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That said, however, I stored the large luggage they were carrying in the storage space of the carriage. After all, I wasn’t that cruel.

There were three seats inside the carriage and two coachman seats since I didn’t use golems as the charioteer. Bell laid curled up in the rear space of the coachman’s seat, and Norn reserved her seat on the roof.

I didn’t have to worry about the seating. I, the owner, would always sit inside. The remaining four places were taken over by the girls.

In addition, I slightly increased the size of the carriage and comfort during the improvement, so we didn’t have to be cramped inside.

Now that the boys didn’t have to carry the luggage, they wore two layers of blankets and fur cloaks to protect them from the cold. It would be nice if I had enough carriage… but I didn’t have it, so it couldn’t be helped.

By the way, the boys didn’t complain at all since they knew I was indulgent with the girls. They had grown up, huh! But since they couldn’t ride the carriage, I would serve hot drinks during breaks. Do your best!

Marching in the snow was very exhausting, so we frequently took breaks. The speed of the carriage matched the walking boys, so not that fast. I’m not that much of a demon to make them run in the snow, okay.

The horse carriage moved to the side of the highway and stopped. We set up a simple awning tent beside the carriage to avoid the snow and took a break. I also took out folding tables and chairs and served tea and snacks to the boys.

“Wah! It’s warm~”
“It’s too cold… My hands and feet hurt…”

Even if they wore boots and thick gloves to protect themselves from the cold, it was still hard. They could only tolerate moving in this snowfall since there’s no helping it. Maricle and Cain sipped the cup of tea in silence. Ryuu and Boman, who could still complain, looked like they were still energetic? But they should not waste their physical energy uselessly. For real.

Still, I could comfortably sit inside the carriage thanks to the small heating magic tool I made on my own. The back of the occupant’s seat was exposed to the warm air, so it’s not that unbearable.

“Hmm, how about letting the boys sit in the coachman’s seat by rotation? Ren won’t like it if they sit inside, so I’ll give up on that.”

“Triela and the girls will be the one who suffer from the cold, so if you don’t mind, I’m fine with that.”
“Huh? I thought you would oppose it. You’re fine with this?”
“This cold weather isn’t a joke anymore… I don’t want anyone to die in front of me.”
“That’s also true. But then, Ren is more refreshed after scolding them before, so you stop being harsh on them now, right?”
“… Haa. I can never win against Triela. Well, you’re right. Let’s take care of them a little more. Ryuu is also growing up.”

I felt like I was a bit too indulgent, but I was tired from caring too much. I decided to just relax myself. However, with my personality, now I also frequently speak harsher to them.

I mean, I felt that I didn’t care about those two people anymore. Do whatever you want, I don’t care.

After the quick break, Ryuu was delighted to hear that I accepted Triela’s suggestion. I guess it’s hard for them too.

Now that the walking group was swapped from time to time, our movement speed increased. We got more distance than I expected. That being said, it would take us a week ‌to reach O’Neill. Hm… But I had no map, so I didn’t really know…

The sun began to set as we moved with a few breaks. We arrived at the campsite at the perfect timing, so we took a rest here today. They were surprised when I told them they could sleep in the carriage.

By the way, Triela and the others didn’t have a decent tent, so they planned to sleep around a bonfire. Hey, they’ll die, though!?

Five people could sleep in the carriage, but the remaining four people had to sleep outside. I didn’t expect them not to have a decent tent… They showed me the ‘tent’ they brought just in case, but I didn’t think they should call this a tent…

I wouldn’t be able to get a restful sleep knowing that they might freeze to death in the morning, so I improvised the two folding tents and let the boys use them.

The size of one tent was big enough to let two people lie down. This should be enough for the four boys. They thanked me so much and told me they would buy the tents from me later, so I transferred the ownership to them.

Triela and the girls told me ‌they would prepare the food in turns, but I didn’t yield. I felt ‌guilty if I was lying snug and warm in the carriage alone… Then the girls asked for my help, so I accepted it.

The boys told us ‌they would also help, but having too many people would only hinder the work. In the end, we divided the role by sending them to pick up the firewood. To be honest, I only need a girl to help me, so I arrange the free members appropriately. But then, I only had to use earth magic to make a stove…

It’s simple to set up the preparations.

We made a barrier in the open front part of the coachman’s seat with a tanned leather sheet. Just like during the quick break, we set up the awning tent on the left side of the carriage to protect us from the snow. We also made the stone structure for a bonfire in front of it, and the other tent beyond it.

The cooking stove was set up to the bonfire. The horses were golems, so there’s no need to take care of them from the snow. Other carriages sure had it though…

We prepared the meals swiftly and finished it quickly. I wanted to take a bath, but it would be impossible to do that here. I gave up and used [Cleaning] just as when I traveled with Lily. It would be bad if they had a cold, and I didn’t want anyone to smell, so I cleansed the boys as well. They should thank me for my mercy!

“…[Cleaning] isn’t just a manipulation skill? It’s a bit too effective that I find it super weird…”

Ah, I also wondered about that. But it was probably because my magic power was high and I had prior knowledge of hygiene. Magic mostly relied on the imaginary skill of the user, so a modern Japanese man like me who was knowledgeable and had a lot of imaginations could expect a considerably high effect. This is the magic power of a heavenly being! You could think of it like that!

But‌, I wanted to wipe my body with hot water. That’s probably because I was Japanese, right?

Norn and Bell would guard us at night, so I went to bed early without having to be on guard. We could start moving faster if we woke up early, so everyone also slept with no objection.

I improvised by making a hot water bottle and having the boys in the tent hold it. At first, I was planning to heat stones with the bonfire and wrap it in a cloth so they could hold it, but I changed it to a hot water bottle since something that could stay warm for a long time would be better

They didn’t go as far as telling me they wanted this. Ah, yes, yes. I’ll sell it later, so calm down!

There were more than a dozen other carriages in the campsite, but if there was a suspicious person, Norn would bite them. Knowing that, I could sleep well.

Anyway, good night… Zzz.