"Wah! Celia, I don't want you to go!" Jake wailed as he hugged Celia.

Celia rubbed his head softly. "I'm sorry, Jake. But I have to go. I don't know when I can come back."

Seth watched them quietly from the side. ‘I guess Celia is well-known enough among the villagers’ children. If they came here, more children would’ve hugged and cried her, telling her not to leave.’

When the sun was just visible above the horizon, Berko, Orion, Celia, and Seth were standing at the village's entrance. Grandma Rosa and Jake, as well as the village chief, were there to see them off early in the morning.

"The village and its people are already nice. Why would you want to go to the capital? I've heard there are a lot of terrible people there!" Jake was very reluctant to see a kind big sister leave.

"Not everyone there is as bad as you think, Jake. For example, the person I wish to see is well-known for traveling over the world to help people in need."

Jake buried his head in her embrace.

‘I can tell from the joy on his face that he’s using his sadness as an excuse to hug her. Damn.’

Seth couldn't stand it any longer as he separated the two of them. "Hey, what about me? Aren't you sad that I’m leaving?"

Jake looked at him resentfully. "Why would I be sad to see you go?"

"We even slept in the same room together for a few days, and this is how you treat me? I know that you always fall off your bed and fart during your sleep."

"W-what?! You are lying! Celia, this stupid man is lying!" Jake was embarrassed to the point that his face turned bright red.

"Huh, who are you calling stupid?!"

Celia couldn't help but laugh. “Seth, you shouldn't divulge someone else's secret to others.”

"I didn't fart in my sleep!"

"Haha, it seems like Jake likes the two of you." Grandma Rosa came over to them with a benign smile. "I've made some bread, but it's not much. Please accept it."

The elderly lady handed Seth a bundle and put it into his arms.

‘She said she didn't make a lot, yet the sack filled my arms. It’s also warm, which means that the bread has just been baked. If I remember correctly, I heard some noise while I was sleeping last night, but I ignored it and slept like a dead log. It was her who stayed up late to bake.’ Seth was touched by her kindness.

“You don't have to give us everything, Grandma. I've packed enough food for the two of us.” Celia gently declined.

After the two of them got the treasures from the chest, they went right away to buy some food, clothing, weapons, and other supplies. The items were kept in a small, ornate box that Seth bought from Berko. It was a dimensional space that, despite its modest size, had plenty of room for storage. Even better, nothing within will spoil. Anything that entered the box would maintain the same state when it was taken out.

Celia didn't need to carry around bulky luggage because her belongings were kept inside the small box.

"Yeah, I already told my grandma that, but she still wants to do it. What kind of noble is so poor that he still asks commoners for food?" Jake said it with his arms folded.

‘Ouch.’ Seth wanted to rebuke Jake, but he knew that Jake was right. “I lost my belongings, okay?”

"Excuses."

Grandma Rosa smacked Jake on the head without a change of expression.

"It's fine; please take it with you. There's no harm in bringing along more supplies."

Jake rubbed his head, which had been hit, and grumbled. "Tsk. We are so kind to you. You should at least repay us."

The village chief looked at the scene with a smile. "On behalf of the villagers, I'd like to thank you two for your assistance here. The two of you were quite helpful to us throughout these difficult times."

Seth nodded his head. ‘I didn't do anything, though.’

Celia replied bashfully. "I don't think I did much. I enjoy assisting those in need."

"This is a token of gratitude from us." The village chief handed them a small pouch that he had been carrying since earlier.

Celia felt the texture of the pouch and knew that inside of it were coins. The sound of the objects inside moving also confirmed her guess. “You don't have to give this to us. I offer free help to those in need. I never asked for anything in exchange.”

Seth nodded in agreement. ‘If we were still as poor as before, I would have accepted the money without thinking twice.’

“This was not entirely my idea. The people wanted to gift you this when they learned that you would be departing the village.”

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"Hey, you two! Are you all prepared, meow?"

Orion was already seated in front of the wagon and was looking in their direction. Berko was standing next to him, holding the horse's reins. The horse was also looking at Celia and Seth and made a neigh sound, as though telling them to hurry up.

The village chief used the opportunity to force Celia to accept the coins.

Seth thought for a bit before he finally said, "Once I arrive at the capital, I will send compensation for helping me. Please don't hesitate to take it."

"What do you mean?"

"All of you saved my life. I should pay you back."

‘Jake and his grandmother took care of me and lent me a place to sleep. The village chief brought Celia to save me. And Isaac found me outside the dungeon.’

Seth didn't know where Isaac was. In any case, he felt like they would meet again in the future.

