That night, just as Erza predicted, they couldn't find a town and had to camp in the wild.
This situation, as told in tales, is called 'focusing on travel, missing the resting place,' which usually means something will happen.
The two drivers were worried about this scenario; it's easy to encounter wild animals at night, and they were reluctant to sleep in the wilderness.
Moreover, the weather was so cold.
But with Erza's sincere request, they eventually agreed.
Rhode was glad she didn't use her sword when negotiating with the drivers but was earnestly asking for their help.
Though her earnestness was a bit overwhelming.
Concerned it might be perceived as coercion, Rhode promised to ensure their safety and suggested a payment increase.
Thus, everything ended happily.
Erza took out an iron pot from her luggage and began setting up a makeshift cooking stove.
Rhode set up the tent using skills he learned from Gray last time.
When they had everything settled, and Rhode was ready to taste Erza's cooking again, she told him—they didn't bring any ingredients.
The pot she heated could only be used to boil some hot water.
Rhode was puzzled: "Wait a minute, you've got so many suitcases, and you brought all the cooking utensils and spices, but you just didn't prepare food?"
Erza was a bit embarrassed: "Well... due to limited space, I had to leave some things behind."
Rhode looked at the large cartful of suitcases, thinking, "Quite the limited space, what's actually inside those?"
Understanding his doubts, Erza explained, "Mainly some souvenirs from missions and a few important gifts, then there's the tent and other common tools.
Oh, and the armor you gave me last time is in there too. I really liked it and wanted to keep it with me. Would you like to see me wear it?"
If it were any other girl, Rhode would suspect she had a thing for him.
But Erza, much like Kana, truly considered him a brother.
She definitely didn't mean it that way; she simply enjoyed the gift and the sentiment it represented from a companion.
Rhode politely declined: "It's wonderful you cherish the gift, but we're off-topic. The issue now is what to eat for dinner."
The food he brought was already consumed at noon, courtesy of Mira who hurried to prepare it in the canteen before departure; he had even shared half with Erza, leaving them with nothing for dinner now.
"I'm sorry, I overlooked this," Erza clenched her fist, remorseful, "After the mission, feel free to punish me however you see fit, and I'll take a cut in the reward."
Rhode sighed and facepalmed, she was getting serious over something so trivial again.
"Alright, summon, Shadow Wolf!"
Six Shadow Wolves appeared, making the two drivers jump at the sight of sixteen gleaming eyes.
"Go, find us some prey, rabbits or pheasants, anything will do."
Rhode remembered seeing rabbit tracks in the snow earlier while the River Crab scouted the path during the day.
Although hunting in winter is challenging, the Shadow Wolves were efficient and quickly returned with an animal resembling a fawn.
"Isn't such a small deer... oh, it's a roe deer."
Rhode was relieved; at this size, the roe deer was certainly an adult.
Now it was time for Erza to shine; several knives danced in mid-air, bleeding, skinning, deboning, and carving, all done in one swift motion.
Afterward, the soup was made, and skewers were grilled accordingly.
The two enjoyed a hearty meal and shared some with the drivers, who, despite having brought their own dry food, couldn't resist the offer of meat.
"Requip!" In a flash of light, Erza changed into a set of purple pajamas.
Wearing such pajamas in winter... never mind, mages aren't bound by common sense, and she has a sleeping bag too.
Rhode noticed the pattern on Erza's pajamas: "Isn't that the emblem of the Heart-shaped Cross?"
"Ah, indeed, this brand's clothing is of excellent quality," Erza said. "My usual armor is also made by this company."
"Really?" With her mention, Rhode recalled the yellow cross with a heart-shaped end on Erza's usual armor.
The Black Feather Armor he had seen before also had a white emblem.
He hadn't noticed before... it was probably because Mira signed on as their endorser.
"Wait, I thought Heart-shaped Cross was a clothing company; do they make armor too?"
Erza said, "Originally, they didn't, but they were quite understanding after I earnestly requested."
"Uh... mind if I ask how you requested?"
"Could you help me make armor? (super intense version)" After her demonstration, Erza returned to her normal expression, "More or less like that."
"Ha... ha..." Rhode chuckled dryly, "Quite an understanding business, indeed."
"Alright, since there might be wild animals, let's assign guard duty for tonight."
"No need to assign, I'll have Warm keep watch," Rhode summoned Warm.
This creature wasn't much of a fighter but could handle watching the fire and standing guard.
Plus, its magic power consumption was nearly negligible.
"Hulu?" Warm looked puzzled.
Erza asked, "Can your magic power last all night?"
"No problem, if not for the time limit, leaving Warm for 24 hours wouldn't be an issue."
Rhode went into his tent, blocking Warm, who wanted to follow, "The watch is up to you, and I'll treat you to Poro Delicacies when we return."
"Hoo!" Warm squatted at the entrance of Rhode's tent, resembling a snow lion, just a bit pudgy.
Erza squatted down and patted Warm's head: "It's all in your hands. Let me know if anything happens."
"Hoo!" Warm nodded earnestly.
Its head and neck were hard to distinguish.
The night passed without incident.
Early the next morning, everyone got up to wash up, with clear water provided by Rhode's Text Magic.
"Text Magic is really convenient." Erza performed another change, swapping her pajamas for armor.
"Isn't Requip Magic way more convenient?" Rhode inquired, "Think you could teach me?"
"Sure, it's not a difficult magic," Erza replied, moving swiftly while packing up the tent and explaining the basics of practicing Requip Magic to Rhode.
As long as it's not intended for combat use, Requip Magic is fairly easy to learn.
However, having a Requip space as vast as Erza's and the ability to switch armor swiftly requires great talent and lots of practice.
Rhode didn't need to master it to that extent, just enough to make traveling easier in the future.
The carriage set off again, and when Erza saw Rhode skimming the mission documents, she asked, "Aren't you going to practice a bit?"
"Hmm? Oh, no, I plan to wait until we get back to practice. It's better to conserve some magic power during the mission to prepare for unexpected situations."
In truth, he feared a failed attempt would transform him into Gray, which would be too embarrassing.
It was safer to practice at home.