Annabelle and I walked about thirty minutes, leaving Doz, the mercenaries, and Noela far behind. We found ourselves at a small lake.
“How’s here look for campin’?”
“Seems good to me.”
Back in the meadow, Noela had complained that she hadn’t had her daily potion yet. She’d headed home to the drugstore with a maniacal expression, and I’d asked her to take the herbs we’d picked.
“Um, so, what’s the first step?” Annabelle asked.
“You should set up the tent.”
“R-right.”
She fished through her bag, pulling out the tent she recently purchased, and started to piece it together uncertainly. She asked me not to give her advice unless she struggled, so instead of explaining how to assemble it, I just answered her questions.
As she got closer and closer to completing the tent, Annabelle whispered to herself. “This goes…uh, like that? And then…”
“Annabelle, are you sure you’re okay with me tagging along like this?” I was concerned, since the point of this whole camping trip had been for her to get alone time.
“Huh? Er…y-yeah, of course,” she replied incredibly quietly, circling behind the tent as if trying to escape my gaze.
I guess she’s fine with me being here.
Still hidden behind the tent, Annabelle finished assembling it. She cocked her head at me. “Is it…done?”
I looked quickly and gave her a thumbs-up. “All good!”
“Amazin’! It was so easy to put together. And light too!”
“We first made these tents for adventurers, so we really focused on those two things. I can promise your tent will hold up in the rain too.”
“Good stuff,” Annabelle said, looking wholly satisfied. She rummaged through her bag again, pulling out the kindling gel I recently gave her. “This can start a fire, huh?”
She was mostly talking to herself, so I just nodded mentally. “I’ll help you find some firewood,” I offered.
“Thanks a lot.”
Silently, the two of us gathered anything flammable we could find. There were dry twigs and stuff near the lake; I grabbed some and headed back to the tent. Annabelle had picked up dead weeds as well, so we probably wouldn’t have trouble starting a fire.
Annabelle used the kindling gel correctly, rubbing together the stick sections that changed color. Sparks flew onto the dead weeds, and white smoke rose. She blew gently on it; being a mercenary, she was well trained when it came to this kind of task. Soon, a tiny flame flickered from the weeds.
“I can’t believe how fast that went—without even usin’ magic.” Surprised, she looked at the sticks she’d used to kindle the fire.
“Life stones require a little magic, you know,” she added. “Folks who don’t need to fight day to day are probably fine usin’ ’em. But folks who do fight, like us mercenaries, we wanna avoid wastin’ magic. This kindlin’ gel stuff’s great that way. I’m sure an adventurer spendin’ a long time on some journey would appreciate it too.”
Huh. I’d never really looked at the kindling gel from that perspective, so it was a refreshing take.
I snapped some twigs in half, tossing them into the small fire. “Doz was worried about you camping alone, but I don’t see why.”
“Hey, I ain’t a kid! I can at least go campin’. They’re just overly protective.” With a pained grin, Annabelle sipped a potion she’d brought.
I rolled a nearby log toward the fire. Sitting down on it, I patted the area beside me. “Come have a seat, Annabelle. I know it’ll be a little crowded, but…”
She shook her head. “I-I’m all right over here.”
“You sure?” Annabelle was sitting cross-legged, and I could tell her legs were starting to ache. But if she says she’s fine, she must be fine.
I noticed that the mercenary captain had left her bag open. There’s something big and brown in there. Hmm… I stared, curious, until I finally figured out what it was. Two big, brown round ears… I could be wrong, but is that a teddy bear?
Annabelle stared wistfully into the flames. “Sittin’ here on the ground, lookin’ into the fire, reminds me of my days as a wanderer.”
Seems like she’s gonna start talking about her past…but I’m so curious about that teddy bear.
“Before Lord Valgas hired us as security, the Red Cat Brigade went all over, protectin’ different towns from bandits and the like.” She tossed another stick into the fire.
She’s reminiscing about the past with a somber expression, yet she brought a stuffed animal along.
“Back then, we were constantly stavin’ off hunger with water, and sleepin’ outside was the norm. We hardly ever bathed properly. Just gettin’ an occasional dip was more than enough.”
Then the one thing she definitely didn’t need was a camping trip! She’s lived such a wild life, yet she’s got that teddy bear with her, I mused. Why? Is she lonely? You know…maybe she’s someone who wants solitude but actually hates being alone?
Annabelle sipped her potion—although, given the atmosphere, some whiskey would’ve been perfect.
“Did you know Lord Valgas already when he offered the Red Cat Brigade the job?” I asked.
“Nah. We just happened to be in town. When Lord Valgas heard, he reached out to us. An’ there were times I wondered why we took this job. Workin’ in Kalta paid practically nothin’, compared to how much the Red Cat Brigade used to earn.”
