INFINITE - 31!
"B-but Princess—"
"It's fine."
The princess walked toward Juro gracefully before giving a polite bow.
"Thank you, kind sir, for helping us."
Juro waved both hands casually.
"It's fine, it's fineee. I'm just glad you two didn't crash."
-----------------------
The older man let out a nervous sigh before speaking again.
"Yes... and we are sincerely grateful."
Bell quietly observed the carriage from where he sat.
His eyes narrowed slightly after noticing the crest engraved onto its side.
"Ah... so they're from the Kingdom of Nerlarnd..." he thought. "Last I remember, they were somewhere in the middle compared to the other kingdoms... still pretty high-ranking though."
The princess then glanced toward Bell and Marc.
Marc immediately waved at her enthusiastically.
"Hiii!"
The princess blinked for a moment before smiling softly and waving back.
After that, she turned toward Juro again.
"Are they your apprentices?"
Juro chuckled.
"Yeah, I guess you could say they're my students."
"I see," the princess replied politely. "In that case, we shall prepare your reward for helping us."
But the moment she turned around—
grrrrrrrrlll...
…
A loud stomach growl interrupted the entire conversation.
Juro and Bell slowly turned toward Marc.
Marc blinked once.
Then immediately raised both hands defensively.
"Uhhh... that wasn't me..."
The silence shifted.
Everyone slowly looked toward the princess instead.
The princess froze in place.
A deep blush instantly spread across her face.
"E-excuse me..."
Even the old man looked like he didn't know how to react anymore.
Juro suddenly burst out laughing before standing up from the ground.
"Hey, why not join us for dinner?"
The old man bowed respectfully once more.
"We cannot impose any further than this. You have already helped us greatly. Please allow us to simply reward you and continue on our way."
Juro smiled casually.
"But what about the princess?" he asked. "You just gonna ignore the fact she's hungry?"
The princess immediately looked slightly embarrassed again.
"Plus," Juro continued, "the search party probably won't arrive until early morning anyway, right? Might as well stay here for the night and have dinner with us."
Marc quickly chimed in with an excited grin.
"Yeah! That's right! C'mon, uhhh... Princess! Join us! The more the merrier!"
Marc smiled brightly at her.
The princess looked at him for a moment before softly smiling back.
"Then, if you truly do not mind... we would be happy to join you for dinner."
Marc's face lit up immediately.
"Cmere!"
He walked over toward her before suddenly giving an awkward little bow.
The princess let out a small chuckle before gracefully bowing back.
Afterward, she followed behind him toward the campfire.
Marc immediately sat down on the grassy ground before patting the spot beside him enthusiastically.
"Sit here."
"Ah! Princess, wait!" the old man quickly interrupted. "Allow me to retrieve a cloth from the carriage first so you may sit properly."
The princess gently stopped him.
"It's fine, Heth. The grass looks comfortable enough."
And with that, she sat down beside Marc without hesitation.
"Come here, Heth. You should join us as well."
Heth paused for a second before bowing respectfully.
"...As you wish, Princess."
He then carefully sat down on the ground with far more restraint than everyone else.
The princess looked around curiously.
"So... what exactly are we having for dinner?"
Juro simply smiled before walking back toward the tree.
He then brought a large chunk of ice rested near it.
The princess watched curiously as Juro carried the frozen block over before gently placing it down near the fire.
Then he extended one hand.
Mana slowly flowed from his palm before transforming into a gentle stream of warm air. The ice gradually melted away, revealing the three frozen plumpias inside.
The princess's eyes widened slightly.
"Are you perhaps a mage, mister?"
Juro scratched the back of his head with a grin.
"I guess you could say that, hehe."
Heth stared at the creatures in surprise.
"Are those... plumpias?"
"Yup!" Juro replied proudly. "Fresh too. We caught them earlier."
"You caught those yourselves?"
Juro pointed toward Bell and Marc.
"My students helped me."
The princess immediately looked interested after hearing that.
She turned toward Marc.
"How was the experience of catching those creatures?"
Marc scratched his cheek awkwardly before laughing nervously.
"Ahahaha... I almost drowned..."
The princess blinked once.
Then, strangely enough, she smiled a little more.
"Fascinating..."
Juro suddenly snapped his fingers.
"Ah! Right, the table. We can't exactly put the food on the ground."
