"…" Noel didn't know what to say. But this affection was something that he missed as well. Whether it was just a small bickering or the true care of his parents, he missed them because he no longer had any parents. "Well, it's not my place to say it, but it seems that you have your reason for talking like that. And I can't call it 'blowing up' from my perspective."
"No. It's blowing up because I have prejudice with merchant profession." Roel shook his head helplessly. "My wife was a merchant like them. She wasn't a big merchant, but her workers loved her and were loyal to her.
"But one day, she headed to a city and was attacked by a bandit group. Although she managed to return to our home, she passed away not long after. Back then, there were four arrows planted on her body and her right hand was gone.
"Can you imagine what kind of feeling to see your wife like that? And that's because she managed to return… If she didn't return, I couldn't imagine what kind of hell she would experience as a woman inside a bandit group. And I wouldn't even get to see her body for a proper burial. That's why I went to a small village … I didn't want them to become a merchant by seeing them in the city."
"…" Noel recounted what he found inside the bandit hideout. It was truly hell to the point he wondered how those strong women he rescued still had the will to fight for another day. Even when he encouraged them, he didn't expect them to keep fighting. That was why he offered that axe.
He understood the reason why Roel didn't want his children to follow his late wife's path.
"I just want them to be content by working as a blacksmith after seeing the smile of the people around them. I just want them to like it." Roel scratched the back of his head. "It seems I've said too much. I thought about explaining it to you just because you saved them from the bandits… I couldn't help it."
"It's not my place to say this, but my family was a former merchant as well. But they still supported a useless person like me… That might be the reason I gained so much determination just from thinking about it. That's probably the reason I don't hate them. A simple support is all we need." Noel made a small smile, remembering his parents.
"A simple support huh…" Roel fell silent for a moment before shaking his head helplessly. "Here I am thinking explaining to you as a simple gesture for saving my children, but I guess I'm now getting lectured by you."
"No… That's not what—" Before Noel finished explaining himself, Roel interrupted him by saying, "Thank you. Thanks to you, I've realized something."
"You're welcome." Noel also felt embarrassed because he didn't think much about his opinion.
"Anyway…" Roel stopped while pointing ahead. "That's the mine."
Noel could see that the mine had been protected by people and there were two people going back and forth while bringing cart filled with rocks.
"Follow me, I need you to protect me while I am mining the ores. There are some Low Level Demons that infested the rocks, so it might be something that you haven't fought as a knight in the Demon Banner Army."
"I understand. I'll do my best to protect you." Noel nodded with a serious expression. He was ready to fight any Low Level Demons, thinking he wouldn't lose against them.
However, the reality couldn't be any different.
After entering the mine, they headed straight to the lowest level. The oxygen was quite thin compared to the upper level and the temperature was quite high. Even Noel needed to roll up his sleeves.
Roel handed him over a thin cloth to cover his mouth and nose so that he wouldn't inhale the dust.
When Roel just started mining, a demon suddenly popped out of the wall.
Even Noel was surprised by this demon because it was truly a rock. The rock looked like a cube but it had eyes and a crystal on its head. The demon seemed to be able to leap from one place to another.
"It's going to hurt if that demon hit you," Roel warned him as he already began to mine the ore.
Meanwhile, Noel took out his sword and covered it with Sword Aura.
"Hoh? What a sharp sword you have there… I guess I can understand why you're able to defeat a weakened Ancient Demon Tree." Roel smirked.
"!!!" Noel's body trembled when he mentioned the weakened Ancient Demon Tree.
"Your face is asking me how do I know about the demon… Well, the letter only told me that the demon was an Ancient Demon Tree. After inspecting it, I could see that the trace of Spiritual Energy is low. If we're talking about the real Ancient Demon Tree, the wood should be brimming with Spiritual Energy.
"Even your sharp sword won't be able to do anything with it. So, the material grade has gone so bad that it's only as strong as Mid Level Demon. But with my skill, I shouldn't have any problem to make you an armor that can protect you from Advance Level Demon. That should be enough, right?"
"Yes." Noel nodded with a serious expression.
"Alright. You should work immediately. Don't underestimate that demon."
"…" Noel realized that the demon had leaped toward him, so he immediately blocked it with his sword. But soon he realized as his sword was pushed back. 'It's heavier than I thought.'
Noel stomped the ground to gain enough power to stop the charge, making sure the demon didn't get past him.
After that, he pushed the demon back and took a deep breath to calm down. Normally, he would attack the demon, but he was protecting someone this time, so he remained in his position and just took a defensive position.
'It seems that he's quite proficient in his job. But what about his movement?' Roel thought. He was mining while observing Noel at the same time. 'Though, I won't underestimate the mineral demon because even if it's only a Low Level Demon, its defense is equal to that of a Mid Level Demon.'