After two hours of horse riding, we finally took a break.
Chris-san lifted me down and stroked my back gently.
"Ren-chan, is your body alright? Does your butt or waist hurt?"
"Yeah.. More or less.."
I took out a tea set from my magic bag and held a cup of tea for Chris-san.
During our journey, I put my sling bag on the front otherwise my magic bag will obstructed Chris-san from holding me properly.
Well it was easier to grab the items this way so I didn't mind it.
No matter how big Chris-san was, I couldn't just lean all of my body weight to him.
So I had to hold my balance by using the muscle I was not used to use before that was why my body is a little bit sore.
"Is that so? Well, since there's still 2 days left before the quest started we can take our time leisurely."
Even though Chris-san said so, I still didn't want him to hold himself back for my sake…
"No, it's okay. Look, if I use [Heal] my sore muscles will be as good as new, so I'm fine!"
I immediately used my support magic to heal my body.
I could still feel a little bit tired but it was considerably better now that I've healed it with [Heal].
"Eh? So your muscle is sore after all?"
".. Yeah.. a bit. Chris-san and William too, I will cast healing magic on you two. [Heal]!"
I applied healing magic to Chris-san first since he was closer to me and then I walked to William.
He was such a good boy, even without a rope he just quietly ate the grass near us and didn't wander off on his own.
"Wow! My tiredness is gone now, amazing! Usually the ordinary [Heal] can only heal an injury, I never knew it could heal sore muscle or tiredness like this. Ren-chan, your support magic is truly superb!~"
Eh…?
I didn't know that [Heal] could only heal an injury..
Since I was not originally from Alsar, I didn't know what was the norm in here..
"Umm.. Chris-san is support magic is that rare? Will I encounter with bad people if I possess such rare skill..?"
"Rare hmm.. Well to put it simply, you're not the only one that can use support magic this good. There's the people working in the temple, either the priestess or priest. All of them also have high aptitude with support magic. Some elder in a village can also use it. It is rare but not that rare enough that you will get targeted."
I see, so it was fine.
I already attracted enough attention because I was an otherworlder.
I didn't want to attract any more unnecessary attention if I could help it.
Since there was a lot of people that can use support magic as good, or maybe even better than me, I was pretty much safe.
Maybe I was like a pebble on the side road compared to those kind of people.
Anyway, William! I'm going to heal you properly too!~
William brushed his nose to my cheeks but the force was too strong, I had trouble balancing myself.
"U-Uwaahh! William what's wrong? D-don't push me, I'm going to fall!"
Before I fell, Chris-san immediately came to my rescue.
He saved me from falling and held William down," William, calm down! You must be feeling really happy, right? I understand but calm down!"
Chris-san was really strong, he could hold William down even though William was really big.
"Happy?" I tilted my head in confusion.
"Well yeah, since most adventurer are not gentle at all, William must be feeling really happy with Ren-chan since you're so kind and gentle~"
"I see. William, even though carrying the two of us must have been heavy, we'll be counting on your help from now on~" I cooed to William as I stroked his neck.
His hair was so smooth and shiny, it felt nice on my hand.
I could see that William's hair was properly maintenanced, it was in a very good condition!
Although because William was a rent horse, he would get to meet various kind of people.
It'd be nice if it was a nice and gentle people, but of course he will also get to meet with a mean and rough people.
"William is so cool and beautiful, I want to stroke him forever~" I kept stroking William's hair, it was so beautiful!
"Well I can see that William is certainly a good magical horse but.." Chris-san suddenly came behind me and stroked my head,"I also want to stroke Ren-chan forever~"
What?
Was he trying to flirt with me?
Ah but since it was Chris-san, he was probably just teasing me.
There was no way Chris-san was seriously trying to seduce me.
"Geez, what are you saying Chris-san~ Anyway, shall we get going now?"
"Aaah, even though I want to keep stroking forever…." Chris-san said dejectedly.
He then proceeded to lift me up and put me on William's saddle then he quickly sat behind me.
Ah.. I want to be able to ride alone someday..
"Okay then, our next stop is the small lake around 2.5 hours from here. Let's take a nap when we reach the lake. Oh and feel free to lean your back on me, Ren-chan. It must be tiring to keep your posture straight like that."
