Volume 2 Chapter 34 I Want to Spend My Time as Comfortably as Possible
"Phew, phew, phew," today, as usual, Cain was doing his daily run. What was different was the cylindrical object attached to his waist and the knights who were running alongside him as bodyguards. It seemed the village woke up early; there were quite a few villagers heading to the fields, glancing over at Cain and the others running.
"Phew, done for the day! Still, running in armor is impressive, knights!"
Cain called out to the knights who were running behind him in their armor.
"This much is nothing at all."
Wayne, barely out of breath, answered on behalf of the group.
"As reliable as ever. I'll be counting on you again today."
"Yes, sir!" they replied in unison.
"Now then, did it set as expected?"
He took the cylinder off his waist, gave it a shake, and something heavy fell into the water with a clatter. Opening the lid revealed a white solid and some thinned milk.
"Alright, success. Now I just need to mix in the salt."
After telling the knights to head to the kitchen, he ran off. The knights continued their training, running once more.
Upon reaching the kitchen, Cain separated the solid from the liquid. The liquid, since he was thirsty, Cain drank it all. The whey was like slightly diluted milk, which tasted especially good to Cain after his run. He used a cloth to remove the moisture from the solid and mixed it with salt. After kneading the solid for a while, it gradually took shape and became butter.
Breakfast was freshly baked bread and vegetable soup, topped with the butter he had just made. It was also served in Lydia's and Alice's rooms.
"Good morning, Mother Lydia, Elder Sister Alice."
"Good morning, Cain. Did you train today too?"
Cain greeted them as he sat at the table, followed by Alice, who still looked sleepy, taking her seat. Once all 3 were seated, Lala poured water and scented tea into their cups.
"Come on, hurry up and eat. We need to meet the kids who made the milk before we leave."
"Hey, Cain? What's this yellow stuff in this little dish?"
Alice pointed at the dish with the butter in it.
"Yes, that's 'butter.' I made it from milk this morning. Spread it on bread and try it."
Lydia, as she explained, took the butter with a fork and spread it on her bread, then ate. Seeing that, Alice imitated her and did the same.
""Delicious!""
She repeated her praise with a happy hum, like a true mother and child──perfect harmony.
"What is this? The bread tastes several times better than usual."
"It smells like yesterday's milk, and it's really nice."
Seeing the two smiling and enjoying tasty food early in the morning, Cain felt his fatigue melt away.
* * *
"You're Nana and Tony, right? Cain was talking about you. I'm hiring you at the Sanroze house. Take this letter and walk to the town of Sanroze. When you enter the city gate, hand this to Randolph, who is waiting. And this is your advance pay. In 2 days, the knight patrol will come through here, so give this letter to them and have your escort."
The invitation sounded more like an order, but Nana and Tony immediately agreed to go to Sanroze town. They were looking for a place to settle, so it was a good timing for them.
Lydia handed Nana 3 letters and a bag with silver coins.
"Well then, Tony, see you again. I'll come back as soon as I finish my business."
Cain and the others were bid farewell by the villagers and left the village.
The second day of their carriage trip was also a bumpy journey, stopping every 2 hours for breaks, making good progress. They arrived at tonight's camp without any trouble.
"Hmmm, travelling by carriage has no change, it's rough and tiring. Is this the campsite for tonight?"
Tonight's campsite was right in the middle of a plain. Along the roadside, the ground looked like it had been hardened over many years, with bare patches of earth showing. It seemed many people had used this place as a camp over a long period, as some stone fireplaces were left abandoned. With time still before sunset, and since more merchants might arrive, Cain and the others stopped their carriage at the edge.
The river nearby made this a great spot for a camp, apparently. Up to 30 merchants, adventurers, and travelers might stay here overnight. Wayne headed out with 3 others to fetch water while the other knightly guards began setting up tents.
Cain idly watched the knights setting up, then an idea struck him.
"Mother Lydia, wouldn't it be safer if we surrounded our campsite with a high wall? Can I go ahead and build one?"
At first, she looked confused, but then she seemed to understand, and thought for a moment.
"I'll talk it over with Knight Captain Argyle, so just wait a bit."
Lydia immediately summoned Knight Captain Argyle, looked at Cain, spoke with him, looked around, and seemed to reach a conclusion.
"Cain, will you build the wall after the other merchants arrive? We don't want them to be startled by a sudden wall, do we? Could you make it big enough to enclose the wagons and tents?"
When Wayne and the others returned from getting water and the tents were set up, merchants and travelers began to arrive, ready to use the campsite for the night. Knight Captain Argyle explained things to the merchants and then headed toward Cain.
"Sir Cain. I've finished explaining things to the merchants, so could you start building the wall? If you could build it slowly, the merchants around will feel more at ease."
"Understood, I'll get started then. [Stone Wall]"
The stone wall slowly extended with a *Zzzzz*. The merchants, who had been listening to the explanation, were startled but Cain kept going, finally building a 5-meter-high wall. When the wall was up, it got dark, so he took out a [Magic Circle Magic] [Light] and set up lights along the wall. Cain thought, 'Might as well,' and built 5 container house-like structures with thick, square stone walls using [Delete]. Finishing everything, he turned to everyone with a smug look, and saw Lydia standing there, frozen with a smile.
"I'm sorry, I went too far."
Cain apologized sincerely.
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