CHAPTER 12 – CAMPING

Translator: Homia

The night was a safe time when monsters were inactive. The only enemies were the looters, but there were three knights in the party, so there was no reason to worry about looters.

As ordinary soldiers came to set up campsites and cook, the knights and squires scattered all over the vacant lot, grilling and eating the meat of the monsters caught during the day.

The same was true for Arsene and Palato.

“It’s a little different from the expedition I thought.”

“What were you thinking?”

“I thought it was going to be a bit more… intense, dangerous, and desperate times. It was like that before.”

“We can do this because we are a group. It’s not a place where we can live alone. Neither I nor the other knights go outside alone.”

The meat was cooking on a flat stone with a sizzling sound.

Among the beasts caught during the day, only those that could be used for food were collected and stored without blood.

“However, even after forming a group like this, we couldn’t make a fire during the day, so we had to eat only simple food. It’s because there are a few strong monsters in this area. If you meet such a guy, it will probably be the kind of expedition you envisioned. Don’t let this moment go.”

“I see.”

After giving advice in a solemn voice, Palato softened his voice again and lifted a piece of his meat.

It was the thorns’ meat of a monster, that Arsene called a giant hedgehog.

“What dinner! Have you ever eaten thorny meat?”

“I’ve never tried it before.”

“Try it now. Oddly enough, the meat has a tangy taste. It is dangerous for ordinary people to eat, but for knights, it is a delicacy. It is not distributed in the market and cannot be eaten unless it is on an expedition. I specifically ordered slaughtering them before.”

Saying that, Palato transferred the well-roasted thorns to Arsene’s plate.

He was a bit reluctant because it reminded him of pufferfish poison, but Arsene thought that Palato wouldn’t give him something harmful, so he just took the meat and ate it.

The characteristic chewy texture of monster meat, and a sweet and savory taste.

Indeed, as Palato said, after chewing the tender, oily meat a few times, he felt a slight tingling sensation on his tongue.

He had never eaten pufferfish in his previous life, so he didn’t know if it felt the same as when eating pufferfish poison, but it didn’t taste that bad.

“Is it delicious?”

“Delicious.”

“That’s fortunate. I’ve given it to other knights before, but I didn’t have as many friends that liked it as I thought.”

“Didn’t you just say it was a delicacy?”

“It’s definitely a delicacy for me. I’m not wrong because I’m a knight.”

The proud Sir Palato took a bite of the thorny meat, mumbling.

Then he brought up another story and changed the topic.

“By the way, we’ve already talked about the purpose of this expedition, haven’t we?”

Arsene, who was dumbfounded by his shameless attitude, laughed.

“Yes. You said that it was a looter group’s extermination, and hunting a lone rhinoceros.”

“We’re going to take Krata fortress as a base first. The main hall will be fine. We’re going to spend a couple of days searching and hunting for looters.”

“What happens if you catch them, or if you don’t?”

“I’m thinking of investigating for up to a month. If we’ve been around that much and still didn’t manage to catch them, they must have already left the area. Then we’ll hunt the lone rhinoceros and go back.”

This time, Arsene ate other meat with dried vegetables and cheese.

Much better than eating meat alone.

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“Back then you walked alone from the Krata fortress to the estate, didn’t you? How long did it take?”

“I think it took about five days. On the way, I was chased by the monsters and went all the way to the Tyren River, then I managed to find my way along the river.”

“Oh, that’s crazy. Maybe it’ll take as much this time, too. We’re going straight, but we have a cart. It’s a hassle, but there’s nothing we can do about it.”

The knights and squires were all on mounts, so they were able to move quickly.

However, the cart containing the most important food and water had to be moved by a lizard-like creature, a large, dull but powerful beast that was good at moving heavy loads.

The creature, simply called a python, was also nicknamed ‘Big Eyes’ because of its bulging eyes.

Because of that, the expedition’s speed was horribly slow.

At first, Arsene thought it would be better for everyone to pack up their belongings and ride lizards, but after hearing Palato’s story, it was understandable.

Because it means that close to 30 people can eat and drink for at least a full month, maybe even more.

Whether it was preconditioned to replenish food with monster meat, most of the food was something like dried bread, dried vegetables, fruits, and cheese that were not easily spoiling.

There were also a lot of water bottles, because there wasn’t much water in the forest and its taste was disgusting.

Arsene also had an experience of drinking water from the stream, then throwing everything up, as he finished the water taken from the looter.

When he felt that his tension had been eased enough by talking about this and that, Arsene lowered his voice in case anyone else heard him.

“But Sir Palato, I have a question.”

“What?”

“Is there anything bad going on between Sir Entir and my father?”

Arsene saw Palato’s eyes widen slightly at the question.

Checking the opponent’s minute reactions at the same time as asking a question was also a feat that Arsene brought from his previous life and used the most.

With this ability, he survived the pranks of others during his childhood, and even when he came to the estate, he benefited greatly from human relationships.

Palato’s voice has also been lowered as if it were a secret story.

“Well, what did Sir Entir say?”

“He said he didn’t like the way I looked like my father, because of the smooth face. Honestly, I’ve never thought I looked like my father.”

Lenock was handsome in his youth when he came to the estate. Arsene heard it a few times, but every time he heard it, it was always hard to believe.

Because Lenock’s image that Arsene remembers was just a drunken playboy with a bandit beard.

It was hard to tell the difference between him and Luden, who also had shaggy hair and beard.

Sigh, there are so many people in this world who break down when they get old.

