The black-haired girl glared at him with narrowed eyes as she introduced the two of them. "I'm Xanthe," she said, pointing at the blonde girl, "and she's Thalia."
He smiled warmly at them, gesturing towards the sofa before taking a seat himself. Archer watched them, noticing their expressions were a mix of worry and happiness.
As they exchanged a curious glance with each other, Xanthe nodded, and they both sat down. Archer kindly tossed some sweet bread their way.
Their hungry expressions and the way they nibbled at the food reminded him of two little mice, bringing a smile to his face.
At that moment, he noticed their clothes were old and smelly. Without hesitation, he called out, "Are there any brownies around?"
In just a moment, a little poof was heard, and Cinnamon appeared. "Hello, Master Archer. How can I assist you?"
His smile widened as he looked at the adorable brownie. "Hey there, Cinnamon. Could you please fetch some clothes for the girls?"
Cinnamon nodded and vanished once more, leaving Archer to turn back to the girls who were watching him as if he were a weirdo.
Ignoring their looks, he waited for Cinnamon to return with the clothes while the two girls were eating the bread.
Archer looked at the girls and spoke. ''Where are you girls from? And I know this is a sensitive topic, but how did you end up as slaves?''
When they heard him, Thalia got a sad look on her face, and Xanthe got angry, but she calmed herself down and answered, "Well, we were originally from the Northern Continent, Frostwood. Our family was ordered here by the Queen to set up a Kingdom in the far north of Pluoria."
Xanthe's expression turned sad as she continued, "We went on a treasure hunt in northern Avalon but failed. When we returned to our kingdom, we discovered that our stepfather had turned our mother against us."
She looked at her sister, who was just staring into the distance, but continued speaking to him.
"At first, we tried to endure it, but things escalated when his children tried attacking Thalia. I had to defend her, which unfortunately led to us being sold to a slaver. They were paid to take us far south, preventing our other relatives from rescuing us."
When Archer heard their story, he felt sorry for them but asked, "How long ago was this?"
That was when Thalia spoke up. "Two years ago. We've been traveling ever since."
Archer nodded his head as he took out more sweet bread and gave the food to them. They graciously accepted the food, nodding their heads in thanks.
At that moment, Cinnamon reappeared with a pile of clothing, placing it on the sofa next to Archer and bowing to him.
He quickly spoke, "Cinnamon, could you please get three drinks?"
The Brownie nodded her head and vanished again, reappearing a minute later with the drinks, which she placed on the table.
After Cinnamon vanished, Archer passed two of the drinks to the two girls. They took the cups and sipped from them.
The twins' eyes widened when they tasted the drink and loved its flavor. Thalia couldn't help but ask, "What is this delicious drink?"
Archer smiled at the girl as he answered, "Well, it's brewed here by the dragon-kin, and they always give me some."
Thalia gave him a small smile as she started drinking, but Xanthe spoke up, "Why did you buy us? You're not a pervert like the humans?"
He started laughing before he replied, "Yes, I'm a pervert, but only for my fiancées."
Xanthe narrowed her eyes but then nodded her head, sensing no lie coming from him. She finished the bread and asked, "What do you want from us?"
Archer looked at the girl. "Nothing. You can go home, or you can stay here and recover for a little while. It's up to you, but I must warn you that there are five girls who may appear while you're here."
The twins nodded slowly, and Thalia leaned over to Xanthe, whispering, "Can we trust him, sister? He looks like a human."
Xanthe looked at her and replied in a hushed tone, "No, we can't. We must keep an eye on him to make sure he doesn't try anything."
Thalia nodded, her eyes narrowing as she turned to him and asked, "Are you planning to do naughty things to us, you human-looking boy?"
Archer rubbed his temple after she spoke and replied, dismissing her silly assumptions, "No, I won't touch you, girls. I have five fiancées; why would I touch two random girls? And I'm not a human-looking boy; I'm a dragon."
Still skeptical, they continued to look at him without being convinced. He sighed to himself as they just sat there, staring at him.
"I won't do anything to harm you two. Why would I buy you just to hurt you? That's precious gold, you know. But do you two want separate bedrooms or the same? There is one with a lovely view of the mountains."
Before they could answer, he remembered the clothes and passed them to the twins, who were being still cautious of him.
Archer dropped the clothes in front of them and walked toward the balcony. Thalia spoke as she saw him walking away, "Where are you going?"
He stopped walking and replied, "I'm going to the balcony so you can change in private, beyond that door there are the bath chambers. Feel free to have a bath.''
After he walked out the door, Xanthe looked at Thalia and said, "Why did you ask him that? He's got nefarious intentions for us."
Thalia looked at her skeptical sister and replied, "He broke our slave collars and left us alone in his house.''
Xanthe looked at her sister and let out a sigh. "I will keep an eye on him, but we need to make a decision.''
She started to think to herself for a second before continuing. ''We can't go back home, or he will have us killed. Our best option is to stay hidden here and use him until he's no longer of use to us."
Thalia, the blonde, shook her head. "Yeah, we were slaves for years, but no one dared to touch us thanks to the contract that man signed. If he hadn't bought us, we would have been sold in the South as mere erotic luxuries once the contract's time period ended."
Xanthe nodded, silently vowing to keep a watchful eye on the strange boy who was offering his help as they walked to the door he pointed at.
Once inside the chambers, the two girls shed their stinky rags and stepped into the welcoming warmth of the water.
They sank down into the bath, feeling the tension melt away as they relaxed. Xanthe chose to sit with her eyes closed, embracing the tranquility.
Meanwhile, Thalia allowed herself to float, reveling in the sensation of the warm water caressing her skin.
After an hour of simply soaking, the two of them got out and changed into the dresses that Archer had given them.
As they walked out of the chambers, they saw him setting out a meal on the table for the two of them.
Archer looked up and saw the two girls standing there, eyeing the food he had arranged for them. He spoke, "Girls, I got the brownies to put together a meal for you. I'll be continuing my journey, but I'll be back tonight."
Thalia nodded in acknowledgment, but Xanthe watched him with narrowed eyes as they sat down. Archer noticed her paranoia and smiled reassuringly before opening a portal.
Stepping through, he left the two to eat, already having instructed the brownies to keep an eye on the twins and inform him if anything seemed suspicious.
Archer returned to the road and resumed walking, using his wing as an umbrella to shield himself from the rain.
After an hour of walking, completely drenched, he summoned his wings and took off into the air. Flying was initially challenging, but he quickly got the hang of it and soared through the rain.
Getting an idea, Archer cast a Cosmic Shield around himself and used Mana Manipulation to create fire, warming up the inside of the shield.
He continued flying for hours until he spotted a raging river in the distance, with a large stone bridge crossing it. Descending quickly, he landed near the bridge and continued on foot.
Archer stood before the Olympus Crossing, a bridge Hemera's father had mentioned to be guarded by the Lunarians. However, as he approached, he noticed that there was no one in sight.
He cautiously began his journey across the bridge, and as he proceeded, the atmosphere seemed to change.
About halfway through, Archer couldn't help but notice the remnants of smashed carriages and blood stains scattered all over the place.
It took him half an hour to reach the other side, and when he finally did, he discovered the unsettling reason for the absence of people around.
[A/N - Leave some comments, power stones, and gifts. It all helps support the book. Artwork in the comments or discord]
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