Three nights have pa.s.sed ever since Kazuya and Julia had arrived in Waise village. In the short span of time they've spent in the small village, their presence definitely had not been insignificant as most members of the villagers have been thankful towards 'Kazu' and 'Julie' for the help they provided so far.

"Lunchtime!" Kazuya called out.

He had built a small brick stove in front of the orphanage since he had promised to treat them with food. With simple yet fresh ingredients like flour, tomatoes, cheese, mushrooms and the like, he baked several pizzas that were an instant hit amongst all those who were able to taste it.

"Ohhh! Finally! I thought I would die of starvation from that appetizing aroma!" Gain had been the first to rush towards Kazuya after his announcement.

"Really father…" Gale couldn't help but put her palm against her face in embarra.s.sment.

"Hey! Hey! As the kid said, the food is first come first serve! It's not like I'm using my position as the village head to cut in line or something. I'm a bona fide worker helping with the construction as well!"

Gale could only shake her head at her father's antics. Not even she could have imagined that the troubled people carrying an injured comrade would win the hearts of the villagers' in such a short duration. 

There was a saying that one of the best ways to win over people was through their stomachs. This was proven true by Kazuya who had shown them different kinds of cuisines that were delicious yet inexpensive to make. With how fresh the produce was, the village enjoyed their taste even more.

"It's alright Gale-san. I've taken your dad's appet.i.te into consideration." Kazuya smiled as he served everyone who had lined up.

"You act like that now, daughter, but I know that you love those… uhh… I forgot what those steamed and fried things were called."

"Dumplings?" Kazuya finished the sentence since he did observe that Gale enthusiastically consumed the dumplings he made last night. "I can teach you how to make them if you want."

"Really!?" she reacted instantly but blushed when she noticed her father grinning at her.

"Yeah. Many of the villagers who tried it have asked me for the recipe. It is no secret so I was happy to share it."

"Though I gotta say, kid, you even got the villagers to help with this project in exchange for your cuisine. With the extra set of hands, this place will be finished in no time. No one would have believed that only one part of the orphanage has been built just two days ago!" Gain laughed.

That wasn't all he did, with the spoils from the orcs and the people that died, even the adventurers staying at the village offered their services in exchange for food and equipment.

"It was nothing at all. I just found an efficient way where everyone would happily contribute. I am hardly any help in physical labor after all." he looked a bit regretful.

"Nonsense! You've done more than I've ever expected. How can I not appreciate it!?" Gain slapped his back.

"Ow… please go easy on me." Kazuya gave a pained expression.

"Haha! You should work out more! I wouldn't have thought that Julie-chan had such strength. I guess that answers the question of why the other man on your party got injured that badly while she barely had a scratch." Gain laughed out loud.

"Dad! That's rude." Gale immediately scolded her father. "Kazu-kun has his own strengths. It's only been two days and he's almost surpa.s.sed me! Each person has things they are good at!"Find authorized novels in Webnovel，faster updates, better experience，Please click for visiting.

"Oho?" Gain grinned. "I guess it really is true what they say about daughters."

"What nonsense are you thinking about now?"

"When they find a man they like, their fathers are the first to suffer… I feel so sa—ooof!" a sudden blow to the stomach brought the playful village chief to his knees.

"That's what you get for saying such nonsense!" She then peeked a glance at Kazuya before breathing a sigh of relief. He had already started ignoring the two and continued with his duties.

"Hey, Julie! Come and get your share before the villagers that will help for the afternoon arrives!" Kazuya called for Julie who had been busy transforming the wood with the blades she had picked from their spoils.

"Coming!" she caught the towel that was thrown to her and wiped her sweat.

Many of the men that observed this almost choked on their food. None of them initially paid any attention to the hooded figure when the new helpers were introduced. Julia couldn't work well while wearing a hood, so she eventually took it off and instantly attracted the villagers who only had the young Gale to admire in the village.

"(Julie-san is really pretty…)" Gale couldn't help but say in her mind. She had been secretly thankful to Kazuya's companion for the number of men who had disturbed her had decreased drastically ever since Julia had revealed her face.

Though initially, Kazuya and Julia were thought of as a pair, when the people learned about the injured person in their party as well as what had happened to them before they arrived at the village, they were happy to learn that they had their chance to pursue this rare beauty.

Kazuya had told them that he was not from the Zweifel Kingdom and had come from farther away. With his features, they had a.s.sumed that he was from one of the eastern kingdoms. When they asked if he was a n.o.ble, he shook his head and expressed a little satisfaction towards being thought of as one.

There weren't many people in Waise village that liked n.o.bles, so they were relieved. Most of them had escaped from the corrupt places to live a more peaceful life and were thankful that there had been a place in the kingdom where they could survive. Though it hadn't been long since the village was founded, they had already considered this their home.

Of course, they had the Eberbach family to thank for that. Due to Elrich's reasonable reign, taxes were not heavy and with his strict administration, there were not many that dared to be openly corrupt in his territory. Though it may not have been perfect, it was like a whole different world compared to the places many of the villagers have moved or run away from.

