Chapter 88: (Self Edited) Calm Days

After a week.I was looking at the bear’s gallbladder hanging by the window in my room on the second floor of the village mayor’s house.

It was drying in good condition either because of the dry air or it was hung in a warm place as much as possible. There was no longer a trace of the past when it was tapped like a water bottle. The color was dark, and it wrinkled.

While chewing on the hard bread that was mixed with the leavening agent received in Reform and I baked myself, I got lost in thought.

In the end, the warring policy didn’t change, and it was two days ago that the Knights of the Rube Household began to move.

The reason why the Rube Household started around this time was that there was a logistical problem against the background of the underdeveloped distribution.

The military was costly to concentrate on at one point. The soldiers had to be fed, and the food consumed by tens of thousands of troops was enormous.

When 10000 people gathered in one place, there was no ability to support 10000 unproductive people in the area around several kilometers. If it was about two days, they would be supported by the stockpiles and local food stores, but if it was several weeks, it would have to be procured from a distance at a cost.

If there were paved roads, railroads, locomotives and automobiles, it was a matter that could be solved easily. If there was a way to transport goods in large quantities from a remote location, it was possible to keep 100000 people in the same place for a month. If they had enough money, they could bring in as much food as they wanted, so there was no problem.

However, in this world, materials must be transported by carriage on the cobblestone pavement. Of course, the army had horses, carriages and the purchase cost for that, so it wasn’t impossible to procure supply, but as time went by, they would get further and further away, and there was no way to avoid that. Therefore, by considering that the cost would increase due to that situation, there was still a limit on how much they could do.

Under such circumstances, it was good to disperse the soldiers until the decisive battle. It was for that reason that Rube Household’s troops didn’t immediately head to the battlefield and were forming camps around Reform.

To put it the other way around, the fact that they began to move to the battlefield meant that the battle was arriving soon.

When I was lost in thought, I heard a click and the sound of the door opening. I looked at the door, and Myaro was there.

“…? Yuri-kun, what are you looking at?” (Myaro)

“Aah, it’s a bear gallbladder.” (Yuri)

I said while pointing at a strange object hanging by the window.

“Oooh, is that it?” (Myaro)

It seemed that Myaro knew it.

“You got it when we caught that bear, isn’t it?” (Myaro)

“It’s my first time drying it. I’m looking forward to its completion.” (Yuri)

‘For a long time, I’ve always liked doing such trivial things. I hadn’t had a chance to do it since I became an adult, but I was raised by doing labors. This kind of thing fails if you touch it unnecessarily, so it’s better to leave it as it is.’

“Actually, I have never eaten it.” (Myaro)

‘You too, huh? I wonder if I was made to eat it when I was child because I was in the rural area. Since the body is frail when it’s as big as Myaro now, it seems that it’s not strange to give a tonic when you’re a child.’

“Ooh, is that so? I’m making it like this, but it’s really sweet and delicious.” (Yuri)

When I told a lie, Myaro put her hand on his mouth and laughed.

“Ehehe, too bad, I know it’s very bitter.” (Myaro)

“Aah, really…?” (Yuri)

‘What the… I’m disappointed. Well, that’s right, she isn’t Carol who doesn’t know the world.’

“But, it might have been interesting if I didn’t know. I wish I didn’t know.” (Myaro)

Myaro said something strange.

“Well, that may be true. Your face at that time would be a sight to see.” (Yuri)

‘I want to see what kind of face she will make.’

“When I think about that, I may expose a not-so-good-looking face to you, Yuri-kun. It’s good I know about that thing.” (Myaro)

“What’s that?” (Yuri)

I smiled unintentionally.

“Ehehe… eh?” (Myaro)

Myaro’s smile was getting slightly bigger.

“What?” (Yuri)

“Uhm… I wonder what it is.” (Myaro)

Her expression gradually became more serious.

“What’s going on?” (Yuri)

“U-uhmm… Sorry, I came to report something, but I forgot.” (Myaro)

She said in a hurry, somehow seriously apologetic.

‘Well, it’s rare for Myaro to forget about something.’

