"And that's how you make stew!" Boyd gestured to their creation impressing no-one present, least of all Ozlo. Tossing a bunch of vegetables and meat into a pot, adding a handful of spices, and cooking it over an open flame just wasn't all that enchanting. Boyd, sensing the lack of excitement coming from his young charge let out a soft sigh. "Every year I try and convince you lads that stew really is great, but no. You all want sweets and dumplings and all manner of fancy foods. Why when I was a boy you were lucky to get stew. Meat was in short supply back then you see, so sometimes we'd boil the same bone five or six-"
Ozlo tuned out, another one of Boyds rants not quite making it into his permanent memory. "I wonder how long we'll be out here. I don't mind eating stew and working in the forge but I can't help but feel that I'm sliding more and more into debt. Hopefully we'll all be compensated fairly for this when it's all over".
As Ozlo thought about his financial woes Andrew and John came back to the camp looking much worse for wear than he and Boyd did. "We're back! And we brought some rabbits! Andrew even found a shard!" John proclaimed after setting down a bloody sack filled with what Ozlo assumed was their catch of the day.
Boyd perked up at the sight of fresh meat and he started to rifle through the bags. "Lets see here, some good cuts, all rabbit. Not too fat, not too thin. This will make great jerky. Not that rabbit jerky is the tastiest of treats after a long day." Boyd glanced over at the boys and gestured for them to come close. "Alright lads, if you can bring me this many rabbits each day, that should offset our costs by about a shard or so every other day. Meaning that you two can split the difference." The boys perked up at that, but their excitement soon left their faces. "Wait, that's half a shard a piece every day. I could make more than that mucking the stalls!" Andrew proclaimed.
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Boyd let his statement hang through the air for a few moments before holding up his hand. "Correct, everything you've said is true. The problem is, there are no stalls to muck." Boyd gestured out to the camp. "What do you see when you look out lads? Trees, tents, and lots of people. That means there's a lot of people and not a lot of work to be had. So if you're like Ozlo here, you'll snatch up a job as quick as you're able."
The two boys looked over at Ozlo, confusion and a hint of jealousy running over their faces. Andrew spoke first. "Wait, Ozlo already found work?" Ozlo shook his head in affirmative and once again explained his situation. "LUCKY!" Andrew proclaimed over a bowl of stew. "That job sounds easy. Just hold things and hand people stuff. A toddler could do that!" John agreed with Andrew, nodding slowly before speaking. "We spend all day in the woods, taking care to muffle our steps, place snares accordingly, and hoping that we'll snag a few rabbits. Your job does sound a bit easier."
Ozlo, unused to receiving praise, just nodded politely and thought to himself. "The job IS easy, and it's not like I have to work all that hard either." While trailing off in thoughts, Boyd tossed a simple pillow to each of the boys. "There, it's not much, and not something I'd usually pack, but I understand that roughing it doesn't exactly agree with most people." Ozlo inspected his new pillow, it was made out of rough cloth and filled with something dry and fluffy, though he doubted it was feathers.
The boys all nodded their thanks and watched Boyd trot over to his bedroll. "We've got a long day ahead of us boys, make sure you get some rest. Now that the camp is picking up I'm sure things will start to get much busier."