24 Hearts

Chapter 32

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The twenty-fourth fragment, Carpe Diem

Date.

It is a word that describes going out to a place or event with a potential or current love interest. However, considering the current situation between Tia and me, it cannot be called a true date.

In order to hunt black wolves, we were going to camp in the forest, so I bought all the needed items: A small and expensive yet effective healing potion; a long coat with heat insulation sold only in the Tower; an insect repellent sold at general stores; a spray to remove blood from clothing and an emergency survival and healing kit.

Even extra weapons; I bought so many things.

Of course, to honor the date, we ate a lot and went to see many things, but Tia and I have lived together for several years. There was nothing truly interesting that happened. When I think about it, we did things as we always did.

I spent more money than usual as I bought things and as we played and ate. Still, I was able to cover the expenses with the money Kaseun gave me.

After all, having money is good. There is no hesitation to buys things, and there is no need to haggle over the price. It was difficult to carry it all home. Still, when I leave tomorrow, almost all of these items will be going into the b bag], so weight was not a consideration.

Upon returning home, I arranged the items I had purchased on the floor and re-checked them to make sure nothing was missing. I asked Tia when and how to use some of the items, and she kindly informed me, as if it was no big deal. Her instruction would prove helpful later, so I made sure to forget nothing.

When we were done, I put everything in the b bag].

Everything was ready. We were going to stay in the woods for four days or up to a week, so I decided to go to bed early.

Tia and I got up before the sun rose. We washed and armed ourselves, and then left the house, heading for the east gate.

The gate was open, but unlike usual, there was no sign of the hunters and herbalists who tended to also depart at this time.

It seemed that all of them had been intimidated after reading the official notice posted in the central square. They had decided to take a break for a while.

Tia and I were greeted by Charles as we passed through the gate and set out upon the familiar path.

After a couple of hours without stopping, we came to the edge of the Black Forest.

Contrary to public concern, there had been no black wolves in the eastern forest.

However, not only the black wolves were absent: We saw no animals such as deers or wild boars, and the normal songs of birds were not heard. Thanks to that, the forest was silent. Only the sound of branches swaying in the wind was heard.

“Aren’t you smoking today?” I asked Tia as I looked at her, staying on my guard as we entered the Black Forest. She had a cigarette in her mouth, but it remained unlit. I guessed it was because of her usual habit of smoking that she still had it in her mouth. At times when Tia exhaled, it seemed as if she really wanted to smoke. My question made her eyes narrow a bit.

“I want to smoke, but I’m afraid that I’ll put my pupil in danger. I can’t do that.”

Tia worried that there might be too many black wolves in this forest, so she couldn’t risk smoking.

I kept walking, and I saw Tia shrug her shoulders out of anxiety.

The Black Forest wasn’t as scary now as it had been on that first day. I rolled my eyes and then looked around. Suddenly I heard a howl in the distance and then a growl in the low foliage near us. We stopped.

“The official letter was not in vain,” Tia stated.

“Okay, we found a black wolf after only five minutes into the forest.”

Tia also blinked, as if surprised. The wolf pack that came into view numbered five, and they might be a challenge.

“Would you like me to kill one?” Tia asked.

I shook my head and drew my sword. A shining dagger was drawn from its sheath with my left hand. Five wolves were worth trying to take on. Tia entered concealment, as usual, and climbed a tree to watch me fight.

***

From where Gentia lightly perched on a branch, she could see the five wolves encircling and approaching Judah. And then, the battle began in an instant. One of the rabid black wolves rushed at him, and in the next second, it crashed to the ground, breathing frothy blood.

‘I mean, you have real talent. Not only talent, but also ability.’

Despite being surrounded by five wolves, Judah was not afraid to deal with them one after the other, step by step. Two daggers had arced through the air, one piercing a wolf’s flank and the other its neck. The remaining three wolves were neatly culled.

Tia came down from the tree the moment Judah took the last wolf’s life.

“What, why are you fighting so well?”

“Well, well, maybe it is because Mistress’s lessons are so excellent?”

“Yes? Where did you learn such lip service? You’ve been very good at talking lately.”

But Tia chuckled, clearly not in a bad mood. Obviously, Judah was the perfect pupil.

***

I thought that I would struggle a little, but I was able to handle them easily. I had been roughly able to predict the wolves’ actions by noticing their behavior.

I opened my [bag] and handed Tia a butchering knife. She took it from me and skinned one of the dead wolves in no time. While she had skinned three, I had barely managed to cut the pelts from two of them. We treated the hides with a chemical, and I put them back into the b bag].

Once I had dragged the flayed wolves into a single spot to dispose of their corpses, I looked real grisly.

I gave a bloody chuckle as I wiped the blood from my daggers and longsword, and then Tia and I moved on to find our next target without a backward glance.

The number of black wolves was considerable. It was as if they had been respawning. After we killed a pack, we moved on for a bit until a new one appeared.

The experience was quite thrilling, and a quick level-up soon followed. Still, I started to feel mentally exhausted.