“Haa… Entir, that guy’s really…”

Upon hearing that, Palato frowned and sighed lightly.

After turning his head for a moment and staring at Sir Entir in the distance, Palato covered his mouth and whispered in a voice that was barely audible to anyone except Arsene.

It was so quiet that an ordinary person would barely hear it if he put his ear to Palato’s mouth.

“It’s a long story, so to tell it shortly, it was a love triangle. Sir Entir had a fight with him because the woman he liked had been in a relationship with Sir Lenock. It was a long time ago, but it was a story that was widely known at the time, so everyone older knows it… Dame Genovia, if you want to overhear it, come and listen.”

As they were talking, Palato suddenly spoke to Genovia, and Arsene quickly turned his head.

Genovia was sitting alone in the corner, apparently having already finished eating.

It was almost 50 meters away from where they were talking.

No matter how much better a knight’s hearing might be compared to an average person, he couldn’t hear a whisper-level speech from that distance.

Surprisingly, however, Genovia stood up and approached Palato as soon as he finished speaking.

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“I’m sorry, Sir Palato. I’m trying to ignore it, but it sounds so funny…”

“Even if I told you not to listen, you’d end up overhearing it anyway. I’d rather talk face to face.”

At Palato’s words, Arsene nodded and expressed his agreement.

Genovia sank across from Palato and Arsene with a bewildered expression.

“Anyway, Sir Entir was beaten and even punished for starting a fight. Enough to hold grudges.”

Palato, who said so, added in a rare, malignant voice.

“After that, they used to get into trouble. That’s why they couldn’t settle in the territory and kept being sent to the fortresses.”

It was the first time Palato had criticized others so much, so Arsene admired Entir inwardly.

He was wondering how he could hear something like this from such a good guy.

For this reason, it seems that the usual conduct of a person is important.

If it’s from a person with a bad reputation who always looks down on others, it wouldn’t have a big impact on me, but if it’s a person who’s always polite and doesn’t like to look down on others, doesn’t it make a strong impression?

“I heard that these days, he has improved a lot and has returned… I think it’s true that habits never change. If he ever tries to persecute you, tell me, because I’m in charge of this expedition. Same for you, Dame Genovia, because he’s crazy when it comes to women. If he ever tries to do anything weird, just hit me up. I will testify against him.”

Arsene was wondering why Palato was in charge of the expedition, and not the 10 years older Entir, but now he knew the reason.

Arsene looked pitifully at Entir, who had gathered some of his servants from afar and was telling stories.

“But Dame Genovia.”

“Eh? What?”

“How did you hear Sir Palato from that far?”

When asked by Arsene, Genovia looked at Palato with a puzzled look.

Arsene could read the expression that meant, “Didn’t you tell him?”

Palato said, shaking his head.

“With my experience, having to tell the young knights about such a thing only makes me feel strange. You, too, went up to the top of the tower to get special skills at that time.”

“Ah, come on. Can’t you just pretend that didn’t happen?”

“Well, anyway, that’s why I didn’t teach him. I thought he’d find out when it’s time. Let him know if you want to. Arsene is our friend after all, and he behaves like an old man at times.”

Genovia, who groaned at Palato’s words, finally opened her mouth.

“Some knights say that some of their body’s functions are particularly developed after awakening. It’s like, your hearing gets better, or your eyesight, you can hold your breath for a long time, or you get a lot stronger. This is called a specialty.”

Then she glanced at Palato and continued.

“Sir Palato has incredibly good eyesight. Maybe he could see the monsters in the mountains far away. That’s why Sir Palato is at the forefront of the ranks.”

Listening to Genovia, Arsene recalled Palato’s specialty was throwing the spear.

Certainly, if you have exceptionally good eyesight, projectile weapons would be ideal.

“How do you develop it?”

“It’s not something you can do as you please. You can get it all of a sudden while you’re doing something trivial like holding a cup or opening a bathroom door, or you can get it all of a sudden on a fierce battlefield. There are only four knights in our estate who have special skills, but there are more people who don’t.”

Genovia, who must have been thirsty, took a sip of water, then continued.

“So don’t be obsessed with your talents and focus on basic training. There are few specialties that help with fighting anyway. My hearing and Sir Palato’s vision don’t really help much, and having a special talent for Sir Palato and I doesn’t mean we’re exceptionally stronger than any other knights.”

Genovia said so, but both were very useful specialties in Arsene’s view.

It would be almost impossible to launch a surprise attack on a person with abilities like Genovia’s.

It is enough to understand the exact meaning of someone’s whispering with his mouth covered at a distance of 50m, so no matter how much you silence your footsteps while moving, she would be able to feel the location at about 100m.

A long-range attack, such as shooting a bow or throwing a spear, will be noticed by the noise generated during the preparation process.

With Palato’s vision, it will not only help shoot the enemy with a spear, but it will also be useful for tracking and fleeing.

If you first see the enemy you can’t beat and run away, that’s also a victory in terms of protecting your life.

“Anyway, it would be helpful to have something special.”

“I don’t think so. I often feel uncomfortable because of this specialty. In the past, I got a house outside because it was hard to live in a permanent residence and it was terrible. Every time I try to sleep at night, I hear gasps everywhere…

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“Oh, Dame Genovia, that’s something you can’t say to a child.”

“Ah, I’m sorry. Anyway, if it’s too much, it might get overwhelming. So don’t be too jealous and be faithful to the basics. Basics, ok?”

“Okay, I think it’ll be good if it appears one day.”

“Yeah, that’s nice. As Sir Palato said, you’re really an old man.”