BXBX NOVEL Volume 1, Extra 3
Volume 1, Extra 3
Translator: Reflet
Editor: Weasalopes
_______________________________________________________________
「Take THAT!」
Accompanied by Hiroshi’s battle cry, the heavy mace made a splendid sound as he swung it at the boar-shaped monster, flinging it spinning into the air. Then, once its weak spot, the abdomen, was exposed, one arrow pierced through all the way to its heart from point-blank.
「Hiroshi, send one this way, would you!」
「Hiroshi-kun, over here too!」
「I got y’all!」
Answering both Makoto and Haruna, he first sent a boar flying over to Makoto using Smash, and once the skill delay had ended, he immediately launched another one over to Haruna.
「Sensei, above!」
「Yeah, I’m one step ahead of ya!」
He found the Gigantic Crow that had quickly flown down at him a moment earlier than Mio had spoke, countering its rapid descent with Smite and felling the beast.
「Wind Cutter!」
Right before it fell to the ground, Tatsuya lopped off its head with Novice Wind Magic, landing the final blow. Then, in response to the carnivorous bear that had appeared from afar seeking out the source of the blood scent,
「Over heeere!!」
Hiroshi built up pressure with Outface and concentrated aggro onto himself. Momentarily faltering, the bear leaped at Hiroshi out of fear to try and knock him down, but the next instant it was blown away in a flashy manner.
「What now?」
「S’long as we got that proof of subjugatin’ the monsters, I could care less.」
「Got it.」
They finished that little exchange before the bear could regain its composure, and Tatsuya promptly turned it into a popsicle with a nonverbal spell.
「Good job.」
「Man, we really git a lotta those suckers out here.」
Hiroshi muttered in an exasperated tone as he kept his vigilant battle stance, looking around at all the monsters they had taken out. The monsters they had finished off numbered over twenty. Although this did not even reach 30% of what Makoto and her group had gone through when they had gone to get the solmizen, they couldn’t simply ignore such a mob, especially when it was in the midst of winter near human villages where snow was gathering.
「I couldn’t believe my ears when you artisans said that you would round up all these monsters and annihilate them, but…」
「You really are something, all of you…」
「So cool, Boss Man!」
The craftspeople who had been taking refuge in the safe areas around the battlefield began to all marvel about this fight. On this particular occasion, the five of them had come here for a quest in the farmland outskirts of Wulls, hoping to also train in coordination. Nora and the other two figured this would also be a good opportunity to tag along for materials. Of course, this was with the permission of the landlord.
With that being said, using the term “outskirts” was a bit misleading. Leite Village was positioned in an odd location, the road to the village taking about two hours by foot to walk to from the eastern gate and then another half day from said road. The information for this particular quest was simple: drive out the unusually large amount of monsters that had gathered in the vicinity. With the mission being as simple as it was, several other adventurer groups besides Hiroshi’s had come and were hunting in other areas assigned to them. It was a little vague as to just how many they had to hunt, but Hiroshi was fairly sure that there was no need to take down 100 or 200 in just one area. In fact, hunting too many of them would eventually become an issue in and of itself.
「This is all normal stuff fer us. Heck, even if I ain’t here, Makoto and Brother could easily end it all without taking up much time as well, right?」
「Pretty much.」
「But if we’re talking which way is easier on us, this way is far easier, Hiroshi.」
The two of them said exactly what they were thinking, agreeing with Hiroshi while still maintaining their battle stances.
One might be tempted to think at a glance that five people fighting would be better than only having two people fighting such enemies. However, other than maybe amateur group fights, monsters were a whole different ball game.
First off, it was already presumed that each member of the party was able to at least take down one monster in a one-on-one battle, and they also had to have a firm grasp on their equal role as a party member. It would be even better if they could fulfill their part while keeping in coordination with what the other members were doing, and it certainly wouldn’t hurt for some people to share expertise in the same fields as each other.
In that sense, the Japanese team was the closest to the ideal composition. In their case, it was also true that they would have liked another person who was skilled at support magic, but of course that was too much to ask for. After all, they still had the unrivaled, reliable tank known as Hiroshi, and Tatsuya wasn’t the only one who could hold the forefront. They were truly blessed to have such options.
Although they couldn’t be as stoic as Hiroshi or Douga with their usage, Makoto and Mio also had top-notch guarding ability. Also, since Haruna didn’t have a single problem with going up against one or two monsters at a time, she could follow up whenever things got rough. Again, they were truly blessed.
「But ever since you learned Outface, things have gotten quite secure, haven’t they?」
「When you didn’t have that ability, you couldn’t even tell that the occasional enemy was in your blind spot. That’s a great way to lose.」
「Aww c’mon, ya can’t just expect all that from a simple craftsman.」
「No, I’m pretty sure that a “simple craftsman” wouldn’t try and stand in the front lines without using Outface.」
Hiroshi was already troubled with Tatsuya and Mio’s comments when Makoto also interjected with an exasperated face.
