Chương 376: 371. The Caravan - II

"How are you here?" Tesyb asked the former mercenary as they clasped their arms in greeting.

"It's quite lucky we met at this spot." Feroy laughed.

"Hardly. This is one of the just two good places to stop on this road—apart from the old Helga's inn. We left that place a little late today because of a boar attack, but I'm glad we reached this clearing before dark." Tesyb grinned.

"So am I. Wait, you were attacked by boars too near Helga' inn? Same for us, although we got a lot of smoked meat out of it. That really is turning into dangerous territory though."

"I know," Feroy said.

"We'll have to do something about it soon. It's a pity we couldn't risk smoking all that meat with so few of us there in case an adzee caught that smell. We had to dispose of what we couldn't eat immediately." He glanced around at the busy clearing.

"I don't see any refugees with you."

"Yeah." Tesyb scratched his cheek.

"We hurried a lot in Cinran, but we only reached this spot just now. My plan is to go look for them tomorrow morning. The man from the encampment said there's a trail going toward their camp from near here." He tilted his head.

"Now that you are here, can you help us out tomorrow? Unless you're in a hurry, that is. Having four more men would help a lot in guarding the wagons while we go to that encampment." Feroy rubbed his short brown beard.

"Me and Hyola are free. We have free rein to move around near Cinran on a mission from the baron." Tesyb raised his eyebrows.

"Oh, that kind of mission? Like the one in Kirnos?" Feroy nodded once.

"Yeah. So the two of us can help you. Pydaso can't wait, though. He has to go on to Ulriga, so he can't lose a day here. He'll have to leave tomorrow morning with Calubo and the other guard."

"Well, it's still better than nothing," Tesyb said.

"Come on. Let's eat!" He turned to the side and saw that the camp was already in the process of being set up. The eight wagons had been moved into the clearing and arranged in a loose circle that would give them some protection from boars or bandits. A small fire had been lit in the center, where Pydaso and Trevalo sat talking on a thick log someone had left here from a previous stop.

The guards had pulled out some of the vegetables and potatoes from yesterday's purchase, as permitted by the baron in advance, although they left the cheese alone—that was a luxury item reserved for those who lived in the manor house. Two of the guards had already taken over cooking in a big pot they kept for such trips. There was still a fair amount of smoked meat left from the boars they had killed near Helga's Inn, and Trevalo's guards shared it with the new arrivals, leaving some for later.

In return, Feroy's group passed around some bread they had brought from the village. It was two days old by now, but still tasty enough. Before long, nearly everyone was sitting around the fire with a wooden bowl of hot stew, some smoked boar meat, and a chunk of bread. The warmth and the steady talk around him gave the camp a relaxed feel, even though they were in the middle of this dangerous forest.

It was quite different from the rushed grain trips before winter, when everyone had been tense in the forest and desperate to get back inside the safety of Tiranat's walls. But this time there was a quiet confidence in the group. Everyone knew there were dangerous beasts and bandit groups in this forest, but they also knew they could handle trouble if it came. Even so, some of the men were already posted at the edges of the camp, watching the darkness between the trees.

Their shifts would change every few hours so all of them got a chance to sleep. Seeing that everything was under control, Tesyb finally walked over and joined the circle of people gathered around the fire, taking a place near Feroy, Hyola, and Calubo. He grinned at the younger guard.

"Well?" Calubo frowned.

"Well what?" Tesyb snorted and turned to the redhead.

"Has he still not asked you?" Hyola let out a long breath and shook her head, clearly annoyed. The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation. Calubo still looked lost.

"Asked what?"

"Nothing, you idiot," Hyola muttered, and Tesyb and Feroy both snickered. Tesyb looked back at Feroy.

"So, how are we doing it tomorrow? We have to leave enough men here to keep the wagons safe while we are out. It'll take a few hours to reach that place through the forest trail and another few to allow the people to pack up to leave. Coming back to this place will take longer though with all those people with us. Overall it will probably take the whole day, so there would be no point in leaving for the village tomorrow. We'll have to leave for Helga's Inn the next morning." He glanced at the guards sitting nearby.

