His breaths were ragged, and the pain in his arm was unbearable. The dagger slipped from his grip involuntarily as his arms, head, and neck throbbed. His vision began to darken.He fought the urge to faint. "I can't… faint," he muttered to himself. "Stay awake. Fight the urge to fall. Endure it. You will not faint…"But his body betrayed him, dropping him to his knees. He deliberately moved his injured arm, causing a wave of pain that jolted him back to consciousness.After defeating the bear, Sariel felt a deep sense of satisfaction. The power of Imperia was incredible...But soon, his body became unbearably heavy. He collapsed, his face slamming hard against the ground."Sariel!" Lilan shook him frantically, checking to see if he was still alive.That reminded him—Jasper had given him some healing potion."In my bag… there's a vial. Pour it down my mouth," he managed to mutter.Lilan immediately followed his instructions. She turned him over and poured the healing potion down his throat. The thick liquid trickled down, leaving a bitter aftertaste. Within seconds, the drowsiness and pain began to fade.Groushh…A disgusting sound emerged from his side, accompanied by a strange, rapid spasm sensation in his arm. It hurt, but not badly."I'm just happy you're alive…" Lilan exhaled with relief, her eyes fixed on his arm."Thankfully," Sariel replied. "Why and how are you two here?" he finally asked the question that had been on his mind.Lilan's brother rushed to her side, looking at Sariel with a terrified expression—not because of him, but because of how damaged his arm was. His chest seemed to have fully regenerated.Lilan hesitated for a moment before answering. "Our dad went to make a deal with his employer, but he's been gone for since last night, and Mom needs medicine. We can't get it in the city—it's too expensive."Kai joined the conversation. "We're kinda lost, too."Sariel nodded in understanding. "You guys came here today, right?"They both nodded."Did you leave the gate with someone? Or do they just let kids out into the wild?" he asked."Well, there was a hunter from the same association as my dad who allowed us to tag along. But we got separated from him," Lilan explained.That raised another question. Why would the hunter let them out of his sight if he allowed them to come along?They must be brave kids. Even Sariel was afraid of the animals and monsters that could appear. "Aren't you two scared of monsters?"Lilan looked puzzled. "Eh? There hasn't been an announcement of a rift for a long while.""And what if one were to open?" Sariel pressed."Rifts don't just open randomly. Usually, there's a rest period of a few weeks before one opens again in a specific radius. So… we're pretty safe. Probably."Oh, so that's how it works. It would be incredibly annoying to live in a village with rifts opening nearly every other day."Groahh!""Kuuuuuuu!"Several aggressive roars and howls echoed throughout the forest.You have to be joking...The kids shuddered and scanned the surroundings for any incoming animals. Fortunately, the sounds seemed far away.Sariel struggled to get up, his movements unsteady and clumsy. He grimaced in pain as he pushed himself off the ground with his only good arm. His other arm's skin and muscle were mostly repaired, but the bone was still exposed and broken. Fortunately, the potion dulled the pain significantly.He turned his attention to Lilan and Kai. "So, what will you two do? Stay lost, or stay with me? I can't promise you protection... but I can try." He wouldn't leave them here to die.Lilan looked surprised. "Really?! That's a nice offer, but we don't want to be a burden to you anymore." She winced at the sight of his arm.At least his chest seemed mostly healed, though it still hurt a lot…Kai pointed at him with suspicion. "C-come with you? Who's to say you don't have something set up for us?"What?"Stop being rude!" Lilan pushed her brother.Behind Kai's eyes was rage. "BUT! These damn humans all play nice! Even Dad's family thinks we're worthless—like scum! Rodents! So tell me, why would he—a humans—ever want to help us without some ulterior motive..." He gulped and heaved. "I'm the big brother. I have to protect you. I can't let myself be so naive as to make the same mistakes again."Lilan placed her hands gently on his shoulders, trying to calm him. "Kai, he fought that silverback bear and nearly died to save us."Kai turned his head away in shame. "I know, but… why would someone go this far for half-breeds like us?"Sariel was confused. What did he do for Kai to suddenly think he disliked them?"Kai, what's your issue with me?"Kai scrunched his face, clearly finding the question absurd."Why? Really? You didn't even taste the soup Mom made for you! She went out of her way despite being sick, and you made her feel bad. She thought it might have smelled horrible. But it's obvious why you didn't take food from a reserio.""I didn't think that. Quite frankly, just like you, I'm afraid of slayers and regular people. I've had mostly bad experiences since coming to this city—until I met a couple people, your mom being one of the few. When your father spoke to me, it... ruined my appetite and made me want to leave the house," Sariel explained."What?""Huh… Dad is not scary," Lilan said, feeling embarrassed.Kai leaned back slightly, eyeing Sariel skeptically. "Bullshit."This kid… For a moment, Sariel thought they were going to have a moment.'Ughh… bullshit' if you don't shut your mouth…He wasn't going to recount his life story. "I don't care what you believe. But I will apologize to her and try to repay her the next time we meet."Sariel avoided their gaze, not wanting to see their