"H-hi..."
Log awkwardly greeted the three girls that I brought along outside. He seems to have an idea of their situation. What happens when a woman gets taken as a hostage by goblins is common sense in this world, so Log's understanding of it is not a surprising at all.
Still, I didn't want him to see the state they were in earlier, or the cave they were held prisoners in. It's not something a child should ever see.
For now, I healed their bodies back to their previous state, before they were taken by the goblins. My healing ability is powerful, so it had reversed their ages by up to a year or two. If they had been pure by that time, their bodies will regain its purity now.
That is to say, I cannot exactly do the same for their minds. I cannot fix their mental state. It is unfortunate, but they will have to live on with the trauma they accumulated.
"You're...!"
Seeing Log, one of the girls started to panic. His small frame seemed to have reminded her of her captors.
I already told them how my partner had defeated all of the enemies, so they should be aware of him. Perhaps I should have told them about his appearance as well?
"Kah! No, I'm not!" Log strongly denied, which only further the girl's fear of him.
"It's okay, he's with me."
"With you?" the girl mutters. "I see... I'm sorry," after taking another look at him, she apologizes.
After that blunder, the girl hid her face under the robe I had given her. It's quite evident how bad her mental state is. With that said, the other two with her are actually in a far worse condition. They haven't regained the life in their eyes even after I healed them, and they won't react to anything at all.
"You should lead the way, Log."
"O-okay, master!"
With Log leading the way, we're able to quickly reach the road. The girl's were functioning enough that they could follow instructions. In fact, they were quite surprised on how well they could move their bodies. They haven't left their cage since they have been caught after all, so they weren't able to exercise their limbs at all.
But like I said before, the healing I used on them was not ordinary. I actually reversed their age, so they could regain whatever the goblins have stolen from them.
"We'll camp here."
There is not a single village nearby at our location, so we'll be stuck here until a vehicle comes.
"Can you help me, Log?"
We'll have to wait for a while, so I decided to treat the girls to a meal.
I took out a large pot and started a fire with Log's help. I have the ingredients ready in my storage, so all I have to do now is cook.
Log's stomach started growling as soon as the scent of the soup permeates into the air. I can hear gulping sounds from the three girls as well, but I don't exactly know which of them it was coming from.
Once I was done cooking, I asked Log to serve the bowls for everyone. After which, we all started to quietly eat.
"If you want more, you can ask for seconds."
"M-master, please..." Log shamefully presented his bowl and asked for his next serving.
Seeing him do that, the three girls also awkwardly asked for seconds. Having not eaten much in their time as captives, they must have been eager to fill their stomachs. They didn't even seem to care about its taste.
"Thank you for the food, master!" Log kneeled on the floor and earnestly expressed his gratitude.
"Th-thank you..."
The trio tried to do the same, but I asked them to stop. Log just likes to do his thing, and I don't like ordinary people copying him.
"Master's food is the best in the world!" he confidently said.
Seeing how exagerated he was, the girl who mistaken him for a goblin at first started to somewhat look at him with a much softer expression.
After a while, a travelling caravan arrived, and we're able to get into the city in no time.
We handed over the girls to the city guards, but just before we left entirely, one of them called out and stopped us. She meekly ran towards us, and for the first time, she met me eye to eye. With a bow, she once again expressed her gratitude. After doing so, she turned towards Log and faced his direction.
"I heard that you're the one who defeated those goblins, that's why..."
She weakly spoke, lacking the confidence to express her words clearly. Still, she tried her best to say what's on her mind.
"I'm sorry for mistaking you for a goblin. And! Thank you for saving us!"
I did say as I was healing them that it was my partner who defeated all the goblins. She, in particularly, looked doubtful at first, but she seemed to have slowly come into terms with it.
"I don't have anything to give you, so at least..."
Saying so, she leaned over to match Log's height and she gave him a kiss on the cheek. Then, for the first time since we met her, she finally showed a smile.
She bowed for the last time, before she finally hurried back to the other two and left us, just as the sun sets. We went on our way as well, and we waved back at the trio as we say our goodbyes.
"Fufu..."
I say this short excursion was pretty successful.
"You did well, Log."
"Kuh? Ah! Th-thank you master!" Log, still red and holding his cheek, hurriedly replied.
It seems this has been a quite fulfilling first quest for my new student.