Cooking with Wild Game (LN) - Volume 11 - Chapter 3.3

3

So today ended without anything happening again, huh...? I thought to myself as I stared out into the darkness through the big open window after finishing my work and returning to the room.

Before I even knew what was happening, I was heading into my fourth night here in this place.

Was Diel unable to slip out of the castle town after all? I was just stuck here passing the time in this new everyday routine thrust upon me, with nothing changing for either better or worse.

But the morning of the day after tomorrow, Cyclaeus would be returning. And so, regardless of what anyone had to say, this abnormal everyday schedule would be brought to an end. Yes, even at the most, there was only a little over a day left till this whole stupid farce was blown to smithereens.

Even so, that still felt so far away. Though I was able to suppress it somehow while holed up in the kitchen, the pain and sadness I felt seemed like it would crush my very heart.

Ai Fa... What must you be thinking...?

Whenever that name or face came to mind, my heart started beating irregularly.

It felt as if half of my body had been torn away from me. I was realizing with terribly painful clarity just how much I had come to rely on her.

Why was I even standing here? Were those really my feet there on the ground? Why am I even alive...? Such thoughts would normally never come to mind for me, but now my head was full to bursting with them. I felt as helpless as if I was adrift in space, and I was full of such despair that it was like my head had sunk deep into an inky blackness.

I wanted to see Ai Fa.

To hear her voice.

To feel the warmth from her fingers.

Even I couldn’t help but see how stupid I was being to let myself get so completely caught up in such pointless, obstructive thoughts.

How had everyone else spent these last few days, too? I of course wondered about the Ruu clan, who I had the closest ties to, but also the Rutim, Lea, Sudra, Fou... so many that I couldn’t even count them all.

And there were the folks from the post town, too. They all felt like distant memories to me now. It was as if I was drifting off into the sky while still alive, but was awash in my memories from life.

By immersing myself in cooking during the day, I was able to escape from such concerns. But when I was pulled back to this room, I was instantly swallowed up again by that empty, meaningless feeling. No matter how much I strove with my cooking research, that food would ultimately only end up making it to Lefreya’s mouth. Even though Diel and her father got to eat the dinners too, that certainly wasn’t enough to clear away that awful emptiness.

The one I wanted to serve my cooking to was Ai Fa. And the people of the forest’s edge, and the townsfolk from the post town too. At some point I’d be able to unveil the skills and knowledge I gained here to everyone... That thought kept me going, giving my all as I cooked away. But at night, my decompressing emotions felt like they would crush my soul completely.

“Sir Asuta... It will not be good for you if you do not get some rest soon...” Chiffon Chel said as she gently nuzzled close.

Though she must have been touching my arm or shoulder, my senses were so dulled that I didn’t feel a thing.

“Sorry, but I don’t feel like sleeping yet.”

“I see... But simply lying on your side should help you recover quite a bit of strength, so I beg you please move to the bed...”

“Right...”

It wouldn’t impact the deep darkness welling up inside me whether I was standing by the window or lying in the bed. And so I figured it was the better choice to go ahead and at least put Chiffon Chel at ease.

“My master shall be returning the morning of the day after tomorrow... And so I shall only be able to spend time like this with you for a little over a day more at most...”

“Yeah.”

“I really cannot help but find that regrettable in the end. However... It is also quite heartrending to see you so pained, Sir Asuta...”

Chiffon Chel was wearing the same gentle smile as usual, but her mysterious purple eyes made it look to me like she was agonizing over how to properly convey her feelings.

She was someone who had been a slave for years now. Perhaps a portion of her heart had been worn down more than most in the process, but she most definitely still cared about others.

It was possible that I could have broken down even further had she not been here by my side.

Nothing could fill the huge gaping hole left open in my heart, though, despite her best efforts.

“Sorry... I’ll rest for a bit, then.”

“Of course...”

Chiffon Chel gently removed her hand from my arm, then went ahead and closed the window. After that she led me over to my bed, and then disappeared behind the folding screen.

“I wish you sweet dreams, Sir Asuta...”