Yet she and her men were still protecting the town.
Actually, how old is Annabelle? Doz and her men call her “Boss,” but that doesn’t necessarily mean anything in terms of age. Could she be over thirty…?
Annabelle paused, glaring at me. “What’s on your mind, pal?”
“N-nothing.”
“Anyhow, the Red Cat Brigade wound up stickin’ around. The pay’s crap, but Kalta’s a nice place.”
“I totally hear you.” Everyone in town was kind. Kalta lacked a lot of things, and it was hardly bustling, but for some odd reason that didn’t bother me.
“The men don’t seem to have an issue with it,” Annabelle added.
“As long as you aren’t guzzling down the potions, right?” In exchange for spreading the word about my prototype products, Annabelle received complimentary potions from the drugstore every day.
“Don’t bring that up now.” She changed the subject. “Hey, Pharmacist…how’d you end up here? If you don’t want to talk about it, uh, you don’t have to.”
She clearly didn’t want to push too hard. We’d have never discussed this stuff back at the drugstore, but when you were sitting in front of a campfire and had nothing to do, you wound up talking about things like this.
“I don’t mind,” I replied, then quickly thought about how to answer.
There was no way Annabelle would believe that I’d teleported here and received a medicine-making skill. So, I kept that bit secret while I described my fateful encounter with Noela. Annabelle interjected now and then as she listened.
“So, you’ve never been to the royal capital, Lindog?”
“Nope.” I’d honestly traveled very little outside Kalta.
“You should check it out sometime. You might learn from the medicine for sale there. Hell, in your position, I’d sell my products to stupid nobles in the capital for an arm and a leg,” she told me, giggling. “You could be out doin’ stuff like that, but instead, you’re here in Kalta makin’ products to help people. You’re sure a curious fella. I respect that.”
“I haven’t done anything praiseworthy,” I replied. Honestly, being complimented directly like this was kind of embarrassing.
The royal capital, eh? I’d like to go someday. Back in Japan, I hadn’t been on many trips, so there were plenty of countries and cities I’d never visited.
“Normally, this is kind of hard to ask someone, so I’m gonna ask it now,” Annabelle began.
“Yeah, sure. What is it?”
“A-any plans to get hitched someday?”
“Huh?” The question was so unexpected that I had no idea how to respond.
Is this the magic of camping? Annabelle and I had discussed stuff we’d never typically have chatted about, like our pasts. Now, we were even dipping into our private lives. Earlier in the conversation, she said I wouldn’t have to talk about anything hard, but…
“I-I don’t have a partner.”
“Really? I figured you’d have your pick.”
“No, no, no!” I cried. What’s she talking about?!
“You’re pullin’ my leg.”
“What about you, Annabelle? Nobody special in your life?” I shot the question back.
“Nuh-uh.”
That was fast as hell. “I think you’d make a wonderful wife,” I told her. She was thoughtful and caring, as well as tough, thanks to her time as a mercenary.
“Wha—?!” Annabelle turned bright red in embarrassment. “I-I’m gonna punch you!”
“Why?! I complimented you!”
“Shut up.” She poked the ground with a flaming stick. “You think way too highly of me. I’m so bad at cooking, the guys worry about me!”
“You could just learn to cook. Nobody’s good at that stuff from the get-go.”
“Th-they aren’t?”
I shook my head.
Just as the sun began to set, Noela sprinted toward us in her wolf form, carrying a bag on her back. She’d probably followed my scent.
“Groo!” As she reached Annabelle and me, she slipped into human form. “Mealtime, Master!”
“You came to tell me? Thanks.” I stroked her head gently.
“Mina cook. Look delicious.”
“Now that’s exciting.”
“Here, Red.” Noela pulled out some kind of meat dish wrapped in a crust of bread and bamboo leaves. “Eat. From Mina.”
“Jeez. Looks like I owe her one.” It didn’t seem like Annabelle had a plan for food while camping, and she graciously accepted the meal.
Doz and the others had wanted me to look out for her, but at that point, I decided she’d be fine on her own. “On that note, I’ll be going, Annabelle.”
“Sure. I appreciate your help.”
“My pleasure.” She’s got her teddy bear, so she won’t be lonely.
Noela waved. “Bye, Red!”
“See ya later.” I nodded to Annabelle again, walking away, and heard her whisper to herself behind me. “He’s never gettin’ married. He’s basically already…”
“I’m hungry. Let’s book it, Noela.”
“Groo! Leave to Noela!” She switched into her wolf form.
I hopped on her back, and we raced across the fields as dusk set over Kalta.