"Why?"
"Well, before we met you, things were hard. The three of us weren't exactly strong, we were uncoordinated, and we always got stuck with the low quests that wouldn't help us level at all. Then you came and we all slowly got stronger because of you. You may say rotten things at times, and I can see you think some rotten things too, but you're a good person."
"I've no idea what you mean," I said. "Sure, I'll help people in need, but I'm not a good person. I hate a lot of people. I hated y'all when I first met you. You were all annoying and always stared at me. I hated it."
"You make no sense. You hate people but will save them if they need it? And that last part is because you just hate people staring at you in general." I shrugged a reply.
I really don't see myself as a good person, not in the slightest. I don't like people and I don't want them talking to me, my party was an exception to this though. Of course, I'd help people, it's what any human should do. So me doing it doesn't make me any better than then next person who helps someone else.
"Man, is it me or is it getting hotter," I pulled on the collar of my shirt. It felt like it gotten ten times hotter since we've been talking.
"Maybe it's because you're wearing all balck, which attracts heat from the sun," she rolled her eyes.
"Whatever," I stood up. I can't take this heat. It was unbearable!
I began taking off my shirt slowly, Rubellia watching every movement I made.
"Um, can you stop stating," I said as I froze halfway through taking it off, my lower stomach exposed.
"Sorry," she quickly looked away as I finished taking it off and threw it on the ground. I felt way better.
"Kichi's shirtless!" Sora's voice rang from across the lake where she had been swimming.
"Stop staring!" I yelled as I covered my body.
"Don't act like that! You have a nice body, show it off," Han called from where he was near the shore.
They weren't wrong. My body was toned. I didn't have abs like Han, but it was still better than what I had in the real world at this age. I can think all the fighting for toning my body up to how it is now. But still...
"Stop starring!!"
The sun had sunk down below the horizon and the first star appeared in the night sky.
Just as I had promised, we were having an eat out. We didn't have a grill, as those didn't exist in the world, but I had Han gather some wood and rocks and I created a small bon fire. We used Han's ax to cut a tree down and make little wood stumps to sit on.
I wasn't good at crafting or anything, but I got four sticks and stuck them in the ground and put a metal gauze over them, making a make shift pan as the fire heated it up.
Patora ,Sora, and Ellie were efficient with bows and arrows, so I had them go and get some fish from the river by shooting them. Together, they collected around fifteen fish. I was only able to fit two on the fire at a time, the other lie in a bucket that we got from the house.
"So, ya do know how ta cook these, righ'?" Ellie asked as I poked the fish with a stick.
"Yeah, I may not seem it, but I'm a pretty decent cook, when it comes to cooking stuff in the wild...." What I meant by that was I couldn't actually prepare a real meal. You can't give me a bunch of ingredients and tell me to make a cake, but hand me a fish and a fire, I can cook that.
"Did your mom teach you?" Patora asked as she, too, poked the fish with a stick.
"No, I taught myself. My parents weren't home much when I was younger, so I learned the bare necessities of cooking. And that's how to cook things and eat them right after. No seasoning or prep needed."
"I see," was all she replied with.
We all sat in silence for a moment before Han sniffed the air.
"The season will be changing soon."
Can he tell by sniffing the air? That's strange.
"Oh yeah, I totally forgot, Lantra will begin soon."
"I hope it's not as bad as it was las' year."
"For real, it was cold as hell."
"Remember two Lantra's ago when..."
Sora, Han, Ellie, and Rubellia conversed amongst each other.
I didn't know anything about this worlds seasons, but I can guess that 'Lantra' was what they called Winter.
"Time sure does fly, doesn't it?" Patora said after they all finished talking. She gazed up at the night sky as she spoke.
Embers from the fire flickered up like fairies dancing in the dark, and as they finished their dance, they'd vanish, as if they fulfilled their purpose.
A purpose, huh... I wonder if I was brought to this world for a purpose?
"Of course you were. You were brought here by the God of Love to fight for her," Yue answered my question.
Sure, she was a helpful AI, even if she didn't seem like one with her 'personality', but the fact she could hear my thoughts was unnerving. I couldn't keep any secrets from her.
Speaking of purpose, I had a group of people that chose to be adventurers, but I wonder what their reason was for it? Patora already told me her story. What was theirs?
"Hey, guys," I poked at the fire as I spoke. "I already know Patora's reason for it, but what made all of you decide to become adventurers?"I flipped the fishes over to cook the other side.
"Ohhhh, bondin'!" Ellie clapped, acting like a child. She always acted immature, but in a happy way. "Well, I'm not an adventurer, but I am a Blacksmith. Mah Ma taugh' me, as well as mah Pa. Her dream was ta open our own shop an work togetha, but she died of a sickness before she could see it open..."
"That's why y'all are keeping it going, huh?" I already knew her mom had died, but not how.
"Ye," she nodded sadly. I gave her a comforting smile, and she smiled back.
"When I was around eight," Sora started right after. "My brother, who was eight years older than me, decided he wanted to become an adventurer. See, we were very close, so when he left the house for days at a time, I was lonely."
Is this going to turn sad too?
"Well, anyway, like I said, he used to be gone for days at a time, but that soon turned to weeks, which turned to months, then, he just stopped showing up. He'd send letters, informing us of us travels, but one day, the letters stopped. I was fifteen at the time, so I knew how to tell if something was bad news."
"What do you mean, bad news?" I asked. "He just stopped sending letters." She shook her head.
"The last letter he sent he told us that he and his party were going to raid a Dragon's lair."
Did I hear right just now, Dragons?!
"And the day after that the letters stopped. So we knew something bad happened. My family was struck with grief, and the news only got worse from there. His party arrived at our door not even a week after his death. Every one of them was alive and well, and my mother panicked, thinking that her son was there. He wasn't. The party told us of his bravery, how the Dragon was stronger than they had been told. He stayed behind and told everyone else to make a run for it, and that's why they were still alive." A twig snapped in the fire.
Damnit, more sad stories!
"And that's why you became an adventurer?" Rubellia asked. "To kill that Dragon and avenge him?"
"No," she shook her head. "I had always looked up to him, and because of that I wanted to become an adventurer as soon as I was of age. I guess he knew that, because before he told his party to escape, he gave them this." She pulled a necklace out from under her clothes and showed it to us.
The chain was silver, and the pendant was gold with a lion head crest on it. The eyes were made of blue sapphire.