Chapter 144 - [Bonus ] 144

Xiao Chen and his warriors set up their camp near a small stream that flowed down from the mountains. The water was clean and safe to drink as they spotted a few wild animals drinking from it. They erected a defensive camp filled with a ditch that was in a half circle while scattering a few caltrops beyond the ditch to slow down any raid that might happen.

"What are you making?" Adhalia approached the little goblin who was to cook their meal for the night. There were large pots that were placed atop three stones while fire was blazing under them. The little goblin was stirring the contents of the pots one after another as he fed firewood upon the fire from time to time. "Rice...and ugh...soup with meat..." Grogus answered, then ignored the female human who was following him around while he visit each pot.

"Hmmm... Did you learn to cook these things from the chief?" Adhalia questioned as he trailed behind the goblin. Grogus just nodded his head in reply as he remove a few firewood from under the pot that was in front of him to reduce the flames.

It took Grogus a few hours to cook enough food for all the warriors that joined the chief. "Food! Ready!" Grogus shouted as loud as he could and Aro'shanna came storming in with a huge container and a sizeable cup in her hands. She removed the lid from one of the pots and scoop a lot of rice and almost filled the entire container that she has with the rice.

Smiling happily, she proceeded to the pot where the soup was cooked and removed the lid and filled her sizeable cup with the soup before turning away to find a place to enjoy her meal. Aro'shanna hummed a tune while she moved away, which made Adhalia raise an eyebrow at her actions.

"Come on, get yourself something to eat before they arrive." Draegh'ana said as she came forward with bowls in her hand. She handed to Adhalia two bowls of different sizes, one bigger than the other. "Which one to fill with which?" Adhalia questioned. "Up to you..." Draegh'ana ignored her and fill her bigger bowl with the soup and the smaller one with rice.

Adhalia watched at the smiling Draegh'ana, who was walking away while being contented with the food. She was taking sniffs of the delicious aroma of the soup while finding a good place to eat. "Oh yes, I almost forgot. Where is my request?" Draegh'ana turned around and asked Grogus. The little goblin pointed towards one of the pots that was set aside and walked away.

Draegh'ana removed the lid of the pot and there they were, roasted meat, plenty of them. Unsheathing one of her swords, she pierced a few pieces and put them in her bowl atop the rice. Adhalia stared in disbelief at the huge mound of meat that was piled up on Draegh'ana''s bowl but then her disbelief went up another level as the female orc put down her smaller bowl on the ground then pierced more roasted meat with her sword then mixed them on the soup. "Hmmmm... Smells really good." Draegh'ana muttered as she sat beside the pot containing the roasted meat.

Shaking her head, Adhalia proceeded to serve herself her own meal before heading towards where Draegh'ana was happily enjoying her meal. Grogus came back with an enormous bowl that was divided into four parts and a sizeable cup. He filled the bowl first with rice then headed towards where the two ladies were eating. Using a knife which he uses to cut ingredients, he pierced some roasted meat and place them on the plate before heading towards the pot containing the soup and scoop some of it before walking away.

"For a little creature, he sure eats a lot." Adhalia commented in between bites. "That's for both him... And the chieftain." Draegh'ana clarified while putting roasted meat inside her mouth and chewed happily.

"I smell roasted meat." a voice came from behind them. Turning around, the two ladies saw the towering Aro'shanna taking in a whiff of the roasted meat which was left uncovered by Grogus. "Meat! Mine!" Aro'shanna said, and she carried away the pot, leaving the ladies speechless.

The Rakshas, trolls and Yurakks came flooding in as they formed a disciplined line and patiently waited for their turn. They can't do much since it was Galum'nor guarding the pots, and he was the one serving them the food. After having a satisfying meal, the warriors of Yohan went to their respective resting places, but they didn't remove their armors as they were ordered to remain on alert by their chieftain.

Inside his tent, Xiao Chen had a nagging feeling that something wasn't right, which made him uncomfortable and kept him wide awake. He laid there on his bed, which was an animal skin that was spread atop the cold ground. The uncomfortable feeling that was plaguing his mind ever since they erected their camp never went away, which made him give the order to his troops to remain on high alert.

Tossing around his bed, Xiao Chen was lost in his own thoughts as sleep seemed to be eluding him. This kind of feeling that he was experiencing now was totally the same as what he felt before they were assaulted by the fallen goblins under King Jaadul while they were in the forest.

There were sentries posted all around the camp to keep an eye out for potential attacks. Darkness reigned as the night critters came to life to begin their activities like they normally do. The sentries spotted a few nocturnal creatures busying around, but they kept themselves away from their camp. Some unlucky creatures of the night became victims of the scattered caltrops as their legs were pierced by the pointed irons, which causes to them to yelp and howl in pain while limping away.

Since he can't fall asleep, Xiao Chen headed out of his tent and went on a stroll. Glancing around the camp, he saw the tents of his warriors and he could hear their snores while strolling around. Raising the flaps of one of the tents, he peeked inside and saw his warriors fully dressed in their armors while hugging their weapons in their sleep.

Raising his head, he stared at the gems of the sky as they twinkled from time to time to show their majesty to those who were paying attention to them. The crescent moon that was shining down upon the darkness and driving it away, albeit only by a little.. Breathing out a heavy sigh, he continued on his stroll and saw the sentries still wide awake and dutifully keeping watch on the surroundings.