Entering mid-August in central Aurora, unlike Parnilla in the far south, the sun is still shining brightly at this time, and a little carelessness at night and early morning can already cause people to catch a cold.
Even if you sleep around a campfire in a tent, it is best to cover yourself with a woolen cloak at night to avoid accidents.
A small cold is also extremely scary for people at the bottom. Lack of medication can lead to death. Even under the best circumstances, a family's livelihood is already stretched thin. If one labor force is missing due to illness, or even just the labor efficiency is reduced, it is likely to lead to the end of the family being broken up.
Such hardships in life largely come from the oppression of other classes. Herbalism, which humans have accumulated based on experience, actually has a long history in various parts of the world. However, in the Aurora region where the Yetina Sect has the strictest beliefs, using herbal medicine to treat diseases is an act of pagan rebellion.
The Suomir people's undivided application of their belief in death makes them the best fanatics. In fundamentalist norms, disease is not acquired due to external factors, but is a punishment from God for your involvement in demonic behavior. And to cure a disease, what you should do is the only thing allowed to be done.
Just kneel down and pray devoutly.
If you are a person with a pure heart, but you are accidentally tempted by the devil and go astray. Then after you pray sincerely, God will relieve you of the punishment and let you relax.
However, when you are sick, you don't pray well but seek "external things" such as herbs to treat you. This is obviously the "laziness" and "cunning" of demons. It is extremely rebellious to rely on external help instead of facing difficulties well and rely on your own soul to be clean.
The profession of herbalist has become extinct in Suomir in history, and because the people at the bottom cannot get cheap and efficient medical treatment, the average life expectancy has dropped to about 40 years old.
Nowadays, with the reform of the religious system, the interference of divine power in the human world has become lighter, and similar things have become much rarer.
However, this country's deep-rooted traditions and people's general acknowledgment of death still make people feel speechless in all aspects.
——The eldest son of the innkeeper, Galeva, who works together with the Roan girl and the sage, is such a typical example.
The sound of "Bang Bang——" sounded outside the tent, and Mira, who was about to wake up, sat up with a "Whoosh——" opened the tent and grabbed the sword. Then he turned his head and glanced at his teacher who was still lying on the floor but had his eyes open.
"It's Galeva." The sage's expression also looked a little helpless, and the two of them looked inside the tent. As expected, there was no one where the young porter was lying.
He thought it was just dawn and he had already touched it out lightly. Mira and Henry sighed at each other, and then walked out of the tent.
"I——" Galeva, who was covering the wound on his right arm, saw the two of them, enduring the pain while trying to find words to explain, which made people even more helpless. A leather bucket with a wooden frame that fell to the ground was obviously the culprit of the sound. It was still leaking water as it lay limply on the ground.
"Alas -" the Luoan girl sighed again, and the sage turned around and began to pack up the three people's bunks and add new firewood to the charcoal fire that had been burning all night.
"I'm just——" The young man still tried to defend. Mira walked over and picked up the barely a quarter bucket of water left, and then walked towards the iron pot placed outside the tent.
With a sound of "Wow!", she poured the water into it, and then turned her head to look at Galeva.
"..." The young porter lowered his head, like a puppy that had done something bad and been scolded.
"Can I take a look at the wound?" Henry pulled out the ground nails and quickly put the tent away, while Mira walked over. Galeva hesitantly released his hand covering his right arm, and sure enough, the wound oozed blood again.
"Can't you just sit there and go?" The girl Luo An looked fierce.
"I..." Galeva was finally able to say a complete sentence this time: "I just caused you so much trouble. In the end, I didn't get the money back, and it became a drag. I think The least I can do is-"
He has been like this for the past two days, and the reason is not very unexpected. He is obviously still concerned about the trouble he caused while crossing the bridge.
The breakout at that time was considered timely. If it were delayed for a while and all the nearby garrisons came over, even our Mr. Sage would not have much to do under the siege of hundreds of people.
