When they entered a vast room, a girl who seemed like a waitress walked in and asked the guests if they would like any beverages. Julian and his wife asked for whiskey, but their daughters only wanted water. They were so shocked that they could still smell the burning skin and hair. It was a miracle that they weren't harmed at all.
The waitress left them alone in the big room to give them privacy. "Father, mother, I want to go home now." One of the girls said while being on the verge of tears. Her younger sister followed her lead and said, "Me too!"
"We're almost there, kids," Julian sighed. The worst is in the past now. "There will be no more bandits nor monsters."
At the same time, as he comforted his daughters, the waitress walked in and brought their drinks. Four flasks of water for the girls and two cups of whiskey. "Uh, I am sorry we did not have any whiskey glasses."
Julian smiled and said, "It's fine."
The waitress bowed and left the room. Then Julian looked at his daughters, and with a smile, he comforted them. "We're already passed the dangerous route; we'll be safe now."
Maria added, "We will be home by tomorrow evening!"
"Are you sure?" the girl questioned her parents.
"Of course, we are sure," he chuckled. "I am not lying, okay."
"Okay, father!" both girls smiled, relieved.
Meanwhile, the black hooded woman entered the room and leaned against the wall, sighing in relief. She removed her hoodie, showing her blue hair and revealing that she was barely older than Julian's daughters. "I am sorry to keep you are waiting," she said. "I was busy making a report."
Julian took a sip and replied, "No problem!" While his daughters took a long drink of their respective waters.
The daughters looked at the girl with expressions that showed amazement. "Are you an adventurer?!"
"Yes." The blue-haired girl nodded. "My name is Diana, by the way. Diana Aran."
"And mine's Marianna," the girl on her mother's side introduced herself.
"This is my mother Maria and my elder sister Juliet." the blonde girl added.
"And I'm Julian," said Julian smiling. Diana smiled back at him.
"So Diana," said Julian. "What the hell was that creature in the forest?"
"Honey!" his wife scolded him. "That boy saved us!"
"Saved us?" Julian looked at his wife, confused. "How can you be so sure he wouldn't have killed us as well?!" he drank the rest of his drink in one go and added, "You saw him, even if he is a human... He is a monster. He took hits that would kill a regular person like it was nothing. He was shot in the head and laughed like it was nothing, for fuck sake!"
"But..." Maria tried to speak.
Julian ignored her as he pointed at Maria and said. "That thing is a monster! If you want to call it a human... You probably closed your eyes and did not see how he killed those bandits. He took pleasure in every person he burned to death. He had no remorse."
Diana looked concerned about their discussion. "I saw it as well! But... I think I know who that is..."
Julian stood up angrily and grabbed Diana by her collar. "Who?! Was he sent to kill us?!" Julian felt anxious because the leader of the bandits was as strong as an A-ranked adventurer. Yet, he was killed in one spell. And his regenerative abilities were so scary that he could probably take on the army single-handedly.
"Release me!" she stared straight into Julian's eyes, who began to feel chills.
Julian loosened his grip slightly, and Diana got out of his hands. "Sorry for grabbing you like that, Diana..." he apologized nervously. "This whole situation made me extremely anxious."
Diana nodded her head and said, "It's alright." She then continued to explain, "I know that person. I was sent by a friend of mine who works as a receptionist in the Emerald town. But..." she bit her lips. "She asked me to save him from an unreasonable quest guild master gave him... But..."
"But what?" Julian inquired worriedly
"...He was asked to infiltrate them," Diana confessed. "But I guess he decided to kill them instead; I can't believe it."
Everyone stood quiet for a few minutes until Diana said. "I can't believe Sarah thought a monster like that would need any help."
"I see," Julian sighed and rubbed his forehead. He then sat back in his chair and drank from his wife's cup of whiskey, who gave him her drink because she felt sick. "So I guess he is an S-rank adventurer?"
"F-rank adventurer." Diana corrected. "This was his first quest..."
Julian gulped at that news. After drinking his whiskey, he placed the glass on the table and spoke. "Well, it seems like you guys have pretty amazing adventurers."
After hearing that statement, the girls looked at each other in excitement. "That guy was amazing!" they said, despite still feeling afraid of him.
Julian scratched his head awkwardly and replied. "Yeah, that's true..." he looked at Diana and asked, "Are you sure he was not planning to kill us?"
"I-I don't know..." she said; in other cases, she would instantly confirm that the adventurer was acting to protect the civilians, or in this case, nobility. However... When she saw Drake's attitude while fighting, she felt unsure of his capability.
"Well... I still should thank him for saving us." Julian said, uncertain, as he was still unsure if Drake saved them out of kindness or if he just wanted to kill people.
"Yes..." Maria and his daughters agreed, also feeling anxious about this whole situation.
Diana was still leaning to the wall, lost in her thoughts. "Gosh, Sarah... What kind of monster you took in as an adventurer."
**************************
Meanwhile, in the forest, Drake was still fighting the remaining bandits. Only six of them were alive, and one of them was a magician, who used magic to halt Drake's movements by casting a spell on him which slowed down Drake's reaction. He also continuously used water magic to extinguish a fire that constantly healed Drake's wounds.
"What kind of monster are you?!" The mage screamed at Drake
"I am just an F-ranked adventurer..." Drake smirked, breathing heavily. His clothes were stained with blood; however, it was not visible well on his red as blood jacket. "And somebody hired me on pest control to exterminate bandits in this area!~"