Chapter 142

The students and faculty continued their journey and arrived at the campground before orange even tinged the sky. In the middle of the forest, there was a clearing that stretched about one hundred meters in diameter. Nonetheless, the area’s limited use had attracted overgrown weeds that rose high above their heads. Deeper within, some even began to resemble full-grown trees. First, Cayna and the other adventurers made sure the coast was clear. “Get lost.” At her imperious command, the weeds scurried away like small frightened animals and relocated to elsewhere in the forest. Adventurers and students alike witnessed the wondrous phenomenon with mouths agape. “Leave it to the high elves to control nature. That was nuts.” “I wasn’t too sure if I could pull it off,” said Cayna. “I’m surprised this worked out, to be honest.” “Thanks. I feel real safe now!” Cohral replied sarcastically while everyone else stood frozen in front of them. Once the Swift Horses had regained their composure and confirmed the area was secure, the students rushed in. Apparently, someone in the past had run on ahead and diffused an aroma to attract the monsters, so a minimum amount of precaution was necessary. “Why spark terror like that…?” “I don’t know the full details, but the weeds release a noxious smell when uprooted. Thanks to that, the monsters came runnin’. It was pretty rough.” “You witnessed it? Thank you for your service.” “The monsters weren’t too bad, but that stench alone was a nightmare.” “Even our clothes reeked!” Laughter rose from the Swift Horses as they conversed. Dealing with the stench sounded far worse than fighting the monsters. As for the terrorist responsible for this noxious mess—after ducking into the forest to watch their victims suffer, they were severely injured by a horned bear that attacked from behind. It was a pretty foul story. The students used this past tragedy to better arm themselves. However, Cayna listened closely to the trees around her and confirmed no monster threats lurked nearby. “Being a high elf must be so convenient.” “There are pros and cons,” said Cayna. “I can also hear the screams of the forest straight into my brain.” “Ack.” The students set to work while Cayna spoke with the Swift Horses. Once the instructors divided everyone into three teams and assigned each a specific role, they set to work. One group began pitching the tents that would serve as their sleeping quarters; another left with Cohral, the Armor of Victory, and the teachers to procure water from a nearby stream. The remaining group went to gather firewood in the forest with the Swift Horses. “Hey, can’t we sift through whatever those clumps of weeds left behind and burn that instead?” “Ms. Cayna, we can’t just use raw wood right away.” “No problem. I can evaporate the water in an instant.” “That won’t do us students any good! Please don’t bother!” The teachers and some of the students had placed a spell barrier around the campsite. Unsurprisingly, Myleene and Lonti remained inside the camp. Since Mai-Mai saw Cayna as their last line of defense, she inevitably stayed back as well. The three Imperial Knights took the luggage from the wagon and opened it flat on the ground. It started expanding into a large two-room tent that stretched five meters in every direction, and several metal poles built the framework. It was complete within twenty minutes. Cayna peeked inside curiously. “Ohhh, nice,” she said. “I feel like I’ve seen this somewhere before…” “The concept isn’t so different from our old world,” said Ark. Thoroughly impressed, Cayna brought up examples she’d seen online while Ark produced tables and such from her Item Box. The three Imperial Knights had apparently divided the interior furniture between themselves and brought it along in their Item Boxes. One room was a dining space, and the other was for sleeping. Only players and Foster Children could transport furniture in this extraordinary way. “Sakaiya carries similar items, though, so they aren’t too difficult to obtain.” “Oh, this one is pretty common. I thought it was a special nobles-only item.” “I heard a player who loved camping first proposed it.” “Huh. Maybe I should ask Caerick.” They prepared quickly, and Lonti had brewed tea by the time Myleene entered the tent. Cayna was invited to join them, but she declined since she was supposed to be on guard duty. Ark and the other two Imperial Knights alternated in shifts, with one person inside and two outside, so Cayna’s responsibilities were elsewhere. “Well then, what to do?” While Helau and Sfult kept