*Chatter*
In the middle of the site, Rudy and I is bunching up with Sir Greg's adventurers bunch.
Hard going as they may be, his group is rather quite nice towards us two who shouldn't be here in the first place.
*Clatter*
The tent is reminding me of the base-of-operation kinds that is most often portrayed in strategy and tactics inspired works, like the Three Kingdoms of the East many kinds of adaptation that is quite long-lasting, as they are cone-shaped with the exit covered by another layer of curtains and it was one of the largest of the camp installments around this site, having 2 big mats for them to sleep in with their equipments just beside the tables. 'Do they have a carriage to bring these tables from the Guild, or someone chopped some trees with someone's approval? I just don't get it, honestly, and I hope it's the former rather than the latter… Except if they're old or are 'Monsterized' trees'
There were candles stored down the tables for their gatherings, hinting to me that this has been going for days on end before Father Paul or someone others posted a job for this particular event, like the Headmaster of an Adventurers' Guild.
And while they are talking about strategy of luring traps and party formation, I was meddling by my own self as Rudeus is outside with Mister Laws, going Sightseeing to what all the folks around here does and Wears alongside Sir Greg and another buff member of his group. 'What is up with him being that thirsty, God's Sake?'
*Whirring*
And so for the meanwhile, I'm left with some members of Sir Greg's party inside while two of them observes the process and results of my magic casts, currently forming a torpedo-shaped rock.
*Thud*
The thing I made isn't too heavy, but the quality of it's glistening lines and concrete texture is surprisingly fine made as days before when I asked for Father Paul to smack my creations that differ from a wide and empty flat tablet, mini golems, and later monster figures like goblins or orks. Though, they are still behind Rudy's ongoing Collections, which had me baffled on how much time he spends to make them and why.
There is the man who shook me a little back then, which is surprisingly the most welcoming of their party, and it doesn't take long for us to warm up to him.
Roya :"…. *Sniffs*. Uh, Come Again?". Roya here is being bewildered of how I cast without chanting, as I told him how I do it and what it requires, and he writes it in a Notebook of his that he keeps at his chest pockets.
Looking closer, his face has some scars like it was scorched at one point, resulting in him having an eye patch on his left one to hide the Terrible Look he's having, which resulted in only making me more and more curious to what kind of story he hides behind that scar. Banding on his bowl head haircut is a specially made cloth that displays the image of their team of a hawking falcon, since their name is Asuran Falcons, and it gets no more straightforward than that.
Dressed in the fashion of brown sleeveless shirt with chest pockets and some leather pauldron on both shoulders that straps some herbs, throwing knives, smoke bombs and other miscellaneous stuffs on the straps, which reminds me of what Japan's Shinobis in rumours and stories brings as their load-out. Somehow, despite the cold setting in the middle of the day, he wears black shorts and a pair of brown running boots and it's because that because he's the most active of the party, he runs here and there, and sweats and tears, which made his clothes torn apart at points and so he came up with such clothes.
I wipe my face from the exhaustion of teaching dumbed down materials that I learned alongside Rudeus and the content of the Magic Manual book.
Me : "Again, you concentrate on the making of whatever you're creating, like what I did just now Earthen magic starting from how you shape clays to ceramics and the likes"
He hears me out loud and clear, and make notes of what I said in his own words.
Roya :"Mmhm…"
*Scribbling*
A woman figure is peaking behind his back, as she looks at me dumbfounded and not caring to learn this.
Belva :"… Uh, ye~ah, ain't gonna know what that means from the get-go, yeah… ". This woman is the kinds of the easygoing and her accent that was like she comes from countryside doesn't help either.
Belva, a straight short-haired woman have some of her motive-focused earrings dangling to both her ears, with tanned skin and freckles on her country-like face that holds her orange eyes that kind of scares people away, including me when I get to see her the first time, but her attitude makes me feel safe like having a guardian while walking on the market hold your hands.
Wearing a chainmail that goes from her hips, her knuckles, up to her neck over her sleeveless thick orange blouse with two green crossing patterns that covers up to her neck with a pauldron for her left shoulder. Like any standard adventurer that knows to not show their body, she wears a crimson red casual pants and gray running boots, and to me is that it's telling itself as the company of Roya's fashion colors.
Her eyes are beaming with some mischievous idea that sparkled for just a second.
Belva :"… Say, towboy". The term 'towboy' here is used by her as he is the one who stays behind and weigh them down in combat, but he is the one who's pulling them in terms of scouting and positioning and other minor stuff the others are not able to pull off in their place and position in the team.
The scribbling stops as he glances at her while tapping the pen at his cheek.
Roya :"Yes?"
Belva points at a section of Roya's notes as she looks from above his head.
Belva :"So what's this one means?". She belligerently lets her front touches Roya, pulling out her bodily charms.
