Cooking with Wild Game (LN) - Volume 25 - Chapter 4.4

Intermezzo: Sorrowful Rain

Ever since Asuta had collapsed from Amusehorn’s breath, Yun Sudra had spent her days with a heavy gloom hanging over her. Of course, she wasn’t alone in that. Countless people living at the forest’s edge must have felt similarly. There was no denying how important he had become for their people.

Furthermore, when they had told their acquaintances in the post town about Asuta, it had caused a huge commotion there too. When Milano Mas of The Kimyuus’s Tail and the vegetable seller Dora had heard the news, they had gone deathly pale before shouting at Yun Sudra and the other workers at the stalls, “Is Asuta okay?!”

It was incredible how many people cared for him. Asuta had been born across the sea, so he didn’t have even a single relative here. And yet, so many people who had heard what was happening had been affected so intensely that it was as if they’d been told a family member was on their deathbed.

“Is Asuta going to be able to recover?” asked Toor Deen, who was especially close to Asuta, tears welling up in her eyes. She had come from a Suun branch house originally, and had very strong feelings toward the chef. Since the two girls had worked the stalls together for a long time now, it fell to Yun Sudra to cheer her up.

“Don’t worry. The mother forest would never abandon Asuta. Once the three days have passed, I’m sure his fever will go away and he’ll be just fine,” Yun Sudra said, desperately forcing down the oppressive worries assailing her own heart.

Yun Sudra had fallen for Asuta. But of course, she had already accepted that she would never be able to marry him. Asuta’s heart already belonged to Ai Fa, and Yun Sudra had learned months ago that there was no place for her in it. Instead, she prayed earnestly for his happiness, and if he needed Ai Fa for that, then she would bury her romantic feelings for him deep down inside.

It wasn’t as if she regretted her decision to do so. Staying by Asuta’s side as a chef was plenty for her. Even if she married into the Fou or Ran in the future, there would be no need for her to sever her ties with him. If she couldn’t become Asuta’s wife, she would aim to become as fine of a chef as he was and bring joy to her precious family with those skills. She spent her days working hard so that she could make other people happy, just like Asuta did.

“All we can do now is keep the stalls running in Asuta’s place to protect the bonds he forged here in the post town. That’s something we and only we can do for him, thanks to all the lessons he taught us.”

With that encouragement from Yun Sudra, Toor Deen wiped away her tears and replied, “Right.” The young girl was frail and often showed weakness on her face, but over time, her heart had grown a lot stronger and more resilient, as was only fitting for a person of the forest’s edge. Yun Sudra couldn’t help but believe that Asuta was the one to thank for that too.

This is no time for complaining. The ones who have it the hardest are Asuta himself and Ai Fa who’s watching over him. This time, I’ll definitely repay my debt to the Fa clan, Yun Sudra thought as she carried out her work at the stalls for the day.

It was already the fourth day now since Asuta had collapsed from illness. If he overcame Amusehorn’s trial, his fever would recede tomorrow morning. No matter how much he might have suffered, he would be able to breathe easily once again when the time came. That was what they all had to believe.

With light rain falling down on them, they headed from the post town back to the Fa house, and when they approached, they could hear a noise like a wailing beast, even from outside the house. It was the sound of Asuta screaming in agony as he suffered from his fever. The moment she heard that, Toor Deen could no longer stop the tears from pouring down her cheeks.

“It seems Asuta still hasn’t recovered,” Reina Ruu muttered with her shoulders trembling a bit. She had ridden to the Fa house in the same wagon as them. “We’ll come back again tomorrow to check how he’s doing. Yun Sudra, Toor Deen...we’ll leave things at the Fa house to you.”

“Right. We’ll take care of everything.”

Reina Ruu and a number of other women dejectedly headed back down the path.

Yun Sudra and Toor Deen walked over toward the house so they could get started on their prep work. The stalls wouldn’t be open the next day, but they had been preparing curry base in advance on a daily basis lately. With Asuta’s wailing constantly assaulting their hearts, they passed by the main house and entered the detached kitchen, where they found that the Fou and Ran women were already present and hard at work. They were worried about Asuta and Ai Fa too, and had been spending as much of the day there as they could. When they weren’t too busy, they brought their work from home over to the Fa house too, preparing for when they would be needed.

“Ah, you’re back. Welcome. Are things still the same in the post town?” the Fou woman, who was older than the rest of them, asked in a surprisingly peppy tone. It wasn’t as if she wasn’t worried about Asuta, but folks who had lived a long time had seen many children have their souls returned to the forest by Amusehorn’s breath. That meant she had a lot more resilience against this kind of thing than someone as young as Yun Sudra.

“Yes. Some girls named Yumi and Telia Mas who know Asuta quite well made a request to visit the Fa house...but when we told them how he’s doing right now, they changed their minds.”

“Yes. Asuta’s still in no state to meet with anyone,” the Fou woman said with a sigh. “It goes without saying that it’s painful to see him in this condition, but it’s just as hard to look at Ai Fa. Even so, she’s a fine woman, and she never complains about her lot.”

Yun Sudra had hardly seen Ai Fa over the course of the past three days. The Fa had no other clan members, so Ai Fa had constantly remained right by Asuta’s side as she took care of him.

“Ai Fa has hardly had any time to sleep, right? Is she really refusing to rely on any other women at all for his care?”

“That’s right. Apparently, she doesn’t want anyone else to see Asuta as he suffers. And knowing Ai Fa, I can imagine her thinking she can’t allow herself any rest as long as Asuta is enduring this torment.”

The members of the Fou and Ran had been interacting with the Fa clan for years. Unlike Yun Sudra, who’d had nothing to do with her back then, they had known Ai Fa since she was a child.

