68. On the Road
68. On the Road
The road to the West.
It had already been several days since we left Frostgard.
The dog sled glided across the endlessly unfolding snowfield.
The sound of the wind cutting through. The rough breathing of the huskies.
There was nothing but the white horizon and us, running across it.
I held the reins at the very front, turning the direction.
In the seat right behind me, Lucia sat with only her eyes peeking out, buried deep under a thick blanket.
Beside her, Leona stood alert in a stiff posture, ready to draw her Holy Sword at any moment.
And at the very back, wedged between all sorts of supplies and sacks of food, was Eris.
"Hey, you black guy!! Slow down a bit! Eris-nim is freezing solid over here!"
"If I slow down, our arrival will be delayed."
"What's the point of arriving early if I arrive frozen?!"
"Freezing increases the preservation period."
"Are you serious with that metaphor right now?! Are you looking at Eris-nim as a food ingredient!?"
At any rate, it was peaceful.
"Shut up. If you don't like it, get off and run."
Leona cut through Eris's grumbling with a sharp word.
"Telling a small, precious, and fragile beautiful girl like me to get off! You bloodless, tearless, violent Hero! This is a human rights violation!"
"What fragile beautiful girl? You're just a wicked witch."
The banter between the two pleasantly broke the silence of the snowfield.
I heard the sound of Lucia chuckling from inside her blanket.
Yes, this was it.
A picnic with the heroines.
Laughing together, eating together, and heading toward our destination together—a normal daily life.
I didn't know how long this peace would last, but at the very least, I wanted to enjoy this moment.
It was then.
Kwaaaaang──!
A familiar roar echoed from the other side of the snowfield.
A white mass as large as a house revealed its silhouette dimly through the blizzard.
"Is it a Frost Bear again?"
Leona reflexively stood up, her hand moving toward her Holy Sword.
"Wait."
I raised one hand to stop Leona.
Then, I stopped the sled.
Ppodeudeuk.
I stepped off the sled and onto the snow.
It had been a while.
Frost Bear.
Mornings in Frostgard always began with this fellow.
Waking up in the morning, going on patrol, putting a Frost Bear into an eternal winter sleep, and then slicing its meat to put on Lucia's breakfast table.
Since that routine was gone, the start of my day had felt strangely empty.
I reached my hand out into the air.
Woong-woong.
Black aura condensed, and the two-meter-long Abyssal Sword materialized.
The Frost Bear stood up on its hind legs and raised its massive front paw.
Kuooooo-!
That's a good cry. If the lung capacity is large, the meat quality is also good.
Seogeok.
A light snap of the wrist.
A black trajectory cut through the air, and the Frost Bear collapsed onto the snow before it could even finish its roar.
"......As expected, the hand-feel is top-notch."
I de-summoned the Abyssal Sword and looked down at the fallen Frost Bear.
This thick belly fat. These chewy front paws. The broth that gets richer the longer you boil it.
They say the West is a warm and plentiful place, but that unique, firm texture of the Frost Bear is a delicacy that can only be tasted in the North.
Parting is always sudden.
Frost Bears do not inhabit the Great Western Forest. They cannot live in a temperate climate.
A farewell to the Frost Bear, the icon of the North.
......Goodbye, Frost Bear.
You were sufficiently delicious.
"Um, Knight-nim......."
Lucia spoke up cautiously.
"Are you... going to take the meat?"
"Of course."
I nodded.
"It will become your blood and flesh. Tonight's dinner is boiled Frost Bear belly."
"......Hiik."
Lucia pulled her neck into her blanket like a turtle. Her green eyes scurried away.
She's so happy she doesn't know what to do.
As expected, my cooking is perfect.
I loaded the thick chunks of meat onto the sled and set off again.
Traveling together, I felt the distance within the party closing.
Lucia was looking forward to my cooking and enjoying herself.
Leona was reliably guarding Lucia.