a close eye on the area, Cayna had Wind Spirits silence the weeds’ screams. The voices of the weeds were distinct from those of the trees, and she could clearly sense their sorrow. Still, that didn’t mean she enjoyed listening to it. One can’t silence feelings with a simple breeze, however, and the gossip-loving Wind Spirits who prattled on excitedly were only a temporary consolation. The three Wind Spirits Cayna had summoned at the start of their journey were all level 110. Each was a semitransparent green and looked like a beautiful little girl who stood about four heads tall. As the spirits twittered and danced around Cayna, they would sometimes use her hair or sleeves to play tag or hide-and-seek. It was clear they were following the students’ example, but evidently the summoned spirits weren’t supposed to be quite so visible. Moreover, anyone unlearned in magic shouldn’t have been able to hear their whispers, let alone catch their appearance. Invisibility was out of the question back in the game, so Cayna and Cohral hadn’t taken much notice. She tried to come up with an excuse, but students and faculty alike had already deemed her an eccentric who employs powerful spirits. Silence alone had already put wild ideas in everyone’s heads, so Cayna did nothing more than stare off into the far distance. The group who had gone to fetch water soon returned and began their dinner preparations. The students’ tents were shaped like toppled triangle prisms and large enough to accommodate four or five people. White-and-brown-spotted animal hides covered a framework supported by slender yet firm lumber. In the meantime, preparation and surveillance of the area was handled exclusively by the students. Although Ark and her fellow Imperial Knights had been assigned to protect the princess, the entire purpose of this event was to help the students gain experience. The camp supervisor and older men even told Cayna to keep the Wind Spirits’ assistance within moderation. Since not everyone could use such convenient methods, logic dictated it wouldn’t benefit the students to rely on them. This wasn’t Cohral’s first survival event, and he told Cayna the adventurers wouldn’t have much to do except kill time or maybe teach, unless there was an emergency. She decided to play it by ear. “I’ll admit my idea of camping is pretty heavy-handed,” Cayna said. She scrolled through her memories as she watched small bonfires light up near each tent for dinner. Every camp outing so far had been summons-centric: A Fire Spirit to make a woodless campfire and keep the flames burning. A White Dragon to use as a naturally fluffy bed and blanket. A Brown Dragon to keep watch, since she couldn’t use a Charm Barrier. Cohral noticed Cayna standing around with a blank stare and grew suspicious. “Hey, Cayna. Don’t you have a tent or something?” he called. “Or are you gonna stay with the princess?” “Absolutely not. What kind of guard would I be if I slept the night away?” “You’ll crash and burn if you go nonstop.” “Then I’ll just cast Sleep Be Gone.” Even so, this skill wasn’t ideal, since it promised to knock you out for several days afterward. “You can’t really join a bunch of gross dudes like us, but what about the Swift Horses in the girls’ camp?” “Nah. I’m a part of this group, too, so a pelt is enough.” “…A pelt?” Cayna dispelled the Wind Spirits and startled nearby onlookers when she cast another white magic circle. “Come, White Divine Beast!” “Wait, wait, wait, wait! What do you think you’re summoning?!” Cohral shouted as he tried in vain to stop her impromptu decision. White light poured from a summons circle, and an enormous snowy mass appeared before Cayna. It had a fluffy coat you could definitely bury your head into. All present—with a few exceptions—stared in wide-eyed shock. Their jaws practically touched the ground. The creature appeared to be a weasel. It was six meters tall and covered in pure white fur. Despite a commanding size, it looked much like any normal weasel. The biggest difference was the second pair of eyes above its normal ones. “Kyuuu,” it squeaked adorably. The white beast bowed to its master Cayna, then stood on its hind legs. Its whiskers twitched as it surveyed the area restlessly. All the while, the weasel didn’t forget to wrap the thick, luxurious tail that took up a third of its body around her. One breathless, petrified bystander after another shriveled up and fell to the ground under its sharp four-eyed leer. Myleene peeked her head from the tent to investigate the commotion and stared at the white weasel incredulously.