Roya :"Ahem… W-w, We~ll, it's ab-about the im~ages that you should, try to think about…". He's stuttering from the peer pressure of her front Weapons, as his eyes switch places here and there.
She looks at me and winked one of her eyes, making me unsure if it's as a thanks for putting him in such situation or just wanting to show off a prank on him.
Belva :"Like~?". She puts the pedestal on the next level, bulging him down as he is barely able to keep his head leveled.
Roya :"The-, the… Eyn…?". He looks at me with his puppy-like stares, requesting for backup.
Unfortunately though, since he is already got locked within her grasp, I can't really do anything as a 3-4 years old kid.
Me :"Well, the air feels hot inside here, so…". I wave at them while giving a thumbs up behind me.
Roya :"Eyn~…". I hear the sound of a whimpering dog that is within its predator's reach.
Looking at them one last time, it's like he's still not ready on raising their relationship up to the next level before opening the curtains to the exit.
'Sorry, man, it's just that she just looks, sounds and feels like she really does have the hots for you'
*Rustle*
As I step outside, the presence of people is diminished by half compared to when we came with the horses, as they are now on the hunt to the beasts nearby.
Even as a young child, my hearing, and brain memory that carries over from Earth serves me justice, as I am able to make out what they're saying and gather information while 'playing' with magic.
Barbaric as it may be, everyone here doesn't bring any food with them, they Hunt for them nearby and it also helps that the ones that are most recently seen around here are canines and other fanged four-legged creatures.
Belva :"(faint) Welp, what's the answer then, sweetie~?". Even from outside, my ears unfortunately still is quite effective as I hear that she might be readying herself to lunge at him sexually, with her voice sounds like she can't hold it in anymore.
Roya :"(faint) Ngh… Just wait for a moment for that, please…". Roya sounds like he doesn't even want to try to resist anymore now that I might be gone from here.
Not wanting to hear whatever kind of action they'll be taking, I walk around the site with the tents severing the ways I can walk forward to.
There is at least 5 tents, and since everyone here is in the formation of 3-man-trio, 4-man-squad, and/or 5-man-party, that'd make it be around 20 personnel or more, and there's a reason for why there is that many persons around here.
Supposedly, at some point in months or weeks at the very least, would be 'Awakening' some kind of mutation of the nature around here, and that includes the floras as Treants, 'Monsterized' trees with limbs of its branches, attacks anything within its sight and doesn't discriminate what kind of living creature it strikes at, so long as they have Mana within them. Again, almost everything in this world have Mana as its life force, so we need to keep it at base and exterminate these mutations, and that's where the Adventurers' Guild for requesting assistance inquiring these trouble comes in. 'Not sure if I get to choose between Earth or this world, I'll be conflicted since both will have many kinds of their ups and downs'.
*Tweet, t~weet!*
Sounds of birds from the forest is heard communicating with an uppercase tone, and that isn't a good sign with me who've been in covert operation at some lush jungle with swamps of crocs, and birds will usually chirp that way when they see the sign of danger that can harm them.
So either that they are disturbed by the people hunting, or a beast is running amok somewhere around these parts. 'Where is Rudy, anyway? I don' t see women with uptight clothes so it can't be that he followed them to see the jiggle physics, right?…'
*Thump*
Rudeus :"Oww! What's with that shield, Ethan?!". I hear Rudy hurting from just around another empty ground from the right, like a part of some Adventurers are keeping their senses sharp and their weapons trained while the other group's away, hunting.
I get to follow where his voice comes from, as I look at the bonfires behind me where people used to gather with logs of woods as the seats, is now diminishing and only a handful of them are around.
*Crunches*
With the sound of the leaves being stepped, I arrived at some oddly bright barren grounds of the forest, with three adults standing around and discussing something as another adult is holding a shield with a kid that holds a proportionately unfit of a wooden nor metal sword, it is an 'Earthen' sword.
Rudeus :"My Hands~…". Rudy is there, sticking his rough Earth magic-made sword to the ground, admitting defeat from his opponent.
A buff midget, or more knows as Dwarfs, is standing there with his chest and shield mighty up high, and he approaches him with a caring look.
Ethan ;"'Least ya put a good dent at me shield, ja?". He drops his shield as he goes behind Rudy and massages his body that is in pain, namely both his hands that are having tremors for the meanwhile.
Ethan as a man who is looking in his middle 30s, has some freckles like Belva on his face and the same eye color, though being a dwarf, naturally he is having long beards inside of a bead wearing down to his chest.
Unlike the other member of Sir Greg's bunch, he is the most armored of them all, as he is buffier than Sir Greg himself and is only shorter by a foot tall. Wearing a brown-painted armor with linings of yellow and black from his open helmet to his feet. There are pockets circling at his waists to his front, filled with some Potions of Healing and Mana-recovery, and Oils(?) for reasons I don't really get at all.