Eris was......
"......It smells like blood! Disgusting! You black guy, throw away that bear meat!"
Well, she was faithfully performing her role as luggage.
All relationships were cruising along perfectly.
The balance was good.
I felt a deep sense of satisfaction with the balance of this party as I gripped the reins.
The sun went down.
There were no villages nearby. According to the map, we had to go another half-day to reach the nearest settlement.
We chose a campsite under a rocky ledge at the edge of a coniferous forest, a good spot to avoid the wind.
"No mana reaction nearby~ No magic beasts, and no signs of people. Safety is good-good-good!"
Eris finished her search, scattering pink light from her fingertips.
She was indeed competent.
Equipped with various functions such as searching, construction, administration, and combat support.
The all-purpose witch, Eris.
Jjuuuk-
Eris stretched.
"Aaaaah~ This is great! So this is what a world without work is like! No paperwork, no walls collapsing, and Lucia-eonni isn't knocking on my door at dawn with approval documents!"
"......Eri, was I really that bad?"
"The world does not know Eris-nim's pain!"
Still, Eris seemed to be in a fairly good mood since the journey began.
Was it because she was liberated from the paperwork and civil engineering work she was constantly hounded by?
Just then, Eris's backpack wiggled.
Jjik!
From the gaps in the backpack, things like white cotton balls poked their heads out.
They were Snow Squirrels.
"......What are those?"
Leona asked, furrowing her brow.
"Ah, these? They're Eris-nim's personal guard! Cute, right?"
Eris stroked one of the Snow Squirrels with her finger.
The squirrel chirped jjik-jjik and took a salute-like posture on Eris's hand. It was clearly practiced beforehand.
"They're magic beasts. Why did you bring them?"
"I didn't bring them, they followed me because they were drawn to Eris-nim's fatal charm! These kids are Eris-nim's elite unit! Scouts! Skirmishers! The Snow Squirrel Special Forces!"
In reality, they probably just followed her to eat the cookie crumbs Eris dropped.
It was a combination that suited Eris quite well. Using small animals for reconnaissance or guard duty wasn't a bad choice.
'They'll be quite useful. They're small and fast, and they seem to be in sync with you. Good job bringing them, Eris. Our party's strength has increased by one more.'
I intended to praise her for bringing them.
[Threaten Roll Success]
"They can be used as emergency rations."
Jjik!? Jjik-jjik-jjik?!
As soon as the words left my mouth, the pack of Snow Squirrels screamed in unison and retreated back into the backpack.
Tak!
The backpack lid closed from the inside, and the entire bag began to tremble like an aspen leaf.
"Eeeeeek! What are you doing to my cute personal guard! You barbarian! Why would you eat a squirrel!"
Eris pointed her finger at me and was furious.
No, I was just giving a compliment mixed with a joke.
And didn't I value their practical worth quite highly?
"......Knight-nim, I won't eat those squirrels."
Lucia muttered in a small, crawling voice.
"Don't worry. You have to finish the Frost Bear first."
"......Yes."
Camp preparations proceeded smoothly.
I was in charge of the campfire.
I cut down a conifer of appropriate thickness in one go with the Abyssal Sword, then chopped it into firewood size.
Then, I placed my hand on the pile of wood and released a tiny bit of aura.
Pa-aaat.
A spark flew, and soon a red flame flared up.
Campfire complete.
The smell of burning wood and warmth spread around.
"It's warm......"
Lucia held out both hands to the campfire.
This was it.
A campfire.
A heroine.
And the night sky.
The classic direction of a Romance Fantasy.
In the North, there was no such leisure.
Every day was a battle, every day was a crisis, and we had to constantly cross the threshold of life and death.
But the setting of a journey made these events happen naturally.
As expected, traveling is good.
Now, all that was left was the tent.
Everyone's gaze converged in one direction.
Toward Eris.
"......Why. Why are you looking at me."
