"Did you take everything you need?"
Excafol and Selene are talking about the bandits while I dig holes for their corpse. Apparently, Selene took a contract to eliminate bandits and Excafol asked her to see the possibility to use their hideout as our new home. But, this house is so rundown, won't it fall on our head?
"Okay, I will be going now. See you in two weeks."
Selene took the heads of the bandits, six in total. The horse came back by himself while I was digging. I am surprised to see that. Selene climbs and goes with the carriage. I am all alone with Excafol now.
"So, now, we need to repair this somehow. Kevin, you go and cut some wood. I will examine what needs to be done."
Saying so, Excafol raises his hands. There is a bracelet on it with the same kind of gemstones as the one that I was gifted by Demether. The gemstone starts shining and then an axe appears in his hands.
"Take this."
He throws me the axe which I catch mid-air.
"Old man, what was that? What you did just now I mean."
"Don't worry, I will explain later, but first, we need shelter for the night. So you should hurry up. Also, you will be the one to go hunting from now on." Excafol turns and enters the house. Let's go and cut wood fast.
***
I come back one hour later with ten wood logs. I had nothing to attach them so I used my own shirt. When I reach the house, Excafol is crouched on the front wall of the house, applying mud on the holes here and there. He changed his clothes and is now wearing an old shirt and tattered trousers.
"Ah, you are back. Split those logs in four each and go inside with them. You will see places marked with red painting, put those logs there, and nail them."
This old man is also a carpenter? I am too surprised to see him working like I know what he is doing to let it pass like that.
"When did you learn to do all that?"
"A man must know all the necessary to survive. You will learn all this eventually."
"I hope so." After splitting the logs, I enter the house and do as Excafol told me.
***
After about three hours, we have closed all the holes that we visible from the outside. But, the window at the back and the front door are still busted. Also, the inside is no better. There are two rooms. The smaller one must be the bedroom. There are rags on the ground there after all. Most likely where the bandits were sleeping. In the other room, there is a fireplace in the center. And a chest at the right corner of the room. There are also traces of blood on the walls. Surely from the fight with Selene.
"First thing first, we bring everything outside and burn it. Then we clean everywhere. We will sleep on the floor today."
When the sun sets, we have finished the cleaning, the rags outside are still burning though.
"You should go hunting fast."
I almost forgot that. I turn and run outside. Where should I go? What is there to even hunt here? Without even asking any of that, I ran outside. Now that I am far away from the house, I wonder what I was thinking about, going like that.
But the deed is done, no need to think about it again. I climb a tree and sits on a branch to look for any kind of animal that could be around. There, in front of me, at five or six meters, I see a rabbit. And it is coming near me. When it reaches the tree I was in, I simply fall from it with my dagger. But, the rabbit somehow evades me and goes away.
"Come here you!"
I start running after him. The rabbit takes turns left and right, zigzags, and jumps around so much I smack my head against a tree trying to follow him. The night is already there anyway, let's go back. When I reach the house, I can see smoke and light inside, Excafol started a fire. I enter, with nothing in my hand, ready to apologize for my failure to find our food, only to find him roasting the other half of the deer from yesterday.
"You had food already?!! Why did you send me to find some then?!"
"Ah? I didn't tell you. I thought I did. You will be hunting and cooking your food. You are a warrior so…"
"I don't even know how to cook."
"Well, I don't either. Too bad I guess. Anyways, this…" Excafol completely changes the topic, he really doesn't care that I eat or not.
"This is an alternative space bracelet. By injecting energy through your Angas here, you can store and access anything inside. Of course, you need to be able to use Angas. I saw one in your bag. Lord Demether gifted you something good. And with that color, there is a lot of items inside."
He brings out the bracelet I have received from my bag and looks at it while speaking. Then he puts it back.