Cooking with Wild Game (LN) - Volume 28 - Chapter 4.3

3

After saying farewell to the members of the main Rutim house, Ai Fa and I headed toward the stage where the bride and the groom were waiting.

It seemed that most people had already offered their blessings to the happy couple, as there weren’t very many coming and going around the stage anymore. Granny Jiba, Rimee Ruu, and a bunch of others were eating atop another cloth mat spread out in front, so we said hi to them first, then started up the wooden stairs.

“Congratulations, Darmu and Sheera Ruu,” I said.

Darmu Ruu simply gave me a “Mm-hmm,” while Sheera Ruu smiled and replied with “Thank you.” Seeing that joyful smile on her face was enough to almost make me tear up, but I somehow managed to restrain myself and smile back.

“I really am as happy about this wedding as I would be if it were for someone from my own family. I hope you two build a happy home together, Darmu and Sheera Ruu.”

Once again, Darmu Ruu didn’t say anything except “Of course.” Then he glared at me as if remembering something. I wondered what in the world that was about and waited for the Ruu hunter to say something, but his mouth remained firmly shut.

“Thank you as well, Ai Fa. I’m so glad that we were able to invite the two of you here tonight,” Sheera Ruu said, and Ai Fa couldn’t stop herself from smiling.

“Sheera Ruu, I have not spoken with you all that much, but I feel truly glad to see you so happily wed.”

“I very much appreciate it. It’s true that even though I’ve seen you many times, we really haven’t really interacted very often.”

“Indeed. However, you have held my interest ever since the day of Gazraan and Ama Min Rutim’s wedding. I have always felt that were I a man, I would wish to marry a woman like you.”

“My,” Sheera Ruu replied with a smile.

She didn’t seem to be taking Ai Fa’s comment too seriously, so I interjected from the side, “It’s true. I’ve heard Ai Fa say that a bunch of times.”

“You’re overstating it. I’ve said it two or three times at most.”

“Two or three times is plenty, isn’t it? Besides, you don’t say stuff like that about other women... Well, maybe you do about Ama Min Rutim?”

“My,” Sheera Ruu repeated. But this time around, her eyes opened wide in surprise. “You really said such a thing, Ai Fa? I find that hard to imagine.”

“But it is the truth. It is a crime to speak falsely, so I do not lie.”

Sheera Ruu hung her head and brought her hands together in front of her chest. “I’m sorry... I feel like I’m going to cry a bit.”

“If you start crying, then I’m sure I will too. This is a happy event, so try to hold it back, okay?” I joked.

“Right,” Sheera Ruu replied with a smile.

After watching our brief exchange with a satisfied look, Ai Fa turned her gaze toward the groom.

“Darmu Ruu, there have most certainly been issues between us, but I consider them to be nothing more than incidental matters brought about by the Suun clan’s wickedness. That’s why as someone who’s worked alongside you and the rest of the main Ruu house, I’m very happy that this day has arrived for you.”

“You certainly are talkative today, Ai Fa,” Darmu Ruu said with a sour look.

Ai Fa stared straight back at him. “I am simply conveying how I truly feel. And I hope that you will accept my blessing as well.”

With that, Ai Fa pulled out an especially large giba tusk and added it to the woven basket sitting in front of the bride and groom. I followed suit, placing a large horn Ai Fa had given me beside her offering. All of their relatives must have already offered up their blessings, and seeing that pile of over a hundred horns and tusks was really something.

“At any rate, it must be quite difficult for you to have to wait so long to eat. You haven’t had anything since midday, right?” I asked.

“That’s right. But I feel so emotional that I may not be able to get anything down anyway. Still, I’m looking forward to the celebratory food Reina Ruu prepared,” Sheera Ruu said.

“Hmm?” I turned to look at Darmu Ruu, only for him to send a frightening glare back at me.

Oh, so he still hasn’t told Sheera Ruu that I made a celebratory dish too, huh? I guess he must be worried about me running my mouth. I nodded stealthily at him so that Sheera Ruu wouldn’t notice, and Darmu Ruu gave a little snort, which I took to mean that he was satisfied.