“I’ll deliver dinner to Ai Fa today. You two should rest up at home,” Yun Sudra said.

“Oh, really? Then we’ll finish up work here and leave.”

Since Ai Fa was watching over Asuta, several members of the neighboring clans were taking care of all of the work that needed to be done around the Fa house. For the women in the kitchen, that included preparing her meals as well.

Several hours after that, when the sun was about to set, it was time for Yun Sudra to deliver Ai Fa’s dinner. Toor Deen had remained as well, continuing to do prep work alongside her. After placing a cloth over the precious meal so it wouldn’t get soaked by the rain, the two headed for the main building of the Fa house.

“Pardon us. We’ve brought you your dinner, Ai Fa,” Yun Sudra called out, but she received no response for a bit.

A deathly silence had fallen over the house. She could no longer hear Asuta’s anguished moans. Yun Sudra suddenly feared that the worst might have happened, and felt a chill run down her back. But then, the sound of the bolt being removed came through the door. It swung open, and Ai Fa was standing there.

Laying eyes on the hunter left Yun Sudra frozen stiff with horror. It wasn’t as if Ai Fa’s appearance had changed all that greatly. She looked just as beautiful and gallant as Yun Sudra remembered. However, there was a blazing light shining in her blue eyes. It was like meeting the gaze of a raging beast. But Ai Fa wasn’t angry. The intense emotions behind her expression were worry and sadness, which she was barely managing to keep contained.

“W-We brought your dinner,” Yun Sudra somehow managed to force out.

With a calm nod, Ai Fa replied, “I see.” That behavior was also entirely familiar, but her eyes were still blazing intensely. “Yun Sudra and Toor Deen. So you’re the ones bringing it over today. You’ve been making the food for the past few days as well, correct? I thank you from the bottom of my heart for the effort you have expended on behalf of the Fa clan, despite the lack of blood ties between us.”

“Oh, you don’t have to thank us. Compared to everything the Fa clan has done, this is nothing,” Toor Deen replied. Though there were still hints of tears in her eyes, she kept her gaze firmly fixed on Ai Fa. “Please, eat up. We used a variety of ingredients to provide you with all the nutrition you need.”

“Thank you,” Ai Fa repeated, accepting the plate with the cloth over it.

It seemed like she was about to shut the door, so Yun Sudra hurriedly called out, “Um, Ai Fa... It’s been three full days now since Asuta collapsed. His fever should subside by tomorrow morning at the latest, so...please hang in there, until it’s finally all over.”

“Of course,” Ai Fa answered with a nod, and then she disappeared from view behind the door.

Yun Sudra and Toor Deen both stared silently at the door for a moment, then turned around.

“Ai Fa really is strong. She must be hurting more than anyone, but she never shows any signs of weakness,” Toor Deen said as she wiped the tears from her eyes. “I wish I could learn how she does it, but...I guess someone as timid as me could never hope to copy a hunter like Ai Fa.”

“That isn’t true, Toor Deen. You’re a wonderful person too,” was all Yun Sudra could think to reply with. “All right, we’ll come here again first thing tomorrow morning. We’ve been entrusted with the task of feeding Asuta his first meal, after all, so let’s make sure we see it through.”

“Right. See you tomorrow morning.”

Having said farewell to Toor Deen, Yun Sudra trudged back to the Sudra clan on her own. Midway through the journey, though, she suddenly stood up straight. She couldn’t let herself get discouraged when Ai Fa was working so hard.

I’m sure Asuta will be fine. Ai Fa’s pushing herself so incredibly hard, after all.

That intense look in Ai Fa’s eyes had reflected her affection for Asuta. It might have looked like burning anger, but that was only because she was furious with the world for threatening him. Ai Fa loved Asuta with all of her heart and soul. She would always keep him safe, even if it meant making an enemy of the entire world. Yun Sudra knew it with certainty, and that was enough to allow her to keep a lid on her own feelings.

And then, the next morning arrived.

Yun Sudra and Toor Deen visited the Fa house first thing in the morning and were greeted by Ai Fa, whose eyes were now so calm that one might think she was a different person entirely.

“Asuta has awakened. He is no longer stricken by illness, thanks in no small part to all the effort you and the others put in,” Ai Fa said quietly through the small gap in the door. “However, before you speak to Asuta, you need to know that he has lost a great deal of weight, and he is so skinny now that he looks like a different person.”

“Understood. I’m so incredibly glad to hear that he’s recovered,” Yun Sudra replied, only for Ai Fa to suddenly frown.

“Also, before you see Asuta...I would like to apologize for my rudeness last night.”

“Rudeness? What do you mean?”

“You two were worried not just for Asuta, but for me as well, yet I did not have the time to properly talk with you. The brusque attitude I took, even though you were working so hard for our sake, is unforgivable,” Ai Fa said, looking terribly apologetic.

Though her eyes were no longer burning with emotion like they had been the previous night, her body was rigid with tension. She was clearly still worried about Asuta. But even so, she wasn’t treating Yun Sudra and Toor Deen as unimportant.

I really can’t beat her... Yun Sudra thought as she offered Ai Fa a smile. “I didn’t think it was rude of you at all. You have nothing to apologize for. The ties I share with you and Asuta are incredibly precious to me.”

Ai Fa just blinked repeatedly, seemingly having trouble figuring out what sort of face she should make. The way she was acting was oddly childlike, and it made Yun Sudra realize all over again that the Fa clan head could be incredibly charming at times.

Yun Sudra smiled at Ai Fa once more as the hunter continued to blink, still looking a bit confused.