Cooking with Wild Game (LN) - Volume 24 - Chapter 2.2

2

“Shumiral... Ha! Shumiral! I’m so glad you made it back safely!” I called out, letting my emotions drive me as I gripped Shumiral’s hands. They were warm and strong, despite his fingers—adorned with many rings—being so long and slender. With the same smile still affixed to his face, he gripped my hands back.

“I am also, glad to see, you well. Very, very glad.”

The other members of the Silver Vase then started to approach from the left and right to greet me one at a time. There was the especially tall vice-leader Radajid, the old-timer who specialized in star reading, the youth who visited my stall before anyone else... There were ten of them in total. The whole of the Silver Vase had returned to Genos, without a single missing member. I felt so emotional that I could’ve cried.

“I’ve been so anxious to see you. I mean, I got worried when half a year passed and you didn’t show up. I was sure you were safe, of course, but still...”

“My deepest apologies. There were, circumstances.” Shumiral was still smiling as he held my hands. Though citizens of Sym considered it shameful to let their expressions shift, that wasn’t stopping him. That was proof that he still hadn’t abandoned his desire to become a person of the forest’s edge.

“There is much, I wish, to discuss. Do you, have time, after work?”

“Of course! Would you mind coming to the Ruu settlement too?”

“I would, not mind. Would that be, permitted?” Shumiral asked, his black eyes now directed at Sheera Ruu beside me. She was also smiling.

“Yes. Whether you will be invited inside the house as a guest will be up to the clan head, Donda Ruu, but we can at least take you back to the settlement.”

Sheera Ruu had also been there when we said farewell to the Silver Vase.

And as for Rimee Ruu, this was her first time meeting him, but she had probably heard about Shumiral from her older siblings. That explained why she was so full of energy as she moved about the restaurant space, constantly stealing glances at us.

Shumiral nodded to Sheera Ruu and said, “Thank you. My apologies, for using up, your time. Please, feel free to, return to your work, Asuta.”

“Right. I’m a little worried about whether I’m in the right state of mind for it, though.”

“That, will not do. Asuta, please carry out, your work. Your cooking, is very delicious.”

Shumiral and company had already ordered food from the stalls, and had been in the middle of eating in the restaurant space. I pulled my hands back and wiped my eyes, then smiled to hide my embarrassment.

“Thank you for your purchases. We’ll be working until the lower second hour, so I’ll see you after that.”

“The lower, second hour. Understood. I shall be, looking forward, to it.”

With that, I bowed to all ten of them, then headed back to work. The sun was already approaching its peak, and there were a lot of customers crowding around the stalls.

“We arrived, in Genos, this morning,” Shumiral explained as we swayed along in Gilulu’s wagon after work. “We entrusted, our wagons, to the inn. After that, we took care of some business, in the castle town, then returned, to the post town. That was soon, after you left, the stall.”

“Are you staying at The Sledgehammer again? We delivered food there today, but we didn’t hear anything about you all making it back.”

The inn’s owner, Nail, didn’t know about Shumiral’s connections to the people of the forest’s edge, other than me. Maybe he thought there was no need to mention it, since Shumiral would be dropping by at the stalls soon enough anyway. Whatever his reason, it had worked out to give us a really surprising and emotional reunion.

“I was surprised, at how much, had changed. But I am glad, to find you all, doing well.”

Since he had gone to the castle town earlier, Shumiral had already learned of Cyclaeus’s downfall. He had left Genos right before we really started facing off with the wicked noble, and according to him, that had been the thing he’d been most concerned about. It must have been quite the surprise for him.

Cyclaeus and his brother Ciluel had antagonized the people of the forest’s edge, only to have their own crimes exposed. It didn’t take long for them to face judgment after that. The house of Turan had been second only to Duke Marstein Genos in power, so it was probably pretty difficult to believe that we had taken him down.

“There are also, so many ingredients, throughout the post town. That was, very surprising, as well.”

“Right. A lot has happened in the last half a year.”

There was no way we could cover it all in the fifteen minutes it took to travel between the post town and the Ruu settlement. Still, Yun Sudra was driving, so I was able to give Shumiral my full attention. The Silver Vase was also bringing their wagons, but Shumiral was having the vice-leader, Radajid, drive in his place.

