I'm Actually Not Overpowered!

\'Okay, this is very awkward...\'

Why, someone might ask? Well, if you were to be sausaged between two ladies, then perhaps you would understand my plight.

Behind me was the well-endowed Asa, and in front of me was the small and cute Lucy--both of whom had no concept of space or boundaries etched into their heads.

\'Why, oh why?\' I wondered as the torturous journey left me in discomfort throughout. It wasn\'t like the ride was particularly uncomfortable, but I had to deal with so many thoughts that it took the fun out of everything.

It didn\'t make matters better when Asa decided to rest on my back and Lucy decided to rest her body on my front. They gave no warning at all and just dumped their bodies on me!

\'What exactly am I to these people?\'

According to the Character List, they were both older women, so I wasn\'t particularly doing anything inappropriate. But...!

\'Awkward... so awkward!\'

To while away time, I went to my \'happy place.\' By that, I meant revisiting the plan.

\'Asa already gave me the rough coordinates, and I\'ve relayed this information to Nero. For now, we\'re good on autopilot.\'

Our Elf friend also told us what to look for--a cluster of barren mountains. Apparently, the Elves had a barrier erected to prevent outsiders from discovering their civilization. It was pretty impressive, to be honest.

I mean, I always knew Elves had to be more powerful than humans, considering the fact that their primitive lives stemmed from their reliance on Magic.

\'Elves have a Level Cap of 50, so they\'re stronger than humans. They can also have five Skills, unlike the three maximum allocated to humans.\' Selyon hardly mentioned the Elf Sanctuary, but there was quite a bit about Elves in the first round of Damien\'s journey.

For example, I knew for a fact that Elves lived up to 200 years--twice the lifespan most humans could dream of reaching. Their healthy lifestyle and peaceful environment contributed to this, so most of them lived till ripe old age.

All in all, they were quite a unique race. This world didn\'t have Fairies, so Elves were the nest best thing.

\'It\'s impressive they made such a barrier, though. I\'m guessing it was the collective effort of a couple of Level 50 Elves. The stuff isn\'t easy, after all.\'

I was really excited to meet the Elves. According to Asa, they were a nice group of people. I suppose that was why I became a bit troubled by the hardship they could be going through. I couldn\'t stand for such injustice.

\'Nice people shouldn\'t be treated that way!\'

Someone had to do something about it... and that meant it was up to me to help! After all, helping nice people always led to good compensation.

\'And if I help the Elves... hehehe...\'

I had to say, I was really looking forward to meeting these people.

**********

"We\'re here."

The Hero\'s voice roused Asa from her half-delirious state.

\'I... fell asleep?\' She was beyond mortified that she could sleep so easily in such a tense situation.

Sure, the atmosphere was cool and comfortable. Plus, the Hero\'s back granted her the security she needed to throw off her defenses and grow vulnerable. She was confident in his protection.

Still... how could she hvae gotten so comfortable that she closed her eyes and drifted into sleep!

\'D-did he notice? He noticed, didn\'t he?!\' Asa began freaking out internally.

"Should we descend?" The Hero\'s voice caused her to snap out of her mind bubble.

His head titled backward to look at her, and his piercing blue eyes sent the poor girl\'s heart racing more than she could bear.

"A-ah! Yes!" She swiftly answered, her face containing hints of embarassment.

Asa felt almost out of breath after making those statements, so she distracted herself by taking a closer view of the surrounding area. Just as the Hero said, they had arrived at the location she described.

\'I can see it. The rough cluster of barren mountains.\' Asa smiled fondly at her hometown.\'

Of course, her view was from a distance. They couldn\'t risk being spotted by the Elves, or alerting the malevolent forces in control of the Sanctuary, so this was the closest they could get.

"Nero. Descend."

The massive dragon began flapping its wings slwoly, navigating its way to the most convenient landing spot tht ensured they could still view their destination from a distance while ensuring it wasn\'t too obvious.

"So, we\'re settling for one of the nearby mountains. That\'s a brilliant strategy." Asa heard Lucy mutter.

The warrior was much brighter than her looks insinuated. Asa knew very well that her senior was very cautious, but she had underestimated her analytical skills before the start of the journey.

\'After how she convinced the Hero to let her ride up front, and now... this statement...\' The young Ranger now knew never to judge Lucy by face value or prexisting bias.

"Indeed. We need the height to view the vast lands. Plus, since the Elves are naturally people of the ground, and they have little or nothing to do with the outside world, they won\'t notice us from this distance."

As the Hero explained, the plan was to subtly move into the Elf Sanctuary on foot. They would infiltrate the Sanctuary thanks to whatever strategy the Hero had in mind, and they would observe the Elves for some time before making their move.

To Asa, and most definitely everyone listening, it sounded like an airtight plan. Of course, the execution all depended on the Hero\'s strategy and coordination. Then again, this was the Hero we were talking about.

Everyone was well aware of one simple fact, granting them even more connfidence in the plan--

--The Hero never failed.

"The sun is slowly setting. We spent the whole day on this journey. You must all be exhausted." His voice softly touched their ears.

As expected. Even now, he was being considerate of them. Still, they wanted to be of more help!

"I can still patrol the surroundings, just in case!"

"L-let me help too!"

However, the Hero shook his head, kindly smiling at the two girls that offered to work extra hard. He gently placed his hand on their shoulders and gave them the warmest look ever. Their hearts definitely melted in response to his words--at the very least, Asa\'s did.

"Rest is essential for this plan to work. Let\'s take a break and call it a day."

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[A/N]

I just noticed we\'re already quite into this Arc and there has been no action at all. I hope you all aren\'t bored or anything. Hahaha!