoming difficulties, and trusting the bonds between friends.
Soon, the Half-Elf was surrounded by many children, both Elysians and Solains. There were even some adults, namely Grandma Annie, Randolph, Aron, and Boreas, who had come over to hear Lux exploits during his time in the Territory of Norria.
The Dwarf children, as well as the adults, were awed by Lux's fairy-tale-like storytelling. Even Eiko kept on giggling whenever her Papa mentioned her exploits, and the Dwarf children would look at the Blue Slime as if she was a Mythical Beast.
"I'll also get a Slime as my beast companion!"
"Me, too!"
"I'll get one as well."
Lux didn't know if he should laugh or cry at the Dwarf children's desire to have a baby Slime as their first Beast Companion. He and the other adults did their best to convince the children that Eiko was different from the other Slimes that they were familiar with, and they shouldn't take having one as a beast companion lightly.
The children were pacified but only on the surface. Lux didn't know that his casual story telling would bring a trend to the Dwarves of Leaf Village to always have a Slime with them whenever they went on adventures.
In a few years, these same Slimes—that were reared in Leaf Village—and their owners, would do incredible feats which would shake the entirety of the Kingdom of Gweliven in the unforeseeable future.
But, that was a story that will be told another time.
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