“By the way, what do you have in those wagons?”

“The results, of our journey. I had to find, a method, to hunt giba. That is why, I was late, returning to Genos.”

“Ah, I see.”

Shumiral had promised to find a way that he could hunt giba after Vina Ruu had said that her father would not permit any man who wasn’t a hunter to marry into his house. He had also asked to be allowed to spend several months each year traveling the world as a merchant, and the rest of his time as a person of the forest’s edge. But since he wasn’t a hunter, would it really be possible for him to take down giba? That was my biggest concern, personally.

“Shumiral, I only learned about this recently, but...apparently it’s taboo for the people of the forest’s edge to use poison when hunting giba,” I said, only for Shumiral to tilt his head in confusion.

“Citizens of Sym, excel at, handling poisons. But we do not, use poison, when hunting. They are solely, for protecting, ourselves.”

“Oh. So, do you have experience hunting some other sort of animal, then?”

“No. I am, a merchant. I have no, experience with hunting. I have only, dealt with beasts, that have, attacked us.”

Then, had he discovered some sort of trap he could use for hunting? He had said before that his strength came from the knowledge he gained as he traveled the world.

“I discovered, a hunting method, in the capital. I am sure, it will be useful, in hunting giba.”

“I see. Still, don’t get too reckless, okay? I was accepted as a person of the forest’s edge even though I’m not a hunter, after all.”

“You have, great strength, in cooking. It is, only natural, you would, be accepted,” Shumiral said with another gentle smile. As we talked, Toor Deen and the others were watching us silently. Toor Deen had been with me the longest out of this group, but even she had never met Shumiral before. “Your cooking at, the stall, was delicious. That shaska-like dish, was very unusual.”

“Oh yeah, those dishes come from my home country. It’s called pasta, or spaghetti.”

“Pastaorspaghetti...?”

“Uh, no, just pasta. I call it pasta.”

“Pasta... I see. The offal dish, was also, fantastic.”

“Ah, that’s the giba offal stew that the folks from the Ruu clan came up with. Toor Deen here was the one who originally showed us how to use giba offal.”

With that, I brought the others into the conversation, and we spent the rest of the journey chatting and letting them get to know him. It seemed that even if he was an unfamiliar easterner to them, they figured he couldn’t be a bad person if I was friends with him.

Lili Ravitz, on the other hand, seemed to have turned into a real Jizo statue as she silently observed us. Now that I thought about it, the Ruu clan was pretty much the only one that knew who Shumiral was. Raielfam Sudra had actually proposed forming an information network to connect the vast expanse of the settlement at the forest’s edge on the very day that Shumiral had first visited, after all. From then on, we had started a custom of passing important news from clan to clan to clan. But we had been dealing with the Cyclaeus problem at the time, so something as trivial as an easterner visiting the Ruu clan apparently hadn’t been circulated.

Regardless, the fact that Shumiral asked to marry Vina Ruu definitely only made it to the Fa and the clans under the Ruu.

How would Vina and Donda Ruu greet Shumiral? I could feel my heart pounding in my chest just thinking about it.

We arrived at the Ruu settlement, those fifteen minutes passing by in a flash. Yun Sudra stopped the wagon, turned to face me, and said, “Asuta, do you think that perhaps we could handle the lessons for the Suun clan on our own today?”

“Huh? But...”

“Even if we do encounter a problem, it won’t be an issue so long as you join us tomorrow. You should be able to do as you please, at least for one day.”

I had hardly explained the circumstances, but maybe they sensed something from my expression or conduct. I agonized over it for a good long moment, but I ultimately decided to take Yun Sudra up on her offer.

“Okay. In that case, I’ll be counting on you. And let the folks in the Suun clan know that I’ll be looking forward to seeing them tomorrow, all right?”

“Understood. We’ll go ahead and use Fafa’s wagon.”

We all exited the wagon at the entrance to the plaza. Most of the women then headed over to Fafa’s wagon, where Fei Beim was holding the reins. The only one who stayed with us was Lili Ravitz.

“Asuta, I would like to remain here. Would that be acceptable?”

“Huh? But why?”

“I have no reason to head to the Suun settlement, so if something is occurring here, I believe I should observe it.”