I wiped the blood from the tip of my dulled blade, and only then did I notice that I was wounded.

“Uh, how many did you kill?” I asked Gentia.

Even if a significant number of wolves had been killed, their numbers seemed to have increased rather than decreased. We haven’t even gone far into the Black Forest and there were already so many; their great numbers were truly surprising. I felt lucky that they only attacked us one pack at a time.

“Well… I already got my six groups. I counted seven for you. Do you think these ones are really fleeing from a territorial fight?”

“I don’t know. It’s getting dark now. Should we rest here?”

We had reached the spot just in time; it was a good place to light a campfire. It was rare to find such ideal spots in the forest. It was a clearing. Its disadvantage was that there was no place for us to hide, but it also meant that we would be better prepared if the wolves tried a surprise attack.

Above all, I could lie down comfortably and relax. Tia looked up at the sky, looked at the forest around us, and immediately nodded.

“So, take off your clothes first. Let me look at the wound.”

As Tia said this, I took off my jacket without a word. Even if I levelled up, I couldn’t fully heal.

In that instant of gaining a level, my regeneration rate increases, and only a small amount of stamina is restored.

Even if the intervals between gaining levels seem so long, there is still no total recovery ability.

Tia took a glass vial filled with a potion into her hand and seated herself behind my back. She popped the cap from the vial, poured an appropriate amount of the gel-like potion from it, and started applying it to my wound. White smoke flowed from the wound, and I felt a tingling sensation as the damage began to heal rapidly.

“Huh.”

It was a pleasant sensation. I would say that it was the kind of feeling you get when you slide into a hot bath. After Tia had applied the potion to all my wounds, it felt as if my body was drooping in relief.

“Okay, that’s it! Now go and gather up some wood and make the fire.”

“By the way, Tia, you stopped smoking so that it wouldn’t attract the wolves. Is it okay if we light a campfire?”

“It can’t be helped. It’s far better to have light at night than to suffer a surprise attack in the darkness. Why do you ask me? Everything is like our other camping trips.”

“Hey, okay. I’ll go get some wood and then come back.”

Tia nodded and gave me a slight wave.

There was a stack of firewood in my [bag], but I went and gathered some from the forest without saying anything. In the meantime, Tia had gathered up some stones and packed them into a circle, then scuffled the dirt in the center of it. I took some firewood from my b bag] and stacked them in the center, and then packed some of the wood I had gathered in a tepee-like structure over the central stack. The rest I put to the side.

Tia struck a match and lighted the fire, and then lit the cigarette in her mouth.

“Now, shall I take a look at the virtues of my good pupil?”

If we were at home, Tia would’ve cooked on her own, but when we camped, she left everything concerning our meal to me. Fortunately, her tastes weren’t picky, so it was okay to cook roughly. It was not a bothersome chore at all. I took out the pot and started boiling the stew I had bought from a restaurant. I also fried the wolf meat I had prepared in advance in a pan.

Tia looked surprised as she watched me pull out all the needed items from my b bag]. She watched and watched and still seemed amazed until she finally lapsed into a state of admiration.

“How on earth did you come to have a subspace?”

“I just got it… It’s a secret.”

“Do you have any other secrets?”

“There are small things that all boys of my age keep secret.”

‘Like being transported into a world they created.’

But I couldn’t say that aloud, so I just laughed as I met Tia’s envious gaze. She didn’t ask any more questions about the subspace.

The preparation of the meal proceeded step by step. It seemed to be a very luxurious meal to be eating in the middle of a forest, and the delicious, flavorful scent spread through the clearing.

When the meal was done, with us both being full, Tia and I began to sharpen the blades of my longsword and daggers, which I had wielded throughout the day. All the while, the campfire continued flickering.

After that, I just stared at the flames and no words passed between us. Tia looked up at the night sky, smoking and smoking as if she was going to smoke all the cigarettes that she couldn’t smoke through the day. I started dozing off as I hugged my torn jacket.

“Judah.”

“Yes, Tia?”

“How about lying down and sleeping instead of dozing off so uncomfortably? You can sleep a little.”

As I lifted my head in amazement, I saw Tia’s kind smile.

It was an attractive offer, but I hesitated. Tia repeated her offer, insisting upon it.

I pretending to be unable to overcome her insistence, so I took my sleeping bag from the b bag] and lay down. Tia still gently smiled as she threw a few branches into the campfire.

As I positioned myself in the sleeping bag, I listened to the crackling and fizzing sounds of the campfire, and my fatigue seemed to disappear quickly.

I was looking up at the starry sky, so sleep quickly came.

* * *

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[—]Hint: The ears and tail of the Suin race are very sensitive. If you touch them carelessly, your life cannot be guaranteed[—]

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「Status Window」

[Name: Judah Arche]

[Title: None]

[Level: 13]

[Occupation: Black Claw _ Shadow Magic Swordsman (Hidden_A)]

[Number of resurrections: 1]

[Strength: 35(D) / Potential A]