“Well then, we’ll see you later. I look forward to talking to you again once the wedding ritual is finished,” I finally said.

“Of course. Thank you,” Sheera Ruu replied.

And so, Ai Fa and I turned and stepped away.

When we reached the bottom of the steps, however, Ai Fa suddenly found herself getting pounced on by Rimee Ruu, who had apparently been waiting for us. Thanks to her banquet attire, the young girl looked even more adorable than usual. The red mizora flower adorning her poofy hair seemed especially bright today.

“Welcome back! Let’s eat some food together, Ai Fa and Asuta!”

“Ah, sorry. We’d like to make a lap around the plaza first, but we can take our time talking after that, okay?”

“Oh, I see. All right then! Well, I’ll be with Granny Jiba, so make sure you come back and see us!” Rimee Ruu said, reluctantly giving Ai Fa’s torso one more tight squeeze before heading back over to Granny Jiba.

As we walked toward the nearest stove, I turned to look at my clan head and said, “Sorry, did you want to stay with them? We can still turn around and go back if you want.”

“You needn’t worry about that. I’ll be sleeping next to them tonight anyway, after all.”

“Got it. In that case, let’s continue with our lap. I’d like to make it all the way around before the ritual starts if we can.”

When we arrived at the stove, we lined up behind the crowd gathered there. A few moments later, though, the person in front of us turned around and decided to start a conversation when he saw who we were.

“Oh, if it isn’t Asuta and Ai Fa. Whoa, you’re really dressed up, Ai Fa!” I had pretty much already guessed based on his blond hair, but it was none other than Rau Lea speaking to us and looking my clan head up and down with his blue eyes. “Yup, you really are a beauty! It sure is strange for such a pretty woman to make a living as a hunter!”

“You really have no care at all for the customs of the forest’s edge, do you, Rau Lea?”

Despite how she had mostly grown accustomed to having other people praise her, Ai Fa still furrowed her brow pretty deeply at that. It went against the accepted customs of the people of the forest’s edge to needlessly praise the appearance of someone of the opposite gender. But Rau Lea didn’t seem discouraged in the least and just kept on staring at Ai Fa.

“You wore banquet attire back at Gazraan Rutim’s wedding too, didn’t you? But I only saw you from a distance that time. Seeing you like this up close, though, I really am impressed.”

“Like I said, you shouldn’t go around needlessly praising women’s—”

“And yet, Yamiru is every bit your equal! If you think I’m lying, then why don’t you try comparing yourself to her?!” Rau Lea declared, grabbing the woman next to him by the arm and turning her around to face us.

Sure enough, it was Yamiru Lea. She was also clad in banquet attire. She already wore a lot of accessories normally, but she looked totally different dressed like that. Plus, this was my first time ever seeing her in such an outfit.

Just like Ai Fa and the other women, the clothing around her chest and waist was even more colorful than what she usually wore, and she had on an iridescent veil and shawl. Not only that, but her figure was on par with Vina Ruu’s, so in that outfit, she really was impressively beautiful.

After a quick glance directed at me and Ai Fa, Yamiru Lea turned to look at Rau Lea, then harshly pinched the back of the hand that was grabbing her arm.

“That hurt! What was that for, Yamiru?!”

“Touching a woman you are not wed to is an even more serious infraction than praising one’s appearance. As Ai Fa said, you really should restrain yourself more.”

“We’re both members of the Lea, so why worry about it?”

“It would be one thing if we had always lived together from a young age, but since that is not the case, boundaries are important.”

These two really were the same as always.

As he rubbed the back of his hand, Rau Lea looked between Yamiru Lea and Ai Fa. “Well, whatever. It really is quite a sight, seeing you two beside one another! You aren’t similar at all, but each of you are beautiful in your own way! Just looking at you is enough to fill one’s heart with joy! Isn’t that right, Asuta?”