“Yeah, you too,” I replied as I listlessly collapsed atop the bed.

Before long, Chiffon Chel extinguished the lantern, at which point my vision really did go completely black.

My exhausted body felt like mud, yet I didn’t feel even the slightest urge to sleep creeping in. Was my heart outright rejecting the idea? I mean, even if I slept, I was sure to just be assailed by nightmares.

Nightmares, huh...? This whole situation already is a nightmare.

If there were at least some firm proof I really would be back home two days from now, maybe I wouldn’t feel so cornered. But I was up against Cyclaeus here. No matter how positive I tried to be, that man’s reputation was just so deplorable that I couldn’t feel even the slightest bit of hope at the thought of having to rely on him.

Of course, if I really wasn’t released before he returned and ended up face to face with Cyclaeus, I would do everything in my power to try to make sure things ended peacefully. But when he learned of his daughter’s carelessness, if he figured it would be quickest to just get rid of me permanently... Well, I could end up disappearing from this world entirely, never again seeing Ai Fa or anybody else. That possibility was likely the source of the terror and despair I was feeling.

If it was just a few days apart from Ai Fa then, well, I figured I could handle that much. But if it was to be our final farewell... I couldn’t just die and leave things like this.

The last time I saw Ai Fa, with that joyful smile on her face... the sight of it was burned into the back of my eyelids.

I certainly hope that we can at least spend those days peacefully.

Ai Fa had seemed really happy at the thought that when our days off overlapped, we’d be able to relax together back home for the first time in quite a while. That was going to be on the eighth of the white month... In other words, today.

Keep on striving at your work, but make sure not to let your guard down.

I really didn’t think I ever let my guard down. And yet I was still kidnapped by thugs and left unable to return to the Fa house. Just how angry and sad must Ai Fa be...? I must have inflicted even more suffering and despair on her than what I was feeling myself.

Ai Fa...

I tossed and turned in the bed, unable to fall asleep.

And as I did, a strange, feeble, metallic creeeeak sound crept into my ear.

Had the wind blown the window open?

No, the windows here opened out. They weren’t built crudely enough that the wind would do anything to them. However, the door to the halfway hadn’t opened to allow anyone to come in.

So had Chiffon Chel opened the window, then?

But when I listened carefully, I could hear her rhythmically breathing away in her sleep.

Then what in the world was that? I thought, preparing to sit up in bed.

But then, a shadowy figure suddenly appeared from behind the partitioning screen by the window. It was even darker than the night itself, like a bundle of condensed shadows.

“Wha...”

“Don’t raise your voice,” a quiet, whispered voice chimed back.

It was that of a young boy, and I felt like I had heard it somewhere before.

Thanks to the faint bit of moonlight streaming in through the windows, I could see the slight yellow glow of his beastly eyes.

“You’re...”

“Keep quiet. It’ll be a pain if that woman sleeping there notices,” the mysterious boy whispered. He had the eyes of a wounded predator, and his still youthful voice had a husky rasp. “Can you not see me? This should be plenty of moonlight, though.”

With that, he firmly grabbed hold of my wrist.

I felt vaguely like I was in the midst of some sort of lucid dream as that strong grasp pulled me along to the other side of the partitioning screen. And since the window was wide open when we got there, there was plenty of moonlight streaming into the room.

Under that pale bluish light, there was burning crimson hair blowing gently in the wind.

“Jeeda... What are you doing in a place like this...?”

“Try asking yourself that,” the red haired boy Jeeda replied in a monotone voice, pushing away my wrist. “You look like you’re doing surprisingly well. Is it nice and comfortable here in this noble’s manor, Asuta of the Fa clan?”

I figured that was actually the first time Jeeda had called me by name.

His face still had the look of youth about it, he was about half a head shorter than me, and he had on a fur cloak spotted with fine specks that marked him as a hunter of Masara. This was the orphaned child of the honorable thief Goram Redbeard, Jeeda. He had an unusual appearance about him that I just couldn’t get used to, and as I looked at it now I felt myself growing more and more flustered.

