"One, two, three, four," Alex said. "Five, six, seven…"
As the teenage boy counted with his eyes closed, forehead pressed against the arm resting on a tree, several children ran away and looked for places to hide.
Playing hide-and-seek with Fran and the children had already become part of his after-mission routine.
Alex might not want to admit it, but being caught pickpocketing Ron's money pouch was the best thing that happened to him.
Not only had he stopped being a petty thief, but he was now earning properly as an adventurer.
Many kids in the orphanage also idolized him and wished to become adventurers like him when they grew up.
With the Dawnseekers sponsoring the orphanage, this outcome was an inevitable result.
"Twenty-seven, twenty-eight, twenty-nine, thirty!" Alex shouted. "Ready or not, here I come!"
The teenage boy scanned the surroundings and easily found one of the kids hiding behind a tree not far from him.
The rules of this hide-and-seek game were simple.
