"I haven't seen you for days, Eva. What happened to you?" The guard asked with a relieved voice when seeing that she was fine but his eyes were glued to the charming little girl.
Many people in the village knew about Eva due to her adorable appearance that caught the eyes of many nobles. They were sure she would undoubtedly have an easy life in the future.
"Mister Phil, you don't have to worry anymore. I have just lost myself in the forest," Eva tried to reassure her neighbor while putting her hand on the crystal ball.
Its purpose was to check if anyone had a criminal record. But soon, it turned bright white, indicating that she was fine.
Even though Phil has been treating her with kindness, Eva didn't feel comfortable around the man. For whatever reason, her guts told her that he was a dangerous person.
"In the future, never do it again. Do you know how dangerous it is for a girl like you to be alone in a forest? Next time, you can ask me to come with you."
In reply, Eva only smiled respectfully and stepped aside for Ted.
Phil hadn't even glanced at Ted as he has been too focused on Eva.
"Do you know this boy?"
However, his casual demeanor immediately disappeared upon seeing the luxurious outfit — no ordinary person would be wearing something so expensive.
Other than this, Phil was jealous of the boy's handsome look.
Why didn't heaven gift him anything good?
"I apologized for my lack of respect. Welcome to Bellwell. If you need to know anything about the village, I am the person you are looking for." Phil's tone and gesture became more courteous as he inclined his head.
Glaring at the guard with his golden eyes while putting his hand on the crystal ball, Ted declared in a cold voice that could freeze the ugly man's hot feelings. "I will get straight to the point. Eva won't be living here anymore so don't raise your hopes. You will regret deeply if you try anything during our stay here."
Seeing someone like that, Ted despised, even more, everyone else.
What calmed him down was that Eva wasn't so naive as to let others take advantage of her. At least, he could rest his mind without worrying about her.
Ted has been thinking about it but Zane had been teaching him how social interaction worked as he had learned to not follow strangers, never sleep with a girl he wasn't deeply in love with, etc...
It was as if the old man had been planning to leave one day from the start.
Finishing what he had to say, Ted grabbed her soft hand and walked away in a bad mood, leaving behind the stunned guard.
They had only stopped once they were far away from Phil, out of the man's hearing range.
"Your beautiful look will get us in deep trouble one day!" Ted complained shamelessly. He wasn't afraid of problems but those people pissed him off.
Upon hearing this, Eva pouted at his nonsense. She didn't choose to be born with that curse.
In the past, she had been blaming herself many times because people never acted naturally to the point of getting sick of their sycophancy, she would attract attention everywhere and other boys would never stop pestering her.
His resentment dissipated like steam at the adorable sight. With anger gone, Ted regained some rationality — his words were indeed absurd.
However, he was clueless about how to apologize to a girl as he had never been in this ridiculous situation before.
Rubbing the back of his head, he awkwardly said, "Em...I am sorry. I should not have said something like that..."
As his body started pouring with sweat from her silent treatment, Eva gazed at him, seemingly thinking about something.
After a while, she mumbled, "I won't be angry anymore if you grant me one wish..."
"Fine," Ted thought about her word, nodding his head in agreement. As long as she wasn't furious anymore, anything is fine. "What do you want?"
Not meeting his expectation, Eva shook her head, "I don't know what to ask at the moment. I will think about it later. Come on, I will make you discover nice things!"
Her smile has finally returned to light up his world and without offering any resistance, Ted let Eva take him toward a tavern nearby.
As it was already evening, the building was crowded with people. Some were laughing while others were speaking gibberish due to the effect of alcohol.
Their entrance didn't make a scene as everyone was so engrossed in enjoying their time with their friends, not caring about others.
"Welcome guys, we have a table for two. This way," a young waitress greeted them with a smile, worthy of a professional.