346 Leaving Half Moon Village (2/2)
Truen gave Zero a strict look and denied his request. His reason was that Zero needed to get used to travelling like a normal person so that he doesn't stick out like a sore thumb when he reaches civilisation. Camie didn't say anything but she was laughing secretly. Truen didn't really mean that and the giantess knew the real reason why they were walking through the forest instead. After spending so much time apart from each other, the wood elf simply wanted to spend more time alone with Zero without the company of others. If possible, Truen didn't want Camie to come along either but since they were escorting her, the wood elf could only suck it up and go along with it.
Zero moaned and groaned about his poor stomach every five minutes until Truen had no choice but to give in and offer to go hunting. He told Zero and Camie to carry on at their own pace while he went on ahead to find decent prey or an early lunch. Zero grinned in victory and showered the wood elf with praises, causing the elf's ears to turn red. Unable to take any more of the teasing, Truen left.
Zero was finally alone with Camie so he quickly seized the chance to ask her more about Manus Hilda and how the country was like. Camie was more than happy to share with Zero what she knew about the world many years ago when she was still travelling it. In fact, Zero didn't think that Camie would be an ex-slave who ran away after killing her slave traders.
”Is that why you were separated from your kin in Magnus Hilda for so long?”
Camie nodded. ”I wanted to go home immediately after but I wasn't strong enough. Besides, I had no money and no connections. The Chieftess took me in and told me that while they couldn't provide me with a job and pay me for it, they could teach me how to survive in the wild and fight. I stayed in Half Moon village for a while to learn but you showed up in the middle of it, changing my life completely. I wanted to leave earlier but couldn't do so because I still had to find a way to make money somehow. In the past few months that you introduced Schaf, I was able to do some work in exchange for gold and I saved up enough to finally leave the village for home. The news just gave me a nudge forward to hasten my plans.”
Zero frowned. ”Although I have been to Heaven and Hell, I don't know a lot about Earth apart from Endow Hill. Camie, if you've seen more of Earth, can you share with me? What's your homeland like?”
Camie smiled. She started telling Zero all that she knew about Earth. The doctor already knew about the ten countries or continents that exist on Earth. Each territory was ruled by a specific race even though some of the races might have further divided hierarchies like in the human kingdom and in the United Nation of the Uncanny.
”Does Magnus Hilda also have many factions?”
Camie shook her head. ”The giants are actually peace-loving people and the current monarchy has been ruling for over five hundred years. Three are no taxes and politics, only hardworking and gentle people who love their jobs. Most giants are compassionate so we have a lot of teachers, gardeners and naturalists.”
Zero found that interesting. The life that Camie described seemed very behind the times. The giants didn't seem to use any magic or qi so the doctor was reminded of Hua Tuo's previous way of life - simple and unpretentious. He didn't know if he could ever get used to a life without the convenience of magic but he would find out as soon as he got there. Truen's first rule still echoed in Zero's mind. He had to follow the customs of the people in the place that they were at. If giants didn't use magic then Zero couldn't either.
”Is everything in Magnus Hilda big? Will small people like me have difficulties doing regular things like eating, cooking and bathing?”
Camie thought about it. ”I'm a quarter giant so it's harder for me to find things of the right size without it coming from the children store. However, you don't need to worry. We have regular furniture and utilities for humans and even dwarves in town. Although Magnus Hilda is a quiet place, we still receive visitors of all races from time to time.
They chatted for nearly two hours until Zero smelled something delicious in the air. He sniffed again to confirm that it wasn't a product of his imagination before making a run for it in the direction. Camie laughed at Zero's eagerness when she heard Truen smacking Zero's hands and scolding him for not being patient enough.
The archer was amazing enough to prepare ten grilled lizards within two hours. He even caught a huge pile of fishes from the stream not too far away from his campfire. Camie joined them shortly and accepted a grilled fish from the grumpy wood elf. Zero choked on a bone, giving everyone a scare until he absorbed that and made the threat go away.
Watching the doctor eat, Truen couldn't help but worry. While they were still in the forest, Truen could still make ends meet to satisfy Zero's stomach. However, once they enter towns, how was he going to do that without becoming bankrupt?
Zero munched on his fifth grilled lizard without care. Truth be told, he wasn't that hungry. He just wanted some alone time with Camie to find out a little more about Magnus Hilda and the people before they arrived. The plague that started a few years ago sounded strange and with Zero's knowledge, something didn't add up. People didn't automatically fall into a coma for years on end. Coma wasn't contagious so it wasn't a plague. Something else was causing the unusual behaviour and it didn't seem to be magic either since casting such a wide-range of magic that persisted for so long usually required someone to be a sage god or demigod.
While the three travellers ate in silence, they couldn't help but be occupied by their various worries. From Heaven, Uriel watched them without a word. For some unknown reason, the dreams he kept receiving about Zero's fate kept changing and the archangel couldn't help but feel uneasy. What was this premonition that he kept feeling? Thankfully, none of the other archangels noticed anything different. For now, Uriel would continue to watch over the lad and the choices he made.