Chapter 5

"Hey, that's quite something, isn't it? You're pretty skilled."

"Hehe, yeah, I guess so."

The shopkeeper's words, while seemingly praising, also contained a hint of sarcasm, suggesting that common sense was lacking. However, the Gurgans took the words at face value and looked rather proud.

The old blacksmith started to dissect the Red Dragon and Griffin corpses that were lying in the yard. It seemed that Gaius had intended to sell them to the castle eventually.

The castle usually bought such materials after a knighting ceremony or a large-scale hunt. New knights would receive armor made from large magical beasts, and the materials would be used to repair damaged armor from the hunts.

The blacksmith worked efficiently. The Gurgans took out the contents of their item pouches in the yard, sorted out the unnecessary items, and then packed the potions and other items they needed back into their pouches.

Among the items were some basic potions they no longer used, which they decided to sell later and set aside.

In other words, they had started their work, but it was the blacksmith who first noticed something was amiss.

When he climbed onto the dragon's head, he could see the stable. Nearby were various types of dragonkin feed, fresh straw, and tools.

The blacksmith, puzzled, called out to the Gurgans.

"Hey, you guys! Did you take care of the dragonkin?"

"Not today... Gaius usually does it..."

"You fools! Take care of them first! Change the straw and feed them twice a day! You should know your own dragonkin's preferences, right?!"

"Huh?!"

The Gurgans, not understanding why they were being yelled at, saw the shopkeeper approaching, his face red with anger.

He grabbed the Paladin's armor and shook it.

"Idiots! Haven't you helped at all?!"

"Gaius said he would... Even when he invited us to eat, he said he'd do it later..."

"It's your own dragonkin! Why didn't you say you'd help?!"

"Well, no one told us to..."

The blacksmith, seeing their childish response, released Gurgan with a sad look.

Dragonkin are usually obtained around B-rank. Even so, it's common sense to take care of your own dragonkin, and Gaius wouldn't have to ask for help.

He must have thought it was obvious that they should help. He was just doing it out of kindness for them.

"Change the straw, give them water and feed. Gaius might have done the morning feeding, but if you neglect them, dragonkin will start to misbehave. They'll return to the wild if they think you're not taking care of them. Get to it!"

Even if they misbehaved, it would only destroy the stable of 'Crescent Claw,' and then they would head towards Gaius. They are proud but also grateful, which is why they remain as mounts despite being dragonkind.

Reluctantly, Gurgan and Ben went to change the straw and feed the dragonkin.

Meanwhile, Hanna and Lilithia continued sorting the potions, setting aside the basic ones that seemed less useful. They finally reached the food supplies and started packing them into their pouches, as none of these items would go to waste.

The difference between the item inventory and the item pouch is that the inventory allows you to retrieve items from a list without knowing what's inside, while the pouch lets you retrieve items you specifically want. The main difference is the storage duration.

Items in the pouch, including fresh food, last for a year, but in the inventory, the items remain in their original state indefinitely. In the pouch, items start to deteriorate after a year.

Since they were mainly packing preserved food, they wouldn't have any issues, but they needed to know what was in their pouches.

By the time they could see the dining room door, Hanna and Lilithia were no longer sure what was inside.

Gurgan and Ben finished changing the straw and water but were unsure which feed belonged to which dragonkin.

They decided to put the feed in the feed boxes randomly, with no specific amount.

When they bought their dragonkin, they had been told about their preferred feed and the need to take care of them daily. However, the four of them, focused on battles and romance, had completely forgotten about it.

◇◇◇

Gaius, having prepared for the journey, was considering whether to set up a base to guide beginners.

However, this wasn't his land.

After some thought, he set up a travel tent near the river and cut soft pine needles with his dagger to make a bed for Shukuru.

He cut down a tree with his magic bow, sliced it into long strips, and hollowed it out to create a simple feed box. The dragonkin could drink directly from the river.

"Here's your feed."

"Roar!"

Gaius had bought Shukuru's preferred feed, enough to last several months.

Taking care of dragonkin is more difficult than feeding oneself. While they are herbivores and wouldn't starve in the forest, it's natural for them to leave if they are not taken care of.

"I hope they remember their dragonkin's preferences... We said we'd buy and take care of them together, but they didn't... I'm a bit worried."

"Grge?"

"I hope they remember the basics, like feed and straw."

Shukuru didn't respond.

He knew that no one except Gaius remembered these things. Within three days, Gaius had taken care of everything, even making beds and providing feed during camping.

So, Shukuru's thoughts were, "Do they even have that much sense?"

Hearing the distant howls, Shukuru wasn't angry yet. He understood that someone had interfered and that they would stay in the nearby forest for a while, so he responded with a howl.

As the day turned to night,

Gaius hadn't intended to be mean. Since they had all done everything together at first, he thought they would continue to do so. Even with his 'Negotiation' skill, he assumed they would see and learn from his actions.

Unfortunately, he didn't notice that the Gurgans were only focused on their lovers, as he didn't have eyes in the back of his head.