Chapter 136 - Start of a Slow March

Hearing Mark Blood's statement the noble children, truly starting to shiver as the cold fog permeated their armor and clothing, all turned to Jien. He was their nominated leader so this would be his responsibility, one among soon to be many as they worked to survive and thrive in this environment. Jien could only sigh, looking at their expressions, already showing a sense of discomfort. "First off, circulate some mana to warm your bodies to fight off the cold some while we figure the next steps out." This was stated more like a slightly irritated coworker than a leader, but no one said anything as they focused on the task given to them.It took several minutes to start truly circulating mana throughout their bodies. The purpose was to force the muscles into a passive activity, thus building internal heat. This technique, while somewhat efficient and effective would not keep them dry or protected, merely keep them from hypothermia, if just barely. Time was of the essence and though the loss was small, with every circulation there was indeed a slight loss of mana as it would seep into the muscle even when the children tried to avoid it.Jien then started speaking quickly to outline his thoughts. "Lesley will be our scout, but we will need to keep him bound to us by some means so that the fog doesn't separate us. Rosalind and Bernard can guard our flanks while Olivia will guard our front to allow flexibility to support the flanks. Barret and I will serve as both hind guards and all-around support. Barret will be able to use the other's cover to hide his presence and support from hidden areas and I will be able to act as a support mage for the time being or as an added swordsman if needed."Jien outlined his thoughts in so many words only because the others were asking him to play the leader. In all honestly, he wanted to be like Barret in this scenario, standing to the side silently and nodding every now and again. He sighed in his heart, knowing that his days of relaxing in silence had come to an end officially as of the moment he stepped in this forest.Each of the children nodded. Olivia retrieved a rope she had packed and motioned for Lesley to come over to her. Though the boy figured he was in for an argument somewhere along the way he didn't fight against her, walking over with solemn expression. Olivia smiled and worked to tie the rope around Lesley's waist to ensure that while he was scouting that they wouldn't get separated. This was just a loose first pass at finding a decent scouting method since being tied to the group was not the best idea.If anything were to get to Lesley, then it could then follow the rope to the group. This was a risk they would need to take this once until they were more settled. For now, after Lesley was tied around the waist Rosalind helped Olivia with tying the other end to her. Since Olivia would be up front, she was the best to be tied to the scout. The group around Olivia would stay close so as not to lose track of each other.Once the two were tied together Jien spoke again. "We will do our best to avoid speaking unnecessarily until we figure out our situation. Lesley, as our scout you have about forty-five feet of length on the rope. If you see an animal that can be easily hunted tug the rope once. If you spot a plant you think may be helpful for food or alchemy tug twice. If you see something you believe that we can't handle tug three times, we will remain where we are, and you will follow the rope back to us. We will then choose a different path to move forward. Lastly, if you are in danger don't hesitate to make your way back to us. Even if you are being chased it is better to figure out the situation as a group."Lesley listened to the instruction with a serious expression as he took in his instructions. Once he was sure that he had it right, having repeated it back to Jien the others formed up as they had been instructed. Each of them drew their weapons and peered around warily, still unable to make out much of anything at a distance.With a determined expression Lesley began to walk out into the fog while the others watched to rope lose its slack with each step. Once the rope was relatively tight, allowing for a slight amount of slack the group took their first steps forward. Each of the teachers were leading two horses while remaining close yet behind the group of children. The first steps in survival in any environment were shelter, food and water. While none of them had mentioned this it was not because they were unwilling to help the children learn but more because they wished to scout as well and advise once there was something more concrete than just words of general advice to teach.