A vagrant, huh?

    Charles raised his eyebrows as he stared at the figure who was almost covered from head to foot.

    Only her eyes and a small portion of her face were visible.

    I can sense mana from that woman''s body. Is he hiding something?

    Charles''s lips curved upwards as he stood up. He then approached Alaric and reminded him with a stern gaze.

    "My nephew, you should prioritize our task. Bringing that woman would only delay us. Besides, we don''t know what kind of person she is. What if she is a thief or a criminal?"

    His voice wasn''t loud, but it was clear enough for everyone to hear.

    Alaric glanced indifferently at him and responded. "I understand your concern, Uncle. I will take full responsibility for her actions and I will make sure that our trip won''t be delayed. You can rest assured." Discover stories at My Virtual Library Empire

    Charles stared deeply at him and shrugged his shoulders.

    "Alright. I won''t say anything more. Just keep an eye on her."

    Alaric nodded without saying anything.

    Seeing that he had no intention to chat, Charles awkwardly tapped Alaric''s shoulder and went to a spot closer to the bonfire.

    There is definitely something about that woman.

    I don''t think my dear nephew would take in some random stranger, but what is special about her?

    Charles thoughtfully watched as Alaric brought the woman closer to the bonfire.

    Unlike Charles, the warriors and the Knights showed no interest in the vagrant woman. They were common outside of Vale and some would even find their way to North Pine Town.

    After casting curious glances at her, they quickly lost interest. They trusted Alaric''s decision so no one questioned him or expressed any disagreement.

    After laying her down near the fire, Alaric beckoned to his cousin, Josephus.

    Josephus was a bit surprised by his sudden call, but he immediately came to his side and asked. "What can I do for you, my lord?"

    "Form a small team to hunt a big game. Make sure that it''s big enough for everyone." Alaric instructed.

    Hearing this, Josephus nodded his head. "Yes, my lord."

    "If you want to recover quickly, then you better drink this. Now open your mouth and don''t make this difficult for me."

    Alaric grabbed a wooden spoon and dipped it into the medicinal liquid.

    After taking a spoonful of the liquid, he brought it to her lips.

    The revolting smell made her flinch, but under Alaric''s cold, watchful eyes, she could only reluctantly open her mouth.

    Gulp.

    She held her breath as she swallowed down the so-called medicine.

    It was bitter and even a bit spicy- a taste that almost made her throw up.

    Alaric helped her sit up to make her more comfortable. "You need to drink all of this. Don''t even think of spitting a single drop."

    "Mn." She hummed in response.

    A moment later, Josephus''s small hunting group finally returned with a huge wild boar.

    "Good, job!" Alaric praised him, making the latter smile in embarrassment.

    Alaric then asked someone to make a soup using the wild boar''s meat.

    Surprisingly, Arthur volunteered for the task, but it was a tough job for one man so Alaric asked for two more volunteers to help him in skinning the boar.

    The skinning and the cooking process took more than a few hours, but everyone patiently waited. Who wouldn''t want a hot soup in this kind of freezing weather?

    Soon, the hot boar meat soup was finally served.

    "Hey! This is your share. Eat it while it''s still hot." Alaric handed a bowl of the boar meat soup to the elf.

    The elf took the bowl and muttered.

    "It''s Yvanna, not ''hey''."

    "Hm? What did you say?" Alaric glanced at her in surprise, pretending like he didn''t hear her.

    The elf ignored him and blew air into the soup to make it less hot.

    Alaric chuckled and watched her quietly.

    Yvanna... That''s not a bad name.