「Well, there doesn’t seem to be any more coming out, so let’s just gather whatever we can.」
Haruna had been listening to their conversation with a wry smile, surveying their surroundings before making the proposition. The reason Haruna hadn’t said much of her own opinion was because she was well aware from prior experience that their own perceptions of the outside world were inevitably skewed from regular people and their perceptions. Though it was already too late, surely there was no need to continue to offer her own opinion and be treated even more like an oddball by the other craftsmen. Or at least, that was what she thought, concerned for once about her public image. She didn’t intend to tell anyone, though.
「Yup. Oh, but we got a lotta raw materials fer once.」
「Could we possibly use them for practice?」
「Other than the animal hide, I’m purty sure that Haruna could barely even do it, let alone anyone else. We gotta git our hands on materials that’re at least not too hard to make into a Level 7 potion, otherwise everythin’ we use fer potions is gonna be too difficult.」
Everyone nodded in acknowledgement at what Hiroshi had said, cutting off just the parts that proved their subjugation of the monsters. This would at least make them some money, so they collected whatever they could, but it was unclear as to what they could even manufacture using these items.
「So how many medicinal herbs were you able to gather?」
「For now I was able to somehow gather a basket’s worth.」
「What amazing work you’ve done, Fum.」
「You worked pretty hard yourself, Teres!」
From their point of view, the harvest itself was marvelous. The reason why Nora was more fatigued than Teres or Fum was probably a mere difference in ability. Compared to Teres, who was formerly a denizen of the forest, and Fum, who had often searched through weeds to harvest edible food, Nora had made it here through a more odd-job approach, so it couldn’t be helped.
「In that case, how about we go back and report, but in the afternoon instead?」
「Yup. We might ‘ave a lotta heat regulation enchantments cast, but there’s no tellin’ just how cold it can git.」
「True, it would suck to have snow fall on us.」
Hiroshi and the others agreed with Tatsuya. Even if this area was close to Wulls, the surroundings had accumulated with snow piled on snow. Even the snow that had fallen three days ago still remained here and there, the fact that it was two or three degrees colder than the roadside was already a telltale sign.
「Haruna, what did you prepare for the afternoon?」
「There’s some good-quality gyano and I made it into a saple, actually.」
「Oh, that sounds tasty!」
Makoto made a truly happy-looking face in response to Haruna’s answer. It was a large-scale fish with the eyes of an amberjack and the taste of a salmon, and saple was food wrapped in big tree leaves and roasted. Not limited to gyano, saple could also be made using various meats or fish, which was soul food good enough to rival the other representatives of Farlane like Terrona and Burfshu. The leaves used differed depending on the season or region, characteristic of their own unique flavors, and the typical way to eat the things sold from street stands was to bite into it while peeling away the leaves. Furthermore, these three types of meals could also be arranged elegantly in official courses.
「The temperature isn’t too cold at the moment, so we should get a move on now.」
「Understood.」
Mio, much like Makoto, was also in a pleasant mood, implicitly urging everyone to return so that they could eat. Everyone else gave them lukewarm smiles, but had no qualms with that, proceeding to head back. As to the astonished faces of the other adventurers who saw them bring back an unprecedented amount of monster parts as evidence for everything they hunted in the afternoon, that is another story.
「Starting next week, I’ll escort you to Kalsus, just so that you know.」
When Elena and Aearis had come over to hang out, Haruna let them know the plans. Hiroshi, Tatsuya, and Makoto were out on errands, while Mio was overseeing the workshop, so Haruna would be the one taking care of them. At times like these, Layla would never show her face outside of when she brought tea in, and Lime had just begun her afternoon nap, so it would be a while longer before she would wake up.
The number of people who could enter and exit Azuma Workshop was limited, and there was also the fact that it boasted much better defenses than an amateur fortress, so if you were to enter directly via a transportation stone or with transportation magic, depending on the situation, it was quite a bit safer than even a castle. As a result, they had made sure that most people did not know about princes and princesses coming here unguarded. In the first place, just thinking back on the time they had sheltered Elena and Aearis, they had already been through a lot with them. Why bother having second thoughts now?
There was of course the typical opinion that the royal family should not connect so deeply with a mere manufacturer, but in the first place, there were just too many things that could not be harvested without Azuma Workshop. Many of said items were included in national policy, and until they were easier to gather, it was impossible to weaken their relationship with Azuma Workshop. These unique circumstances had put them into a strange, delicate position where the workshop would not be affiliated with any power struggles. Of course, those involved in this entire affair didn’t have the slightest intention of doing anything nefarious by deepening said relationship.