“H-How in the world did you manage to sneak all the way here? I mean, it’s protected by guards and dogs and... Wait, how did you even know I was here in the first place...?”

“I already told you not to raise your voice. After all, there must be soldiers or the like keeping watch outside this room, right?” His delicate-looking face gave a displeased pout, but then his yellow eyes shot me a glare. “You had that window open until just a little while ago, didn’t you? That was how I learned that you were here in this room. Then all I needed to do was fire off a clawed arrow with fibaha vines attached to it into the roof, then use that to climb up.”

“That’s not what I meant. Nobody should know that I’m confined here in this manor to start with.”

“The people of the forest’s edge have been wailing that a noble named Cyclaeus is undoubtedly behind this... I didn’t talk to any of them directly, though. The one who mentioned the location of this manor was a man named Mikel of Turan.” I was even more taken aback to hear that unexpected name come up now. “I happened to see the people of the forest’s edge hound him when he came to the forest’s edge yesterday. I followed him when he was returning to Turan, and then asked him where this manor was. Apparently he was originally from the castle town, too...”

“Y-Yeah, that’s what I’ve heard... But the castle town is protected by stone walls, isn’t it? And you’re not supposed to be able to make it in without a pass.”

“It’s possible with the proper tools. Are you asking me to tell you my methods...?”

That didn’t matter to me at all.

“Then... Why did you come all the way here, exactly?”

Jeeda frowned when he heard that question. I was secretly grateful to see the boy make such childish expressions, actually.

“I... I just wanted to see your face, now that you’ve fallen right into the enemy’s hands after acting all high and mighty. And also...” His yellow eyes gleamed. “The owner of this manor, that Cyclaeus noble... he’s the one you all say is behind everything, isn’t he? That’s what I learned from listening to the people of the forest’s edge and Mikel of Turan. And so, I wanted to check how seriously this manor was being guarded.”

“It’s watched over by guards and dogs, right...?”

“Yeah. But it’s nothing all that impressive. That Cyclaeus man sure is lax on that front, considering all the stuff he’s done.” There was a dangerous feeling simmering in the air about the boy’s small body. There was a wild, animalistic bloodlust about him that felt no less intense than that of the people of the forest’s edge. “Well, I can sense a lot more presences inside the manor, though. And just finding his location in a building this stupidly huge would be quite an undertaking. So it wouldn’t be all that simple to take his head.”

“J-Jeeda, are you really thinking of going after—”

“He’s still out, right? I overheard the people of the forest’s edge saying so. No, today’s just a preliminary inspection...” Jeeda’s gaze then fell a bit, only for him to look back up at me. “If there’s a way to bring his crimes to light, that would be the best method for avenging my late father... I’ll wait to bring my own strength to bear till after I see whether or not you all succeed with your plan.”

“I see. In that case—”

“But if the laws of this country grant him a sentence lighter than death, then I swear I will personally send his head flying, without fail.”

It wasn’t as if he was raising his voice or shooting an angry look, but there was still a clear tension in the air about him. However, that dangerous sensation lingering about might well have been nothing but a mere fragment of the bloodlust Jeeda was desperately suppressing.

I was facing off with that small bundle of rage in the darkness like this, just the two of us. It was just so unreal that I still felt a bit out of it, but even so, I asked, “So you came here for reconnaissance and to check on how I was doing...?”

“Yeah, that’s right. If you were the sort of guy to try to curry favor with your sworn enemy, then I was prepared to skin your face or something, but still...” the boy replied, his beastly gaze piercing through me. “Apparently, you’re just lamenting your own carelessness. You really are a pathetic man. The people of the forest’s edge would probably be exasperated if they heard about this.”

“I can’t exactly refute that, yeah. Hey Jeeda... How’s everyone from the forest’s edge doing?” I shot back, finally getting out the question I most wanted to ask.

Jeeda closed his eyes for a moment and the resentment dripping off of him calmed just a bit, then he replied, “They’re a mess, of course. They’re all running around like crazy looking for you. The whole post town’s in a wild frenzy as a result, too.”

