Chapter 14 On The Run Part 3

"Pink hair you say? No, no pinked-haired girls. But I saw a blonde-haired girl with big breasts taking her clothes off and running into the woods, screaming something about being free. She was quite the looker. If I did not need to come to town, I would have chased after her, if you know what I mean." Vance gave a creepy grin causing the man who just asked him about the pink-haired girl's eyes to light up.

"Oh? Which direction did she run in?" The man asked.

Vance grinned a knowing grin as he pointed to the tree line far off into the distance, opposite of the forest Alice was in. "That tree line there."

"Thank you." The man whispered to the people behind him before turning and heading towards the far-off tree line. Seeing this, Vance couldn't help but let out a sigh. This is why men are seen as beasts! Not that he really cared. For now, he was just glad these people were idiots. He once again wondered just why the prince would hire such people.

Vance ended up needing to spend a few silver to enter the town. He walked through the gates of what looked more like a medieval-style town with a mix of Asian architecture here and there. It was a nice blend and did not seem out of place at all.

He did not waste time looking around. He headed right for the nearest tailor shop and walked inside. "Hi-yo! " A chunky woman walked out with a big smile. Her cheeks were chubby, but the smile on her face was very friendly and inviting.

"I need a cloak and boots for a girl that is about this tall." Vance did not know Alice's shoe size so he could only measure it by her height. The chunky woman, the owner of the shop, smiled and walked over to one of the shelves and pulled a black cloak off the shelf, and then went over to another shelf and picked up a pair of boots. Normally one would need to go to a leather shop for boots, but the shop owner did more than just cloth work which boosted her business quite a bit.

"These should do. That will be three silver." The shop owner gave a perfect business smile. She wondered what lady this young man was buying things for. She liked to hear the latest gossip and liked to know the scoop when it came to other people's relationships. Of course, she would not come out to ask while in the shop, only if the person was willing to talk. And after so many years in business, she could tell who was in a hurry and who was not.

Vance paid the three silver and put away the items in his inventory before heading to the general goods store. There he picked up some bandages and some ointment to treat Alice's wounds. He could buy a few health potions, but this town did not have an alchemy store, and they should only be used for emergencies. As for healing magic, he had not yet had time to try to cast it yet since he had been running around. He made note to hurry up and learn it as soon as he could.

Since he had everything he needed, Vance left the town and headed towards the forest in a roundabout way again. He did a few circles before heading toward where he had left Alice. As for Alice, she was hugging her knees, tears welling up in her eyes. She wondered if Vance left her here and would never come back. Although she wished to climb out of the tree and go see if she could find him, she bit her lip and did her best from doing anything that would cause her to be caught. She wanted to trust Vance since he had already done so much for her. With tears rolling down her cheeks, she couldn't help but mutter. "Vance, you idiot!"

"Sorry for being an idiot…." Vance's voice came from above, causing Alice to look up in surprise. She had only cursed him once, but he actually heard it! Her cheeks turned red as she lowered her head, not daring to look up. She felt so embarrassed!

"Alright, I know I took a little longer, but the line to the town was long. Also, the men who are searching for you were in line as well." Vance explained as he reached his hand down to Alice. "Grab my hand. I will help you out."

"Th-Thanks…" Alice reached up and slowly climbed out of the hollowed-out tree.

With Vance's help, she was able to get back onto the ground safely. Vance then led Alice to a rock and had her sit down. First, he took out the cloak he got and handed it to her. "Take this and put it on. Keep your hair as concealed as possible."

After doing that, he began to pull out the bandages, ointment, and a few other items he had prepared to clean Alice's wounds. He reached out without much thought and grabbed the small scratched-up foot in front of him, causing Alice to let out a strange squeal. "Wha-What are you doing!?"

"I am going to clean your wounds with some water and then apply some ointment on them before bandaging them. Just sit there and hold still. You can't put your shoes on like this." Vance explained before gripping her foot and began pouring water onto her cuts to try to wash them out. He then used a dry cloth to wipe them clean before taking his time to apply the ointment.

Alice bit her lip as her cheeks grew red. She has never had any man touch her in such a way. She looked down at Vance's serious expression as he cleaned the wounds on her feet and wondered just why he was being so nice to her. When this thought came to mind, the words, she was thinking suddenly spilled from her mouth. "Why are you so kind to me?"

"Hmmm? Isn't it normal to help someone in need? Whether you were a princess or not, it didn't matter. I wouldn't leave you sitting there. Plus, cute girls should always be helped. It is like a universal law." Vance answered. He didn't think about his words too much. While he might have still helped her, even if she was not part of a life quest, he would not go as far as he was now. He had to make sure that Alice could make it to the capital. It also helped that she was cute, but this was besides the point. Even if she was just cute, he would at most bring her to town and say good luck.

"Cu-Cute…." Alice felt a little happy to know that Vance thought she was cute. This allowed a small smile to form on her lips as she watched Vance busy himself tending to her wounds.

When he was done, Vance took out the shoes and handed them to Alice to put on. "I am not sure about your size, so I had the shop owner just go by your height."

Alice nodded and took the shoes, and slipped them on. They were only a tad too big, which was no issue as long as she tightened them a bit more. "Almost perfect."

"Good. When we reach the next town after this one, we will get you some better shoes. We can't risk you being seen by others. For now, let's get some food and some proper rest. I haven't slept since the day before." Vance stretched and yawned. He was very tired at this point.

"Okay…." Alice nodded as she looked down at her new shoes and then up at Vance, who was looking around and scratching his head. He seemed to be lost in thought. But having someone like Vance, who treated her like a normal girl and was this kind to her, she couldn't help feeling a little reassured knowing he was around. She was glad she had made the decision to trust him.

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