「……It’s already that time, is it?」
「Well, there’s also the fact that certain areas in the center have already begun to lose the snow.」
As they were remarking on such things, the two royals dove further into the warm kotatsu. Although it was true that winter was about to end, it didn’t change the fact that it was still cold.
「Yeah. Everyone in the workshop can finally begin to do some decent work, and this seems like a good opportunity to practice, or so I’m thinking.」
Haruna’s definition of practice in this case had two purposes. One purpose went without saying–practice with workshop procedures in the event that Hiroshi was absent–and the other purpose was to move Hiroshi and the others as far away as possible.
Incidentally, both Wulls and Kalsus were port cities, but needless to say, it wasn’t like their logistical relationship consisted only of maritime trade. There were already several villages and towns along the way, and there were of course plenty of items that were not suited for long trips at sea. Besides, even for the fishing villages along the coast, it wasn’t like ships would always stop at their ports. Transportation gates, as convenient as they were, were never used anywhere other than in the capital of every country or in the public transportation system of big cities. The transportation circles in the main cities were also limited to small sizes, and of course the only ones who could use those were royalty, nobility, or those with permission from the royal family.
Therefore, the major job of protecting caravans would not be going away so easily, at least not until a land transportation system with the convenience and speed of a railway that could resist monsters were to be invented.
「Well, thankfully, we can procure however many transportation stones we need, so even after leaving Farlane, I’m pretty sure that Hiroshi-kun plans to return quite frequently.」
Even though they had done the best they could here, it had only amounted to them finally being able to measure and mix without failing. Curry powder, they hardly had any issue making, but in regards to soy sauce, which required unclassified potions and ripeness, it was a bit lacking in stability. As a result, it was necessary for Hiroshi or Mio to return a minimum of once or twice every month in order to issue orders.
No one could after all be expected to become so proficient in just three months or so. In actuality, they had begun teaching them how to make glass bottles in three months and they had managed to reach a somewhat unstable level of unclassified potion making, which was already exceptional.
In addition, digressing a bit, being able to use transportation stones like they grew on trees was in a sense the dream of every adventurer. A transportation stone was a miraculous item that could transport the user instantly to any location that the user had either traveled to and recorded once or was familiar enough with said area to the point where they could envision it. Each stone could transport five to six people at once, plus there were no drawbacks. With that being said, transportation stones were convenient, but also throwaway items, so it wouldn’t take many days before all the magic would ebb away and their usefulness would end. Given this caveat of magic gradually dissipating, transportation stones were in general build-to-order manufacturing, the price a whopping 10,000 Chrones.
”If transportation stones are pricey, then why not use long-distance transportation magic?”, some might ask, but that task in itself would severely deplete energy, making it harsher in terms of travel limitations than even transportation stones. Once you used it, it would take a minimum of 24 hours to recuperate, and more than anything, traveling in groups had a 1/1,000 chance of causing a transportation accident. It was a dangerous type of magic. To add further to this, unless you were to use outside measurements like Barold or gather over ten people for the ritual, the amount of people you could transport at one time and the amount of material resources you could carry in were no different from that of a transportation stone. Well, the vast majority of accidents were merely being sent to a different point than the intended destination, as well as the fact that Layotte or Aearis could ignore all the restrictions (minus the number of humans) by using their special Alfemina magic.
It must also be noted that even if you could theoretically bring along as many as you wanted, there was still a limit to it, and you would certainly struggle with coming and going every day with these stones. In the first place, unlike during the game, the transportation stones over here could only get you so far before their effects wore off, so it wasn’t even certain whether or not they could get to their first destination, which was in the center of the Great Forest of the South, and move again from there. Darl, the next destination, would almost certainly require two stones, even for the outskirts of the country borders, and three for the capital itself.
「Come to think of it, you mentioned something about making a way to move to other places without using transportation stones or transportation magic. How’s that coming along?」
「It’s in the middle of being tested. Apparently it’s best to be able to freely activate it in an area with few people in order to check for any issues.」
「I see. Then what did you end up making?」
「Does the term “golem carriage” ring a bell?」
The two of them understood what Haruna was saying. Although it was comparatively more rare in Farlane, it wasn’t like they never saw such things. In the case of Farlane, the main mode of magic-assisted transportation was by ship, so the golem carriages used for land transportation had not been developed much. The best place to sight golem carriages was probably Lorren, as its inland transportation had revolved around them.
「So is said carriage the type that the golem itself pulls? Or is the carriage itself mounted on the golem?」
「The carriage would be on the golem. Hiroshi-kun is going to work on it all night and make one that about seven people can sit in.」
「Wow, that’s quite the scale we’re talking about there.」
「The only remaining procedures are the washing and repairing. He fully intends to have the two of you riding aboard with him.」
「Then I can look forward to that.」
「That sounds fun.」
The two girls seemed to be happy for some reason. But they’ll probably be shocked when they see it, thought Haruna to herself irresponsibly.