“I... I see...”

“At first, it seemed like they might even cross blades with the guards. Now, though, they’re just running all about town. The guards in charge of the castle gates won’t pay them any heed, so they’re frantically searching around to identify the scoundrels who kidnapped you.”

I just kept on listening, not saying a word.

“A big crowd of townsfolk came after the guards too, but they just kept insisting they needed to wait till the militia captain returned on the tenth of the white month. And those guards looked every bit as out of sorts as the townsfolk, to be honest.”

If Cyclaeus’s younger brother, the head of the militia, was also stuck in the castle for the time being, then that seemed only natural. I mean, there was a very high likelihood that this was all done at Lefreya’s discretion alone.

And even if news of that commotion made it into the castle, the report would be, “A person of the forest’s edge doing business in the post town was captured by ruffians.” Since they didn’t give the orders themselves, Cyclaeus and his brother would just laugh it off. After all, it wouldn’t be bad at all for them if us people of the forest’s edge and some scoundrels from town went and got in a scuffle all on our own.

“So, um... Do you know how my clan head, Ai Fa, is holding up...?”

“That woman, huh?” Jeeda flatly shot back. “She’s apparently been heading into town every day too. But she’s a troublesome one, since she notices me no matter how much I try to hide my presence. I try to stay away from her as much as possible, so I don’t really know.”

“I see...”

Ai Fa, the other people of the forest’s edge, and the townsfolk were all desperately searching for me. Just hearing that was enough to cause a crushing sensation to weigh down on my chest.

“You don’t look to be especially injured... but you seem quite defeated, even so,” Jeeda quietly stated. “I owe you all a bit of a debt. I suppose I could deliver a single message for you, at least.”

With that, I went to draw in close to Jeeda. However, he swiftly pulled back in order to maintain the same distance between us.

“Jeeda, I know it doesn’t make any sense to ask this of you, but... Could you take me back to the post town with you, possibly?”

“Hmph. Can you eliminate your presence like a hunter? If not, you won’t make it ten steps before those dogs maul you to death,” Jeeda replied, swiftly shooting down my request.

“I see...” I said with a slump of my shoulders, only for Jeeda to glance around impatiently.

“The people of the forest’s edge would have little difficulty slipping past the guards like I did. And since they have ties to Mikel of Turan, it would certainly be possible to find out where this manor is located. And yet they’ve left you here... They must not think saving you is worth breaking the law.”

“That’s—” I started to argue, only for Jeeda to place his palm over my mouth.

“I told you not to raise your voice.”

“That’s only natural. Before they go breaking the law or anything like that, they’d need proof that Cyclaeus abducted me. And since they can’t afford to show any weakness to the man, that’s even more reason they can’t just break the law without any evidence.”

“But...”

“Besides, it actually wasn’t Cyclaeus himself who had me abducted.”

It was at this point that I finally went ahead and gave Jeeda all the details.

The boy looked clearly displeased, but he listened silently without interjecting until I was done.

“So it’s not Cyclaeus behind this, but his daughter, eh...? Like father, like daughter I guess.”

“I mean, I don’t think that’s always the case...”

“Besides, none of this changes the fact that you’re imprisoned here in this manor. So I still can’t help but see it as the people of the forest’s edge valuing the law over your life,” Jeeda said with a frown, looking seriously upset with that fact.

That childish action really reminded me of Ai Fa, which took me aback. Now that I thought about it, his wild cat-like eyes might also have been a bit similar to hers when she was angry, too.

“A comrade’s life is more important than anything else. Are the people of the forest’s edge really so pathetic that they would sacrifice one of their own for the sake of the law?”

“That’s absolutely not the case. But the people of the forest’s edge believe it’s proper to follow the law and customs. Maybe even more so than the townsfolk.”

“Hmph. So you’re saying unlike the son of a thief, their souls are unsullied?”

“No, that’s not how I see things, but—”

“Whatever. I have my own way of doing things, and so do the people of the forest’s edge. And thanks to my methods, I was able to meet you. The people of the forest’s edge, however, were not,” Jeeda said in a quiet yet confrontational tone, suddenly moving in closer. “With that in mind, let me ask... is there anything you want me to tell your comrades?”

