It had already been a few days since they had started their journey, and Kevin found out a few things: First, the merchants were a part of the Golden Leaf Association of Traders, or GLOAT for short. The mercenaries, however, weren't just one Guild, instead consisting of many smaller ones. However, everyone deferred to Khal, who wasn't even part of an official Guild. He had many that clung to the jobs he chose, like Bull, who would act like a gangster in one moment, then changed to a conservative one when Khal oversaw him.

Secondly, the item they were escorting was extremely valuable, able to give immense powers to whoever holds it, but no one told him what it was. He assumed it was either a sword or a staff, maybe a book. There were other less valuable things, like Rabbit fur, Rabbit feet, Rabbit bones, chunks of stone, and other miscellaneous things, but those paled in comparison. Obviously he was unable to see the item. He didn't even know which box it was in.

Lastly, being a porter sucked. Whenever the caravan stopped, for any reason, he had to be the first one out, carrying a barrel of water that seemed to weigh a tonne, and pass it to whoever asked for it, he had to make the fires at night, though thankfully, he didn't have to gather any firewood. And he had to lift the heaviest boxes, while suffering Bull's constant verbal aggression.

After five days, the caravan slowed to a snail's pace, compared to what they once did. Kevin went looking for Khal during a break to ask about it, but couldn't find him. So he went looking for Bull, who was lifting the heaviest box of them all. He placed it on the ground when he noticed Kevin approaching.

"What is it, pipsqueak?" he asked, his eyebrows twitching.

Kevin looked into his eyes, not budging an inch, and asked, "Why are we going so slow?"

"Nice fire there," Bull answered, taking some water from the barrel Kevin held. He forgot he was even carrying it. "I'm not the mechanic." After a pause, Kevin turned away, knowing he wouldn't answer. "I think it's to preserve power," he said, though when Kevin turned, he saw a terrifying smile awaiting him. "Now shoo." Kevin obeyed.

The next day, they reached a small town, where the largest building was the Inn. However, they didn't rent rooms there, instead staying in one group, all watching the caravan. Except Khal and Rudal, who went into the second largest building, the Mayor's Office.

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Kevin went to Bull, who was weight training, again with the heaviest object they had. He didn't stop, even after Kevin tried picking up the next heaviest box, barely making it budge. He tried to imitate Bull's form, hands pushing on both sides, lifting with as much strength as he could. To his surprise, he pulled a muscle immediately, dropping to the ground in a roll. Thankfully, the box wasn't very high off the ground and didn't tip over, or else Bull's killing glare would be Bull's killing move.

"You're doing it wrong," he called, still moving slowly, with intense concentration. "Lift with your legs, not your arms, not your back, nor your... feet." He said that last item with as much disgust as Kevin had ever heard, even shivering.

Kevin tried again, after a break, only using his hands to keep it centred, then pushed with his legs. Unsurprisingly, this worked better, though he didn't lift it any higher.

Kevin carefully placed the box before asking, "Why with your legs?"

"What muscles do you use the most?" Bull shot back, glaring to stop the next question.

It was only a couple minutes later before Kevin determined it safe enough to ask an unrelated question. "Why are Khal and Rudal taking so long?"

"Don't know," Bull answered. "All Khal said was that another package was being picked up today."

"How long until we're in Ploro?"

Bull considered the question this time. "Could be half a year, if we're lucky and no Monsters attack us. More likely to be at least a year."

"Why so long of a gap?"

He scoffed, settling into a firm frown. "Once you kill one Monster, others can use that to easily track you. And they will. Bet they don't teach you that."

Kevin, wisely, did not ask any more questions.

An hour later, Khal returned, carrying a parcel. By then, Kevin had returned to his duties as a porter, offering water to all of the caravaneers. He got quite a few 'Thank you's, some offers to help, and even a few offers to share their food with him. He agreed to the last one, of course. Moving things around most of the time made him very hungry, tired, and sleepy, but he managed to keep his eyes open.

"Hey, porter," Khal called, waving from afar. KevIn walked up to him, each step hurting. "How's it going?"

"I'm managing," he answered, though he didn't mention the times when he was playfully berated for being too slow.

"That's good. Here, hold onto this." He handed the parcel over to Kevin, who gripped it preciously.

"What's in it?"

"We don't ask those kinds of questions," Khal responded, smiling. "Now, hurry on and start packing it all up everyone!" His command made people stop what they were doing, some even dropping their food onto the ground, and they all started to pack up. Kevin quickly joined them all, now proficient at knowing where each box was supposed to be.

They left immediately after they were packed, going max speed until light started shining.