Cooking with Wild Game (LN) - Volume 21 - Chapter 4.2

2

It was now the night of the thirtieth of the violet month, after we had discovered Rolo the knight king’s identity and Ai Fa had slapped me on the back of the head. As it was the day before a holiday, we were once again spending the night at Dora’s house in the Daleim lands.

Our group included five chefs—myself, Rimee Ruu, Ama Min Rutim, Toor Deen, and Yun Sudra—and five guards including Ai Fa, Ludo Ruu, Gazraan Rutim, Dan Rutim, and Giran Ririn, adding up to ten in total. We were able to reduce our numbers since Granny Jiba wasn’t with us this time, though we still needed at least this many in order to hand out whole roast giba from five stalls tomorrow morning.

However, an even larger crowd from the forest’s edge would be visiting Dora’s house tomorrow night. After we finished our nighttime business and our ten long days of work were over, we were going to throw a party at Dora’s house, with a ton of people invited, including Granny Jiba.

Tomorrow was the day of the downfall, the final day of the year, or what we called New Year’s Eve back in my old world. Folks would spend the whole night celebrating the sun god’s revival, and then everyone in town would take the following day off, for the sun god’s return. And so, we’d decided that the people of the forest’s edge would also try following the traditions of Genos and stay over at Dora’s place that night.

Granny Jiba had been the strongest proponent of this plan, and had gotten permission for it from Donda Ruu. It would be dangerous to spend the night in the post town with so many outsiders around, but a celebration in the Daleim lands was just barely within the range of things he could tolerate. It was unlikely that we were going to have an easy time getting the guards who would be accompanying us—which included Jiza Ruu—to loosen up and enjoy themselves, but I was sure they would still find some kind of meaning in spending such a long evening with the folks from the Daleim lands regardless.

“Our work in town is mostly finished as of today! All our extra hires are gonna be heading over to the post town for the next while, so we should have plenty of beds to spare. That means you can go ahead and bring along as many folks as you want!” Dora said while eating giba cooking together with us for the third time. He had harvested all the vegetables he could, and they were now safely piled up in his storehouse. With that done, he would be taking it easy till midway through the silver month and preparing for the coming rainy season, when he would be planting fresh seedlings.

“There’s going to be a shortage of tarapa and tino and the like pretty soon, but there’s also going to be a decline in the number of folks making merry about the post town, so you should be able to take it easy for a while too.”

“Right. It’s important to strike a balance.”

This part of the world didn’t have four distinct seasons, and Genos didn’t celebrate any big events aside from the revival festival, so nothing else on the calendar would ever be likely to match the upheaval of the last several days. It was certainly never boring—I didn’t have time to be bored— but I would still welcome a change of pace.

“So, could we stop by the settlement at the forest’s edge sometime during the silver month as well? It would be nice to have a chance to visit again, if that would be all right.”

“Yeah. Rimee would love that, and our old man is soft on her, so I can’t imagine him saying no at this point,” Ludo Ruu replied, looking just as excited as Rimee Ruu and Tara were.

“No doubt that will be happening at the Ruu settlement? In that case, I would like to be invited for dinner as well,” Gazraan Rutim chimed in.

Dora smiled at him. “We’d be happy to have you and Dan Rutim there as well! I should say, you’re a remarkably calm and composed fellow. And far brighter than anyone I know from town.”

“That’s not...” Gazraan Rutim started to reply, only to be cut off by his father’s laughter.

“Gazraan is my pride and joy! But you raised your boys quite well too!”

“Yes, though they still have some things to learn.”

The two sons in question were a bit younger than Gazraan Rutim. However, they were both kind young men as well, and seemed to get along well with the Rutim clan head. They had previously expressed an interest in interacting with Jiza Ruu more too. The two of them seemed to be of a similar mind to Gazraan Rutim, in terms of having a strong interest in the outside world.

This was the first time Ama Min Rutim and Yun Sudra had come here with us, but they seemed to be getting along great with the wives of the family, while Toor Deen fit in just fine with Rimee Ruu and Tara. Each time we did this, the boundaries between us and Dora’s family came down more and more.

But while all that was going on, I noticed Dora’s mother was just silently eating her meal.

