Chapter 24
Claude and his party had made good progress and reached the second Safe Zone.
“Let’s end today’s exploration here and take a break.”
Securing a corner of the Safe Zone, his older sisters quickly prepared dinner.
They produced water in a pot with magic, boiled it using Utility Magic, and then added a white powder.
The white powder rapidly absorbed the water, increasing in volume.
“Alicia-neesama, what is that powder?”
“So this is your first time seeing it, Claude. It’s a preserved food popular with adventurers, made by mixing various things with wheat flour. The taste isn’t the best, but it’s highly nutritious.”
While explaining, she skillfully ladled it into a bowl and handed it to him.
He scooped some with a spoon and tried it.
It couldn’t be called delicious, even as a compliment, but it wasn’t inedible.
“How does it taste?”
“It has a rather… indescribable taste, doesn’t it.”
“You’ll be relying on it during things like academy practical training, so it’s best to get used to it now.”
Although it had the advantage of not being bulky, Claude resolved to find a way to improve these Portable Rations.
Dinner finished, and all that remained was to go to sleep.
“You must be tired from your first dungeon. We’ll handle the watch, so you should get some rest now, Claude.”
“Thank you, I’ll take you up on your kind offer and get some rest.”
Although he wasn’t physically exhausted, Claude had been constantly on alert, and the mental fatigue had accumulated. Wrapped in a blanket, he was soon fast asleep.
The four of them, after confirming Claude was asleep, began to speak in hushed voices so as not to wake him.
“Fahrenheit-niisan, what’s your take on Claude? You’ve been observing him this whole time, haven’t you?”
Fahrenheit, while keeping an eye on the party’s overall balance and guarding their rear, had been evaluating Claude.
“His coordination had some unrefined points, but it looked like he was always holding something back.”
“He didn’t seem reckless at all, did he? I was able to cast my magic without any worries too.”
“I think we’re fine to keep proceeding like this, what do you all think?”
“No objections. Then it’s settled, we’ll continue deeper in.”
When Claude woke up in the morning, his older brothers and sisters were already awake.
“Claude. Good morning. You seem to have slept well.”
“It seems I slept very soundly. I apologize.”
“Being able to sleep anywhere is actually an important skill. There’s no need to feel embarrassed.”
Klaus-niisama offered him a bowl.
Its contents were the same Portable Rations from dinner.
“Listen while you eat. From this point on, Hobgoblins—a superior goblin species—and goblin mages will start appearing. The difficulty will naturally increase, but more importantly, there will be a lot more of them.”
“I’m sure you already know this, but don’t rush ahead and get yourself isolated.”
“Understood.”
“Personally, I’m more worried about Klaus-niisama than Claude, you know.”
“Hey, what’s that supposed to mean?”
“Heh heh. That’s because you have a ‘proven track record’ of getting isolated in the past.”
“Fahrenheit-niisan! Did you really have to bring that up here?”
He should have been tense after hearing about the increased difficulty, but before he knew it, he found himself laughing along with his older brothers.