“I’d prefer it if you would avoid asking my opinion about that kind of thing.”

“But why? No matter how hard you’ve fallen for Ai Fa, surely you cannot deny Yamiru’s beauty.”

“I’m telling you, I have no desire to join you in breaking traditions.”

Dan Rutim and Rau Lea were a lot alike in terms of how frank and open they were, but they were totally different when it came to how they treated the opposite sex. Dan Rutim was earnest and direct, but he was also a middle-aged man who was still faithful to his late wife, so he never did anything even remotely close to the kind of leering Rau Lea indulged in.

Rau Lea, on the other hand, was around the same age as me and Ai Fa, and he was also unmarried. He also was quite taken with both Ai Fa and Yamiru Lea, so he tended to stir things up at times like these.

“Well, whatever. We’re starving, so we don’t have time to bother with you,” I told him, somewhat harshly.

“Don’t be so cold! We can deal with our hunger together!” Rau Lea said with an earnest grin. Despite his frank manner of speaking, he was a somewhat androgynous, good-looking man. He was also skilled enough as a hunter to make it into the Ruu’s top eight, so anyone other than Ai Fa and Yamiru Lea would probably have a hard time turning him down if he asked to marry them.

At any rate, we got back in line and were eventually given some of the food being served at the stove. It was some kind of soup, which seemed to have a tau oil base, and the stock had some wonderful depth to it.

“Ah, this is good. I’m sure they must’ve used both giba and kimyuus bones when preparing the stock,” I noted.

“Yeah!” Rau Lea agreed. “I certainly don’t have any complaints! I’ve never bought kimyuus bones, but maybe the Lea clan should start buying them as well!”

“Bones aren’t goods that are sold. The inns have just been giving us the bones they don’t have a use for. If you ask the Ruu clan, I’m sure they’ll share some with you,” I replied, then I tilted my head. “But I’m pretty sure only the Ruu clan chefs know how to handle bones at this point. You haven’t had a proper lesson on that yet, have you, Yamiru Lea?”

“I haven’t,” she replied.

Rau Lea raised an eyebrow. “Why not? You head to the Ruu settlement pretty much every single day, don’t you, Yamiru?! So why haven’t you ever studied how to work with bones?”

“Because there isn’t enough time,” I explained, as Yamiru Lea gave an annoyed shrug. “It takes half a day to prepare stock with bones, so our afternoon study sessions aren’t long enough.”

“Hmm...” Rau Lea grumbled, holding a wooden dish in his hand. “But the Ruu women learned how to do it, didn’t they? So how did that work?”

“Mikel and Myme are more knowledgeable about working with bones than I am, so Reina Ruu and the others visited their house in the mornings and studied with them. I’ve gone there a number of times myself on our days off from running the stalls.”

“Then what if you visit the Ruu settlement in the morning too, Yamiru?” Rau Lea suggested. “Hmm, but if we do that, I’ll have even less time to see you.”

“I can’t say that makes any real difference to me,” Yamiru Lea said.

“That can’t be true! Our break period will be over soon, and then you’ll be back to only seeing me early in the morning and after the sun sets.”

“Again, that doesn’t really matter to me,” Yamiru Lea repeated.

Rau Lea pouted and turned toward me when he heard that. “We’ve spent so much time together, but she still acts like this around me! Don’t you think she should be showing me a bit more affection at this point, Asuta?”

“W-Well, I have trouble answering that, honestly.”

“Here we are at a wedding banquet, but she doesn’t look excited in the least! Don’t you think you should consider getting married yourself soon, Yamiru?” Rau Lea whined.

“Aren’t you the very person hindering that, my dear clan head?” Yamiru Lea countered.

“As if I could accept you taking a husband from another clan! Why does everyone keep on making light of me?!”

“I have nothing to say about that either,” she said.

Apparently, a lot of people in the Lea clan strongly believed that Rau Lea’s wife should be chosen carefully, as he was the head of the main house. Normally, he would have had the final word on the matter as the clan head, but since he was still young, he wasn’t able to disregard the opinions of the branch houses. And considering Rau Lea’s wild side, it was important to keep a tight hold on the reins with him.

