Chapter 36

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The Last Night

According to Daniela, this last wolf pack had wandered into this area by coincidence, and there were not likely to be any further attacks. And so I returned to my bed. Then a few hours later, she woke me up and we traded places.

I tended to the fire as I gaze up at the sky that was a little different to the one on earth. Just like it was on that first night, there were three moons that shone down on the lands. I wondered how long it had been since I first arrived here. It was probably over a month now. So it was one month since I had been swept away on this violent wave that was now my everyday life. Too bad I couldn’t celebrate this anniversary.

The sun rises from the east. It was always incredibly beautiful, the way that the sunlight shone through the gaps in the trees. I add some firewood into the weakened bonfire as I begin to prepare for breakfast. That being said, Master Daniela had devoured all of our raw meat, so it would just be a soup.

I hold my hand over the pot which contains dried meat and imagine that water is running from my palm. Once there is enough magical water inside to cover the meat, I put the pot over the fire. This is how I’ve been cooking recently. I imagine that it is soft water, so it doesn’t taste too bad. It is also safe to drink without having to boil it first.

As the broth begins to boil, I remove the harshness with a spoon and discard it on the ground as I wait for the meat to become soft. It was about time to go and wake up Daniela.

“Daniela. It’s morning.”

“Mm…already…”

She sits up and runs her hands through her messy hair. The gesture makes my heart beat a little faster. I think.

“You should wash up, then we’ll eat.”

“Mmm…”

She kicked away her blankets as she scratched her head. I figured that she wouldn’t fall back to sleep since she had at least answered me. And so I return to the kitchen.

I panicked a little when I saw that the pot was about to boil over, and moved it further from the flames. This would be a lot easier with a tripod. I think as I toss in some vegetables that I removed from the hollow bag. They used to sell tripods for holding up pots over fires. I considered making one out of wood, but it would just burn. It was also possible to stack up some rocks and place sticks over it, but the pot didn’t have any holes for the sticks to go through. Next time I would make a separate place away from the flames, I think with a nod. The vegetables were cooked through now, and so I removed the pot completely away from the fire. Daniela had just arrived after washing her face. She still looked sleepy, but my special soup would wake her right up.

“Today’s soup is quite good…”

“Thanks. I did my best.”

Food was important for any journey. I was not about to go on such a difficult trip while only eating preserved food. Warm food was necessary for maintaining your humanity.

“If things go according to schedule, we’ll arrive at the next town by tomorrow, right?”

“That is right. The town is called ‘Spiris.”

“Spiris…”

My imagination runs wild as I hear this new name. What kind of a town would it be? Hopefully, it wasn’t too different from Fhiraldo, with its many kind people. And no shitty adventurers. Right?

We quickly cleaned up and prepared to set off again. If we could get through this forest by tomorrow, then we would arrive at Spiris. So, what would be the monster of the day…

□ □ □ □

It wasn’t just monsters that lived in the forest. There were many animals as well. Boars, deer, rabbits, and monkeys. There were also small critters like squirrels that would always be running up trees in the corner of your vision.

However, it looked like we were to be greeted by some good old goblins this time.

“Gagwaarrr…”

The death cry sounded as the last goblin’s body fell heavily to the ground. I take the goblin’s rusty blade and stash it away into the hollow bag before standing up again.

“Asagi, why do you keep the goblins’ weapons?”

Daniela asked as she flung the blood from her sword and returned it into its sheath.

“Well, at the end of the day, it’s all iron. I can sell them to blacksmiths.”

“Ah… I have never thought of doing such a thing.”

“Just making a little pocket money, really.”

But I wasn’t wasting time either. It was more money than one might expect. And iron could be used for anything and was handy to have around. It could be used for weapons, armor, and everyday items.

Most people didn’t bother to keep them, as it was too cumbersome. But it was I who wanted to ask why more people didn’t do the same as me. They were leaving free money on the ground as far as I was concerned. Though, don’t get me wrong when I say that. I am still the type to return lost wallets to the police station. Retributive justice was my motto.

I haul the bag onto my shoulder and follow Daniela as she walks on ahead. This forest had mostly goblins, and as someone who had broken through to level thirty, they were not giving me much in the way of experience. So some pocket money was the most I could hope for. And having the hollow bag really helped. We’d kill the occasional goblins, swipe their weapons and move along.

It was now the fifth night of our travels. We were lucky enough to have found a small clearing within the forest, which we made our campsite. As this would be our last night, I splurged a little and caught myself a deer. I had hunted it during the day and so it was already cleaned and cut. I carved the meat off of one leg and dumped it into the soup. I had gotten a little ambitious and created two fires surrounded by stone this time. Here I roasted some thighs. By the way, Daniela was out scouting the area and had not seen what I was doing yet. Hehe. I could just imagine how happy she would be.

“That is amazing Asagi! It looks delicious!”

I imagine the slightly unfortunate sight of such a beauty, saliva running down her chin… I wasn’t sure if it was just me, but I was starting to feel like I had started a rapid spiral towards becoming a house-husband on this journey…

I turn over the meat just as the oil begins to sizzle and drip. It was not easy roasting such a large slab of meat over a bonfire. But I wanted the outside to be crispy with the inside still rate. It was my personal rule. Of course, I took the soup seriously as well. I didn’t cut any corners. Remove the harshness and let it simmer gently. Today’s soup also had raw meat thrown in, and it had to be cooked in a way to keep it soft. I grate some rock salt into the soup as I mix it. This was making me really want a drink. Unfortunately, we were in the forest. And we wouldn’t be able to fight if we got drunk.

But that made me think. Would cooking such a large slab of meat like this attract any monsters? Damn it, I was starting to get worried. But there was no going back now. My pride as a house-husband demanded that I finish this meal. That side of me had now completely taken over.

“Something smells very good over here.”

“Ah, Daniela. Welcome back.”

“Asagi. That looks good.”

Her eyes shone as she caught sight of the fire. Hehehe. It was just as I imagined it. It had been worth the work after all.

“By the way, Master Daniela.”

“What is it, young Asagi?”

“Should we really be cooking meat in this forest? I’m kind of worried about the smell.”

“Ahh, there is no need for worry. There were no monsters around this place.”

I see. So in other words, we would have been screwed if there had been. I better remember that…

It was about ten minutes later that I, renowned Professor of Meat, gave her my permission. I wrap the bone part in a cloth and hand it to Daniela.

“Let’s eat!”

Daniela bit into it ravenously, leaving a giant crater that was the same shape as her teeth. Her distorted expression was more than enough to tell me that it was good. I take a bite of the venison as well. Oh, yes. This taste. I give myself 100 out of 100 points.

I grab my bowl which contains the soup that is full of meat and vegetables. Using a spoon, I scoop up the meat and eat it. It’s so soft that it crumbles in your mouth… Okay, not really. But it was still soft and represented a different kind of deliciousness compared to the roasted meat. Daniela drank the soup after me. Her expression also suggested that I had received a passing grade.

And so our last supper continued. It was a most peaceful night. We stared at the fire after we had finished. Sipping hot water, we talked about our travels up until now and laughed at different memories. Hey, it had been a pleasant trip after all. If all our future journeys could be like this, I would have nothing to complain about. Such were the faint hopes I had in my heart as I gazed at the night sky. Daniela would take the first watch tonight.

I placed my empty cup on the rock I was sitting on and disappeared into the tent.

The change happened just as the three moons had passed their peak in the sky; it was the witching hour.