Cooking with Wild Game (LN) - Volume 25 - Chapter 2.4

4

“Ever since you collapsed behind the house, the neighboring women have been taking turns caring for you,” Ai Fa said after finally regaining her composure, squeezing the liquid out of a towel into a bucket as she did. I was leaning up against a wall as I listened to her. There was a blanket behind my back and a sheet over my legs, so I wouldn’t collapse at the drop of a hat. However, I did wish Ai Fa was still holding me.

“I couldn’t leave your side, so they took up the tasks of making dinner, doing the laundry, and so on. Someone was always stopping by the Fa house, one after another, from morning till night. I’m sure someone will be here shortly today as well.”

“I see... Sounds like I caused a lot of people trouble, not just you.”

“‘Trouble’ isn’t the right word. But you should be deeply grateful to the women who lent us their aid even though they are not members of our clan,” Ai Fa calmly stated as she began wiping down my right arm with the towel. The feeling of her touch through the cloth was enough on its own to let me feel her presence all around me. It seemed my heart was as exhausted as my withered body, if not more so.

“Toor Deen and the others have also done a splendid job of managing the stalls. And Rimee Ruu has taken over your role with the Sauti clan.”

“Rimee Ruu has been handling the Sauti?”

“Indeed. She was there to observe your skillful demonstration, was she not? Apparently, that was enough for her to take care of it for you without any issues.”

“I see,” I said with a smile. I did remember Rimee Ruu passionately watching us as we worked.

In the meantime, Ai Fa moved over to my other arm. “And it hasn’t just been the neighboring clans either. The Ruu and their subordinates stopped by here and there too. Reina Ruu and Gazraan Rutim visited every single day.”

“Huh... Once I’m feeling better, I’ll have to thank everyone.”

When I said that, Ai Fa suddenly stopped cleaning my left arm. Wondering why that was, I turned to look at her and found her doing a strange sort of mumbling motion with her mouth. It looked like she was desperately trying to keep herself from frowning.

“Asuta, I was going to save this question for when you were feeling better, but...”

“Yeah, what is it?”

“Is Reina Ruu someone special to you?”

I was taken aback.

“While the fever had you in its grasp, you would frequently moan and speak incoherently. I heard you mention my name, your father...and often Reina Ruu’s name as well.”

“I said Reina Ruu’s name?”

“Indeed... And you didn’t add her clan name, simply calling her Reina.”

At that point, Ai Fa seemingly couldn’t hold back anymore, and a deep frown appeared on her face. However, all it did was make me feel all warm and fuzzy because of how adorable she looked like that, as I turned her question over in my head.

“Ah... That’s probably a different person entirely.”

“A different person? Someone who has the same name as Reina Ruu?”

“Yeah. My childhood friend from back home was named Reina. Haven’t I mentioned her before?”

Ai Fa stopped cleaning my body, looking like she was giving some serious thought to what I had said. And then, it seemed to suddenly hit her. “I remember. You did indeed mention that name before. You said you knew someone with the same name, back when you first met Reina Ruu.”

“Ah ha ha, you have an amazing memory, Ai Fa. That was the first day I visited the Ruu clan...so it was around ten months ago now, right?”

“You rarely ever talk of your old home, so it left a strong impression.” The frown swiftly vanished from my clan head’s lips, and she shot me a look that said she was thinking deeply. “Then, that Reina who is not Reina Ruu was someone you were quite close to?”

“Yeah. Reina was like family to me. We were pretty much raised together, after all... My family wasn’t very close with any of our relatives, so we ended up forming a really strong bond with Reina’s family instead.”

Reina was also the last person I had spoken to in my old world.

How were Reina and my old man doing back in that world I had left behind? That thought was the one that pained me most of all.

“So that’s how it is. I’m embarrassed with how I jumped to conclusions.”

“Don’t worry about it. If I actually had called out for Reina Ruu without her clan name, no matter how much you raked me over the coals for it, I would have had a hard time trying to find a counterargument.”

“Hmm... Even so, if you...” Ai Fa started to say, only to hold her tongue, and then she suddenly pressed her head up against my left temple. She had probably just stopped herself from saying that if I took Reina Ruu as a bride, she wouldn’t have any grounds to object. Still, I found her to be incredibly adorable when she was sulking, shy, and frazzled like this. “At any rate, regaining your strength comes first. That is what everyone who has been so worried about you wants to see.”

After forcefully shifting the topic back, Ai Fa began wiping down my chest and stomach. It tickled quite a bit, but I overcame that with the happiness all this physical contact with her was making me feel.

“I really want to thank everyone as soon as possible. Has anything else worth mentioning happened?”

“Shumiral has apparently recovered enough that he no longer needs to spend all day sleeping. And his comrades from town visited the Ririn and Fa houses.”

