Armipotent

Tang Shaoyang scratched his head and looked at the two sleeping on his chest after an hour of walking. He did not immediately bring the two to the city as he was concerned about how the other factions would react to the two natives. He was afraid that siblings would become an item that the other factions wanted. A native that would be able to guide them in a certain area was valuable for sure.

Tang Shaoyang did not immediately return as he thought of how to sneak them into the city without being noticed. He did not have Shadow Element as Lu An did. After what the girl had experienced, he did not want Rene to be an item contested by the other factions.

Rene was twelve years old, and the boy was nine years old. It was unbelievable that the villagers would force themselves onto her, especially the young man. The most infuriating was that no one stopped the young man, the Chief of the village. The chief looked so young while, in fact, he was forty-five years old.

Knowing Rene's age erased his guilt for messing up with the village. Tang Shaoyang launched the fireball into the sky not just to intimidate the villagers but also to attract the beast. The explosion should be enough to lure the beasts to the village.

Tang Shaoyang stopped near the tree, sitting there while thinking about how to bring the sibling. He could bring them inside openly, but he could never bring them out again if he wanted the siblings to be free from the other factions' claws. However, he wanted the siblings to be his guide to exploring this area.

"The only choice is to let them guide me to the Wolf Mine and Masmatic Valley before I bring them back to the city." He muttered in a low voice.

The siblings told him about the Wolf Mine and Masmatic Valley. The former was a place with ore, while the latter was the most poisonous place around this area, but rare herbs grew in that valley. The villagers did not dare to enter that valley. Since no one dared to explore the valley, no one had the chance to take what was inside, a fully unexplored area.

As for the Wolf Mine, it was named after the monsters that occupied the mine. The monsters had the torso and head of the wolf but a humanoid lower part and also a pair of hands. The villagers avoided the mine; that was why they only used the wooden spear instead of the metal product.

'Taking the mine is far easier since we just need to clear the wolf. I need Yu to investigate the poison in the valley first. However, the greater issue is how to defend the mine if we take it over. Once the other factions know about the mine, they will come for me for sure.'

Tang Shaoyang sat there for two hours until he sensed movement from the little brother. He rubbed his eyes, looking at Tang Shaoyang. The boy wanted to say something, but he hesitated.

"Do you need something, Rona? Do you want water?" Tang Shaoyang took another bottle of water, and the boy nodded, taking the bottle. After taking two gulps, the boy handed the bottle back to Tang Shaoyang. The boy kept staring at him, and the stare was pretty obvious that the boy wanted something from him.

'Ah, he's hungry. This Dragon Sense is surely convenient.' He found it ridiculous that use the sense of a dragon to find what the kids wanted. He opened the inventory, checking the available food in his inventory.

Elin, the renowned chef in the empire, was known for her bread, and she expanded his knowledge. She learned more recipes from the others, starting to make donuts and other stuff. Tang Shaoyang liked her donut more than anything else, and he always had her donuts in his inventory. It was a snack in his free time, and he did not mind sharing the sweet with the little boy instead of giving him the cooked steak.

Tang Shaoyang took out the donut with chocolate glazing and gave it to Rona. "You can have this for now until we eat dinner together with your sister." He whispered to the little boy. "Don't tell your sister that you have a snack before dinner."

Rona nodded his head furiously and took the donut. At the first bite, Rona's eyes shone, fascinated by the first bite. The little boy then looked at Tang Shaoyang's face and the bitten donut in his hand, back and forth. Even though the little boy did not say anything, Tang Shaoyang could tell how happy the little boy was after tasting the donut. To his surprise, the little boy was shaken by the taste of the donut.

To Tang Shaoyang's surprise, the little boy did not take the second bite. Rona lowered the donut and said in a small voice. "I want to save half for my sister…."

Tang Shaoyang was surprised that Rona could hold back from finishing the remaining donut and was willing to share half of it with his sister. "You can finish the donut. Your sister has her own share."

It was quite satisfying watching Rona finish the donut. That was a weird feeling, for sure, since they were not related. 'Maybe this is how parents feel when they watch their kids eat what they like.'

Not long after Rona finished the donut, the big sister woke up. They had dinner together and camped in the wild. Another item he never forgot to bring when he ventured outside a bed. The inventory made it easier to bring a bed anywhere, so why not? It was not like the bed would take up that much space. The three sat on the bed as he explained the situation.

"Listen to me. I can't bring you two back to the city yet because…." Tang Shaoyang truthfully explained why he could not bring them back to the city.

"Does that mean we can get out of the city once we enter the city?" The sister asked.

"It's not that you can't, but it will be dangerous. The other outsiders will try to take you from me if you go outside, but if you are inside the city, they can't do anything to you. That's the rule of the city. However, I think you two can go out once more in one or two years." Tang Shaoyang nodded. "So tomorrow morning, you will guide me to the Wolf Mine and Masmatic Valley first. After that, I will bring you to the city. You will be safe from the beasts in the city, and you don't need to worry about food anymore."

To Tang Shaoyang's surprise, the sister did not immediately agree to his proposal. Rene lowered her head and contemplated, seeming to think of something else. It was as if his proposal was not interesting enough for her.

"Do you want to listen to my proposal, Sir Tang Shaoyang? This is not a personal request but a trade." Rene raised her head after a while, with her eyes filled with determination.

"A deal, huh? Alright, I will listen to your proposal. We have all night to speak."

"I don't want to rely on you forever, Sir Tang Shaoyang. I also want to protect myself from danger, so can you train me? Can you train me so I can be as strong as you? In exchange, I will dedicate myself to helping you. I will do anything; fight your enemies, fight the beasts for you!" The girl poured out what was in her heart.

Tang Shaoyang looked into the girl's eyes, firm gaze with no hesitation. There was no fear despite knowing how strong the beast she had to fight.

"Hmmm." Tang Shaoyang squinted his eyes. "There's no need for us to make a deal. Why don't you join my empire instead? You can get what you want by joining the Tang Empire. And if you join Tarrior, you will be trained to be a strong soldier. Or you can join the other divisions, and you can earn money by healing others. There are many things you can do once you join the Tang Empire. The first step, you just need to join my empire. If you haven't changed your mind by then, you can join Tarrior, where the strong people from my empire gather."

Rene looked down; she seemed disappointed by his answer. "Does that mean you will not train me personally?"

Tang Shaoyang finally understood why the girl was disappointed. "I can't possibly do that, Rene. I am a leader of hundreds of thousands of people. There are many things I need to do to ensure my people's safety and prosperity. And you are still too young to follow my path." He smiled at the girl and rubbed her hair. "However, if you decide to join the Tarrior, I will be checking your progress from time to time."

"Go sleep tonight. We will leave for Wolf Mine and Masmatic Valley tomorrow morning, and I will bring you two to the city afterward."