Kazuya learned of these facts as he spent more time with the villagers that he had not been familiar with. Many of them most likely joined Elrich in his battle against the crown before Kazuya had arrived in his previous life. The gloominess of Waise Village in Kazuya's memories was undoubtedly caused by the loss of the Eberbach family.

"How long do you plan on staying here?" Julia inquired as soon as Kazuya joined her to eat his own lunch.

"Why? Are you sick of living a commoner's life?" he took a bite. "You should get used to it; this will be the kind of lifestyle we might lead after leaving the capital." The two were seated near the corner of where the others were having their meals. The only person who could ever eat with or even approach Julia was Kazuya so they were left alone.

Gale wanted to talk to Kazuya about their lessons later that day so she tried to look for him after she was done scolding her father. She looked around and found him talking with Julia. Just as she was about to approach, before Kazuya could signal to Julia that someone was around, it had been too late.

"I don't understand. What is the meaning of all this? Are we staying here just so you can confuse me? Weren't you in a position of power? How come you're willing to help them and not the n.o.bles from the capital?" Julia had spoken without care.

Kazuya inwardly sighed. He knew Julia wasn't aware that Gale had heard their conversation. His purpose for being here may be misunderstood because of Julia's unclear statements. He breathed in deeply and looked at Julia in the eye.

"Because I was once an orphan." His clear and deep voice startled the two women.

"I know how it feels to not eat for a day or so. I know what it's like to not be able to buy anything other than what I am in desperate need of. I've experienced the tyranny of those who messed with the poor just because they were rich. A spoiled brat like you who was born and raised as a n.o.ble can never understand what that feels like." He narrowed his eyes and looked down on Julia.

"So what if I was in a position of power at my place? Was it not you people who kidnapped me to this strange land to fulfill your own purposes? Who are you to say who deserves my help and who doesn't? I decide that. As a person serving under me, you have no right to question my actions. Know your place."

"I…" Julia trembled. She hadn't been treated like this since they had met.

For the past few days, her confusion grew even more as Kazuya's temperament had been like he didn't have a cruel bone in his body. He learned dutifully and smiled happily with the commoners as they built the orphanage together. Julia wasn't treated any differently as she was treated more like a comrade than a subordinate.

"I treat most people fairly. My subordinates had been loyal to me because of that fact. I will not pull rank on you as long as you don't cross the line. Engrave this into your soul; what I hate the most are traitors. I would prefer fighting for the honest people in this village rather than the filthy n.o.bles in the capital."

*tap*

"!!" Gale almost fell over as someone had suddenly touched her shoulder.

She was quickly caught before she fell to the ground. When she turned around, it was Gain gesturing her to be quiet. It turns out that she was not the only one who overheard the conversation between Kazu and Julie.

Seeing that the conversation was nearly over, the village chief pulled his daughter away and led her away from Kazuya and Julia. He cast a small sound isolation barrier spell around Gale and himself before turning to look at his daughter.

"Dad…" she looked a bit guilty for hearing something she shouldn't have.

"I've had my suspicions ever since the boy was able to make you look like an ordinary healing apprentice but… who would have thought that my farfetched way of denying that someone could match up to my daughter was true…" Gain sighed as he sat down on the ground.

"What are you talking about? Did you understand what they were talking about?"

"Yeah… for the most part. I don't know what kind of strange winds are blowing but I would have never imagined that the chance to revive our family's glory would arrive in my time…" he looked at the clear skies with melancholy.

"Did eating too much cause you to hallucinate? I have no idea what you've been saying!" Gale was losing her patience.

"Listen, I may have figured out why you feel as if you have known that boy when you first meet him." Gain looked her seriously.

With his suspicions over his daughter falling in love with the boy she had just met, Gale had explained the strange feeling she experienced when she first laid her eyes on Kazuya. Up until a few moments ago, he had shrugged it off as his daughter making an innocent excuse to hide her embarra.s.sment.

"Why?" Gale looked at her father suspiciously. Though he looked at her seriously, she was expecting another joke from him to tease her about having her heart stolen once again.

"It's destiny. The blood of our ancestors may be reacting towards the chance of recovering what was once stolen from us. That kid… no… Kazu should be the key to it all."

"What are you talking about? What ancestors? Are you talking about the fairytales you kept on telling me when I was little!?" She couldn't believe it. Though her father had mentioned that their ancestors were once n.o.bles, it was from a time where almost no one had recognized where their family names had come from.

Though there was once a time where any person with a family name was a privilege only given to n.o.bles, many kingdoms have come and gone over the pa.s.sage of time. It came to the point where former n.o.bles have moved from place to place keeping their names intact.

"Yes. Believe it or not, most of those fairytales are true. They may have been romanticized by how I told them, but I was essentially giving you a history lesson of the Valentine house's most glorious time." Gain explained with a bitter smile.

"I don't blame you for reacting that way. I was the same way when my father told me the truth. He told me that one day, there will be a chance for our family to take back our rightful place. I think… that chance is upon us…"

"What does Kazu-san have to do with all of this?"

"From what I've heard, I'm almost a hundred percent sure that Kazu is… the hero that was summoned at the capital a few days ago."