Passing through the gate, we began traveling down the same dirt road I had first entered the village from.
It's only been a few days, but so much has happened.
Honestly, I thought I would miss this place more, but the truth was… I wouldn't.
Settling into the back of the carriage, I glanced to my left where Syllia sat happily with her arm linked through mine.
I don't care where I am, as long as she's there.
Pulling myself from my thoughts, I looked toward Markus, who was riding up front beside the driver.
"Hey, Markus," I called out.
"Hm? Yes, Lucy?"
"How long is the trip going to take before we reach the city?"
"Well," he began, "it's about two days until we reach the next village. After that, it's another day of travel to our final stop before we loop back toward the city. If everything goes smoothly, I'd say around six or seven days total. We usually camp along the way. There are a few spots that are relatively safe we've used before, so don't worry too much."
"Relatively safe…?" I repeated slowly, raising an eyebrow.
"Well… you know how it is. Outside the cities, monster attacks and bandits aren't exactly uncommon. But!" Markus said with a grin, "that's why we hire a group of dependable mercenaries to travel with us."
Dependable…
The moment he said it, memories of the mercenaries staring lustfully at Syllia surfaced in my mind.
No. I don't trust them.
Not even a little.
I'll need to prepare countermeasures during the trip… and especially at night.
Killing didn't bother me anymore. I was confident I could handle myself if things turned violent.
What worried me was defense.
Up until now, I'd relied almost entirely on overwhelming strength, speed, and regeneration. I had never really thought about protecting myself because… honestly, I'd never needed to.
At least, not yet.
But this was about Syllia's safety, not mine.
Maybe I should practice my magic a bit… I'll have plenty of time during the trip.
Thankfully, we were riding in Markus's carriage, which was practically empty. Most of his inventory was stored in a separate wagon to maximize comfort for passengers.
Shuffling slightly, I sat down in the center of the carriage floor. Stretching both arms out in front of me with my palms facing upward, I willed magic to flow through my hands. I didn't have a spell or even a specific outcome in mind.
I simply wanted to see what would happen.
Moments later, a strange mist wrapped around my hands. It spread outward like thick smoke, constantly shifting colors as it moved. When I waved my hands gently, the mist followed my motions, though it only drifted about a foot away before fading completely.
"Woah! That's so cool! Can I touch it?" Syllia asked excitedly as she scooted beside me.
"Sure," I replied with a small chuckle.
She carefully reached out, letting the mist curl around her fingers.
"It feels warm," she murmured, completely mesmerized. "What are you trying to make?"
"I'm not really sure yet," I admitted, allowing the magic to flow back into my body as the mist slowly dissipated. "I realized I don't really have anything for defense. Like… at all."
I leaned back slightly against the side of the carriage.
"If we're going to be camping outside, I want to come up with something before then. I was thinking maybe some kind of barrier would be a good place to start."
With a clear goal in mind now, I stretched my hands out once again. Beside me, Syllia watched expectantly, her emerald eyes practically sparkling with curiosity.
Alright… a barrier shouldn't be too difficult.
Let's keep it small for now. About a foot wide, spherical in shape, and transparent.
This time, as I let the mana flow through me, I focused entirely on that image.
Almost immediately, a light-blue transparent sphere began forming between my palms. The surface shimmered faintly like glass, rippling softly with magical energy.
"Hey, Syllia," I said while holding the sphere steady. "Try putting your hand inside."
Slowly, she reached toward it.
Just as her fingers were about to pass through the sphere, they stopped abruptly, as if she had pressed against a solid wall.
Her eyes widened instantly.
"Hey! It worked!" she exclaimed excitedly.
'Status'
[ MP: 450 ]
Okay, so fifty mana wasn't too bad.
Though, it probably wasn't exactly fifty anymore. Playing around with magic earlier had definitely burned through some of it, even if I had no clue how much.
Now let's try something different.
Dispelling the barrier, I focused once more and recreated the same transparent sphere. This time, however, I imagined an alarm woven into the magic itself.
When the barrier finished forming, I gestured for Syllia to touch it again.
Unlike before, her hand passed straight through the sphere without resistance.
But the instant she touched it—
SCREEECH!
A painfully high-pitched noise erupted, assaulting my ears.
"AHH!" I yelped, instantly covering them.
"Lucy! What happened?!" Syllia cried out in panic.