Some sagacious people might have already realized that what Hiroshi had made was a so-called “one box” car. Needless to say, flooring the gas pedal would allow you to easily surpass 100 km/h, boasting not even just the highest specs in all of Farlane, but of the entire world, except for maybe monsters. As Hiroshi had invested all he could on the suspension aspect, riding in this carriage would easily surpass not only the current carriage system, but likely any vehicle in the world.
Now, only judging by the speed potential of this vehicle, one would assume that if any mistakes were made and you crashed into something, then the damage done would be proportionately different from that of a regular carriage. As a countermeasure, Hiroshi was making sure not only to consider accidents but was also thoroughly washing it again to make sure that there were no issues with the hardware. That happened to be the reason why he decided to go outside and run around a side road where there were few people.
That being said, the thing that Haruna assumed they would be “shocked” to see was not the speed nor the specs of the vehicle. The real issue had nothing to do with the speed, design, or comfort level. For some reason, thinking of when the vehicle would not be in use, Hiroshi had thought up a detailed gimmick.
「Oh yeah, I heard that you all rampaged around the farming area.」
「Yeah, we did take up a request of that sort.」
「And is it true that you brought down over twenty monsters in the morning?」
「Sure is. They came out in droves. Hiroshi-kun gathered them all in one place, though, so it wasn’t all that hard.」
Elena and Aearis looked at each other after Haruna added that last part. Sure, he came out when he had to, but Hiroshi was in general a coward, so it felt very strange to hear about him aggressively calling attention to himself.
「……I’m amazed that Hiroshi did something as bold as that.」
「I’m sure Hiroshi-kun felt the same way. Although I think the reason was that the process only lasted about five minutes and he wouldn’t get hurt from being hit by monsters of that level.」
Even when Haruna pointed that out, neither of them really felt satisfied with that explanation. In truth, monsters that came close to where people were living were absolutely powerless before Hiroshi’s defense. For monsters that lurked near plantations, your average Level Seven adventurer could certainly win in numbers, but not necessarily without some wounds, whereas Hiroshi could stand out there by himself naked and still not be affected. Sure, it would hurt to get hit, but it was way more painful to stub his toe against the corner of a dresser, so it might not be so strange for him to nonchalantly stand before enemies like that.
However, they still felt off about this whole thing—probably because neither of them really saw Hiroshi as a battle combatant.
「……Yeah, I still don’t really feel it.」
「When it comes to Hiroshi-sama, I don’t see him as someone who tenses up for battle. I think he truly shines when his eyes glint at precious materials or when he earnestly challenges new and difficult things.」
「Well, it’s not like I don’t agree with you, Elle-chan.」
All three girls agreed that Hiroshi wasn’t cut out to be the protagonist of an adventure story. The pathetic thing about all of this was that not only did Layotte and the other males agree on this, Hiroshi himself agreed.
「But everyone including Hiroshi-kun has agreed that we’d best practice coordination for all the battles that we’ll probably be fighting in the future.」
「Yeah, that’s unfortunately how it has to be.」
「Thankfully, we managed to save Farlane from the clutches of Barold through the skin of our teeth, but as to whether or not it’ll go as well for other countries……」
「That’s the issue, isn’t it?」
Haruna sighed in response to Aearis’s statement. From what she knew about returning to their world, there was no avoiding the dangers that would come. Although they didn’t intend to go out of their way to cause trouble, in 8 or 9 cases out of ten they would still probably end up getting caught up in something.
「There are plenty of things that we need to do or that we should do, but it’s a bit difficult when we have to figure out where to even start.」
「But when you get to that point, you could simply choose between things that wouldn’t take too long versus things that would take a lot of time.」
「It would be best to get into the habit of deciding on something from the get-go, otherwise you’ll always end up dragging things out with indecision.」
「Mm, true enough.」
Haruna agreed with their opinions, although one of their phrases caused her to realize something else.
「You know, when Aearis mentioned getting into the habit of something, that kind of reminds me of diets.」
「Come to think of it, whenever there were long banquets or parties, my older sisters Rena and Maria would always go on about “My weight!” or “My corset!”.」
Aearis recalled a nostalgic story when she heard what Haruna had said. Apparently, the concept of a diet was not unknown in Farlane.
「In enough time, Aearis as well shall become one of them…or not. She is the priestess princess after all.」
「What, do priestess princesses not get fat?」
「It’s because they don’t generally eat extravagantly, as well as the fact that purifying the earth requires a great deal of energy.」
As a potential result, priestess princesses throughout the years had all had slender bodies, apart from their chest and rear.
