Raze knew that he had to intervene because he was certain that Ella would begin to ask a ton of insensitive questions.
"Nice to meet you, Gavin, and sorry for your loss," Raze said. He had a soft smile on his face, and his hand was stretched out for a handshake. Gavin was slightly hesitant; he glanced at the hand for a good two seconds and then looked up before finally shaking it.
Raze noticed this, but he didn't add any importance to it. He let go of Gavin's hand and then stepped back a few steps. "So, what brings you to Ribest, all the way from the West?" Raze asked, sounding genuinely curious as to why the hero of the story would suddenly pop up here.
"I'm heading to the Raven Academy. Their entrance examination is in a few days, and I want to partake. It was on my way there through the forest that I saw the monsters headed this way, so I had to come and check it out to make sure no one was hurt," Gavin said, keeping out key details of what happened in the forest.
