TELL ME YOUR STORY

"Please Relax. If I mean you any harm, then you should have been dead already. For now, please forgive me for restraining your legs. Don't take this personal, but I still don't trust you yet." said Gus

They simply nodded and continued to eat as if there was no tomorrow. After they cleaned up their plates, they heaved a sigh of relief. It has been a while since they could take a rest knowing that no one is chasing them at the moment. The man couldn't help but notice the big changes to the condition of his tied up companion.

"Falkes! Your Leg! It's...."

"My leg is healed!" The man couldn't believe it himself. He moved his leg around and realized that he couldn't feel the pain in his leg anymore.

"Kind sir, Are you the one who helped my Son?"

"Yes, I did. Now, could you kindly tell me who you are?" Before the Fugitives could answer Gus' questions, a familiar voice was heard behind them.

"Mr. Durnham?! Mr. Falkes?!"

Gus turned back and saw Sarah with the Children. Looking at their clothes, it seems that they have all freshen up before coming here. Nico and Rhoanne have also entered the mudhouse, not a moment longer.

"Sarah, do you know them?" asked Gus.

"Why, yes! They also run an Orphanage in Phanzal City."

"Lady Sarah! You grace us with your presence!" said Ben as he lowered his head towards her.

Since Sarah knew who they were, Gus immediately released them from their restraints and offered them to sit at the table.

"Lady Sarah?" Gus looked at Sarah with a very curious look.

"I...It's a long story, Gus."

Gus simply nodded. He was aware that it was very rude to dwell into a person's history, even more so a woman's.

"Let's leave the explanations for later. Everyone, come sit down and eat before the food gets cold."

Gus led everyone to the makeshift table and saw the delicious food served on top.

"Ahh! No fair, Papa! You went ahead and cooked without us!" said Little Sage.

"Yeah, Mr. Gus! you need to teach us!"--

Everyone started eating at the table. As usual, everybody thoroughly enjoyed Gus' cooking.

The Yakitori skewers has a perfect balance of sweet and salty flavor. The gamey taste of the rabbit is present, but it's perfectly canceled out by the smoky flavor from the grill.

The beer-battered cockatrice is quite exquisite. It's still crispy even though it's been sitting on the table for quite a while. Soon after Rhoanne took a bite of the crispy cockatrice, steam immediately gushed out of the fried dish.

"Ooh! Still hot!" ---

Little Sage blew on her chicken pieces little by little, till she can bite on it properly.

The Japanese Egg Fried Rice took all of them by surprise. It was the first time they eat rice by pan-frying it since they ate it differently last time. They thought it was the same with the usual bean dishes they were used to, but it's not! Each grain of rice is beautifully coated with eggs and the dish is seasoned to perfection. Each bite will want you to bite more and more.

"Thank you for the food, Mr. Gus!" ----

Gus simply nodded as he cleaned his makeshift kitchen.

After eating, everyone listened to the story of Ms. Sarah's acquaintances.

"Mr. Gus, My name is Ben Durnham, and this is my son Falkes Durnham. Our Family has managed a Charitable institution that was granted to us by the previous King Edward MoSanchez..."

Ben told them everything. he told the reason why they went to the castle, and he also mentioned the unfortunate events that happened inside. Ben and Falkes shed tears, as the explained how the King took Alice away from them to be his plaything and how the cruel king have crippled poor Falkes.

Finally, Ben explained how they ended up in the forest.

"After the incident in the castle, we wanted to seek help from our friends outside. But, unfortunately, the city guards have barred us from leaving the city. We escaped by stowing away onboard caravans that pass by inside and outside Phanzal. Fortunately, most of them helped us because they knew who we were and what we do in Phanzal City. We were camping in the forest yesterday, but we were caught off-guard, as border patrol has spotted us from afar. The king told them that we were escaped fugitives, so he ordered them to kill us on sight. We barely got away in one piece. Fortunately, the children were there by coincidence and saved us. We can never thank all of you enough for your kindness. But... our poor... poor... Alice." Ben and Falkes cried again once more.

Gus sighed and felt sorry for the two. He couldn't help them even if he wanted to. He was reincarnated with no offensive abilities whatsoever. Being a Happy-go-lucky hero will simply get him killed. To make it worse, he will definitely put everyone in danger as well.

After he thought things through, Gus felt something odd, At the corner of his eyes, the Children were already staring intensely at him. He knew what they were thinking. Even Little Sage is waving around her "Magna Defender" Action figure in anticipation for my answer.

Gus took a deep breath and held out his hand in front of them. He is determined to reject this request, as it is simply too dangerous.

"I know what you guys are about to say... As much as I would love to help...

---------------

"Hidden Mission Triggered!

Objective: Rescue Alice Durnham from the clutches of King MoSanchez.

Time Limit: None

Mission fails if target, Alice Durnham dies.

Reward :

1x Random 2 star System's Enchanted Kitchen Equipment

5x Skill points

Unlock Access to Specialty Shop: SALT Specialty Store

Failure:

-10 Levels

- 7 skill points (used or unused)

----------------

"I would need time to think up of a way to help them... so there!" Gus finished his speech while gritting his teeth. He was infuriated with the System's impeccable timing of activating Hidden Missions. He only wanted to live quiet life and protect his small family. Sadly, the System gave him a situation he couldn't possibly refuse.

The children jumped in joy. To their eyes, Gus is not just their adoptive father, but he is definitely a hero. A very strong hero.

"Gus, please think this through! You simply can't go against King Edward!" said Sarah.

"Are you sure about accepting this Gus? We barely made it alive fighting goblins, But were dealing with a whole City here! It's not like a Dungeon we can simply conquer. Please tell me you have a plan." said Rhoanne.

"System... Give me Three Ice cold Beers, please." requested Gus