It is now early in the morning and the fisherman is seated in his infamous spot near the lake, partaking in his usual activity. He has been doing a lot of pondering and introspective thinking about his feelings these past few days, but after the recent event with Jacob, he was given something else to think about. What he was most worried about is his identity and abilities being known to the inhabitants of this world, as he should. Afterall, even though he didn't bother looking into the hierarchal and societal structure of the world, his recent visit to the town more or less confirmed that there is some sort of organized state in place, and if it found out about his abilities, than that would undoubtedly spell trouble.
Eli knew that Jacob wouldn't keep his mouth shut about his encounter and the events that happened, so he knew in the back of his mind that he would be dealing with something or someone unpleasant relatively soon. However, he still, rather naively, held out hope that everything would just blow over and he wouldn't have to deal with any headaches coming his way.
"It'll be fine.."
Eli thought to himself.
As soon as he finished that thought, he could hear footsteps approaching him from behind, getting closer and closer. As the footsteps were around 5 meters away from him, they stopped.
"Are you Eli?"
Eli couldn't help but sigh.
It's as if the universe is playing a practical joke on him, having this happen as soon as he finished his thought.
However, Eli also knew that this needed to be handled with care so it doesn't boil over into something even more troublesome.
So Eli put his fishing rod aside and stood up, turning to face the individual that asked him the question.
What he saw was a tall, muscular man with a brown hair and black eyes. He wore a rather basic greenish pants and shirt, something which most males wore, Eli noticed. The man also had a sheathed sword hanging at his side, so he was obviously wary of Eli.
Eli could also see that the man had a serious and cautious expression.
After taking a few seconds to assess the situation, Eli finally responded,
"That's right."
Taken a bit by surprise with Eli's simple and nonchalant response, the man said,
"I heard from my son that you pulled off an incredible feat. Is that true? If it is, can you tell me why you saved my son?
The guesses that Eli had made were in-fact true, this was indeed Jacob's father.
"It is true. As for your son, I don't need a good reason to save a child, do I?"
Eli responded
This response caught Dave by surprise. Having served in the Royal Army, he witnessed many disturbing acts, including comrades leaving each other to die in the battlefield.
With that in mind, he also couldn't feel anything that would lead him to think that Eli was lying. All the information given to him by his son lined up, and is now confirmed by the fisherman himself.
Now wearing a more apologetic expression, Dave stuck both of his arms by his side, and began to deeply bow, saying
"I can't express how thankful I am for your actions. Me and my family owe you a huge debt of gratitude."
Eli didn't show it, but he did feel a bit relieved by this turn of events. Afterall, he didn't have to fight anybody, meaning he won't have to expose anymore of his abilities.
"Please raise your head. I wasn't about to let a giant salmon eat a child."
Dave, who's now upright, responded by saying,
"I'm sorry for approaching you in a confrontational manner. I had to determine if you had any ill intentions towards my family, I hope you understand."
Eli, for the first time since arriving and starting fishing, felt somewhat bad for somebody else. This was a father who deeply cared for his family, and here he is apologizing for actions which Eli saw as justified. Eli now felt even better about saving the child. He was always going to save Jacob, but seeing how caring the father is for his family, Eli couldn't help but feel good about his decision.
This resulted in Eli sporting a slight smile, something which caught Dave by surprise, as the fisherman was almost expressionless up until now.
Capitalizing on this, Dave continued,
"My name's Dave. Eli, I know I can't repay our debt for you, but I would like to invite you to have dinner with us at our home. That's the least we could do."
Now back to his regular, almost expressionless appearance, Eli began thinking and considering the request. Previously, he had declined meeting the family, but, at this point, the damage had already been done and the family are now aware of his abilities.
Also, Eli had grew somewhat fond of Dave at this point, and felt somewhat bad for seeing him bow.
"I would be happy to."
Eli responded.
Surprised by this response, Dave could be seen smiling from ear to ear. Based on Jacob's description of Eli, he didn't expect this response from him
And so, the fisherman and Dave and his family are now set to have dinner together. Resulting in Eli's first real social event since arriving.