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During the mission that took around two-weeks to complete, the two became somewhat close as they maintained a relationship that almost resembled siblings. Whilst Chloe still hadn't fully lowered her guard yet, Arhur would argue that he had gained her trust in its entirety, if compared to how she acted prior anyway.

Through their journey there and back to the barony, Arthur had mostly figured out and adapted to her battle-style, as he chose not to pressure the girl out of her comfort-zone and instead took a supporting role to learn from her. As such, he quickly noticed how Chloe would only fight battles against a single-hostile no matter the circumstance, if there was even a chance of another beast joining the fray, she would instantly search for an opening elsewhere. Whether it was artificially created via traps, baits or distractions, Chloe only fought battles she was sure she would win, regardless of Arthur's presence or not, even if he did show his own ability and strength.

Unsure whether it was paranoia, fear or just extreme-carefulness. Arthur failed to change her view upon the fields of battle, as it was simply within her character and wit to bite only that in which she could safely chew. Something that ultimately wouldn't work and contribute much within his future path, especially if his goals were as glamourous and as extreme as to changing the destiny of the kingdom itself.

Whilst Arthur tried and tried to convince her into fighting 2v2 or even 2v3, ensuring her with his ability to tackle up to 5 goblins by himself if required, Chloe soon started to treat the man as a fool. Unyielding in her ways as she simply believed that if something wasn't broken, then there was no need to even fix it, to change it.

Having their first disagreement, and constant bickering, the two's growing friendship quickly turned sour as she treated the man's advice as annoying bickering and nagging. Something adults felt obligated to thrust upon the young as people who supposedly knew better.

...

Upon returning to the village, as the two quietly marched towards the guild house to report their slow-obtained success in culling the pigmen menace, warning bells were ringing across the other side of the village. Quick into action, Chloe started to sprint as the guild house was located within that frontier.

Swinging her short bow off her shoulder and notching an arrow upon its string, she swiftly fired arrow after arrow at the goblins that were swarming through the local militiamen who were simply farmers and stablemen who had the courage to pick up pitchforks and wooden pointed spears. And whilst her aim was true, delivering death directly between the brows of the little green cunts. She was quick to run out of arrows, as such, she had to dip and zig-zag between her path to pluck her own arrows back out of the goblins to fire again.

Arthur, who was quietly following within the girl's shadow, was soon thrust upon a crossroad of his own. To follow the girl and ensure her safety as a party member, or to save the village people who were struggling to fend off the green-menace. 

"KYAAAAA!"

A quick scream from a damsel in distress from around the corner was enough to tear the man off Chloe's shadow and away. Leaving the half-elf in her path towards the guild house.

..

When Chloe finally arrived close enough to the street where her friend worked, chaos and blood was splattered all across as the goblins appeared in numbers so great, they even swarmed over the adventurers who bravely fought against them. The strongest of the guild, the same group who would bully and torment Chloe on a regular basis were seen erupting from the doors with goblins latched upon their large muscles.

With a glint of hope within her eyes, Chloe was almost happy to see them, albeit a couple seconds later she realized their intention wasn't to save the village, but to escape it, abandoning it to its fate.

Ignoring the trash, the girl ran past them and peeked through the doors to find it swarming with green and red. Unable to usher her body further in, as her instincts went against her very desires to find her friend. She convinced herself into climbing the walls outside instead, to find entry through the upper windows.

Upon painstakingly climbing up the timbre and architecture, the half-elf managed to peak through the second story window to find her friend Melissa Vasquez completely naked. Her limbs were held down by a goblin on each arm and leg, whilst another large hob-goblin was pulling its rancid-green penis out that was covered with bumps and veins, positioning himself between the noblewomen's legs.

Chloe glanced down towards her quiver to find but a single arrow left to her, within her mind she quickly imagined herself standing upon the windowsill and firing the lone arrow. However, what would that achieve? Would their next focus be upon her? What of her philosophy towards targeting and alienating single-opponents?

