Gennady shrugged.
"Most likely. After all, it's only black cedars around here, so the cones must be from them."
"Naturalists! Don't you want to set up camp first?" Sergey's shout brought both back to more mundane matters.
Two tents, a crackling campfire, scattered belongings—everything appeared in just ten minutes. They needed to forget about surveying the surroundings and focus on more pressing tasks.
"How are we going to hunt?" Konstantin, adding larger logs to the blazing fire, asked a truly interesting question.
On the one hand, the reputation of the place suggested that they shouldn't split up, but on the other hand, how could they not, with a temporary camp and all its contents needing protection?
"One person guards while the other two hunt, separately from each other. If you encounter something unusual, don't play the hero and return to the camp quickly!"
The scout's suggestion was met with enthusiasm. After two nights spent together in a cramped boat, everyone was eager to change company and surroundings, even if it meant running alone through the forest.
"Then the one who suggested it guards first," the triumvir said with a smile, looking at Sergey.
"I'll guard first, it's no big loss. Just be careful and don't take too long."
Yet, the hunt didn't provide answers about why people called the forest cursed. Neither the hunters nor the blood of their prey revealed any monsters, anomalies, or oddities. They left the temporary camp feeling disappointed. Once back in the middle of the river, the travelers forgot about their minor setback and focused on rowing, occasionally glancing at the star-filled sky.
The clear day prevented them from departing before sunset; more accurately, the vampires decided not to be surrounded by water while the sun was still up. It's better to be cautious, as the old saying goes. They decided to speed up their progress using both physical and magical strength so that they would reach their destination by the next night.
The next stop and hunt brought surprises. The memory of the blood from a captured wolf provided intriguing recollections. So much so that Gennady, who had caught the predator, brought its blood back to the camp. Last year, the animal had seen unusual creatures in the forest. These beings resembled bears but were about twice their size and had quite impressive claws. The wolf fled when these strange creatures tried to make it their prey.
"It seems the forest isn't as simple as I thought."
"I said that right away."
Konstantin didn't get involved in the conversation but instead examined the surroundings of their camp. Noticing this, Sergey called out to him.
"Do you think we should change the shore?"
"No. The creatures, though unusual, are too massive. We can easily deal with them using magic. But I'd like to catch one of those for myself."
His companions laughed. Gennady just waved his hand.
"Go hunt; it's our turn to guard the 'little raft' and the tents."
The vampire returning from the hunt found the camp in a somewhat disheveled state. It turned out that the chief commercial officer hadn't wasted any time and was actively digging up fern roots. When asked why he was doing this, he gave a perfectly reasonable answer.
"They're worth their weight in silver! You can dig up several kilograms here!"
"Do you think this is relevant right now?"
"Oh, come on! You didn't let me dig at the last camp, but I'm not going to listen to you this time," he said, noticing that the men exchanged glances, and added, "Don't think I'm obsessed with money; for example, I know the price of goblins… What, you thought you hid that from me? I know, I know! Just didn't get involved with it. You can catch them on your own if needed. But here's a bunch of money lying in the ground; why leave it behind? Finance and information are the lifeblood of the state. And it's my duty to provide finances for our small state."
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