「We all initially praised Katrina from that perspective. After all, it was her continuous hard work that allowed her to maintain her physique and good looks.」
「Ahh, I never actually got to speak with her properly, but she did seem to be like that.」
「So what about you, Haruna? You seem to be awfully fixated on food.」
「Hmm…Well, my family doesn’t really get fat.」
「Seriously?」
「Yeah. Especially when it comes to karaoke—that’s what they call it in my country where individuals or small groups go to specific places suited for singing—when my three other family members and I go there, everyone other than my father usually loses about 2 kilograms.」
「……Just how much energy are you using when you sing……?」
With that being said, Haruna saw singing as more of a hobby than anything worth getting serious about, so she generally never expended much energy unless her family took her out, in which case her mother Yukina and younger sister Miyuki would sing with all their might and everyone singing would burn more calories than jogging.
「Plus I’ve had many opportunities to exercise my stamina since coming here, so I’d argue that I weigh less than usual.」
「Then you’re essentially the enemy of all women who do their best to keep beautiful and in shape.」
「Makoto-san said the same sort of thing to me, but what exactly am I supposed to do about it?」
Haruna couldn’t help but grimace at what Elena had said. She was about to add more in order to argue back when Mio came into the room.
「Haru, it’s about time to prepare dinner.」
「Oh, that’s right.」
Haruna remembered when Mio said that, and got out from the kotatsu.
「Incidentally, what’s today’s meal?」
「I’ve been absorbed so much in Farlane cuisine as of late, so I wanted to change things up today and make some cuisine from my country, called fried oyster. Plus the changing of the seasons is near anyway.」
「I want to cook in the future, so might I lend a hand?」
「Alright. I’ll teach you lots and lots.」
Readily consenting to Aearis’s request, Haruna taught various things to her. Aearis, who had taken whatever opportunity she could get during her stay under their protection, also happened to have no problem with cooking easy meals. As the others watched her unexpectedly good performance,
「Seriously? No matter what I do, I can’t even stand a chance against a princess who barely turned 11…」
In secret, Teres was quite depressed, since she was not, in fact, good at cooking.
「Are you all Makoto’s friends?」
「Yes, we are, but who are you?」
「I guess you could say that I’m…Makoto’s drinking buddy?」
It was the day of Tatsuya’s assignment. When he had shown up at the meeting place, he was approached by a female adventurer of whom he was not familiar with. She had long, chestnut-colored hair, which was unusual for a female adventurer.
「My name’s Irva. I’m the leader of the team called “Bloody Rose”, and my rank is Level 5. I should also add that my entire team is female. This time, we’ll be escorting the caravans to Kalsus alongside you and your folks.」
「I’m Katsuki Tatsuya. I guess you’d call me the main negotiator from Azuma Workshop. My rank is now at Level 8. This time around, I’ve come along with everyone other than trainees.」
Tatsuya had decided to introduce his team name as Azuma Workshop and introduce himself. Until he had heard Irva’s introduction, he had not actually realized that his team had not yet decided on a name. As Tatsuya had been registered by the Adventurers’ Association as being a specialist from Azuma Workshop, his introduction wasn’t far off at all.
「I bet it’ll be a very memorable experience to be able to work together with someone from the famous Azuma Workshop.」
A well-built, handsome man had apparently been listening in on their conversation, joining in.
「Famous? And who are you anyway?」
「Oh, my bad. The name’s Haan. Haan Sandrom. My rank is Level 6 and I’m a member of the『Deep Green Fangs』. Just like both of you, we’ll be participating in the escort of caravans to Kalsus. We do happen to have another leader, but they’re not exactly good at introductions and the like.」
「Our workshop’s leader is actually the same way, so don’t even worry about it.」
「Oh, well that’s a relief.」
Haan truly looked happy at Tatsuya’s reply. That truly showed how considerate of a person he was.
「So, what do you mean by famous??」
「Well, they make a lot of interesting things, right?」
「Can’t deny that. Although I’m not the one making them.」
As Tatsuya was getting to know the other teams more closely,
「Brother, we’re headin’ out purty soon.」
And like a moth flying into the flame, Hiroshi called out.
「Is it already that time? Oh yeah, while I’m at it, let me introduce you. Hiro, the lightweight warrior over here is the leader of the team『Bloody Rose』, Irva, and the handsome fellow over here is the negotiator of the『Deep Green Fangs』, Haan. And you two, this is the leader of our workshop, Hiroshi Azuma.」
「Haan Sandrom. Nice to meet you.」
「Irva Mille. Makoto has always helped us tremendously.」
「I’m Hiroshi Azuma. I never did done nothin’ adventure-related, but I’ll do my best to not slow ya down.」
Tatsuya couldn’t help but grimace at how many unnecessary things Hiroshi was saying about himself. Besides, even though he was just carrying it around, Tatsuya doubted that the two of them were so ignorant to not realize that Hiroshi was carrying around a heavy mace with a metallic handle. They wouldn’t consider that sort of person to be “slowing them down”.
