"Here try this on, my wife makes a very tasty cabbage stew." Hark passes the bowl to Zeke, seeing how he's already finished with his meal.
"Careful, it's hot." Hark motioned for Zeke to hold where the cloth is.
The family of Hark lives at the outskirts of the city. Their home is of average size but, the ones living inside seem to be completely satisfied with their lives. Hark's wife, Sylvia, is a woman who is just a tiptoe short from reaching Hark's abnormal height. She has long and silk like hair, dyed in the color of the rising sun. Her eyes have a crystal blue which makes you want to stare at them forever. Her body has the right number of curves but, not in a voluptuous or bewitching way.
"Zeke, where did you say you were from?" Sylvia inquired, sipping on what seems to be a homemade tea blend.
"Dear, I told you, let the man rest first." Hark said, passing on the food to his son.
"Do we have a problem?" She said, glaring at Hark.
"Ahem. Like I said, you should answer all her questions Zeke." Hark said, whimpering.
"That's what I thought." Sylvia said, with a triumphant smile on her face.
"Should I repeat the question?" Sylvia continued sipping on her tea as she looked at Zeke.
It was easy for Zeke to divert Keith's attention because he's just a kid. But now that he's facing a real adult, he can't help but feel a bit nervous. Plus, there's something about Sylvia that makes Zeke want to tell the truth.
"I came from the lands beyond the continent." Zeke answered. This isn't a lie since, he really did come from a place beyond the continent and, even beyond their word – Earth.
"Ohh, and what did you do there for a living?" She placed her cup down on the table, folding her hands together.
"He teaches combat and war strategies!" Keith answered on Zeke's behalf, finally finishing all the food that has been placed on his plate.
"Oh dear, and why did you come to this continent." Sylvia continued immediately, with more interest in her voice.
"Well, I wanted to go to the capital. Try to find a new profession and all that." Zeke said, thinking that this might be a safe answer for now.
Suddenly, there was silence. Nobody talked and, for a moment, Zeke thought that he may have said something wrong.
"I see! That's young blood for you, always seeking new horizons!" Hark suddenly blurted, placing his arm around Zeke's shoulder as he laughed.
"Forgive my wife, she likes playing detective from time to time." He whispered to Zeke's ear.
"You can drop the act now honey." He continued.
"Aweee and I was just getting to the good part." Sylvia placed her hand on her mouth, hiding the chuckle she's making.
"Honestly, I have no idea what's going on right now. But I guess this means that my cover isn't blown yet." Were the words running through Zeke's head as this happened.
The merry group continued laughing through the night. Zeke learned that their family owns a farmland and uses it to make a living. They also have a few animals that they use to get extra food.
Aside from gaming, this is actually the kind of life that Zeke has always dreamt of. Just a simple country life, without problems or pressure.
The stories went on and Hark even shared the how he met his beautiful wife. The story left a few slaps on his face as Miss Sylvia recalled Hark's woman hording days. More laughs were shared but then…there was another silence. This time it's the ominous kind.
"Dear." Sylvia looked at Hark.
"Dammit, this soon?" Hark replied moving to get Keith.
What happened is this. A few feet outside the house of the couple is a detection spell which alarms the caster if somebody passes through. Usually Sylvia just shrugs this of if only one or two passes through. But now, there are more than ten who simultaneously passed through the spell.
Explaining why they even place a detection spell in the first place is because, for certain reasons, they've been on the run for a long time. Mercenary groups are always on the look for them, wanting that bounty that comes with capturing Sylvia and killing Hark.
However, they aren't exactly pushovers. The couple are veterans in fighting. Hark is known to be the Blademaster, a title which he holds until this day. On the other hand, Sylvia is a spell casting prodigy, the youngest to ever master all spells and, even craft her own.
As all of this went on, Sylvia stood up and opened a chest under the table, taking out a bow and arrow and two swords. Zeke is surprised at the sudden development of course but, made no comment for now.
"Zeke do you mind taking care of our son for now? There seem to be some, intruders getting near our house." Hark's voice sounded heavy as he gave Keith to Zeke.
"Uhmm…okay?" Zeke replied, taking Keith whom Sylvia has placed a sleeping spell on.
"Hide upstairs and don't make a sound." Sylvia continued.
As soon as Sylvia said these words, the quest windows popped up. These are only visible to Zeke as he turned on the [Only Player Visible] command which hides every notice, alert, mission and other system related things from everyone else except Zeke.
[Optional Quest: Protect Keith]
[Reward: 2 Skill Points]
[Sub Quest: Survive the Mercenary Attack]
[Reward: Crucial Memory Piece]
"Yes ma'am." Zeke said happily, knowing that he could probably rely on a couple that has a weapon stash under their dining table.
With this, Hark and Sylvia went out to face their evening visitors.
As soon as Hark opened the door, an arrow was shot towards him. He easily deflected it with one of his sheathed swords. They didn't even talk about what strategy they need to use anymore. Hark simply dashed forward to where the arrow came from. Meanwhile Sylvia floated up in the air, covering her body in a shield spell that could block most projectiles.
It didn't take long for Hark to reach two enemies. They had scimitars with them, a weapon which is used by only a single group. The Viper Bandits.
"I guess things should be made clear here." He said, unsheathing both his swords and suddenly bolting out of sight.
The two scimitar-wielding bandits didn't even have time to respond, they saw the world turning sideways until it blacked out completely. Hark slashed his blades in the air, taking out the blood that stuck to it as he beheaded his first targets.
"You guys are the prey." He continued, having a beastly smile on his face.
More bandits appeared while a few more arrows came at his direction. As he fought through them, Sylvia targeted the ones which are still outside the detection field she created. There are twenty more and, they are all coming from a single direction.
Hark leapt in the air as he spun in an incredible speed, deflecting all the arrows and, as he landed, he slashed through the chests of two more bandits. Sylvia started firing [Wind Needles], a spell that is small and yet, with their numbers and their sharpness, they could easily kill an enemy who doesn't dodge its barrage.
The reason she chose this spell is because, she doesn't want to attract any more attention to them. She knows that the Elf King's scouts could be anywhere so she decided to use a spell that can't be seen in the night.
However, what they do not know is that the Viper Bandits has a spellcaster who can create an underground pathway. Thus, a group of three bandits, including the platoon leader, dug their way under the ground. They began even before they started approaching the house, avoiding Sylvia's detection spell that only surrounds the house in a dome shape, without affecting those underneath it.
"So what's the plan once we get inside?" The assistant of the platoon leader asked as they continued digging through.
"Idiot! I told you already didn't I? We're going to take their son hostage and lead them back to the Viper Headquarters. That way, we'd be able to prepare every trap that we could make and, overpower them with numbers." The Platoon Leader said, with a disgusting smile on his face. He's actually planning on raping Sylvia if the plan goes well.
"They only said take her back alive." He thought, getting a hard on as he thought of playing with her body.
As all this happened, Zeke waited patiently inside the room with Keith. He looked around for a possible way for the enemies to come through and, have realized that they can only come from the door. Hence, he went outside the room and, just as he did, a loud sound was made downstairs, with the voice of men talking among themselves.
Zeke took out his sword and shield, hiding behind the wall of the staircase, as he waited for these men to approach.
Then, the sound of the footsteps came closing in.