Within her delay of hesitation, blood squirted out of Melissa's lower body as the hob deliriously thrust itself into the human. Another six goblins instantly swarmed into the room upon hearing the feminine scream of pain and whimpering. With more than 10 opponents ready to swarm her if she were to reveal herself, fright, fear and horror assaulted Chloe's young-mind.

Her arms refused to move an inch as she heard Arthur's bickering echo within her mind, encouraging and imploring her to change her ways, to brave through the darkness and fight more than a single-opponent. As it was simply foolishly idealist to believe all battles would be fought in such conditions that gave bias to her.

Leaping upon the windowsill, she expertly notched the arrow that flew true towards the hob's forehead that had swiftly caught onto another young virgin women's scent. However, rather than penetrating through its skull, it barely penetrated enough to annoy the dark-green rapist that pulled itself out of Melissa and turned its raging-hard cock towards Chloe.

Seeing such a sight, and realizing her inadequacy in power and ability, Chloe staggered and lost her balance, falling from the windowsill and crashing into a large pile of hay, riling the already panicking horses that were there as their masters were either dead or occupied with greenery.

...

When the night ended, and morning came. Chloe shot up and out of the haystack as she was knocked out from the fall. Relieved to find her clothing still tightly wrapped around her, she quickly turned the corner and entered the guild house to find Arthur equally searching for her.

"W-what happened to Melissa!? My friend the receptionist!?"

Silencing his question with her own, Arthur was satisfied to find her unhurt, thus decided to answer her as he hadn't slept a wink.

"Your friend is alright, she's resting within the guestroom upstairs right now-"

Ignoring the man, Chloe ran on up, ignoring guild protocol as she trespassed and slipped into the same room from yesterday.

Within her mind, the night before's scene replayed, as blood, green goblin and the hob frightened her to a pause. 

"C-Chloe?" 

Melissa's weak voice broke her out of her fear as she staggered back to reality. Entering in, to find the place actually clean, and Melissa laying within a bed with dried up tears, Chloe ran in and held her hands.

"I'm sorry! I tried but- but!-"

"It's okay, I saw you, you tried and that's what matters..." Melissa clutched the girl into a tight hug, and quickly explained that after her sudden interruption, Arthur had managed to follow the screams and enter the room. Catching the hob off-guard and killing it as it was peering over the windowsill in search of Chloe. Arthur swiftly killed all hostiles within. And whilst she wanted to tell the man to find Chloe, she was concussed and slowly fell unconscious from the horrible treatment. In fact, her recent shouting upon entering the guild house was what woke her up.

Having ensured her friend was safe and alive, she was about to turn and leave with anger, wrath brimming within her black eyes when Melissa's quiet crying resumed as the night's memories returned.

Swearing to herself that she wouldn't hesitate next time, and that regardless of the amount of enemies, that she would stand her ground, to defend that in which she cared for, the half-elf resolved herself to obtain strength and ability to protect.

After having her moment of self-reflection, Chloe stormed out of the guild in search of the men who had abandoned them. Arthur, no longer desiring to bring the girl onto his path of pain, struggles and hardship, would depart from the village the next day, in search of the next potential ally to recruit. 

..

Running in the direction she had seen them go, she turned corners before finding a group of corpses strewn around in an alleyway.

Upon closer inspection, the bodies were mutilated, cleanly sliced and severed into pieces. Clearly, it wasn't the work of a goblin, as their crude weapons were old, blunt and incapable of such a clean cut.

...

A young Kozumi was seated atop a rooftop. She sighed as her red crimson eyes followed the young girl who had found her work. She was on a mission of her own to assassinate nobles who were trying to gather military-might, a random lead led her towards the musclemen below, in which she had seen harass and bully dozens of young-women into warming their beds. Having not much thought into it, she decided to pay them a visit, and by chance she found the village under a monster-attack.

Taking advantage of the situation, she saved as many children and elderlies as possible, as they weren't a threat to her kingdom regardless of their survival.

Her red eyes lingered upon both the half-elf and knight, wondering whether they were potential targets or not, before entering [Hide] and leaving. Her next target, a certain viscount that had been purchasing and amassing a great amount of weapons.