Chapter 164.5: 38.5 Gaw (Interlude): Venison

With the sun down and a crescent moon dangling above, the armored carriage stops in a clearing on the edge of a forest. It’s a great place to camp, where the forest is far enough away that beasts and [Bandits] would find it difficult to attack without warning.

Granted, the group is only a day’s ride from Camelot. An attack is highly unlikely. It would take three days of travel before anything remotely dangerous would be seen.

Regardless, the threat still exists, and the [Coachman] will sleep better tonight knowing that he has taken his usual precautions.

Ferris watches the Flame Spitters as they prepare camp. Thresh, the Lion-kin, conscripts the kid, Aiden, for help and teaches him how to pitch the tents. Meanwhile, the girls gather wood, construct a firepit out of rock, and start a campfire.

Ferris turns to regard the other mercenary duo, the Merry Marrows who have yet to even take the camping supplies out of the carriage’s trunk. At first, he thought that perhaps the two needed help setting up. He offered, but they quickly declined, saying that they had it well in hand.

So now he watches the masked woman sit on a log by the incipient campfire, waiting. The masked man, Bone, had wandered off into the forest half an hour ago. Since Bone’s partner seems nonplussed, Ferris decides he can relax. If those two plan to sleep on the ground, that’s no concern of his.

So he waits. Before he can finish tamping his pipe, he hears his horses snort and wicker. Ferris looks at them and sees his steeds are still relaxed, so he stays calm. Whatever approaches isn’t a threat.

And, as it so happens, Bone exits the forest with a… deer?

As Bone comes closer, Ferris is able to make out a field dressed deer, skinned and drained of blood.

To find, kill, and dress game in less than an hour would be an astounding show of prowess from a high level [Hunter], but apparently, a [Necromancer] can do the same.

Ferris chuckles lightly, thinking about the Flame Spitters’ ignorance. They still think Bone is just a [Gentleman], which Ferris might have as well had his contract not listed the classes of those he would transport.

“I have food,” Bone calls out as he nears the group, raising up the carcass as though he’s a young [Hunter] displaying his first kill.

Which, if Ferris is being honest, might have been believable to the others if the man hadn’t skinned it already. He can already see that most of the members of the Flame Spitters feel dubious about it considering their looks.

“Is that a deer? Did you hunt a deer? That's amazing!” Aiden shouts in disbelief and excitement which causes Ferris to slightly chuckle.

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Shina can’t help but puzzledly stare at the deer Bone left under an hour ago and returns with venison ready to be spitted and roasted over the fire. She doesn’t see how he could have done that.

She sighs, trying to remember if she saw a nearby village. She very much doubts the meat was killed recently.

“How long do you think it will take to cook? An hour? Two?”.

Six, she thinks.

“Probably four, but I’m feeling hopeful. Three it is,” he says cheerfully.Shina shakes her head at this, but she keeps her mouth shut. He may have a skill or two for cooking.

Bone moves towards the blazing campfire that was prepared. He stops a meter away from it and releases a bunch of mana. She watches as his shadow shifts and squirms at his feet. Its color turns violet, then it extends from his body and surrounds the campfire.

Shina’s expression morphs from bewildered to incredulous as a grill emerges from the the shadow.

Her mouth drops open further as the shadow retracts back to his body before extending again next to her team's tent. The shadow stretches again, spreading out several meters before a new structure rises from the darkness. Slowly, it grows to one meter, two, then three. Once it fully emerges does she see an enchanted house which dwarf’s her group’s tents.

“Sorry, forgot to take care of that,” Bone says. Shina can almost feel a mischievous eye upon her, watching her reaction. She closes her mouth and looks away.

Bone turns away from the house. “Hey, Aiden! Want to help cut up the meat?”

Aiden doesn't answer.

“Aiden?”

The question is met with silence.

Only when Bone waves his hand in front of Aiden’s face does he also close his mouth and realize he was talked to.

“W-what?” he splutters.

“Meat.” Bone points at the deer.

“You.” Bone points at Aiden.

“Cut.” Bones pulls a knife seemingly from nowhere.

“Capiche?” he flips the knife and holds it handle first towards Aiden.

“How did you…?”

Bone sighs and deposits the carcass on Aiden, who squawks and fumbles to hold the heavy animal.

Bone walks to the house and enters. He returns seconds later with a butcher's knife in his hand.

“Alright, let's cut that up in chunks.”

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Feor releases an arrow that stealthily travels through the moonlit sky before landing on its target. A rabbit screams in surprise as its body is punctured. The arrow rips all the way through, pinning it to the ground. Moving quickly, Feor rushes to the rabbit and leans down over the suffering thing. He grabs its head and twists. With a crack, the injured rabbit dies without another sound.

“Another one,” he says with a smile. Feor ties up the kill’s leg with some string and then hangs it over his shoulder where it rests beside seven other rabbits.

Today has been a good day. He’s hunted two boars, a deer, and now, ten rabbits. With the sky darkening further, he feels his [Night Vision] giving him difficulty in seeing longer distances.

“Well, that's enough for today.” He turns and makes his way back to camp.

He travels swiftly but quietly, just in the rare case that he might happen upon another rabbit. Unfortunately, he does not. As he reaches the camp, he whistles so that the lookouts know his location. Slowly, he moves out of the cover of darkness and makes his way inside.

He frowns. He doesn’t see any guards or lookouts. He shakes his head and sighs. They’re probably just drinking and eating my kills, Feor thinks to himself.

He enters the camp through the main entrance and then slows to a stop. Fires are burning throughout the camp, revealing the grizzly scene. The [Hunter Bandit] lowers his posture, drops the rabbits, and unslings his bow. His hands shake as he nocks an arrow and looks around. Ripped up bodies and stray limbs have been haphazardly tossed across the camp. At the center, where one of his boars burns over a fire, the [Bandit Captain] lies dead with his own enchanted weapon stabbed through his chest.

He creeps through the camp, trying to understand why everything about the scene is so… off. Wrong. The violence, the blood, it’s distracting him from something. His [Danger Sense] isn't going off, which means there shouldn’t be any problems, and yet…

“Why?” he exclaims, realizing why it all felt wrong.

“Nothing was taken!” he yells in realization when he notices the still closed chest where the [Bandits] held their “earnings”.

He swallows. Whoever killed everyone, they didn’t do it for the money. They just wandered in and slaughtered everyone for the grins.

With shaking hands, Feor realizes that they might return. He quickly turns towards his tent to grab supplies.

When he gazes upon his tent, he stops in surprise.

Near his tent, on a scaffolding is one of the boars. This is fine, normal even. Feor usually leaves his carcasses out here while he lets their blood drain. What is not fine, not normal, is that the deer he skinned is missing.