“But if we both want to be wed, nobody would be able to object, right? The reason they aren’t giving their consent is because I’m the only one talking about it!”

“Yes, I’m sure you’re right.”

“Then if you ask to marry me, it will settle everything!”

“And why is it that I should wish to marry you?”

“Because I’m a fine hunter and I want to marry you!” Rau Lea said while puffing out his chest proudly, earning a deep sigh from Yamiru Lea.

“I’m sorry, but as long as the people around us object, I do not share that desire.”

“But why?! It’s not like you have some other guy you like, right?”

“The Lea are one of the strongest clans under the Ruu, alongside the Rutim, so becoming the wife of the clan head is not something to be done lightly.”

“Ah, but—”

“Also, I don’t have much confidence that I’d be able to find happiness with someone as noisy as you for a husband.”

Now it was Rau Lea’s turn to sigh. He turned toward me once more, his eyes looking like those of a hunting dog who’d had his food snatched away. “This is how things always are with her. What exactly am I supposed to do?”

I decided to deflect. “I think you should consult someone more experienced about that. I can’t imagine I’d be any help.”

“But you’ve tamed Ai Fa, and she’s every bit as stubborn as Yamiru!”

“What do you mean, tamed?!” Ai Fa snapped, her voice dripping with resentment as she thrust her spoon at Rau Lea. Whether it was from anger or embarrassment, her cheeks had turned slightly red.

“A-Anyway, this is supposed to be a happy day, so you should probably just try to enjoy it too, Rau Lea,” I quickly said.

“The fact that this is a wedding banquet is the reason my thoughts keep drifting in this direction. I mean, I can hardly believe that Darmu Ruu is finally getting married.”

“Darmu Ruu will be twenty soon, right? You’re still eighteen, Rau Lea. You don’t have to be in such a rush,” was the most I managed to say.

However, Rau Lea was still frowning discontentedly. “I may only be eighteen, but Yamiru will be twenty-two soon, so she should hurry up and get married already.”

“That’s none of your business,” Yamiru Lea fired back with a scary look.

That kind of comment was probably really hurting Rau Lea’s chances. It seemed to me that he’d be a lot more appealing if he would just take the time to figure out how to be a bit more delicate.

“W-Well, we’ll see you later, since we’re making a loop around the plaza.”

Having finished our helpings of the wonderful soup dish, we said farewell to Rau and Yamiru Lea and got going.

“Phew. That was a surprise. I know Rau Lea’s always teasing Yamiru Lea, but it’s unusual for him to be so direct about wanting to marry her, isn’t it?”

“As he himself said, being at this wedding banquet seems to have set his feelings aflame,” Ai Fa replied as we weaved through the crowd.

When we made it to the next stove, we found another man and woman awaiting us there: Shumiral and Vina Ruu.

“Ah, h-hello. Uhm, y-you see...” Vina Ruu trailed off as she tried to greet us with a red face. She was holding a plate of delicious-looking food in her hands.

“Huh? What is it?” I asked.

“W-Well, Uru Lea Ririn was with us until just a short while ago...but she wanted to look in on the young children staying at the branch house, so she left us alone here.”

This wasn’t really a situation that required any sort of explanation. Still, Vina Ruu seemed like she would probably combust if I tried to press her on the matter, so I simply said, “Ah, I see. Anyway, this really is a wonderful banquet. Are you enjoying yourself too, Shumiral?”

“Yes. This is my first, Ruu clan, wedding banquet, so I am, quite moved,” Shumiral said, also with a plate in his hand. He had participated in one of the subordinate clan’s weddings before, but only a fraction of their total number of relatives had been there, so this was a much bigger event. He looked really happy, judging from his narrowed eyes.

It was Shumiral’s wish to one day marry Vina Ruu, and since she was the oldest daughter of the main house, their wedding would also be held here at the Ruu plaza. Just picturing the two of them up there on the stage in wedding clothes made me feel all warm inside.