“How’s the food today? These dishes are quite popular in the post town.”

She shot me an unfriendly glare. Today’s menu included a boiled tarapa dish and deep-fried giba sirloin. Both of them were daily specials at the stalls.

“Why is this tarapa so sweet...? You lot buy big sour tarapa, don’t you?”

“We do, yeah. So, we finely mince a bunch of aria and sauté it before boiling, and we also add fruit wine at that point. That draws out the vegetables’ natural sweetness better than using sugar.”

“I’m not familiar with this vegetable...”

“Ah, that’s called ma pula. It’s apparently grown in Jagar and the western part of Selva. It’s a relative of pula, but it isn’t bitter.”

We ultimately didn’t touch on the matter of the giba meat, but tonight she had actually eaten a portion of giba cooking her granddaughter had served her. Dora’s uncle was also biting into the deep-fried sirloin with a frown. That alone was enough to make me so happy I felt a lump in my throat.

“What’s tomorrow’s party going to be like?” Giran Ririn asked nobody in particular. Dora was still having a friendly chat with Dan Rutim, so his older son turned to answer in his place.

“It’s nothing all that special. We’ll light a fire outside, enjoy a light meal and some fruit wine, and await the sun god’s revival. Oh, that means waiting for the first sun of the new year to shine across the land.”

“My! You’re saying we’re going to stay up without sleep all the way until morning?”

“Some people will sleep for a little while, but everyone wakes up before the break of dawn. After all, the whole next day is set aside for rest.”

“Hmm... Folks will carry on real late at weddings and festivals of the hunt at the forest’s edge too, but I’ve never heard of any that lasted until morning. Perhaps we should come up with a rotation so that we don’t all fall asleep at once.”

“Just leave the planning to Jiza Ruu and Gazraan! As long as there’s fruit wine, I can stay up as long as I need!” Dan Rutim said, making Giran Ririn break out in a happy grin.

“Naturally, I’ve got no intention of going to sleep either if that’s how it’s done. But if everyone drifts off except for you and I, I’m sure Donda Ruu is going to chew us out later.”

“Yeah, and young folks seem to have this strange tendency to drink themselves into unconsciousness!”

Wasn’t it more like the two of them just had an excessively high tolerance for alcohol? Anyway, the women from Dora’s house were also excitedly giggling to each other.

“Still, the people of the forest’s edge don’t celebrate the sun god’s revival, right? Even though I’ve heard they celebrate the beginning and end of each year in Jagar too,” the younger son interjected.

“Hmm?” Dan Rutim questioned with a tilt of his head. “It’s been eighty years now since the people of the forest’s edge called the black forest of Jagar home, and even back then we didn’t have any interaction with folks from outside of the forest, so we never had any opportunities to pick up the customs of Jagar.”

“That’s so strange, living completely isolated from the outside world... I don’t mean this in a bad way, but it almost makes you sound like the famed savages of Morga.”

“The red savages of Morga, huh? You know, they’re the one thing I’ve never laid eyes on.”

“Huh? Does that mean you’ve seen giant madarama snakes and varb wolves?”

“I’ve spied giant madarama snakes slithering along the tops of cliffs several times before. And I’m actually friends with a varb wolf!” Dan Rutim said while puffing up his chest as the sons’ eyes shone with curiosity.

I’d had a chance encounter with an injured madarama snake that had been washed down the Lanto river myself, but normally the beasts of Morga were treated like legendary creatures, never to be seen by human eyes.

And so, Dan Rutim brought the night’s dinner to a close with the tale of the two times he had encountered a varb wolf. The story of how the beast with pure white fur had saved him twice was so fantastical that it seemed to have been cut from the same cloth as Neeya’s song about Misha.

After that, we were once again allotted one room for the men to sleep in, and a second for the women. Before we turned in, however, Ludo Ruu had something to report. After we had finished up with business and returned to the settlement for the day, a messenger from Melfried had arrived for Donda Ruu. I had already basically heard what the message said from Rimee Ruu on the way to Dora’s place, but it wasn’t an appropriate topic for the dinner table, so the official report had been delayed till now.

