Cooking with Wild Game (LN) - Volume 23 - Chapter 2.5

5

It was now the day after the swordsmanship tournament and Shin Ruu’s amazing victory.

We arrived at the Ruu settlement right on schedule on our way to the post town, where an unexpected commotion awaited us, though this time it was in front of Shin Ruu’s home rather than the main house. Since we hadn’t had a chance to get together yesterday, I had wanted to head over to his place to say hello, and unsurprisingly, I found Shin Ruu surrounded by his family and other relatives there.

“Good morning, everyone... Great work yesterday, Shin Ruu.”

The people surrounding Shin Ruu all greeted me with smiles, and then the man himself said, “Ah, Asuta,” and approached me. “It seems like you had quite a day yesterday too. Sheera told me all about it.”

“Oh, that was nothing compared to you fighting for half a day. Is that the sword you won?”

Shin Ruu was holding a truly splendid long sword in his hand. It was around a meter long and had delicate engravings along the guard and scabbard. We had seen it before as it was being presented to him yesterday at the closing ceremony, after which we had returned to the settlement at the forest’s edge.

“It’s a real fine blade, but a touch heavy for giba hunting. It might be just about right for someone with a build like my old man’s, though,” Ludo Ruu chimed in, popping up at the edge of the crowd.

Shin Ruu turned toward him and replied, “Yeah. And double-edged blades are difficult to handle too. It would apparently be quite rude toward Duke Genos to sell it, though, so I suppose I’ll just have to put it into storage.”

That was pretty much the conclusion I expected a person of the forest’s edge to reach. I gave a strained chuckle and greeted Ludo Ruu as well.

“Hello to you too, Ludo Ruu. There was a celebration in the castle town yesterday, right? What was it like, visiting the main castle?”

“Hmm? I guess it was a pretty huge building, but I don’t really know what to say other than that. And there were so many people there that it made my head spin.” After the tournament, they had been invited to the castle for a celebratory party—as was customary for all of the top-ranking participants—where they had been given a congratulatory address and coins. “Still, the food wasn’t all that good. Varkas and Shilly Rou make way better stuff than that. Right, Shin Ruu?”

“True. Still, that’s probably because we aren’t accustomed to the food nobles enjoy. I at least didn’t feel like I had to force myself to eat it.” Shin Ruu looked the same as always, with no visible scars. He was just his usual calm and composed self.

“By the way, that Leiriss guy was there too, right? Did you settle things with him?”

“Yes. Judging from his expression, he seemed quite refreshed. However, he did tell me that I would have to participate in next year’s tournament as well.”

“Hmm? Well, I guess that’s fine as long as it’s not because of a grudge or anything.”

“Right. I’m sure it’s the same as how I challenge Ludo Ruu at every festival of the hunt.”

“Yep,” Ludo Ruu chirped. “And Geol Zaza was shouting about how he’s gonna win for sure next year. I’ve got no interest in being part of such a rigid contest of strength myself, though.”

“Yes, I’m sure I would have lost that last match if my helmet hadn’t broken, since I couldn’t see my opponent properly with it on. Still, even setting that aside, Melfried was quite strong.”

“Oh yeah, he specializes in using two swords, right? And that huge southerner was saying he would have put up a better fight if he could have used an axe.” Apparently, Ludo Ruu had talked with all sorts of people at the celebratory party. He turned toward me and said, “Oh yeah, that girl from the south asked me to tell you that she got your message to that northern woman, Chiffon Chel.”

“Oh, Diel was there? Got it, thanks.”

“And a girl from the east said something too. Umm... It was something like, ‘Thanks for always sending that delicious food.’”

“That must have been Arishuna. I heard that the two of them were invited to sit in the VIP section, so I guess they went along to the celebratory party too. Still, they’re both probably older than you, so I’m not sure you should be calling them ‘girls.’”

“Eh, whatever. Girls are girls,” Ludo Ruu said, sticking out his tongue and turning away. “It was a pretty interesting show to watch, though. Lala practically flew over to Shin Ruu at the end, totally ignoring my old man trying to stop her.”

“Ah, that’s...” Shin Ruu started, his cheeks going red.

“What was that about me?” a harsh voice interjected from the side. It was Lala Ruu, standing off to the side away from the crowd with her arms crossed, her hair up in its usual ponytail, and her face bright red. “How long are you all going to keep talking? Reina and the others have been ready to go for a while now, Asuta. They’re waiting for you over by our wagons.”

“Ah, sorry. Oh, and good work yesterday to you too, Lala Ruu.”

“I didn’t do anything!” Lala Ruu angrily snapped back, her face going all the redder.

Glancing over at her out of the corner of his eye, Ludo Ruu gave a snort and said, “She ignored our old man’s orders, so he chewed her out afterward till she cried. We promised the nobles we wouldn’t leave our seats, but you just had to get all selfish over Shin Ruu.”

“Oh, shut it.”

“And Shin Ruu beat every single one of his opponents without getting any serious injuries, so what were you even worried about? Every time he went out there, you prayed to the forest and looked like you were about to cry.”

“I said shut it, Ludo! You idiot!” Lala Ruu shouted. She grabbed at Ludo Ruu, boiling over with rage, but being such an excellent hunter, her brother was able to swiftly take hold of both of her wrists.

