Fantasy Lord: I Have a Moving Castle

Chapter 67: Chapter 20: First Impressions, Potential Partners

Chapter 67: Chapter 20: First Impressions, Potential Partners

Dark eyes, a rare black hair, and fair skin that seemed to take on a golden hue under the golden sunset, his ears were slightly more pointed than a human’s, yet not as sharp as those of an elf.

Sitting on a chair, he cradled a book in his hands, with a faint smile on his face.

He appeared both approachable and somewhat mysterious.

Elves were generally attractive, both males and females, and Freyja herself was very beautiful, having seen countless handsome men and gorgeous women since birth.

Even so, she had to admit that the Half-Elf before her was outstanding among all the people she had ever seen.

He was instantly memorable, not someone you would forget upon meeting, not lost among the many beautiful but forgettable faces.

“Hello, my name is Freyj…”

Freyja was just about to speak, to show respect and gratitude to her lifesaver, but she was interrupted before she could finish.

The Floral Blue Leopard that had been lying on the floor guarding Freyja immediately perked up at the sound from the bed. Seeing her awaken, it excitedly started licking Freyja’s face like a delighted big cat, sticking out its tongue.

Seeing her devoted companion, Freyja was also very pleased. She first sat up to affectionately stroke the Floral Blue Leopard’s head before turning to Char with an apologetic look.

“I’m sorry, the Floral Blue Leopard is a bit too enthusiastic; it was just overly concerned about me.”

Afterwards, Freyja got out of bed and stood up.

This movement pulled at her wounds, involuntarily causing her to grimace in pain, but Freyja persisted and performed a gratitude gesture unique to the Wood Elves to Char.

“My name is Freyja, Freyja Golden Autumn. Thank you for saving me, Mr. Half-Elf.”

Char closed the book in his hands and stood up as well, as a polite gesture, then responded with a faint smile.

“Char Rain Season, just call me Char.”

In that instant Freyja spoke, the last of Char’s doubts had almost entirely vanished.

He had always been keen at reading people, partly due to his talent and partly due to acquired experience.

In his past life as one of the owners of a studio, he had dealt with all sorts of people along the way, having interviewed who knows how many job applicants.

Having met so many people, he naturally developed a discerning eye.

With only a brief interaction, he could generally tell what kind of person someone was.

Of course, humans are complex, with many facets, and even he could not fully understand all of a person’s thoughts.

That would not be reading people, but fortune-telling!

However, his general judgments were accurate.

Just like now, as soon as Freyja spoke, combining her tone, demeanor, and movements, Char could assert that she was definitely not an ingrate who repaid kindness with malice.

On the contrary, she seemed to have a very decent character.

This made Char feel even better. He was about to speak when he suddenly heard a rumbling stomach.

Freyja’s face turned red all at once, swiftly dispersing the elite warrior aura that she radiated.

Char imperceptibly smiled and then tried to ensure his voice betrayed no laughter as he said, “There is food cooked in the kitchen, you can go eat whenever you’d like.”

Having said that, he headed towards the door. From a wooden cabinet beside him, a green plant suddenly moved, transforming into a green shadow that followed behind Char.

It was a Clover Mantis!

It had followed in when Char entered the room and sat down to “watch over” her.

Although the Floral Blue Leopard had also entered the bedroom, and the Clover Mantis didn’t think it would suddenly go crazy and attack Char, it couldn’t be completely at ease.

Therefore, it stayed by Char’s side without moving an inch, perching atop a wooden cabinet once inside the house, motionless as if it were but a serene green plant.

“Good, thank you.”

Freyja’s response was almost inaudible, like the whisper of a mosquito.

On the other side, almost as soon as the door closed, the smile on Char’s face disappeared, giving way to a contemplative expression.

To bring Freyja back to the Garden Secret Realm was a result of his deep contemplation and weighing of pros and cons.

Encountering a lone elf who was severely injured was definitely an urgent issue for him to resolve.

It could be said that he was absolutely determined to keep Freyja with him, whether by force or by gentler means, to make her his subject.

Bringing her back to the Garden Secret Realm to heal not only made it easier to gain her favor, but in case she wanted to leave or had any ill intentions, he could ensure that Freyja couldn’t leave – without Auson’s permission, Freyja would not be able to exit the Garden Secret Realm.

In short, whether Freyja was good or bad, whether she harbored good intentions or malicious ones, he had ensured that she wouldn’t be able to divulge the existence of the Garden Secret Realm.

Of course, it was better not to show one’s hand unless absolutely necessary.

Luckily, Freyja had given him a very good first impression, and he didn’t think it would come to that extreme.

With these thoughts, Char glanced again at the task panel.

[Task Sixty-Eight]Injured Elf

[Task Description]: While investigating the Land of Undead, you have encountered an injured elf. Saving this elf might bring you unexpected rewards.

[Reward]: Praying Power ×5

[Task Sixty-Nine]A New Subject!

[Task Description] An injured elf has appeared on your estate (What? You say you have no land? Where the castle stands is your land!). What are you waiting for, persuade her to join your estate and become your first true subject!

[Reward]: A Wood Elf Ranger, a Floral Blue Leopard, Praying Power ×25, unknown reward

These two tasks had popped up only after Freyja awakened, and looking at the crowded task bar, with dozens of pages of text and task numbers reaching sixty-nine, Char’s brows were slightly raised.

This was the first time that the task bar displayed so many tasks at the same time; in the past, at most there were around a dozen tasks and, at its worst, it was empty with not a single one.

Although Char had anticipated that the system would likely generate tasks upon encountering Freyja,

such things are only secure when they are in the bag, like money.

Now that the tasks were finally generated, Char breathed a sigh of relief.

Even more pleasing for Char was that the task description provided a subtle hint.

“Might bring you unexpected rewards,” isn’t the inclination clear?

If Char wasn’t completely confident about human nature, he was completely confident in the system, for it was akin to a rule-based strength.

So far, the system’s judgment had never been wrong.

Since the system itself had directed him to save Freyja, he believed that Freyja would be more beneficial than detrimental to him.

Besides, how could he ignore that the task provided him with five strands of Praying Power?

Looking stingy, and hardly comparable to those tasks that casually offered ten, twenty, even fifty strands of Praying Power.

But one must also consider the difficulty of the task itself.

For Char, saving Freyja was a mere trifle, so for a task of this difficulty, a reward of five strands of Praying Power was already quite generous.