Stepping into the carriage, the first thing Mican noticed was a blazing red fire, red to the point it looked like a dull shade of blood.

The fire turned slightly, sweeping in a singular smooth motion, turning to look at the young man. It wasn’t until Mican was greeted with a smiling face that he realized that it wasn’t a fire, but a head of red hair. It was simply dazzling and had blinded his senses.

The hair was on the head of a woman so charming that Mican was dumbfounded. It had been curled up into a ponytail at the back of her head which reached down to her shoulders. Elegant features had been attached to a face that had been proportioned perfectly.

She looked very young, around her mid-twenties, and yet gave off a very experienced aura. She was shorter than the average person, from what Mican could see. She looked incredibly youthful, bubbly, vibrant, and full of energy.

Sharp, heroic eyebrows combined with a dainty nose, and a pair of thin yet supple lips. The most noteworthy feature about the woman though, besides her hair, was her large pair of eyes, which gleamed with an innocent curiosity that sharply contrasted the mature feeling she gave off.

She was, quite frankly, the most outstanding looking person Mican had ever seen in his life, including both males and females.

The woman wore a red cloak, held together by a silver clasp at her neck. She was clothed in a female’s traveller garb, light and easy to move around in.

A pair of red trousers which complimented her hair had been tucked into a long pair of boots and was being help up by a thin belt.

She wore a thin yet sturdy long-sleeved buttoned shirt and had on a pair of loose-fitting cuffs which covered her hands but left her elegant fingers open to the air.

The lady was smiling at Mican, clearly elated, surveying him up and down with her eyes. The smile was one of pure joy, showing wide eyes and sparklingly white teeth.

The two looked at each other for a moment, inspecting the other, before the lady moved her hand from her lap and patted the seat next to her, signaling for Mican to sit down.

“Are you sure you want me sitting there?” A normal person would never want a stranger in such close proximity with them, slightly surprising Mican.

A worried expression popped up on the sitting lady’s face, and she quickly shifted in her seat, grabbing the sword across from her and leaning it on the carriage wall.

“It’s about what you want, my sweet. You can sit wherever you want in the carriage. Why, you can even lay down if you please.” The young woman tilted her head slightly at Mican, gesturing at the space in the carriage.

“…” After a slight pause, the young man decided to sit right next to the woman, as she had originally indicated.

The scene was very unexpected to him as he had been expecting something entirely different with how mysterious and strange Harold had made her out to be. Mican did not let it put him off though, even with the surprising title of endearment and her strangely amiable attitude. When in Rome do as romans do, and all.

Closing the door after him, the Mican shifted his body to sit right next to the young lady, much to her visible delight.

Her face lit up brightly as he sat next to her, and she shifted her body closer to him, smiling at him the entire time.

“I’m assuming you’re Melinda, the leader of this caravan.” After a little while of her staring at his face, Mican decided to break the silence.

“Oh yes, we haven’t been introduced. My name is Melinda von Willow, the founder and leader of the Willow Caravan.” Breaking out of her strange daze, the young woman blinked her eyes rapidly and introduced herself.

“My name is Mican Aster, and I’ve come to see if I’m suitable to be accepted as a member of your caravan. I’ve been recommended by Harold Ashleye.”

A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

“Mican Aster, so that’s your real name?”

“…I don’t know how I’m able to answer that, why?”

“I thought your name was Bell.” The young woman, Melinda, brought a finger to her chin in curiosity.

Startled, Mican froze to his seat, and his eyes quickly narrowed into slits.

“What do you want?” He asked the question in a cold tone.

“No, no. I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to come off as mean or rude, I was simply curious! I would never do anything to harm you.” Slightly panicked, Melinda backed away slightly and raised her hands in the air, waving them as if to display that she meant no harm.

She treated him like a small, harmless animal, or like a child that needed pacification.

Pausing his thoughts, Mican released his curiosity and tension. Thinking about it further, it was likely only natural that the caravan leader had sources of information around town as a safety precaution and knowing he had used a fake name meant almost nothing.

