The Weakest Tamer Began a Journey to Pick up Trash - Volume 3 - Chapter 129

Chapter 129:

Thunderstorms Are Scary

I LOOKED UP at the sky. “Good. It’s not raining.”

The thick clouds the night before had worried me, but it was still dry. However, the clouds were blanketing the entire sky. The air also felt damp, so there was a good chance it would rain. A little drizzle wouldn’t be a problem, but a proper storm would be a disaster. Since rain masked the scent of animals and monsters, it made the forest much more dangerous. Then there was the lightning to deal with.

“Pu, puuu,” Sora sang, bouncing merrily around. 

Ciel turned its attention from Sora to the sky. Did it sense something?

“Hey, Ciel, can you tell if it’s going to rain?”

Meow?

I think that meant “I dunno yet.” I looked up again. The thick blanket over the sky definitely looked like thunderclouds now.

“Well, that’s a problem.”

If lightning struck, it would be dangerous to be near the trees. Seeking out a cave or a den for shelter would be ideal, but there was no guarantee I’d find one on our path. I pulled my map out of my bag and scanned the area. Aren’t there any caves marked on the map?

“There aren’t any. Well, let’s hope it’s just rain. If it’s thunder and lightning…”

“Pu-pu-puuu, pu-pu, pu-puuu,” Sora chirped, jumping onto the map.

“Sora, we have to make a plan to stay safe from the storm, don’t we?” I looked at our path to civilization on the map… There was nothing but forest between us and the next town. If only there were some rocky hills, then there might be a cave we could hide in if things got bad.

“Let’s veer off course to the rocky hills. Thunderstorms are just too scary. I’d rather be safe than sorry.”

When it was still just me and Sora, we ran into a thunderstorm once. We’d frantically looked for shelter but couldn’t find a cave or a den to hide in. We had resorted to huddling at the foot of a tiny tree out of necessity. As I lay there, terrified of the incoming thunder, a giant tree nearby was struck by lightning and fell to the ground. Luckily, we were far enough away from the tree that it hadn’t hurt us, but Sora and I both jumped in terror. I never wanted to experience a fright like that again.

“Puuu,” Sora trembled. Perhaps it had recognized the word “thunderstorm.”

I couldn’t tell if lightning would strike, but I had to make a plan in case it did. We would arrive in town a little behind schedule, but safety came first.

“Okay, we’ll have to go out of our way, but let’s head toward the town through these rocky hills. We’re probably just an hour’s walk away from them.”

There was no guarantee that we’d find a cave in the rocky hills, but that was out of our control. We’d just have to pray that there was some shelter for us when we got there. Or that lightning didn’t strike in the first place—that would be my first choice.

I packed up my gear and set off quickly. After just a couple minutes of walking, little raindrops started to fall.

“There’s the rain. Sora, you should get back in your bag.” I put Sora in and took out my waterproof cloak. It was enough to keep me dry from a light rain like this.

“Are you doing okay, Ciel?”

Ciel didn’t seem to mind the light rain; its expression was aloof. What a strong creature you are.

A bit further into our trek, the rain started coming down harder, and I could hear the faint rumble of thunder. It was still quite distant, but unfortunately for us, it was definitely there.

“Whew, d’you think we’ll find a cave? I sure hope we do.”

We’d somehow managed to arrive at the rocky hills before the thunderstorm caught up to us. However, whether or not we’d actually find a place to hide was in fate’s hands. I studied the rocks as we walked.

“Aha!” I found a tiny den! “Oh, thank goodness!”

I approached the cave and scanned the area around it. There were no animal or monster auras. I searched for traces of monsters or large animals, but everything I found was quite old. That gave me a moment’s relief. The next hurdle was what the inside of the cave looked like. I hoped it was empty.

I surveyed carefully inside the cave. There were no signs of life, so we could use it without any problems. I crawled into the den and lit my magic light. The space was deeper than I’d thought—there was even plenty of room for Ciel, too.

“Looks like we found ourselves a good den.”

Mrrrow.

Sora was wriggling inside its bag, so I let it out.

“I guess we’ll wait out the thunderstorm in here.”

Sora bounced around the den curiously. It made louder noises than usual, seeming to enjoy the way its voice echoed off the walls.

“Pu, puuu… Pu, pu, puuu.”

Ciel shook itself over and over by the den’s entrance. Tiny rain droplets hit me with each shake. Well, we did walk an awfully long time in that rain. My cloak wasn’t enough to shield me completely, and my clothes were soaked. If I stay in these wet things, I might catch cold. I’d love to build a fire and dry off, but that’s too dangerous without proper ventilation by the den’s entrance.

I stuck my wet arm out and waited a few moments. I felt a breeze. There must be a wind current around here, so it should be safe to build a fire.

By the glow of my magic light, I collected twigs and leaves from the corners of the den. There were also some thicker logs, which would definitely be useful. Thin sticks burned out too quickly. I piled up the leaves and stacked the sticks on top. All set!

I took my flint out of my bag and made some sparks. The sound of the stones striking together echoed through the den.

Crackle! Crackle!

Thankfully, the leaves and sticks I’d gathered were completely dry, and they caught fire after only a few attempts. We were good to go!

“Fire is dangerous, so be careful, Sora. You, too, Ciel.”

“Pu, puuu.”

Mrrrow.

The fire licked up the sticks and burned brighter. I watched it for a few minutes, then added a log when I was sure it was safe.

“That looks pretty sturdy.”

I pulled some dry clothes and a cloth out of my magic bag and started toweling off my hair and body. I laid out my wet clothes on a nearby boulder to dry.

“Ciel, would you like me to rub you dry?” I asked, approaching the adandara with a large cloth. I touched its fur—it was still a little wet. I slowly dried its fur with my cloth…which was a very strenuous undertaking since Ciel was so big.

Mrrrow. There was worry in Ciel’s eyes.

“Don’t worry, it’s okay… There. Feel better now?”

I was pretty sure I’d dried the wettest spots. Ciel looked satisfied.

“Puuu!” Sora seemed angry that Ciel was getting all the attention.

Gee, somebody’s gotten clingy. I gently wiped Sora with my cloth, too. The little slime didn’t really need a wipe-down—it wasn’t wet—but its content expression was just so adorable. “There. You’re good to go!”

“Pu, puuu.”

I placed a pot of water on the fire to boil, adjusting the flame as needed. After a while, I heard some very loud thunder outside.

“Puuu!!!” Sora squealed, burrowing beneath Ciel’s belly. Our last encounter with a thunderstorm seemed to have left quite an impression. To be honest, I was also scared to death. My body trembled lightly. The thunder was booming pretty loud and hard. The rain was coming down in sheets now, too. It was deafening.

Mrrrow. Ciel seemed to be thinking the same thing. It was gently licking Sora to soothe the slime cowering beneath its furry belly. 

This storm really is wild. The sound of the rain and lightning above echoed within our little den. It sounded so intense out there that I was worried what it looked like outside.

“I hope there’s no major damage.” Sometimes roads got blocked after a heavy storm. And if a lightning strike caused a forest fire, we’d have to get out of here fast or we’d be in danger. This is really scary.

“Pu, puuu,” Sora whimpered meekly. I looked toward the slime and saw it was still hiding under Ciel’s belly. You poor thing… I wish I could hide, too.

As the crashing thunder and lightning echoed all around us, I caught myself envying Sora just a little.