Chapter 45

Merry X'mas!!

I have kept you waiting for a long time. Here is the latest chapter.

When Nod and the hunter Roji entered the Forest of Alba, the sun had already passed its zenith and was beginning to tilt westward.

"Then, let's split up and hunt quickly, sir. I'll leave it to you, sir... sir?"

"…Huh? Ah, sure."

At the entrance to the forest, Roji suggested they split up and hunt as they had previously agreed. In response, Nod gave a perfunctory answer but remained standing there, staring into the forest.

"Sir, is something wrong? Are you feeling unwell?"

"No, it's not that..."

Seeing this, Roji, who was about to head out with his bow to search for prey, approached Nod, concerned.

"Something... feels off about the forest."

"Feels off...?"

Hearing Nod's words, Roji also began to observe the forest. However, under the crimson sky, the Forest of Alba, rustling in the wind, looked no different to Roji. If anything, the wind was blowing stronger than usual, but strong winds were common this time of year, and it wasn't enough to be called a feeling of unease.

"No, I don't feel anything. It's just the usual forest."

"..."

Roji tilted his head and replied. However, even after hearing this, Nod was still not convinced. There was something nagging at him, but he couldn't pinpoint what it was.

(What is this feeling of unease...?)

The appearance of the trees, the gouges in the ground, the remnants of monsters, the scent carried by the wind.

In the twilight of the forest, just before nightfall, Nod sharpened his senses to find whatever it was that was amiss. However, no matter how hard he searched, he found nothing out of place in the forest. The feeling lingered like a mist, but its true nature remained elusive. As time passed, the feeling of unease began to fade, and Nod himself started to wonder if it was just a mistake.

(...No, I can't find anything.)

Nod exhaled, as if his concentration had been broken, and turned his gaze to the side. There, Nod's companion, Neut, was mimicking him, searching the surroundings. Standing on his hind legs, stretching his long neck, and sniffing the air, Neut was looking around. Nod hoped that Neut, with his more acute senses as a wyvern, might notice something he couldn't. However, Neut also seemed to have noticed nothing. He retracted his neck, looking disappointed, and yawned.

"Did you find anything?"

"No... I'm sorry for taking your time."

At the entrance to the forest, Roji, who had been waiting for Nod to start hunting, called out to him. Nod, still feeling a vague sense of unease, knew it wasn't right to keep Roji waiting any longer.

"If there's nothing, that's fine. Let's hunt quickly and head back. The nights get much colder in autumn."

"...Yeah, let's do that."

Nod followed Roji, who walked into the forest with a rustling sound. However, after a few steps, he stopped again, feeling drawn back. He observed the forest one more time, looking for any signs of abnormality. But once again, his senses detected nothing out of the ordinary.

"Was it just my imagination...?"

The words Nod muttered were immediately carried away by a strong gust of wind, along with the feeling of unease, into the forest.

§

The blade sliced through the air, cutting the throat of the antelope and bringing it to a swift end. Without a chance to cry out, the antelope fell to the forest floor with a thud. Blood gushed from its neck, and its eyes lost their light. Nod approached the fallen antelope and began to skillfully butcher it. He tied the antelope's hind legs and hung it upside down from a nearby tree to drain the blood, then deftly used a short knife to remove the organs, skin, and cut the meat into pieces. In a short time, the antelope had been transformed into a fresh, red lump of meat.

"Slurp..."

"Hey, I already gave you some earlier."

Seeing the lump of meat, Neut began to drool. He sniffed the air and tried to bite into a piece of the meat, unable to contain his hunger. Nod firmly grabbed the back of Neut's neck.

"Grumble..."

"No, you already ate earlier."

Neut looked at Nod with a resentful gaze, wondering why he wasn't being fed. Nod, exasperated, replied. Each time Nod killed prey, he gave Neut the damaged parts, but the wyvern's stomach, which had grown strong, seemed never to be satisfied. While Neut was distracted, Nod continued to place the blood-drained, butchered meat into a burlap sack, and this exchange was repeated several times.

"It's already dusk. Time flies."

After finishing the butchering, Nod shouldered the burlap sack and muttered. Reacting to Nod's words, Neut, who had been gnawing on the deer's liver, looked up. The crimson sky was reflected in his eyes. They had been in the forest for several hours, and during that time, Nod had already killed four antelopes. All of them had been butchered and were ready to be cooked and eaten. The amount of butchered meat was considerable, and the weight of the burlap sack pressed heavily on Nod's shoulder.

Now, what to do? Nod thought about his next move. The amount of meat requested by Johann was mostly secured with the antelopes he had just killed. However, if he was greedy, he would want to hunt a bit more. But the sun was setting, and it would soon be dark. Hunting at night was much more difficult, and the results would likely be poor. He didn't want to do it if he could avoid it. Therefore, he decided to return to the entrance of the forest and meet up with Roji. Nod set his course and walked back towards the entrance.

§

"I'm back."

"Ah, Mr. Nod!"

When Nod reached the carriage he had left at the entrance to the forest, Roji was already there, arranging the prey he had hunted on the carriage bed. It seemed he had just returned.

