A Girl in Need

Raid Event: Kindness and Captivity

Prologue

A Girl in Need

Next Quest

To the Hidden Village

Summary

The Empire has taken control of a sylvan village nestled deep in the woods—but a young girl named Melsa manages to escape and comes to the Halidom seeking aid. Under her guidance, the prince's retinue makes its way toward the besieged town.

Dialogue

Such...a terrifying plan. At this rate, something terrible will... I must...tell them. They must not try to rescue me! Your Highness, you must hurry to the castle gate at once! What's wrong, Elly? A sylvan girl has come seeking aid. Apparently the Empire occupied a nearby village and she just managed to escape. Got it. Let's go see what we can do. Please, Highness, you must save my village. I beg it of you! The sylvan girl's name is Melsa, and her village was recently overrun by the Empire. Because they surrendered as soon as the attack began, there were few lives lost, and the village's absorption into the Empire was largely peaceful. ...Well, I'm glad to hear there wasn't further damage done. But we still have to come up with a battle plan and retake the village. But first, are you okay? You seem exhausted. It looks like you might collapse at any second. I am well. It's merely that I ran all the way here without eating or drinking anything. ...Er, for roughly two days. Two days?! That's awful! You need to rest in the castle before we do anything else. No. What's most important is that we hurry and save my village. Now let me show... Let me show you the... Ooooh... ...Hmm? Why am I in bed? Oh, good. You're awake. Wait. I remember now. I came to the castle to beg your assistance, and then... Oh, no! I can't just be lying about! We must make for the village at once! Easy there! You still need to rest. You can guide us to the village once you're able to move again. I understand why you're in such a hurry, but your village is still standing, and we need to prepare carefully if we're going to successfully liberate it. And on that note, I'll take care of making preparations for our departure. Think you can handle it from here, Sarisse? Yep! I just brought some food, so we're all good here. Okay, you. Time to chow down and start regaining that lost strength. ...I suppose you're right. I apologize for being so overeager. Oh, and I am Melsa. Might I ask your name? Sarisse! And lemme tell ya, Melsa, it's nice to have another sylvan around. Oh, um, yes. You are a sylvan, aren't you? HELLOOOO! Check the giant ears! C'mon, it couldn't BE more obvious. No, of course. I merely was surprised to find another of my kind here. The people in my village hardly ever leave its borders, so... Oh yeah, my village is the same way. I think that's standard sylvan behavior. But Luca—he's my brother—says that custom is super dated and old-fashioned. So that's why he left town, made friends with the prince, and got us a sweet gig here at the Halidom. Remarkable. I fear that I could never be quite so proactive. Aw, it's nothing that impressive. Honestly, my brother's a big idiot. There's no telling WHAT ridiculous thing he might do if I wasn't around. I'm actually here to keep an eye on him so our parents don't worry themselves into a coma. You're a very kind person, Sarisse. Huh? What? No! Knock it off! I mean, Luca's always going off about what a crude dude I am! Anyway, if anyone is kind here, it's you! Oh? Do you really think so? Girl, you ran and ran for two straight days to help your village! I could never do something like that; my little stick legs would totally give out first. So quit talking about how remarkable my dumb brother is and start talking yourself up a little, maybe. Two days... Augh, that's right! I can't believe so much time has passed since the Empire attacked! I can sit here and converse no longer; I must leave at once! Hey, Melsa! Waaaait! *pant* *pant* Can't catch...my breath... That's because you're still on death's door, weirdo! Now get back to your room and take that rest already. Well, I...guess that would be best. Look, I know how hard you struggled to make it all the way here, Melsa. But you don't have to do all this alone, okay? If you need help, just ask me! Thank you. But I will be all right. Still, I've been nothing but trouble for you since I got here, and for that I apologize. You sure do apologize a lot... Oh, hey! I've got an idea! Let's become besties! Er..."besties"? Yeah! If we're besties, then you can stop acting all formal and apologizing for everything all the time! But...my coming to this castle was... Don't you WANT to be besties with me? N-no! Er, I mean, yes! Wait, I mean... Oh, this is coming out all wrong. It would be lovely to be your friend, Sarisse. Or even your "bestie." Great! Then from here on out, you and me are best friends! Best friends it is, then. Thank you, Sarisse. Pleasure's all mine, bud! The Next Day Thanks to all of you, I have recovered and can now guide you to my village. Meeeelsa! Waaait! I'm coming too! You realize this isn't some happy field trip, right, Sis? He's right, Sarisse. You will face grave danger if you accompany us. Which is exactly WHY I'm coming! I can't just sit around eating bon-bons while my bestie is in danger. Plus, I can fight fiends. ...Tell her, Luca. Tell her how good I am with a bow. I can vouch for that. I've even heard Luca say Sarisse might be a better archer than he is—which is saying something. Okay, let's not go overboard here... Anyway, it doesn't matter now. Once my sister's mind is made up, there's no way to change it. I wonder who I get THAT from?! In that case, it's time for us to go. Our destination lies deep in those woods.