“That noble, Geimalos, has finally recovered enough to speak, and apparently, he’s confessed everything about his crimes. It seems he had no confidence in his ability to win against a hunter from the forest’s edge, so when the match was proposed, he felt that he was in a lot of trouble. But he couldn’t just turn tail and run either, so that’s why he dirtied his hands with that trick.”

At this point, the only ones left in the room to hear about this were me, Ai Fa, and Gazraan Rutim.

“Hmm...” Ai Fa muttered with a furrowed brow. “Aren’t swordsmen and knights supposed to value honor and pride in the same way we hunters do? I seem to recall Granny Jiba telling me so.”

“Yeah, but his pride took an unfortunate turn here. He decided that rather than losing or withdrawing, using a dirty trick to win was the most pride-preserving outcome he could hope for.”

“I can’t understand him at all. Even if he had managed to win without anyone ever learning of his wrongdoing, how could he possibly be happy with that?”

“Don’t ask me. At any rate, he’s apparently lost his position as head of those knights. But, well, it seems like he’ll never be able to hold a sword again after taking that blow from Shin Ruu anyway.”

“It seems he has suffered a broken nose and left arm, and injured his neck muscles terribly as well. Even if it would take quite some time, a hunter from the forest’s edge could eventually recover from those injuries, but a noble from the castle town must lack the necessary spirit,” Gazraan Rutim calmly added, surprisingly not sounding like he was looking down on the man. “And since he’s lost his position, he will no longer have any authority or power. From what I’ve observed, nobles seem to value not only bloodlines but also their official posts to an extreme degree. Even Polarth had no real authority as a noble until he helped take down Cyclaeus...and Cyclaeus’s brother Ciluel committed his villainous acts to grab hold of power as well.”

“Ah, I see. It’s true that Geimalos, Polarth, and Ciluel are all second and third sons of the houses of counts.”

That was why Ciluel had ended up resorting to the vile act of assassination in order to become the leader of the militia, while Geimalos had dug his own grave with his efforts to protect his position. Looking at it that way, it seemed somehow ironic that Polarth had seen the most success out of the three, as he had always sought to elevate the strength and standing of the whole house of Daleim rather than gain a post for himself.

“It’s important for people to live with the right kind of pride in their hearts. That Polarth man seems easygoing and even childish in some ways, but he is without a doubt a trustworthy noble,” Ai Fa solemnly stated, apparently thinking the same thing as me.

“Duke Genos also said he wants to arrange a reconciliation, supposedly,” Gazraan Rutim continued.

“Reconciliation?”

“Yes. There’s no way Geimalos can make this better with words, but apparently they think the house of Saturas needs to offer an apology to the people of the forest’s edge for the crimes one of their own committed against us. There’s also the quarrel between Reina Ruu and Leeheim to consider. After all, he was the one who picked Geimalos as Shin Ruu’s opponent for the match in the first place. That’s why the duke wants to create an opportunity for both parties to reconcile with each other, so there won’t be any ill will going forward.”

So that was the end result Duke Marstein Genos was aiming for. It was possible that even Geimalos’s little trick had ultimately worked out exactly how the duke had wanted.

“Well, this is a problem between the Ruu clan and the nobles. But that noble first laid eyes on Reina when she was working with you, Asuta, on one of your jobs in the castle town, so I guess the Fa clan has something to do with this too. And we have no way of knowing what might happen to your business in the post town if we make enemies of those Saturas folks,” Ludo Ruu said.

“Yeah. If I’m asked to come along, then of course I’d be happy to do so... You don’t mind, do you, Ai Fa?”

“I am in complete agreement with you on this matter, of course... But when exactly would that be? I’m going to need to begin training to regain my strength as a hunter soon, and the Ruu clan’s break period is almost over as well, correct?”

“Yeah. It’s lasted about half a month as of today. It’ll be a while still before the giba start coming out in droves again, but it would definitely be best to get this hassle out of the way sooner rather than later.”

With that said, we wouldn’t be able to decide on a date until the revival festival wrapped up. Then there was also the matter of heading to the castle town to inspect the new ingredients, so even if things settled down with our business for a while, we still had a lot ahead of us.

