The three inside the tent were momentarily taken aback by the messenger's words. Excluding the befuddled Eleanor, the two dukes contemplated the situation. It was a standstill once more, and an unexpected visit—could it be that kid?
Seeing a familiar face saunter into the tent, both dukes felt a peculiar calm settle within them. Murphy might have a penchant for going off-book with his plans, but as an ally, he was top-notch. They just couldn't fathom what scheme might be brewing in his mind this time.
Murphy, brushing the recent dust from his clothes, swept the tent interior with a quick glance, only coming to rest upon locating the two familiar figures and flashing his trademark smile.
But then, he noticed a new face—an inquisitive young girl who barely seemed taller than Pepe and around Eschell's age. She looked frail, not fully recovered from malnourishment, clearly someone out of the dukes’ kin.
The girl had her sword plunged into the ground and was struggling to wriggle out of the oppressive metal can that was her armor.
Murphy’s brows convulsed involuntarily upon this sight—could this be the... new hero?
It wasn't long before the hospitable Duke Raventa eagerly resolved Murphy’s doubt.
Stepping forward, Raventa clapped a hand on Murphy's shoulder, treating him like a trusty sidekick.
"Kid, even if you're not quite up to snuff to sense the rumble from a couple of days ago, you as our ally deserve to know—the kingdom's beacon, humanity's savior, the grand, new hero has awakened!"
Raventa gestured toward Eleanor, who was still wrestling with her metallic confinement, "That's the young lady over there."
It was only when Murphy's expression shifted visibly from shock to confusion that Raventa burst out laughing. He relished these rare glimpses of youthful naiveté in Murphy, otherwise perceived as a mastermind with everything under his thumb.
Of course, Raventa had no inkling about the roots of Murphy's astonishment. There in Murphy’s mind, a singular thought: is this hero also set to replicate the fabled harem escapades from his home world's paperbacks? But then again, why another young girl as the hero? It seemed the world's will had a peculiar sense of humor...
After exchanging pleasantries, Murphy soon occupied his designated seat. With the primary seats reserved solely for the dukes, he and Eleanor sat side by side on adjacent benches.
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Following Duke Raventa's command, a spread of food was ushered in. Disregarding her sweaty state from the previous physical ordeal, a hungry Eleanor began to devour her meal without any semblance of finesse.
A strange silence enveloped the tent, the sight of Eleanor, tearing through a rack of ribs and gulping down juice, reminding Murphy of a competitive eater from an arcade game he once played in a past life.
The dukes, observing the somewhat dazed Murphy below, couldn't help but feel a surge of delight. Even they, well-traveled as they were, had been taken aback by Eleanor's table manners on first encounter.
They held their tongues, patiently waiting for their guest to initiate conversation, the promise of protocol. Meanwhile, the young man's gaze remained fixed on Eleanor.
[Name: Eleanor
Level: 6
Age: 10
Race: Human
Occupation: Hero
Skills: Low-tier Survival — Mastered, Swordsmanship Basics — Beginner
Special Abilities: Enhanced Five Senses (Low-tier), Accelerated Growth (Low-tier)
Exclusive Abilities: [All-Encompassing Eye], [Silent World], (Locked...)]
Murphy surveyed the silvery lettering on the display before him, noting the 'Hero' in bold within the occupation field and the familiar [All-Encompassing Eye] listed under exclusive abilities. He confirmed the young person's true identity.
Feeling an indescribable gaze—more like a scan—Eleanor instinctively looked up to meet Murphy's momentarily unfocused black eyes.
Eleanor peered at the youth opposite her. He appeared a few years her senior. Although handsome and well-dressed, his stare was peculiarly intense.
To survive as a wandering vagabond, you must learn how to handle street dogs; they bully the timid and respect the tough. The best defense was to stare them down until they backed off, believing you a force to be reckoned with.
With memories of her days in the eastern wilderness rushing back, Eleanor, though now a newly-minted hero, mustered all her bravado, locking eyes fiercely with Murphy to assert she was not to be trifled with.
It lasted but a moment—soon an upside-down golden triangle materialized above Murphy’s head in her vision, similar in style and hue to her unique script viewable only to her. With a mental nudge, the emblem unfolded into a familiar series of writings:
[Name: ...]
Eleanor: ...
Impossible! As a ten-year-old girl, her competitive spirit surged. She could see the names, levels, and occupations of even the two daunting elders presiding over the table. Focusing harder, she might unveil more, yet here was a young man whose very name eluded her—a challenge she refused to let lie. Widening her eyes, she began examining the young man with renewed scrutiny.
Murphy felt a prickling sensation, akin to being scanned by a medical apparatus in a former life. "She's using the panel to check me out..." he thought wryly, splitting his attention to maintain a façade of deception.
Within the spacious tent, youth and girl held each other's gaze, though anyone observing their eyes up close would notice—neither pair was truly focused on the other...
Murphy's eyes were ever so slightly defocused, his concentration devoted to his illusionary magic. In contrast, Eleanor's gaze centered on a point just ahead, where the [All-Encompassing Eye] panel floated, differing from Murphy in that she hadn’t once stopped eating.
The dukes, sensing the abnormal tension, quickly grasped the dynamics. To a talent like Murphy, accustomed to growing up amidst admiration, it made perfect sense he'd be intrigued by a one-of-a-kind prodigy like Eleanor.