ANOTHER day brought us another expedition. Everyone was rushing around to complete their preparations.
“Medic Risurisu!” Ulgus had chased me down.
“Oh, what is it, Ulgus?”
“Um, I wanted to see what kinds of things you bring on expeditions. That way, if you really do transfer, I might be able to help the new combat medic pack for our trips.”
“Ah, I see. Have you already finished packing, Ulgus?”
“I did it beforehand this time, since I wanted this opportunity if it came up.”
“You’re always so impressive, aren’t you?”
“No, it’s nothing!”
The two of us went to the food storage and began to pack food and medical supplies into bags.
“This is essentially what you need for one day of camping. Please take lots of nausea medicine for Captain Ludtink if you’re going anywhere by boat. If Vice Captain Velrey seems tired, you can quietly slip her some chili oil to put in her soup. Garr’s fur gets tangled during combat sometimes, so this comb should do the trick. If you can’t find a place to get drinking water, ask Sly and she’ll share hers with you. Zara has trouble waking up in the mornings, so please be gentle with him. Finally, if Liselotte is in a bad mood or hasn’t slept, brew her some of this medicinal herb tea. It makes her feel much better.”
That covered most of our bases. When I looked at Ulgus to make sure he was listening, his eyes were as wide as saucers.
“That’s amazing, Medic Risurisu. You really keep a good eye on us all, don’t you?”
“It’s my job, after all.”
“But normal combat medics don’t take their concerns for their squadmates this far. You’ve really been protecting both our hearts and our bodies all this time. I can see that now.”
Hearing that made me feel bashful. I never really felt like I was doing anything so special.
“The rest of the knights might see my efforts as nosy. I don’t think your new combat medic will work exactly how I do either.”
“Yeah, I know. So I’ll have to be the one to make sure I remember all of your attention to detail.”
“Thank you, Ulgus. Also, you should make sure to never drink unboiled water, since you get stomachaches easily. That goes for spring water too. Don’t trust it, even if Captain Ludtink says it’s all right. His body’s a lot stronger than the average person.”
“Right… Thank you very much. You’ve helped me a lot with my stomachaches.”
Ulgus got stomach cramps in many different situations, ranging from certain foods that didn’t sit well to nervous tension. When medicine wasn’t working, I gave him a stomach wrap and stuck Album inside for warmth. This was the most effective method.
“Little Album has been a great help to my medical treatment as well.”
“Make sure you keep the stomach wrap on you when you’re away, okay?”
“I will.”
If I transferred, I would have to rethink the items combat medics carried on their person during expeditions. Right now, it was mostly medicine for external wounds. But I knew there were knights who suffered from seasickness, loss of appetite, sleep deprivation, headaches, and other things that were hard to see on the outside.
Unlike wounds, they didn’t need immediate treatment and could be endured indefinitely. But that would be a critical blow to the success of their missions.
I knew I would be able to use my knowledge gained from expeditions to support the other knights in my new department. It was something I felt like only I could do. I was prepared to dedicate myself to that job.
Ulgus and I finished packing and headed to the meetup spot.
Today’s mission was to collect poisonous mushrooms growing around the royal capital. We’d learned that people had passed away after eating them on mushroom foraging trips, since they looked so much like an edible variety. The Royal Order wanted to create a reference for these poisonous mushrooms so that they could put up warnings.
“Comin’ to the Second Expeditionary Squadron over a few lousy mushrooms? We’re not exactly famous for foragin’ toxic mushrooms.”
Vice Captain Velrey was the one to respond to Captain Ludtink’s remark. “Maybe they got the wrong impression after we defeated that mushroom monster.”
“That wasn’t a monster! It was some freak in a mushroom costume!”
Capturing the creepy mushroom man had led to us being tasked with hunting for deadly mushrooms next. It was hard not to laugh at that series of events.
“Captain Ludtink, were we told what color and shape these mushrooms are?”
“They gave me ones that look like the poison kind.” Captain Ludtink pulled out a container stuffed with mushrooms.
“Oh, these grow in the Fore Elf woods too. Are the poisonous variety the ones with jet black gills under the caps?”
“Yeah, sounds like you know your stuff.”
“Of course. Ten years ago, a Fore Elf passed away when they harvested the wrong ones.”
“I guess elves and humans aren’t so different, huh?”
“So it seems.”
“If you know about this stuff, Risurisu, then that must be why they picked us for the mission.”
After a long sigh, Captain Ludtink announced that it was time to depart.
Amelia and Rih would stay at the barracks today. They saw us off alongside Charlotte, who waved goodbye.
“Come back safe, everyone!”
“Kreh kreh!”
“Kreh!”
We waved back as we left our barracks.
Today, we were walking to the woods near the royal capital. Once we were closer, we saw a particularly pointless sign that merely said, “Beware of mushrooms!”
Mushroom season began in autumn, but certain mushrooms could be harvested in summer—the exact kind that were easily mistaken for this deadly variety.
“You’re in charge of findin’ the mushrooms, Risurisu.”
“Understood.”
I would need Album’s help this time.
“But little ol’ Album isn’t that good when it comes to mushroom hunting.”
“If you find something, I’ll make you pancakes as a reward.”
“Ooh! Suddenly, I feel like the best deadly mushroom finder in the whole world!”
I laughed. You never knew how quickly Album’s attitude might change.
“Shall we get started?”
“Let’s do this!”
Mushrooms grew in damp places and around tree roots. We would probably find them if we focused on those spots.