“We don’t know what’ll happen with those traveling performers wanting to capture a giba either. It all sounds like a huge pain,” Ludo Ruu said before giving a big yawn. “But, well, finishing up work and the party tomorrow comes first. It’s gonna be an early morning, so we should get some sleep, right?”

“True. Thanks for everything, Ludo Ruu. Goodnight, Ai Fa,” I said, since the mood somehow didn’t seem right for standing around chatting tonight.

After a moment, Ai Fa nodded back. “Same to you.”

She headed over to the left door while I opened the right, and we each retired to our respective bedrooms. Dan Rutim and the other men were already snoring away inside. There was bedding laid out on the floor, and they were all sleeping in a huddle.

“Each and every day has been full of so much meaning...” Gazraan Rutim said as he was lying down on the bedding.

I stretched out similarly and nodded to him. “Yeah. I’d say just sleeping in the same room as you like this is an experience to remember for me too.”

“That’s true. I’m very much in agreement.” As he lay facing upward, Gazraan Rutim broke out in a bashful smile. “All that remains is handing out giba meat in the post town tomorrow morning, doing business in the evening, and the party in the Daleim lands at night... After that, the revival festival will come to an end.”

“Yeah. It’s strange. It feels like the whole thing has gone by in a flash, but also the complete opposite.”

At any rate, these last several days had been precious and meaningful. Getting all sentimental about it would have to wait till tomorrow night, but there was a special feel in the air right now, like when you were getting ready to sleep on a school trip.

“The clan head meeting will be held in the next blue month, and if the clan heads all approve of your business in the post town...we’ll be able to enjoy this again next year, won’t we?”

“Right, and I want to do whatever it takes to earn their approval. Oh yeah, and speaking of the next clan head meeting, you’ll be taking part, right?”

“Of course. I am the head of the Rutim clan,” Gazraan Rutim responded with a gentle smile, illuminated by the blue moonlight. Ludo Ruu, meanwhile, had drifted off right away, creating a trio of snoring hunters. “I am bracing myself as well, having become clan head at a time when we people of the forest’s edge are being confronted with so much change. I intend to give it everything I have, for the Rutim, of course, and for our parent clan, the Ruu, and also our friends, the Fa...and for all of our comrades at the forest’s edge.”

“I’m sure you’ll be a great clan head, just like Dan Rutim. Ai Fa and I will be doing our best too, as friends of the Rutim.”

The conversation naturally took a serious turn when it was just me and Gazraan Rutim, but it felt a bit embarrassing that it ended up on the two of us confirming how we considered one another to be important friends. My earlier words weren’t just lip service, though. I really did consider the time I spent with Gazraan Rutim to be precious.

Things fell silent for a while after that, and I started to wonder if he had drifted off to sleep, only for his calm voice to quietly speak up through the darkness again.

“Asuta, there’s something I wish to confide to you... Could I ask that you and Ai Fa keep it to yourselves?”

“Of course I’ll keep your secret. What is it?”

“Thank you. Even among the Rutim clan, this is something I’ve only spoken about to the members of the main house...” He hesitated for a moment, but then he whispered, “You see, Ama Min may be with child.”

My eyes shot open wide at that, and I quickly looked over at him.

“I cannot say for certain just yet, and there is still a danger of something going wrong at this stage. That is why I’m asking that you don’t tell anyone else for the time being.”

“O-Of course I won’t. Er, is it still too early to congratulate you?”

“Yes. I would appreciate it if you would save that for further down the line,” Gazraan Rutim said while turning my way with a smile still on his face. “But with that in mind, Ama Min will likely no longer be able to help you with your work in the post town in the not-so-distant future. It’s been a bit of a worry for her.”

“There’s no helping that. And it’s really no big deal at all compared to being blessed with a child,” I happily replied, breaking out in a smile of my own. “If it turns out to be true, you’ll end up with a kid around the same age as Li Sudra’s. I know the Sudra and Rutim homes are kinda far apart, but you seem like you get along, so that should be even more reason to be happy.”

“Yes, that’s true.”

“I guess there would be a two-year gap between your kid and Kota Ruu from the Ruu clan, then... But give them a couple decades, and Kota Ruu and your kid will become great clan heads too, just like Donda Ruu and Dan Rutim, or you and Jiza Ruu.”

