The Villain Wants to Quit

To the Palace (4)

Once the six-legged stallion was slayed, the battle ended quickly and without further incident.

The other monsters, while strong, were weak compared to the horse creature and no match for the King's Guard or Theo and his shields.

So while some knights were still patrolling to verify that no more monsters were lurking in the woods, the cheers of the villagers filled the air.

Which was very nice and all, but Theo didn't think he had the energy to climb down from his perch on the wall.

He was exhausted before the fight. Now he was practically delirious.

"Come on," Victor called to Theo. "The villagers are preparing a feast as thanks."

Victor's voice was drastically warmer than usual.

It seemed Theo's performance with the shields had endeared him to the knight.

"Yeah," Theo tried to stand, but his legs crumpled.

Theo had overdone it more than he thought.

He then realized Victor and Leanne were staring at him. Theo grimaced at the idea of them learning how vulnerable he was.

"...my foot fell asleep." Theo made an excuse before mustering the strength to half slide down the wall to Carrot.

His descent lacked grace but looked reasonably natural, provided that those watching lacked critical thinking skills.

"I'm pretty dizzy," Theo whispered in Carrot's ear as he propped himself against the unicorn.

"I gathered," Carrot gave a dry reply.

Nevertheless, Carrot kept a slow, steady pace and accompanied Theo to the village center, where everyone was gathering.

Despite the still-present destruction, the mood was festive, and the villagers' relief was palpable.

Carrot deposited Theo on a blanket that was spread on the ground.

Meanwhile, the villagers were setting things up like a picnic.

Given the impromptu nature of the feast and the circumstances, the food would be simple. However, the villagers were excessively generous with the quantity of food and alcohol.

"By Numen, I need sleep," Theo muttered softly enough that Victor and Leanne wouldn't hear him.

"Look who we managed to slip away from a distracted Carrie!" Marie greeted Theo with a wave, followed by Marc, Vin, and Giselle.

"The limitations of human focus worked in our favor today," Giselle said. "Carrie really should work on meditations. They would help with that."

"Do we really want to encourage Carrie to improve her focus?" Vin replied.

Theo laughed and shook his head at Giselle pushing the benefits of meditation even in this situation.

"Long time no see," Marc called.

Theo half-raised a hand in reply.

"...You look awful," Marie said as they drew closer.

"Mortal Theo is perfect looking for a hu-" Scourge started to indignantly defend Theo but changed his mind midsentence as he stared at his human's face. "Actually, you do look bad."

"Thanks," Theo arched an eyebrow at the tiny dragon and Marie.

She and the other three looked like they were none the worse for the wear from the fight.

"Can I wash off the blood?" Giselle asked.

Dried blood was smeared under Theo's nose and across his chin.