“I believe you, sorry for jumping to conclusions. I suppose I’ve been a bit too high strung lately.” It still came off to him as odd that she had brought up his fake name, but he was willing to accept it as a subtle display of power.

“Please don’t be sorry. It’s completely understandable that you’ve been so high-strung, having been chased for so long and all.” The lady harumphed slightly, blowing her hair slightly up with a breath.

“Uh, huh?”

“A group of upstart adventurers calling themselves the Brave Heart had even come knocking at my door early in the morning, asking for a “Bell”. Don’t worry though, my sweet. They are completely clueless. What happened to them was completely well deserved, I’m sure.” The young woman turned towards Mican after these words, giving him a wide and sweet smile, reminiscent of a dog asking for praise.

“Uh… huh?”

If Mican was surprised before, then he was dumfounded now. The words the caravan leader had just spoken revealed that she had clearly known about his problem with the several groups chasing him.

Despite knowing this, and clearly knowing about the battle he had fought before, she seemed completely content and unwary of him being in the caravan with her. Even more strangely so, she had helped him ward off the enemies that had grown even closer than he had thought. He couldn’t wrap his head around the strange series of events that had suddenly been brought to his attention.

“There has to be a reason for all of this, caravan leader.” Not knowing how to react, Mican simply sighed and resigned himself to the flow.

“I simply wanted to help you, there’s no other reason.” Reaching out her two small hands, the young woman wrapped her arms around Mican’s head and rested him on her breast. “and please, call me Melinda.”

Even as he was enveloped in gentleness, the gears in the young man’s head continued to grind until it felt to him like steam was rising out of it. There was absolutely no reason to warrant such warmness.

The only leverage Mican had over the woman now was his monstrous strength that remained unknown to her, but considering how she had known of his fight and yet still allowed him near her, it was a questionable leverage. The only thing he could do now was brush it off as the young woman’s eccentricity.

“Feel free to treat the Willow Caravan as your second home and please stay as long as you’d like.” Softly stroking the young man’s head, Melinda closed her eyes and spoke in a gentle tone.

Shifting his body, Mican broke her gentle grip on him, turning his head up to face her eyes directly.

“First thing’s first, I didn’t ask for your help in regard to the Brave Heart, so I owe you nothing. Though, you are allowing me to stay in your caravan, so I’ll make sure to pay this favour back in the future.”

“Really? That is great! Hahaha!” The moment recompense was mentioned, Melinda’s eyes widened in obvious glee.

She laughed out loud, straightening her back and giving Mican a wide smile. It seemed to Mican as if there was something she had wanted from him, he just couldn’t figure out what. That, or she was just extremely eccentric.

“The second thing is what I came here for. Harold had told me you are the most knowledgeable person in the caravan, so I’d like to ask you if there’s a destination we’re headed in that has a large source of public knowledge or the like, for research on various topics.”

“…I do know of such a place, a few stops away from our current destination. It is the holy city of Enbarr, land of wisdom and knowledge. It is ruled over by the Church of Wisdom, far away from the Church of War’s grasp.” Placing a finger on her chin, Melinda pondered on the question. “The city has a large public library set up by the old emissaries many years ago.”

“That’s perfect, thank you.”

“You don’t have to thank me, my sweet.” Watching him contentedly, the caravan leader smiled at him in response.

After a few short moments of silence, Mican felt as if her eyes were burning a hole through him with how much she was staring. Put off by the silence, he swiftly decided to stand up and leave.

“Well then, I’ll be going now… Melinda.” Bidding his farewell, Mican gave a curt nod and opened the door to the carriage.

“Leaving so soon? … I understand. Feel free to visit me anytime, Mican. I’ll help you if you have any other questions.” A bit of reluctance showed in the red-haired woman’s eyes, but she inevitably relented and gave a soft wave in return.

Stepping onto the wooden board of the vehicle, Mican gently shut the door behind him, extremely confused about his experience.

After a short moment of walking and thinking, he quickly realized a large mistake he had made. Put off by the situation, he had completely forgotten to ask the lady what and where their next destination was.

Shaking his head, he decided to simply save the question for Harold. Walking onto the grass, he avoided the other wagons and slowly headed back to their wagon.