Finally, just like every other day, after getting ready, he began to walk down from the small hill where their little home was stationed.
'I like it, every time I come down, this scenery... I truly feel... free...' The sun with its blinding rays was already in front of him but the scenery was still mesmerizing, if no one told better it wouldn't be strange if people thought the cottage was built at the hill to witness this free and verdant world.
'Spring has begun not long ago yet these people... They are working so hard already...' As he was following the scarcely trodden path leading to the small village at the bottom of the hill, his eyes followed the morning actions of the villagers, some beginning their work on the farmlands others hanging out the wet laundry, every person had their day begin.
'People bustling to the morning call of nature... like little ants...' His steps were steady, his smile was bright and even his eyes were shimmering...
So even if you could ask anyone... No one would be able to tell... The dismissing thoughts filled with anger and annoyance.
'Am I also one of them? Am I useless... Just like all of them?'
'If any of us died... Would anything change at all?'
"..."
'No... Nothing would... Those living here may weep for a day some for a week... But after that, anyone would simply become a fleeting memory...'
'Will I also... will I also be forgotten?' And as he halted his step for a moment to contemplate...
"Kya...!!"
"Kya... Bandits!!!" A sharp voice broke the serenity, the voice obviously was a girl's... but too high-pitched for a mature one.
"...!?" Liam's eyes widened, his face shadowed, darkening even under the rising sun.
'Mercy...!?' A fear that his everything would be taken induced something from him no human should reflect.
"Kya..." The scream repeated...
'No, a kid...?' Thankfully making him realize his mistake, quickly letting the dark haze disperse.
"Agh, Big Brother help!" A little girl with long brown hair ran past him from behind.
"Bandits are chasing me!" While looking up at him, the little girl grasped Liam's leg.
"AHAN, we will catch you!"
"Even if you hide behind this big brother here!" The voices of two boys.
'Alice and the boys?' With the little girl still clinging to him, Liam turned around, seeing two boys looking around the same age running toward him.
"Boys, don't run so recklessly..." Seeing them like this, Liam warned.
"Ahan, a chivalrous big brother?"
"We will get the girl even from your mighty hands!"
"Ah!" Seeing the two boys approach quickly, the little girl named Alice starts to run again, but not for long.
*Puff*
"Alice...?" Hearing a soft puff like something landing on the dusty road, Liam turned to look.
*Sip...sip..* "Big Brother..." Teary little brown eyes looked up at Liam.
*Sip..* "It hurts..." Alice looked at her ankle while rubbing the tears out of her eyes.
"What did I just say...? You three shouldn't have run around so carelessly." Without much thought, he put his stuff down and kneeled beside Alice to inspect her.
*Sip...*
"Yes... Sorry Big Brother..." Though she said nothing, Alice's face was just as apologetic as the two boys who arrived beside them a moment ago, saying simultaneously while bowing their heads a little.
"Alright anyway, don't worry it's nothing bad, it will go away quickly." The fragile little ankle was only slightly red and nothing more, there was no reason for concern.
"Hmh, but you should let it rest... Alice, I will bring you back to Mrs. Mortimer, is that alright?"
*sip...sip...* "Umu..." A cute little nod.
"Good."
"Hey, William, Alfred, you two will help carry my stuff right?" Liam looked at the two boys with a gaze that told them they didn't really have a say in it.
"Yes, Big Brother Liam..." But neither of the boys shoved disobedience. They didn't call him like this just because, no, they also viewed him as their big brother.
...
"Ah, thank you, son." A middle-aged brown-haired woman smiled at Liam.
"These kids, it's happening too often, one of them always gets hurt... they are still young, they heal so quickly that the next day they are already running around."
"Son, you are speaking like you aren't also just a young one."
"Mrs. please... I'm likely over 20..."
"Even then, for me and everyone here, you and your sister both still seem to be the little boy and girl Taegan brought here..."
"Two lost children... so confused... so terrified. Oho, that angry gaze when someone talked to Mercy is still vivid. You never let anyone touch her always standing in front of her. Ohoho, it was so cute like a little knight protecting his princess."
"Knight... knight... Big brother is a knight." Hearing the story, the boys beside Liam laughed.
"Hmh..." Liam diverted his gaze to the boys.
"Naha, boys, don't snicker at Liam, he at least was sweet, on the other hand, when will either of you give flowers to my little girl?"
"Uh?"
"Begh... "
"MOM!" Even little Alice who was clinging to her mother's skirt called out.
"Um? What, sooner or later you have to choose either one of them."
"MOM!"
"Uhm... I don't want to but in... but isn't it too early yet?"
"Hm? Ah son, don't worry I'm just teasing this girl."
"Oh, right..."
'I don't really understand...' Liam scratched the back of his head, even though he had just done the same with Mercy this morning, he didn't understand it when others did it.
"Anyway, I will have to go now..."
"Ah obviously, stay safe son."
"No, Big Brother come play with us."
"Uh, maybe later when I am done with this."
"Big Brother..."
"Boys, don't bother Liam so much! If you have so much energy, go help your fathers on the fields."
"Ah... No we don't have time." Saying the two boys run of.
"Then have a nice day Mrs. Mortimer, Alice."
"Have a nice day son."
"Ah... heve a nice- nice day..."
'Hmh? Oh little girl, he is long since taken... hmhmh.' Noticing her daughter's wevering little voice, the women just snickered to herself.
