"Ha-" "Good morning." "Good morning."
As soon as it dawned, people walked out of their tents one after another. The sound of greetings made the campground, which had been quiet all night, somewhat lively. The bonfire guarded by the third group of mercenaries on night duty now only has a simmering charcoal base that is constantly emitting heat. It is very suitable as a heat source for cooking meat for breakfast.
The food culture of the people on the east coast is much better than that on the west coast in all aspects, so even under such travel conditions, the mercenaries will still not treat themselves badly.
Generally speaking, in order to preserve the meat and fish products for a long time, the moisture in them will be removed through a series of processing methods.
The ethnic minorities in the Palohia Highlands often rely on the natural winds in the harsh sunshine and the vast environment, while the areas in the north of the empire bordering the Kingdom of Suomir often use smoking methods to process fish and meat. But these are difficult to achieve in the warm and humid climate of central and southern China, so the most common preservation method is naturally the oldest preservation method, salting.
The best way to enjoy cured bacon is to make stews. Firstly, the dry meat absorbs the water and makes chewing less strenuous. Secondly, the large amount of salt contained in the meat can also penetrate deep into the soup. The vegetables and fungi simmered together provide flavor.
But in addition to meat, nuts, and beans, they only brought some grains with them on this trip. In this environment, it was really difficult to find wild vegetables that were not frozen to death.
Without fresh ingredients, most ordinary chefs would become sad, but for Captain Stephen and the mercenaries under his command, this is a very common scene.
High-level hunting mercenaries are the existence that many people yearn for. Although war mercenaries who are good at swordsmanship are also quite terrifying, they are never unique. Mercenaries are divided into two very different entities precisely because of this need.
Parts of large creatures found across the continent are essential advanced materials in many industries. Take the dragon-hunting crossbows shipped by the Margaret family as an example. The bow arms they use are actually far from ordinary wood. Ordinary materials are completely unable to withstand the dissipation of this level of energy, and even the yew heartwood, which is cherished by the West Coast archers, can only shoot about ten arrows by itself to provide pulling force.
The laminated crossbow arm is made of the finest wood, with the hamstrings of a large creature glued to the center. After the multiple layers are fixed together, they are pressed together with heavy objects and then smoked to remove the moisture to stabilize the body. Finally, iron hoops are used for secondary reinforcement.
Regardless of strength, the animal's hamstrings that meet the standard length limit the absolute size of the individual. To fight a creature of this level, you need not only equipment, brains, and physique, but also enough patience.
Anyone who has caught a big fish knows that if you close the pole directly, it is likely to cause the fishing line or the pole itself to break. Therefore, you have to walk in a Z-shape, play hard to get, pull and slow down for a while, and consume the prey's physical energy until you feel that its resistance is not so strong, and then decisively close the pole.
The same is true for high-level hunting. Sometimes they need to lurk for two or three weeks in order to wait for a suitable opportunity. And wild animals are extremely sensitive to the smell of flames and smoke. Even if there is time to make a fire and cook, it must be solved as soon as possible. Therefore, prepared meat products such as bacon and salted meat are common items on the menu of hunting mercenaries.
However, the pursuit of delicious food by East Coasters means that they will not be willing to chew dry bacon. In order to make this single ingredient have different tastes and flavors, the mercenaries have gone to great lengths. Over time, they have come up with a set of ideas. A menu popular only within the Hunting Mercenary Chef.
A strong and bright firewood is suitable for boiling water, making soups and cooking vegetables. When it burns down to charcoal fire and is only warm and licking, it is the most suitable time for cooking meat and beans.
With a sound of "Zi——", the mercenaries directly pressed the cleaned iron pot on the charcoal fire, then poured the bacon into the pot, using the heat of the pot to force out the fat in the bacon.
After a while, the aroma filled the entire camp, and this was also the time when the second wave of people woke up. Henry, Mira, Filippo and Horno were all here. A little ahead of them were Adolphus and his group of paladins. At this time, they had finished their morning prayers and were carrying the horses. Grass was distributed among the horses - caring for a total of seven hundred horses, including the pack horses, was not easy, but the paladins had no complaints.
The selection of the Holy See's armed forces of the Orthodox Yetina Sect of the White Church is quite strict. Those who can be called Paladins are firm executors of the will of God. They can endure hardship, are self-disciplined, and have firm beliefs.
Imperial knights also do things like take care of their horses, but most of the time they still rely on professional grooms and their own servants.
The Paladins don't have this condition, at least not anymore. Although the Church is still an organization that cannot be underestimated, it was centuries ago that they had a complete military system and the manpower and material resources to implement it that could be compared to the Empire.
Although they are still knights in name, today's paladins have more in common with mercenaries than with noble knights. They are accustomed to traveling and solving logistical problems by themselves, and taking care of their companions' horses is regarded as a natural move without any objection.
There is strength in numbers, and although there are more things to do, under the management of a group of veterans, the entire camp has been tidied up in less than half an hour. The mercenaries and knights put on their armor and hung up their weapons. Fresh water was replenished, and the remaining supplies were checked again and again. Only the freshly cooked breakfast and meal plates prepared for distribution were left in the camp.
Meals for four hundred people required at least thirty cauldrons to cook, and they were scattered around the camp so that the smoke would not be too concentrated. Although witches should not be as sensitive to this as human enemies, it is always right to be careful.
