Chapter 19 - Layout
"Tohru, you remember your promise, right?"
While I was busy preparing for a night in the camper van after getting permission from Lugh to use his land, Haku spoke up.
"Yeah, I remember. I'll make a delicious dinner as promised."
I had promised to cook a tasty meat dish as a reward for defeating the grey wolves.
Haku had taken down a good number of them and even received magic stones as a reward from Lugh.
Although my CP had been running low because I’d been unlocking various vehicle functions, I could still afford to splurge on an extravagant dinner.
I placed the magic stones against the device to convert them into CP, adding about 45,000 CP to my total.
With that done, I operated the device and tapped on the Shop section.
In an instant, a familiar online shopping site appeared on the screen.
"What kind of meat are you in the mood for today?"
"What types of meat does this so-called Shop offer?"
"Beef, pork, chicken—you name it. Though it doesn’t seem like they stock meat from this world."
"Oh! Then I’d like to try different kinds of meat."
"Got it. I’ll buy a bit of everything."
Navigating the Shop, I began purchasing various cuts of beef, pork, and chicken.
"Order ten of those bone-in meats as well."
"Sure thing."
"No, wait. Make it twenty."
"Gotcha, gotcha."
Haku kept leaning over to peek at the screen and chime in with additional requests, and as I followed through with his orders, the table soon filled up with packages of neatly wrapped meat.
"Tohru, why don’t we buy a little more while we’re at it?"
"If we run out, I can always order more. For now, help me carry the meat outside."
"Understood."
Reluctantly tearing his eyes away from the device, Haku followed my instructions and began moving the ingredients outside.
Considering the sheer volume this time, I definitely needed the extra help.
Once we were a short distance away from the camper van, I paused and quietly observed the overall scenery.
"Hey, what are you spacing out for?"
As I was gazing at the scenery, a reproachful voice came from Haku, who was carrying the cargo.
At a glance, it might have looked like I was slacking off, but I wasn’t neglecting my preparations.
"I’m thinking about the ideal camp layout."
"Layout?"
"Yeah, I’m figuring out how to set things up so it feels just right."
"I don’t quite get your obsession with this."
"If we’re going to eat delicious meat, wouldn’t it be better to enjoy it with a nice view?"
If there’s a specific direction or scene you want to enjoy, you have to arrange the table and chairs accordingly.
Since we were borrowing this property, it seemed more appealing to focus on the plains and mountains in the distance rather than just staring at the house in front of us.
"Now that you mention it, I suppose that makes sense."
Given the location, the layout might turn out a bit unconventional, but it’s surprisingly challenging to create a comfortable yet functional setup in the natural surroundings.
Once Haku understood that I wasn’t slacking, I started working on the layout that had popped into my mind.
"Let’s set up the side awning today."
A side awning is a canopy that extends from the roof of the camper van, providing shade and protection from rain. By creating a barrier, it makes the area less visible from the outside, allowing for a more private space.
Even though we were away from densely packed houses, there were still a few scattered homes near Lugh’s property.
Cooking openly without any kind of barrier might attract unnecessary attention from the villagers. I wasn’t planning to pitch a tent, but even just having the side awning would make a difference.
Besides, since the property itself lacked that outdoorsy camping vibe, I also wanted to create a more authentic camping atmosphere around the camper van. It was, admittedly, a personal indulgence.
With that in mind, I released the locking levers and pins on both ends of the awning.
I inserted the vehicle's crank handle into the awning's rotation axis and began turning it, slowly extending the awning.
To ensure the fabric unfolded smoothly, I turned the handle at a steady pace, then pulled out the support arms on either end of the awning and locked them in place.
After adjusting the length of the arms to level the awning, I drove pegs into the ground and secured the arm ends to stabilize everything.
With that, the side awning was fully deployed.
On windy days, I would usually tie extra ropes for reinforcement, but since there was barely any wind today, it wasn’t necessary.
"That should do it."
Just setting up the awning gave the whole setup a much stronger camping vibe. It might have seemed trivial, but details like these often made a big difference.
I set up the table and chairs facing west, where the plains and mountains stretched out into the distance.
As the crimson-dyed sky gradually darkened, I hung the main lantern from the side awning and placed a table lantern to light up the immediate area.
If this had been a regular camping trip with tents, I’d have added a third lantern for inside the tent. But with the camper van’s interior lighting, two lanterns were enough.
Since we were near residential houses, I dimmed the lights to avoid drawing too much attention.
"It’s starting to feel a lot like camping now."
With just a bit of creative layout, the scene no longer felt like a campsite in the middle of a village.
The plains and mountains in the distance were clearly visible, and the night sky would be a beautiful view later.
It wasn’t a bad setting at all.
"Tohru, I’m starving already."
"Sorry, sorry. Dinner prep will be quick today, so hang tight."
I headed back into the camper van and grabbed a portable barbecue grill from the storage shelf.
"Hmm? No campfire today?"
"Yeah, I can’t exactly start a campfire on someone else’s property."
Even with groundsheets and fire pits, there’s always a risk of damaging the soil or grass, or scattering embers around. Lugh and his family had been kind enough to let us use this space, and I wasn’t about to disrespect that.
So, this time, we’d be grilling meat on a gas-powered portable stove, which didn’t require firewood or charcoal.
I attached a gas canister to the stove, filled the tray with water, and turned the knob to ignite it.
The flame lit up instantly without a hitch.
"And that’s all set."
"What?! You’ve already got the fire ready?! If it’s this fast, shouldn’t we always use this?"
"You might think so, but it has its downsides too."
The biggest advantage of the gas stove was how quickly you could start cooking with just the flip of a switch. But part of the charm of camping was in lighting the fire. Plus, gas flames were weaker than charcoal, and the flavor sometimes felt lacking.
"Humph. Weaker flames and less flavor, huh..."
"On the flip side, this gas stove uses radiant heat, so the food cooks evenly, and it’s faster. It’s all about trade-offs, so you just use them as needed."
Haku might have wanted tonight’s dinner to feel extra special, but firing up a charcoal grill in the middle of the village would fill the air with smoke and likely annoy the neighbors. The gas stove was the better choice this time.
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