Amelia

Under the judgemental watch of the elves, the Elder led the group to his house. The cabin was built on top of a thick tree root, seeming a bit more spacious than the other houses. Upon entering, the strong aroma of flowers entered their noses, erasing their exhaustion from body and mind. The cozy house was what everyone needed after traveling for days in the humid, chilly, and rainy jungle.

"Miss Doctor please examine my Amelia..."

The old man led Eleen to a room, where a figure could be seen lying on the bed. It was a frail girl. Her light brown hair sprawled around, her frame covered in a thin blanket. The girl's breathing was heavy, her body drenched in sweat.

"Let's wait here."

Stopping at the door and preventing the others from entering the room, Ian watched as Eleen rushed to the patient's side and began examining her condition. The sleeping girl twitched at the touch, cracking her eyes open.

"Claus... Are you... Back?"

A fragile, tender voice, barely spoken out.

Hearing the call, Claus hesitated inside the room. Standing awkwardly beside the bed, he scanned the girl's figure, biting down on his lip.

"For you to... Bring a human doctor... Huff... I t-told you to-"

"Argh shut it!"

"You... could have-"

"Sshh. I said quite!"

As if those short sentences were enough, Claus turned around and left the room as fast as he'd entered. Stopping right at the exiting door of the house, he paused for a second with his hand on the handle. Can't leave yet, muttered he under his lips, taking deep breaths. 

After waiting a few seconds for things to settle down, Ian walked up to the Elder who was restlessly moving around the house. 

"Is your village going through a crisis?"

The Elder's expression didn't change much. Anyone could guess that much through observation, this human wasn't especially sharp or smart. 

"The Elementals have gone wild. The elf village should've taken most of the damage. Am I right?" He let out a sigh, "We can help you out." Ian glanced at Claus who's halted at the door. "Of course not for free."

"What's this human getting at?"

The door of the house was slapped open. A muscular middle-aged elf entered the house, followed by the previous little girl. His sharp glare fell on Ian at the center of the room, a threatening aura engulfing his body. 

"Human or not, we are the only helpers you can get." With his hands clasped behind his waist, Ian approached the bulky elf, conversing in a steady voice, not an ounce shaken by his strong presence. "The village will be destroyed if things keep going on like this. You guys don't even know the cause of the problem, do you? Elves can't harm elementals, if I'm not mistaken. Humans have no such restrictions."

Cocking his head to one side, Ian stared out the window. he looked at nothing specific at all as if seeing something invisible that the others couldn't recognize. 

"We are a mercenary group under a very strong organization. we can help you solve this crisis, but of course, It'll cost you something. Think about it... And be quick. There is not much time left." 

The expression of the occupants of the room wasn't pleasant at all. Not just the elves but also the humans were stupefied. Why were they suddenly striking a deal with the elves? More than a deal, this seemed they were scamming these people...

"This pesky creature!" Ignoring the looks the Elder was giving him, the middle-aged elf strode forward. The house shook under his weight, some tiles shattering apart. Standing at a foot's distance from the rude human, the left raised his voice, "Do you have a death wish?"

"Anton!"

"We have yet to fall so low! Who do you think you are??"

Sensing the pressure that burst out from the uncle's buddy Raven stepped forward, blocking Ian from the possible danger. The two stood face to face, their auras silently clashing with each other.

'It's so convenient having him around. I couldn't be so bold if I weren't confident in Kieran.'

Despite having repeated this scenario multiple times, this one was one of the few times that things progressed so smoothly, and most of it was thanks to Kieran and Eleen. Of course, there were a few ones that went nice thanks to Rosalyng following him, but that woman wasn't so easy to deal with. Out of 15 times he visited this place with her, 13 led to a direct battle between her and Anton before the event even started.

Pushing aside the past memories, Ian peeked at the elf from behind Raven's back.

"You can remain high and mighty as long as you want, but the disaster will eventually hit you, and you know it well enough."

"These humans don't know their places. Elder, don't be too mad if your house falls apart."

"Why so mad? Just pay us and we'll do all the dirty work-"

"Um...."

At that moment, the doctor walked out of the room, cutting their speech midway through. The quarrels died down in an instant, all attention focusing on her. 

"I... Uh." Eleen bit down on her lips, face clouded in confusion. "I don't understand what her problem is..."

"Hah! What else did you expect?"

Sneering, the elf named Anton tried to approach the doctor, yet his path was once again blocked by the black-haired swordsman. He scoffed and glared at the occupants of the room. 

"You thugs won't get anything from us. Get your asses out of our home!"

Seeing the humans not react at all, the man reached out his hand to the hind of his back. Grabbing its handle, Anton pulled down a huge axe.

"Uncle, that's enough!" Before he could do anything, Clause came to stand in between Anton and Raven. "What's your problem, uncle? Is it me? Do you wish I'd died out there somewhere while seeking that sacred bird or whatever? I've brought possible help. What's so hard to understand about it?"

"Claus, calm down."

"Why? Am I wrong? Tell me, Elder, am I wrong?"

Ian pulled Raven's shirt, dragging him back. It wasn't good to intervene in others' family problems.

As if the piled-up anger finally reached the tip of the jar, he didn't hold back at all, saying whatever came to his mind. 

" We've lost so many only to save this place, but you uncle, you don't even seem willing to put any effort into it! Is all you care about is your pride and delusional superiority? Find the sacred bird deep inside the jungle? At the core of the corruption? What's that you seek in this situation??? My father died trying to defend this village. My fiance lost her powers and is in dire condition. What's next? What shall I give next? What do you want? You also want me dead?" 

"CLAUS!"

"That's enough, both of you, that's enough!"

The little elf girl, who had entered right after Anton, trembled on her spot. She retreated back a bit before running inside the room, tearing up. The girl threw herself to the bed, hugging the sick elf's arms and hiding her face on the mattress. 

"Sister, I'm scared..."

Amelia could barely pat the child's head, let alone say any word of comfort. Tears rolled down her cheeks as she watched the scene outside. She attempted to voice out her thoughts but didn't have the strength to. As her lips opened and closed with no sound, steaming tears kept drenching her pillow.

"Mhm!"

Hearing a few fake coughs, Amelia couldn't help but roll her eyes to the side. A human was bending his back, peeking at her face up close. She'd usually be disgusted by such behavior, but now, Amelia couldn't feel any malice. As if enchanted by the human's deep blue eyes, she stared at his face with a blank face. 

"Miss, do you feel your chest burning when breathing?"

"...."

"I guess you don't. Yet."

"...."

"That's good."

Not just her and her sister, but even the humans were sending strange gazes at the blue-eyed man. Still, one attempted to interrupt him. 

"I only ask you one thing." The human's lips curled to a smile. "Don't forget to reward us accordingly after everything is solved. Alright?"

The arguments in the hall seemed to finally die down. They didn't reach an agreement, but it ended with Claus rushing out of the house, unable to continue. Watching his slumped shoulders, Ian held back a sigh.

Good thing he retreated and didn't watch their argument. He didn't wish to once again witness that man's haggard sight. He had enough of it in his previous lives. 

The girl's eyes also followed Claus' movements out. Once again, tears rolled in her eyes. Blocking her view, Ian placed his finger over his lips. "Those guys are helpless. Let's ignore them, I'd say. After all, no matter what some power-crazy people do, you are the one deciding the matters in this village, aren't you? So don't forget our reward~"