「Haan Sandrom, was it? Heh.」
「Something the matter?」
「Nah. I was just thinkin’ that if ya had a nickname or alias it’d be『Handsome』.」
Tatsuya and Irva burst into laughter at the dumb joke. Apparently the word “handsome” was understood over here too. Haan had probably heard this a million times before, simply grimacing. In that sense, he seemed oddly adult-like.
「Anyhoo, we should git goin’. We’ll git left behind otherwise.」
「Alright. With that being said, we’ll be moving along the roadside, so I doubt we’ll have much to do.」
「I wouldn’t be so sure. Sure, it’s gotten a lot better recently, but that hasn’t stopped irregular monsters from showing up.」
「If it were that easy, then there’s no way that high-ranking adventurers like us would be hired just for going to Kalsus.」
「True, that makes sense.」
Haan and Irva dismissed Tatsuya’s na?ve optimism with their own observations. Tatsuya found himself agreeing with them.
「Well at least we have Mio, so we don’t need to worry ’bout detectin’ enemies.」
「For sure.」
As they were discussing all this, they got into the carriages allotted to them in the center. Bloody Rose was at the vanguard, while the Deep Green Fangs were at the rear. What Hiroshi’s Japanese team failed to realize was that there were two females—a tall, meager-breasted knight and a medium-built girl with black clothing top to bottom—watching them and communicating secretly to each other.
「Sensei, we have three gigantic, unidentified hawks locking on to us.」
Mio said, emerging from the canopy-less section as she looked up at the sky. It should be mentioned that even though they were working as guards, they didn’t generally walk around outside of the carriages. Their slower pace would definitely increase the risk of being attacked, so it made perfect sense to continue as they were. After all, carriages in this world, including wagons, could have their speed increased by 20 km/h on average by using magic. As a result, in order to help the groups not riding in the load-carrying trays to immediately react to anything, the caravan of merchants had borrowed horses for them to ride on. In the case of Hiroshi’s team, Makoto and Haruna would fall into this role.
In the country of Farlane, practically all large-scale thief brigades had been exterminated, so there was normally no need for escorts between Wulls and Kalsus. Even in terms of monsters, the only ferocious, agile ones that might attack carriages along the side of the road were poison wolves. However, as the effects of Barold’s plot had still remained, the risk of encountering large-scale monsters was far higher than it had ever been several years ago.
Digressing a bit, it was normal to borrow horses from the Adventurers’ Association in cases like these and return them to the association of their destination. Generally, they would lend whatever was needed in order to get to the next destination. There were also special magic tools to sense life and track people in order to prevent any absconding. Also, since insurance was also added to the cost in the event of any accidents, the cost of any added fodder for animals was probably cheaper when rented, although not by too much. With that being said, once you returned the horses safely, the money attached to the insurance would be returned to you, so for someone with a bit of money to spare, renting horses wasn’t much of a difficult thing to do at all.
「Think you can shoot them down?」
「No problem.」
She answered Hiroshi’s question by firing three arrows in rapid succession. By the time anyone was able to spot the arrows, they had already pierced through the hearts of all three birds, causing them to plummet down. Before they landed on the ground, Tatsuya activated Apport in order to draw their remains into his bag, preventing them from becoming a hindrance.
「Troll Birds, looks like. What do we do with them?」
「I say we either fry ’em, broil ’em, or make ’em into steaks or cutlets.」
「But couldn’t we also bring them back with us and smoke them? Heck, that’s what I’d prefer.」
「Or we could stew them right here.」
As per usual, the replies to Tatsuya’s question were all made under the assumption that they would be eating all of the troll birds. Particularly as of late, Makoto’s insistence on smoking the meat was as much a desire for food as it was for alcohol. It was little-known at this time, but they had been consistently roped into preparing potatoes or barley to make shochu for her needs.
「I find it crazy that no one has mentioned bringing the meat out for sale. We defeated not just one, but three of those suckers.」
「But when selling troll bird meat, you have to seriously figure out where to sell it.」
Haruna grimaced as she remarked, and the coachman did likewise in agreement.