"..." Without a second word, Liam took up his stuff and walked off.
...
His first stop was the butcher...
The butcher's shop was a modest building near the center of the village, its open design letting the scent of raw meat and dried spices mix with the fresh air. The sound of a cleaver striking wood echoed as Liam stepped in, dropping the carcasses onto the counter with a dull thud.
"Hey, old man, got something for you," Liam called as he adjusted the carcasses.
Garrick, the village butcher, a stout balding man with thick arms and a bloody apron turned from his work, wiping his hands on his apron as he walked over. His sharp eyes flicked to the deer and rabbits, and he frowned.
"Hmph. Taegan's the one who brought these, isn't he?" he muttered.
Liam exhaled. "Yeah."
Garrick clicked his tongue. "Thought so. He always brings 'em in clean, never a wasted cut. Even after all these years, he's still got the best hand for it." He ran a hand over the deer's flank. "But this many? Somethin' must be wrong... they dont seam injured either..."
Liam crossed his arms. "That's what I thought, too. He said nothing about it though so they should be fine, you don't have to worry."
Garrick grunted. "Figures. He never tells us anything thats not important." He eyed Liam. "You asked him?"
Liam shrugged his shoulders. "Didn't need to. He'd just say it's 'nothing to worry about.'"
Garrick let out a long sigh. "Yeah… that sounds like him."
The butcher scratched his chin, his expression thoughtful. "Hmph. The world's changin'. You heard the stories from the traders? Monsters movin' northeast. Somethin' spookin' the damn things." He stood up and crossed his arms. "Maybe it's startin' to reach us."
Liam didn't reply, but the thought lingered. The village was isolated, far from any real danger—but that didn't mean it would stay that way.
Garrick clapped him on the shoulder, snapping him from his thoughts. "Anyway, good work. I'll have payment ready tomorrow."
Liam remained silent. It wasn't like he hadn't noticed how strange things were.
The deal Taegan made with the forest spirits—or whatever he actually made the deal with—was solid. No one in the village needed to hunt because Taegan provided what they needed. But lately, the number of dead animals he brought in had increased greatly. And not one was wounded; it wasn't normal. Something was really wrong.
Seeing Liam still silent, Garrick scratched his chin again, his now usual move, then looked up with a smirk. "Well, don't worry about it too much. Maybe Taegan, nature, or whatever is just feeling generous."
Liam scoffed. "Right."
The butcher suddenly leaned on the counter, his smirk widening. "Speakin' of generosity… when're you givin' us a wedding to celebrate?"
Liam blinked. "What?"
"You're big, strong, and don't run your mouth much. Women like that." The butcher smirked. "Maybe my niece—"
"Not interested." Liam cut him off, stepping outside.
Garrick's laughter followed him as he walked away with a sour taste in his mouth.
'Not this again. Why is everyone talking about this today...' Liam wasn't agains marriage and all that its just, the thing he wanted was not right or rather it wasn't acceptable.
'Annoying... more than annoying...' The simple notion of others bringing it up just felt like they were smothering it into his face.
'Anyway...' He calmed himself. 'I shuld sell these herbs now, right?'
...
Just as he reached the central square where merchants gathered, voices rose above the usual chatter.
"I told you already! I—I don't have that much! Please, just take what I can give!"
Liam's sharp gaze locked onto the scene before him. A middle-aged villager, one of the local tradesmen, stood with his back against a wooden cart, his face pale and hands trembling as he held a small bag of coins.
Across from him and his small makeshift table stood three adventurers, their garb marking them as outsiders. Two men and a woman.
The tallest of the men, broad-shouldered with a thick beard and a nasty grin, stepped forward, gripping the villager's collar through the tabel with one hand. "Oh? Now that's funny. I swear I heard you say something different earlier. You're not trying to cheat us, are you?"
The second man, leaner but with a cruel smirk, leaned against the cart, arms crossed. "Yeah, we don't like it when people try to scam us."
The woman stood off to the side, arms folded, her gaze flicking between the scene and the surrounding villagers. Unlike the others, she didn't wear a smirk—her expression was unreadable, but she wasn't stopping them either.
Liam sighed internally. He didn't have time for this.
Yet, his body moved before his thoughts caught up.
The basket thudded against the ground as he stepped forward. The sound was enough to make the bearded man pause, his grip still on the villager.
"That's enough," Liam's voice cut through the air, calm yet firm.
The adventurers turned toward him, their expressions momentarily shifting from irritation to surprise.
For a fleeting moment, they hesitated.
Liam wasn't dressed like a fighter, but he stood tall—towering over them, his presence undeniable. For a second, something in their instincts flared—a warning.
Then, they saw the glowing text above his head.
[Villager (Liam) Level 0]
The bearded man blinked. Then he laughed.
'Ah... they saw it.' The weightless insignificance of his rank. Nothing more than a Villager.
"A damn villager? You think you can tell me what to do?" He let go of the tradesman smacking his hand on the table as he turned fully toward Liam, his expression twisted with amusement.
Liam didn't move.
The lean man chuckled, shaking his head. "Poor bastard doesn't even know how things work. You want to challenge a Level 4 Fighter? Hah, who do you think you are?"
The bearded man grinned wider. "I'll teach him." His fist came fast, a straight punch aimed at Liam's stomach.