Chapter 22: Chapter 22: For The Time Being

The bright ray of morning sun once again dominated Etveya's Intersection Clearing's entire patch of grassland. The howling of monsters from afar could be heard, as could the sound of birds singing morning tunes to welcome the arrival of a new day. The gentle wind blew through the area, making the massive trees that surrounded the grassland dance in unison. A place where there was no danger lurking around, a safe place where everyone could sleep without fear of an attack from the forest surrounding them.

Several groups of adventurers from nearby towns had begun to prepare for their upcoming journey, their laughter could be heard as they cooked their breakfast over the campfire, and there were a number of them dipping in the river to wash their faces, conversing with each other with smiles on their faces. A community of hundreds of adventurers from Etveya's great forest who treated each other as friends despite not knowing each other and would help each other without hesitation if needed. The epitome of cooperation and unity.

On the other hand, was situated on top of a tree at the edge of the Intersection Clearing. Gideon was leaning on the trunk while still sleeping; for the first time since his arrival in this world, he had a proper sleep without fear of dangers jumping on him. His breathing was slow and relaxed, but he had a snobbish expression on his face that could intimidate anyone who happened to see it. However, his eyes twitched as a faint buzzing sound approached his face. He was forced to open his eyes while weakly groaning, and what greeted him was a small ball of white light the size of a tennis ball floating near his face.

Gideon gasped and immediately stood up, staring at the small entity floating in front of him. The small ball of light, on the other hand, just floated in the air.

"Oh, you're finally awake; Ordy asked me to wake you up."

A soft and cheerful voice caused Gideon to look down to the ground, where he discovered Halini smiling sweetly at him. She was holding her staff, which she had used to cast Elemental Wisp, which she had also named Loafy, and which was the cause of Gideon's awakening.

Gideon smiled gently as he slowly exhaled, remembering that he was finally out of the dangerous part of the forest. And the image of Halini smiling at him proved it. That everything that occurred was true. "Yes, please forgive me for having to wake me up; I'm still deep in sleep; and, by the way, thank you."

Halini laughed, and Loafy, who had been floating in front of Gideon, faded away. "Don't worry, come down now; breakfast is ready; Mian prepared it for us."

Gideon climbed down the tree without saying anything and jumped to the ground when he reached a certain height. He landed in front of Halini, who was looking at him with her bright blue eyes.

Before proceeding to the location of their campfire, Halini examined the tree; there were no low branches to easily climb, only a straight trunk that was extremely difficult to climb. "How can you climb a tree like that? I've been adventuring for two years, but I still can't climb trees like Mian and Vien."

Gideon shifted his gaze away from Halini and toward their path. "When we were younger, my brother and I used to climb trees, or should I say, my brother used to force me to climb trees while saying I needed it to become stronger. He'd always been that way, the part of him I both despised and admired. As a result, I can climb any kind of tree... Coconut, Kapok tree, name it, I can climb it," he chuckled. "It's because of my stupid big brother, who may have enjoyed seeing me suffer."

"He's allowing you to struggle in order for you to grow," Halini stated. "He sounds like an incredible big brother."

Gideon remained silent for a few seconds, his gaze fixed on the people conversing on the campfire ahead of them, Ordy, Mian, and Vien. When he saw Ordy waving his hand at them, he smiled and waved back. He returned his gaze to Halini. "Incredible? Yes... He was," he said with a pained smile, leaving Halini speechless.

"And here comes our new fellow, Gideon," Ordy laughed, placing his heavy arm on Gideon and Halini's shoulders. "Young man, why did you sleep on top of the tree? You should have slept with us on the ground; this place is completely safe anyway."

Gideon laughed. "Force of habit."

"I see. It can't be helped then," Ordy said, tapping Gideon on the shoulder and walking toward the campfire. "Let's eat breakfast; we'll need a lot of energy for our journey back to town," he said, raising his thumb. "It's Mian's cooking this time, the best cook in Eteria!"

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"I am not," Mian said, looking down and tucking some of her bangs behind her ears, a subtle smile on her face in response to Ordy's compliment. The hint of red on her white face was still visible as she raised her face again, but not enough for Ordy to notice. Everyone else noticed it except Ordy, including Gideon, whose first reaction was to look away while whistling.

Ordy chuckled, his hand on his stomach. "Our ranger is truly humble; now, now, let's eat; I'm hungry."

"Yay!" exclaimed Halini as she approached the campfire and joined the others.

Gideon, on the other hand, walked toward the campfire with his gaze wandering around the area. The scenery around him was somehow familiar to him. Unlike the previous night, when they arrived at almost sundown, the entire area was clear, and he could see all of the adventurers. Almost a hundred of them were in the area, each with their own set of gear and weapons. The scenery reminded him of a time in his life when he was still doing live-action role-playing, memories he had buried deep within him. But this time it was set in a world of swords and magic. Where special abilities and dangers were no longer fictitious.

With the realization that the grand mission that had been imposed on him was just as real as this world.

"Here's your food, Gideon."

Gideon's thoughts were interrupted when Mian called for him and handed him a wooden bowl filled with white soup and floating boar meat, potatoes, and carrots. Gideon gently took the bowl in both hands and sat on the log next to Ordy, talking with Vien about their potential next quest.

"Do you think we should do that next time, Vien?" Ordy asked, brightly smiling. "We had a difficult time completing a similar quest the last time, but it would be different now, and that quest pays the most because very few people want to do it."

"That would be great," Vien replied before taking a sip from the wooden bowl she was holding.

"Although we should be careful, some of those slimy things can melt fabric, I remember Ordy went home wearing only his armor while wearing my cloak to cover his bottom," Halini warned, her eyes narrowing and her upper lip raised.

Ordy chuckled, "It's better to be me than any of you girls, right? Although it was a rather humiliating journey."

Vien didn't say anything, just shifted her enlarged eyes back and forth between the two, her white ears and pointed nose turning red.

"You two should stop scaring Vien or she'll leave us sooner; we'll never do that kind of quest again," Mian said, sitting between Vien and Halini. "It wasn't fun, and it was quite scarring... those images of Ordy are now forever etched in my mind."

But what followed was Ordy's loud laughter and Halini's soft giggle.

Gideon, on the other hand, was simply watching them while sipping from the bowl of soup he was holding. His gaze shifted depending on who was speaking, and he smiled subtly if he heard something amusing. He was already smiling without even realizing it, his normally lifeless eyes blinking with life. The joy of the party was affecting him, giving him new hope after days of despair while trying to fend for himself.

The battle had ended for the time being.

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