Knight Vantosia cursed himself for not reaching the girl before she fell to the ground. He was so busy scolding her and looking for signs of Welk and his lot he didn't even realize the girl's condition. With quick steps, he reached Ember and gently pulled her into his arm, careful not to hold her too tight.

She really was just a child. Her frame was thin even thinner than was normally expected from working commoners. How could such a child have managed to fight against blood leeches? Was her soul weapon just that powerful? He had to admit he was curious to see the weapon but he didn't wish to scare the girl especially after that fool of a guard had so clearly shown his greed. It was fortunate that she was going to Hekral with them otherwise he was sure she would be dead shortly after the delegation left.

Of course, there was no way he would have left her to her fate even if Priest Beslen hadn't decided to step in. There were multiple reasons but the main one was a glowing golden scroll that had appeared a few days after the delegation had set out.

Just the thought of the scroll made it appear before him. The scroll unfurled in front of him.

---

Quest of the Akashic Tree

Befriend Ember of Goros

Reward: Possible survival, A Token of Gratitude

---

Van stared at it before willing it away. The scroll curled up and disappeared. Van continued walking with the girl in his arms. His feelings about the quest were complicated. He had never heard of the Akashic Tree giving out quests and a part of him wonder if this was some sort of trick. Should he report it to his superior? That would be the right thing to do and he would have done that before he had met Ember.

As the knight in charge of the delegation, he had spurred them on to Goros much faster than the planned timeframe. It wasn't just the quest but an urgency he couldn't name. And in the end that urgency had been confirmed when he discovered that an attack had happened on the small town. An attack that was unusual since the townspeople had never had to deal with blood leeches before. They weren't even aware they existed.

And in the middle of it all was Ember of Goros. A child. It had been totally unexpected. He had been ready to confront this Ember and she was a twelve-year-old girl who had risked her life to help her townspeople. A quick glance down at the girl showed her in a fitful sleep. His gaze drifted to her bandaged hands.

What could this all mean? And why was he supposed to befriend her? The wording of the entire quest was strange. It didn't tell him to save her or even to protect her, just befriend her. It was infuriating.

Once he was inside the temple, he caught the eye of an acolyte who rushed over. "She collapsed. She needs to be treated."

"Of course. I can take her," the acolyte quickly said, holding out his arm.

Van looked over the man and frowned. "Just point me to where I should put her."

The acolyte dropped his arms and with a nod, led them to one of the many makeshift beds they had set out for the injured townspeople. Honestly, it was a shoddy set up, mostly made of hay and sheets. Then again, the temple was likely unprepared for such a sudden onslaught. The town was closer to a village than a real town. It was only the placement of a temple and the Lord's manor that made it a town.

He had heard that Baron Felis pushed for the temple after he took on the family legacy. The man was trying to rebuild the family after it had been demoted from a Count to a Baron and stripped of its wealth two generations ago. Surprisngly, the Braon had managed to build up a significant amount of wealth if his home and hiring of an entire mercanry group as guards was a sign. Unfortunately, the wealth hadn't been spread down to the town and the guard were more like thugs.

Van shook such thought from his head as he reached the bed the acolyte guided him to. He looked at it, reluctant to set the girl down, silently wishing for better accommodations. It was a useless thought. Van set her down and turned to the acolyte

"Stay with her until I return."

"But the other patients..." The acolyte swallowed his words when Van directed a cold look in at. "Yes. I will."

"I won't be long," Van said. He didn't want to bully the acolyte when he was only trying to help people.

With a clip nod at the man, he turned away. He started to walk to the back rooms but stopped. Instead, he glanced around, intending to grab a free acolyte but the problem was there was no free acolyte available. Each one was busy helping the injured. What they needed was a healer. The delegation was supposed to have one but at the last minute the King had removed him from the delegation.

It wasn't too surprising. Healers were rare and therefore a luxury. While the Akashic Order usually assigned a healer to any priest with blessing abilities when they traveled, they're treaty with the royal family called for them to come when they kingdom called for them. Something that had been urgently needed after a surprise attack happened on a popular tourist city. In some ways, the attack on the town was a very small copy of that. Why were the monsters attacking so voraciously?

Giving up on getting an acolyte, Van walked to one of the prayer rooms. It was in the second one that he found Ember's brother.

"It took you-" The Boy's words abruptly cut off when he saw Van. His eyes widened and there was a hint of awe in his face as he looked up at the knight. "Knight Vantosia."

"Your sister has fainted. Inform your parents," Van ordered.

The boy frowned. "What happened? Did you do something to her?"

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Van looked at the boy in surprise. The boy's fist was balled up at his side like he was ready to attack if need be despite facing down a man in armor.

"I didn't do anything to your sister. Now get your parents. It is best I stay at your sister's side." Van turned and then stopped. "And notify Priest Beslen as well."

Then he left the boy behind, returning to Ember. When he reached her, he noticed the acolyte had rewrapped her hands and put a wet towel against her forehead.

"She has a fever," the acolyte stated. "I've done the best I can to help her but she'll need time to rest."

"Do you have any potions you could give her?"

The acolyte looked at him like he was crazy and then quickly dropped his gaze as if realizing just who he was facing. "Our potions are limited, Knight Vantosia. They are being used on the more seriously injured."

Van frowned, reading between the lines. It seemed Ember was not worth wasting a potion on. A streak of irritation went through him but he simply grunted. "You may leave. I will watch over her."

