Rog went to prepare the meat while Red watched over the flames. The boy was never told what he should actually do other than just observe the campfire, but eventually, Eiwin approached and instructed him. The youth learned he had to add more wood to keep the fire burning at an appropriate temperature, not too hot and not too cold.

 

It was a strangely difficult task at first, not knowing how the flames would react when more fuel was added. Eventually, though, the boy was able to comfortably keep the campfire at an appropriate level with Eiwin's instructions.

 

Ten minutes later, Rog came over to the fire carrying an iron pan on which a large piece of meat covered in a multitude of spices was laid. The man put the pan to roast over the campfire, setting it atop a couple of long branches. At that point, Red was relieved of his duty and was told to sit at the side and wait. He could already smell the aroma of cooked meat rising a few minutes later, and the youth couldn't help but feel his mouth start to water.

 

Eventually, Narcha rejoined the group, her armor and hair still dripping wet. Once she saw the meat almost ready, she rushed over to her bag, grabbing a dark glass bottle from within.

 

"Guess what else we found with them?" The warrior smiled as she approached the campfire.

 

With a popping noise, she uncorked the bottle using her hands and took a large swig of a red-colored liquid that spilled over the sides of her mouth. With a satisfied sigh, she used her arm to wipe her face and laughed.

 

"I wonder how a bunch of bandits managed to get their hands on wine from the god damn Empire." She said, throwing the bottle towards Rog.

 

The man quite eagerly swiped the item from the air and took a swig of his own. If Red thought the woman was already a messy drinker, then he didn't know what to call the hunter.

 

"Haaa, it's been years since I've had a drink this good..." Rog commented, savoring the taste.

 

A few seconds later, he noticed the boy looking at him with a curious gaze. The boy himself was actually quite interested in what they were drinking. He was about to ask them to taste it, but the man was able to read his intentions.

 

"Want some, kid?" He asked with an ugly smile. "Here, take it!"

 

The man threw the bottle towards Red. Just as he was about to grab it, though, someone else snatched it from midair before it could reach him. Eiwin looked at her two companions with an angry gaze while clutching the bottle in one hand.

 

"Oh, you want some too, Eiwin?" Rog laughed. "You just needed to ask!"

 

Unlike the hunter though, Narcha's expression was laced with worry once she saw the younger woman grabbing the wine.

 

"Wait, Eiwin, just pass the bottle her-"

 

With a crunch, the glass shattered as Eiwin squeezed it between her fingers, and the remaining red liquid spilled onto the ground.

 

"No!" Both Narcha and Rog bellowed at the same time, but it was already too late.

 

The younger woman wiped her wet hands in her clothes before walking back to sit by Red's side as if nothing had happened. The boy frowned and looked at her, confused by the sudden turn of events.

 

"That liquid contains a poison inside of it." She explained with a serene smile on her face. "It's an addictive substance that inhibits clear thought and messes with your senses. You should never drink it."

 

When she put it like that, the youth thought she had indeed done him a favor. He certainly would never willingly ingest poison into his body. Strangely enough, though, her two other companions didn't seem to share his opinion.

 

"You- you..." The warrior incredulously stared at Eiwin. "Do you know how expensive that was?"

 

"If you didn't want it, you could have just given it back!" Rog yelled at her, shuffling through the glass shards while on his knees.

 

Eiwin looked completely unphased.

 

"One should refrain from drinking alcohol for it is the cause of heedlessness." She simply said with a wise tone and pointed at the fire. "The meat is burning."

 

"Agh!" The hunter screamed, fumbling to his feet to attend to the iron pan.

 

Red's confidence in this group's ability diminished by the second.

 

...

 

After the boy had stuffed himself with what was perhaps the most delicious meal he had ever eaten, Eiwin approached him again.

 

"We need to change your bandages and apply the medicine." She said, showing the items she had in hand.

 

"Medicine?" Red furrowed his brows.

 

"Yes, for your infection."

 

He had almost completely forgotten about that.

 

"...Give it to me. I can do it myself." He replied after some hesitation.

 

"Are you sure?" Eiwin asked with a skeptical expression. "The paste hurts a fair bit and you can't even move your other arm. Wouldn't it be easier for me to help?"

 

"It's fine, I can do it." Red insisted.

 

The woman, however, still seemed to doubt him.

 

"If he thinks he can do it, let him do it." Narcha said from the side while polishing her steel saber. "Kid needs to learn the price of being stubborn."

 

"But..." Eiwin continued to hesitate, but once she saw the youth staring at her with the same resolute eyes she ended up relenting. "Fine, but if it hurts too much, don't hesitate to ask for help."

 

With that, she handed the boy the bandage and a wooden container. Red examined the paste, comparing it with what Viran had handed him in the mines before. Other than the consistency and the uncomfortable smell, though, there were not many similarities between them. No longer hesitating, the boy started to undo the loosely wrapped bandages around his ribs first.

