Chapter 41 Camping
Edited by: Kanaa-senpai
Leaving the town, we became people on horseback.
Leading the way was Liz, with Kazumi riding in front of her, followed by the horses that Martina and I were on, and Rena riding a horse that was pulling the one with our luggage.
”Well, even though this is a real journey, the road from Borg to the next town, Abil, is pretty safe.”
Liz said, laughing lightly to ease Kazumi, who looked a bit nervous.
”People heading to the big forest with elf and beastman villages, those going to the dwarf nation of Bash, and of course, those aiming for the royal capital, Beluga, all start on this road to reach the next town, Abil. Even though they are different groups, to thieves and dangerous folks, we look like one big crowd.”
I see. Just a little while ago, I could see a merchant caravan with 3 wagons, and behind us… is that a family? There’s a wagon with a little girl and a man sitting on the driver’s seat. From behind the man’s shoulder, I can see a woman, probably the mother, peeking out to watch the excited girl.
”To our right and behind us, there are 3 elf women on horseback.”
Liz turned to look at me.
”Maybe they timed their departure with the merchant caravan? It looks like they have guards, so if we stick with them, we should be safe.”
”No, I mean us.”
”Huh?”
”There’s a party of just girls who defeated 4 high-level youma (demons). It’s been spreading around town. It seems like the merchant group and others are trying to match our departure time, right? Even though the next stop is relatively safe, we should still think about the worst-case scenario…”
Liz gives me a sly smile as she looks my way.
”If they find out that such a cute boy killed 3 of those demons… they would be so surprised.”
She giggles and quickly turns back to face forward.
”Well, they’ll probably camp at the same place as us. I can’t wait for the snacks!”
* * *
Sure enough, it seems like they are keeping pace with us.
The merchant group ahead speeds up a bit, and we do the same. If we slow down, they slow down too. The group behind us is doing the same. They are all aiming for the same stop, Abil, while keeping a certain distance.
”Seriously. It’s like everyone is part of the same merchant group. We look like a decent-sized crowd, so those lousy Bandits probably won’t even try anything.”
Martina talks to me from above.
”Martina, you’re a ‘Bandit’ too, right?”
”Bandit and ‘Thief’ are different! It’s just a name for convenience; I’m a Thief as an adventurer!”
Martina argues back, her face turning bright red from my teasing. She’s cute.
* * *
Wanting to move ahead, we kept riding our horses as much as possible, stopping only for bathroom breaks by the roadside.
It’s funny how the other groups are timing their breaks with us.
For lunch, everyone just eats the bread they brought while still on their horses.
”Let’s try to move ahead during the day. That way, we can relax at night.”
That’s Liz’s decision.
On the way, the family carriage behind us stopped, probably because the kids needed to use the bathroom, so we also stopped and waited. We moved ahead, leaving just the 3 of them in their carriage, just in case something happened… you know.
”Traveling with companions makes the journey easier and more fun… that’s what I mean.”
Kazumi muttered softly.
”What does that mean?”
Liz asked.
”It means it’s better and more enjoyable to have travel companions. Life is the same as we go through the world,” Kazumi explained.
”Wow… Kazumi knows some tough stuff.”
Liz said, patting Kazumi’s head with admiration.
* * *
Eventually, the sun set, and we looked for a campsite, relying on the light of our lanterns.
We found an open area a little way in, so we tied up the horses, unloaded our things, and decided to set up the tent there.
”First, we need to connect these two pieces of fabric with buttons.”
Liz said, taking out 2 long, hexagonal pieces of fabric and connecting them as she explained.
”Then, we drive a stake into this hole.”
She passed a thin iron stake through the hole in the fabric and hammered it into the ground to secure the bottom of the tent.
”Next, we connect these poles.”
She took 4 wooden sticks about 30 cm (12in) long and connected them to make 2 poles.
”Now we stand them up here…”
Oh. The tent is up.
