Normally I wouldn't bother coming to the village without any intentions in mind,
But this was an exception.
"Ah Mr. John, Have you heard of the news yet"
When I came into the village along with Gildot, The village elder came to greet me at the gate.
"Yes and I'll go there immediately"
Before I could brisk past him, I felt my left arm tugged by something.
It was the the village elder.
Now don't start me with this shit early.
"What do you want? You aren't thinking of making me talk my way to her to come into the capital aren't you?"
The village elder stared at me quite intently. He was... an average old guy. His hair was now silver and his skin was very wrinkly.
Yet behind those think eyebrows, I could feel his serious gaze.
The village elder then approached Gildot
"Gildot. I think I would need to talk to Mr. John for a second."
Gildot didn't said anything.
The village elder then started walking towards the direction of the church
Naturally, I followed him.
Then when we came into the church in front of it's altar.
"Mr. John, I know you realize what being a hero means."
Of course I do.
But...
"That isn't a reason to just give a child for the sake of this village!"
I angrily shouted at him.
I know what it means. But it isn't because I was attached at her, It was because she was a kid!
"How do you expect a child that came from a far countryside to just come into the capital without any support?"
This was what I mean when I said that you can become a hero from the countryside.
They expect you to just blindly follow the priests from the capital just because you are a hero.
This was the dark side of getting your fate revealed.
When your village gets to know it, they would place a fixed expectation on you.
An invisible burden that the child would carry as their grow up.
And that's why this world was very pre-judiced.
You can't just become what you wanted because if you do, They'll mock you for being that
'Isn't he supposed to be a mage? Why is he trying to become a knight?'
That's right. This is what I hated in this world coming from someone who reincarnated in earth.
It wasn't just right in my opinion.
"Then what do you expect from that child?! Just play around the fields doing nothing and not fulfilling her calling?"
The calmness of the village elder that I saw earlier was gone. Now I could see his eyes filled with anger.
But I won't back down.
"Do you want an 8 year old kid to just blindly agree to what her calling is? What if she doesn't want to do it?!"
"That's why we are here! To show her the true meaning of the calling that the almighty god gave her!"
He stood in front of the altar with his both hands upwards.
This shitty village elder. From the beginning when I came here, you hated me because I was an outsider.
But when I showed my worth, You immediately began flattering me.
Of course he also tried to persuade me to make this village prosper.
But I did not listen to his advancements even once.
Just helping this village is enough. I don't want it to be known because I was here.
And I also didn't want to ruin the peaceful mood in here.
"Think about it! Our village will prosper if we send her and defeat the Demon King"
"Village Elder. Do you even realize what you are trying to say?"
Being a hero is a large responsibility.
It's no joke that a Hero was essential to beating the Demon King who will plague this land.
But Aria was just 8.
Sure she might get support, but I don't want that kid to get such a heavy burden at a young age.
And even knowing her, I'm sure she'll get lonely.
"All heroes are like that! She should be proud that her village is cheering on her? It is up to her to fulfill out expectations of her!"
This old guy wouldn't listen to me.
I'm sick of hearing him justify his own delusional thoughts.
"I'm tired of persuading you."
I just walked behind him and left the church.
I'm really not acting based on my personal emotions.
If we send Aria into the capital then she'll train there for at least 5 years then she'll be sent to be a crucial fighter in the Demon Frontier
Without any family to care for her.
She'll be trained to slay monsters.
Who will comfort her?
But that was... against my reasons.
And I might try to join her but I can't.
Well.... It's a very long story.
In the end, I couldn't think of a way to delay the inevitable.
Because as the Earth's God have said to me, This world's common sense was different from that on the earth.
That's why...
***
I made my way into Aria's house. It was located in the far-left side of the main village.
When I came there, Aria's Father Gildot immediately approached me
"Mr. John thank you for coming here..."
But before he could even say more, I quickly spoke and said:
"Mr. Gildot we need to talk with your wife first."
Gildot welcomed me in his home. It was very average here in the countryside.
The house was made out of wood. The flooring, doors and other things were mostly wood.
I always thought It was hay in my previous life.
But in this world, Wood is pretty much common as a material in homes.
That's why in a way, This world is a little bit more advanced in architecture than that of a generic medieval.
His house was simple. When I entered his house, I could already see the kitchen and the dining room.
A living room is only exclusive to nobles you see.
"Excuse me."
When I made my way into the dining table, I could see Gildot's Wife seated in one of the chairs crying.
When she saw me, She stood up fast and began to approach me with her soaked eyes.
She grabbed my collars and said:
"You must be Mr. John right? Please! My daughter haven't talk with us since morning!"
She began to shake me violently.
I could already see that Aria's parents are very kind people.
"Calm down... Uhm what is your name Miss?"
While she was sniffing, she said that her name was Irmine
Gildot then appeared and hurriedly comforted her wife.
"I'm really sorry, Mister John but we were just shocked to see that our daughter was a hero..."
And before he could mutter more, I immediately stopped him.
"That won't be necessary but... I only wanted to ask you two a question."
And for the love of our God Xotin, Don't utter a background story!
I stood in front of them and said in a straight tone,
"Are you willing to send your daughter to the capital?"
When I uttered those words, The couple began looking at each other with tearful eyes
Then Gildot's expression started to become very sad as he began to shed tears.
"Frankly, No. We could... never send our daughter. We loved her very much but... We can't help it."
He knelt down while his hands were covering his eyes.
"We can't just refuse them flat because she was... meant to save the world. B-but our little angel would be lonely. But the imperial order stated that a hero must fulfill their duty so we can't refuse it."
"Give me the imperial order"
He hurriedly gave me the scroll that he read earlier.
'Hmmm, It seems that it was legitimate one too. But...'
"2 years."
"Huh?"
Irmine who was comforting her husband became confused on my words. Naturally Gildot too.
"Give me 2 years to train your daughter."
"But how!?"
Gildot screamed with a very sad tone.
"The imperial order states that the hero must come to the capital to train right? But it was said here that it was 10 years old and above."
Gildot immediately stood up and snatched the scroll.
He began to earnestly read the contents again.
"It's true...!"
He became shocked at what he saw.
"If you excuse me, I will go meet her now. Is this her door?"
Irmine who was also shocked at what she heard immediately nodded.
And so I approached the door and knocked.
But no one answered.
And then I said:
"Aria. It's me John"
I heard footsteps inside the room and the door was unlocked.
It opened but it wasn't completely open.
Only a face that I know appeared.
"Big brother...?"