53 Lake of Flowers (1)
The scent of wet grass tickles my nose, but I do not yield to the temptation of itch. My body is rigid, yet relaxed, until I spring up silently to attack my prey. One slash at its throat isn't enough to take it down. I stab the giant baby boar that was taller than half of me, at a fatal area in the stomach. With me on its back, it continues to try to throw me off, but I hold on, my daggers firmly digging deeper and deeper, until finally it collapses to the ground, and I jump a few feet away before it does.
I whip my blades to remove the blood on it before putting them back into their scabbards. Today marks our fourth day in the wilderness. We only have two days more before the annual tournament ends. My grip on the scabbard tightens. I haven't gotten any answers or found any lake no matter how many times we go back and forth in the area where the map illustrated the lake to be.
"How did you not fall", Krael asks, coming out of the bush, holding a few canteens in his arms. Apparently, he had just come back from the small stream Obrecht managed to find in the early morning of yesterday.
I release my tight grip. If there's anything unexpectedly good that came out of this trip, it would be the fast learning tempo Krael and Vera had cultivated. Those two soaked up everything Obrecht and I taught them like two adorable sponges, but maybe that's because they had live tutorials and hand-to-hand practices right after we teach them the theories, unlike those in the basic class where weapons aren't even allowed since none of the students are of age yet.
Experience itself is the best teacher indeed. Although I'm beginning to grow more and more afraid of experience as the day we return comes nearer.
Ah, the experience of punishment for sneaking out of the city with not just one, but two underage children, and then withholding the truth of my vision about Aovialutre…what a terrifyingly splendid sight of me being punished…
I vaguely wonder about what kind of punishments there are for the Lumean criminals, my mind digging up a memory of a random whipping for a liar in the Lycan-kind's dungeons. I internally shiver a little before turning my attention to Krael.
Briefly explaining the angle of which I jab my sword, and weight distribution or the shifting of my body's center of balance. I quickly kneel down and dug into the soil. I gut the boar with a sharp knife that I borrowed from Krael as he watches on the side, learning the essentials of how to clean up prey, committing to memory which parts are useful for what.
Though we can use the internal organs and the blood, I decide not to, so as not to further invite more beasts to our location. Ever since a day ago, my gut has told me that something was amiss but I just couldn't place a finger on it. We've been very careful upon my urging, but nothing has happened ever since.
I cover up the remains with soil to quickly cover the bloody scent, going as far as covering the top of the soil with rotten plants and stinky foliage. Finishing up with my precautionary measures, I turn back to the gutted boar.
After removing the internal organs and skinning the fur, I press my bloody hands together in a silent prayer of gratitude. All of a sudden, I feel a slight tremor in the air. I leap up over a bush, one hand gripping the hilt of my dagger. My prey quickly feels this and escapes, he bushes rustling fast as it tries to escape. In an attempt to capture the little spy, I run faster and tackle it, leaving us to roll down on the ground, but a kick on my hand makes me drop my sword.
Stunned, I topple over, the other person dominatingly sitting on top of me. Seeing those hazel eyes brimming with mischief and confidence, I directly collapse on the ground like a starfish, not forgetting to pluck a few dead grass and throw it at Obrecht's face in annoyance.
"…" You little mischievous entity! Give back my effort and energy!
Tiredly, I push him off me as we head back to where Krael is guarding our prey. I decidedly ignore the playful smirk Krael had on his face, lest I wipe it off with a dagger. There are certain things I should correct about Obrecht's teaching—it won't do to have more Obrecht-level mischievous children on the team! My blood pressure might not be able keep up.
Even after removing the internal organs, the boar is still so heavy. I left the dragging to Obrecht, leaving him to rinse by the stream on his own, and then quickly heaving it up to our small camp site.
Two days ago, we had already supposedly arrived at our destination, but all there was that we could see was a vast forest of purple and red-orange leaves. Vera found a giant tree with humungous roots that could not be contained by the Earth beneath our feet. The underpart of the tree had soft moss growing inside that it is enough for three to four people to crawl in and sleep safely inside.
Krael throws the washed, untreated fur on the ground before we place the boar down.
"Ah, I've never seen such a huge boar before", Vera excitedly comes up and takes the knife I offer her. She gets ready to cut the meat and add it into the pot that was already boiling.
"…Do you need help?" I walk to the place where the few ingredients were scattered and chopped.
"It's fine, it's fine. You've been hunting all morning. You should rest first. Let me make lunch, or lese what good am I?" Vera pouts, pushing me to Obrecht's arms, who willingly accepts Vera's 'gift'. I even caught her winking at the other person when I turned back.
Obrecht nods at her, and grabs me as he sits down. Forced to sit in front of him with his arms around me, I watch Krael and Vera bustle around as they do the chores, totally ignoring us. I mean, if I were them, I'd treat the two people acting like lovers on a honeymoon like air too. They've been doing so ever since the first time they witnessed Obrecht being clingy to newfound intolerable degree. Now, even I am accustomed to it, not in the least bit bashful anymore. I mean, isn't it just like a coach or chair?
Humans sure are great adaptable creatures. I sarcastically laugh at myself.
"Why are you sighing, your happiness will escape you", Obrecht teases monotonously.
"…What, you're going somewhere without me", I tease back, emotionlessly.
Two seconds later, we laugh, releasing all the pent up stress.
I break the relaxed silence between us first: "Have you gone roaming again?" My head turns to the right, studying the blue scribbled lines that should have been the contours of his face in the soft mottled afternoon light peeking through the crowns of the trees. Even without seeing it, I can already imagine the peaceful sight.
"Mm." Obrecht sighs. "I just can't understand. Did the lake dry up? But with the sheer size of it, wouldn't a small part of it still remain? Or did the water fall down lower into a hidden reservoir or something?"
I contemplate his ideas. It's not like I haven't thought of those before.
"…I think we should start heading back tomorrow."
"Are you sure", he asks me, to which I respond with another sigh. And yet, I can't help it. The only thing I could do lately is sigh. The disappointment of gaining no answers is defeating.
"Come with me after eating lunch. I'll show you something good", he promises in an attempt to cheer me up. I hum.
After a while, we leave Krael and Vera to their own devices. A nod is enough to warn them not to leave the camp that is still under my domain. Another thing we had gained in this expedition is the wordless teamwork the four of us had developed along the way. Surprisingly, Krael is chatty among extremely familiar people, though I could say I'm quite surprised I'm like that myself. I didn't know I had it in me to be so talkative at times, especially with Vera.
Obrecht and I didn't need to go far. He brings me over to a large meadow of flowers, yet the first thing I notice isn't the flowers, but the five familiar boulders distributed around the field.