“It’s fine. It’s probably not something big, right?” (Yuuri)

‘If it’s something that she may forget, it’s probably something trivial. She may leave a handkerchief when going out, but she never goes out leaving an oil pot on fire.’

‘For Myaro, who is proud of being competent, it is an act of betraying herself.’

‘Besides, if it was a really important matter, for example, an urgent matter that requires me to take command immediately, she wouldn’t have responded to a boring chat.’

“Sorry, please verify this.” (Myaro)

“It’s fine. More importantly, have tea.” (Yuri)

I put my hand on the teapot on the desk. Then, I took a teacup from the tea rack similar to my home, and poured the tea into it.

“Here, have a seat.” (Yuri)

I prepared her seat.

“Uh… Uhm, is that alright?” (Myaro)

“It’s alright.” (Yuri)

Others in the unit seem to make work by taking care of horses, Galloping Birds and Eagle Kings, but if they haven’t moved for a week, the birds and the horses are entirely neat, so they shouldn’t be busy.

They were doing various things such as swinging with a stick, and trying to develop a youthful chatting place, but in short, they weren’t doing work as they were losing focus. There was an exception. Some people were training with their Eagle King for about an hour a day so that the eagle didn’t get tired, but this wasn’t a job.

Myaro was the one who ran around in the meantime to work, so she was working most decently. There was no need to blame for taking a short break.

“Well… please excuse me.” (Myaro)

Myaro sat in a chair.

It was the opposite seat across the desk.

“Do you want to eat?” (Yuri)

I pushed a basket of bread.

“Uhmm, can I?” (Yuri)

‘It might be fine to eat anything.’

“What? Myaro, aren’t you a bit too nervous?” (Yuri)

“Nervous?” (Myaro)

Myaro tilted her head slightly. It seemed that she wasn’t aware of it.

“You didn’t ask for my permission when eating in the dormitory dining room, right?” (Yuri)

‘Just say ‘Let’s eat’ like always, then eat. I mean, it’s getting harder to see you these days.’

“…That’s right, but we’re in the military.” (Myaro)

‘Well, that’s true.’

“It’s fine when it’s only you and me. Even though we’re in the military, we also need to take a break.” (Yuri)

‘That’s why we’re taking duty to watch at night and those who aren’t involved can drink. Yes, the others are drinking, so you don’t have to worry about it.’

“It may be true.” (Myaro)

“Or, would you like to take a break from me?” (Yuri)

“No way! That’s not true. It’s a lot fun though…” (Myaro)

“Well, then, eat it. It’s still warm.” (Yuri)

After all, the bread was freshly baked.

“Alright… let’s eat.” (Myaro)

Myaro picked up a large piece of bread, broke it in half, and put one in his mouth. As she ate with sound…

“This is… very tasty. It might be better than the baker’s bread.” (Myaro)

She said.

‘Well, ordinary bakeries don’t use butter in such a luxurious way. The dough was kneaded with butter, and cheese was put inside. After baking, I applied butter with a stronger salt effect. Perhaps, it’s a bread with high calorie, but it’s a luxurious salted butter bread with cheese.’

“Have you eaten it?” (Yuri)

“Yes. You can do anything well, Yuri-kun.” (Myaro)

For some reason, I was praised.

“You don’t have to praise me for everything.” (Yuri)

‘I never get used to being praised. I don’t know how to be happy.’

‘It’s scary to be praised. If I become proud, it will be a poison. There are people who get praised for using others for the sake of themselves, similar to monkeys climbing trees.’

‘Did you feel that way about me?’

“That’s not it.” (Myaro)

Myaro said.

“Is that so?” (Yuri)

‘I don’t think so.’

“Well, shall I try it?” (Myaro)

‘Speaking of that…’

“Eh… what? It sounds interesting. Give it a try.” (Yuri)

‘When I think about it, I’ve never been told by Myaro that I was stupid or a fool.’

“Uhmm… Yuri-kun is a lazy person, isn’t it? You have bad hair after waking up, and it’s not good to walk around after that…” (Myaro)

“Aah, is it my sleeping habit?” (Yuri)

‘When I think about it, I didn’t look in the mirror today.’

