Break
The investigation of the mana ore mines had been initiated by the McCreed family, and several reinforcements were to be dispatched from the Knights Order, but finding Gary among them came as a surprise.
“You came, Gary.”
“There haven’t been any major conflicts lately, so I figured I’d lend a hand to a fellow comrade. Miracca wanted to come too, but she got called away to escort the Minister of Foreign Affairs on a regional inspection. She was really frustrated about it.”
“Just knowing she feels that way makes me happy enough.”
Just having people who care means the world to me right now.
It seemed the decision to set up camp had been made early, and several tents had already been erected. Some people were already starting meal preparations.
“A while back, Knights Order meals used to be all about ‘just give us meat!’ but lately they actually try to balance the nutrition.”
“I heard the mess hall of some country's Knights Order became really popular.”
“Oh yeah, I’ve heard of that too. Wasn’t it the country with the famous farm located inside a dungeon?”
“That’s the one. Apparently, we’ve started copying them and hired professional chefs. Though, I think the cook in that other country was an adventurer first and foremost.”
“An adventurer and a cook… now that’s impressive.”
“And rumor has it she’s also a cute girl. Envious, right? Meanwhile, our Knights Order kitchen’s full of gruff old men.”
“But they’re skilled, no doubt about that.”
“Yeah… can’t be too picky, I suppose.”
As we prepped the vegetables for dinner, Gary and I chatted idly about this and that.
Looking straight ahead, I spotted Elina playing with Amira.
Watching them like that, they really did seem like close sisters with a large age gap.
The Knights Order members swiftly and efficiently completed the setup of the camp.
This was the kind of thing we’d practiced as part of training, so I guess everyone had the routine memorized.
Before long, dinner was ready and served—bread, soup, and a hearty stew with meat as the main dish.
“Finally, time to eat. I could almost say I became a knight just for this… well, that might be a stretch, but it really is that good.”
“Yeah, I get what you mean.”
Gary happily bit into the bread and meat, then washed it down with soup.
Amira, watching him, tried to mimic him, but Elina stopped her, saying, “Only Senior Gary could eat that fast.”
Beneath the beautiful starry sky, it was a remarkably peaceful moment for a campaign involving the Knights Order.
It felt like the entire Abbott region was under some kind of magic that brought about this tranquility.
If the whole world were like this place, maybe wars would never break out.
That thought just naturally crossed my mind.
What do you think about this chapter?
