/
Fortunately, the fallen child only had a slight bruise on his skin and no serious injuries.
“Sniffle

.”
The Erul child, whose emotions had calmed down a bit, looked up at me while sniffling. I carefully wiped away the tears still clinging to his eyes with a handkerchief.
The child seemed to think my embrace was comfortable enough that he quietly accepted my touch, even though he was being held by a stranger.
“Oh my, look how quickly he has calmed down. Children really do listen well to you, Sihyeon.”
Lia, who had been watching from the side, admired the now quiet child. Kaneff also peeked over and chuckled with a ‘pfft’ sound.
Feeling a slight sense of pride, I spoke to the child in my arms.
“Does it not hurt anymore?”
“Mm-hmm
”
“What’s your name?”
“Tori.”
“Tori? That’s a really pretty name.”
While continuing the conversation, I gently stroked Tori’s head. His expression was still awkward due to his wariness of a stranger, but his ears perked up, indicating he was in a good mood.
It seemed that the skills I had acquired while soothing Speranza for a long time were shining here.
Swish swish!
Speranza, who was next to me, tugged at my clothes.
“Papa, I want to see too.”
“Oh, just a moment.”
I bent down on one knee, lowering my posture so Speranza could see Tori. Speranza eagerly leaned in and showed interest.
“Wow, he’s so small. It’s a baby, a baby!”
Speranza was admiring Tori for being so small.
To me, it seemed like a baby admiring another baby, and I couldn’t help but smile.
Speranza, not caring whether I laughed or not, carefully reached out to stroke Tori.
Perhaps it was their naturally gentle nature, but Tori only opened his eyes wide and calmly accepted the touch.
“Does it not hurt anymore?”
Nod nod.
“Do you want to eat something tasty?”
“Tasty?”
Tori showed his first response at the mention of ‘something tasty.’ Speranza quickly searched her bag and pulled out a caramel candy.
As the candy wrapper was opened, a sweet scent wafted out.
Tori’s fox ears perked up at the delightful smell, and he eagerly accepted and ate the candy offered by Speranza.
Munch munch.
As Tori chewed the candy, his eyes grew bigger and a shimmering light was added to his pupils. His small tail also wagged fast enough to create a breeze.
Speranza, with a proud expression, asked Tori.
“Is it good?”
“Un! It’s so tasty!”
“Hehe.”
The two children looked at each other and smiled brightly.
Gulp

Gulp

From the front, the sound of swallowing saliva could be heard quite blatantly. The Erul children who had been with Tori earlier were staring at the caramel candy with eager eyes.
I raised the corner of my mouth in a grin and asked the children.
“Do you guys want some too?”
Nod nod!
Nod nod!
The two children nodded their heads vigorously, as if they were worried about their throats.
“Wow, Speranza, you came from really far away.”
“Yeah.”
“I’m envious. I wish I could go outside the village too
”
A girl from the Erul tribe, who introduced herself as ‘Ling,’ muttered while sucking on a caramel candy. As soon as Ling finished speaking, a boy with red fur named ‘Kasha’ asked a question.
“So, are there a lot of these delicious candies outside?”
“Um
 no, they’re only at the farm where I live. There are also a lot of delicious strawberries on the farm.”
“Strawberries?”
Kasha tilted his head as if he had never heard of it before, but Ling suddenly jumped up, remembering something.
“Ah! I think I’ve heard of ‘strawberries’ before. I heard adults say they’re really delicious.”
“Really? Are strawberries that delicious? Even more than these caramel candies?”
Before they knew it, Speranza had become close friends with the two children, and they chatted nonstop about the outside world. Speranza seemed to enjoy spending time with kids her age.
Lia whispered to me with a grin, observing the children.
“They’ve become friends so quickly. It seems like Speranza likes her new friends.”
“It seems so. There are many people to play with her on the farm, but she doesn’t have any friends her age.”
Gulp. Gulp.
“Mister

