Chapter 08…
Silver Wolf
Kuna stared up above her with a gaze full of longing.
It was right after she had quickly finished two Safro fruits.
They were fruits that didn’t keep well. And they were large. The climate was mild, but at most she could carry only two in her pockets. If she got greedy, her hands would be full.
“…Wait a second. If there’s a tree this big… that means…”
Realizing something, Kuna quickly moved behind the tree.
Using the butt of her knife, she lightly dug into the roots. Her eyes sharpened at what she found.
“As I thought—Kibana.”
A palm-sized brown flower growing directly from the thick roots.
This underground-blooming flower was called Kibana, not a Safro flower.
Kibana is a stemless, leafless flower that grows directly on the roots of Safro trees instead of on the ground. In doing so, it absorbs part of Safro’s nutrients.
However, Kibana does not only steal sweet nectar.
Safro fruits are sweet and easily fall victim to insect damage.
Kibana helps with that. It emits a peculiar odor that insects dislike, driving them away.
A mutually beneficial relationship—Madeli had once taught Kuna that this was called symbiosis.
If you squeeze Kibana and soak its liquid into clothing, insects will not come near.
That alone was useful, but Kuna also thought about another purpose.
“I want to take this with me.”
Kibana can be used as an ingredient for intermediate potions.
She had seen Madeli bring Kibana back from the forest a few times before. Kibana that parasitizes the fresh Safro trees could not be obtained at all in Ako Village. She didn’t want to miss this opportunity.
Because even if she made it safely to Wes, she wouldn’t be able to survive without a trade.
The only thing Kuna could do was make medicine. Even though the potions she worked so hard to create were dismissed as failures, that was still all she had as an apothecary.
If she collected rare medicinal herbs now, they would definitely help her in the future.
And—Kuna looked up again.
She still wanted to carry a few Safro fruits for lunch and dinner.
“…A basket… I need one.”
Kuna murmured softly.
Until now, Kuna had been bound by Dorf and lived a restricted life.
Even if she wanted to try or do something, she obeyed whenever Dorf said no.
But now, things were different.
(Since I’ve been exiled anyway, I’ll live however I want.)
Now she could act as she pleased.
Kuna immediately began to move.
◇◇◇
Kuna found a hollow in a nearby tree and crawled inside, working on making a basket.
She couldn’t work while exposing herself in the open.
Most ferocious magical beasts were nocturnal, but abandoning caution would still be foolish.
Tree hollows like this sometimes became dens or hiding places for small magical beasts, so she carefully checked for footprints and scent.
It wasn’t a large hollow, but it was big enough for Kuna’s small and agile body. She had found a similar place yesterday to rest.
Most of the insects that had once lived there scattered at the scent of Kibana coming from her clothes.
The light source illuminating the dark tree hollow was a glowing fruit she had found the previous night.
Even after being removed from the branch, it continued to emit a faint glow for about a day. Kuna was relieved she hadn’t thrown it away.
The material Kuna chose for the basket was a vine-like plant called Ken.
First, she collected dozens of stems. Her knife proved useful here.
She trimmed each Ken vine to equal length and soaked them in water. This prevented them from snapping when bent.
Ken fibers were tough and hard, but once she cut a slit with her knife, she could split them lengthwise by hand alone.
After splitting them into thin, uniform strips, she wove them together to form the basket’s shape.
For the adhesive at the base of the basket, she used the Kibana that had also played an active role the previous night.
Since she had made baskets before, the work progressed smoothly.
Once the shape was complete, she added a vine strap for carrying it on her back.
Pushing the basket out of the hollow, Kuna crawled out and tried it on.
“Yeah… feels good.”
The size was perfect, fitting comfortably against her back.
It had been a long time since she felt like she was doing something as an apothecary, and her mood lifted slightly.
She placed six Safro fruits, Kibana, and various gathered herbs into it.
The glowing fruit had almost stopped shining, so she buried it in the ground.
“I’ll have to find new ones next time.”
Just as she murmured that—
“…!”
She felt a gaze from somewhere and froze.
Without turning her head, she quickly moved only her eyes, searching for whoever it was.
And at the edge of her vision, she saw it.
(Silver fur…)
A massive body, more than twice Kuna’s size.
A wolf with silver fur stood quietly among the slightly elevated trees.
Cold sweat formed on Kuna’s forehead as she slowly raised her gaze.
She met a pair of golden eyes—like ripened rice fields swaying in autumn. At that moment, those beautiful eyes narrowed calmly.
A gaze that didn’t seem like a beast’s at all—intelligent, composed.
Unlike the magical beasts she had encountered the night before, it was nothing like them. Kuna frowned slightly.
If it attacked, she would have no chance.
But instinctively, she already knew that was not going to happen. If it intended to, her throat would already have been torn out.
(Is it not a magical beast?)
A being that seemed to transcend logic itself.
Or perhaps—could it be a sacred beast, a mystical creature said to possess divine power?
(Is it observing me?)
The silver wolf simply watched Kuna.
As if measuring her. As if testing her. No words were spoken, so it might all be her imagination.
Eventually, the wolf turned on its heel.
Then it looked back at her again. Its eyes were still gently narrowed.
(Does this mean… follow it?)
It only took a few seconds for Kuna to decide.
It was not a rational choice.
But at that moment, Kuna became curious about where this beautiful creature intended to lead her.
Kuna began walking through the forest, following the wolf.
