Chapter 55: CH. 55 | Hero of Neco Village

The feast got underway, and everyone looked full of joy. A few villagers took turns standing guard at the village fence, making sure their watch over the lizard monsters never let up.

Theo and the others enjoyed the celebration alongside the villagers, including Jack and Lilia. They ate, danced together, and watched the bonfire, its flames roaring nearly two meters high.

Jack stood up and gave his thanks in front of the whole village, especially to Theo. Theo instinctively rose and bowed his head respectfully toward Jack.

"A problem that’s haunted us for far too long has finally come to an end. We finally found a way to deal with those monsters, and of course, all of it is thanks to Sir Theo and his friends!" Jack announced.

The crowd broke into applause, cheering and praising Theo’s name.

Theo blushed, having never imagined he’d receive such a warm welcome and heartfelt appreciation from them.

He’d thought this guild mission was just an ordinary job, but it wasn’t.

Behind the mission, a lot of villagers had pinned their biggest hopes on Theo, and he’d clearly managed to deliver on every one of them.

Jack held out his hand and asked Theo to say a few words.

Theo was clearly caught off guard and flustered, since speaking in front of a crowd wasn’t really his thing.

He felt nervous too, worried about picking the wrong words and accidentally offending someone.

"So, Sir Theo?"

"I’ll just say what you already said," Theo answered.

"Haha!" Jack laughed, "Looks like our village hero gets a little awkward speaking in public."

"That’s fine, I understand."

"Go on then. Enjoy the party!" Jack said firmly.

Everyone got back up and moved closer to the bonfire, men and women alike. Unexpectedly, Theo saw Lilia step up and hold out her hand to him.

"I’d be honored if I could dance with you, Sir Theo," Lilia said.

Thalia noticed Lilia’s bold move. She got up too and held out her own hand. Now there were two women standing in front of Theo, both offering to dance with him.

Theo felt truly awkward. He couldn’t pick one over the other without hurting one of their feelings.

But to avoid getting caught up in their rivalry, he had no idea what to do either.

"Who are you going to pick, Theo?" Thalia asked, "Me... or her?"

"I... honestly I don’t know how to—"

CAW!

Right as he found himself stuck in that awkward, no-win situation, Theo heard the sound of his crow’s cawing coming from somewhere else.

He smiled and stood up, pointing toward Avara flying in.

"Avara’s cawing is pretty loud. I’m sure she’s spotted something," Theo said.

"I-I need to go check it out."

Neither Thalia nor Lilia could stop him. They watched Theo walk off quickly, leaving the bonfire area to chase after Avara.

Avara flew north toward the edge of the village, right where a few young men were keeping watch over the forest, worried the monsters might attack again while the party was still going.

"You’re really my savior," Theo said.

The crow girl landed straight on Theo’s shoulder. He kept walking until he reached the two young men standing there, torches in hand, eyes fixed on the forest.

When Theo showed up, they turned around and smiled, greeting him warmly.

"Sir Theo...?"

"Thought you’d be enjoying the party back at the village square."

Theo smiled and stood with them, "I just needed some fresh air, that’s all."

"Fair enough."

He and the two young men talked about all sorts of things. Theo learned they were both seventeen, just a year away from their chance at awakening.

Naturally, that led Theo to ask what they were hoping for down the road.

Unlike Lilia, they just wanted to become adventurers and take on guild missions, the same kind of work Theo was doing now.

"It’s too tough for us to get into an academy. We’re poor, and the tuition’s way too expensive," they said, "Becoming an adventurer is really our only real option."

"I get that. Being an adventurer isn’t bad at all," Theo said.

"We’re hoping that once we awaken and get our classes, we’ll get the chance to run into you again someday, Sir Theo," one of them said.

Theo nodded in agreement. He reached out and gave both their shoulders a firm pat, as if he genuinely believed they’d get their classes and become adventurers someday.

"My best wishes go out to you both."

"Thanks for the encouragement, Sir Theo," one of them replied, "It really means a lot to us."

***

The next day.

The celebration ran all through the night, but Thalia and the others chose to head back and rest, and Theo did the same. Right at dawn, all of them were already up and ready to go.

As they stepped out of the inn, Theo spotted Jack and Lilia already waiting outside.

"Thalia told me you’d be heading out early this morning. Wasn’t about to miss the chance to see you off," Jack said.

"Thank you for the feast last night. It was an honor to be able to help you all," Theo answered.

Jack smiled and shook Theo’s hand. He reminded him once more that it was Theo and his party who’d truly done so much for the village.

Their kindness was something Jack and every villager would never forget.

"Stay safe on your journey. Hope we get to see each other again sometime, Sir Theo," Lilia said.

"Thank you, Ms. Lilia."

Theo and the others said their goodbyes and set off. He walked down the still quiet village road, where most of the shops hadn’t even opened up yet.

From a distance, they spotted a passenger cart parked in front of a wooden stop. It was the only form of public transport that could take Theo and the others back to Aluric City.

After boarding and paying the fare, the passenger cart began pulling away from Neco Village. Thalia, sitting across from Theo, let out a long breath and exhaled slowly.

"Finally..."

Theo glanced at her but had no intention of asking why she’d sighed like that. He already knew exactly what was behind it.

Not the mission, but Lilia.

"So what are we doing once we get there?" Lily asked.

"Since Aya wants to buy a new skill card, you should take her over to Lizzy’s shop. I’ll handle turning in the guild mission with Thalia."

"We’re leaving the village at five in the morning, so we’ll probably reach the city around eight. We won’t make it in time to grab a new mission today," Theo said.

"So once we’re done with our business, we’ll rest up and regroup again around midday," Theo said, "We still need to stay productive with more solo hunting."

Thalia and the others listened to Theo, then responded with a nod, "Sure thing, Hero of Neco Village."

Theo let out a small laugh and turned his face away from them, "Stop calling me that. It sounds weird to me."