Chapter 34 (1/2)

Journeying and Dining

Things were going well. The weather was great, the beaten path was easy to walk on. And while the forest trees surrounded us, we were never attacked by forest wolves like before. Beowulf’s commands must have reached all of them. Occasionally, we would see a snout poking from the leaves, but we were left untouched otherwise.

“So, Daniela. How far are we to the next town?”

I ask, walking beside her.

“Indeed… I would say that it is six days on foot.”

“That’s quite far.”

“I would not say so. All towns are rather scattered unless you are close to the capital.”

Were they now… Oh well, as long we could still reach it. Imagine if we had to cross oceans or mountains.

The seclusion and peaceful air continued for over three days after that. And I was starting to feel a little rusty. The journey was easy. All we did was eat store-bought food around a bonfire every night and then walk.

But then this all ended because of the rain.

It rained so heavily that I thought it we were in a typhoon. But we just donned our raincoats and continued to walk.

“This weather is atrocious.”

“Yes… Well, it is a part of any journey.”

It was not realistic to expect the weather to always be in your favor. And it wasn’t as if the weather had some grudge against me. There was nothing to do but walk.

My boots trudged through the mud as I looked ahead of us. The thick clouds were casting a shadow that made the midday look like it was noon. It was even darker in the forest. There were no signs of the clouds parting or the rain letting up. It would be a long time before it stopped raining.