 

The region of the injury still looked very purple from the bruising, but the youth had been so absorbed by other concerns during the day that the pain barely bothered him. Whenever he breathed too deeply, though, the discomfort was still there and the area was very tender to the touch. He slowly smeared the paste over the injury, until it was properly spread. Sure enough, there was a very sharp burning pain that surged around his skin, but it was not anything he wasn't used to. Next, he bit into one end of the bandages and grabbed the other with his functioning hand, wrapping it around his chest.

 

The process was awkward, but Red knew he shouldn't wrap the area too tightly anyways. So in the end, after fumbling around for a bit, he still successfully managed to bandage the injury with a loose wrapping.

 

Next was the hardest part - the shoulder. This wound was nowhere near as painful as his ribs, but the absence of pain was exactly what concerned the boy in the first place as he still had limited feeling over his left arm. This worried him a lot, but there was nothing he could do right now other than treating it properly.

 

Taking off the bandage from the area, he was greeted by a particularly gnarly sight. The place around the wound had swelled, and there were still bloody scabs and yellowish pus over the areas where the shattered bone fragments had pierced through the skin. The boy had seen worse injuries in the slaves, but this was the worst one he ever had on his own body. It was jarring to see, but Red was quickly able to fight through the feeling.

 

With added care not to pop any of the abscesses, he spread the paste over the wounded areas. The painful sensation was almost immediate, and it gave the youth pause. Some feeling returned across the shoulder, but it wasn't anything he felt compelled to celebrate. The sensation was agonizing. Still, through gritted teeth, Red continued to smear the medicine on the wound until he was sure he had gotten everything.

 

Then, he slowly wrapped the bandage over his shoulder until it had completely covered the injury, repeating the same process from earlier. Fumbling around, the boy finally tied the dressing in a knot, finishing the arduous process.

 

With a sigh, he leaned back in relief. However, he noticed gazes staring at him intently.

 

Looking over, he saw the two women observing him in bewilderment.

 

"...Have you done this before?" After an extended silence, Narcha finally decided to speak.

 

"A couple of times." Red replied truthfully. "Never had a wound this bad, though."

 

Another prolonged moment of silence.

 

"Kid, what the fuck have you been doing?" The warrior spoke up once again.

 

"Miss Valt!" Eiwin interjected. "That's beside the point. What matters is that he knows the basics of healing and first aid, isn't that right Red?"

 

"I suppose." He answered.

 

Hearing his positive answer, she smiled.

 

"Well, then, it's getting quite late, isn't it? We should be getting ready to sleep."

 

The woman turned around, going over to her bag and picking up a large rolled-up piece of brown cloth.

 

"Here, you can use my bedroll tonight." She said as she stretched the thick blanket in a nearby spot in the clearing. "You don't need to worry about me. I'll be taking the first watch and use Narcha's bed once she takes over for me."

 

"Hey, I didn't agree to that!" The warrior protested.

 

"What, would you have me sleep on the ground?"

 

At that Narcha hesitated.

 

"What about Rog?" The taller woman looked at the man.

 

To their surprise, he was already laying down on top of his bedroll with his hood pulled over his head. The faint sound of snoring could be heard coming from his direction.

 

The warrior gritted her teeth.

 

"Fine! But that's just for today."

 

"Great!" Eiwin smiled. "So you should be going to sleep as soon as you can, Red. It's important for your recovery.”

 

Red stared at her. Sleeping in the presence of others was something that he didn't feel comfortable doing at all.

 

"Okay." He replied, going over to the bedroll and tucking himself in.

 

The woman seemed taken aback by his direct compliance and looked at her taller companion in surprise.

 

Narcha shrugged.

 

The two of them stared at the boy who had already closed his eyes. They waited in silence, busying themselves with organizing the camp while closely monitoring the youth. Once enough time had passed and she was confident he was asleep, the warrior looked at her companion with an annoyed expression.

 

"I told you there was something strange about him." She said.

 

"Quiet..." Eiwin shushed her. "If you want to have this conversation, how about doing it somewhere where we won't wake him up?"

 

"Fine." Narcha agreed and got up.

 

Both women distanced themselves from the almost burnt-out campfire, moving to the other side of the clearing.

 

A few seconds later, Red opened his eyes, wide-awake. He could hear some murmurs of conversation, but they were too far for him to make out clearly. He didn't intend on sneaking over either, so he could only lay in bed and pretend to be asleep again.

 

Ten minutes later, the women returned to camp. Narcha went to lay in her bedroll, while Eiwin took watch as promised.

 

A few hours passed during which Red carefully observed and listened for the group's movements, waiting to see if they did anything suspicious. However, the warrior and the hunter seemed to be truly asleep and the younger woman didn't approach him during this time.

 

Only then did the youth allow himself to relax. He did not show it, but he was truly tired after a whole day of walking. At the very least, it didn't seem like he needed to worry about being murdered in his slumber.

 

With that, Red finally let sleep overtake his consciousness.