"What happened back there?!" Markus shouted from the front of the carriage.
"I-I'm fine!" I yelled back. "I was experimenting with magic and… it didn't exactly go as planned!"
"What happened to you?" Syllia asked, concern written clearly across her face.
"I tried making a barrier that would sound an alarm instead of blocking entry," I explained while rubbing the back of my neck awkwardly. "But I forgot to decide what the alarm would actually sound like, so it ended up creating a ear-piercing screech instead."
"Lucy, be careful!" Syllia scolded, lightly slapping my shoulder. "You had me worried!"
'Set the alarm next time, understood'
After that, nothing eventful happened. The ride remained quiet and peaceful for the most part. A few hours passed, and the sun slowly began its descent toward the horizon. Eventually, the carriages rolled to a stop in a small clearing surrounded by dense forest. The grass beneath us was flattened and worn, clear evidence that this spot had been used countless times before by passing travelers.
Markus climbed out of the carriage and raised his voice to grab everyone's attention.
"Alright everyone! Prepare to set up camp!"
At his command, the clearing immediately came to life. Merchants began unloading supplies and setting up their individual campsites. Some grouped together near the wagons, chatting as they worked, while others preferred to keep to themselves and settled farther away.
The mercenaries were busy organizing their own area as well, unpacking weapons and bedrolls while discussing who would take watch duty throughout the night. Markus beckoned the two of us over to where he had his gear stored, Taking out a tent he handed it to us.
"Here you two can this this" Turning around again he grabbed two bed rolls shoving them our direction as well.
Markus beckoned the two of us over to where he had his gear stored. Digging through a stack of supplies, he pulled out a neatly folded tent and handed it to us.
"Here, you two can use this."
Turning back around, he grabbed two bedrolls and shoved them in our direction as well.
"You'll have to set it up yourselves. If you've never pitched a tent before, just ask someone. Dinner should be ready in about an hour."
With that, he gave us a quick nod before returning to organizing the rest of his supplies.
I looked down at the bundle of canvas in my arms before glancing over at Syllia.
"...Have you ever set up a tent before?"
She proudly puffed out her chest.
"Of course! I used to help my mom whenever we went herb gathering overnight."
"Perfect."
I immediately shoved the folded tent into her arms, taking the bed rolls she was holding.
"You look like you've got this."
"...Lucy."
"What?"
She stared at me with the most unimpressed expression I'd seen from her yet.
"You've never done this before, have you?"
"...Maybe."
"You've never even seen one before."
"...Maybe."
She sighed dramatically, pinching the bridge of her nose.
"I swear, how have you survived this long?"
"I have overwhelming confidence."
"That isn't an answer."
"It's worked so far."
She let out another long sigh before shaking her head with a small smile.
"Come on."
Finding a relatively flat patch of ground a short distance from the wagons, Syllia laid the folded canvas on the grass.
"First, we spread the tent out."
I crouched beside her, trying to look helpful.
"So... like this?"
I grabbed one corner and gave it a hard tug.
Rip.
Both of us froze.
"..."
"..."
Slowly, I looked down.
One of the small fabric loops used to secure a stake had torn clean off.
"...I can explain."
"You pulled it like you were trying to rip a tree out of the ground!"
"I underestimated my own strength."
"You vaporized that poor loop."
"I said I was sorry..."
Syllia stared at the torn fabric for another second before bursting into laughter.
"Pfft..."
Her quiet giggle quickly turned into full laughter.
"Ahahaha!"
I couldn't help pouting.
"It's not funny."
"It is!" she laughed, clutching her stomach. "You looked so confident!"
"I was confident."
"You destroyed it in less than five seconds!"
After another few moments she finally managed to calm herself, wiping a tear from the corner of her eye.
"Alright, no more touching anything unless I tell you to."
"...That's probably for the best."
Following her instructions this time, I let Syllia handle most of the setup while I held poles in place and passed her the wooden stakes. Before long, a surprisingly sturdy little tent stood before us.
"There." Syllia dusted off her hands with a satisfied smile. "Not bad."
"I helped."
"You held three poles."
"I held them exceptionally well."
She rolled her eyes.
"Sure you did."
I couldn't help smiling.
For some reason, doing something as simple as putting up a tent with her felt... peaceful.
No fighting.
No monsters.
No blood.
Just the two of us, working together as the evening sun dipped below the trees.
...I could get used to this.