"After Pydaso leaves with his wagon driver and two guards, there will still be... ten guards and six wagon drivers here, apart from Trevalo and the man from the encampment. How should we divide our numbers?" Feroy stared into the fire.

"We're not going there to fight those people at the encampment, so we don't need full fighting strength with us. We just need enough numbers to make them hesitate in doing anything stupid while we talk. On the other hand, these wagons need some good protection. So, apart from me and you, we'll take three wagon drivers with us, plus the man from the camp. That leaves eleven men here to protect the wagons apart from Trevalo, while there'll be six of us going to the encampment in total.

That's enough to handle any small danger on the way, while the remaining men here can handle most of the trouble with that strength." Hyola glared at him.

"What about me? You can't be thinking of leaving me here!" Feroy shook his head.

"No. You'll have to stay here." Hyola's hands tightened around her bowl.

"Why? I can fight too!" Feroy snorted.

"Exactly. That's why you'll stay here. We're not going to the encampment to fight. If there's a fight to be had, you might very well get it here while protecting the wagons." Hyola glared at him while she took a sip of stew, but didn't say anything.

"We also can't take those two weapons to the encampment," Feroy added, lowering his voice a little.

"If anyone there sees them and runs off with that information, it could harm us a lot. So we'll keep both of them here. You'll use your own weapon to protect the wagons, and someone else will take the one I brought."

"Fine!" Hyola muttered. Tesyb snorted again, watching her. She knew as well as the rest of them that they had to keep the crossbows a secret. Feroy had told them that both weapons were still hidden under thick cloth on the horses they had ridden in on. All the guards knew about them, but the wagon drivers and the two merchants did not. It had to stay that way for now. They would use the crossbows in an emergency if they had to, but until then it was better to be careful. Feroy went on, still looking at Hyola.

"You'll be the one leading the guards here. The other men all use swords, so they'll have to move out of the wagon circle to meet any enemy. You'll keep Trevalo next to you inside the circle and organize the fight while protecting him."

"Fine," Hyola said again, giving a quick glance to Calubo.

"Now I hope some bandits do come here. My hands are itching to kill someone. Anyone." Tesyb shook his head at the hotheaded woman and dipped his bread into the warm stew before taking a bite. She was a good leader, and had organized the female guards at the village quite well into proper watchtower sentries, but she really needed to keep her head calm. He snorted. It wasn't like he was any better in that regard.

His habit of getting overconfident again and again was going to bite him in the rear one day unless he learned to keep his ego in control.

"Calubo," Feroy said, turning to the younger guard, "make sure you keep Pydaso safe. Ulriga is a huge city—perhaps around a hundred times bigger than our village—and it's the first time you and the other guard are going there, so you have to keep your wits about you. You can't afford to get distracted by anything or anyone in that place.

If someone is asking for help and wants you to go into a dark alley to help their sister or children, or he's trying to make you an excellent offer to buy something, it's most likely a scam. So just ignore all of them. You have to do exactly what you've been told to do—keep the merchant and his cargo safe. And nothing else." Calubo nodded firmly.

"I will protect them with my life." Tesyb caught Hyola still giving Calubo the stink eye. He snorted again. These two really should marry soon, or the redhead might really end up killing someone. Feroy finished his meal, stood, and stretched.

"I'll go take a walk. I'm not used to riding a horse for days." Calubo got up at once.

"I'll come with you." Tesyb barely held back a laugh, knowing Calubo just wanted to get away from Hyola's ire for a while. He pushed himself to his feet as well.

"I'm done eating too. I'll go arrange the watch shifts for tonight." As he walked away from the fire, he glanced back and saw Hyola glaring at the backs of both Feroy and Calubo. He let out a short chuckle. She really was a scary woman.