"You guys have confirmed that you don't have any seal or pheromone that can attract monsters, right?" Stella asked. The four mages stared at her blankly, and I gently yanked her aside.
"Pay no attention to Stella. Let's set up camp here."
We had traveled toward the garrison of the mage corps, which had now been converted into a gigantic lab monopolized exclusively by that bitch, Miranda Miller. Before we knew it, evening had arrived and we agreed to stop for the day. That led us to looking for a place to camp out. We had decided that the edge of the forest was as good a place as any, but apparently Stella was still hung up over that trashy web novel that she had read somewhere.
Apparently, there was a spell that made use of spider webs and turned them into paper so that authors could write on them. Hence they were called web novels. Since spider web was much cheaper than real paper, such "web novels" proliferated and were more accessible to the masses. The quality of writing, however, was often left to be desired.
"Anyway, I'll take the first shift and keep an eye out for the first two hours."
"There are seven of us, so we can do three or four shifts," Chris suggested.
"I'll take the last shift, but I'll do it alone," Lindley volunteered. He grinned. "I don't need as much sleep as the rest of you."
"Then I'll take the shift with Lord Klein," Stella said.
"Oh? I thought you would take the shift with Rose." Wilson sounded surprised.
"Because we're both girls?" Stella asked with a raised eyebrow. Wilson flushed and nodded.
"Yeah, I guess…"
"While Rose is cute, she seems close to you and she trusts you all. You seem to have fought together very often, and that kind of bond is hard to break. And I trust Lord Klein. So there is no problem."
Stella lowered her head, and I remembered that she remembered the betrayal by the Bravian regiment. However, she told me that most of the knights came from elsewhere – Bradley's cronies that he had taken with him when he arrived to claim governorship over the province of Bravia. She hadn't been close to them and thus didn't feel as betrayed as she otherwise would be. Nonetheless, she had still been shocked by the outrageous behavior of someone who was reputedly the greatest warrior in the strongest Hero party and his followers.
At Stella's matter-of-fact statement, Rose blushed and hid behind Wilson.
"No…no way! I…I am…not that cute. Stella is much more beautiful."
"Nah, you're cute too," Wilson teased her.
"That's right! Our Rose won't lose to anyone else!" Lance shouted.
"You're cute. You should have more confidence in yourself, Rose." Stella paused for a moment. "I think you would look great if you wear a maid outfit…"
"Your wife has some strange hobbies," Chris remarked to me in a low voice. I grimaced and shook my head.
"She has been reading way too much trashy web novels."
"Anyway, Rose and I will take the second shift," Wilson said.
"Then I'll take the third shift with Lance." Chris glanced at the blond lightning mage, who nodded without any objections.
"All right then…"
Before we could start gathering firewood and pitching tents, however, a noise drew our attention. Lindley cocked his head toward the source.
"More humans," he said. The four mages were too distracted by the sound to pay attention to his strange choice of words but I was quick to cover up his slip.
"Mages?"
"No. normal people."
There were horses too, and the grinding of wheels. Amidst the fading sunlight, an entire convoy drew up alongside the forest. The lead horseman brought his carriage to a stop and waved at us.
"Oh! Hello there!"
His accent was slightly thick, as if he wasn't used to speaking our language. The convoy came to a stop and more than a few passengers leaped out to watch us inquisitively.
I returned their curious stares. Their attires were exotic and different from the usual clothing that the people of the Havan kingdom wore. The women wore dressed in long blouses with long orange skirts and the men wore white shirts with orange pants. They had black sleeveless vests on and red scarfs. A lot of them had wrapped the red fabric around their heads, covering their black hair. Their skin was a dark olive, a deeper tone than the paler flesh of Havan citizens.
I had heard of these people. They were Gensies, a race known for traveling around the west.
"Brothers and sisters!" the lead horseman announced as he approached us with a wave. "I hope you do not mind if we set up camp nearby! It is getting dark. And of course, you are welcome to join us if you are hungry and thirsty!"
He gestured toward the carriages and beamed.
"We've managed to get our hands on a good haul of meat and wine! All we ask in return are tales from the Havan Kingdom."
The Gensies were known as a race of traveling storytellers or bards, often playing music in the background while reciting folktales. I nodded, unsurprised by their request.
However, the others were a little surprised.
"What are you doing here?" Chris asked. "I wasn't aware that there was a traveling convoy this far in our territory…"
"Ah, forgive our trespass." The Gensy leader looked apologetic. He glanced at the forest. "We were forced to flee here because of certain circumstances." He then pointed toward the meat and grinned. "We were pursued by a horde of monsters and were forced to escape east. Once we rest for the night, we will attempt to return west."
"Oh, there's no need to do that," Rose quickly said. "That's not what Chris meant. We are just surprised by your presence. By all means, you are welcome to travel along Havan if you wish to do so."
The Gensies were often welcome to any of the human lands because they often brought trade and stories with them, materials, food and other products from the far west. There was little who would bar them from their territory.
"Then we shall take you up on your offer then." The dark-skinned man grinned.
"Ah, but the problem is that these lands are dangerous." Lance scratched his head. "You came at quite a bad time. There's someone…doing something evil, and all the villagers around here are disappearing. It's best that you wait until we have eliminated the villain before you return here."
"Oho!" The leader's eyes widened. "That is a tale we want to hear more about!"
