Cooking with Wild Game (LN) - Volume 1 - Chapter SS3

Friends Old and Young

Five years ago, Ai Fa befriended members of the Ruu clan that she had just happened to become acquainted with: The Ruu clan elder, Jiba Ruu, and the youngest daughter, Rimee Ruu. 

It happened on a yellow dirt path that had been cleared and trodden down in the forest. Ai Fa and Jiba Ruu were sitting off to the side of the trail, as Rimee Ruu ran about amongst the grass. Ai Fa was 12 at the time, Jiba Ruu was 80, and Rimee Ruu was only three years old. 

“I’ll be 13 tomorrow,” Ai Fa said to Jiba Ruu with a smile, her eyes positively sparkling. “Then I’ll finally be allowed to go out into the forest with my father. I’ll be able to work as a hunter.”

“Is that so...? Good for you.”

“Yeah,” Ai Fa responded with a hearty nod, but she looked just a bit worried.

Ai Fa was tall for her age, and her face was already that of an adult. Though with that said, the expression she wore was much more innocent and fitting for her age. 

“What’s the matter? Are you worried about something, Ai Fa...?” Jiba Ruu asked the girl with a gentle smile. Her face was wrinkled like a dried fruit, but the sparkling eyes that could be just barely be seen behind her drooping eyelids were incredibly clear and kind.

“You see... I was wondering what you thought about a woman like me being a hunter, Jiba Ruu...”

“Hmm? I don’t think that’s anything all that strange. Everyone has their own path. I believe I told you as much on the day we met, too, did I not?”

“I’ve memorized those words well, of course. What you said then made me incredibly happy, and I felt that you were absolutely correct,” Ai Fa replied, looking straight into Jiba Ruu’s eyes. “But how should I put it...? Those words were based on your thoughts and will, not your emotions. What was worrying me was how you really felt, but... No, I just can’t put it quite right.” 

“Hmm, you’re still quite young, but you have some rather interesting thoughts, Ai Fa...” Jiba Ruu said with a smile. “It’s rare to find such thinking amongst the people of the forest’s edge... In other words, you’re asking not whether it’s right or wrong, but whether it makes me feel happy, or glad, or irritated, yes...?”

“T-That’s right. You really are amazing, Jiba Ruu. I couldn’t explain right at all, but you still got what I was saying.”

“This old lady thinks you’re much more amazing, Ai Fa, thinking about matters like that at such a young age... And you don’t have anything to worry about,” Jiba Ruu said, patting Ai Fa’s blonde-haired head with her hand that looked like a withered tree. “It makes me happy too, seeing you walk with your head held high down the path that you believe in. And you don’t just think it’s correct, but you also find joy in it. Hunting giba is quite dangerous, though... Just make sure you don’t push yourself too hard and leave Rimee and I to grieve, alright, AI Fa?”

“Understood. I promise that I won’t push myself too far,” Ai Fa energetically replied, then stood up in a bit of a rush. “Hey, Rimee Ruu! Don’t get too close to the forest! You’ll end up getting bit by a poisonous snake or lizard!” 

“Wah!” Rimee Ruu happily yelled out as she started running away from Ai Fa, while Jiba Ruu lovingly watched over them. 

Three years from then, Ai Fa would lose all of her family and be left on her own, and Jiba Ruu would become too sick to walk around outside freely.