"So, this is the place you live in?" Kyle asked as they came to the rundown shack, where Otto stayed for the past few weeks. The area was filled with cut down logs as well as several wooden targets with arrows punctured in them. It resembled a small training field, which was disorganized.
"Hmmm… not bad. You are missing some equipment, but it sure is a good place to train at." The middle-aged man said. Walking over at one of the targets, he nodded his head in approval. "I see that you're also pretty good with using the bow. The arrows sure are ni…" he could not finish his sentence as he looked at a faraway target in surprise.
Wondering why he stopped midsentence, all gazes were fixed on him. Realizing that his attention drifted away, the surrounding men followed his line of sight. Their eyes narrowed as they tried to make out the object from a far away distance. It looked familiar. It seemed like a target with a few arrows on it, they thought. As they made a closer look, they noticed that the target was somewhat different. As they scrutinized the entirety of the target, gasps of awe echoed in the forest.
"A… Are those… fire arrow marks?" one of the men asked in surprise.
The middle-aged man nodded. "It indeed is… what is more, it seems as if the arrow was infused with magic."
"Magic? You sure about that sir?" one of the younger men asked in a shocked tone. As he did, his gaze was fixed at Otto. "Does that mean that he…"
The middle-aged man nodded. "It seems that way. If there has not been anyone else who shot these arrows, I think that he is indeed able to shoot arrows infused with fire magic." Looking directly at Otto, he asked, "Kid, did you shoot these arrows?"
Instead of replying, Otto nodded with a scared expression. He did not know that something like that would cause such an uproar. He was afraid that the surrounding men would again be guarded against him.
"Mind showing us your ability?" the middle-aged man asked with a bright smile on his face. His interest towards Otto was clearly visible, as he locked his eyes on Otto. Not evading his eyes, he nodded his head, as if he was thinking about something.
Slowly taking out his bow, Otto looked at the middle-aged man, as if he was expecting a confirmation to continue.
"You don't have to be scared, kid. I am again sorry for our previous reaction towards you. Right guys?"
The surrounding men directly nodded. There was still a noticeable shame on their faces. Some even looked at the ground, trying to avoid contact.
With those words, Otto took out one of his remaining few arrows and aimed towards one of the targets. Slowly closing his eyes, the concentration started. The blazing feeling deep inside of him started to build up the moment his eyelids touched each other. Concentrating on this blazing feeling, a thread slowly was pulled away. Following the pathways in his body, the thread slowly ended up in his palms. The most difficult part for Otto was to extend this feeling to the outside from his pathways into a foreign object. However having it done several times, the process took considerably less time.
The gasps of the surrounding were the cue for him to open his eyes. As the lids slowly parted, Otto was greeted by a small flame, which engulfed the tip of the arrow. It looked as if the fire embraced the arrowhead, as the flame peacefully danced in circles.
"H… How did you do that…?" one of the men asked. There was a clear disbelieve in his voice.
"Impressive!" the middle-aged man said.
Even Kyle could not help but awe in amazement. "That looks amazing! Mike. Do you think that I will also be able to do stuff like that soon?"
The middle-aged man replied, "Maybe in due time young master. We still have a lot of training to do before that time." He then looked back at Otto and said, "Why don't you release the arrow towards the target. I am interested in seeing the effect of the impact."
Nodding silently, Otto aimed at the target and released the arrow. The fire enhanced arrow arched through the air making its way towards one of the many targets. As the arrow impacted the target, a small explosion formed at the spot it hit. A fire started to erupt from the wooden target. However, this did not last long as the magical potency within the arrow was still lacking. As the fire quickly subsided, a small charred spot formed on the target.
"I see. You still lack real power, but the basics are there." Mike, the middle-aged man, said as he was slowly making his way towards Otto. "Can I see your bow?"
Holding the bow up, Otto passed the bow towards Mike.
"This is sure a well-made bow… It almost looks like the bow is … made by elves."As he said those words, there was a guarded look towards Otto.
"Elves? This gets more and more mysterious." The surrounding men whispered.
Otto simply nodded. Noticing the guarded look on Mike, he explained the situation. "My mentor used to be a wood elf. She said that she was from Occirbia Confederate."
"Oh, I would love to meet her. Where is she now? Do you still have contact with her?"
"S…She got taken… By the bandits…" Otto replied in a soft voice.
"Oh… I am sorry kid." Mike said in a disappointed voice, as he gave the bow back to him.
"Sir! I think that there were some rumors spreading around a few years back… Maybe this had something to do with her?" one of the men said in a calm voice.
"Oh, you mean the story about bandits attacking a few villages up north. And an elf which stopped them, killing several of the high ranked members?"
The man that spoke previously eagerly nodded.
"That might indeed be the case… If it is like that I fear that the bandits have taken her to the lawless territory of Res'Impio." Looking back at Otto Mike spoke in a soft voice, "I am sorry kid for everything that you had to witness."
Otto did not reply at all. He only had a saddened look on his face as he was hearing all the stories. 'I know at least know where those bastards live. When I grow older, I will make sure that they suffer.' Otto thought to himself.