Heth looked confused.
"The table?"
Without explaining further, Juro walked over to the massive boulder nearby and casually grabbed it.
Marc's eyes widened again as he watched Juro lift the huge stone like it weighed almost nothing.
Juro adjusted its position slightly before placing it down.
Then he took a few steps back.
Mana slowly wrapped around his right hand.
And in the very next instant…
SHNK.
The boulder split perfectly in half.
A clean, flawless cut.
Marc, the princess, and even Heth froze in amazement.
Heth quietly stared at the cut surface.
"I've met all kinds of powerful individuals before..." he thought silently. "But this man feels... different somehow."
Marc immediately ran closer with sparkling eyes.
"WOAAAHHH! The boulder was cut perfectly!"
Juro grinned proudly before slicing through the stone once more.
Another clean cut.
A few moments later, a perfectly flat stone slab remained, smooth enough to resemble a crafted table rather than a broken boulder.
Juro placed the slab down in front of the campfire before looking toward Marc.
"Yo Marc, think you can clean this up a bit?"
Marc immediately agreed and stood up.
He walked over to the stone slab before pointing his hand toward it. Mana slowly flowed from his palm, gradually transforming into a stream of water that washed away the dust and dirt covering the surface.
After finishing, Marc looked toward Bell.
Bell simply let out a quiet exhale with a small smile before standing up as well.
He casually raised one hand.
Mana flowed from his fingertips.
And almost instantly transformed into air before turning warm.
A gentle wave of heated wind passed over the slab, drying the surface completely.
The princess watched the two of them with visible surprise.
Afterward, Juro created another slab from the remaining boulder and placed it beside the first one. Marc and Bell repeated the same process without even needing to speak.
Water.
Then warm air.
By the time they finished making three stone slabs, the campsite had slowly transformed into a proper little outdoor dining area.
The remaining pieces of the boulder still sat nearby.
Juro walked toward them and placed a hand on the stone.
"Taza."
Cracks slowly spread across the leftover rock before the stone shifted and reshaped itself. A few seconds later, the broken pieces had transformed into two neatly crafted stone cups.
Juro picked them up and handed them toward Noria and Heth.
Heth blinked in confusion.
"Only two?" he asked. "What about you and the children?"
Marc chuckled proudly.
"We already have stone cups, hehe."
Juro then grabbed one of the plumpias and placed it onto one of the slabs before rinsing off the remaining dirt and grass stuck to its body.
After that, he pointed his index finger outward.
Mana gathered around the tip of his finger before forming a thin, razor-sharp mana blade.
Then.
with smooth, precise movements.
Juro began preparing the plumpia.
The skin peeled away cleanly.
Bones separated effortlessly.
Large cuts of meat were sliced apart and neatly placed onto another slab beside him.
Every motion was controlled with almost frightening precision.
The princess quietly watched in awe.
Marc, meanwhile, wasn't even trying to hide his amazement.
"Woaaahhh..."
...
After preparing all three plumpias, a large pile of fresh meat rested on the stone slab.
Juro then grabbed two long sticks from nearby along with a small rope inside at his belt pouch. He skewered a long slice of meat onto one of the sticks before placing it over the campfire to cook.
The smell slowly began spreading through the air.
The princess watched the fire for a moment before slowly standing up.
"I apologize for introducing myself so late," she said politely. "I am Noria from the Kingdom of Nerlarnd."
Heth stood up shortly after.
"I am Heth, Princess Noria's personal butler."
Marc immediately stood up with a bright smile.
"I'm Marc! I'm nine years old and I'm from Nina's Orphanage!"
Noria blinked slightly.
"I am nine as well."
"Really???" Marc said excitedly. "Bell! She's the same age as us! Nice to meet ya, Noria!"
Marc immediately extended his hand for a handshake.
Noria looked at his hand for a brief moment.
But after a second, she smiled softly and shook his hand.
"Nice to meet you too, Marc."
Heth quietly watched the interaction with a gentle smile.
Marc then looked toward Bell.
Bell noticed immediately and gave a small sigh before introducing himself.
"I'm Bell, and I'm also from Nina's Orphanage."
He gave a polite bow before sitting back down.
Noria politely bowed back in return.
Juro smiled while adjusting the meat over the fire.
"I'm Juro. I just travel around."