“The hell does she need all this holy water for?”

Matthias was digging through a pile of boxes in what was supposed to be Soleil’s room. According to both the kids and Jelyn, it also doubled as the storage area. As to why someone who claimed to be a “demon lord” was fine with sleeping there; that could be determined at a later date. First, he needed to be rid of the shock that came from his disillusionment.

By his estimates, there were around three crates of holy water, with one of them being partially empty. They weren’t expensive by any means, but it was still quite surprising to find so much of it stored somewhere that isn’t a church.

Well, that place was a church.

Of course, he was aware that she drank the thing. That was also weird. Holy water was used topically. He had never heard of it being drunk, even as a dare. There was a different product from the church which was made to be drunk; it was for high-level purification needs such as curses. It was called Blessed Font, and it cost a hundred times more than holy water since only bishops could make them.

He never understood why she did what she did. Back when they fought the undead drake, she kept chugging on them like it was an energy drink. He thought she was just trying to fight off the enemy’s aura or something, but after spending tens of days with her he noticed that she still drank it regularly, though not as often as she did back then. That would increase every time they were out, and she would need a shot after every fight.

But by then he had gotten so used to it that he forgot to ask.

“All right, done.”

The room had become clean.

Originally, he was just trying to look for some weapons to arm Jelyn with, and perhaps even materials to have Manna make traps with. So he asked where the storage room was, and he was led there. It was only when he had entered that he was told that it was also Soleil’s room.

How could he know?

Once he learned that she slept there, he reeled back in shock. There was nothing

He held his head and sighed. Then, he heard the sound of slow clapping behind him. Turning around, he saw Dorian standing by the door.

“Ah… thanks?”

There was no response, at least verbally. She simply nodded her head and… continued to stand there.

Her silence made him recoil slightly. But at least she didn’t look like a doll, with dead glassy eyes and a neutral expression. Instead, her gaze was full of admiration.

It was just cleaning a room, though.

“Sorry, I probably should have asked permission before I cleaned up. I didn’t take anything though, promise.”

What was there to take, anyway? There were only heaps of holy water, empty bottles, a few pieces of tattered clothing, some laundry, and half of her old pair of shoes. He didn’t see any money there, which meant that it was either stored somewhere else or she had brought it with her.

Well, the latter shouldn’t be completely right. She had to have at least left some money somewhere just in case Jelyn needed to purchase something for the kids. Or did Soleil expect Jelyn to use her own money for it?

“Where does she sleep anyway? Ain’t no bed either.”

Maybe that was only her room in name and she actually slept at the guild’s barracks? But that didn’t sound like her. That woman didn’t like to bother herself with such a redundant setup.

Just as he asked that question, he heard the pitter-patter of footsteps behind him. Dorian trotted past him and sat in a corner while hugging her knees. Then, she pretended to be asleep by making cute snoring sounds.

“... The hell? Can’t she afford a bed?”

Dorian shook her head. “She said, “sleep like a commoner to understand their pain.” So she didn’t buy anything for her room.”

He had to admit, that did sound like something she would say. Though adults would ridicule her for it, especially arrogant ones among the nobility, the effectiveness it had on the straightforward and honest kids was clear. At least, with both Dorian and Gered, Soleil held nothing but respect in their hearts.

A smile crept to his face.

“Come on. I have some candy. Let’s share them with the others, all right?”

Dorian blinked and ran up to him to hold his hand.

It was just him with the kids and Jelyn at the old, weathered church. He had sent Manna back to the guild to state their intention that they were going to stay until the day after. After all, she could run the fastest. Not to mention he was also curious about the place Soleil had decided to invest her time and money into.

But she had been gone for a couple of hours already. They had already expected some kind of pushback by the guild, so it didn’t really surprise him. Cleaning up that room had taken quite a bit of time as well, which was another kind of shock since there were only so many things inside. To be fair, Matthias did spend too much time just staring in shock at the state of the place.

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He was led back to the lawn where the other children were. What greeted him was the sight of the two beastkin siblings swinging practice swords around. Gered was at a corner by a large, bald tree, air-boxing. Muon, on the other hand, was just taking a nap on Jelyn’s lap.

“Sir Matthias… Good day.”

There was a clear awkwardness in Jelyn’s voice. Ever since she learned that he was a noble, her previous, warm character grew cold, distant, and formal. He would be lying if he didn’t expect such a development to happen since the time he committed to not hide his status. But it still disappointed him. Perhaps, people like Nail and his party were the rare exceptions. Part of him had hoped that by working with the common people as an adventurer that started from the bottom, he would be able to get rid of some of the alienation that they experienced around them. After all, nobles were people too. While it was true that most of them looked down on commoners, there were still some who took their noblesse oblige very seriously. His mother was one such example.

He raised his hand to greet her and asked, “What are they doing?”

It was a stupid question, but he just needed some way to start a conversation.

“They’re training. Miss Soleil had been teaching them in her free time. She said it’s a much better way to spend their energy than to go around the town begging for alms.”

