Seeing the girl's excited gaze, Owen instinctively shielded the elf girl behind him.
"Sorry, she's a bit shy. You might scare her if you're too forward."
"I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to; she's just so cute, and I couldn't help but... Are you her father?"
"Father?"
Owen frowned, clearly finding the notion absurd. He was unmistakably human—how could he possibly be the father of an elf girl? What kind of observation was that?
"No, you can think of me as her guardian, a friend who's been entrusted to look after her for now."
"Can I... can I touch her? Just for a moment?"
Faced with the girl's pleading eyes, Owen found it hard to outright refuse.
After all, she didn't seem like a bad person, and Owen's senses indicated she was only gold-tier. She shouldn't pose any real threat.
Thinking this through, Owen gave a slight nod.
"If she doesn't mind."
