The stranger

"Will she be all right?" Riki inquired, and Dalia smiled as she looked at him.

"She will be fine, after all, she's having her dreams come true, she is not weak and this is just another reason that's making her stronger because she wants to protect it, let's get to work," Dalia responded before Riki smiled and went to help the dwarfs with whatever they could.

When Nessa arrived in the forest, she noticed a man dressed in white and black walking around with a white mask on his face.

"I don't like his scent," Akio said then Nessa placed her hand on his head and he looked at her.

"Both of you, hide," She replied, then looked up at the apple tree near her, picked a few apples, and threw them across the ground, and when the masked man heard the noise, Nessa concealed her aura so he wouldn't know she had power.

"I'm sorry," She apologized as she picked up the few apples.

"Apples are easily damaged, be careful," He warned, his voice heavy and windy.

'That's not his real voice,' She thought, standing up and smiling.

"Ah, I see, mister, thank you for the warning," She said.

"You are welcome, and please be careful," He replied, and she smiled.

"Are you looking for something? You are here all alone," She said.

"I'm just passing through, I've been hearing strange things from this forest recently, so I was just checking it out, there are a lot of monstrous creatures out here, maybe I'll see you around, bye," He responded.

"Take care, bye," She said then he left and once she knew he was gone, she sighed as Akio and Isamu approached her.

"Strange things in the forest? Is he referring to us?" She inquired.

"I am not sure, but it could be," Isamu responded.

"Thank goodness he didn't get too close to town," Akio sighed.

"We have to be cautious," Nessa said.

"My lady, there are many strange things in this forest, you may encounter a lot more trouble in the near future," Akio replied to which she smiled.

"I know Akio, I will face all problems head-on, no matter how difficult they are; however, thank you for your concern; let us all work together to protect our home." She said, and the creatures looked at each other before looking at her.

"We will always be by your side, that's one thing that you can always be sure of," Isamu replied, and she grinned before returning to the town with the apples she had picked and handed them to the kids before going into her tent to eat her food because she was hungry.

While eating, Nessa thought about different ways to make things better for the town, knowing that an alliance with another nation would be good because it would limit the possibility of her home being easily targeted. However, Nessa knew it was all risky and aimed to get an alliance with a strong nation, one that people felt threatened by and would not risk going to war with.

"My lady," Youthim said as he stood outside the tent, "I wanted to let you know we got another thing done and we have started building a fountain in the middle of town." Nessa sipped her drink and exited the tent.

"Good job and the fountain is a nice touch," She replied, and he smiled as he was complimented on a job well done.

"Also, the lakes and rivers are mostly connected, so we've started building a bridge connecting this part of town to the next, because we have a tacky bridge that we used to get across to build the houses and so on, and I thought it's about time we get those things done," Youthim said, and Nessa exhaled deeply.

"Go ahead, build what you think needs to be done first, and if you guys need extra materials or anything, please let me know, I took a look at the newly built houses, everything is strong and the interior designs we created for them is great," She replied.

"I will and thank you, this place is going to be huge," He said and they smiled while looking at everyone mixing and having fun despite the fact that they were different species.

"I'll return to work, my lady," He said.

"All right, be careful and good luck," She replied, and he bowed his head before returning to work with the others.

"I think when everything is done, there should be a huge mansion for the lady, if possible a castle," Tehitos said as he passed by her, talking to Zietaz, and Nessa smiled nervously when she heard that.

"My lady," Liya said as she approached Nessa, bowing her head and Nessa looked at her.

"What's the matter Liya?" She asked.

"Uh... As you know, I enjoy cooking, and wanted to ask, would you be willing to teach me the recipes of some of the things you know to make if you have any of course?" She asked, nervously.

"Sure, I'll teach you what I know, though some things are a little different; it'll take a lot of hard work; are you up for the challenge?" Nessa inquired, and the girl excitedly nodded, and Nessa smiled.

"My lady," Aion said as he and a few other goblins approached Nessa, who looked at him.

"What is it?" She asked.

"Here," He said, opening her hand, then placing a bunch of blueberries in it, and she smiled.

"Where did you get this?" She asked.

"There is a lot in the valley just beside the hill that looks over the town, the one you go to a lot, the barrier are delicious," He responded, and she smiled.

"Thank you, Aion," She said and he grinned.

"You guys are pretty fast, Yanka said you will be of good use if something happens, you are small and fast, and the training to learn will be difficult, especially with him but still maybe you should all consider learning how to use the sword,," Riki suggested as he approached them, and Nessa looked at him before turning to face the goblins.