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Chapter 77: Camping

At dusk by a lakeside somewhere in Beast Forest.

A group of Saint Gobban students busied themselves pitching tents, with the Warrior students setting theirs on the outer ring and the Magician students camping closer to the lake.

Under the guidance of the three class monitors, the team had already assigned perimeter sentries and organized the campsite in good order.

Only now did the students show a bit of joy; after all, they were young and their first night camping in the wild excited them immensely.

They each pulled tents from their storage spaces, some male students eagerly helped the girls pitch theirs, and the wealthier ones even produced ornate tables, chairs, and bedding for comfort.

Clara struggled with her own tent, for she had never set one up before and found it rather difficult.

She turned down several Warrior boys who offered their help, all the while watching Ashura, who stood by the lake looking around.

Pouting, she muttered angrily, “That scoundrel won’t even come help, why isn’t he pitching his tent so we can eat and rest; what is he standing there for?”

The grumbled-about Ashura looked around for a long while, then his eyes lit up and he strode to a large lakeside tree.

The massive trunk needed 4 or 5 people to encircle it, and near the ground a huge natural hollow opened toward the lake.

Ashura walked into the man-tall cavity, examined it, and felt very satisfied.

He hopped out, cut a large bundle of dry reeds by the lake, carried them back, spread them into a simple bed, lay down, and stretched comfortably.

The hollow faced the rippling lake, and when he looked up he could see most of the starry sky; it was truly a superb natural cabin.

Before Ashura could fully enjoy the twilight scenery, a small head poked in; a pretty girl tilted her head at the entrance, her silvery hair hanging like the softest ribbon.

For a moment Ashura could not decide whether the view or the girl in the doorway was lovelier.

Clara gazed at Ashura’s hollow, her eyes sparkling, for the girlish side of her found it fascinating as well.

Yet before she could inspect it, that rascal’s voice sounded at the wrong moment: “So, my room isn’t bad, right? If you like it, come sleep here with me,” he said, shifting over and patting the straw beside him.

Clara bit her lip without answering, pulled out her magic staff, and began chanting softly.

Ashura sprang up, intending to cover her mouth.

Clara, her face red, dodged and glared at the rogue.

Ashura begged for mercy and said, “Fine, don’t sleep here, but this house can’t withstand your lightning; if you blast it apart I’ll sleep in your tent tonight!”

At his shameless words Clara swung her staff at his head, and Ashura laughed while hopping out of reach.

She scolded, “Everyone else is working on the camp and you’re slacking; go chop some firewood!”

Knowing he should not provoke this little lady, Ashura pouted and bounded off to cut wood.

After he left, Clara looked at the hollow again; she wanted to lie inside and see how it felt, but felt too shy, stamped her foot, and returned to her tent.

Ashura went to the outer woods for firewood, ran into Magina who was on guard duty, and foolishly asked her to help, saying her Horse-Cutter Sword was perfect for chopping.

Magina drew the sword with a cold smile and said, “This blade is better suited to chopping you than wood,” whereupon another chaotic chase ensued.

Only after Ashura fled beyond her patrol range did the red-haired girl snort and return to her post.

Before the indignant Ashura could catch his breath, a long, straight leg kicked toward his face.

Ashura ducked and skipped back to evade, then shouted at the statuesque Lan Yu, “Are you crazy? Why are you kicking me?”

The tall Lan Yu replied coolly, “Oh, it’s you; I thought another Beast had burst from behind the tree… turns out it’s just you, you pervert.”

Her words infuriated Ashura, yet he had no retort and could only ravish her a hundred times in his mind.

Noting the lecherous look in his eyes, Lan Yu raised an elegant brow and reached for her cobalt dagger to teach him a lesson.

But the hypersensitive Ashura slipped away early, making faces at her as he ran.

Lan Yu wanted to chase him and beat him, but remembering her duty she instead drove her dagger into a nearby tree to the hilt.

Her heaving chest, stirred by anger, made her slender yet curvy figure even more enticing.

Only when Ashura vanished into the deep woods did Lan Yu finally let out a snicker and murmur, “Big pervert.”

Ashura returned to the Magician camp from the far side of the site, carrying a huge bundle of logs, and saw that the students had more or less finished pitching their tents.

Some aristocratic students had even taken pre-split firewood from their space rings to start bonfires, which made Ashura purse his lips helplessly.

The surrounding students pointed and whispered about Ashura’s burden, while the ones who had conjured wood from storage wore even more smug expressions.

Ashura left some firewood with Clara and carried the bulk to his hollow.

At that moment, under vice monitor Kyle, Magic Class 13 had set up a huge dining table large enough for a dozen Magicians.

Kyle showily produced all sorts of exquisite dishes from his space ring and placed them on silver platters, exuding aristocratic flair.

The other students also took out their provisions to share.

Since mages were generally frail, the team had not assigned them to sentry duty, allowing them to sit down early and enjoy dinner.

Clara was also pulled to the table by a few female classmates, laid out several fine dishes she had prepared, yet kept watching the figure bustling under the tree.

At this moment chubby Na Wei shouted to Ashura, “Ashura, come eat; what are you dawdling for?”

Hearing this, Ashura glanced at the laden table and was tempted, intending to walk over and mooch a meal.

Then several snide voices sounded: “Does a freeloader need an invitation? What could he possibly bring… just his mouth?”

“Exactly; I saw he didn’t even prepare a tent and plans to sleep in a tree hollow, probably has no food either, like some savage.”

The harshest words came from Kyle, who still nursed a grudge because Ashura had refused to swap seats earlier.

A few vain girls spoke even more nastily, making Clara frown and Na Wei look embarrassed.

The chorus of mockery made Ashura frown; he was already an inconspicuous figure with mediocre grades, no family backing, a year away from the class, and few friends.

His closeness with Clara even caused some male students to resent him.

Ashura curled his lips and said, “Never mind, you eat; I didn’t bring much food, I’ll cook my own, enjoy yourselves.”

With that he ignored his classmates, turned around, and stacked the firewood to ignite it.

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