Chapter. 3. The strange old man

The old man asked me again with a taunting gaze

" which king abandon his territory"?

I felt kind of irritated from his gaze and his words. I was just fooling around with all that king and forest stuff. He did not have to taunt me for that.

But come to think of it where did this old man come from anyway. And looking at his appearance my irritation is long gone . He has a thin body with disorganized beard and hair and he is wearing something that looks like a animal skin. And it looks like he haven't ate for some time .I started to feel bad for him . Wait. Is he someone from the nearby village and after discovering this forest he started live here for free and grew old living like that. The same way I wanted to live . So if I live here will I turn out like him?

"oye ! what are you thinking about ? you still didn't answered me . "

"..."

" hm...m. are you perhaps got so scared that you can't talk anymore . Did I scare you so much .

ha ..ha... ha..."

" who is scared? you think , you are scary? And just so you know , I don't get scared so easily "

" huh? then why are you are standing like that ?

and where did you even came from ? "

" I should be the one asking that you know? It's so deep inside and you look like someone who is living here for some time . There are so many fruits on the trees but why you lookk like you havn't ate for quiete some time . are there other's living here too?"

The old man look at me with a funny expression on his face . Was I speaking too fast? What does he finds funny with my question ?

" why do you want to know all that ? you are not planning too live here are you ? I am telling you now only I live here . And there are not much foods too eat . Beside the fruits on the trees are not edible . Only the water is good . A kid whose balls don't get hard yet can't even live here for more than two days ."

what? this foods are not edible . then there are no foods source . And 'what don't get hard yet ?'

"Then how are you living here ?"

"Didn't you say I look like some one who has not eaten in days . "

I did say that . But I did not know he will use it against me.

He is looking at me mockingly again . Argh! I really hate that face . You know one of those think that you just hate from the beginning . His smiling face fits that category perfectly.

" Looks like your dream of becoming a king has been crushed . huh? "

" But I am curious to know why a kid like you have come here. And even wants to live here , leaving behind a full life behind . Don't you want to see the world , different people , different places , ? I get it this forest is beautiful . But don't you want to see what else beautiful this world has to offer? "

" Why should tell you ? And if that is case then why are you living here? I still don't know what are you doing here . You could be criminal who is hiding here . Tell me about you first . I want to know if I could be safe here . you might even eat humans. "

Saying so I took my distance from him . And cautiosly looked at him . It's kind of funny . For all that time I was talking to him casuallly and after the thought came to myy mind I suudeenly grew cautios. So weird .

After hearring me say all that he calmly looked at the sky with longing eyes. He suddenly looked very distant . It felt like his whole persona has changed . The air around him also feels so calm and sad at the same time. Is he perhaps someone strong . But his appearance. I Don't want to get deceived by appearance . But still he suddenly feels strong. With the little magic energy I posses I can feel it a bit . But I can't point it out whether he is strong or it's just a feeling . I was not serious when I said him criminal .

DId I say something wrong? I am sure I poked on to some bad memory . But still the change is too strange . Maybe he was a maze once . But he definately does not look like one now .

Then he turned his face from the sky with a sigh and looked at me . The air started to get back too normal again . But the old man looked more aged than before .

" A criminal huh? That might really be the case . "

He sighed again then looked me calmly .Then got back to his playul mood again .

" How about this? I will tell you where I get the food and you will tell me why you came here . Does not it sound like a good deal . If I tell you where I get the food you can get it yourself even if you don't trust me .

Sounds like a good deal . know?"

Well that does sound like a good deal . And as he says if I know the food source I can stay here with out having any contacct with him . So I won't have to put up any guard against him . Ah ! I can live a lavishious life in the forest with out doing any work, away from those selfish hypocrite beings called humans . And what is there not to tell . It something I don"t care about anyway. But frist .

"'you will definately tell me where is the food source inside the forest right? "

" yes of course I have never gone back on my words in my whole life . But how you get food from there is totally your responsbility."

Well he does look pretty sincere to me. But what does he mean by 'how you get food from there '. Well I guess I will find that out later.

''Then listen ...."

We sat down beneath a large tree facing each other keeping some distance between us . The whole tiime I was telling him about my life , he really listened to it very attentively . I didn't let anything out . I told him about my father and mother and how there was little to know one close in my life . I rellly don't understand why I started from the begning . I think I just wanted to let out my pent up sadness and frustration that i stoped feeling long ago. And when I got to the part of my father's death and the noble he even looked angry . And for some reason his anger and sympathy feels much more dense and sincere than those who actually witnessed it happenning . Well not like I could blame them either . They were good enough to show kindness to a criminal's son.

But something strange happened when I was telling the story . An wolf kind of monster suddenly came from a side and jumped into space between us and stood there . Then the wolf looked at me with his blue eyes . I don't know what those eyes supposed to mean but I got very scared and jump off from my sit and was about to run off but the wolf looked away from me after the old man called him by something. It then snuggled with the old man and sat beside him . The old man gave it some pats on it's head then looked at me and gestured me continue with out minding it .

I had already calmed down by then seeing the old man patting it . I guess I will ask him about it after. so I sat down and began from where I left off.