When I tried to touch my hair with my hands, I found that my hand touched the bed hair.

‘It doesn’t matter, but when I think about showing it in front of the unit members, I better keep it nice. Let’s put some water in later.’

“Ehehe, see, it’s not everything, right?” (Myaro)

‘Well… Did you plan to speak ill of me a while ago?’

“Hmm… I see.” (Yuri)

“I’m not saying something like ‘It’s cool, you’re sleeping’. Hehe.” (Myaro)

‘I haven’t heard people praise sleeping. On the contrary, it feels like you’ve been made a fool of.’

“Well, I think I’ll praise you on the contrary.” (Yuri)

‘Let’s bother her.’

“Yes?” (Myaro)

“Well, Myaro is well-noticed and smart, and above all, she is knowledgeable, well-informed. She is a person who writes her abilities in a picture and puts it in her forehead…” (Yuri)

“Ehh…” (Myaro)

“In addition, she is a hard worker, and I don’t have to worry about her betraying me. Her face looks good, and it makes me feel better. There are so many praises that it’s hard to put into words.” (Yuri) sᴇaʀᴄh thᴇ NøvᴇlFirᴇ(.)nᴇt website on Gøøglᴇ to access chapters of nøvels early and in the highest quality.

“Eh… U-uhmm…” (Myaro)

When I said that, Myaro held her face tightly with both hands and looked away.

‘What is that? Are you trying to say that you’re not here or something?’

“What is it? Wouldn’t you like to be praised?” (Yuri)

“St-stop it… th-that’s not… good…” (Myaro)

She replied with a trembling voice.

“I’m so happy that my face is… uhh… smiling.” (Myaro)

“Are you smiling?” (Yuri)

‘To the point of hiding your face? I want to see.’

‘But if I force my way to do it, it will look like I’m attacking her by holding her hands. Shall I stop?’

This stayed for a couple of minutes.

“Phew. I calm down.” (Myaro)

Finally, Myaro turned around.

‘Seriously, what was that?’

“Yuri-kun, don’t do that. It’s not nice to lie, you know.” (Myaro)

“I just said what I thought was obvious. I didn’t force myself to say that.” (Yuri)

“Oh you… Aah…” (Myaro)

Myaro stiffened as if she remembered something.

“I remember my original business. Since the horses gnaw the pails and lick rocks and trees, we don’t have enough salt. So, we have to procure it from Reform. I have given them money.” (Myaro)

It was a trivial report after all.

“Hmm, that’s fine… but sorry for letting you take care of it.” (Yuri)

“No, it’s like I’m here so you don’t have to worry about it.” (Myaro)

‘That’s another convenient story. If it wasn’t me, she wouldn’t support me. No, why would she take care of a man like me…’

“I’m impressed with your desire to work, but rest properly. Right now, I’m ’s just as good as taking too much time off.” (Yuri)

“Is that so?” (Myaro)

Myaro had a face that she couldn’t believe as if she didn’t understand.

“In a little while, we won’t be resting. Plus, the return trip may not go smoothly.  If you don’t have enough energy at that point, you won’t be able to talk.” (Yuri)

“Aah, I see.” (Myaro)

“I’m grateful with your help, but do it moderately.” (Yuri)

‘I think it’s not something for a man, who sat in a chair from daytime and watched the bear gallbladder dry, to say. That’s just how I look.’

“Yes. I understand.” (Myaro)

Without looking unpleasant, she nodded.

“Then, I should take a break. I’m going soon.” (Myaro)

“Alright.” (Yuri)

‘She will probably be going to do some work again. I respect her.’

“Well then.” (Myaro)

Myaro said so lightly while closing the door, and went out of the room. I returned to the work of immersing myself in thinking while looking. When I noticed, the bread had cooled down.

—

TLN:

Based on my limited knowledge and search on the internet, horses eat dirt and wood because they don’t get enough nutrients. It’s quite logical to think Yuri’s unit current situation in the story since they are in remote location. In relation to that, the horses shouldn’t have best meals.