“Ai Fa, you are wearing, banquet attire, are you not?” Shumiral asked, causing my clan head to narrow one of her eyes.

“I am, as you can clearly see. Do you have some sort of issue with that, Shumiral of the Ririn clan?”

“No. I simply thought, you look beautiful. Of course, I believe that, Vina Ruu, is prettier still.”

When Vina Ruu heard that, it wasn’t just her face that went red. Her skin flushed all the way down her neck, and she even started squirming a bit.

“Wh-Wh-What are you going on about? It’s against the customs of the forest’s edge for you to needlessly praise a woman’s appearance, you know.”

“Ah... It is forbidden, to lie, so I suppressed, my shame, and spoke, my true feelings. The laws of, the forest’s edge, are quite complex.”

Vina Ruu looked like she was at a loss for words. It wouldn’t have been surprising if she had squatted down to make herself as small as possible at any moment. Ai Fa, however, remained perfectly calm as she turned away from the two of them and toward me.

“Asuta, I’m feeling hungry.”

“Oh, yeah, right. Um, what exactly is being served here?”

“Deep-fried giba meat. It is, very delicious.”

Like Shumiral had said, there was giba meat being fried on the stove and giving off a sizzling sound. The dish was being cooked on the spot rather than being prepared in advance. Also, it was a simpler form of deep-fried giba than our usual giba cutlets. The meat was thinner, and it was only coated in egg and fuwano flour before being swiftly fried. It wasn’t a dish that the Ruu clan usually served.

“Oh, Asuta and Ai Fa! Go ahead and have some!”

“Hey there, Lala Ruu. So you’re in charge of the frying here? That’s a pretty big job.”

“Hee hee! I can handle this without Reina around, no problem now!” Lala Ruu bragged, dipping some thin meat into the heated lard. There was also a big bowl of vegetable salad—mostly shredded tino—for serving with the meat.

“That’s impressive. Still, I’m surprised you went with deep-fried giba instead of giba cutlets.”

“Well, yeah. It takes a lot of time to prepare giba cutlets, but with this recipe, we can serve it right after it’s done frying! And, actually, now that I think about it, don’t you sell this at the stalls too?”

“That’s right. And it’s true that when you can serve them fresh, they’re every bit as tasty as giba cutlets prepared in advance.”

It was exciting seeing stuff like this happen when there was a celebratory banquet I wasn’t involved in planning. And it was also an idea I definitely wanted to keep in mind for our own festival of the hunt.

“Here you go. Take care not to get burned, okay?”

“Sure, thanks.”

As I bit into the freshly fried giba meat, an exquisite savory flavor filled my mouth. The egg and fuwano coating also had shredded gyama dried milk mixed into it. The richness of the melted dried milk created a really unique texture, and it was incredibly delicious.

“This is super good. Gyama dried milk is a favorite of yours too, isn’t it, Shumiral?”

“Yes. It reminds me, of my former, home country,” Shumiral replied, and then he quietly turned toward Vina Ruu. “But now, I have something, more important to me, than my old home.”

“Do you really need to keep saying stuff like that all the time?” she said.

“I said it, because I felt, that it was necessary. I am enduring, the embarrassment.”

“If it’s that embarrassing, then you just shouldn’t say it.”

Despite what he had said, Shumiral looked perfectly calm. Vina Ruu, on the other hand, seemed to be writhing from the embarrassment.

While I did my best to hide how happy that made me, Ai Fa whispered into my ear, “It’s honestly hard to tell which of them is interested in marrying the other. They’re a rather unusual pair.”

“Yeah, but they’re a really good match.”

We moved on shortly after that, before Vina Ruu’s endurance could be completely depleted. I got the sense that the couple up on the stage would be coming down soon, and yet we had still only sampled three dishes so far.

“Okay, let’s hit up that stove next.”