The Ravitz were a clan that valued old customs. In fact, Dei Ravitz had told me and Ai Fa to our faces that he didn’t like us. It was possible they’d dislike Shumiral asking to marry Vina Ruu just as much as they took issue with our actions. But still, there was no point in trying to hide it. All of the clans at the forest’s edge needed to be informed of such an important event, after all.

“All right. But Donda Ruu as the leading clan head has the final say in everything that occurs at the Ruu settlement. Is that okay?”

“Yes, of course.”

And so, Shumiral, Lili Ravitz, and I stayed behind. As the others departed in the wagon, they called out, “We’ll see you later!”

Beside us were Rimee Ruu holding the reins to Ruuruu’s wagon, Radajid doing the same for their pair of linked wagons that were being pulled by two totos, and Yamiru Lea and Tsuvai, who had been dropped off in Fafa’s wagon. Sheera Ruu, Morun Rutim, the Min and Lea women, and Myme also got out of Ruuruu’s wagon and joined us.

“Let’s get going.”

There were young children running all around the plaza. A number of them started to come over to us with smiles on their faces, but then they noticed Shumiral and stopped. It was just like what had happened half a year ago. To kids who had never visited the post town, townsfolk were nothing but outsiders. It was one thing when they knew about a visit in advance, like with Dora and his family, but this was the natural result when a complete stranger suddenly showed up at their home.

“Well then, I’ll be excusing myself,” Myme said as she broke away from us, returning to the house where Mikel was recovering. We then cut across the plaza and found people waiting for us in front of the main house. One was a man with an especially impressive build, while the other was tall and slender—Donda and Ryada Ruu.

Neither of them were active hunters, but they were currently training with each other. They were standing in place with long grigee polls in their hands and were clashing with them at point-blank range, Donda Ruu deflecting one blow after another from Ryada Ruu. The latter had retired from hunting due to a leg injury, but his attacks didn’t seem the least bit rusty.

Donda Ruu was wielding his pole using only his left hand. He had injured his right shoulder, so he must have been training his left arm alone. Ryada Ruu’s blows were sharp, but the movements Donda Ruu used to guard against them were even sharper. It was all so intense that I had to wonder if those sturdy grigee poles would snap.

“Papa Donda, we’re back! And we brought guests!” Rimee Ruu energetically shouted, and the two hunters instantly came to a stop. Donda Ruu turned our way without missing a beat, but when he saw Shumiral, his eyes narrowed.

“You’re that easterner from a while back, aren’t you?”

“Yes, I am Shumiral. It has been, some time, leading clan head, Donda Ruu.”

Shumiral calmly pulled back his hood. Meanwhile, Donda Ruu silently cast his grigee pole aside.

“He says he wants to talk to you and Vina! Can I go get her?”

“Fetch Mia Lea too... They should all be in the kitchen.”

“On it!” Rimee Ruu took off toward the back of the main house, the wagon rattling along behind her as she went.

“We should depart as well,” Sheera Ruu said, holding her hand out to me. “Asuta, I can take care of the totos and wagon.”

“Th-Thanks... Um, Donda Ruu, would you mind if Lili Ravitz and I join in too?”

“Ravitz...? I’m not very familiar with the clan.”

“I will be working with Asuta as of today. The Ravitz clan is located to the south of the Suun settlement,” Lili Ravitz replied, bowing her head with her usual calm face. “A person from town, and a foreigner from Sym at that, visiting the forest’s edge is quite a notable event. I am certain the details will be passed along to us later, but if possible, I would like to observe personally.”

“Do as you please,” Donda Ruu muttered disinterestedly.

One of the other members of the Silver Vase took the reins of their totos from Radajid, and aside from the vice-leader, the rest all disappeared behind the house as well. Yamiru Lea followed along with them, which just left me, Shumiral, Lili Ravitz, and Radajid there.

Mia Lea and Vina Ruu appeared shortly after. The latter stole a momentary glance at Shumiral before swiftly averting her eyes.

“My, it’s been quite a while since I last saw you. Do you remember me?” Mia Lea Ruu called out cheerfully, easing the tension in the air.

“Yes,” Shumiral replied with a nod. “You are, the clan head, Donda Ruu’s wife, and Vina Ruu’s mother, Mia Lea Ruu. It has been, some time.”

