The ducklings that surrounded Eve felt something amiss and looked at the approaching Goose with caution.
All of them stepped in front of their Mama and spread their little wings while chirping at the White Goose that was releasing malicious intent.
""Chirp! Chirp!""
The Goose stopped three meters away from the ducklings and gave a light honk. It then waved one of its wings and blew the seven ducklings away with a gust of wind.
"Honk!" (You brats are lucky that we are distant relatives. I will spare your lives just this once!)
Eve turned her head to look at the ducklings that lay on the ground tens of meters away from her. They had all lost consciousness and were not moving.
"Bad!" Eve shouted as she pointed her wooden stick at the white goose. "Bad bird!"
The White Goose ignored the little girl's words and stepped forward. It did not care about its food's opinion.
'It seems that I'm right,' The White Goose thought as he neared Eve. 'She is indeed a rare human with strong Spiritual powers.'
The White Goose drooled as it approached the little girl. It had already confirmed that it wasn't mistaken in its assumption and its determination to kidnap Eve and raise her until she grew older became stronger.
Eve was a kind girl. Even though the White Goose had harmed the ducklings, she didn't use the stick in her hand to hit it. More like, she was unfamiliar with the concept of hurting others because she had been raised with love, and care, every single day by her family.
"Bad bird! Bad!" Eve shouted as she took a few steps back. Even though she was young, she felt that the Goose was very different from her ducklings and the adults who were always by her side.
When the Goose was only a meter away from Eve, its body stiffened when it felt a strong pressure press down on it like a mountain.
Eve looked up to see a white-haired old man with a long white beard standing right behind her.
"Who?" Eve tilted her head as she asked this question. This was the first time she had seen this old man, but for some reason, she didn't feel any bad feelings coming from him.
"I'm one of your Big Brother Will's friends," David said with an award winning smile that would put all of the Oscar's Best Actors to shame.
"Will?"
"Yes."
David gently patted Eve's head before looking at the Millennial Goose who planned to kidnap and eat his new chosen Disciple. The God of Shepherd was smiling, but his smile never reached his eyes.
(A/N: Yes. William is Eve's cousin, but our Half-Elf didn't want to be called cousin so he insisted on being called Big Brother by Eve.)
"I'm going to give you a choice," David stated. "Become my Disciple's contracted beast or I'll roast you, right here, right now."
The White Goose started to shed bitter tears. It wanted to cry foul because it was being bullied by a God. It had completely forgotten the fact that its plan was to kidnap a defenseless little girl with the intention of eating her to increase his Rank in the future.
"I see, so you reject my offer? Okay time for you to…" David sneered and raised his hand.
"Honk!" (Wait! I accept!) the White Goose hurriedly replied because it knew that the God in front of it was serious.
"I see! It's good to see that you are smart enough to understand your predicament."
*Sob Sob*
The Goose could only cry bitterly as the God of Shepherds bound him with a contract spell. It didn't dare resist because resistance was futile. How can a Millennial Beast possibly fight against a God?
Also, David was the God of Shepherds. Aside from managing the Herd, Shepherds also managed the Flock!
Almost all bird type creatures were regarded as members of the Flock. Meaning, the White Goose was also under David's jurisdiction which made it unable to do anything but submit to his will.
After completing the contract, David lightly pricked Eve's finger to gather a drop of blood and flicked it at the head of the White Goose. Soon, the goose glowed and Eve's body shuddered unconsciously.
She felt a connection with the Goose in front of her. It was the first time she felt something like this and it made her confused. David, who saw the girl's confusion, patted her head once again and told her that the White Goose would follow her from this day onwards.
He even added that she could treat it as a pet if she wanted. David then waved his hand and the seven unconscious ducklings that were on the ground regained their consciousness. He even healed all of their injuries so that his new Disciple wouldn't cry when she found out that they were injured.
The ducklings immediately ran towards Eve and chirped at the White Goose as if telling it to go away. The White Goose was very tempted to eat the seven annoying pests, but held himself back due to David's intimidating aura.
After finishing his task, the God of Shepherds gave the White Goose the "You better take good care of her or else…" glare before bidding his goodbye to Eve.
Eve looked at the old man and waved her hand, which David returned with a gentle smile. Soon the God of Shepherds turned into particles of light and returned to the Temple of the Ten Thousand Gods.
Usually, Gods didn't descend to the Mortal Realm without a very good reason. Since David had chosen Eve to become one of his Disciples, it gave him the excuse to come to her aid three times.
All Gods were given this privilege, so he didn't break any rules. When he saw the White Goose making an attempt to kidnap his future Disciple, David didn't hesitate and immediately descended to Hestia.
He had already sensed Eve's Spiritual Powers and called dibs on her, before the other Gods could make her their Oracle or Priestess.
Another reason why he chose the little girl to become his Disciple was because Eve was William's family. Naturally, all good things must belong to the family, so he decided to make Eve a shepherd as well.
William commanded the Herd, while Eve now commanded the Flock. It was the perfect combination and David was very satisfied with this happy coincidence.
An hour after David left the world of Hestia, Eve returned to the residence with her seven ducklings and the White Goose walking behind her. The Millennial Beast had a dejected expression as it followed behind Eve with its head lowered.
That was when it met another strong presence that made its body shudder uncontrollably.
Vladimir looked down at Eve and the chirping ducklings who had once again raided his room. He then looked at the Millennial Beast whose feathers were standing up, as if it was prepared to flee at any given time.
After appraising the new addition to Eve's small flock, Vlad sighed and took out a few grapes from his storage ring.
'I'd better lock the door next time,' Vladimir thought bitterly. He didn't mind fighting against strong opponents, but against James' cute grandchild, he was completely powerless.
Eve had once again come to extort him for food to feed the ducklings. As for the Millennial Beast? Eve didn't have any intention of feeding it!
The reason?
Because it was a Bad Bird, and Bad Birds need to be punished.