As we were approaching our next destination, though, we were intercepted by a pair of people, one large and one small, and I found them to be such a strange duo that my eyes widened a bit as I greeted them. “Oh, Deem Rutim and Ji Maam?”

I hadn’t interacted with the former much, and the latter hardly at all. Ji Maam was the tallest man in all of the Ruu clans, and on top of being huge, his body rippled with muscles like boulders. He was the biggest hunter that I knew, aside from Mida Ruu.

Meanwhile, Deem Rutim was a hunter in training who was still only thirteen years old. He was shorter and more slender than I was, and despite the courageous expression he wore, he still had a childish face. He had come along with us on the trip to Dabagg. Both of them looked pretty serious as they stood before us, and there was tension building in the air.

“Ai Fa and Asuta of the Fa clan, we have something to discuss with you.”

“Yes? What is it, exactly?” Ai Fa asked calmly.

Ji Maam towered over us as he stared back at her, his eyes blazing brightly.

“We heard that you aren’t going to be participating in Ruu festivals of the hunt from now on. To avoid the contest of strength. Is that correct?”

“Indeed. I am not one of your relatives, so I believe it is not appropriate for me to be a part of your contest of strength. I know that you wish to compete against me again, Ji Maam, and I am truly sorry that I will not be able to do so.”

Ji Maam had challenged Ai Fa twice and lost both times. His furrowed brow tensed up even more. “So it really is true. You won’t be participating in our festival of the hunt any longer because I was so persistent about hounding you to take part in the contest of strength?”

“Hmm? What do you mean?”

“I apologize. I simply wished to test my strength against a powerful hunter such as you.” Ji Maam hung his head and slumped his shoulders, which made Ai Fa look rather troubled.

And then, Deem Rutim stepped forward with a brooding expression. “I’ve also heard that you won’t be coming any more so that inexperienced men such as myself won’t get upset about an outsider beating members of our clans. So I am sorry as well.”

“What are you two going on about? There’s no reason for you to be bowing your heads to me,” Ai Fa said.

“But when I heard you fought a nearly equal match with Dan Rutim, I really ran my mouth about it. If you aren’t able to take part in our festivals of the hunt anymore because of narrow-minded people like me, then I can’t help but feel some responsibility.”

“No, I’m at fault for being so stubborn about asking to face her in the contest of strength. The responsibility is mine,” Ji Maam argued.

“I’m more responsible than you, Ji Maam.”

“Hold on. You two seem to be misunderstanding something,” Ai Fa interrupted. “Ji Maam, you aren’t the only one who wanted me to participate in the contest of strength, and you, Deem Rutim, were not the only person displeased about my victories, so neither of you have any need to do this.”

“But that doesn’t change how responsible I am for this.”

“Yeah. That goes for me too. I can’t just forget about this without at least bowing my head.”

Ai Fa stared at the two of them for a long moment, then calmly stated, “I understand. I am grateful that you see me as such a strong hunter, Ji Maam, and I acknowledge your reasons for not liking to have outsiders intrude on your contests, Deem Rutim. However, the fact of the matter is, I have decided that it is correct and proper for festivals of the hunt to be for relatives only. So as I said, I do not believe there is any need for you to bow your heads to me.”

“But—”

“You needn’t argue further. We may not be related, but I still consider the two of you to be friends, and our friendship shall remain even if I don’t take part in your festivals of the hunt. But still, it makes me glad to know that you have been thinking of us,” Ai Fa said with a faint smile and a very calm expression. “Especially you, Deem Rutim. I had thought that you hated me.”

“No, I didn’t hate you. I just didn’t see your match with Dan Rutim with my own eyes, so I had trouble believing that you were actually that skilled.” Only around seventy percent of the Ruu relatives had been present for the festival of the hunt where Ai Fa and Dan Rutim had faced off. The young Deem Rutim must not have been one of them. “But I realized how wrong I was at our last festival of the hunt. Since you were able to fight an even match with Jiza Ruu that time, then it’s obvious that you must be about as strong as Dan Rutim as well.”

