Traveling outside doesn’t always mean camping in the open every day.
If there’s a town nearby, we can stay at an inn.
Spring Ran, the book transmigrator, and Samimi still enjoyed the feeling of camping out in the wild it was quite exciting.
But the last time they ran into a bandit ambush was still fresh in their minds.
That’s precisely why it’s not recommended to camp casually outside.
Sometimes, the most terrifying danger on the road isn’t beasts or monsters, but humans.
The magic user team arrived at an unnamed town and settled into an old, run-down inn.
Samimi realized only after traveling that her hometown, Sweet Melon Town, was truly wonderful.
She had seen the inns there, and they were nothing like the shabby lodgings here; the service was first-class, of course, the prices weren’t cheap either.
Most of the caravans were transporting goods to sell in the Royal City.
Sweet Melon Town was roughly the midpoint on their route, so every caravan would pay a bit to rest properly, they had to replenish their strength daily.
The inn they stayed at here could only be described as a complete mess: a drafty wooden house with holes, inside there was only a single wooden plank bed and nothing else, nothing at all.
It felt like both heaven and earth had forsaken the place, but at least it kept out the wind.
Samimi and Niubao shared a room, while the other three magic user knights stayed next door.
At night, Samimi took Niubao to visit the other room and found that the women had propped up their wooden plank beds and were sleeping directly on the floor, seeming even more comfortable that way.
Knight Frosti and Heretical Magician Karl had stripped off their full suits of armor and were only wearing thin clothes, finally able to relax and rest.
However, Spring Ran still wore her bulky armor and stubbornly refused to take off her helmet, so no one knew what she really looked like.
“Samimi, Niubao, you two should get some rest. We’ll set off early tomorrow. It’s not safe around here—we want to leave as soon as possible,” Frosti said.
“Alright, everyone rest well,” Samimi said as she took Niubao back to their room and copied the others by sleeping on the floor.
If she were alone in such a dilapidated and drafty room, she definitely wouldn’t be able to fall asleep.
But with Niubao by her side, the sense of security was overwhelming, and Samimi quickly fell into a deep sleep.
Out here, Samimi had broken her habit of sleeping in late and was often the earliest to wake in the team.
After waking up, Samimi left the unnamed inn and wandered outside the town, getting a feel for the different customs of this otherworldly place.
Early in the morning, the streets were quiet with no pedestrians, only a few stray goblins by the roadside.
Samimi approached the horses and fed the big-headed mounts some grain.
This reminded her of the little ponies back home, her family’s old draft animals left behind by the elders.
They were used for hauling goods but couldn’t carry much.
Purely large beasts without any spirit without proper care, they would have long since turned into donkeys.
Ever since she arrived, the little ponies basically became lawn ornaments; they were taken out to ride only once.
They didn’t have to work and, like Niubao, were slow-witted and lazy, spending their days lazing in the yard, ignoring both scolding and beatings.
Samimi didn’t have much attachment to these big-headed horses on purpose.
She couldn’t afford to get emotionally involved because these horses traveled through dangerous places, too many accidents happened, and if a horse died, the rider would be stuck with no way out.
She had to admit she was much more fond of animals than people.
She was basically the kind of dog-loving urban single who cared deeply for pets.
But she was also a practical person who understood reality, so she treated horses as tools—used to get the job done and nothing more.
Her goal was to keep the horses well-fed and in good shape so they wouldn’t become a liability on the road.
“You’re a good person,” a voice suddenly sounded from behind.
Samimi turned her head and saw a chubby figure standing quietly in the shadows, causing her to immediately lose any sense of ease and her expression grew sober.
“Morning, Spring Ran,” Samimi greeted.
“How do you know I’m Spring Ran?” Spring Ran asked.
This was their first formal conversation, and naturally the topic was a little awkward.
Technically, Samimi didn’t know if Spring Ran was female, but she figured it was either male or female—after all, in this otherworld, was there even a concept of androgyny?
“I’m a magic user too, Spring Ran. I can sense the unique signature of your magic,” Samimi said with a smile, “The magic men and women wield differ subtly in the details. Others might not notice, but I, with my keen insight, can tell.”
“I also sensed that you’re like me,” Spring Ran said coldly.
“Like kindred spirits?” Samimi asked with a smile.
“Right, we’re all despicable people who stop at nothing to obtain power,” Spring Ran replied.
“You’re not wrong,” Samimi smiled as usual.
“I hope you can become our companion, not our enemy,” Spring Ran said. “You should know what my spells are capable of, if you really are a magic user.”
“Magic Shield. Wait, how do you know I’m a magic user?” Samimi replied.
“I investigated your background. Your information is top secret in the Church. It took me a lot of effort to dig up your data,” Spring Ran nodded, adjusting her bulky helmet which slightly obscured her movements.
“So, what do you think of me?” Samimi asked.
“You’re truly a talented wielder of magic,” Spring Ran said.
Samimi smiled knowingly, said nothing further, and returned to feeding the horses.
Spring Ran went back to packing and preparing for departure.
Samimi wore a thoughtful expression, simple conversation, but every word was a test.
The chubby knight Spring Ran was the smartest female protagonist Samimi had ever met, very different from the kind of stubborn genius girl heroes in otherworld tales.
Those genius girls’ otherworlds were often whimsical, but Spring Ran’s world was grounded in realism.
At dawn, everyone mounted their horses and left the nameless town, continuing toward their destination.
Traveling intermittently, the magic user team had been on the road for several days and were now approaching the Dungeon entrance.
Today, they could already see their target, a large manor built on the edge of a cliff, the ancestral home of a powerful local noble family.
However, no one lived there anymore. All the local nobility had been wiped out, including entire families.
Because it had become the entrance to the Blood Clan Dungeon.
From afar, a terrifying blood-red mist hovered over the cliff, shrouding the entire manor and making it impossible to see inside.
The area had already been sealed off by a joint force of the Church and the Adventurers Guild, prohibiting any civilians or unauthorized personnel from entering.
The scene was somewhat similar to what Samimi had imagined, yet still somewhat different.
This was one of the hellish scenarios the Crimson Court team had encountered before, leaving a deep impression on her.
Its name: Crimson Court.
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