reaction.Lilan asked, "Oh? You would come and stay with us too?"She was just being childish. Why would a family with clearly limited means have an extra empty bedroom?"I don't know about that," Sariel responded. The answer was obviously no. It was so random and silly too."Why not?" She tilted her head curiously."No reason."She pouted, lowering her head in sadness. What a ridiculous child…Kai's eyes darted between Sariel and his sister. He opened and closed his mouth, preparing to say something. "Well, uh… if you do change your mind and eat from Mom, then I'll forgive you and let you have my bed."Sariel was surprised. It was like he had a personality switch."Stop trying to act tough," Lilan sighed."I am not!"Whatever, they came here to get medicine for their mom, right? Sariel wondered, "This medicine you're looking for… is it a plant? Herbs, right?""Yeah, we need them as ingredients so Dad can make the medicine… but since we don't know where he is, Mom will have to try," Lilan explained.He remembered their mom mentioning she knew most of the recipe, but their father didn't want to risk her making mistakes. That made sense. This was a tough situation for them.Sariel moved his fingers, testing their strength. It seemed he had regained a lot of his energy. Poyions were a game changer. He guessed the healing potions also restored stamina."Then let's get to it. I'll protect you two while you search for it. Then we'll get out of here."Lilan nodded eagerly. "Right, let's find lessili and lesargilin."Such odd names."How many do you need?" Sariel asked.She opened her side bag and checked. "Well, we need seven more lessili and eleven lesargilin. The more we can collect, the better."She showed him both plants."This purple, root-shaped one is lessili, and this orange, fire-shaped one is lesargilin."They looked like they were saying, 'I'm colorful and eye-catching; touch me and die from poison.'Sariel took a deep breath and said, "Let's start moving then." His left arm was still non-functional, but the pain was still bearable.Kai looked at him with concern. "Huh? Already? But you're injured.""Potions are great at healing over time, apparently," Sariel replied, trying to sound more confident than he felt.The siblings exchanged confused glances."No, they aren't," Kai muttered."Especially not something of that quality," Lilan added, picking up the vial she had thrown earlier. "The label says it's a V-low healing potion. It mainly heals minor damage, which is a good thing. If it were more potent, your bones might try to heal without being properly aligned, and that would result in a hideous outcome."Sariel glanced at his arm, where the bones were still visible. That explanation made a lot of sense."That doesn't matter now," he said. "As long as the pain stays manageable it's okay."Kai seemed to accept this explanation. "But I don't see how you'll protect us. We'll be doing the protecting." He turned on his heel and began to walk. "Let's get Mom what she needs!"Protect me? My ass. Sariel found Kai's confidence rather irritating.He followed Kai, tellingLilan, "We'll deal with my arm later."She sighed, her shoulders slumping. "Fine, okay."They wandered through the forest for a while, eventually reaching an area dense with strange, elongated plants. Some of them emitted scents so pungent they nearly burned Sariel's nostrils.Kai grinned as he spotted a particular plant and sprinted toward it. "Found one!"Before Kai could get too far, Sariel grabbed him by the collar of his shirt, pulling him back. "Don't accidentally interact with the poisonous plants," he warned.Kai clicked his tongue in annoyance. "I know. I'm not stupid." He didn't struggle against Sariel's grip."I know," Sariel replied.Suddenly, his other arm began to throb with pain. A sharp, random ache that made him curse under his breath.He stumbled back against a tree, biting his good shoulder to channel the frustration into something else.The children exchanged worried looks, then pulled out a bowl from their bag and began pounding herbs together with a mashing tool. Sariel couldn't make out exactly what they were doing; the pain caused his vision to blur, and he jerked his head around, unable to focus.Why were they making medicine now? he wondered. Unless… could they have the same sickness as their mother, but to a lesser degree? He didn't know.After what felt like hours, Kai approached him, carrying a large leaf with a thick green and yellow liquid spread across it.Sariel frowned, confused. Was it for him? That didn't make sense. He didn't have the same sickness as their mom; he just needed his arm to heal."I don't want any poisonous concoction you've come up with, ki—"Kai shoved the contents of the leaf into Sariel's mouth before he could finish his sentence."I'm going to kill you!" Sariel sputtered. "You little—"Kai glared at him, unfazed. "Why would I try to poison you?!"Just because I say something doesn't mean I actually mean it, Sariel thought, glaring back."I didn't think you were trying to," Sariel snapped. "I just don't want to take a herbal remedy from two kids who picked herbs near poisonous plants! That seems like a reasonable concern."Kai leaned in closer, shouting, "We can tell the difference between plants."Sariel clenched his jaw. He was going to punch this little brat sooner or later.Kai took a step back, calming himself. "Besides, since our father is a beast hunter who is also well-versed in fauna, we know a lot about the animals and plants in this forest. What we gave you is just to lessen the pain." He clicked his tongue, a smug grin spreading across his face. "You're welcome, Miss Sariel."Sariel's eye twitched.I want to kill him.