“I lost to both Dan Rutim and Jiza Ruu, though. Neither of those fights should have threatened the pride of the Ruu clans.”

“Indeed, it would be ridiculous to see either of those fights as a threat to our pride! It’s just that I was an immature, unreasonable child before,” Deem Rutim replied, biting down on his lip in frustration.

Ai Fa slowly shook her head. “You are still only thirteen years old, correct, Deem Rutim? I believe I was even more immature than you were at that age. As long as a hunter can gain the strength needed to stand on their own by the age of fifteen, that is enough.”

“But—”

“Perhaps it is true that a full-fledged hunter would not have been displeased, no matter how many victories I had in a Ruu contest of strength. And I’m sure you will not let such things upset you from now on. But the Ruu clans are going to continue to raise and train new hunters. Because of that, there will always be a danger of offending those young hunters if I participate, like I offended you before. That is why I decided to rethink my actions. It is all out of a desire to form a proper bond with the Ruu clans,” Ai Fa said in a calm yet solemn tone. “Allow me to say this once more... Even if I do not participate in your festivals of the hunt, the bond between the Ruu and Fa remains unchanged. And I am happy to be able to build bridges not only with the Ruu but with members of the subordinate clans such as yourselves. So rather than bowing your heads, why not continue to strengthen our bonds as friends instead? That is what I wish for, as the head of the Fa clan.”

Deem Rutim slumped his shoulders dejectedly, but then he looked up at Ai Fa, now with far less tension visible on his face. “Ai Fa, you really are a fine person. I’ve felt that way ever since I was able to visit the town of Dabagg with you.”

“I see. Well, I am eighteen years old now. I can no longer afford to be immature at my age.”

“You’re also incredibly skilled, to be able to throw a man as huge as Ji Maam despite your small figure. I wish to become as fine of a hunter as you are.”

“Hey, don’t go using me as an example like that,” Ji Maam complained. Then he scratched his head. It seemed that the two of them were back to normal now—their usual brazen and confident selves. “I understand your point now, Ai Fa. Talking about this further would just be wasting your time. At any rate, I truly am impressed by your magnanimity, Ai Fa.”

“I’m glad that you understand.”

“Naturally. Still, you’ve beaten me twice, and I can’t simply let that go. I would like to challenge you again sometime outside of a festival of the hunt.”

“I will gladly take you on when I have strength to spare. You’re not the sort of hunter I can defeat at my leisure, after all.”

“Hmph! I’ll have to start by making the top eight among the Ruu clans! My challenge to you shall wait till after that!” And with that, Ji Maam’s massive frame turned the other way and he rejoined the crowd.

Deem Rutim, meanwhile, stared at my clan head with a complex mix of competitiveness and admiration. “It will be a few years yet until I can challenge you. Please don’t perish out in the forest before then, Ai Fa.”

“Of course. And the same to you.”

Deem Rutim nodded, and then he headed off in a different direction than Ji Maam.

As she watched him go, Ai Fa gave a sigh. “I’m feeling tired after that drawn-out conversation. They shouldn’t be getting so worked up at a wedding banquet.”

“That just goes to show how responsible they felt about how things turned out. And that’s something to be grateful for in its own way, don’t you think?”

“I suppose so,” Ai Fa replied with a nod, right before someone new approached us from the direction Deem Rutim had gone.

“Ah, I finally found you, Asuta. The wedding ceremony will start shortly, so let’s get the food ready.” It was none other than Reina Ruu, also dressed in banquet attire. It seemed that we had just about arrived at the next phase of the banquet while we had been talking to Deem Rutim and Ji Maam.

“Okay. I’m going to take off for a bit, Ai Fa.”

“Understood. I’ll be waiting with Granny Jiba and Rimee Ruu.”

“Got it!” I replied, and then I rushed off.

My heart started pounding uncontrollably in my chest. At last, Sheera and Darmu Ruu would be officially bound together. But I had to save my tears for later, as I had an important job to take care of first.