「Now now, I haven’t forgotten about the time that we first met up with you guys and hunted that troll bird. Wasn’t it you who suggested we cook it, Haruna?」
「Well, at the time, we didn’t exactly have much in terms of food. Besides, do you even realize how difficult it is to eat all three of those ginormous things?」
「Then maybe we should just bring them to the market.」
「If we did that, we’d have to bring at least two more of them.」
「Don’t say that. We’d end up hunting down even more at that rate.」
As the Japanese party continued their nonchalant conversation…
「There are five gigantic, unidentified hawks heading this way. Can I take them down?」
「Don’t let any of them escape, now～」
True to Murphy’s Law, troll birds appeared yet again, only to be shot down upon eye contact and sucked into Tatsuya’s bag with magic.
「Were troll birds always that easy to deal with?」
「Well, it wouldn’t be entirely impossible if you had a really good bow hand……」
The Deep Green Fangs observed all of this with indescribable faces. As for the Bloody Rose members in the front, it was doubtful that they would have a clue as to what was going on. To their eyes, it would probably seem as if troll birds suddenly dropped from the sky with arrows lodged in their hearts, only to suddenly disappear, corpse and all.
「We’ll be making camp soon, so you think we could just cut up approximate pieces and eat?」
「Yeah. It’s not like them troll birds’re worth much fer their meat anyhoo. How d’ya want ’em cooked?」
「What cooking implements do we have?」
「Steel plate ‘n a pot. We can’t do most things.」
「If so, then I don’t see what’s wrong with frying them. We’d have an easy time dividing it all up.」
Indifferent to the bewilderment of the teams in front of and behind them, the Japanese team decided on their menu.
「……It’s not that I’m ungrateful to you for obtaining such tasty food, but……」
「Why do I feel so strange about all of this……」
As they bit into the fried food that had been offered to them, the two leaders of their respective teams stared in disbelief at Hiroshi and Haruna as they prepared unbelievably refined cuisine. Could this even be called camping?
「Time to alternate.」
「Alright. Thanks for the head’s up.」
「Well, that’s our role after all.」
It was early morning of the third day. Tatsuya and the others had been woken up for their part in the rotation for keeping watch, shaking off their fatigue as they went to their posts. At the time of the game, there had not been any need to set up camp in order to migrate to locations that were several days away. They had merely stayed logged in for a longer period of time, and there had never been a need to be on guard. They were not accustomed to doing any of this.
During the move from Kalsus to Wulls, and while taking detours through multiple villages and towns at that, the evenings of the second and third days at camp were by far the most dangerous. The space between Kalsus and this particular area did not have any inn towns or farming villages, so no matter what, they had to set up camp. This would be the most likeliest time to get attacked by bandits and the like. With that being said, the country wasn’t just leaving this area unchecked. In fact, they quite frequently went hunting in the mountains, so it wasn’t that likely that their group would be attacked.
Although this practically goes without saying, the quickest route of 5 days on foot was almost never used by merchants unless there was a need to transport a large amount of cargo that couldn’t be distributed by sea or there was an incredible need to hurry. This was because there was only one town along the way, as well as the fact that wagons would periodically come through from both Wulls and Kalsus, leaving almost no room for profit.
『Man, even campin’ is a lotta work.』
As they jabbered along in the party chat, Hiroshi’s team scattered off to each of their lookout posts. They definitely couldn’t just stay in one place when the carriages they were protecting covered such a large area.
『Lookouts are essential, after all. Or did you have some sort of tool that allows all of us to rest easy without staying vigilant?』
『Not with the supplies I brought. That stuff’s found in Wulls, and it’s not like it’s perfect either.』
Tatsuya found himself agreeing with Hiroshi’s logical statement. In actuality, tools to chase away weak monsters were frequently sold, but they were unfortunately expendables and quite unsuitable for the scale of this mission. On top of that, they would at most chase away weak individual monsters like troll birds, and depending on the size of the flock, there were times when some monsters would break out of the fold and charge in regardless, so it was still unwise to not have anyone posted on watch. Of course, it wouldn’t have much of an effect on bandits either.
There were certainly convenient items that could drive off more powerful monsters or be used an unlimited number of times, but nearly all of them were essentially artifacts and impossible to obtain for the average person. Although there were throwaway items circulating in the market that created a barrier against mid-level monsters, they were at most used by Level 3 adventurers when going to faraway dungeons in order to avoid excessive consumption.
As a result, it was now commonplace for even the most famous of merchants to hire an ample amount of guards when traveling by land.
『Might not look like much, but it would at least make things easier, right?』
『Welp, I can make ones with stronger effects than what they usually sell, so yeah.』
『Then how about making some, even if they’re not perfect?』
『I’ll think ’bout it.』
As they chatted about this and that, they all gathered things like herbs and firewood to pass the time while on guard. Around the time the sun was about to come up…
「Oxide circle!」
Tatsuya suffocated a rock boar that had come early out of hibernation.
「Hiro, Mio, see any others?」
Tatsuya quickly asked Hiroshi and the others as they gathered around him.