His words and expression made it seem as if he was asking, “Is there anything I can do to help?”

But knowing nothing of what he was thinking inside, I replied, “There is,” with a nod. “I’d like you to tell everyone what I told you before. And you should let a man named Zasshuma know too.”

“Zasshuma...?”

“A townsman who’s lending the people of the forest’s edge aid. He’s the only one who should be able to get into the castle town. And so let him know that he needs to inform Melfried of this as soon as possible. Ah, Melfried is a noble who’s also trying to expose Cyclaeus’s old crimes, and is the son of Genos’s lord.”

“Got it. If Cyclaeus takes the initiative, you could be placed in danger, right? I’ll let them know.” As he said that, his mysterious yellow eyes flickered. “By the way, is that easterner named Sanjura here in this manor?”

“Huh?”

“Isn’t that man, who injured my shoulder, one of those who kidnapped you? That’s what’s written on the wanted posters.”

“Th-They put up wanted posters in the post town?”

“Yeah. I only got the personal description part, though. But yes, there are wanted posters out there saying the ones who abducted you were that Sanjura guy and an unidentified western man.”

So Nail informed the guards after all, huh?

And the contents of what he said were spread throughout the post town as he gave them, rather than being suppressed by any pressure from above.

In other words, Cyclaeus must not have been told the details yet. If he had so much as seen the wanted poster, he would have known it was talking about men under him. And that was another light of hope for me.

“That other westerner is probably the officer assigned to guarding Cyclaeus’s daughter. His build and voice were identical, after all. His name is Mussel. You should let Zasshuma know that too.”

With that, at the very least Melfried would learn everything once he could act freely. As for what came next, it would be a question of how strong a hand he could play as an arbiter of the law. And that was one thing I wouldn’t find out until the time came.

“I’ll let them know for sure. And this settles my debt with all of you, too...” Jeeda said, turning away.

However, I called out to him from behind, “Hold on. Can you let them know I’m doing fine, too? And... Could you tell not just Ai Fa, but as many people of the forest’s edge as possible?”

“I have trouble handling that woman so I was intending to tell someone else to start with. Still, why go to that much extra trouble?”

“Eh...? Well, um... If you just told Ai Fa, she might try to come alone like you did to rescue me...”

“So she’d break the law without even telling anyone else?” Jeeda questioned, his eyes narrowing a bit as his eyebrows raised in a peculiar manner. It was a real complex expression, like he was both astounded and impressed at the same time. “I didn’t expect you to go bragging about your woman right at the end like that...”

“S-She’s not exactly my woman or anything...”

“Still, that’s what a real comrade’s like. I figure that’s what it means to really be family,” Jeeda said, lifting his right foot up onto the frame of the window. “Well then, I’m off. We may never meet again... But for the sake of your comrades desperately running around everywhere, give it everything you’ve got to at least survive through tomorrow.”

“Right, and thanks. I really am grateful to you, Jeeda.”

With that, Jeeda disappeared beyond the window, offering no response to my words.

Though I hurriedly rushed over to look, his fur cloak disappeared into the darkness in no time flat. He must have long since collected the tools he used to infiltrate the place, as it seemed he just needed to leap down on his way back. That was some seriously astounding physical prowess, there.

After closing the window, I gave a sigh.

This time, it seemed I would definitely get my message to Ai Fa and everyone else that I was doing alright. That alone was enough to clear away a lot of the dark clouds billowing up inside of me.

Now all that leaves is getting out of here intact.

In place of my unease, anguish, and despair, I was being filled with some new, unfamiliar strength.

As I writhed in the dark, Jeeda had come and granted me the light of hope.

Ai Fa, hold on just a little longer.

After clenching my fist one last time, I returned to my bed.

I was worried I wouldn’t be able to sleep after that surge of emotions, but I had no memories after that point and must have swiftly drifted off. And that night, I wasn’t plagued by any nightmares.