Eris took a step back.
"Vines."
Leona requested shortly and clearly.
"Where on earth did Eris-nim's labor liberation go!!! You said it was a picnic! A picnic! You said I'd be free once we left Frostgard!!"
"No one ever said that."
"It was passed unanimously in Eris-nim's internal brain meeting! Why do I always have to be the one working!"
"Please. The weather is very cold. The wind is blowing hard too. Hmm?"
Lucia clasped her hands together and sent a desperate look.
Chorong-chorong-
There was no way Eris could withstand that gaze attack.
"Ugh......! That, those eyes! Get those eyes away! Fine! I'll make them!!"
Eris gnashed her teeth, but eventually rolled up her sleeves and stood up.
Jjik-jjik.
I heard the Snow Squirrels snickering.
Entering foreman mode.
"Hmph, hmph! A witch who pitches tents!"
Pink thorny vines rose from the ground.
Cheok.
Cheok-cheok.
Cheok-cheok-cheok-cheok.
The vines stretched out using the rocky ledge as a pillar. The branching vines wove into each other, forming a roof. The thorns were embedded on the outside, doubling as a defensive function.
In an instant, two vine tents that looked quite sturdy were completed.
The quality was such that they could almost be called temporary houses.
"There, all done! Is this enough?"
The problem was the number of tents.
There were two tents.
There were four people.
Hmm?
"Lucia-eonni and I will use this tent!"
Naturally, a situation where we had to sleep in pairs.
"Then you two, the Black Knight and the Hero, use that tent!"
"What!?"
Leona stood up in shock.
"Wait, that's a bit......!"
Lucia also looked clearly flustered.
"Hah? What's the problem? Men with men! Women with women!!"
For Eris, it was a natural arrangement.
Since Leona was publicly the Hero 'Leon'.
"No, well, if you just make one more..."
"You're asking me to make another one now? You should have said so from the start! No! Eris-nim is tired!!"
Eris yelled out loud.
Leona rolled her panicked eyes, checking the atmosphere.
"......I will stand guard all night. I don't need a tent. I'll sleep outside."
Sleeping outside in this biting Northern wind?
For a normal person, it would be the perfect way to freeze to death.
No matter how much the Hero has the protection of the Holy Sword, it's obvious her condition would deteriorate.
The rest of the party members is the duty of the party leader.
'Don't overdo it, Leona. Sleeping outside in this cold will ruin your body. It's only natural for party members to rest under the same roof. I am a harmless Black Knight. I won't hurt you, so please come in and rest comfortably.'
I tried to speak in a kind, reassuring tone as much as possible.
[Charm Roll Failure]
"Are you running away? Are you that afraid of being alone with me?"
The words that flowed out were a blatant provocation, far from kindness.
Heh-heh.
A mocking sneer was even added to it.
Leona's eyebrows twitched.
"Who's running away!?"
She flared up and pointed her finger at me.
"Do you think I'd be afraid of someone like you?! Fine! We'll just sleep together then!"
"Um... will it be okay?"
Lucia looked at Leona with worried eyes.
"Of course. In fact, it's better this way. I can keep an eye on this Black Knight fellow to see if he tries any funny business."
Naive Hero. She falls for provocations too easily.
"Knight-nim...? You're really just going to sleep...? Right...?"
'Don't worry, Lucia. Leona is a precious comrade. Do I look like someone who would mistreat a comrade? We're just going to sleep, so rest assured and get some sleep. I'll make you something delicious tomorrow morning.'
[Persuasion Roll Failure]
"Do you want to join in too?"
"Hiik! N-no! That's not it...!"
Lucia's gaze darted back and forth between me and Leona.
"Great, is this settled then? Problem solved!"
Eris clapped her hands in delight.
At any rate, it was good.
A golden opportunity to build a friendship with the Hero.
Of course, the fact that Leona's face had turned strangely pale must have been because of the cold.