”Then, we tie this thin rope to the top of the poles and pull it diagonally to secure it to the ground.”
She threaded the rope through the top of the poles, pulled it diagonally, and secured it with stakes in the ground. Two of them.
”Do the same on the other side… there, it’s complete.”
…This is just like that. It’s the ‘military tent’ that became popular during the camping boom in my past life.
The deep green color looked just like the military tent called the U.S. Army pup tent.
”Now, if you unbutton this side… and secure it with these other 2 poles, you can lift it up and use it like this. How about that? It feels more open, right?”
Yeah. It’s a pop-up tent. There’s just enough space for 2 adults to sleep.
* * *
Kazumi, Rena, and I try to set up another tent.
”Done!”
”It was surprisingly easy to set up!”
Kazumi and Rena lay a canvas sheet inside the tent and quickly lie down.
”For now, let’s hang a lantern inside the tent.”
The lantern makes the tent stand out in the dark. It creates a nice atmosphere.
”Alright, I’m going to gather some firewood. In the meantime, can you guys stack some stones for the campfire?”
”I’ll help too!”
Liz and Martina went into the forest with the lanterns.
”I’m going to feed the horses.”
I take out the horse feed from my bag. It looks like carrots, and when soaked in water, it expands to fill a bucket with feed.
It’s convenient because it also provides hydration for the horses. I lower the wooden bucket that was hanging with the horse’s load and use magic to fill it with water.
”…This is really convenient… Just not having to carry water makes things so much easier.”
I was impressed by Rena’s magic. After all, it can also start a fire. Magic is useful.
Since there’s only one bucket, Rena feeds the horses one by one.
”Good job. Make sure to rest after eating.”
Rena gently strokes the horse’s body.
”Um, if you don’t mind, here…”
As Liz and Martina started the campfire with the firewood they collected, a family camping nearby offered us a soup made with vegetables and meat.
”Thank you so much!”
Liz took out some dishes and served everyone.
”Not at all. We just followed you without permission… thanks to that, we can travel with peace of mind.”
The woman, who seemed to be the wife, smiled while serving soup.
”Well, I think the road to Abil is relatively safe, but if anything happens, we have a skilled swordsman who can even take down high-level demon, so you can count on us.”
Saying that, Liz winked at me.
”Wait… you mean that boy…?”
I turned around when I heard a voice from behind, and saw merchants holding bread and elves carrying fruit.
* * *
”I see. I can’t believe that boy took down 3 demon! But, if he’s the son of ‘Two-handed’ O’Brian and ‘Greatsword’ Megumi, it makes sense.”
”The swordsman from the hero party is now the lord of Razia Village, right? That village must be thriving now.”
The merchants who brought us bread spoke up. My dad and mom are super famous.
”We just returned from a trade in Razia Village. We heard the rumors in the village, but… you really are strong.”
Being praised by the beautiful elf sisters made me almost lose my composure, but thanks to Kazumi pinching my arm hard, I managed to hold it together.
* * *
In the end, the feast continued without us having to prepare our own food, and it wrapped up when the couple’s little girl started to get sleepy.
I told everyone we would leave at 7 AM tomorrow, and everyone agreed to that before heading home.
”See? We got some treats, right?”
Liz grinned.
”Not just treats, I’m full now.”
”In the end, we didn’t cook at all.”
”Rena was satisfied because it was delicious.”
”Well, we’re like ‘contract-free bodyguards’ anyway.”
Everyone seems satisfied.
Before going to sleep, we decide the combinations and order for the watch.
Liz → me and Kazumi → Rena and Martina is the plan, and we’ll switch every 3 hours. So, I crawled into my tent with Kazumi, and Rena went with Martina.
”Okay, I’ll wake you up when it’s time to switch. Sleep well!”
Liz waves her hand in front of the campfire.
She says goodnight to everyone and turns off the lantern inside the tent.
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Edited by Kanaa-senpai.
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