“And at the castle, she just wouldn’t stop clinging to Shin Ruu for a single moment. After all, she had to make sure those noble girls couldn’t approach him. And Melfried’s wife said something like, ‘What a young wife you have.’”

“Ack!” Lala Ruu wailed as her teasing brother chuckled away. I felt worse for Shin Ruu, though, having to listen to that with so much of his family surrounding him. His face had turned as red as Lala Ruu’s.

“W-Well then, it’s about time we get going. You all have morning chores too, don’t you? I’ll be holding a study session after work, so I’ll see anyone who isn’t busy then.” I took it upon myself to get the situation under control for Shin Ruu’s sake. The branch family members dispersed to return to their various tasks, while Shin Ruu’s mother, Tari Ruu, offered a smile and a slight bow before heading back inside. That just left those noisy siblings and Shin Ruu himself.

“Reina and Vina Ruu are on for today, right? We’ll wait by the entrance, so could you send them out to us?”

With a “Hmph!” Lala Ruu shook off her brother’s hands, then glanced at Shin Ruu’s face and took off running toward the main house.

“I feel bad for Lala Ruu when you go overboard with your teasing like that, Ludo Ruu.”

“Hmm? Everyone knows what’s going on between Lala and Shin Ruu, so why bother hiding it? It’s not like Shin Ruu’s gonna fall for any other woman at this point.”

“Even so, it still isn’t good to poke fun at your family,” Shin Ruu scolded Ludo Ruu, which was rather unusual for him.

Ludo Ruu chuckled and said, “Well, you’ve just got to hold out till Lala turns fifteen. Once you’re married, nobody will tease you anymore.”

“There’s still a year and a half left before she turns fifteen, and besides, you’re the only one who teases us in the first place, Ludo Ruu.”

“It’s not like I’m trying to tease you or anything, Shin Ruu. It’s just funny to see how quickly you turn red.”

“That’s called teasing.”

“Whatever. It’s a good thing that the girl you like is so fond of you too,” Ludo Ruu retorted, joining his hands together behind his head and turning away. “I’m hungry, so I guess I’ll get some meat and poitan, or whatever’s cooked up. Good luck with your work, Asuta.”

That just left me and the red-faced Shin Ruu there.

The young hunter glared at Ludo Ruu’s back as he vanished into the distance, and then he heaved a sigh.

“I’m glad you didn’t suffer any bad injuries, Shin Ruu. Yesterday really was quite a day,” I called out, feeling like I hadn’t spoken with him enough yet.

As he idly stroked the scabbard of his fine long sword, Shin Ruu nodded back at me. “Indeed. Still, I’m glad I was able to carry out my task. Honestly, I didn’t think I was going to win the whole thing.”

“Your armor looked really heavy, and that helmet must have restricted your vision a lot. Do you think you would’ve had an easier time winning if you were able to dress like normal?”

“I’m not sure. It’s not as if I have human opponents in mind when I practice with my blade.”

Ai Fa and many others had said something like that quite a few times by now.

“If Geol Zaza hadn’t been wearing a helmet, it’s possible that he could have beaten Melfried. But then again, if not for his armor, he might have taken a cut to his right wrist. Plus, Melfried himself would have been more difficult to handle with two blades. I don’t believe there’s much purpose in indulging in such hypotheticals.”

“Right. Having a fixed set of rules is what makes it a proper match, and there’s no point in complaining about that. Still, I’m really glad that you managed to win all your fights.”

Shin Ruu looked up at me with grateful eyes, having finally shaken off the red from his cheeks. “You and Rimee Ruu calling out to me so loudly helped me muster up my strength to its fullest.”

“Huh? You were able to hear us even with all that noise?”

“Faintly. Hunters need to be able to distinguish all kinds of sounds,” Shin Ruu replied, now turning his whole body my way. “I’m glad I was able to defeat Melfried. I’m told he was once considered as skilled as Jiza Ruu.”

“Right. We were told that Sanjura was about as strong as Ludo Ruu, but Melfried was an even better fighter than them. And Jiza Ruu’s stronger than Ludo Ruu, both then and now,” I resolutely stated. “But now, you’ve managed to beat Melfried, which means that in the last few months, you’ve grown to be as strong as Jiza Ruu used to be. So somewhere along the line, you grew stronger than Sanjura too.”

Shin Ruu narrowed his eyes in thought. “I’m not so sure. That Sanjura man might have continued to improve, just like Ludo Ruu, Jiza Ruu, and myself have done. In that case, I could still fail to match up to him.”

“No, I don’t think so. You’d beat him for sure in any kind of contest of strength now. I’m certain of it.” As I heard the sound of the wagon with Reina Ruu and everyone else in it rolling up from behind me, I shot the young hunter a smile. “You’re still only sixteen, Shin Ruu. You’re much younger than Sanjura and Melfried, so I figure you’ve still got plenty of room for growth.”

“Right...”

“And now that I think about it, I haven’t congratulated you directly yet, have I? Congratulations on your victory, Shin Ruu. I’m really proud of you, with how you were able to keep on winning all the way to the end.”

At that, Shin Ruu broke out in an unusually bright smile. “Thanks,” he said quietly.

It was a wonderfully open and honest smile, just right for someone who was just sixteen years old like him.