Alain had taken both Renald and Marika to the blacksmith Rostav. He was the person who had taken care of him all these years since he first arrived in The Sanctuary with no place to live in. Rostav was perhaps Alain’s most trusted person in the entire settlement and the only one he could ask for such a favor. Alain trusted Rostav with all his heart and he wasn’t one to divulge any details from him, but he still omitted the part about Renald taming a giant when he was retelling the tale of how he came to find both of these strangers. This information, Alain thought, would endanger Rostav too if he knew, especially if dangerous groups were interested for methods to tame giants. Rostav temporarily closed up shop after hearing Alain’s story. His house was behind the smithy so they all settled down.

Rostav’s house had a couple of rooms empty which were previously used by Alain and his late son. Marika had collapsed right away on the bed after being introduced to her temporary abode, her severe injuries were still recovering and her body needed just a little more break. Renald was thankful for the warm hospitality Rostav showed him at their first meeting, it was something that was absent in his own home so he particularly appreciated it. But no matter how energetic Renald was, his physique was still growing and he chose to postpone finding medical supplies for Snow who was still outside and opted to rest for a moment as well.

After settling those two in their respective rooms, Alain and Rostav relocated to the dining table with a kitchen next to it. Truth be told, it was quite obvious that a bachelor had been living here as the kitchen lacked any personality and more complex ingredients one would need to cook good dishes. They both sat down with Rostav sitting down the wrong way again, his two hands resting on the chair’s back.

“You’ve been busy the last two days, huh?” Rostav said. His face had been pleasant and all-smiles when he met Marika and Renald before, but now his long beard, bald head, and tilted eyebrows that stared down at Alain made him look like a hunter eyeing its prey.

Alain hesitated to say anything. He had recognized that look whenever he caused problems in the past. Rostav was a caring person, but he could be incredibly stern at times where Alain truly screwed up.

“Going outside alone? Almost being killed by an augmented giant? Barely escaping a Valang? Are you out of your mind!?” Rostav slammed his fist into the wooden table and it immediately broke into two with splinters going everywhere.

Alain looked down in silence and did not reply.

"You told me you had just obtained a student pass so I expected you to go hunting with a party of experienced Giantslayers. Do you know how stupid it was to go out alone like that?" Rostav stared daggers at Alain.

“Look what you made me do!” Rostav glanced down at his ruined table and sighed. “And for the record, I know you’re still hiding something. No way you just ventured out there to find one kid.”

Alain stayed silent.

“You’re an independent adult now. I know. You already moved out of here as well. But…” Rostav’s large hands grabbed on to Alain’s shoulders and looked at him in the eyes. “You’re the closest thing I have to a family. I don’t want to lose you. Goddamnit even the bone armor we made together had that gaping hole, don’t you realize just how lucky you are?”

“I’m sorry,” Alain said as his eyes started to water.

Rostav let go of Alain’s shoulders. “I know you’re going with the nectar expedition next week. I’ve been in one before, it’s dangerous. If not you, then you will see someone else dying. Are you sure you still want to join them?”

Alain looked at Rostav’s eyes with a renewed sense of conviction. “Yes. You know what’s at stake for me, I can’t ever stop, even if I die,” he said.

“You—” As Rostav was about to reply. Renald came running into the kitchen. His face showed terror.

“Alain!” Renald said.

“What’s wrong, kid?” Rostav stood up and asked worryingly.

Renald shook his head. “Just Alain.” He said.

Rostav looked at both of them and sighed. “You will tell me what’s going on later. No more secrets. I’m going to close up shop and head for the tavern.” He left his house with disappointed steps.

“What’s wrong?” Alain asked Renald.

“It’s Snow! He’s being attacked by a giant! And he’s losing!”

“What!?”

“He told me through our connection just now. He’s hurt bad! We need to help him!” Renald said desperately, his body jittered as if he was about to dash outside any moment now.

“Where is he?”

“He’s not that far from the secret passage. We should be able to find him. Let’s go!”

Alain shook his head. “You stay here. You’ll just get in my way and be an unnecessary burden. Tell Snow to head closer to the secret passage.” Alain started to head to his equipment to pack everything again, he did not forget to carry more nectars with him. His armor was still not fixed, but he could not wait any moment longer.

Renald followed behind Alain as he was preparing to leave. “No! I’m coming as well!” He said stubbornly.

“Look.” Alain put his giant sword-ax on his back. He did not forget to wear a cape with a hood on top. “I’ll save him. With this act, I’ll prove to you that you have someone to trust here in The Sanctuary. Even if I can’t defeat the enemy, then at least I’ll drive it away. Your death won’t do Snow any good if you get in harm’s way.”

"I won't be a burden! Please! I can't just let Snow die! He's the only friend I have!" Renald said, his eyes teary.

I recognize those eyes. Those eyes that are desperate to save someone but hiding a realization of powerlessness in doing so. Alain thought.

"Snow will not die. I stake my entire existence on this." Alain put a hand on Renald's shoulder and stared into his eyes.

Renald looked up and saw conviction in Alain's eyes. Helooked down in silence.

“Promise?” He said.

“Promise.”

“I won’t ever forgive you if Snow dies!” Renald shouted with tears in his eyes.

“You will be the one apologizing later for doubting me," Alain answered as he closed the door behind him.