"Yes, when I'm tired enough I won't hesitate to lean on you, Chris-san."
2.5 hours..
I guess it's going to be a pretty long journey.. I don't think my body can stand it..
Chris-san said it was fine to lean on him and he didn't seem tired at all but was it really alright for me to actually lean my body on him?
Even though the difference in our body physique was incomparable, I didn't want to add unnecessary burden on him..
"Fufufu~ Will Ren-chan really lean your body on me? I wonder~ Anyway I'm going to pick up the speed a little so don't talk or you will bite your tongue."
"I understand, I will leave everything to you."
After I said it, Chris-san immediately grabbed William's rein and we suddenly leapt off.
S-so fast!
It was really shaky too!
The surrounding scene was like a blur to me! If I open my mouth just a little, I felt like I'm going to bite my tongue!
Let alone talking, even just keeping my balance was already hard enough!
————————————————————
"Ren-chan, we're almost there~"
After two hours of running in that insane speed, Chris-san finally relaxed.
I was finally able to speak after the speed decreased considerably.
In the end, I did lean my body on Chris-san. Just for a little bit though!
"We're going to take a nap near the lake, right?"
"Yup yup. It's a small lake though. Let's set up a tent and put up barrier so monster won't be able to come. We will eat lunch first and then nap together after that~"
On the map, I could see that there was a small lake.
That was right, so we could set up a barrier to protect us during our sleep,huh.
I only practiced using it during battle so I didn't realize we could also use it in this kind of situation.
—————————————————————–
"Oooh! I can see it!" I exclaimed excitedly.
I could see the lake now!
It was pretty small though, probably the diameter was around 3 meters?
"We're going to rest here?" I asked Chris-san.
"Yes, since it's pretty small most monsters and animals don't come here so it's relatively safe."
I see.
Animals and monsters couldn't use the magic [Clean] so they will need to wash themselves in the water but because the lake is too small, they didn't bother coming here.
Chris-san brought William to the outer edge of the lake and he helped me down.
"Now then Ren-chan, what do you want to do? Do you want to use your tent? I can help you set it up~"
"Mine please! I want to use mine! I want to try using my tent!"
Ever since Malik-san gave me his old equipment, I'd never inspected the real thing at all.
It was impossible to bring out the tent indoor or on the roadside so I didn't even know what my tent looked like.
I put my hand inside my magic bag and called out for my tent, "Tent..tent..tent.." and suddenly a big tent comes out from my magic bag with a *bon bon* sounds. (T/N: this one is hard to translate, basically like.. That sfx you use to hear in the anime when something big or unexpected appear.)
In front of me, there was a big tent perfectly installed like the one you see in the store.
"Uwah..so big.." I murmured.
"You're right, this is..truly a splendid tent.." Chris-san blinked at the tent.
In front of the entrance and the exit of the tent, there was a space covered with a tarp.
I guess that meant I could cook in here while it's raining or when the sun was really hot thanks to the protection of the tarp.
I hesitantly peeked inside the tent.
The inside was really spacious! It could fit 10 people of my size!
Ah but for Alsar people, probably the tent could only fit about 5-6 people.
The tent had a good height too, I didn't feel cramped even when I was standing straight like this.
Though for Chris-san, his head almost reached the roof of the tent.
"Amazing..It's so spacious inside.."
"Yup~ It's really a high quality tent!~ And I think it's a brand new tent too~ Look here Ren-chan, if it's a used tent, it's impossible for the tent to be sparkling clean like this, right?" Chris-san said as he inspected the tent.
Eh.
Wait.
Did he say..
"BRAND NEW?!" I exclaimed.
"Yeah and what's more, this is the latest model you know. I saw this when we went to the adventurer shop back then~"
Malik-san..are you for real??
I thought Malik-san was going to give me his old ones..
Furthermore since he was already retired, that meant Malik-san went out of his way to the adventure store and bought this especially for me..
"Well~ It's because Ren-chan is so cute so Ren-chan's papa can't help but to pamper you a lots~" Chris-san smiled.
