It was a nice afternoon, the sun was setting, and the children were gathered by their new camping spot. Every two days, they leave their camping sites to move to another.
Every day was an adventure, and Yves have also been teaching the other kids magic, swordsmanship, and basic close combat.
Turns out, the owner of his current body wasn't the only talented guy among the pack. All of them were.
Firstly, Milera. She has great affinity with the elements, fire and metal. It was the usual elements for dwarfs as they are great swordsmiths. Her close combat doesn't fall short either, she's stronger than most of the boys.
Ezio. He would make a great assassin since not only is he a cat-type beast man, he also controls his element of lighting and speed quite well. He likes playing with daggers too.
Kian. The other human boy will be a great swordsman. He's got insane compatibility with air. He's both fast and heavy. A long sword would bring out his full potential in Yves' opinion.
Cimmerian. Surprisingly, he has less mana than most of them, despite being an elf, which one of the most powerful races in this Earth. But he's got a good eye and he's also very smart. He's quiet, patient, and doesn't miss his chance . He's great at hunting too, making him a talented marksman.
Luna. She's another one with fast reflexes and great speed. She often competes and wins against Ezio in races. But other than that, she has a great amount of mana with a great control over four elements: lightning, earth, gravity, and mist. She makes a powerful fighter.
Lysander. He's one with insane reflex and agility. Being a vampire that he is, he was almost immortal. But then, it's been found that he's actually a half vampire. That's one reason why he can stay on the sunlight for a day. He's numb to pain since he slowly regenerates. Other than his racial qualities, this kid can control shadows.
Nilsine. This girl would be a great mage. Demons usually have great control over spells, but the impact of her spells is insane, she's almost too destructive. She's a bit too soft hearted for that, that's why she limits herself and makes up with mainly physical jobs. She'll be great with a whip too, honestly.
Darian. Another kid with growing wings, but he's more agile and flexible than most think, which makes him a great swordsman. He has overall potential with the water and light element though. He's another one who can excel in magic, combat, and sword.
And lastly, Rue. This girl is probably the strongest among all of them. Being the siren that she is, she has great compatibility with the sound element. She has overflowing mana which she's slowly taking control off because of Yves' lessons. She has great vision and good hearing, and she makes up as another marksman.
While all of them are equally powerful in their fields, they can carry heavy attacks, and all of them are almost equally skilled in close combat. All of them are basically tanks and fighters.
Yes, all-rounders if one would say.
'And on the other hand, I'm... the helper,' Yves thought to himself as he stares at the kids, down on the ground and panting in front of him. He was standing with a wooden stick as a crane.
He smiles.
"You guys improved a whole lot, it's insane that I've only started teaching you three weeks ago," he says with an amused face. Almost half of them didn't react, while the others... were pissed.
"ARE YOU FUCKING WITH ME?!" Yves flinched at Milera's cursing. She's a child for fuck's sake.
"Hey, watch your words—" Yves was later cut off by another kid.
"HOW CAN YOU SAY WE IMPROVED WHEN WE HAVEN'T LAND A HIT ON YOU?!" Darian was annoyed as well.
"That's because I'm a deity—"
"SHUT UP!" Nilsine, Lysander, Ezio, and Luna, and even Cimmerian shouted at him.
Yves couldn't contain his smile at their frustration. It's so fun making fun of matured children. It adds the spice to a life of a petty man like him.
"Well, training is over," Yves mentions as he held out his hand. Rue was then seen floating again, completely sleeping. She's always so tired after training because she has yet to fully control her mana flow. A little rest will make up for it.
However... when Rue was passed to his arms, he felt something. She felt dry and hot, her skin was burning and she was panting too hard.
'She's too dehydrated!'
"Cim, do we have enough water for a bath?" Yves asks with a serious yet calm voice.
"No, there's only two gallons left. It's enough for tonight," Cimmerian replied with a confused tone.
Yves clicked his tongue, he closed his eyes for a moment and created a mana wave. He searched for the nearest body of water, and he found it.
"Rue is dehydrated, I think she'll need to be soaked," he says. The others were shocked. They know how crucial it is if a siren is dehydrated. Yves had shown great importance to Rue's health, because unlike all of them, she is supposed to be living under water.
"You lot can start cooking dinner after getting rest, we'll be back in time for dinner." The next second Yves had disappeared with Rue.
"We never noticed..." Nilsine mumbled to herself.
"Hey, hey, hey, it's alright. Even Yves only realized when he touched her," Lysander quickly reasoned.
"That's right, let's not blame ourselves okay?" Cim stated.
"We'll just make it up to her by cooking her favorite soup," Milera says.
"Yeah~!" The other eight responded.
On the other hand, Yves finally arrived by the nearest river, it had a tall but thin waterfall, with a wide pool of water. The moon barely dawned and they have enough light. Yves didn't hesitate to dip his whole body on the water, along with the siren in his arms.
The pool wasn't that deep, but it was enough for them. When the water level reached his knees, he slowly bends and sits down. There was a rock behind him and he able to lean back and support himself as he holds onto her.
"Rue... how are you feeling?" he asks as he holds her closer. She didn't respond, but her breathing became more stable. Yves sighed in relief.
'That was close...' he thought to himself. He still felt bad though. He closed his eyes as he hugged her tightly.
"Why didn't you tell me anything? Don't ever do this again, understood?" Yves mumbled to himself, but then he felt her hand touching his cheek. He opened his eyes and looked down on her. Her eyes were finally open and she was also smiling at him.
'Right... she's sensitive to sound,' he thought.
"You care for me so much... I just wanted to handle things on my own for once..." she says. And by that he realized...
'We haven't been near a river for the past few days, she must've started to dry up then,' he thought to himself.
"It's not handling if you have to bear with something so crucial. I know you're used to it, but you're under my watch now. I wouldn't bear seeing you in pain... Don't ever do this again... You have to prioritize your health," Yves stated as he held the hand that was holding his cheek.
Rue was in awe of the guilt in his eyes.
"For a deity... you're so kind," Rue mumbles, Yves chuckles.
Myths and legends see deity as cruel fuckers, and it's true. He can be quite cruel himself.
"I'm a special one, you see," Yves states a fact.
"We all know that," Rue laughs.