"...How about here?"

We continued to walk for a while until we encountered a clearing, and Jongin came to a halt.

"Yeah, this looks good."

"...Are we taking a break?"

"Yes. We'll be sleeping out here tonight."

"Out here..."

Despite being taken off guard, I feigned a calm I did not feel and nodded in agreement.

"All right. I suppose King Grimm lives pretty far away."

"...Aren't you going to object?"

Jongin seemed surprised that I would acquiesce so easily.

"I thought you would pitch a fit at the thought of sleeping outside."

"Well, we have been walking through the woods all this time. So, I've been preparing myself for the possibility."

I shrugged my shoulders and smiled wryly. If we had been walking along a paved road, I might have raised my hopes that there would be a town nearby. But we were walking along an unbeaten path.

"...If you're tired of walking, I can carry you."

"Thanks, but no thanks. I'll walk on my own, no matter how tired I am."

I spoke my mind, and Jongin took a moment to contemplate my words.

"In that case, I'm going to look around to make sure it's safe. Otherwise, we won't be able to rest."

Luhan went off into the woods without waiting for our reply. This left me alone with Jongin.

"...You should sit down. There's nothing for you to do right now."

"Okay."

His comment left me feeling somewhat ambivalent, but he was right. And despite his roundabout way of saying it, he was telling me to rest. For now, we sat down at the base of a tree. There was a lull in the conversation, and silence surrounded us.

(...I'm hungry.)

Now that I stopped moving, I couldn't help but notice my hunger.

(Come to think of it, we've been walking the whole time and haven't stopped to eat anything.)

Suddenly, I noticed that Jongin was no lo