“Huh? Radajid and the rest of the group came to visit me too?”

“Indeed. I believe it was in the early afternoon yesterday. However...you were in such a bad state at the time that I only heard about it later from the other women.” Ai Fa had been by my side constantly, nursing me from morning until night. Even though her work as a hunter was incredibly important to her, she had taken three whole days off. I couldn’t help but feel both deeply sorry and grateful at the same time. “I’ll wash your back too... Are you capable of moving away from the wall?”

“Yeah, I am.”

I leaned my body forward with Ai Fa gently supporting me with one arm, then she began wiping down my back with the cloth. The stove was still lit, so the hand towel soaked with cold water actually felt quite pleasant. And the closer I got to Ai Fa, the more at ease I felt.

“Ah, the Ruu and Sauti children also overcame the trial of this illness.”

“Oh, they did? That’s really good to hear.”

“Indeed. Apparently, their fevers went down in just two days. As you are not a young child, it seems you were given the greatest hardship.” Ai Fa leaned my body up against the wall when she was done and showed me her gentlest smile, which I hadn’t seen in a bit. “I know very well how much suffering you’ve endured these last few days. I feel truly proud that you did such a splendid job in conquering this trial, Asuta.”

“I was able to try my hardest because you were there. That’s the plain and honest truth.”

Ai Fa nodded back and said, “Of course,” while rinsing out the hand towel in a bucket of water.

After that came my neck and head. First she washed my neck and face, then gently, carefully did the same for my hair, tuft by tuft. I felt so helpless that it really was like I was a little kid, and having to leave everything to Ai Fa was making me feel weirdly emotional.

“That just leaves your legs. If it’s too cold, I’ll add more firewood.”

“I’m fine. It feels even warmer than it did before the rainy season.”

I went ahead and removed the blanket on my own, exposing my lower half, which was clad only in the loincloth style of underwear they used in this world. My thighs and legs had gotten a whole lot skinnier all around, and it looked like I had lost about sixty percent of the volume of my belly. Apparently, losing all your subcutaneous fat really made your abs stand out.

This was the first time I had ever shown so much skin to Ai Fa, which made me feel a wave of embarrassment. Still, sometimes you have to let go of your modesty when you’re really sick. Besides, I was only about as exposed as a beachgoer might be, and it would have been too difficult to wash my legs myself anyway.

“Oh, and apparently, Aimu Fou overcame this illness before the rainy season.”

“Huh. He got it before the rainy season even started?”

“Indeed. The end of the gold month was intensely chilly. Aimu Fou is sure to become an outstanding hunter someday.”

“Yup. He takes his name from you, so... Ah, sorry! Please stop! That tickles!”

“Tickles?” Ai Fa questioned as she looked up at me. She was pressing the towel against the soles of my feet. I could handle her wiping down my torso, but that one spot in particular was a bit too sensitive. “You said something similar in the past, though it was about your stomach rather than your feet.”

“Isn’t everyone ticklish on the soles of their feet? I’ll clean that myself later.”

“I see,” Ai Fa said, moving over beside me once more. Then, after closing her eyes, she suddenly reached toward my underwear.

“Clan head?! What are you doing?!”

“Washing you beneath your underwear, of course. Don’t worry, I’ll close my eyes.”

“I-I don’t think that’s suddenly okay just because you’re not looking!”

“But the poisonous sweat needs to be wiped away.”

“I’ll do it myself! Please, you can leave that part to me!”

Despite what I was saying, simply talking to her like this was exhausting me. After letting go of my underwear, Ai Fa opened her eyes and brought her face close to mine with a worried look.

“You shouldn’t raise your voice so much after you’ve lost so much strength. Besides, why are you even making such a fuss over this?”

“I-If you were in my position, would you have just silently accepted it?”

Ai Fa brought a hand to her shapely chin and started thinking. Then, with her face going beet red, she leaned in so close our noses almost collided. “Why do you have to put such images in my head?!”

“Well, at least you understand why I’m so embarrassed now.” At any rate, I had my clan head turn around and cleaned what I needed to before finally changing out my underwear. That ate up a whole lot of my stamina, but you can’t make an omelet without breaking a few eggs. “Since I was asleep for three days, did you wipe off my sweat and change my clothes during that time?”

“Indeed.”

“I see... Uh, thanks.”

“It feels unnecessary to say this out loud, but I did not lay eyes on your naked figure. After the differences between men and women become clear around the age of ten, such actions are not permitted at the forest’s edge, even among clan members.” As she roughly washed me down with the hand towel I handed back to her, Ai Fa glared at me, her face still red. “So you can stop going on and on about it now. You’re going to make me start feeling strange about it too.”

“Ah, sorry. You’re the one who had to put up with all that hassle. Just thinking about being in your position...”

“Don’t picture it! And don’t make me do so either!”