"Ah.. For the time being, as a show for my gratitude, I'm going to utilize the tent to the fullest."
I guess from now on I couldn't deny the rumour that Malik-san doted on me too much..
"Hey hey Ren-chan~ The mattress inside your tent looks really soft!~"
"Ah you're right, so soft.." Inside the tent, there was a mattress covered in soft fur.
The two of us took off our shoes and sat on the mattress.
I couldn't feel the unevenness of the ground at all, so comfortable!
"It feels so nice~ Is it okay if I stay inside with you during our quest?~" Chris-san asked.
"Sure Chris-san, I don't really mind. Ah that's right, I want to ask about the camp in Calhea.. What it's like exactlt?"
"Oh? Well, how much have you heard about it?~"
"Umm.. I know that it's a relatively safe place for a solo support magician like me to help with the quest while staying inside the camp."
That was one of the main reason why I took this quest. Safety first!
"Yup, that's right~ At night, we usually take turns as the watch guards. Actually since the camp was surrounded by barrier, we were pretty much safe from attack without a watch guards but having a watch guards will put people's mind at ease~"
Chris-san continued,"I once had a client from Aspell country. I had to huddle up with other adventurers at night inside a big tent. I personally don't want to repeat the same thing again haha~"
I see.. Thanks to Malik-san, I wouldn't have to worry about sharing a tent with a lot of people..
Thank you Malik-san! I'm really grateful!
"Good thing I have this tent, then. I can just sleep in here."
Although this tent was really big, if there was about 5 people in Chris-san size staying with me, I would be crushed by them for sure..
"Yup!~ AH! That's right! When you're sleeping together inside a tent like that, there's a possibility that your chastity is going to be at stake too!" Chris-san reprimanded.
"Eh?! Chastity?!"
So dangerous..
During subjugation quest, there was a lot of danger to be wary off!
Not just from the monsters but even from fellow adventurers!
"That's right! That's why it's dangerous for female adventurer or beautiful adventurer to share a tent like that."
"Then..Chris-san too..?"
Chris-san was one of the most beautiful person I'd ever met and he looked really sexy too. So did he..?
"Well I'm an A-rank adventurer you know? Most people won't dare to approach me but I did get a lot of invitations from other adventurer to share a tent together~"
"I see.. So.. this time too, are you going to share a tent together with the people that invited you?"
I knew Chris-san was really popular.
Even when we were in Pedrell city, the people on the street would peek a glance at him because of how cool he was.
Of course it was given that Chris-san would get numerous invitation from both genders.
"This time.. Ah,no. From now on I will never accept anyone's invitation ever again."
"Eh? Why? Is it because Malik-san said he left me in your care? It's okay, you don't need to worry about that."
I wonder why?
Although if Chris-san left me to sleep alone, I will get a little lonely but I will bear with it!
I don't want to be inconsiderate!
"Hmm~ For now, it's still a secret~" Chris-san winked.
"Eeeh? You won't tell me?"
"One day I will. Anyway Ren-chan since it can be dangerous, you must never let anyone but me inside your tent, okay?"
"Okay, I understand. Ah but other than Chris-san, Malik-san told me that there will be two other people joining us, right?"
Malik-san didn't tell me the reason why he wanted me to meet them though.
But since they are Malik-san's acquaintance, they must be good people so I'm not afraid.
I wonder what kind of people they are~
"Ah right.. Malik already told me about them.. Then.. Does that means Ren-chan won't need me anymore?" Chris-san asked, he had the look of a dejected puppy again.
"So Malik-san already told you huh. What are you talking about Chris-san, if you're going to keep belittling yourself like that, I'm going to leave you for good."
I see, so back then when we were walking to the stable, Malik-san and Chris-san was talking about the two adventurers.
I thought they were talking about something strange but it turned out I was wrong.
"Ugh, so straight forward.. My heart hurts.."
"Eh what's wrong?" I tilted my head in confusion.
"Nope. Nothing." Chris-san said with a smile.
Chris-san murmured something else while holding his chest but it was too low for me to hear and he assured me it was nothing so I let it slide.
