âSo this is the entrance to the forest. Weâll set up camp after moving away from the road. The Forest of Delight becomes more dangerous the further you go in, so we should get some sleep while we can.â
Several hours had now passed since leaving the town of Kiria.
Tina suggested that we set up camp now that we had arrived in the forest.
âAway from the road?â
âStaying away from the road is a general rule when you have a small party. Being near the road might mean fewer monsters, but itâll make it easier for bandits to find you.â
I see. So thatâs why.
So, you had to think about dealing with bandits when campingâŠ
And so we moved away from the road and searched for a suitable spot.
âThis place looks good. Yuji, are there any monsters around?â
Tina had chosen a spot near a cliff that was lower than the surrounding area.
Yes, I could see how it would be hard for bandits to find us here.
âI donât see any monsters. And there are no humans within my detection range either.â
âAlright, so itâs decided then. Letâs set up camp.â
So saying, everyone pitched their own tent and began to eat the preserved food they had brought.
In these kinds of temporary parties, everyone brought their own things.
As I had heard of this in advance, I had prepared my own tent, which I was able to set up before sitting down to a dinner of bread that I had brought.
âSo, who should take the first watch?â
Tina asked once we were finished eating.
Then Rodis opened his mouth, which was unusual, as he mostly kept silent.
âYou should go first. Iâll be second, third is Yujji and Lisa can go last. What do you say?â
âI understand choosing Yuji for the darkest hours because heâs a scout, but how did you choose the others?â
âSecond and third have their sleeping hours split into two, which can be the most tiring. I have the highest rank, so I should do it. Yuji doesnât fight, so he doesnât matter. But I donât want you two dragging us down.â
âWell, if you insist. âŠIâll wake you up when your time comes. You three can rest now.â
âŠWhile it may not have been worded in the most ideal way, he was surprisingly gentlemanly?
And with that, I stationed my slimes around the area and then went to sleep.
If something happened, the slimes would alert me.
â
âYuji! Yuji!â
The voices of the slimes woke me up.
Apparently, something had happened.
âWhat is it? What happened?â
âRodis suddenly disappeared during his watch!â
âDisappearedâŠdo you mean he ran away?â
âUhhâŠI donât think so! Weâre chasing him now on the Proud Wolf!â
Upon hearing this, I connected to the slime on the Proud Wolfâs back with Shared Senses.
And then I was able to see Rodis running through the forest.
âŠYes, it didnât look like he was running because he didnât want to watch anymore.
And it didnât seem like nature was calling him either.
In any case, the situation was very abnormal.
âGo wake up Tina and Lisa.â
âOkay!â
I told a slime to wake them up as I continued to monitor Rodis.
It seemed like he was making his way to somewhere in the forest.
Perhaps he remembered the exact location because there was no hesitation in the way he moved.
âYuji. The slimes woke us up. Did something happen?â
âIsnât it Rodisâs turn to watch?â
Tina and Lisa said as they came towards me.
âYeah. But heâs gone off somewhere.â
âIf he escaped during his watchâŠhe canât be up to anything good. Are you sure he isnât just relieving himself?â
âDefinitely not that. Rodis is now running about three kilometers away from here.â
âYou can tellâŠ? In any case, I see that it is no ordinary matter. We have to leave this place at once. Weâll leave the tents here for now.â
Tina gave the order after hearing my answer. And so she started gathering her things.
âGot it!â
Lisa also started to do the same.
The two of them were apparently thinking of leaving this place as soon as possible.
âDo we really have to run away now?â
âWe do. Only a bandit would run away in the middle of his watch without saying anything. Itâs a good thing you noticed it before we were attacked, Yuji.â
He was working with the bandits⊠I see.
We had chosen a spot that would be difficult for bandits to find, but if Rodis really had run off in order to alert his bandit friendsâŠthen that effort had been for nothing.
We would have all been sleeping while he had the watch. There could not have been easier prey for the bandits then.
Well, that was if you ignored the fact that I had the slimes.
I thought as much as I finished packing my belonging.
âNow, letâs run!â
Liked it? Take a second to support Novels on Patreon!