I had driven Ai Fa really out of sorts because I wasn’t thinking as clearly as usual, so I made sure to let her know how sorry I was.

“At any rate, this should clear away all the poison of the illness from you. It should be fine for you to put some clothes on now.”

It was a relief to be able to get dressed for the first time in three days. I put on my long-sleeved undershirt and vest first. Then, sitting against the wall once again, I pulled the blanket up to my stomach. With that, I was finally able to feel at ease.

After that, Ai Fa quickly washed herself off, and then she had to change her clothes as well, since she had been in close physical contact with me all night. But while she was off in another room for a few minutes doing that, I found myself feeling really lonely. I must have looked awfully happy when she returned, as she had a rather complicated expression on her face as she rustled my hair.

“By the way, what day in the brown month is it? You said I was out for three days, but does that include the one when I collapsed?” I asked to hide my embarrassment.

As my clan head sat down beside me, she shook her head and replied, “No. It was three whole days, that one excluded. Today is the ninth of the brown month.”

“I see. So today’s a break day for the stalls, huh? If things had gone as normal, I would have liked to observe the worksite where they’re clearing the forest today.”

However, it would take several days for me to properly recover. For now, I needed to focus on regaining my strength. Also, what time in the morning was it anyway? Right as I was about to ask that question, though, there was a knock on the door. Ai Fa grabbed her coat that was hanging on the wall, then moved over to the door.

“It’s us, Toor Deen and Yun Sudra. How is Asuta doing?” From where I was situated, well away from the door in the main hall, I could only vaguely make out the sound of a familiar voice.

“Asuta has finally awoken. I’ll open the door now.” Ai Fa undid the bolt, then after saying something quietly through the narrowly opened door, she finally opened it wide. There was no curtain by the entrance at the Fa house, so I was able to see Toor Deen and Yun Sudra without any obstructions between us.

“Asuta... I’m glad to see you awake.”

“Long time no see, Asuta! How are you feeling?”

Ai Fa must have warned the two of them not to lose control of themselves, but when they flicked back the hoods of their rain gear, they looked so happy they could cry.

“I’m fine now. Thanks for worrying about me,” I called out from across the room, choosing to express gratitude rather than apologize.

Ai Fa closed the door, then pointed at the water jug at the entrance. “You should be able to talk for at least a bit, and I’m sure Asuta would like to as well. If you wish, you can come inside for a short while.”

“Thank you! In that case, we’ll leave the washing for later and...”

“Asuta is awake now, so we won’t need to trouble all of you with our chores anymore. I’ll take care of the washing now, so you can talk with him in the meantime.”

Thanks to Ai Fa being so considerate, we were able to talk to each other for the first time in three days. After taking off their rain gear and cleaning their feet, Toor Deen and Yun Sudra knelt down in front of me.

“Asuta, you’ve gotten so thin. But if your fever’s gone down, I’m sure you’ll be fine now. You’ll be able to regain your original strength soon,” Yun Sudra said with a dazzling smile. Meanwhile, Toor Deen was there beside her, looking like she was about to break down sobbing.

“I’m... I’m so glad... If something were to happen to you, we...”

“Toor Deen, you were the most worried about Asuta out of all us chefs, weren’t you? A lot of young children were lost to Amusehorn’s breath back in the former Suun clan, so that must have made you even more anxious, right?” Yun Sudra said with a gentle smile, wrapping an arm around the young girl’s shoulder. As she leaned up against the older girl, tears started streaming from Toor Deen’s eyes.

“Thanks for thinking of me so much. I really am grateful, Toor Deen, Yun Sudra. And you all helped out a lot, both with the business and around the house too, right?”

“That was nothing compared to the hardship you and Ai Fa faced. Um, is Ai Fa doing okay?” Yun Sudra asked in a quiet voice. Ai Fa was by the entrance cleaning clothes, plates and the like, so she probably hadn’t heard that. “Children afflicted with Amusehorn’s breath are tended to by giving them water and medicine morning and night, wiping away their poisoned sweat, and sharing your warmth with them. Normally, the family would take turns doing so, but Ai Fa did it all on her own. The Fou and Sudra asked to help, but she turned them all down.”

“I’m sure.”

“That means she’s hardly been getting any sleep since she woke up four days ago. She had to keep adding firewood and charcoal to the stove all night so that it wouldn’t go out... As a hunter, Ai Fa possesses more strength than your average woman, but I’m still a bit worried.”

“Yeah, I get it. Thanks for telling me. I’ll ask Ai Fa to get some proper sleep later.”

The smile returned to Yun Sudra’s face as she gave an energetic nod and said, “Good.”

And Toor Deen gave a bashful smile too as she wiped away her tears. “It’s strange for me to be so upset when you and Ai Fa were the ones who were facing this nightmare, isn’t it? I’m truly sorry for the pathetic sight.”