"I just got back too. How did your hunt go?"

"I managed to hunt four antelopes. I've already drained the blood and butchered them. How about you?"

"Only one deer... I'm ashamed."

Roji looked at the large burlap sack, filled with the meat of four antelopes, with a mix of admiration and regret.

"Don't worry. I had an excellent partner. Right?"

"Kyuu!"

"Hehe, indeed. I have my pride as a village hunter, but I can't match the skills of an adventurer and a wyvern."

Neut, understanding that he had been praised, puffed out his chest and let out a light chirp. Seeing this, Roji laughed and continued.

"It's not out of sour grapes, but if the traps had caught something, my results would have been better."

"Traps? Didn't they work?"

"No, usually I catch a few fat foxes, raccoons, or rabbits. But today, all of them were empty."

Although Roji's results were not as good as Nod's, he had still managed to hunt one deer in less than half a day, showing his skill as a village hunter. However, even an experienced hunter like Roji could only encounter prey by chance. This was especially true after rain, when tracks and droppings were washed away, making it harder to find prey. Hunters often set traps to ensure a steady income, and Roji was no exception.

Setting traps was more about the location than the mechanism. Understanding the habits of the prey, the location of feeding and watering areas, and the likely paths they would take was crucial. Despite this, Roji, who was familiar with the Forest of Alba and the creatures that lived there, had not caught anything, which suggested he had been very unlucky. Nod thought this was the case.

"My condolences. Sometimes it just happens."

"Indeed, the forest spirits are moody. I even tried to catch some birds, but I didn't see any today."

"Hmm? Now that you mention it, I didn't see many either."

While loading the burlap sack onto the carriage, Nod recalled the forest. He had been focusing on medium-sized prey like antelopes, so he hadn't paid much attention to birds, but he realized he hadn't seen any. He also hadn't seen many rabbit tracks. Although it was late autumn, it was too early for small animals to be hibernating in their burrows.

The feeling of unease that Nod had forgotten about began to resurface. He had thought it was just his imagination, but he couldn't shake the feeling that something was amiss.

"But thanks to you, we've managed to secure enough meat. This should be enough for tomorrow's festival."

"...Hey, Roji. Did you notice anything else in the forest?"

"Huh? Notice anything... Oh, you mean the 'unease' you mentioned earlier?"

"Yeah, anything."

"Nothing strange."

Roji, who had been relieved to have gathered enough meat, was now addressed by Nod in a serious tone.

"Still, there weren't many small animals, and the wind was unusually strong today. The leaves were rustling so much, it was annoying. I couldn't hear the prey's calls or the sound of them stepping on the grass. Honestly, catching that antelope was just luck."

"Calls..."

Something in Roji's words caught Nod's attention. He repeated the word, as if chewing on it. It felt close. Intuitively, Nod thought he was onto something.

"Then, let's head back. The lord is probably waiting... Whoa!!"

"Neigh!!"

At that moment, a strong gust of wind blew through the forest. The trees swayed and groaned, and the carriage, which had been hit by the wind, rocked violently. The horses, startled by the noise, reared up and neighed.

"Easy, easy... it's just the wind."

"Ah, I was surprised. That was a strong wind... But..."

Roji hurried to the horses, grabbed the reins, and stroked their necks to calm them down.

"Is this what they mean by 'speak of the devil'? The wind has stopped."

After the gust passed, the wind suddenly ceased, as if it had never been there. The treetops, which had been swaying, gradually stopped, and the rustling of the leaves, which had been constant, fell silent. The forest became eerily quiet, as if the wind had carried away all the sounds.

"Quiet, isn't it..."

Roji's whisper was unusually clear. In the dead silence of the forest, even the horses' breathing, the sound of footsteps, and the rustle of clothing were distinctly audible. It was so quiet that one could almost hear the insects' breathing.

"...What is this?"

"Is something wrong?"

Realizing something was amiss, Nod turned to Roji, who had called out to him in the same way he had when they entered the forest.

"The sounds... they're gone."

"Well, the wind has stopped."

"No, it's not just the wind. There are no birds, no insects... nothing."

Roji, startled by Nod's words, looked around the Forest of Alba and noticed the unusual silence.

"Is this normal for the Forest of Alba at this time of year?"

"Of course not! It's usually noisy with the autumn insects... This kind of silence only happens in the middle of winter when the snow is deep."

Nod, frustrated with his own lack of awareness, clicked his tongue. The feeling of unease he had when entering the forest was this. It wasn't that something was out of place, but that something essential was missing. He had felt it but hadn't realized what it was.

"It's... creepy."

"..."

Roji's words, spoken almost involuntarily, were true. The forest, devoid of even the sound of insects, was unsettling. The forest they had been walking through just moments ago now seemed alien, a place where unknown dangers lurked.

(The sun is about to set...)

The Forest of Alba, bathed in the crimson sunset, glowed red as if stained with blood.

2019 12/27 Update

Announcement: The book has been decided for publication by Earth Star Novel. Please see the activity report for details.