The sun's rays were appearing over the horizon, signaling the beginning of a new day. In the village orphanage, most of its inhabitants were still deep in slumber. In one of the rooms, Max lay haphazardly sprawled on the bed, fast asleep.

"WAKE UP. IT'S THE HARVEST FESTIVAL!"

BAM!

The sudden shout startled Max awake, causing him to tumble out of bed and onto the floor.

"Hahaha!"

Still groggy, Max searched for the source of the sound, only to see the culprit darting out of his room, laughing.

"MANNYYYYY!"

Elsewhere in the house, in the kitchen, Rea and Sally were busy preparing breakfast for the children.

"I see Max is awake," Sally remarked with a small laugh upon hearing the shout.

"You know Manny always ends up causing some mischief. Why did you send him to wake Max up? Another child could have done it without all the noise," Rea scolded lightly, but even as she said that the corners of her mouth couldn't help but turn upwards.

Since they started working for Zack and considering Max's leg wasn't fully healed, Max and Rea had decided to temporarily live here and help take care of the children and chores. Although the money Zack paid them wasn't much, and they could earn much more by returning to explore the dungeon and kill monsters, the work he offered was much safer. Both of them had been more relaxed since they started living here. Without having to worry about getting injured in the dungeon or dealing with other mercenaries, Rea began to remember the little things she used to do here and even picked up some of her hobbies again. Rea didn't mind this lifestyle.

The sound of hurried footsteps echoed through the house. And almost instantly, a figure rushed into the kitchen.

"Sister Sally, Sister Rea. Help. Max has gone crazy."

Shortly after, Max stormed over to where Manny was, a dangerous look in his eyes. The moment he spotted the little figure trying to hide, he lunged towards him.

"Manny! You're not getting away with this!"

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"Max! What do you think you're doing?" A voice sounded beside him, stopping him from advancing towards the little nuisance who had riled him up.

Rea, who was busy with food preparation, moved quickly, positioning herself between the two.

"Let me through. He does this every day. Today I need to teach him a lesson." After hiding behind Rea, Manny loses his fear and begins to taunt Max. Seeing what he was doing, Max almost lost his composure and lunged at him again.

"He's just a child," Rea defended without being intimidated by her friend's half-naked and unkempt appearance, unaware of what Manny was doing behind her.

"Besides, it's already late. Didn't you promise the children you'd accompany them to see the festival?"

"Yes, but I was planning on sleeping a bit more," Max defended himself. "We don't have to leave so early."

"The sun has already risen, and everyone is out on the streets. If you wait any longer, the children won't be able to see all the fun."

"Now, go back to your room and start getting ready. Unless you want to go out like that."

Max wanted to say something in his defense, but Rea's gaze stopped him in his tracks. After a few seconds of staring at each other, Max turned around while grumbling something and went back to his room.

"And don't forget to go see the doctor to ask if he wants to go with us!" Rea shouted, making sure he heard her.

"Okay."

After making sure Max had left and shooing Manny out of the kitchen, she returned to cooking.

"How charming," commented Sally, who had witnessed the whole scene. "You two seem like a newlywed couple."

"W-What are you saying? Max and I are just friends," she tried to defend herself, unaware that her face was starting to flush.

"Please. Even when we were kids, you two were always together. Are you telling me you're still not dating?" Sally said teasingly.

Anyone could see that these two were in love with each other. If not, Rea would have chosen another job instead of working as a mercenary alongside him, and Max wouldn't be willing to listen to everything she says.

"W-We're not dating, we're just friends," Rea responded quietly.

"Sure. Just friends," Sally didn't stop to chat with her. During this time, she kept on cooking, but a small smile remained on her lips.

"It's true," insisted Rea.

"I believe you. You're not dating."

"Max and Rea are dating. Max and Rea are dating..." A voice started singing those words, over and over again. Upon hearing it, Rea turned her head 180 degrees in search of the culprit.

Manny, who had returned to the kitchen unnoticed, was singing uncontrollably.

A shiver ran down Manny's spine, and his voice abruptly cut off. Without anyone telling him anything, he dashed out of there. He had experience; nothing good would happen if he didn't leave that place.

What he didn't know was that no one would save him this time.

...

An hour later, Max stood with a handful of children at the orphanage gates. The children's faces were full of smiles for the festival. It had been a long time since there was a party in the village.

"Hmm, where's Manny?" After counting the children, he realized someone was missing.

"Miss Rea said Manny wasn't feeling well, and they would join us later," one of the girls said.

"Hmm. Then let's go," Max replied carelessly. If Manny is with Rea, there is not much to worry about.

"Are you ready for the festival?"