”
“Huh? Want more snacks?”
I took a small snack from Lia and put it into Tori’s mouth. Still snuggled in my arms, Tori gobbled up the snack like a baby bird.
It’s strange since we just met today.
Tori completely entrusted himself to me without any discomfort, enjoying the tasty snack and the comfort.
Well, so what?
If he’s cute, that’s enough.
Anis and Daur, who were leading the way, looked a bit flustered when they saw me holding Tori.
“Sihyeon is really amazing. It’s not common for children to be so unguarded around strangers, let alone be so curious about them.”
“Don’t worry about it, he’s just like that. He’s good at nosing around.”
I frowned at Kaneff’s words.
“Boss, of all things to say, why ‘nosing around’?”
“Why? It’s an accurate expression.”
“No, there are many better expressions like ‘good at socializing’ or ‘good with children.'”
“As long as they understand, what does it matter
”
While Kaneff and I bickered, our group passed through the center of the village and arrived at a large building. There, people who seemed to be waiting for us came out to greet us.
“Welcome, Lord Cardis. You must have had a hard time coming from so far away.”
“Welcome, Lord Cadis.”
“Welcome.”
All the waiting people greeted us politely.
“Ah
 yes. Nice to meet you.”
Their hospitality was much more than I had expected, and I greeted them a bit awkwardly.
“Please come in. The elder is waiting for you inside.”
I was about to follow their lead into the building when I stopped.
“Is there a problem?”
“No, it’s not that
”
I turned my head to look back.
Speranza’s two new friends were watching us hesitantly. They seemed to want to keep playing, but they seemed reluctant to follow us in.
In the meantime, Tori was confidently nestled in my arms, munching on snacks.
“Would it be alright if those kids could come along with us? We just became friends, and it would be a shame to part ways so soon.”
The Erul tribe man who was guiding us glanced behind me.
He nodded with a meaningful sound. After briefly whispering with the people around him, he soon gave an answer.
“We will prepare a separate room for the children to rest in. However, you should go meet the village elder right away, my lord.”
“Ah! Thank you for doing that.”
The children’s faces brightened at the news that they could continue to play together. I handed Tori over to Lia.
“Lia, please take care of the children for me.”
“Yes, don’t worry.”
Tori whined for a moment, not wanting to leave my arms, but quieted down as soon as Lia fed him a snack.
“Speranza, play with your friends. I’ll be back soon.”
“Okay.”
After giving Speranza’s head a gentle pat, Kaneff and I followed the guide to where the village elder was.
Walking in the long corridor, I whispered to Kaneff while keeping an eye on the Erul tribe guides.
“Boss, the atmosphere is more relaxed than I expected, isn’t it?”
“Did you think they’d greet us with weapons drawn right away?”
“Well, not exactly, but I thought it might be a bit more awkward.”
“Ryan and Andras are putting pressure on them with prisoner negotiations. Even if they’re reckless, they won’t openly target us.”
While speaking, a flash of light shone in Kaneff’s eyes.
“Of course, if they pull any nonsense, we won’t stay still either. It might be fun to have a proper confrontation with the Erul tribe.”
Ryan and Andras

Please hang in there!
I prayed for this peaceful atmosphere to continue while rooting for the two of them.
“Here we are.”
Creak.
The large wooden doors opened on both sides.
“The village elder is waiting for you inside.”
After expressing my gratitude to the Erul tribe man who guided us, I stepped into the room.
The title ‘village elder’ gave me the impression of a high-ranking position, but contrary to that, the room’s interior was rather plain.
There were hardly any eye-catching decorations. Only a table, chairs, and a few pieces of furniture were neatly arranged.
“I have been waiting for you, Lord Cardis.”
The old man, sitting at the end of the table, stood up to greet me.
“Welcome. I am Rahuel, the representative of the Erul tribe village elders.”
“Thank you for your warm welcome.”
“Please, have a seat.”
As I sat down, I took a closer look at village elder Rahuel.
He was an old man with deep wrinkles and a shaggy beard. Due to his age, his tail fur looked more ragged than that of Speranza or the other Erul tribe members.
Kaneff, who had been looking around the room, unceremoniously plopped down onto a chair without any formal greeting.
Despite the rude behavior, Rahuel didn’t seem to mind. Instead, he focused his attention on me and calmly attempted conversation.
“There are many things I would like to discuss with the visitor from the outside after such a long time, but the situation is not ideal, so I’ll get straight to the point. I hope you understand, Lord Cardis.”
“It’s fine with me. Please, feel free to speak your mind.”
“First of all, I would like to apologize for the unauthorized intrusion of some members of the Erul tribe into your territory. It may sound like an excuse for our wrongdoing, but I would like you to understand that this disgraceful incident was not the intention of the entire Erul tribe.”
Rahuel quickly mentioned the most sensitive issue and expressed his apology. He maintained a humble posture, but not so humbled as to be servile.
“We will prepare compensation for the damages that will satisfy the Cardis territory. We will also be as cooperative as possible in the ongoing prisoner negotiations, so we hope for Lord Cardis’s mercy.”
Rahuel clearly reiterated his apology with a firm voice. I listened to his story outwardly calm, but I was secretly surprised by this unexpected reaction.
To think they would acknowledge their mistake to this extent

I glanced at Kaneff.
Kaneff also seemed to think something was strange, as he had a peculiar expression on his face. And then he leaned towards me and whispered quietly.
“Something’s off

“But it’s not a bad situation for us, right?”
“I don’t know. That old man might be hiding something.”
Will things really work out this smoothly?
A hint of suspicion appeared in my eyes. However, I couldn’t find anything suspicious about Rahuel’s demeanor.