"I'm a little worried." Captain Stephen, who was actually in charge of the entire team, said this and walked towards Henry with a serious expression. He was about six or seven centimeters shorter than Henry, but his figure was more proportionate than that of Henry. The Sage is much stronger - this is the result of years of use of heavy weapons. We can also see the reason why many hunting mercenaries also work part-time as blacksmiths. Obviously, they are better at wielding heavy tools to deal with tough creatures or metal than fighting humans.
"Is there a problem with the consumption of supplies?" The sage said and took a sip of cold stream water as a mouthwash. Even though Stephen looks like a rough guy, you can't tell a person by his appearance. As we've said before, hunting big animals requires a cool head, planning, and patience, but the responsibility of leading a hunting party is even greater. Although he may occasionally have a bad temper, he is ultimately not a careless person.
"Yes, just one breakfast consumed the supplies carried by the two pack horses, and not a single bit was left." Stephen said this, even though he was the nominal leader of the team because he used most of the manpower. But after seeing what Henry did in the city defense battle, the mercenary leader would not put on any airs in front of him.
Most of the people who can make the team develop and grow to occupy a place in the industry are of his type. They don't care about face and identity in front of capable people. You are not completely passive and will listen to what others say, but you also don’t put yourself on a high pedestal and think that the other party doesn’t understand anything.
Arrogant and arrogant people may rely on connections to climb to a certain position, but they will not last long.
"There is another problem." Stephen continued: "The direction of the water flow is different from that of the witch. We may face a water shortage."
"..." Henry put down the cup in his hand and looked around at the surrounding scene.
The creek that was previously frozen on the surface has melted, and with the increased water flow due to melting snow, it turned into a small river in a short period of time. It was not difficult to find it. The fresh water they consumed was replenished here, but according to Camilo and Horno's rough judgment through communication with the unicorn, the witch might be further east.
The deeper the terrain, the more difficult it is to walk, and the more difficult the terrain is, the more food and fresh water will be consumed - but here comes the problem. This creek flows from north to south, which means that their progress The direction is perpendicular to it.
They did not follow the ancient path this time, because the witch did not take the main road when she retreated into the Bao Forest. Therefore, after setting off yesterday, they only walked a short period of time before heading into the forest. The northeastern forest clearing they arrived at in the evening was commonly used by loggers and hunters in the town and surrounding villages. of camping sites.
But if you go beyond this point, there will be no such thing as a road.
With four hundred people and seven hundred horses, countless situations can occur on a flat road. If they enter an undeveloped forest, the problem will obviously be even greater.
Not to mention the remaining undead harassment, the supply alone can cause a series of troubles. They don't have many water storage containers because they are concentrating on traveling. Fortunately, the temperature is not very high. Otherwise, if the consumption is higher, they may have to start reducing their numbers before they see the witch.
"Understood." The sage nodded and said nothing more. The mercenary leader, who had had many exchanges during the battle, understood that this meant that Henry had a solution. He reported the risk, and the other party learned of this, so he would do something.
For him, that's enough.
Stephen turned his head and walked to the other side. The cooks among the mercenaries were very skilled. After squeezing out the oil, they added some water to cook the broth. The soup used to reduce the salt content was not wasted but was added to the grain porridge to increase the flavor. The bacon that had absorbed the water was dipped in grease again and placed on the frying pan, making it a simple and delicious dish. fried meat.
A simple but appetizing breakfast. After Horno and Mira finished dressing up, it was the time to unveil the blame, and the last batch of imperial magicians did not wake up until this time.
The magic instructor Camilo took the lead, shouting "ouch, ouch, ouch" and patting his back. He rushed forward without much rest for the whole day, until his frame almost fell apart, and only a layer of linen was placed on the ground as a cushion. It's not comfortable to sleep at all. If he hadn't been really tired, he might have had to sleep all night like those apprentices.
"Thank you for being able to adapt." The moment they walked out of the tent, the magicians noticed that everyone else had packed up their things. Except for the dozen or so tents they were in, everything else had been packed away and placed on the pack horses. On horseback. The listless magicians rubbed their shoulders and backs and walked towards the bonfire.
"Here." Mira, who was scooping out porridge, handed a horn cup to the magic instructor.
"Thank you." Camilo took it and looked around a few times. He recognized that it was made of horns, and it was quite different from the silver and tinware he usually used. This made the magician feel a little It was so fresh that I had an occupational illness and stared at it for a long time.
"Hey, Your Majesty the Mage, make way." "Ah, I'm very sorry." Camilo made way for a mercenary, then walked to another pile of burning pots next to him and used a copper spoon to He scooped a ladle of warm water and poured it into the horn cup.
He muttered: "Morning tea will be fine." He walked to Henry's side. The sage lowered his head and glanced at the steaming horn cup in Camilo's hand. He raised his eyebrows and watched him pick it up and blow on it several times. Then he took a sip.
"...."
"Why is it fishy?"
"She means to use this to fill your mouth with cold water."
"The horn cup cannot hold hot things." Henry shrugged.
"...remind me, how many days have we been leaving?"
"one day."
"Starting to miss your life in the imperial capital and your comfortable carriage?"
"......Yes."
Camilo frowned and took another sip of warm water.
