Chapter 107

First Camping Experience (2)
When we got back to the tent with the fish, I thought we’d start preparing them right away, but apparently there was something to do first.

"Alright then, normally after settin' up camp, you'd gather more supplies or scout the area, but we've been to this here forest before, and today's all about campin'.

When you're campin', you use this here 'monster-repelling incense.' Comes in different types, since I put up a barrier, I use this powdered kind and toss it in the fire, but in parties with folks takin' turns on watch, they often use the stick kind.

On the roadside camps, they've got anti-monster magic tools set up already, so you don't need no incense."

As he said that, Dad took out something that looked like crushed leaves in a bag—mixed with bits of wood, kind of like incense.

He tossed a couple pinches into the fire, and a faint, refreshing scent drifted through the air.

"Won’t it burn out right away?"

"It burns slow in the fire, so the effect lasts about two hours. But since we've got them barrier tools, it's good to use it when you're outside the tent like this, doin' things."

Apparently, the barrier tools are set to the minimum necessary area, so the campfire space isn’t included. That’s why it’s better to use monster repellent during things like cooking dinner.

While explaining that, we took apart the cooking set, filled the deep pot with water, and set it to boil.

We hadn’t brought a cutting board, but Dad made a platform with earth magic and cast Clean on it, instant cooking station.

Instead of a kitchen knife, we used a dismantling knife to keep baggage minimal. The two of us cut open the fish, removed the guts, rinsed them lightly, and sprinkled salt.

It didn’t seem like a fish that yielded valuable materials, so we filleted them into three pieces, dropped a chunk of butter into a shallow pan, lined up the fish, and started cooking.

"Vio, what about them magic stones? Well, fish ones might be smaller than them Horned Rabbit ones, though."

When I first came to this world, I’d been nervous dissecting rabbits and wolves since they felt like monsters, but with fish, I actually had memories of doing it before, so I’d been casually tossing the guts aside.

… Right. These are monster fish too.

We’d been cutting smaller fish first, so the guts from the biggest one were on top. But which one’s the heart? I poked around, guessing, and found a magic stone smaller than a Horned Rabbit’s. If even the biggest fish only had one this size, finding them in the smaller ones seemed tough.

"I’m giving up on the small ones."

"Haha, fair enough. Hardly anyone bothers lookin' for magic stones in fish anyway."

Even with Horned Rabbits, that had been the case.

At home, the kitchen counter is too high, so I can only help with prep, but here we made our own workspace with earth magic, and with the campfire instead of a stove, I got to help cook. That made me happy. A vegetable-loaded milk soup, salt-grilled fish, butter-sautéed fish, and the bread we brought.

"Dad, I thought camping meant just chewing on dried meat. I didn’t expect this much cooking. I’m surprised."

"Ah… well, yeah. Most folks probably do just chew on dried meat…"

Dad scratched his cheek awkwardly. So this wasn’t standard.

Well, it was standard for Dad when he was a high-ranking silver adventurer, apparently, but beginners don’t have that kind of leeway. Most people can’t even cook in the first place.

"I couldn't stand eatin' nothin' but dried meat. Learned cookin' from my ma, and wherever I traveled, I'd eat somethin' good and practice makin' it myself over and over.

Thanks to that, I got pretty darn good at it, and eatin' proper meant I didn't slow down even in them dungeons."

Apparently, most adventurers treat food as just basic fuel, enough to keep moving. In dungeons where they stay for days, dried meat is the norm to keep baggage small.

And yeah, you’d get sick of it. Morale drops. (Honestly, probably malnutrition too.) Their progress slows, and once everyone hits their limit, they head back to the surface.

Dad couldn’t handle that, so he carried ingredients as long as his Magic Bag allowed. Well, food gets used up anyway, and since he was in a party, his teammates could carry the materials from monsters.

By eating good food and recharging every time, Dad’s group was apparently really good at dungeon exploration. They used to return when they ran out of water, but now that water creation magic exists, they could probably go even longer.

I’ve never had dried meat, but it’s probably like jerky. Might be tasty occasionally, but every meal, every day? No thanks. I’d rather manage my load and cook properly.

"Dad, I wanna be an adventurer who eats good food too. My bag stops time, so if I prep vegetables before storing them, I can save space, right? When we reach silver rank and go into advanced dungeons, let’s prepare a lot before going!"

It might be dangerous now while I’m still a beginner, but once I reach silver rank and gain enough strength to enter higher-level dungeons, this Magic Bag will really shine.

I’ll need to organize what’s inside eventually, but I want to make full use of it. When I declared that, Dad just laughed and agreed.

After dinner, we couldn’t take a bath, but we used Clean to freshen up.

Dad was fine just doing it nearby, but for me… first outdoor bathroom experience, so I went a bit further away.

Clean makes it fine, but still, taking clothes off without a proper room feels embarrassing. In dungeons, apparently there are times when you have to do it with your companions turned away.

Yeah… in a dangerous place, stepping away alone and getting caught in a trap and dying isn’t funny at all.

I heard that the adventurer’s cloak, a required piece of gear, is also used to cover yourself in those situations. Pretty practical, honestly.

After brushing my teeth, I kept my adventurer gear on, just taking off my dagger and putting it in the Magic Bag. The whip stays as a belt. Dad didn’t bring any weapons, so he just looked like he was in regular clothes with a cloak.

Once we put out the fire, it got completely dark.

Dad poured mana into the barrier tool at the tent entrance, and with a faint *kiiin* sound, a thin membrane formed around the tent.

I carefully reached out… and my finger passed right through it, like nothing was there.

"Hmm?"

"What’s wrong?"

"No, I thought once the barrier was up, we wouldn’t be able to go out either, but my finger just went through, so it surprised me."

"Ah, well, it'd be mighty dangerous if you couldn't get out from inside. Keeps things from gettin' in, but you can still skedaddle out."

For example, if a large barrier is set up at a roadside campsite and bandits or thieves are already inside, no one would be able to escape otherwise. So it’s designed that way.

"Then if you go outside after setting the barrier, like for the bathroom, you wouldn’t be able to get back in."

"Hah, hah, that's true. Usually once the barrier's up, folks don't move around much, so I never thought about it, but yeah, better be careful.

I'll tell the magic tool shop to mention that when sellin' 'em."

When there are many people, they usually take turns keeping watch, so they don’t even use barriers. If they do, they set up four points and make a larger area, including space for bathroom needs inside.

If there’s only one person on watch… well, no one’s looking, so you just handle it there and Clean up.

Good thing I drank less water so I wouldn’t need to go in the middle of the night.

Inside the tent, once we closed the entrance, it was really warm.

I used my cloak like a blanket, and with Dad giving me an arm pillow, it felt like being wrapped in a natural fur blanket, extra warm.

I wanted to hear more about camping precautions, but between Dad’s steady heartbeat and his warmth, my eyelids kept getting heavier.

Ah… I didn’t even do my mana control training today.

"Night, Vio. You just sleep easy now."

With him patting my back like that, there was no resisting it. I don’t even know if I managed to say goodnight before I drifted off into sleep.