He puts his hands away after massaging his backs and arm muscles, in which Rudy cools down himself from their 'play'.
Rudeus :"Still, *Inhales*, at least this means I can go and see what the other Adventurers is doing without protection, right, Father?". Apparently, without inviting me over to his plan, he wants to go and see what the armed personnel here does when they're not chilling.
Father Paul looks at Rudy with a disapproving and Stoic look while he was having a discussion with Mister Laws and Sir Greg, maybe overseeing the current situation of what is now going on.
Paul :"No, Rudy. You're not qualified to be alone, and it's not like you'll be asked to Skin the Hides from these beasts, don't you?"
Rudy, who is still not accepting this, tries to plead for Father Paul's approval while tugging his clothes after walking to him.
Rudeus :"No, but still, I want to see what the Adventurers are doing just a little-"
Paul :"NO. Oh, what am I going to do with you, Rudy". Father Paul shakes his head as he covers his face from not knowing what to do in whatever situation he's currently having difficulty with.
Still being shaded by the trees and floras around me, I walk forward to their direction while watching my steps as the ground is a little steep with the rocks all hiding on the curves of this land.
*Snap*
When I lift my shoes, there are twigs that I unconsciously stepped on, and I hear the sound of an object being put in front of a string from their direction.
Greg :"Who's There?". Turns out to be Sir Greg that drew his Bow within two seconds, and I can't help but wonder what kind of training he does to achieve such result.
As I step out of the trees' shades, I show myself with both hands in the air, as I look they lower their guards against recognizing who I am.
Me :"Sorry for that, I got bored inside the tent"
Ethan :"Wasn't there the company of both Roya and Belva?". Ethan gather with the other adults as he looks to what they're having at on some table.
Me :"Well… The atmosphere was also… He~ating Up, you can say". I said what kind of situation that might still be happening as of now.
Everyone squints at what this means, and Ethan in a spur of the moment widen his eyes when he deciphered what kind of meaning I hid within those sentences.
Ethan :"Those Wild Hogs!!". He picks up his shield, running to the direction of the camp as he is concerned whether they'll be ascending from Teens to Adults with almost nobody around the tent.
With him now out of the talk, I approach the other while I look at Rudy who's exasperated, with sweats dropping from his chin.
Paul :"Well then, Laws, look after them for me". Even though I just arrived at the scene, Father Paul and Sir Greg is leaving while wearing their gear and putting some paper back to his cloaked clothes, maybe his front pockets.
Mister Laws waves at them as he sits there with half-opened eyes, smiling.
Laws :"Sure do, just go to the front and pinch those big pigs for me!". Father Paul waves back at him while walking beside Sir Greg despite not seeing Mister Laws, and they then vanishes from our sight. "Call out for me when you kids want to ask for something, I'm going up". As what I expected of an Elf, the expertise in climbing and surveying the surrounding as he has his bows and his quivers unlocked while jumping to a shaded branch of a tree near us two.
The table is now all empty with no one sitting around them, and I approach Rudy on his condition.
Rudeus :"Hey, *Exhales*, there"
Me :"Hey. What do you think we should do now?". He drops his body as gravity does the job for him.
*Thud*
As he rests his body with the dirt, he tries to lift his head as to see me in the eyes.
Rudeus :"Beats Me, man. *Panting* ". Though, they fall just as fast as when he lifts his head.
With the air actually getting hot since it's the middle of the day, my mind suddenly got itself a moment of brilliance when I look at Rudy's sword.
Rudeus :"OY, why do you look like you're about to suggest the Worst thing possible At this moment?". When Rudy calls out to me, I noticed that my face is tensing up with a big, wide grin.
*Whirring*
And since he now notices this, I manipulate Mana onto making another Earthen sword.
Me :"You know what this means, Don't You?"
Rudy looks at me, and sighs heavily as he stands and lifts his swords for what we're about to do.
Rudeus :"Tch, supposedly this is why I don't like Extroverts like you"
Now that he is steadying his body from the exhaustion, I ready myself with my sword on the front like a spearhead.
Me :"Unlucky you, I guess. Ready Yet?"
He breathes out a deep one, and is now focused as he looks at me with a raging fire within his eyes, and does the same stance as I do, and his left foot is on the starting point of sprinting.
Rudeus :"*Sighs*. Come On Then, You Unfathomable Freak"
*Whoosh*
Even with the calm wind bracing us, the air is only getting hotter and hotter.
At that time, loads of dust and ashes are scattered on the ground from both sides as the result of our secret training with the Earthen swords, away from Father Paul and the others : Duels of Fellow Reincarnates.
. . .
