Chapter 125: 125. Quick Work (1/2)

Tyler and Nadine finally returned back to the campsite at the bottom of the steep hill after being gone for about an hour or so. At this point, the group were already done setting up the camp and securing the perimeter as well as creating a campfire where a pot of some kind of brouth was being made.

Most Hunters would usually only pack dried foods for a short trip as it was less time consuming and made it easier to clean up the campsite in the morning. However, the group had opted to make something from scratch because they felt it would better help them recover from the massively draining fight from earlier.

While that may be an arbitrary thought, they still rather take it as face value as their minds needed something to take their minds off the monsters and help them regain their mental fortitude.

As Tyler and Nadine got closer to the camp and crossed through the perimeter. The group of five that sat on logs around the campfire all simultaneously turned their heads towards them as they had probably been informed by the alarm spell cast around the campsite.

Tyler had been curious on how the alarm spell worked so he hadn't tried to hide his presence and had kept his eyes fix on the group to see who would react first but to his surprise they all reacted at the same time. Perhaps the spell had informs them all at the same time using some kind of method he wasn't yet aware of.

As he and Nadine got close enough to the group at the center of the camp, Dohel was the first one to speak to them:

”Welcome back, please do not stray too far from the camp next time, it makes it harder to monitor the movements outside the perimeter.”

”I see, do forgive my ignorance.”

”Huh, no no no no no... That's not what I meant. Besides you're not a Hunter so it's only natural that you'd not be well versed on things like these, right.”

As Dohel panically tried to explain himself, the twins Aine and Anne both welcomed Tyler at the same time.

”Welcome back Mr. Lix, we're done with dinner so please come and join us.”

Larut and Kylyra both nodded at the invite and although Tyler had no interest in eating their brouth, he still accepted their invite as he thought it would be a good opportunity to get to know this group of Hunters better. It would also help him get a clearer picture on the life of an Hunter.

Tyler then accepted their invitation and proceeded to take a seat in the logs next to the twins with Nadine trailing behind him, who naturally sat by his side.

As they sat around the campfire, Aine stood up and served them both a bowl of the steaming hot brouth and Tyler accepted it. The soup was compromised of bits of meats, potatoes, nuts, mushrooms and several others things Tyler wasn't completely sure on what they were.

It looked rich with nutrients but didn't seem like it could ever be considered a delicacy. Since Tyler didn't need to eat as often as he once did, he didn't feel like putting this thing in his mouth but had no choice in the matter.

Nadine held her bowl silently as stared blankly at it as well, perhaps waiting for Tyler to start eating before she did. Or maybe she also found it unappealing. *Sigh... Since it would be strange if he just sat there and did nothing, and probably rude if he did not eat, Tyler forced himself to take a bite.

He took a spoonful of soup and meat to his mouth and without wasting anymore time, he ate it. The chewy texture of the meat made him wonder what beast it was from but aside from that, he was currently stunned. His eyes went wide at how surprisingly tasty the brouth was.

The simple looking brown soup that looked a bit like mud was packed with so much flavour that they all exploded in his mouth at once, giving him several sensations that he hadn't expected. If this was a certain cooking show he was sure his clothes probably would have exploded in sheer ecstasy or something dumb like that.

”Not bad.”

”I know right, Aine and Anne are the best cooks you can find amongst all the Hunter party's in the guild.” Dohel proclaimed with a bright smile on his face as he ate. His cheerful and airy attitude seem to have returned probably thanks to the good meal.

”I see... Very well done, I hadn't expected it.”

Tyler complimented the twins sincerely as he saw Nadine finally began to eat from the corner of his eyes and gently chuckled.

Aine and Anne blushed slightly as they lowered their head in embarrassment at Tyler's sincere praise.

”Oh... You guys can't be shy now. This is one of the best meals you guys have ever prepared for us. It's almost as though you took extra care for some reason... Hehe... You know what I me—” Ack!

Kylyra had immediately elbowed Dohel in the stomach as the idiot didn't know when to shut his mouth even when she had been giving him signs to shut the hell up.

It was a bit of a relief to see the liveliness of the group returned to them after the demoralizing events that had taken place earlier on.

Tyler now felt a little bad that he had inwardly insulted the meal that had been carefully prepared for his sake but there was nothing he could do about that so he kept his mouth shut and watched as Dohel's grumbling got him smacked on the back of his head by Kylyra.

Their banter continued all through out the meal untill they were done eating and cleaning up. Tyler found their chats and bickering entertaining so he did not interrupt them until they were done.

Once the cleaning was done, it was bow time for the group to rest after once more securing the perimeter and feeding the Six-eyed bull. The monster had the fiery aura and was able to freely regulate it's body temperature so the cold really had no effects on it whatsoever and leaving to sleep outside was no problem.

However, as Larut went to check the perimeter, he suddenly heard several muffled rustling sounds at the end of the hill moving closer to the perimeter and as if to make matters worse, the alarm spell suddenly went off and everyone could instantly feel the presence of several trespassers.

The air surrounding the group instantly stiffened up as their previous relaxed looks had immediately change to a serious one after being forced into a state of alertness. They quickly armed themselves and stood up as they glared at the direction the sound had originated from.

”Are those... Hoppers?”