A dimmed golden light appeared, enveloping Eiran's body and that of the young boy. The wolves that lunged at them were instantly thrown back the moment they hit the barrier of light.
Eiran had shut his eyes tightly, but the pain never came, leaving him confused. Just as he was about to open his eyes to see what had happened, he felt a surge of information flooding into his brain.
The incoming information was overwhelming, causing Eiran to experience a sharp throbbing pain in his head.
"Damn, why does it hurt so much?" Eiran muttered quietly, holding his head.
The young boy, still cradled in Eiran's arms, gripped his shirt tightly and whispered in a trembling voice, "Brother, what's wrong? Brother!"
The boy immediately screamed in panic when he saw Eiran's body slump and collapse, falling unconscious on top of him. After struggling to push Eiran's body off his own, the boy turned pale upon seeing his older brother lying motionless.
"Brother, don't scare me." The boy shook Eiran's body with teary eyes, terrified that his brother had been hurt while protecting him.
The boy stayed by Eiran's side, holding his hand tightly, hoping the only family he had left would wake up.
It took Eiran a full thirty minutes to regain consciousness. When Eiran opened his eyes, he realized that memories not his own had been imprinted in his mind.
'Damn System. Why didn't you tell me the memory transfer would hurt this much?!' Eiran cursed at the System that once again let him suffer.
[The Host did not ask the System about that.]
In his heart, Eiran cursed his System bitterly. For now, he would let it go, as he had more urgent matters to attend to.
When Eiran turned to his right, he was met with his younger brother, Runi, staring at him with tears streaming down his face. Runi immediately threw himself at Eiran and hugged him tightly, "I thought I was going to lose you."
Eiran gently stroked Runi's hair, now feeling a bond he hadn't sensed with the boy before. Now he knew why they were in this forest, they had fled after the orphanage where they'd been living burned down.
Today, a nobleman was supposed to adopt Runi, but Eiran didn't know what had happened until the orphanage caught fire, and he found Runi dragging him away from that place.
"I won't leave you. Are you hurt?" Eiran gently rubbed Runi's back to calm him down, seeing how shaken he was.
Runi shook his head slowly, but he was secretly holding his left arm. Eiran noticed and looked at him thoughtfully.
"Didn't you promise not to keep anything from me?" Eiran said, gazing at Runi.
"I just didn't want you to worry," Runi replied, lowering his head in resignation as he showed the claw wound on his left arm.
"Oh my god, you should've told me earlier." Eiran was shocked when he saw the deep gash on Runi's arm. He couldn't understand how Runi could remain so calm when fresh blood was still flowing from the wound.
"It didn't hurt earlier. It only started hurting now." Now that the situation was safer, Runi finally felt the pain in his arm. Before this, he'd been too panicked and worried about his brother's condition to notice his own injury.
In his heart, Eiran panicked, but he tried not to show it to Runi. He suddenly remembered the System.
"System! I remember receiving something from you after I managed to save Runi. Can you explain it to me?!" Eiran quickly pressed the System to explain the reward he had gotten.
[Host has received the SSS-Rank Talent 'Absolute Protector'. With this talent, no attack will be able to harm the Host!]
Eiran could hear the System explaining his talent cheerfully. Meanwhile, Eiran's expression turned grim as he listened to the explanation, it was no wonder he and Runi hadn't died after being attacked by the wolves.
"What's the point of surviving if I can't fight back?" Eiran was not satisfied with what he had received from the System.
[The more Protection Points the Host collects, the more defensive skills will become deadly]
"Protection Points?" Eiran frowned in confusion.
[The host will earn Protection Points by successfully protecting someone. The points earned will multiply if the person protected is a family member of the Host.]
The memories Eiran received revealed that Runi was the only family this body had ever known. Without realizing it, Eiran turned to Runi, whose face was growing pale from blood loss.
"Damn it! System. Runi is in danger right now. Can you help me heal his wound?" Eiran asked the urgent question in panic.
[Please check your Status]
Eiran wanted to curse at the System again for toying with him, but he held himself back and quickly summoned his status window. A transparent interface appeared before him.
[Name: Eiran Dareth
Talent: Absolute Protector (SSS-Rank)
Protection Point: 2 (F Rank)
Skill:
- Wings of Sanctuary (Passive – temporary –)
Releases a golden light with a 3-meter radius from the caster. Anything within the light barrier will receive no damage. Anything hitting the barrier from outside will be repelled.
Duration: 5 minutes]
There was nothing Eiran could use to help Runi right now. He had no skill available to heal him. Eiran racked his brain to stop the bleeding.
He tore the edge of his shirt until it was enough to tie around Runi's wound as an emergency treatment, "Hold on a little longer. We'll return to the village to treat you," Eiran said seriously.
But Runi grabbed Eiran's arm just as he was about to move. "No! We can't go back to the village," Runi cried, shaking his head in panic.
"What do you mean? Don't you see your wound? You could die if it isn't treated soon," Eiran replied, raising an eyebrow in displeasure.
Runi's small hands gripped Eiran's arm tightly as he kept shaking his head. Eiran was now confused, he didn't know why Runi didn't want to return to the village. Had something happened at the orphanage before it burned?
That was when Eiran heard the sound of many footsteps approaching, loud and urgent, as if someone was searching for them.
"Move faster! They can't be far."
"The Lord wants that boy captured no matter what. Spread out and find him!"
"Yes, Captain!"
Eiran felt Runi's body suddenly tremble violently. Now he was sure, something had definitely happened before the fire at the orphanage. If the boy they were talking about was Runi, then Eiran needed to get out of this forest.
[Ding! A Quest has arrived!]
[Quest: Host must protect Runi until reaching the next city!
Prize: Random Skill
Penalty: If the Host fails to protect the target, the System will take the Host's life!]