“Yes, and you’re Shumiral, right? Is he one of your comrades?”

“That is, correct. I am, Radajid Gi Nafassiar, of the Silver Vase. I work, alongside Shumiral.”

“Radajid, is it? Welcome to the Ruu house. Well then, how about we invite you to come in now? That’s not a problem, is it, clan head?”

Donda Ruu didn’t reply. He simply turned and went inside. After watching him leave, Ryada Ruu turned to us.

“It seems we are finished with training for the day, so I’ll be heading back home. Take care, Asuta.”

“You too, Ryada Ruu.”

Under Mia Lea Ruu’s guidance, we stepped into the main Ruu house. Shumiral and Radajid handed their daggers and their cloaks over to her, and then found places to sit. The three members of the Ruu clan and we four guests sat there in the main hall, facing one another.

“I’ve heard a bit about what went on between you and Vina. Still, since I heard your return would take half a year, I didn’t see much point in discussing it, so we let the matter lie,” Mia Lea Ruu calmly started. “So I suppose I’d like to hear you speak about your feelings now. Why did you visit our house today, Shumiral?”

Shumiral sat up perfectly straight and replied, “I would like, to marry, Vina Ruu. I wish, to marry into, the main Ruu house. I have come, to ask, if such a thing, would be permitted.”

My palms were getting all sweaty as I clenched them tight. Sitting next to Mia Lea Ruu, Vina Ruu was staring at the ground in front of her, while Donda Ruu’s blue eyes blazed brightly.

“I see. As Asuta’s friend, you understand a good bit about us people of the forest’s edge, correct?”

“Correct.”

“And yet, you’re still asking to marry into the Ruu clan?”

“Yes.”

“I see. Well then, I suppose we should start by asking Vina’s feelings.”

Vina Ruu’s shoulders suddenly trembled. She was still hanging her head.

Mia Lea Ruu smiled at her. “Vina, what do you think? If you wish to refuse his proposal, then there is no point in discussing it any further. Putting our customs aside for the moment, do you have any interest in taking Shumiral as a husband?”

“I...” Vina Ruu started in a hoarse voice. “I...don’t believe I can marry someone...without really knowing their character...”

“Hmm. In other words, you can neither accept nor refuse until you truly get to know him?”

Vina Ruu offered no response.

“You don’t need to think too hard on it, Vina. All we want is to hear your honest feelings.”

“I believe it’s just as you said before, mother,” Vina Ruu replied, her head hanging even lower. Her chestnut-colored hair was tumbling down, almost entirely obscuring her expression. It felt as if she would collapse in a heap if someone didn’t help her stay up.

Still looking at her daughter, Mia Lea Ruu smiled and said, “I see. If there is a chance that you might come to accept him, then there are a number of problematic issues we’ll need to sort out. Why not start with the question of whether a person of the forest’s edge can accept an outsider as a spouse, clan head?”

“A person of the forest’s edge has never married an outsider, not even once... I believe I said as much before,” Donda Ruu grumbled.

“Yes.” Shumiral nodded.

“Furthermore, Vina is the eldest daughter of the main house of a leading clan. Do you understand how serious of a matter it would be, having her marry a foreigner?”

“I do not know, if I truly, understand fully. But I would like, to try, to do so.”

Donda Ruu glared intensely at Shumiral, who maintained his natural expressionless look. I felt my heart pounding abnormally fast.

“Well then, I have a number of questions for you. Are you resolved to live as a person of the forest’s edge like Asuta here, Shumiral?”

“Yes.”

“Can you make the forest your god and offer up your soul to it, as you live the rest of your life here at the forest’s edge?”

“No,” Shumiral replied, shaking his head for the first time. “I am prepared, to take the forest, as my god. And I would like, to live here, at the forest’s edge. I also believe, my soul should, eventually go to the forest. But I, would also like, to continue my work as, a merchant...”

“Right, my children told me about that. Could you speak on that a bit more?”

“Yes. The Silver Vase, travels around, the western kingdom. That takes, half a year. Aside from that time, we live at home. I would like, to make that home, the forest’s edge.”

That statement was going to require some supplemental explanation. Shumiral wasn’t especially fluent in the western tongue, and I was strong with calculations anyway, so I went ahead and summarized things for him.