He was glad that he met these people.

The village chief laughed. "At the end of the day, we helped each other. Please have a safe journey."

"Farewell."

Seth looked at Jake, who showed a lonely face.

While staying at their place, he was curious about his parents and asked Grandma Rosa while he was not listening. He lost his parents to demons.

His grandmother only told him that they passed away because they were sick. She didn't want him to suffer and grow up seeking revenge.

"Jake, slaying a dragon is not as easy as you imagine, so you need to work hard," Seth smirked.

Jake got more upset. "I know that. You don't need to tell me. I'll be a famous dragon slayer that everyone will talk about."

Seth sneakily gave him a dagger without his grandma looking. ‘The children in this world already started hunting animals for food so it won't be dangerous for them to have a weapon.’

"Why are you giving this to me?"

"Just take it."

It was a low-grade weapon that could be used to kill a D-rank monster.

"I'll come back in the future. And then we'll have a spar."

"That's easy! I'm sure that I'll win against you. I always win whenever my friends and I have a brawl."

"Hm, I wonder."

Celia and Seth bid them goodbye as they entered the wagon. The wagon was only half full of wooden boxes, so they sat on the edge, facing the back view.

"Let's go, meow!"

The horse pulling the wagon started moving.

"Bye-bye!"

Jake waved at them while Grandma Rosa and the village chief smiled.

…

The rhythmic clattering of hooves and the creaking of the wagon could be heard.

‘Shit. I feel nauseous.’ Seth took a deep breath before he chugged the water down his throat.

The wagon was moving on the rocky road, so he couldn't sit still.

Ignoring the discomfort, Seth thought back about the fate of the Tudela Village. In the later part of The Summoned Hero, the village would be attacked by demons.

There were only weak guards, and the mercenaries that lived there mostly took jobs at other places since the village was peaceful. Hence, because the village had no strong protection, it became a target for low-rank demons to invade. The villagers would be slaughtered, and the place would become a nest for the demons.

The incident caused a riot in the kingdom, where the people lost their trust in the king and the court.

‘The villagers that would be slaughtered meant that Jake, his grandmother, and the village chief were also among them.’ Knowing the future events only made him unsettled. There was no way he could ignore it.

Celia noticed that he was distracted with furrowed eyebrows. "What is it? You don't look so good."

Seth snapped out of his thoughts. "It's nothing. By the way, you never mentioned the reason you want to go to the capital."

Although she hadn't told him about it, he already knew it from reading the novel.

"Actually… I heard that there's a Legendary Master of Rejuvenation in the capital and that he is accepting one apprentice. So, I came from afar to try and see whether I had the chance to get accepted."

The Legendary Master of Rejuvenation. He was an elf banished from the elves' homeland and used magic to disguise himself as a human to travel around the world.

Celia was a commoner from a neighboring kingdom called Credia. She had four siblings and two farmers for her parents. She was smart and liked reading books and learning new things. Because of it, she went as far as to travel for three weeks to arrive here after hearing that the Legendary Master of Rejuvenation wanted to accept an apprentice.

Seth smiled, trying to assure her. "You've come this far for the sake of learning. I’m sure that he will accept you as his apprentice."

Celia looked down, masking her expression.

He knew that she wasn’t optimistic because many others would also come to the capital for him.

"Do you really think so?"

"Yes. I believe in you." Seth sympathized with her because she had to travel alone to another foreign kingdom for the first time. A healer who only had a basic knowledge of self-defense. It was a very reckless move.

“What are you guys talking about, meow?” Orion leaped in our direction with a curious face, his hat covering his face when he landed.

“We were just talking about the capital.” Celia didn’t want to let others know that she was trying to be the Legendary Master of Rejuvenation’s apprentice, so she tried to change the topic.

Orion took a seat next to Celia. “Don’t you have any interesting stories? I like to hear stories, meow. It’s not often adventurers like you would join us.”

“What about fairytales? My little siblings like it when I read for them. ” Celia said it with a melancholic smile. Her face showed that she was missing them.

“I've already read them. Dad always reads me a story before we go to bed. I've already heard Cinderella, Hansel and Gretel, Jack and the Beanstalk…”

‘No, why are those stories familiar?’ Seth thought.

"Hm, looks like you've already heard the one that I know."

"Eeeh?"

One woman and one cat turned to look at Seth.

Seth smiled in amusement. "What kind of story do you want to hear?"

"A story with a happy ending, meow."

"Yes, I think that will be nice to hear."

There was one story that came to his mind.

"Well then, I'll tell you a story about a hero."