The duo of man and bird looked at the parts of the armor as they whispered to each other in their minds.

"Do you think it's dead?" the man wondered

"No, I still sense its presence," the bird replied.

"Sometimes I forget you're not just a differently shaped owl... Anyway, what should we do?" the man asked.

The bird pecked angrily at the young man's head before saying, "For now, nothing is certain. We could leave the camp, but we don't know this creature's habits. It might attack us for leaving it, or we could wait for it to wake up. It hasn't shown any hostility... yet."

The man added more firewood to the flames in frustration. "So, we just wait, and we don't know how long?"

"Don't be too complaining. Look on the bright side; you've encountered a creature that even your grandfather's books didn't mention. Can you imagine how he'll react when he finds out?" the bird remarked.

The man couldn't help but let out a suppressed chuckle, envisioning his obsessive and cantankerous grandfather's reaction upon learning that the opportunity to encounter a new creature wasn't in his possession.

"Hahaha, true. But let's not forget why we're here – for hunting. I don't want to remain a bachelor any longer; I'm already falling behind compared to the others," the man replied.

"You still have two more days, more than enough for hunting," the bird assured him.

'Let's wait, and if he doesn't wake up by tomorrow morning, we'll leave the camp... Deal?'

'As you wish, but I warned you.'

And so, the camp fell into silence for several hours while the man gazed at the armor. Insects started to move around its gaps, and suddenly, the armor moved, and flames ignited within it. Cedric heard the bird's voice in his mind, saying, "Interesting, about four hours."

...

'What happened?'

After waking up, armor looked around, trying to remember what he was doing before falling asleep. When he noticed the man and the bird in front of him, his memory started to return. He quickly checked himself and sighed with relief, realizing that there were no missing parts except for the previously lost hand. Even the bags of money were still there; nothing had been stolen.

"It seems I've met a good person," he thought.

Suddenly, the man, who seemed to be young based on his build—Although he couldn't determine people's features based on his spiritual perspective—tried to communicate with him. He gestured to his neck, indicating that he couldn't speak, which prompted an exchange of glances between the man and the bird.

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"What do you think?" the bird asked.

"How could I see? It's clear that the armor can't communicate with sound," Cedric said in annoyance.

The bird shook its feathers as it spoke, "You can communicate with him just like you communicate with me."

"You must be joking! I won't go anywhere near that thing."

"Come on, don't be a coward. The armor hasn't shown any hostility yet, and besides, your grandfather would hang you alive if he knew you missed the chance to communicate with such a unique creature."

Cedric glared at the bird threateningly, "You wouldn't dare tell him."

"Oh, but I will," the bird replied.

"One day, I'll pluck every feather on your body!"

With the last threat left behind, Cedric approached the armored figure cautiously, who remained calm during their conversation. The armor didn't move despite Cedric's proximity and showed no signs of wanting to attack or defend its space. Nevertheless, Cedric stopped when he reached the personal space of the armored figure and pointed to the attachment on his hand, which carried the runic symbol. Then, he gestured towards the armor, attempting to communicate or establish understanding.

The armored figure looked at the strange attachment that resembled a clock with glowing letters on it, recalling that he had seen it yesterday. Although he didn't know its specific use, he nodded in agreement with what the young man wanted him to do.

When Cedric saw the figure's nod of approval, he approached the armored being and cautiously placed his hand on the metal surface of the foot.

"Um, hello?" Unexpectedly, the armored figure heard the voice of the young man in his mind and understood it, despite not comprehending the language.

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Khalid opened his eyes calmly, bidding farewell to the world of dreams. He sat slowly on his bed, interlocking his fingers. No one knew the thoughts wandering in his mind at this moment, but he didn't remain in that state for long. He pulled open a nearby drawer and took out a simple drawing.

The drawing was made with a charcoal pencil and looked as if a child had drawn it, although there were more detailed aspects to it. In the drawing, there were three figures ,a man, a woman, and a young child.

This drawing had come to him last night, accompanied by another letter from his son, in which he talked about his well-being, his family, and most importantly, his son who had drawn the picture for his grandfather.

A small smile couldn't leave this grandfather whenever he saw this drawing.

After several minutes of contemplating the drawing and the letter, it seems that he made up his mind. He stood firmly and headed towards the Lord's office. When he approached the office, he met Kelver, who had just left his own office to go to work.

"Khaled, good morning. You don't seem to be doing well," Kelver greeted.

Khaled returned the greeting before sighing and gesturing, "I don't think I can continue."

As a longtime friend, Kelver understood his intention and placed a comforting hand on Khaled's shoulder, offering, "When you're done with the Lord, come to my room. I have something for you."

nodded in agreement before knocking on the Lord's door, eagerly awaiting a response while watching Kelver walk away.

"Enter," the Lord's voice came from inside, allowing Khaled to open the door and step in.

"Sir Khaled, how may I assist you?" Lord Gawain said, gesturing for Khaled to take a seat.

Khaled took a seat nearby before speaking, "Lord Gawain, there's no need for formalities. I've never been good at them... I've come to request retirement. I don't think I'm capable of continuing my duties."

The lord remained silent before speaking, "Khaled, it is difficult for a soldier without a rank to retire before the designated retirement age, and most of them do not even have the freedom to retire." The lord continued before Khaled interrupted, "But despite not having a rank, I am willing to give you an open-ended mission."

Khaled stayed silent for a moment before standing up and giving a respectful bow. "Thank you for your generosity."

"Youre welcome. I just want to repay the debt finally, for without you, I wouldn't have survived long enough to be here."

The two exchanged several glances before Khaled left the office towards Kelver's room.