Chapter 64

My beloved horse, Blanca, was in a bad mood. She had been running along with Koushin and the others, but as soon as we stopped for a break, she started stomping the ground with her front hooves.

"Sorry, Blanca."

Since Lady Nerva had calmed down, I decided to take care of Blanca. She came close, snorting and nudging me, but I had to hold on tight to keep from falling over.

"I'll ride properly from here on. Okay?"

We had some time to talk, so I would let Lady Nerva stay calm. I could even throw in Rada if necessary. Rada's horse, Tsukushi, doesn't get too jealous.

I gave her water and massaged her, and finally, she calmed down.

"Are you okay now?"

Koushin, who had finished tending to his own horse, called out to me.

"Uh?"

What was he referring to?

"Well, that person is a noble, isn't he?"

Koushin glanced at Lady Nerva, who was sitting down. Oh, the driver must have scolded her.

"Probably, but he's just an ordinary old man who likes archaeology."

"...An old man?"

I don't think he's a young man.

"I even gave him a sleeping potion. But he laughed it off?"

"What are you doing, Reito..."

"Eh, a sleeping potion!?"

Rada peeked over Koushin's shoulder, surprised.

"Can you make a sleeping potion, Reito? I thought you needed to infuse it with magic."

"Yeah, it's a fake. Just the juice from crushed herbs works, though it's really bitter."

Rada's eyes widened. "Really?"

"Speaking of medicine, Rada, do you have any motion sickness medicine?"

"Uh, I think I do, but can I make it with what I have?"

I asked Rada to write down the herbs I needed. Rada should register them in her magic bag, but she still resists. Hmm, let's see. The only one missing is the Kokezu fruit. I don't know what that is.

"What's this Kokezu fruit?"

"It's like sesame seeds."

Sesame! Do we have sesame? No, that's not it.

"Where does it grow?"

"I don't know."

Oh well. I'll have to try my best with my alchemy skills.

"What's going on?"

Katansu, the spear user, called out, thinking we were arguing. His reddish-brown spiky hair made him look a bit like a delinquent, and his eyes were sharp.

"Ah, Katansu, do you know about the Kokezu fruit?"

"Huh? Oh, those little seeds that grow by the river. What about them?"

He knew. As expected of a D-rank adventurer. By the river, huh.

"I wanted to make motion sickness medicine for Lady Nerva."

"Ah."

Katansu looked at Rada. Stop flinching, Rada.

"Wait here. Can you make it with just that?"

I nodded, and he walked over to the party members. After a brief conversation, he came back.

"A little further ahead, we'll pass by a river. I don't know if they'll be there, but we can stop and gather them if you want."

"Thanks! We'll do that!"

Katansu smiled.

"By the way, you can talk normally. No one in the party will be upset by that."

"Got it. Don't call me cheeky later, okay?"

"Haha, I won't. We're leaving soon. Get ready."

"Aye, aye!"

He looked tough but was a friendly guy. We waved goodbye to Katansu and prepared to leave. I needed to tell Lady Nerva about riding the horse.

"Rada, do you want to ride in the carriage?"

I asked Rada, remembering. Her face stiffened.

"With Reito?"

"I'm riding the horse."

"No, no way..."

Well, everything is an experience, right? But it's fine.

I got Lady Nerva's permission. She smiled wryly, probably still feeling bad about being scolded earlier, and said, "Alright. We can continue during lunch." Yeah, we still have a lot to talk about.

We kept the same formation and set off again. We followed behind the carriage. Rada was in the middle, and we rode three abreast.

"Rada, is making motion sickness medicine difficult?"

"Uh, not really. It's not much different from a healing potion. You mix three ingredients, and if you don't mess up the order, Reito can probably make it."

"You don't need to infuse it with magic?"

"Maybe?"

I'm the one asking. Well, the method without magic is more like a shortcut or a cheat. If we can gather a lot, I'll try making it.

"Reito."

Koushin suddenly called out.

"Quen's detection skill picked up something."

I wasn't letting my guard down, but I tightened my focus.

Quen, the scout, has a detection skill. He signals us with hand gestures. I wonder how far his range is and how he detects things. I'd love to hear more about it.

"Forest Wolves! Three! Slightly to the right front!"

Quen's voice.

"I'll take the two on the right."

Nergi, the leader, sped up on his wyvern. I finally saw the wolves approaching. I thought he would fight them while riding, but Nergi drew his sword and slashed downward.

Splat! Roar!

The wolf on the right, running in a line of three, was split in half. It must have been a flying slash. The other two wolves, startled by their companion's fate, dodged to the left. Nergi rode through them, switching his sword to his left hand and slashing as he passed. At the same time, a water spear pierced the head of the left wolf.

By the time the carriage slowed and stopped, it was all over.

"Amazing."

I couldn't help but say it out loud. The battle was efficient. I've never really worked in a team, so I don't know if this was the best way, but it was impressive.

Nergi and the others started disposing of the wolves with practiced ease.

"That was quick."

Koushin was impressed. Or maybe he was excited. He might be simulating it in his head, thinking if he could do it too.

Rada was tense but didn't faint. She must feel safe since they weren't attacking her. She was gripping the reins tightly, but Tsukushi was calmly eating grass by the roadside. The horse is the bigger deal.

They extracted the magic stones and burned the remains by the side of the road. We didn't even dismount. We set off again quickly.

"That's no problem. But if there are more, they might flank us from behind. I'll count on you then."

Panta, who had moved slightly back, winked and said that. I nodded.

We would probably have Rada stay by the carriage, Koushin step out, and I use earth magic to attack. If it gets dangerous, I'll create an earth wall.

Rada has prepared various things to buy time, though.