บท 24: Finger Digits

The axe man was sent flying backward, not expecting the little boy to be a mage. Archer continued the rhyme as he slaughtered more bandits. That's when he spotted a bandit archer aiming his bow at one of the caravan guards.

''When she sleeps, she can't be woken.

She loves it when you leave the window open.

She hides like a spider but bites like a mouse.''

He Blinked behind the bandit, thrusting his blade into his spine. Looking around, he saw another bandit and ran over to slice his calves. The man dropped to the ground, and Archer plunged his sword into the man's throat.

''She's already been inside your house.

And when she's alone, to lift her spirits.

She finger paints with children's digits.''

He finished the rhyme as he shot an Eldritch Blast into another bandit's back, searing right through his body. Archer stopped to collect his thoughts for a second and examined the situation but fated a cruel bitch.

At that moment, Archer got hit with a Wind Blast and was sent flying through the air, waving his arms around like a baby bird taking its first flight. He smashed into a tree and fell to the floor with a thud. He looked up to see a tall, muscular man holding his hand up with a smile.

That's when Archer thought to himself. 'A mage!'

It hurt, but his regeneration kicked in and started to heal him. He slowly got up as the mage walked towards him with a grin.

But that's when a giant flame slammed into the man, burning him to ashes. The fighting died down quickly once the mage was taken out. That's when the caravan guards started looting the bandits.

Archer got up and went to loot the three bandits he killed. Approaching the first body, he started to search through their pockets. He discovered 13 silver coins and some random papers written in a language he couldn't read.

He stashed them in his box before continuing his search; he uncovered 3 gold coins, 100 silver coins, 23 copper coins, and an extra heart. Satisfied with his findings, he stored them all and turned his attention to the blood-stained road, scanning the area for any additional clues or items of interest.

Archer looted the three hearts and stored them before anyone could notice. Rowana walked over with a panicked look on her face. The woman started to check his body like a worried mother. She asked in a worried voice. ''Are you okay? You took that Wind Blast directly and only have a few wounds.''

He stared at the woman fussing over him and didn't dislike it. Archer only experienced this type of care on earth. ''Yeah, I'm fine. It hurts a little, but I'll return to normal in an hour or two.''

She sighed after hearing his response and started talking. ''I told you it was getting dangerous. Bandits have infested the empire, and the merchant companies have started hiring loads of adventurers to guard their cargo, but the attacks are increasing either way.''

Archer tucked away the information for future use. The thought of encountering more bandits excited him, anticipating the potential for even more gold and loot.

He changed his ripped shirt and started eating some elvish cake. The witch was looking at him and thought to herself. 'How can a child eat at this time, especially after he brutally killed those men.'

Archer offered to share some of the cake with her, but she declined with a shake of her head.

"Your loss, it's really tasty," he remarked.

Undeterred, he wandered off, settling on a log off the road. From there, he observed everyone doing business as he ate the hearts.

***

[Ella's P.O.V]

Just after kissing Archer, she hurriedly ran back into her room. With bright red cheeks, she jumped into bed, a flurry of emotions evident in her hurried retreat.

Ella saw herself in the mirror across from the bed and noticed her ears were also red. She couldn't believe she kissed him.

The thing that shocked her the most was that he reciprocated her kiss. She was sitting on her bed playing with the gem hanging from the necklace and loved it.

That's when the door opened, and her mother, Shiera, walked into the room and looked at her.

She noticed Ella's ears were red and was playing with something in her hands. ''What have you got there?''

Ella jumped as she did not expect her mother to enter the room. She calmed down and looked at her mother. ''A gift, Mama.''

Sheira's head tilted to the side, and she wondered where her daughter got it from; that's when she remembered the white-haired boy her daughter served. ''You've met him?''

She nodded her head and answered. ''He came here to visit me and gave me this necklace.''

Ella presented the sea stone, and her mother's eyes widened in surprise. "A sea stone, how did he get it?"

Recalling Archer's earlier story, Ella spoke. "He bought two of them for two gold each!"

The older woman was perplexed and questioned, "Where did he get the coins for that? He got kicked out nearly a month ago and now has gold coins."

But the half-elf explained. "Mother, he is an adventurer and has completed two quests."

She was on the verge of sharing the news about the kiss, but her face and ears turned bright red, her brain seemingly short-circuiting at the thought.

Observing her daughter's reaction, her mother recognized that something significant had occurred between the two youngsters.

Sitting beside the girl on her bed, she asked, "What's happened?"

Ella grew even more nervous, unsure what to say, and remained silent. Noticing her daughter's hesitation, her mother asked, "Did he kiss you?"

She quickly shook her head, which made Sheira worried. ''Did he touch you?''

Nodding her head made Sheira's stomach drop. Her temper took over, and she raised her voice. ''What did the boy do, Ella!!''

The half-elf was startled at the tone in her voice, but she quickly realized what she said.

Ella remained quiet because she didn't want to tell Sheira she kissed the boy. Her mother took her silence as the answer and quickly stood up and barked out.

''I'm going to see the duke to see if he can punish that disgusting brat for touching my daughter!''

When Ella heard what she said, she panicked and jumped out of bed before telling her what happened. ''No, Mama, don't do that. You got it wrong!''

She approached with her head down and told her. ''He only returned the kiss when I kissed him first.''

Her mother let out a deep, relieved breath before speaking. ''Why not say that, young lady? I was going to complain to the Duke!''

Looking down in shame before whispering what happened. ''Sorry, I was just embarrassed.''

Sheira brought Ella over to the bed and hugged her. ''You have nothing to be embarrassed about, darling.''

That's when a warm smile appeared on her face. ''You two have always been adorable together; I'm glad it happened.''

Ella heard her mother speak and looked up to see her with a happy smile as her mother continued speaking.

''Did you think I'd be angry with you? You've liked the boy for years now, and by the way, he looks at you and likes you.''

When she heard her mother say that, her face, neck, and ears turned red like a tomato.

Sheira smiled and was happy when she saw her daughter act like this. ''Just take things slow between the two of you, and leave this place when the times up and join him, my darling.''

Ella smiled and nodded before her mother wished her goodnight before leaving her room.

***

[Back to Archer]

The caravan guards didn't take long to loot everything, and Rowana joined him on the log. An old portly man with two children came walking up to the two and thanked them. ''Miss Rowana and your little friend there, thanks for your help.''

Archer nodded while the witch spoke. ''That's okay, Mr. West. It's why you hired us, and this little guy's name is Archer.''

The older man smiled, nodded, bid farewell, and walked away as the little girl stared at Archer. That's when he noticed her looking at him and waved at her. When he did that, she turned her head back around.

Archer started laughing when he saw her look away after greeting her, but the boy beside her gave him the stink eyes. So he just stuck his tongue out to the boy as he pulled out a meat wrap and started eating again once he finished the eight hearts he ate when no one was looking.

Rowana saw all this and shook her head when he pulled out some meat wrapped in a leaf. She wondered where he got it from. ''Archer, where did you get that food from?''