104 Chapter 103 - Rest at The Range

The mountain range that split the kingdom of Larra from the Denzin plains was far larger than I expected. It only took a few hours at top speed to reach the edge of the range, and I decided we'd best stop as the sun had gone down and night would soon be upon us. Asara had argued we could have kept going, but I wanted to reach the Denzin plains when the sun was up, and when I wasn't dead tired. It wasn't like I'd done much other than look around while on Rath's back, and make conversation with Asara, but nevertheless, I was still tired.

We found a small bit of space in between two of the mountains that looked to be large enough for us to set down. I ordered Rath to land then sent him back to storage. As I summoned Leone and Lilah, I couldn't help but notice the drop in temperature. It had been slightly cool only moments ago, yet the moment we'd entered the mountain range, it had turned cold.

"Damn it's chilly," Leone commented as she glanced at our surroundings.

"Don't worry," I said as I summoned Gible. "I've got some kindling and Gible can use his flamethrower to set it alight."

"Gible!"

Asara knew more about survival than I did so while she set up the fire pit, I had a closer look at the area we were in. The mountains stood like titans, on either side of us, and just a few feet away, the land slanted and I knew if someone tripped and fell, they'd most likely roll down to their death. Luckily for me, I had my summons, so my chances at a natural death were few and far between. In truth, we probably could have just had Knov open up a portal here to his dimension then use his master key to head back to the capital, but I didn't mind slumming it out in nature for a night. It actually felt sort of freeing in a way, though I wasn't going to be making it a regular occurrence.

"It's done," Asara announced.

"Ok, Gible," I commanded. "You know what to do."

"Gible!" The dragon-type opened his mouth and a flame poured out onto the pit Asara had made. Gible cut it off after only a few seconds, and now we were left with a pit burning merrily and shedding warmth to us.

"Nice job, Gible," I praised as I pulled a hunk of meat from my inventory and tossed it to the pokemon.

He jumped up and caught the treat, devouring half in a single bite thanks to his large mouth and razor-sharp teeth. Pokemon were no joke.

I took a seat close to the fire, and let out a sigh at the warmth it gave off. "Good job, Asara."

"Thank you, your majesty," the talon rider replied as she and the rest of the ladies sat down around the fire.

I pulled out some of the prepared meals Rindo had made for us, and both Asara and Leons made audible gulps as the smell wafted their way. I handed one to each and we dug into with gusto. It was only a simple meal of seasoned steak, mashed potatoes, and some greens, but someone Rindo had perfected it, and every morsel tasted like heaven in my mouth.

Lilah remained quiet as we ate, and I couldn't help but feel guilty. Here we were eating this amazing food when she couldn't eat anything. Eventually I would heal her, for certain. With all the potential summons, there had to be one that could do it.

"Man, Rindo's getting good with her cooking," Leone said around a mouthful of food.

"She was always good, if not great," I replied. "Now she's on a completely other level. I really wonder what she'll be able to make at something like level one hundred."

Once I was done with my food I let out a loud yawn and was about to suggest heading to bed when a loud howl sounded from nearby.

My head snapped to the side just as a dozen others answered as if in response to the first.

"What was that?" I asked.

"Beasts," Asara respond as she drew her twin blade. "It seems we aren't alone."

"Why didn't we see any on our way here?" Leone commented.

"They could be nocturnal," I replied. "And it's not like this place is small. There could be tons of hidden caves and crevices nearby."

"Do we fight?" Asara asked.

I laughed. "Of course, we came out here to hunt. So what if things start a little earlier."

If these beasts wanted to fight then it was a fight they'd get, and if they thought us the prey, then I couldn't wait to see what they thought when my summons tore them apart.