"We'll tell you more about it later," Wilson assured him. "But you and your convoy should be careful."
"Understood. Come, let's drink and make merry!"
The Gensies were great at partying. After setting up camp, we joined them and watched them create a big fire. They played music and danced about in front of the flames, their dark silhouette illuminated by the orange conflagration. In the background, a band played with exotic instruments that I did not recognize. They weren't used by Havan musicians, at least not to my knowledge.
Chris and the rest were telling the Gensies stories while Lindley crawled into a tent and retired for the night. Knowing him, he was probably reviewing the notes he had taken while observing the abominations that Miranda had created. Shortly before we left, we cremated the bodies with Chris's fire magic and prayed to the gods that the tormented souls would find peace.
Once more I hardened my resolve and vowed to make Miranda pay for this. My desire for revenge continued to burn fiercely in my heart, but seeing the results of her sick experimentations, my hatred for her grew.
"Sir, you and your wife should join us!" one of the Gensies approached Stella and me, waving a mug of wine. He grinned and gestured to his wife, who hurried over with a warm smile. She offered us a plate of meat skewers. According to the travelers, they had been forced to fight and kill a couple of the beasts pursuing them, which was how they ended up with a ton of meat.
"Ah, that's okay," I said as I accepted the skewers and gave one to Stella. "Thank you very much. We appreciate it."
"Dance! You should dance too!" The friendly Gensy waved his hands wildly at the bonfire where couples whirled about to the music, laughing boisterously. Even Wilson and Rose had joined in, waltzing around the fire, much to the Gensies' delight. Even Chris and Lance had found female partners from the Gensy entourage, who were teaching them how to dance.
"I don't know how to dance…"
"That's fine! We don't know how to dance too! We are just moving our bodies however we want!" the Gensy laughed. "We are just having fun! Enjoying ourselves!"
He then wriggled his fingers before grabbing the hand of his giggling wife.
"Life is too short. You younglings should liven up and enjoy yourself when you still have the chance!"
"The kind sir has a point. Let's go, Klein." Stella hopped up and grabbed my hand, pulling me toward the flames. "We might not know how to dance the Gensy way, but we can just dance the Havan way."
"I don't even know how to dance Havan style."
"Neither do I. we can just improvise." Stella giggled and dragged me to follow the friendly couple, who were now dancing in front of the bonfire. She then placed one of my hands on her waist and took the other in her hand. Circling her other hand around my neck, she then guided me through, and we swayed toward the beat from the Gensy band. There were a few cheers and encouragement from the other dancing couples.
Stella leaned in closer and sighed.
"It's been a while, you know? For the last few months, all we've been doing is fighting, traveling and negotiating. It's a rare chance to cut loose and relax."
"I don't plan to relax until I have gotten my revenge on everyone on the Hero party," I replied darkly. Stella scowled in approval and tightened her grip.
"You have to. Otherwise you'll burn out and break down eventually."
"…I guess you're right." I sighed and leaned in, allowing Stella to lead me. Was this what she meant when she promised to ensure that I remain on the right path?
"You know I am. That's why you bring me along."
"Ha ha, yeah…I guess."
The party continued for a couple of hours, and several of the Gensies got drunk, much to their wives' disapproval. They slept in wooden caravans or tents. Stella and I nodded at the four mages, and they went to get some sleep. Even with the appearance of the Gensies, we intended to continue the sentry duty.
This close to Miranda's lab, there was no telling what sort of danger lurked nearby. Her monsters could show up at any time.
Stella and I took up position at the edge of the campsite, staring into the forest. We had maintained a small fire and occasionally I would feed it with dry twigs. While I fueled the fire, Stella spoke up quietly.
By now, quite some time had passed into our shift and everyone was sound asleep. Even so, Stella kept her voice in a low whisper, doing her best not to be overheard.
"…I wanted to raise this possibility earlier, but I couldn't. Not in front of them…"
She glanced at the two tents where Chris and the others were sleeping inside. I raised my eyebrow at her words.
"The possibility of a trap?"
Stella nodded slightly and elaborated. "I do not think Chris and the others are…bad. As far as I can tell, they are honest and not deceitful. But it could all be an act. Also, there is another possibility – that Miranda used them and they weren't aware that they are being used as bait to lure us in."
"It's not impossible," I conceded. "But that's quite the elaborate trap for…um, what reason would she design such a trap for?"
"True. I do not think she knows that you are still alive. Nobody seems to know." During our return to Havan, we had continued to collect information and listened to rumors. Nobody had even conceived that I might have returned from the dead. However, they were aware of something else.
"I already took my revenge on Herman, Irene and Bradley. There are some who see a pattern, who know that the strongest Hero party is being targeted. They even correctly guessed that the motive is revenge. They just don't know by whom."
There was speculation that it was an assassin sent from the Demonic Empire, as revenge. Or perhaps a jealous noble who was afraid of their growing power and influence.
I nodded and thought for a bit.
"All right, assuming that this is a trap…what do you suggest we do?"
Stella ran a hand through several strands of her long, red hair and sighed. She pondered for a few moments before taking a deep breath and looking at me gravely. She took her job as my strategist very seriously. But that was why I relied on her. And I wasn't disappointed.
"We'll have to prepare the appropriate countermeasures. Here is my first proposal…"