Helmut: The Forsaken Child - H.F.C Chapter 117 (Part 2):
Asuka looked at Helmut and smirked.
“Just like you said, I don’t need to beat them to win. But it doesn’t quite suit my personality.”
“At least you won’t have to write a reflection paper.”
“That’s true.”
Asuka agreed, and Helmut slightly raised his assessment of him.
Asuka wasn’t beyond redemption. He could change. There was more room for rehabilitation than expected.
After hours of riding, a suitable resting spot appeared, and a break was announced. Instructor Alan shouted.
“Everyone, rest here for 40 minutes!”
From Greta Academy to the campsite, it was a solid seven-hour ride by horse.
Though it was a hunting picnic, it was still a picnic, not the military. The students weren’t pushed relentlessly without breaks.
It was time for lunch, so they took a short break to stave off hunger.
The horses needed a rest too. Helmut tied his horse near some grass and chose a spot on the edge of a clearing to sit down.
The tree stump he sat on felt uncomfortably hard after enjoying luxury at the academy. His body had become pampered.
“Oh, that’s a good spot.”
It was spacious enough for several to sit. Asuka soon followed and sat down.
With so many people, it could have been chaotic to check for stragglers, but having Dwayne, a professor from the magic department, made things easier.
Professor Dwayne completed a headcount with a spell and clapped his hands. Clap!
“Good, everyone’s here. Let’s eat.”
Leading the students were three large wagons, all loaded with food and supplies.
Since they had just left Greta Academy, they could enjoy fresh food for lunch.
The menu included fruit juice and sandwiches, wrapped in familiar packaging. It was from a store Alea often visited.
“Everyone, come forward and take one each.”
The students of the swordsmanship department, proportional to their size, ate a lot. Thus, the amount of food prepared was considerable.
Sandwiches almost as big as a person’s head, with thick layers of meat, eggs, cheese, and plenty of vegetables, were enough to satisfy their hunger.
The ones who had previously provoked Asuka even brought food for him and Helmut.
The noble guys were learning to be cautious around Asuka, which was a good interaction.
But Asuka held a grudge. Even as he took the sandwich, he glared at Wesley and James, who had been particularly loud, and added a comment.
“Don’t think group activities will be easy just because you’re giving me this.”
Making others miserable and troubled was Asuka’s forte. His words ensured the mealtime was rather quiet.
Helmut ate his sandwich in the cool breeze.
Suddenly, the sound of a horse neighing came from a distance. One of the horses had strayed and was moving. It was a white horse.
“Eh? Isn’t that your horse?”
Someone noticed and asked, prompting Helmut to stand up immediately.
“Yes.”
“Did you tie the rope loosely? Better go check.”
A trained horse usually wouldn’t stray even if not tied, which made this unusual.
However, White was known for its temperament, so its straying seemed natural. Asuka, without even looking at Helmut, waved him off.
“Have a good trip.”
Helmut quickly headed in the direction where White had disappeared. Dense forest lay beside him.
As they moved further from Baden, the forest grew denser. In the scholarly city of Baden, the forest was left natural, so hunting was restricted.
Unauthorized hunting was illegal and thus punishable. It was rare to find poachers in Pedica Forest.
Baden, being a city with many mages due to the academy, made it difficult for poachers to evade the mages’ tracking.
“White!”
Helmut loudly called out to his white horse. Whether the newly named horse would understand was questionable.
In the dense forest, it was hard for a horse to run fast. It wouldn’t have gone far. A whitish figure was seen beyond the trees.
‘Causing trouble.’
He had finished his sandwich but hadn’t finished his juice. He worried Asuka might just throw it away when collecting trash.
Feeling a sense of urgency, he stepped towards that direction, but a chilling sensation stopped him.
Just as he retracted his foot, a loud clang! A metallic sound echoed.
Helmut, stepping back, peered into the bushes. A large trap with sharp, tooth-like edges was quivering closed.
If he had stepped into it, his ankle could have been half severed.
“Why is there a trap here?”
It was a valid question. Poaching was illegal in Pedica Forest, so such traps shouldn’t be here.
Moreover, this area, being close to the road, wouldn’t attract animals. Even for poachers, this wasn’t an appropriate place to set a trap.
Venturing into the forest didn’t mean encountering magical beasts.