Alain raised his hood and covered his entire armor with his cape. He learned his lesson after passing through the red light district several times. Although his large silhouette with a giant weapon hidden on his back would still reveal his occupation, at least his identity would be protected. He passed through the dark alleys with no issues again and made his way to the secret passage. As soon as he opened the passage and stepped outside, he heard the noise of battles not that far ahead. He dashed towards the direction of those noises.

After running for several minutes, he was greeted by the sight of Snow desperately fighting the Valang that was chasing them yesterday. The giant bird seemed out for vengeance after what Snow and his friends made it go through last time. Alain could see that its eyes were half-blind from the flash bombs he used. The Valang used its talons to dye Snow’s fur red while still flying Snow desperately tried to slash his fangs but the Valang kept dodging into the air every time.

Shit! I left the flash bombs! Alain checked his satchel to find it empty. He must have been too much in a hurry when he was packing his equipment. With no other choice, Alain drank one vial of nectar and dashed forward.

“Hey! Over here!” Alain shouted.

The Valang temporarily let go of its grip on Snow and faced Alain. The bird shrieked in anger as it remembered the identity of the tiny human who almost blinded him. It flew forward and open its talons to grab Alain. On the last possible second, Alain burned through his nectar to perform a roll dodge sideways.

Its right eye is blind! Alain noticed the Valang’s lifeless right eye as it was swooping down towards him.

Not wanting to let the Valang have another chance, Alain dashed forward. He had a different strategy this time. As the bird was still near the solid ground, Alain leaped upward and while in the air, switched his weapon into the ax form. His shrunken size made his body extremely light and with the help of the nectar, he was capable of performing astonishing feats. He swung downward with force and managed to stab the Valang’s back. The curved ax form of his weapon created a firm anchor to hold himself steady as it lodged itself deeply on the Valang’s flesh.

The Valang shrieked in anger and flew upwards into the skies above. While Alain was still using his right hand to hold on to his sword ax handle for dear life, he unsheathed a dagger on his hip and started to repeatedly stab the Valang’s back. He pierced the same spot every time in order to cause a deeper wound. The Valang panicked as its body winced in pain, but it felt as if it could not do anything to get Alain off its back.

The avian giant then had the sudden idea to perform spinning maneuvers in the air in hopes of shaking Alain off. It rotated its entire body like a furious whirlwind. After several horizontal and vertical spins in the air, Alain could hold on no longer and let go of his sword. He started to fall from the skies, but his lightweight made him fall slower, which he used to his advantage. The Valang was still under a panicked spell and did not realize that the insect had been thrown off.

Alain grabbed the Ropecaster hanging on his side, His slow fall combined with his enhanced senses allowed him to aim towards the spinning bird. However, it was anything but an easy feat and Alain did not even remember learning anyone that had done this before from the battle records he studied at The Academy. He took a few seconds to line up his shot and fired a rope arrow towards the bird. The arrow managed to hit its target, lodging itself on the Valang’s neck. Alain did not bother firing the other end of the rope into the ground like what one usually does with Ropecaster, but rather use the rope to pull himself upward and jump up into the skies, which gave him enough momentum to reach the Valang.

Alain reached the giant's head and stabbed his dagger on the left eye of the giant repeatedly. With this immense injury, both of its eyes were now blind. The Valang shrieked again in agony and completely lost the willpower to flap its wings as it focused on its loss of vision. The two of them started to fall into the ground but Alain quickly climbed on top of the bird so the giant would cushion his fall. But even when it was not making an effort to fly, the avian giant still had a light and aerodynamic body for its size so they glide down into the ground slower than if some other animal had fallen. After some moments, they crashed into the ground.

Did I do it? Did I kill an avian giant alone? This is a feat no student of The Academy had done before! Feeling proud of himself, Alain grabbed his sword-ax which was stuck on the giant’s back and jumped down to examine the damage. He stood in front of the bird's head. The Valang had its mouth open seemingly lifeless as its body littered the soil. But the fall was not enough to kill the Valang, yet in its last moment, it devised a plan to pretend to be dead in order to lure the insect. Even while blinded, it realized the puny human that almost killed it was standing in front of it and lunged its sharp beaks forward to bite Alain.

Shit! That was the only thought that Alain could make in those split seconds. He closed his eyes and tried to bring his sword-ax in front of him. Alain almost prepared himself in his mind that this would be his last moment alive. However, In a brief moment, he heard the sound of something being cut open, and then spurts of blood rained on him. Alain opened his eyes to see something he did not expect. The head of the giant was now detached from its body, fresh blood still spurting from the decapitated body.

Wait, what? What happened? Alain thought. And then he heard human footsteps coming towards him. The range of the footsteps itself indicated that those footsteps were not anywhere close to where Alain and the bird were so Alain was confused if it was this person’s doing. Alain turned to see who it was, but the sun above was casting a deep shadow on the giant forest so the figure was blurred and indistinct. He could only make out a tall masculine figure carrying a longsword with one hand.

“That was quite impressive, young one.” The figure walked forward out of the shadows. “I had been watching you for a while to figure out what kind of person you were and planned to just witness your full potential uninterrupted. But I guess I couldn’t let a promising candidate die off like that, isn’t that right? That was an almost fatal mistake you made there, Alain.” He said. His voice seemed eerily calm and melodic.

Who? Watching me? How does he know who I am? Alain mind raced to find answers but found none. His near-death experience was almost already behind him, his brain now too preoccupied with the identity of this person.