"Okay then, for the time being I will be intruding on your tent, Ren-chan~ Let's have lunch now~ I'm starving~"
"Right! Leave it to me! I already prepared a lot of food inside my magic bag."
Yesterday, I spent my whole day cooking.
I'd went out to the market in the morning to buy the ingredients and I'd spent the rest of my day processing food and cooking it.
It was really tiring because I wanted to have a lots of variety of food and because the people in Alsar was so big, of course the food portion had to be big as well.
I think I made.. 3 months worth of food if I were to eat everything alone.
"Today's lunch is italian~" I declared happily.
"Italian? What is that?"
Right. There was no Italy in here so the auto translation didn't work out.
"It's a cuisine from a country called Italy in my previous world. For the time being, let's go outside to eat. I have folding chairs and folding table so we can enjoy the scenery outside while we eat."
"I don't quite understand but I'm looking forward to it~" Chris-san hummed happily.
The two of us wore our shoes again and then I pulled out the folding chairs and table from my magic bag.
I set them on the space covered by tarp outside of my tent.
But really, the amount of space in this magic bag was amazing.
I actually borrowed some furniture from Malik-san's house.
Along with the food, furniture, clothes and a bunch of other things that Malik-san gave me it was easy to say that this bag must've cost a lot.
"I prepared the portion according to the portion that we had at 'Ken' but if you still feel hungry, don't hesitate to tell me. I made a lot so don't hold back~"
I continued to prepare the dishes on the table.
Today's lunch was breadstick, bean soup and tomato pasta with grilled shrimp.
If the meal was not enough for Chris-san, I still had grilled beef so it's going to be alright~
As for the drink, I had this… lemon juice. At least, the fruit tasted like lemon.
I forgot what the actual name of this fruit was.
Chris-san fed William first before he joined me on the table.
"Okay, please help yourself~" I presented the dishes to Chris-san.
"Uwah~ Everything looks so delish~" Chris-san merrily said as he started to bite into his food.
I also took my first bite.
Yup, it was delicious~
I sneaked a glance at the way Chris-san ate.
Even though Chris-san was wolfing down the food, he still looked beautiful.
"Fuuah… I'm glad I asked Ren-chan to cook for me. Everything is super delicious!"
"Hehehe.. When you praise me like that, it makes it worthwhile to cook for you."
I was glad that my cooking suit Chris-san's taste and it seemed like this amount of food is enough for him.
After we finished eating, I used [Clean] magic to clean the tableware and returned it into my magic bag.
"Now that my stomach is filled, let's take a nap~"
Chris-san took a thin blanket from his magic bag and handed one to me.
"Yes, although I already healed my body with magic, I still feel tired mentally. Horse riding is really straining both mentally and physically.."
I took off my shoes and laid down on the fluffy mattress.
In no time, I felt my consciousness drifted away.
——————————————-
Chris's POV
"Fufufu~ Ren-chan is so cute and defenseless~" I whispered in low voice to avoid waking Ren-chan up.
I was gazing at the sleeping figure of Ren-chan.
His petite body was wrapped tightly with a thin blanket,his fluffy jet black hair adorned his beautiful face.
He looked so defenseless and incredibly cute while sleeping.
Although realistically speaking, it'd bad if he was this defenseless with other man.
Especially during subjugation quest where those bulky man was all over the place.
Ren-chan's chastity would be in great danger.
"Ah well maybe because homosexuality is not common in Ren-chan's world so he's defenseless around man~"
Precisely because of that, I had to take things slow so I won't scare Ren-chan.
What was more, I will have 2 rivals.
"Before I met Ren-chan, I never had the chance to compete with love rivals before.. I'm sure when those two see Ren-chan, they will also fall in love with Ren-chan like I did."
As expected from Malik.. Everything fell accordingly to his plan..
"But I'm still the first one that Ren-chan met so I have my own advantages. I'm happy that at least I get to have Ren-chan all to myself for now. Hehehe.. [Barrier]. Well then, sleep tight Ren-chan~"
I scooted closer to Ren-chan and circled him in tender hug from behind.
Burying my nose into Ren-chan's hair, I inhaled the sweet scent of Ren-chan's body and closed my eyes.