“The Silver Vase generally spends a year traveling around the western kingdom, then they go back home for half a year before they head out again. But if Shumiral were to marry into the forest’s edge, he would spend the time when the others are traveling between Sym and Genos here as well.”

It took nearly two months to go between Sym and Genos in either direction. Four months for the round trip. That travel time was included in the year they spent going around the western kingdom. On top of that, the Silver Vase spent a lot of time right here in Genos—a month after they arrived from Sym, and then another month when they completed their circuit before they went back to Sym. Subtracting those two months from the total as well left us with Shumiral only being away from Genos for half a year each cycle.

Radajid and the others would also be sticking to the schedule they had used up until now, so they would be heading back to Sym after they finished their business in Genos. After separating from Shumiral, it would take them the next two months to make it back home, where they would spend the next half a year before setting out again, at which point it would take another two months for them to reunite.

In other words, their lifestyle of spending a year doing business followed by half a year back at home would instead be half a year traveling around on business followed by a year at the forest’s edge for Shumiral.

“I see. Then you would spend a third of your life outside of the forest’s edge?”

“Correct.”

“Hmm... Could a person who spends so long in the outside world really be considered a fellow person of the forest’s edge?” Mia Lea Ruu calmly questioned.

With his posture unchanged, Shumiral nodded and answered, “Yes. I would like, to try with everything I have, to earn, your acceptance. I will, work hard, to make up, for my half year, away.”

“And how exactly would you do that? The men of the forest’s edge all work as hunters, except for those who have been injured like Ryada Ruu—who you saw before—and Asuta, who is an excellent chef.”

“Right. I am a merchant, so if you, would not mind, I would like, to explain, with numbers.”

“Numbers?” Mia Lea Ruu asked, her eyes going wide.

“Yes,” Shumiral said with a nod. “Say, for example, a hunter, of the forest’s edge, hunts a hundred giba, in a year, and a half. If I could, hunt a hundred, in a year, as well, would I be, permitted to leave, the forest’s edge, for half a year?”

The blazing inferno in Donda Ruu’s eyes grew to be incredibly intense. “Easterner, are you a hunter?”

“No, I am, a merchant.”

“Are you saying you think you can do a better job of hunting giba than we can?”

“Yes,” Shumiral replied, and Donda Ruu’s eyes burned even brighter.

“I recall hearing that easterners use poison. But using poison in giba hunting isn’t permitted.”

“Right. I shall not, use any poison.”

“Then how exactly will you hunt giba?”

“I discovered, a method, in the capital. I believe, it shall prove, effective. But I will not know, for certain, until I try it, of course.”

Donda Ruu suddenly broke out in a grin. It was an expression like that of a wild beast, the one he wore when faced with a formidable foe.

“Interesting. Go ahead and show us this method of yours. We’ll talk after that.”

“Very well,” Shumiral said, rising to his feet. “My method, for hunting giba, is in my wagon. I brought it here, to show you.”

“So you came prepared.” Donda Ruu also slowly stood, and we all headed back outside.

We moved around to the back of the house, since that was where the wagons were being stored. When we got there, Rimee Ruu peered out from the kitchen where she had been cooking poitan and loudly called out, “Huh? You’re done talking already? That sure was quick.”

“No, there’s just something in the wagons we need to take a look at,” I replied, since Donda Ruu was staying silent.

In the meantime, Shumiral had already arrived at the two wagons his company had brought. Also, because of their boxlike design, there was no way to tell what they were carrying from the outside.

Shumiral approached a wooden door built into the back of one of the wagons. He then reached out to it, and casually opened it for us. “This is, my method for, hunting giba.”

Donda Ruu peered inside first, and whatever it was that he saw, it seriously surprised him. “Hey, what are these things?!”

“I found them, in the capital. They will grant me, the strength, to hunt giba.”

When the two women looked through the opening, Mia Lea Ruu gasped in shock, and even in her withdrawn state, Vina Ruu put her hands over her mouth. I hurried over to see for myself...and sure enough, when I managed to peek around them, I was astonished too.

“Whoa! What are those?!” Rimee Ruu shouted excitedly, clinging to me from behind.

Crouching inside the wagon were six hunting dogs, all with strong builds and light-brown coats.