16 Mai 593h

When we awoke today there was porridge, cheese and beer for breakfast - and they gave us cold meats and fresh bread to take with us for on the journey. Although the porridge was not quite so sweet as I like it, the cheese was well made.

After we had loaded the mules, with enthusiastic help from many of the locals we assembled in the centre of the village when Ricard Briganda, the Earl, came out to speak to us. He gave a rousing speech which confirmed Rolf as the Constable-Warder, and went on to give him his badge of office, there in front of the people of Dingaic. Then the gates were thrown open and we were on our way.

To start with we travelled through the fields around the village, but soon the land gave way to gorse, heather and scrub. There were a few gnarled and stunted trees but nothing out of the ordinary.

We have a train of four mules, two carrying trade goods that belong to the merchant Kerim and two with general gear and provisions that have been provided by The Earl. Madelyn rides her horse, and now Elsbeth has a horse as well.

We soon realised that Smilo and Mandrake were having difficulty keeping up, and Kerim rearranged the loads on the mules and found places for them to ride. That made our travel much faster and easier for everyone.

The day passed quietly with only a few sightings of the small wildlife one would expect in such an area, and in the evening we settled to a meal of fresh pork and vegetable stew from our provisions.

They don't need me to take a watch tonight, so I might get a decent night's sleep.