Mila and Henry both endured and paid the money, but because of Galeva's impulsiveness, they could only take the narrow road to avoid further trouble.
The main road can be passed in two and a half days, but the trail will take at least three more days. In addition, many rugged places are inhabited by various beasts and monsters, which greatly increases the difficulty and danger of walking.
"It's not your fault. We have to pay so much money every time, and we can't afford it." Henry, who had packed up the camp behind, put the pot on the fire and said without looking back. But his comforting words obviously didn't have much effect on the stubborn Galeva. The young man was still downcast, making Mira feel angry for no reason.
"I've already told you it's not your fault. Why are you so dejected? Be a man." The Luoan girl said angrily.
"I just want to contribute in some way-" Galeva muttered quietly.
"Why don't you use any strength?! Aren't you causing trouble for me? You sit on the side of the wound before it heals, and it breaks open again with some work that requires strength. If you really want to help me, go and sit next to me. Okay, you broke your own wound, and I’m not the one who wants to bandage it for you.” “Pfft—” “Ah?!” Henry behind him laughed, and Mira glared at him angrily.
"You Suomir people who accept death are really - ah ah ah, you are so angry!" "There is half a pancake left, do you want to eat it?" Henry said at the right time. "I want to eat!" Mira threw it over and snatched it away.
"I..." Galeva saw that the work was taken over by two people, and he had no choice but to walk to the side and sit down. The sage began to cook breakfast while the Luoan girl gnawed pancakes and ran to take care of the horses. He sat on a stone next to the trail, a little at a loss because he had nothing to do.
"Things like travelers." Henry said in a steady voice without looking here, using a spoon to stir the soup made from broken biscuits.
Galeva looked at him, and the sage continued: "There is no such thing as who owes someone. Meeting each other and traveling together is a kind of fate."
"When you are traveling, it is your duty to take care of each other. That's how people are. Only by supporting each other can we continue to move forward." Small bubbles began to rise at the bottom of the pot. Henry pulled out the cork and patted the small clay pot. Take it with a few grains of salt: "If everyone hopes that the other person will help in return, people will feel unbalanced because they feel that their efforts are not rewarded."
"And then they became suspicious of each other, which eventually led to divisions and fights." The aroma of grain began to spread as the temperature increased, and Galeva looked thoughtful as he listened to Henry's words.
Even if the firewood is at a perfect temperature on a cold morning, it will take some time to cook it completely.
The noodle soup, which needs to be simmered for a while, is put on the fire early. When it was almost cooked, Henry turned around and took out the bacon from Galeva's backpack, sliced it and placed it on a clean, flat stone next to the fire, only to heat it slightly.
The cured bacon can be eaten cold. In the northern region of Suomir, the cured part is usually fatty meat. The fat part of the cow or pig is pickled with salt, and is cut into thin slices and eaten as cold food during festivals or as an occasional breakfast or lunch.
People in this land of snow usually have a hot meal for dinner. The family gathered in front of the fireplace, put vegetables and a small amount of pickled salty fatty meat in an iron pot, let the fat evaporate in it, and cooked it into a thick soup to warm people's body and mind on a cold night.
A life of eating meat and drinking alcohol was limited to the lords and nobles. Including mercenaries, most people in the lower class still eat a lot of various grains and vegetables on weekdays.
A large part of protein intake relies on various legumes, especially soybeans, which play an extremely important role in the diet structure of the lower classes on the East Coast. Some of the remaining complements come from fish, but this is very restricted by terrain and is difficult to obtain in inland mountainous areas without rivers, lakes or oceans.
Before starting the pot, the sage poured some strong liquor into the grain soup to further season it. They carried several leather water bladders, some filled with water, and others filled with spirits.
It is common practice to bring some wine to warm yourself up when traveling in the cold Suomir. In addition, it can also be used for disinfection and seasoning during cooking. It can be regarded as a typical example of a multi-purpose thing.