He recalled that in the past, Soleil had also relied on charity, at least partly. She had gotten a stern lecture from the guild master because of it. It wasn’t a favorable first impression to make, but she quickly managed to turn that around with her boisterousness and unique mindset.

But then it occurred to him; how did she train them? Her fighting style isn’t really… fit for everyone. He can’t imagine children like them charging into people recklessly.

“Oh, please don’t worry. She only taught them the basics. As for what comes next… I don’t know. I can’t help them train, since I don’t really know how to fight either.”

Though she was smiling, it was a lonely expression mixed with grief. Nobody needed to be an expert in dealing with people to know that she was still heartbroken about the death of her friends.

Then, he came up with an idea to perk everyone up.

“Why don’t I teach them some things? Not to brag, but I’m quite decent with a sword.”

The reactions to his words were quite mixed. Jelyn was happily eager to see it, and Dorian seemed quite impressed and excited. On the other hand, Ekl and Tisse seemed confused while Gered had a look of doubt and ridicule.

He decided to drive his point home by pulling out his prized sword for everyone to see. To add to everyone’s awe, he injected a small amount of magic into it, which made it glow just enough to make it apparent despite the late morning sun.

“Woah…”

All the kids reacted similarly. Even Dorian, who still kept silent at his side, expressed her astonishment by squeezing his hand tightly.

It was a good reaction, he thought. Matthias found that even he got excited about the prospect of teaching the kids. He knew he was somewhat feeding his ego, but he couldn’t help it. He had come to envy the respect Soleil had earned from the children.

Fortunately, his efforts weren’t in vain. Out of the five kids, only Muon decided not to participate. It was understandable why he wouldn’t, seeing as he was probably just five years old.

“Before we start, I want the four of you to fight me one on one. If you hit me once, you win. I just want to see how you guys fight. Since you’re using practice swords, don’t be afraid to hit me.”

Matthias had zero experience teaching people. All he could do was emulate what others did. He also wanted to show the kids the difference between their abilities in the hope that it will increase their eagerness to learn.

Well, he had to admit, part of it was also because he wanted to show up that brat Gered.

The two beastkin siblings came up first. He hadn’t had the opportunity to observe them properly last time. It was only then that he noticed that the two had small, dull horns growing out of the top of their green-haired heads.

“They’re Deer Beastkin,” Jelyn helpfully explained. “They always do things together, so I don’t think you could fight them one on one.”

The training had just started and already his rules had been broken. But he didn’t mind it much. Siblings fighting together had such a nice ring to it. And if indeed they were able to move with perfect cooperation, then they would become real threats in the future.

The moment he gave the signal to start, the older of the two ran up to him and attempted to stab him. Because he was right-handed, Matthias dodged to their right. It was a fairly easy maneuver, which was made even easier because due to their short legs, they ran quite slowly. He soon realized that it was a mistake.

The younger one, Tisse, had been hiding behind her brother. When he had shifted his body to the side, she immediately swung her wooden sword. Worse yet, she was left-handed. Since he had just moved to dodge to his left, it would be difficult to suddenly change directions.

They had planned this.

“Damn, they’re good.”

Matthias was very impressed. He had severely underestimated them. Unfortunately, despite their great teamwork, they were still just kids. They lacked the experience to take failure in stride. Instead, they simply gawked when Matthias managed to stop himself from running in the way of Tisse’s blade.

Two dull hits later, the twins were down on the ground, rubbing their heads.

“You two were great,” he couldn’t help but compliment them. They already knew how to move as a team. Being a pair with Manna, he immediately knew how to improve their performance. So he went on a long lecture. “Since there are two of you, you can continue attacking without pause. Don’t give the enemy a chance to recover. You can also try attacking at the same time from different angles. Even as a pair, you can surround your enemy.”

As he continued his tutelage, the two siblings’ eyes underwent a gradual change. They looked apprehensive at first. But then their expressions changed into confusion, and then finally to understanding. It was plain for him to see that they were trying their best to absorb what he was teaching, and he appreciated it.

“When Manna comes back, we can show you how we fight together. Polish your teamwork well. We can work on your strength and speed gradually.”

“So, you’re coming back often?” Ekl suddenly asked.

“Huh? Yeah. Why not?”

He thought it was natural. He doubted that Soleil could teach them anything substantial. The two were very technical fighters, while Soleil was just reckless. Both he and Manna were the perfect tutors for them.

More importantly, he found the fruits of Soleil’s labors to be very wholesome. A home for orphans? Training them so they would stop stealing and begging? She was more like a mother than the eccentric brawler that he knew her as.

He would love to be able to take part in bringing up the kids she was taking care of.

Once he said that the siblings stood up, bowed, and left.

They seemed happy.

It was then Dorian’s turn.

She came forward with nothing in her hand. Matthias tilted his head in wonder. Was she similar to Soleil, who fought using her fists?

It didn’t take long for his question to be answered. Dorian raised her hand and moved her mouth. If he wasn’t augmenting his hearing, he wouldn’t have heard her say it.

A one-liner incantation.

Three small fireballs formed around her and launched themselves at high speed toward him.