"What are you saying?" asked Jason as he looked between his sister and the archery girl. 

"I'm saying that , until we have some money we should be staying with her. During the day that you went missing I spent it at her house so I know It's good ,and it also has a barn where we can stay comfortably, so you don't have to worry about intruding on her."

"Mmmmm....."Jason shifted his eyes between the archery girl and his sister continuously, and he wasn't convinced at all from the reason his sister gave him.

' The archery girl is definitely avoiding eye contact with me and Veina has accepted to quickly. This means only one thing.....

It a trap!'

"So, what do you say brother? It's a good thing for both of us. We can finally  have some privacy, and we don't have to pay for lodging anymore." said Veina as she stared deep into Jason's soul with her puppy eyes, but Jason had caught on to them.

"Haha.... you really.....Veina!

I'm sorry, but  I'll have to decline the offer. I understand that it's going to be helpful, but I can't accept it." said Jason to his little sister.

"But...

 This clearly made her a little angry, and she raised her voice a bit."But why? There is nothing for us to loose. We can have a roof over our heads and we can even set aside some money....and you won't have to go so often to hunt." said Veina as she lowered her head and started crying a little. Jason could see the tears falling on the ground and frowned at this.

"You...." pointed Jason at the archery girl who flinched a little.

"Wh... what? What do you want?"said the girl a little scared seeing Jason's angry face.

"What is the meaning of this?! Why is this farce beeing displayed in front of me?" said he angrily , his hand formed into a fist.

"I don't....

"DON'T LIE TO ME! Explain to me why you're willing to do this, now! Only then will I.....

"Brother , please calm down. It's not her fault, it's.....

"If it's not her fault, then who'se is it? Is it yours, Veina?!" angrily questioned Jason, making his sister a little afraid as she had never seen this side if him.

" It's for your own good." said Veina as she tried whipping her tears. "You're not a warrior or a ranger, or even a combat class for that fact, but still......

"Still what?"

"You still go and fight monsters , dangerous monster that can kill those stronger than you'll ever be. You risk your life for a couple silver coins while I do nothing but worry.Do you know how how worried I was when you went missing, huh? If she hadn't taken me in then I would definitely have...."

Veina stopped midway on her sentence and bit her lip so hard that it bled. A trickle of blood ran down her chin and was about to fall to the ground, but without really thinking Jason extended his hand and caught it in mid air, before completely freezing in place.

He contemplated his decisions , becoming a porter, hunting monsters in the forest. All these things made decent money for someone like Jason, but it also put his life in danger.

' Has dying once made me stupider, or have I started to look at life as something not as precious as before?  All my decisions until now haven't been wrong, but they have all been high risk, high return. Maybe it time to rethink my growth plan.' thought Jason as he patted his sister's head.

"Haa....Veina, my precious little  sister. Your wish , is my command. I shall accept the offer, but on one condition." said Jason as he turned to look at the archery girl who had been silent all this time.

"What is it?" said the archery girl leaning forward with an excited look.

"I have now understood why Veina is insisting on this so much, but I haven't heard why you are willing to so this. No offense, but we're no closer than normal acquaintances, maybe even less than that. So, why are you willing to do this for us?" 

"The answer...is complicated." said the archery girl as she clenched her fist's repeatedly."But I'll tell you the real reason for me making that offer."

"I'm listening....

..........

Five minutes later the girl had finally finished her explanation and Jason's brain was still processing it.

' This, is some grade A lazy plot development. How can such a thing happen in real life?' thought Jason as he tried to wrap his head around it.

"So, you're saying that your father who was a ranger has died not long ago and it has left you with only your mother and your grandmother?"

"Yes....

"And because you want to become a Ranger like your father your mother disapproves and wants to marry you of. So, to make your mother and other suitors back of , you require that I become a fake love interest?"

"Mhmm....

"This way you don't have to worry about your mother and you'll be able to quietly become a Ranger when you turn 15 in less than two seasons?"

"Mhmmm, yes! That is the gist of it." said the girl as she nodded her head as if what she just said was the most normal thing in the world.

"Haah, yes she says. Do you really understand what you just proposed to me?" said Jason a little frustrated and a little overwhelmed by all of this.

"Of course I do! I have really given this a lot of thought and have decided that this bus the best way to achieve my goal.T To become a....

" An 'Ark Master', you want to become an Ark Master. " said Jason , cutting short the girls hearty speech. " If you really want to become an Ark Master, I suggest that you focus more on practicing the bow , because your plan making skills are not that good."

".......

" And yes, I'll agree to your plan, but only until you turn 15 and you recive your Class. When that happens , the deal is over and I'll deny everything that between us." said Jason as he tried to hold in another sharp pain coming from his broken nose.

"Agreed!" said the archery girl as she nodded seriously. Jason noticed this and the gnawing feeling that he would be used like a shield subsided somewhat, but not by much.