Adventurers and traveling merchants are always experts at calculating weight and volume. Even if there is a horse as a means of transportation, the things that can be carried are limited. It is true that having a complete set of everything can make many things much more convenient. For example, an iron tripod can save you from having to find wood to make a stand every time, and the tent poles that come with it also serve the same purpose. But if you have to carry them all, the size and weight will be too much, and too much money will be spent on equipment.
Therefore, discard some accessories that can be solved with a little effort, and as for those accessories that can be used for multiple purposes and have many benefits, you will definitely bring them with you. They are indispensable.
Lifestyle will always force you to find a way to adapt. No matter which industry you are in, over time, a set of feasible plans will always be summarized.
This plan cannot be regarded as absolutely correct. Even the so-called tradition should be changed as time goes by to adapt to the current society.
Even so, blindly rejecting it does not give a correct answer. Many young and frivolous people always regard the approach of completely denying tradition as innovation. But this approach of setting up an opposing object and then denying them all is also very lazy, and no matter what industry they are in, such people often do not end well.
Even in a peaceful town, unconventional people are rarely welcomed. In the traveler and adventurer industry, arrogant and arrogant people who do not learn relevant knowledge will often never return from the wilderness.
Innovation needs to start with a thorough understanding of tradition. Whether it is the rules of the mercenary industry or the situation of the entire country, anything that can be truly stable and maintained needs time to evolve slowly, rather than reaching the sky in one step.
Only those who have read thousands of books and know everything deeply can give suggestions for further development based on their own experience.
"Ka-" Henry opened the pot, and steam began to rise in the camp. He then picked up a piece of wood and pulled the excess firewood aside, reducing the firepower so that the charcoal fire could only continue to maintain the temperature of the grain soup.
It's the season of Talwar Sutta, and if you're not careful, the whole pot of soup will go cold.
After taking care of the horses, the Luoan girl came over from the other side carrying a leather bucket. She was only 80% full, but she still seemed a little struggling.
The water source on this side of the path is not very convenient, but there has been a conflict with the defenders and the extortion behavior of these soldiers is obviously not an exception, so it is better to avoid it.
"Ha——" Mira, who put down the bucket, wiped the sweat from her forehead and exhaled a big breath.
The leather bucket with a frame will stand on the ground by itself after being filled with water. Just now, Galeva fell down due to the pain of a split wound. Fortunately, it did not break.
The lazy sunshine finally begins to shine, and the temperature gradually rises. After Mira and Henry finished what they had to do in the morning, they turned back to look at Galeva, and then noticed that the young porter, who had been silent for a long time, was sitting on the stone attentively with his head lowered.
"Hey, you can write?" Galeva was so focused that he didn't even notice the sage and the Luoan girl approaching. Mira's voice startled him and he almost dropped the notebook, but luckily Henry reached out to catch it.
"It's been some years." The sage looked at the cowhide-covered book in his hand, looked it over, and then gave it back to Galeva.
"It belongs to my father." The young man took it and said, "He used to be a scribe, and so was my grandfather. Later, when the printing shop opened, he changed his career to a hotel."
"It's so neatly written. That's not right. You can make more money by reading. Why are you still working as a porter?" Mira looked at the neat Lamani language on Galeva's notepad. What he wrote was not It's so strange, it's just an ordinary diary that records some things that happened with the three of them.
"I..." Galeva stuttered again, and Mira looked at the writing in his diary and suddenly frowned: "Strange, how come your writing is so smooth?" she said. He looked up, and the sage also glanced over.
"Indeed, the handwriting is neat and the sentences are quite fluent." Henry touched his chin and nodded: "I couldn't imagine that it would be a sentence written by you."
"...This is the reason." Galeva lowered his head and sighed: "I can only be calm and focused when I am writing. When communicating with others..."
"So I can only do boring jobs like porters." He sighed again, Mira glanced at Henry, and the sage shrugged.
"Then just use pen and paper to communicate with people."
“Write it down, everything you see and hear from now on will be included!”
"But more importantly than that-"
"Go have breakfast first!"
