“Be careful!” Austin hugged his thigh and shouted.
It was then when Gilbert opened his eyes in a daze. He did not react when he saw Austin lying on the ground with a twisted face and the unfamiliar environment around him.
His eyes rolled back and forth a few times, and his throat became drier and drier.
“Hello? What’s wrong with you?” Austin supported himself with his body and waved his right hand in front of Gilbert. “Did you sleep too much and not thinking straight now?”
Gilbert came back to his senses and recalled how he met Austin yesterday. He slowly raised his hand and pointed outside the door. “It smells so good.”
“So you are not fully awake yet.” Austin lowered his head helplessly and said, “I’ll take you to have breakfast later.”
“Okay.” Gilbert nodded and then sat back down on the edge of the bed. He quietly waited for Austin to make his next move.
Austin stood up and put on his clothes neatly. He rolled up the quilt on the ground and put it back into his luggage bag.
Just as he was about to go out to find water to wash his face, Austin thought of something and stopped to say to Gilbert, “You have to wash up with me too.”
Gilbert did not say anything. He obediently got off the bed. He slowly walked to Austin’s side.
Looking at his naked body, Austin suddenly felt that it was not good to take him out like this. With a thought, Austin took out a jacket from the luggage on his back and put it on Gilbert without saying a word.
Austin’s jacket was on Gilbert, and the hem covered Gilbert’s thigh.
“Well, not too bad,” Austin said with satisfaction.
Gilbert carefully rubbed the cloth on his body with his hand.
“Well, go wash your face and brush your teeth.” Austin smiled and held Gilbert’s hand.
The two walked out of the tent and went to the sink in the kitchen to wash their faces.
“After washing your face, you still need to brush your teeth,” Austin said. He raised his toothbrush.
Gilbert looked at the toothbrush, frowned, and raised his foot to escape.
However, Austin blocked his way. “If you don’t brush your teeth, don’t think about eating.”
Gilbert stood stiffly on the spot. At the moment, nothing was more important than eating. Gilbert could tell that if he wanted to get food, he had to listen to the person in front of him.
“Open your mouth,” Austin said to Gilbert after brushing his teeth.
“Um…” Gilbert reluctantly turned his head and whimpered. His eyes turned red.
“This is good for your health. You won’t get sick if you brush your teeth often,” Austin comforted him. “It’ll be over in two minutes.”
Gilbert slowly raised his head and looked at Austin with tears in his eyes.
“Well, be obedient,” Austin encouraged him.
Gilbert opened his mouth in doubt, revealing the bright fangs in his mouth.
“Your teeth are so sharp.” Austin carefully brushed Gilbert’s teeth and said, “And they are cleaner than mine. What do you usually use to grind your teeth?”
Gilbert was still not used to the feeling of the toothbrush in his mouth. He stared at Austin with a grumbled face.
After more than ten minutes, the two of them finished washing up. Austin led Gilbert to the breakfast stand in the kitchen and received his share of food.
“I just made an extra one. Give it to this little guy.” The soldier in the kitchen took out a lunchbox and said, “He looks much better than yesterday.”
“What a coincidence. You’re quite lucky.” Austin handed the steaming breakfast to Gilbert and said with a smile.
“But you have to hurry up when you eat. Don’t you still have to send this little Gnome out of here? I heard from Captain Devitt that there are still about twenty minutes before you have to assemble for departure,” the soldier reminded them.
“Thank you.” Austin nodded.
They found an empty seat in the center of the camp and sat down.
As soon as Gilbert sat down, he held his bowl and ate.
Austin, on the other hand, did not have much appetite. He ate a few mouthfuls of bread with a lack of interest. Then he closed the lunchbox and put it back into his bag. He sat there and stared at Gilbert’s eating style in a daze.
“I’m done.” In less than five minutes, Gilbert raised the empty rice bowl in his hand and said with high spirits.
“Well, are you full?” Austin came back to his senses and asked him.
“Quite full,” Gilbert replied.
Every portion of food in the army corresponded to the number of calories an adult soldier needed to consume every day. Based on the portion, it should be enough for a skinny, underaged goblin.
“Then let’s go. I’ll send you off,” said Austin with a sigh.
Gilbert stood up obediently and handed the lunchbox back to Austin.
“Actually, you don’t have to send me off. I can walk out of here by myself,” Gilbert said clearly.
“Do you have a place to stay on this plain?” Austin pursed his lips and asked with a struggle in his heart, “Can you find food on your own?”
“No. There’s no prey on this plain,” Gilbert said with his eyes lowered as he recalled the tragic situation a few days ago.
“… Do you want to come with us? We’ll go to the volcano where your companions are. Maybe they can help you.” Austin asked, recalling the expression on Gilbert’s face when he said that he didn’t want to go back last night.
“I don’t have any companions there anymore,” Gilbert said with a lonely expression.
“How can that be? There will be your friends waiting for you to go back,” Austin said hurriedly. “If you continue to wander, you can only resign yourself to fate.”
Gilbert was silent for a long time. Finally, he raised his head and said, “Can I join you guys?”
“You and I will go to see Captain Devitt and the others.” Seeing that Gilbert had accepted his suggestion, Austin blurted out his thoughts, “I’ll help you persuade them.”
“Okay.” Gilbert nodded heavily.
Austin looked at the increasing number of armored soldiers in the open space of the camp. He thought that it was almost time to assemble.
He hurriedly took Gilbert’s hand and ran toward the tent where Captain Devitt was.
“Captain Devitt!” Austin rushed into Devitt’s tent and shouted into it.
Devitt, Claremont, and Abel, who were standing in front of the table, stopped their conversation and looked back at him in surprise.
There were also soldiers moving tables and chairs around.
“Gilbert said that he wants to go to the volcano with us. Can you let him to join us?” Austin took a deep breath and said.