For the rest of the day, they talked a bit around about several small subjects. Otto continued to show his skills and received several pointers to improve upon. Overall, Mike, Kyle, and the surrounding men were impressed with the skills that Otto showed them. Otto also discovered that the armed men were actually knights and guards tasked with protecting Kyle. They all served the Jaeger family.
As the sun finally had settled, Otto stood up to make his way towards the village. They had discussed during the day that it was best for Otto to sneak into the village during the night. Getting in and out unnoticed would become easier this way.
"Don't take too long kid. We still have some ways to go." Pointing to one of the knights he continued, "Take Rudy with you. He is good at sneaking in and out of places. He will also be able to protect you if something happens."
One of the younger knights directly stood up and nodded towards Mike. Turning towards Otto, he spoke up, "Lead the way kid. We should act quickly."
With that, the two made their way towards the village, in the cover of the night. Their journey did not take long, as Otto quickly led Rudy towards the village.
"Which house is it?"
Pointing at the largest building in the village, Otto replied, "That is the chief's house. Mira is over there."
"I see. This will be a bit more challenging than I initially thought. Anyway, follow me." With that, Rudy took the helm of the journey this time.
As the village was not walled, it was considerably easier getting into the village. Moreover, there were no real patrols surrounding the area. Because of this, the journey became considerably quicker. Hiding behind some of the houses, they easily dodged their way around the numbered patrols.
"Well, here we are kid. It is now up to you to find the girl and get out there undetected."
Nodding, Otto looked around to make sure that no one was around. Even Rudy did the same, to make sure that Otto did not miss anyone, before letting him leave.
Having lived in the house for over two years, Otto was familiar with it. He knew where to go and what to avoid. Listening closely for any sound, he slowly opened up the door to take a peek inside. There was a dim fire burning at the fireplace. Luckily there was no one around in the common room. Making sure one more time, he slowly entered the room.
The dim fire barely lit the interior, however, it was enough to make out what was in the room. Given the time of the day, Otto expected that the household was already gone to bed.
Taking a left, Otto went slowly towards the room where Mira should be staying. Slowly pushing the door open, Otto quickly tried to scan the interior. However, due to the light not reaching into the room, it was difficult to make out the shapes in the room.
Slowly making his way towards the bedside, Otto spoke in a soft voice, "Mira. Mira wake up."
There was no reaction at all. Making his way closer to the bed, he took a quick glance at the one lying in the bed. It was indeed the little girl. Seeing her lying in the bed peacefully, the heart of Otto softened up. There was a small smile forming upon his face.
Gently poking her, Otto again called out to Mira, "Wake up Mira."
"Wh… Wo is tere?" a soft and sleepy soft replied back. Slowly getting up, Mira rubbed her eyes trying to wake up a bit. As her eyes slowly regained its vision, she was met with the gentle smile of Otto. "B… Boter?" Mira asked in a tone as if she was not believing what she saw.
"Yes, it is me Mira."
"Boter!" Mira called out, as she jumped up and went to up to Otto to hug him. "Mia mised boter!" her voice was diminishing, as tears started to swell in her eyes.
"Don't cry Mira, I am here. I will not leave you anymore!" Slowly closing his eyes, his eyes started to water up. "I have missed you." After a moment of rejoicing, his tone changed to one filled with determination, "I actually came here to get you." Otto said in a soft voice.
Turning her head in confusion, Mira looked directly at Otto. She did not directly catch what he meant. Her look was as if she was expecting some explanation.
Seeing this, the cold feeling in his heart eased up. With a gentle smile, he explained the situation. "I met this guy called Kyle. He is apparently some lord around the area. He wants me to go with him."
"No! Not leaf Mia!" the girl said, clinging to Otto.
"Don't worry! I will not leave you anymore! No matter what!" with a determined tone Otto spoke. Enjoying the kind embrace of the girl, he continued his story. During this, he explained that the noble called Kyle has invited him to go to the castle with him. Moreover, he had accepted the proposal of bringing Mira with him.
Hearing those words, Mira looked with a sparkle in her eyes. "Can Mia go wit boter?"
Nodding his head Otto replied, "Yes. If Mira wants to come with me, Mira can come along!"
Without any thought, the girl directly agreed to go with him. Standing up, she quickly changed her clothes.
Noticing this, Otto's face started to turn red, as the girl was changing her clothes in front of him. Avoiding his gaze, Otto felt embarrassed.
Before long, the girl tapped on his shoulder. "Mia redy to go wit boter."
Looking at the girl, Otto noticed that she quickly changed her clothes to something that would be easier to travel. As he was about to leave, he remembered that it was maybe a smart idea to bring extra clothes with them, just in case. Quickly picking up a few random clothes, they wrapped it up and slowly went to the door.
"Listen closely Mira. Do not make any sound until we leave the village. Understood?"
Seeing that the girl nodded, Otto slowly opened up the door. By the time he was at the girl's room, the fire had died already. However, as there was no one in the common room, he held the hand of Mira and made his way towards the front door. Quickly exiting the house, he rushed over to the location where Rudy was at.
Meeting up again with Rudy, they carefully made their way out of the village and towards the shack where Otto stayed for the past few weeks.
…