“You sure are thinking far ahead, Asuta... Still, it’s such a wonderful thought that it’s dazzling.”

Assuming Li Sudra’s child would be born healthy, they would all be close in age to Aimu Fou from the Fou clan. The Fou and Sudra were located pretty close to each other and had a great deal of interaction, so they were sure to get along like Raielfam Sudra and Baadu Fou did now.

And so, the history of the people of the forest’s edge would continue onward. Those of us who were alive now had to work our hardest in order to forge a path to a bright future for the little ones. Just like Granny Jiba and Raa Rutim had done, and Donda Ruu and Dan Rutim had after them. Somebody needed to act as a bridge to the next generation and help to shape their world.

I felt unable to sit still at this point, so I went ahead and sat up atop the bedding.

“Is something the matter?” Gazraan Rutim asked.

“No, I’m just feeling wide awake now, so I was thinking I’d go get a drink of water or something.”

“In that case, allow me to join you.”

“It’s not like I’ll be leaving the house, so no need to worry. Please get some rest, Gazraan Rutim.”

With that, I got up and exited the room, relying on the light of the moon. Then, with a faint creak, I closed the wooden door.

As I stood there in the dark, not even ten seconds passed before the neighboring bedroom door swung open.

“So it was you after all. What is it?”

The one to appear from inside and ask that was Ai Fa. Feeling satisfied with this outcome, I went ahead and smiled at her in the dark. Given how good my clan head’s vision was, she surely would be able to make out my expression, even when it was this dark.

“You heard the sound of the door opening and closing, didn’t you? That’s a hunter of the forest’s edge for you.”

“Did you have some business with me? Is it about Ama Min Rutim?” Ai Fa asked, closing the door behind her and standing in front of me.

As I tried to make out her expression through the darkness, I nodded back. “Yeah. Did you hear about it from Ama Min Rutim herself?”

“Indeed. And she started by telling me Gazraan Rutim intended to share the news with you tonight. However, she did say that nothing is certain just yet.”

“Right. Let’s just pray that it does turn out to be true.”

Ai Fa tilted her head questioningly. “By the way, Asuta, why are you narrowing your eyes like that? If you’re tired, then you should get to sleep.”

“It’s just that I can’t see your face that well. My night vision isn’t as good as yours.”

Ai Fa shrugged and took several steps down the hall. There was a window on the wall opposite the door, where moonlight was streaming in. Now I could see Ai Fa standing there with her blonde hair down and wearing an incredibly calm expression.

“Is this satisfactory?”

“Yeah,” I replied, walking over to Ai Fa.

I stopped when we were only about thirty centimeters apart. If anyone were to pass by, they would probably be surprised and wonder what we were getting up to out here in the dark. Even so, this was something important that we had to do.

“I just feel uneasy when I try to go to sleep without talking to you first, Ai Fa.”

“There’s no point in saying what I already know...” Ai Fa said, a little meanly, but then she smiled with a gentle shine in her blue eyes.

“We’ll only be working together as we have been for one more day.”

“Yeah, true.”

“There may be some troublesome things that need to be done beyond that, but all you can do is focus on the tasks in front of you now.”

“You’ve got that right. It may be a little weird to say this, but it’s been so reassuring to have you on guard duty while you’ve been injured, and it’s made me really happy too. The fact that I’ve been able to spend all this time with you means a lot to me.”

“You didn’t need to say that first part. It would have worried me greatly to leave guard duty to someone else at a time like this as well,” Ai Fa said, gently brushing aside the bangs dangling down over her forehead. “It was simply the forest’s guidance that I was injured... We have been quite fortunate.”

“Yeah.”

We had decided not to touch one another unnecessarily, but for the past several days, I had spent more time close to Ai Fa than ever before, and I had been able to speak freely about my feelings, not lying or hiding a thing. I really did feel blessed.

“I’ll be counting on you during our last day of work too. We’ll be rushing all over the place with everyone afterward, so get your rest now while you can.”

“Right,” Ai Fa replied, her smile brimming with affection.

And so, that was how we readied ourselves to face the coming days of the sun god’s downfall and return, late at night on the thirtieth of the violet month.