「Ain’t nothin’.」
「Nothing active within the area.」
「Then it looks like we don’t have to wake anyone up.」
Makoto said conclusively, making sure to fell the head and extract the blood from the suspended body. She then erected a deodorizing barrier to avoid accidentally calling over anything else with the smell of blood, putting it into a container and handing it over to Hiroshi. At times like these, it was best to leave disposal to an expert. It must be pointed out that a deodorizing barrier was one of the few magic skills that Makoto could use. At the time of the game, she had often used this type of barrier in order to prevent unwanted monsters from coming their way from the stench of blood.
「Looks like we got s’more meat.」
「You think we’d have enough time to make bacon out of it?」
「Heck yeah. We just gotta use a tool to accelerate maturity.」
「Okay, then let me borrow it real quick. It’s morning and I say we have some breakfast.」
Haruna said, smoking the good parts of the rock boar and converting it into bacon.
「Heck, I’ll even throw in some bird meat while we’re at it.」
「I hear ya. Throw in some cheese for smoking as well?」
「Sure, why not.」
Haruna and friends discussed things like that as they worked on making smoked food, all the while taking great care not to wake anyone up. There probably weren’t many adventurers who would smoke food in the middle of a morning vigil at camp.
「……And since no monsters were picked up by our detection magic, we figured we’d dissect the rock bear and make bacon.」
Haan listened to Tatsuya’s report in disbelief as he looked at the bacon, sizzling with a pleasant sound on the iron plate. You couldn’t really blame him for being envious of them for how much work they put into their food each and every day.
「We didn’t think there was a need to wake you up.」
「I do understand that, but even if it was just a stray, monsters are monsters. Could you maybe wake us up next time that happens?」
「Ahh, sorry. It was over in the blink of an eye and we don’t really tend to focus on minor details like that, you know?」
Tatsuya scratched his head apologetically.
「I mean, how do you even get to the point where you start thinking that way? What kind of life have you led?」
「We weren’t really adventurers to begin with, so I can’t really answer that question. I only recently registered as an adventurer, and we only do escort missions when we’re pressed for something.」
「Pressed for something?」
「Yeah, cause now we have to travel around the world, but first we thought it would be beneficial to learn pointers from people like you who are experienced in long-distance travel.」
The two leaders were intrigued as to why Tatsuya’s group was going around the world, but as the problem lay elsewhere, they decided to stay on track.
「Well, it’s true that you all seem to be beginners at escort missions, so we won’t say anything this time. Just be more careful from now on.」
「You got it. Seems like the food’s ready now, so let’s get to eating!」
Invited by Tatsuya, the two of them smiled wryly as they joined in on their meal. At the end of the day, they were after all indebted to the Japanese group.
「So you got your hands on not only a rock boar, but 8 troll birds as well? That is quite the harvest.」
「Would you perhaps be interested in buying some fur and meat off of us?」
「Of course. Why, with this much quality, we could get a 50% increase or more in profit from the Association’s sale assessment.」
「A regular assessment should be fine. It isn’t like we were perfect in how we processed everything.」
They discussed this over breakfast. It was a little hard not to exclaim about how neatly they had processed the parts. How was this, in any way, not perfect? Then again, if the leader of Azuma Workshop was with them, perhaps it was not as weird as you would normally think.
They ended up encountering a monster one more time before arrival at their destination, meaning that it was roast bear curry for dinner.
「We’re finally here～!」
「Yup, Kalsus feels a lot more like a port town than Wulls does.」
「That’s because it’s the southern entrance to the center of Farlane. In actuality, Wulls is unique in that its mountain castle merged with its port town. Most port towns around the world are very much like this in terms of scale and scenery, apart from the style of architecture.」
「Yeah, after all, Wulls is the size of about four large cities. Even I know that most ports over here are close to the ocean.」
It had been two weeks since leaving Wulls. Now that they were finally in front of Kalsus for the first time, everyone let out their opinions. After receiving the reward for their successful expedition, they had decided to take advantage of this opportunity and go sightseeing, first peeking into Kalsus’s version of Alfemina Temple, when…
「I have been waiting for all of you.」
Aearis had come out to meet them at the back entrance with a beaming smile on her face.
「Huh? Elle-chan!?」
「Why are you here in Kalsus?」
「For my trip to every land’s temple, I made sure that my first destination was Kalsus.」
「That’s one way to flaunt your power……」
Makoto let out an exasperated comment at how ridiculous this situation was. As if she had anticipated this reaction, Aearis smiled cheerfully as she responded.
「Everyone from the temple and from my family worried greatly about me, as it was my first time leaving Wulls as the priestess princess. When I told him that all of you were coming here, I managed to get ready agreement.」
After hearing her say all that with a beaming smile on her face, everyone stood speechless in defeat, accepting the situation.