“The Trap Hunter”
The next morning, we began packing up as soon as dawn broke.
We bundled our gear, hauled the meat, and on the way back, took down any prey we stumbled across.
“Mongrel-san, what are you making?”
“A carrying pole. I cut a sturdy sapling, carved grooves at both ends, and added a notch in the middle to rest on my shoulder. Lets me hang loads from it. Adjust the groove positions, and you can balance uneven weights—handy stuff.”
“Ohhh, so that’s how it works!”
“Never seen one before?”
“Maybe in the city once or twice? Never really thought about it, though.”
Most people probably picture Edo-period peddlers hawking vegetables when they hear “carrying pole.”
But it’s a tool invented independently across the world—not just Asia.
The real perk? Bloody game won’t stain your clothes since it’s dangling. You can even let the carcasses bleed out while walking. Super convenient.
I often whip one up after hunts when extra cargo piles up.
Easy to make on-site, and if I don’t need it later, I’ll just sell or burn it. No fuss.
“Sorry—you ended up carrying everything… I wanted to practice archery on the way back too…”
“Don’t worry. My job’s swordsmanship, remember? If I don’t handle luggage and close-quarters combat, Sheena’ll skin me alive.”
“Ahaha, Captain Sheena’s scary when she’s mad!”
“Her eyes look pissed even on a good day.”
“Say that to her face, and she’ll actually murder you. Quit while you’re ahead~.”
“Wouldn’t dare—unless we’re drinking.”
With no need to scout on the return trip, we took the straight path home.
Ulrika kept sniping birds from trees along the way, each one adding to my pole’s load. The weight wasn’t the issue—just the dripping blood threatening to splatter my boots.
“Oh, Mongrel-san—hold up here? This spot’s perfect. Gotta bury something.”
“This… thing? A rock? Wait, iron ore?”
“Nuh-uh. Slag. I sometimes get scraps from the smithy~.”
“What’s the point?”
Slag—a useless byproduct of smelting, a gritty mix of rock and metal. Near-worthless, as far as I knew.
“Burying it makes monsters wary of the metal smell. Crazyboars, especially—their noses are sharp~.”
“Sure, veterans might know blades and arrows mean danger. But how’s stinking up the place with slag helpful?”
“Makes ’em easier to trap~. See, proper snares have metal parts, right? They can smell that. Normally, a Crazyboar’d dodge it clean~.”
“They can detect metal?”
“Seems so~. But traps need metal for strength. So you let ’em get used to the stench first… then bam—spring the real trap later!”
“Hah… Trapping’s a patient game.”
“It’s all prep work~. But that’s how you bag big game with little effort. This is part of the setup!”
After stomping the dirt flat, Ulrika grinned.
“Slowly teach ’em the smell… lull ’em into ignoring it… then snap when they least expect it. That’s hunter wisdom, Mongrel-san~.”
“Damn. Hunters are something else.”
Raina was plenty knowledgeable, but Ulrika? A true senpai—his expertise ran deep.
(…Though Raina was the better archery teacher!
Ulrika’s advice is all “feel it~”—kinda hard to follow. Guess he’s the intuitive type.)
We split the meat, though Ulrika bagged all of it, so he took the lion’s share.
My role? Setting camp, butchering help, and pack mule. Close-quarters was my job, but not downing a single prey left me antsy. Wish I’d at least shot one…
“Welcome back, senpai Ulrika! Oh—senpai Mongrel too. …That’s one helluva haul!”
“Yeah, escorted Ulrika and hauled meat. His bowwork was insane.”
“Yup! Total respect!”
“Ehh? Stooop, both of you~!”
We handed the meat off at the clanhouse and parted ways.
A fruitful camping trip. Reminds me how little my modern knowledge actually helps in this world.
“Next time, teach me more archery. Drinks are on me.”
“Got it! Then I gotta polish my teaching!”
“See ya, Mongrel-san. Let’s do this again~!”
And so, my hunting trip ended.
(…Now to offload this meat somewhere. No fridges make this a pain.)
READ THE ORIGINAL TRANSLATION AT GADGETIZEDPANDA.COM
“…Ahh, nothing beats a bath…”
By nightfall, soaking in Natasha-san’s tub to wash off the grime had become routine.
Oh right—I camped with Mongrel-san yesterday, so this is two days’ filth…
(…Feels guilty bathing alone when he can’t. But I’m not skipping it.)
Tonight’s the last soak—no one else is using it. Perfect for a long, lazy dip. Heaven~…
“…His body was so… rugged…”
My mind drifted back to sharing the tent—Mongrel-san’s solid frame pressed against me.
I’ve dressed as a woman for years, and since joining Artemis, barely touched a man.
In that sense, he’s the closest to me.
Same for Raina… Yeah. I first thought he was some creep sniffing around her, but talking to him? Kindness radiated off him. Now I’m totally fond of him.
His archery’s amateur, but his cooking’s great, and he knows… so much I don’t.
His hands were bony, unlike mine…
“Mmm…”
Mongrel-san… said he’s almost 30, but he doesn’t look it.
Cleaner, kinder than most guild men—zero sleaziness.
Raina, you’re in trouble. If you don’t stake your claim, someone’ll snatch him up.
Better hurry, or—
“Hngh…!”
N-no good. Can’t stay in the tub… I’ll overheat.
I jerked upright, water cascading down my bare skin.
I used to hate my flat body—because it wasn’t very feminine…
But lately… I’ve started thinking it’s fine.
“…Can’t help it… I keep picturing Mongrel-san…”
This hunt was a success.
Hope we can go together again…
Ah, crap. Dizzy spell coming—
Also check out my friend Localizermeerkat for more LN translations!
BUY THE SOURCE MATERIAL TO SUPPORT THE AUTHOR !!!
Kindly click on the green button above and contribute to filling the green bar if you’re interested in having another LN from the request page translated. Also, every donation is being used to purchase the source material and to fund more English translations.
Please consider joining my Ko-Fi membership. By becoming a member, you’ll also gain access to 2-10 additional chapters of all of the novels from this site translated into English. Last but not least your support will also assist me in upholding the translation quality and speed. For more information, please follow the link.
Donation for faster release is always welcome
Additionally, I am now accepting translation requests.
