Soon, they reached the town square. 

Xinyan shouted.

"Yang Mi!"

At the fountain, Yang Mi looked up from her seat.

She looked around in confusion.

"Yang Miii!"

Xinyan shouted again.

As they were closer, now Yang Mi saw her.

Her face was slack with shock.

"Xin... yan?"

Elendril slowed down.

He looked up at Xinyan with an exhausted face.

"I'm really tired now, Ezekriel. Looks like we couldn't play as long as I liked, today. I'll let you down now. Take me the rest of the way home, alright?"

He flashed her a brilliant smile, and let Xinyan down.

Her face was burning in embarrassment.

Once Xinyan stood up again, Elendril closed his eyes and fell into her arms.

"Yang Mi! Help me, he's too big!"

As if she was freed from a spell, Yang Mi screamed.

"Kyaaah! So cute!!"

"Help me already!!! We need to take him to the doctor!"

"Ugh, fine Xinyan. But you're explaining this later! To the Adventurer's Guild!"

They struggled to get Elendril's arms over their bodies and began to drag him over.

Because he was taller than the both of them, his feet slightly dragged on the ground. 

-----(:)-----

"Your friend needs to be healed?"

The receptionist said.

"Yes! As soon as possible!"

"Ah, just wait in the waiting area please, and I'll call your name when he can see you."

As they sat in the waiting area, many eyes turned around to observe them.

It was not something you saw everyday.

Two pretty girls were carrying a sick boy around, and struggling so hard at that!

The joy of youth, the old people thought.

The eyes of the men burned in annoyance.

This guy had two pretty girls to accompany him!

He made them feel like a joke!

Their eyes burned into Elendril.

Ignoring all of this, Yang Mi quickly sat Elendril down and began to grill Xinyan.

"So, Xinyan~. How did you and our hot guy over here get together already~?"

She asked in a sing-song voice.

"No! It's not like that!"

Yang Mi smirked.

"Really? He was carrying you, though. I don't think that's something two adults do normally~?"

Xinyan could feel her face reddening again.

Elendril jolted.

The both of them looked at him carefully.

Did he get sicker?

His delirious eyes opened again. 

He looked at Yang Mi.

"Wow, Ezekriel. You already have a girlfriend? She's beautiful, too!"

Yang Mi grinned.

"Of course I am!"

She said shamelessly.

Elendril looked back at Xinyan.

"But, Ezekriel. Are you still not back to the way you were before?"

Elendril suddenly squinted at Xinyan.

"But wait, Ezekriel. I thought you were muscular before, even as a kid. Why do you look like a girl now?"

Yang Mi was barely holding in the laughter.

The receptionist spoke.

"Elendril's group, please come in."

Xinyan moved to help Elendril, but he held up a hand.

"Don't worry, Ezekriel. It's only a check-up right? I'll be fine!"

He smiled at her.

Yang Mi and Xinyan both thought.

Too bright!

Elendril sat on the bed.

The healer was examining his wound.

"So, healer Dan, I'm perfectly fine, right? My leg is just feeling a bit weak right now, maybe my mana is a bit low."

Healer Dan shook his head.

"Elendril, you have a massive claw wound here. There's no way you're alright. When did you get this?"

Elendril frowned, then suddenly his expression brightened.

"Oh, right! I was chased by a bunch of wolves, and they accidentally scratched me."

The healer frowned at the two girls seated at the wall.

"And you two are perfectly fine?"

Elendril nodded his head.

"Don't worry, healer. Ezekriel only found me later, after the wolves had left. The girl next to him is Ezekriel's new girlfriend. Come to think of it, what was your name?"

Yang Mi smiled.

"Yang Mi."

Elendril smiled.

"Yeah, Yang Mi!"

The healer saw his delirious eyes and the sweat that lightly coated his face.

He shook his head.

"Lie down, I'll begin now."

The two girls focused on him.

The healer gave Elendril a cloth to bite.

As soon as Elendril laid down on the bed, he dug his fingers into the wound!

Xinyan winced.

She looked at his face.

Contrary to the pain, he was only biting the cloth very tightly.

He made no noise!

Green motes began to dance in the wound.

The healer slowly pulled his hand out.

His mood had become great, as it always did after healing someone.

In order to cast the [Great Heal] skill, he needed to create feelings of kindness and benevolence in his mind. 

Elendril's face calmed down again, and he fell asleep.

Dan glanced at the two girls at the wall.

"It'll be thirty coppers, please."

Xinyan's face frowned.

She quickly turned to Yang Mi.

"Yang Mi, do you have money, please? I need to borrow 13 coppers..."

Yang Mi shook her head.

"Xinyan, I don't even have 5 coppers right now..."

Xinyan turned towards the healer with a desperate look.

"Healer, please! Don't hurt him again! I'll find the money and somehow get it back to you, please!"

Dan did consider using the sword beside him to give Elendril a wound again.

However, glancing at Xinyan, he sighed instead.

"Next time, bring enough money, alright? Make sure he drinks lots of water and rests. Please leave, I have patients to heal now."

They left.

-----(:)-----

They managed to rent a room for 5 coppers.

After manhandling Elendril on the bed and feeding him water from her leather flask, Xinyan finally sighed in relief.

"Okay, Xinyan. This is still very funny, but why are you caring so much for him? Don't tell me you love him?"

"No, no! Wait, let me share the quest to you."

Xinyan shared the quest.

Yang Mi's eyes almost popped out of her face in shock.

2000 EXP??

That was way too much for a basic quest! 

Elendril must be an important NPC!

Yang Mi's eyes gleamed with greed.

He must have some lore, right!

That meant she could have streaming material! 

Of course, his face was eye candy too!

Yang Mi could practically see the viewer count shoot up already!

"Hehe..."

She had a greedy and slightly creepy face as she looked at Elendril.

Xinyan knew what she was thinking, and slapped her on the back of her head.

Slap!

"Hey!"

Yang Mi clutched her head in pain.

"Don't even think about treating him like that, you'll creep him out! What if we lose favorability points?"

"Ugh, fine. But how did you find him?"

Xinyan thought back to the clearing and her face paled.

"It was in a tree next to a battlefield. There were all sorts of wolves and people and goblins who died there. It was a very terrible place."

Xinyan shuddered.

"I can still feel the awful... aura from the place."

"And you just find him like that?"

"No, after the clearing, there was a trail of blood that led somewhere. There, several goblins were eating a wolf below a tree. Honestly, I got the quest before I could see him. His cloak blends in so well to the forest, that I thought he was part of the tree."

"So how did you get him down? You could barely carry him before!"

Xinyan blushed.

"Well, when I got up to the tree, he hugged me and thought I was his brother... And he voluntarily jumped down himself."

Her eyes shifted away in embarrassment.

"Kyahahaha! So you hugged him! How was your first hug, to be hugged by an NPC?"

Yang Mi smirked.

"Well... it felt really good..."

Yang Mi laughed so hard she fell onto the ground.

On the ground, she continued to roll and laugh until she was having trouble breathing.

Xinyan pouted.

"Hey! It was his fault, not mine!"

[You have completed Mission: Rescue Elendril! +50 Goddess Zephyrith Favorability, +1000 Elendril Favorability, +2000 EXP].

[You have leveled up.]

[You have leveled up.]

[You have leveled up.]

[You have leveled up.]

Xinyan tilted her head. 

She had completed the quest?

"What's my fault?"

Xinyan felt steam rushing out of her ears!

Elendril had awoken.