The acolyte scrambled away. Van moved to the chair he vacated and quickly looked the girl over. His survival training and years as a knight gave him enough experience to see that the girl was not in critical condition. But he also knew how quickly a fever could turn. He sighed and reached for his satchel.

He pulled out a small blue vial that glowed faintly. He lifted the girl up slightly and then uncorking it, poured the contents into her mouth. Van couldn't help feeling a pang of lost. Potions were so expensive and he had just poured a fortune down this child's throat. Still, he didn't regret it.

"Hey! What did you just give my sister?" A voice shouted across the room.

Van looked up to see Ember's brother barreling towards him. Behind him his parents chased after him while Priest Beslen followed looking amused.

Van waited until the boy reached him before answering him. "It was a healing potion."

"Oh, so you were helping her?" Her brother asked, peering at his sister.

Van sighed in exasperation but nodded.

A wide grin spread across the boy's face. "I knew it. You are a good person. Wait until I tell Ember."

"I apologize, Knight Vantosia," Ember's mother said, pulling the boy away. "He's protective of his sister."

"It's fine," Van said, dismissing it. He wasn't so prideful to get riled up by a little boy.

"What a good brother," Priest Beslen stated glancing at Ember. He then frowned.

Van followed his gaze to see Ember tossing and turning in her sleep. It was clear the fever still raged on.

The boy looked at his sister, frowning. "Shouldn't she be waking up since you gave her a potion?"

"It doesn't quite work like that," Van said but his brow furrowed. The potion should have at least calmed her down but the girl was still sweating and twisting and turning. Van took one of her hands, untying the bandage. The wounds were healed showing the potion was at least working, so there had to be another problem.

"There's something wrong," Van said.

Her father stepped forward. "What is it?"

The possibility of the girl being poisoned entered his mind but before he could voice his thoughts Priest Beslen stepped in. He reached out to the girl, placing his fingers on her wrist. His gaze grew intense as he looked over Ember before smiling.

"She's fine," the priest said almost cheerfully. "She just needs some rest. Her fever should break in a few days."

Her family relaxed at the priest's words though Van gave the priest a look. Priest Beslen wasn't a healer so why was he so sure that Ember was fine.

"Can we take her home?" Her father asked.

Priest Beslen nodded. "I don't see why not. Since Knight Vantosia gave her a healing potion she should be fine to move."

"Wait," Van said.

"Thank you, Knight Vantosia," Matron Camila cut in. "We'll figure out a way to pay you for the potion."

"Please, don't worry about that," Knight Van said and quickly excused himself as he noticed Beslen walking away.

He rushed after the man. "Priest Beslen. What are you doing?" He glanced at the family and moved a little further away, not wanting them to hear.

"Nothing currently. Though shouldn't you be accompanying Ember's family," the priest asked, tilting his head in an exaggeration of confusion.

Van gritted his teeth. This man. "I will but why are you allowing them to leave. You're not a healer. She could be poisoned. That would explain why the potion didn't fully heal her."

"That could be the reason," Priest Beslen said and then grinned. "But that isn't."

"What? How can you be sure?"

Priest Beslen patted Van's arm. "You worry too much, Knight Vantosia. I can say with absolute certainty that Maiden Ember will be fine after some much needed rest."

Van stared at the priest and the man stared back with an amused look on his face. Van was suddenly filled with an urge to punch him but he held himself back.

"Preist Beslen, can you at least explain why you are so confident?"

The priest tilted his head, looking thoughtful before a wide smile spread across his lips. "That is a secret. Now you really should be going, Maiden Ember's family has already left."

Van whipped around and saw that her family had indeed left without him. Swearing, he turned to the priest.

"Please send someone with my things." Then Van hurried out of the temple and after the family.

Van spotted them right away and found himself cursing at what he saw. One of the guards was on the ground, clutching his cheek, while Ember's father stood over him. Her father was half-carrying his daughter in one arm while his other was slightly raised as ready to throw another punch.

"What's going on?" Van asked, hurrying over.

The guard stood up, raising his hands in a placating gesture. "Just a misunderstanding. That's all. Isn't that right, Zeris?"

Ember's father didn't say anything. Instead, he gathered Ember in his arms and walked pass the man. Van frowned. He was sure the guard had confronted them on purpose. Was he just harassing the family? Would he have tried to take her if Van hadn't arrived?

He turned to face the man to see him grinning at Zeris's departing back. "Who are you?"

The man jerked and when he looked at the knight there was a flash of fear in his eyes. "Myron. I'm vice-captain of the guard."

"I don't remember seeing you fighting during the monster attack. Shouldn't a guard protect the townspeople?"

The man's face grew sour but he nodded. "Yes, Sir Knight, but Lord Felis had called me away for other duties so I didn't know about the attack until it was already over."

"I see," Knight Vantosia said. "So you decided to harass a child who risked her life to do your duty in your place."

The guard's face paled. "I didn't-"

Van's hand whipped out, grabbing the man by the collar and lifting him up from the ground, his gaze flashed with light as his eyes glowed. "Before you speak, Myron, let me inform you of my ability. I can see the truth of any word spoken. If you lie to me, I will know."

Myron's eyes widened and he clamped his mouth shut.

Van tossed the man to ground and pointed his mace at him. "Do not come near Ember and her family. Let everyone know that they are now under Knight Vantosia's protection and by my protection I mean I will have no problem crushing in the head of any that causes them trouble. Do you understand?"

"Yes, Sir Knight."

"You may leave."

The man scrambled to his feet, running away.

Van sighed. Who knew a small town like Goros would be so troublesome. Van turned and once again hurried to catch up with Ember's family.