“I don’t think it’s pathetic at all. I know I’m repeating myself, but seriously, thank you.”

If I let my guard down, I was liable to start crying too. There was no need for words. Their expressions and gazes alone were enough to make it painfully clear how much the two of them had suffered on my account. However, me speaking up did earn a flurry of responses.

“We’ll tell the neighboring clans that you’re awake later. Three days have passed now, so I’m sure they’re all feeling very anxious,” Toor Deen said.

“But you won’t be able to relax if everyone comes shoving in at once, so we’ll tell them to hold off on visiting until tomorrow. We’re really fortunate to have the chance to talk with you like this,” Yun Sudra added.

“When the sun nears its peak, we’ll make some food for you. I’ve been thinking up a soup that would be easy for you to eat, Asuta.”

I was so overjoyed and grateful that I was starting to feel dizzy.

A few minutes after that, Ai Fa finished with the cleaning, so the pair stood up, looking seriously reluctant to part with me.

“Well then, excuse us for now. Ah, and did you hear about the meals for the northerners from Ai Fa?” Yun Sudra asked.

“Yeah. She said Rimee Ruu was helping out in my place.”

“That’s right. But that’s not all. A supply of sugar, tau oil, and fuwano has been delivered from the castle town.”

“Huh? I can understand the fuwano, but what’s this about sugar and tau oil?”

“You said before that you could make those crude dishes much tastier with sugar and tau oil, didn’t you? Rimee Ruu ended up passing that along to someone from the castle town.”

Even with that explanation, I still couldn’t understand. It was true that I wanted seasonings, but I’d had no intention of seeking them from the castle town, because I’d been sure they wouldn’t have provided them if I had tried.

“I see. You’ve been out of the loop for a bit now, haven’t you. Um...two days ago, a messenger from the castle town visited the Sauti settlement. They informed us that the house of Turan would pay for all of the additional fuwano, so there was no need for the people of the forest’s edge to pay for it.”

“The house of Turan is paying for the fuwano? Okay, they brought the northerners here in the first place, so I can understand that much. But they’re providing sugar and tau oil too?”

“Yes. They asked if there were any ingredients we needed that could give the northerners more strength, and Rimee Ruu answered them, so they sent us some tau oil and sugar yesterday.”

The more I heard, the more surprised I became. I could sort of understand if it was to give the northerners more energy to work rather than to serve them delicious food... But just a little while ago, they had gone so far as to restrict the amount of essential fuwano that was being provided. It was hard to wrap my head around how they were now providing the full amount of fuwano and seasonings as well after a single request from the people of the forest’s edge.

“What in the world? Who gave their permission for that?”

“I’m not sure... I heard that the messenger who visited the Sauti came from a noble named Melfried, though.”

Melfried was in charge of mediating between the nobles and the people of the forest’s edge, so that was only natural. But still, he was ultimately no more than a proxy for the lord of this land, his father Marstein. If Melfried permitted it, then you could say that Marstein did as well.

“It seems like I’ll have to ask the leading clans for more details. I’ll try talking to the Ruu or the Sauti when I’m feeling better.”

“Right. I’m sure someone from the Ruu clan will come visit you today. It’s not like we could ask someone from a leading clan to refrain from visiting, after all,” Yun Sudra said with an impish smile, sticking out her tongue cutely. Our two guests then left the Fa house for the time being.

“Should I have informed you about that matter with the house of Turan as well? I didn’t want to trouble you with too much, Asuta,” Ai Fa said.

“That’s okay. I don’t seem to have enough endurance to be stressing over too many different things so soon.”

With a deep sigh, I lay down atop the sheet, probably looking pretty listless. At any rate, Ai Fa swiftly got down on her knees next to me and brought her face close to mine.

“Are you tired? Was it still too soon to invite guests inside?”

“No, I’m glad I talked to them. But could you let me rest a bit until we eat?” As I tried to keep my drooping eyelids open, I stared at my clan head. “Aren’t you tired yourself, Ai Fa? I’m fine now, so you should get some rest too.”

“I’m a hunter, you know. I won’t lose my strength over something like this,” Ai Fa replied, patting the top of my head with her hand. “You rest up, and I’ll watch over you.”

“Then you should rest with me, while keeping watch.”

Ai Fa tilted her head a bit, then crept into my bedding like a cat. She placed her head on the same makeshift pillow I was using and stared at my face up close and personal. “Perhaps I could watch over you while resting like this. But it isn’t right to crowd you so much after you just got over an illness, is it?”

I silently reached out my arm and hugged Ai Fa to me.

“I see,” my clan head whispered, rubbing her head up against my cheek.

And so, we were able to get a bit of rest before Toor Deen and Yun Sudra returned to prepare our meal.