"They’re for smaller animals," Maria explained, still smiling. "You know—little kharosh, maybe a few beilli. Tiny things you can kill with a well-aid arrow. But for larger animals, the n just transform into their beast form and fight directly."
"Oh... I see." Kaya’s attention went back to the arrow tips. Despite being simple wood, the points were well-shaped—enough to pierce soft flesh. If she could find a way to make them deadlier, maybe coat them with sothing... yes, a strike to the heart could end a fight fast.
She was still turning over ideas in her mind when Maria suddenly shouted, "Miss Kaya!"
Kaya snapped out of her thoughts. "What?"
Maria pointed at Kaya’s hand. "Don’t touch that!"
Kaya looked down. Her fingers were hovering over a small, red mushroom growing at the base of a tree. She drew her hand back and chuckled. "It’s dangerous?"
"Very," Maria said firmly. "Even two drops of its poison could kill soone."
Kaya’s eyes lingered on the mushroom, but this ti there was a different sort of spark in her gaze—one that had nothing to do with gathering herbs.
She also ca across several another herbs and plants that could kill, so just by a touch, others when slipped into food, and a few only when they entered the bloodstream.
From the dozen or so dangerous finds, six were truly lethal. Out of those, three stood out as the deadliest... the kind of poison that could drop even a beastman in seconds. She didn’t dare collect them now—not with so many people around—but she marked each location in her mind with precise care.
By the ti the sun dipped low, the hunting party returned, and the entire rhythm of the day shifted abruptly—like soone had thrown a heavy stone into still water.
n ca back carrying an almost ridiculous haul of at: so animals small enough to sling over a shoulder, so still alive and struggling, and most already lifeless. The won’s baskets overflowed with vegetables, berries, herbs, and wild fruits.
That evening, instead of splitting off into smaller cooking groups, the tribe built a massive bonfire in the open ground. Everyone gathered around—n, won, even a few curious children—talking, laughing, and working together to prepare the feast.
Kaya sat a little apart, perched on a flat stone just far enough from the crowd to watch without being swept into the chatter. The fire’s warm light flickered over her face as she gazed at the scene. It was... strange.
The easy laughter, the sll of roasting at, the way people leaned on each other—it all felt familiar, like sothing she had once known. And yet, it was utterly foreign, belonging to a life she had never truly lived.
It wasn’t as if her world had nothing like this. But Kaya—always stationed on the border with her comrades—had only seen such a fire a handful of tis. She could count them on her fingers.
For her, fire ant sothing else entirely. Fire ant cremating fallen comrades. Fire ant the sudden flare of an enemy attack. There had been celebratory bonfires in her unit’s history, when soldiers danced and laughed in rare monts of peace... but Kaya had never joined them. She knew too well that most of those faces would be gone before the next celebration. And she had been right, every ti.
Because of that, scenes like this had never seed worth noting.
Yet now, sitting here, watching the beastn laugh, dance, and chat under the flickering light, she found herself pausing. They looked like any normal village folk. If not for the occasional twitch of an ear or the swish of a tail, you could easily mistake them for human. In truth, Kaya realized, they might be living better lives than most humans she had seen.
In her world, people were always running—after jobs, after money, after life itself. Everyone fought to survive in the suffocating jungle of the economy, racing against ti and against themselves to scrape together more advantage, more experience, more luxury.
But here... these people were happy simply because they had enough to eat.
It was... enviable.
Kaya was quietly enjoying a bowl-shaped leaf filled with sweet fruits when Maria plopped down beside her with the enthusiasm of a child sneaking into a feast.
"Miss Kaya, what are you eating?" Maria leaned over, eyes darting from the colorful berries to Kaya’s mouth.
Before Kaya could answer, Maria grinned and pulled out a large green leaf piled high with steaming, tender at. "Here. Eat so real food," she said, practically shoving it into Kaya’s hands.
Kaya laughed and gently pushed it back. "No thanks. I’m fine with this."
Maria’s gaze flicked between the fruits and Kaya’s face. "Wait... are you vegetarian? Like—" her lips curled into a teasing smile, "—so little bird pecking at berries?"
Kaya smirked, clearly entertained. "What do you think?"
Maria tilted her head, pretending to study her. "Hmm... no, not a bird. You look more like a panther. Or maybe a tigress." She tapped her chin in mock thought. "But one that skipped a few als."
Kaya chuckled. "I’m not skipping als, I’m just... not eating at today. I’m on a diet."
Maria blinked. "A... what?"
"A diet," Kaya explained, still smiling. "It’s when you avoid certain foods so you don’t gain weight and you stay in shape."
Maria’s brows shot up. Then, with an almost scandalized laugh, she said, "That’s why you’re so thin! Miss Kaya, you should eat more. Here, the fatter the woman, the more beautiful she looks."
Kaya laughed softly, shaking her head. She’d never heard anyone say that before—where she ca from, it was always the opposite. "Well, that’s a first for . But thank you, Maria. Just... not today."
Maria shrugged dramatically, but there was a playful sparkle in her eyes. "Fine. But if you waste away into nothing, don’t bla ."
Kaya smiled and said warmly, "Thank you."
Before the mont could linger, soone from the crowd called out, "Maria!"
Maria glanced over her shoulder, then quickly stood up. "Ah—Miss Kaya, I’ll be back in just a minute, okay?" she said with a quick smile, giving a little wave goodbye.
Kaya waved back, her lips curling into an easy smile. "Sure," she replied, watching Maria hurry off into the lively crowd.
User Comments
0 comments from readers