I'm Already Seven Years Old
I'm Already Seven Years Old
Two years had passed since I came to the village.
A year and a half had passed since Serkai, who was six months old, started walking. As expected, she's my blood.
During that time, I helped with village work and shared the spoils from hunting.
Every time I helped, the adults' reactions grew warmer, and thanks to that, I was now living fairly comfortably.
"Serkai. Come here."
"Uh!"
But this kid doesn't talk much.
When she sees me, she smiles or answers with 'uh'... I've never once heard her call me 'oppa.'
Well, I guess she should be saying 'mom' and 'dad' first—maybe I'm skipping too many steps.
Anyway, I grabbed my spear and took Serkai outside. The weather outside was fine.
Well, I say 'fine,' but any day without snow is a fine day here.
Actually, the days when the snow melts were more dangerous.
The weather warms up then, but the paths get muddy and it's really hard to move.
The Empire merchant bastard hasn't come either, so I've had to keep moving like now, hunting steadily.
I headed toward the clearing next to the path leading to the northern forest, and saw Vargen, other warriors, and children gathered in a huddle, checking their equipment.
The warriors were sharpening their spear blades, and the children were stringing leather pouches over their shoulders.
There was a cart too... looks like they're planning a fairly big hunt today.
Anyway, Serkai is now too heavy to carry on my back, so today I plan to just have her walk beside me.
"Serkai, walk on your own today. You're heavy."
"Eueung...? Ppuu..."
The kid puffed out her round cheeks. A small laugh escaped me.
"You're two years old now, so you have to walk on your own."
"Eueueung... Ah, ehehe..."
I patted her head like I always do, and her pouty face instantly relaxed into a bright, silly grin.
She's such a gentle kid.
As I approached the warriors, I made eye contact with one of them sitting and sharpening his spear blade.
"Uncle."
"You're here."
It was Uncle Truga.
Huh, looking now, his sitting height and my height are about the same. I've grown quite a bit too.
"Are we going deep today?"
"Yeah, the Empire bastards barely came 'cause the roads are a mess. It's time to catch big game."
Well, those weaklings whine whenever the roads are even slightly messed up.
So he's saying we hunt before the roads get even worse... Maybe I'll have to carry Serkai back.
If we're going deep, she'll definitely have a hard time.
"If this kid were bigger, I'd have her carry some baggage too. Too bad."
"Hmph, forget it. That girl's closer to an Imperial. Even when she grows up, she'll be useless as a porter."
Uncle chuckled and stood up.
In an instant, a shadow fell and his massive frame blocked my view. It'll take me a few more years to get as big as him.
Then, from afar, Vargen's voice rang out.
"We're moving out!"
"Time to start. Let's go."
As Uncle turned toward the forest, the warriors and children began to follow.
I mingled in behind them and entered the forest.
"Serkai, don't let go of my hand."
I held my sister's hand tightly in my left and walked slowly.
"Uh!"
She smiled brightly and walked close beside me.
Stepping into the forest, I can't help but wonder if this really is the world from the novel.
The feel of the soil under my feet, the heat of the warriors pushing through the forest, the whispers among the children...
Maybe it's because I've been living here for seven years, but it all feels real, with no artificiality.
... Is this normal? Isn't it supposed to be the opposite?
Give me a status window too!
Just as I thought that, text visible only to me appeared in the air.
[Rest assured. This world you live in is indeed a web novel setting.]
Well, that's a relief, but why won't you give me a status window?
[Support is unavailable until the original story begins. Regrettably, that is what's written in the agreement.]
That damn fucking agreement.
I sighed softly and kept walking, when I heard wolf howls in the distance.
——Auuuuuu!
From ahead, shouts from the warriors rang out.
"Frost Wolves! Raise your spears!!"
Thud thud
The warriors stomped their feet and raised their spears, while the children fell back.
What should I do? Lately, I've been able to get by just helping with work.
But to get stronger in the future, I had to fight. I had to be recognized as a warrior in this village.
Pad
As I stepped forward, the children's eyes turned to me, and the murmuring grew louder.
I passed through the children, squeezed between the warriors, and headed toward Vargen, who stood at the front.
The warriors looked at me, but no one stopped me. It was because I was the child embraced by Winter.
The warriors believed that one who endured Winter alone couldn't be seen as just a child.
"You stepping up?"
Uncle Truga, who was among the warriors, spoke, and I chuckled.
"Well, I gotta go. It's about time I proved myself."
I stood beside Vargen at the front, and he turned his head.
"... Don't overdo it. Catching just one is enough."
One Frost Wolf. It was the test and condition for being recognized as a warrior in Herkan.
"Do you think that'll be enough for me?"
Looking ahead, the Frost Wolf pack slowly emerged, baring their teeth.
Ash-colored fur and bodies as large as a person. And they move in packs.
Keurreureureu...
"... Vargen, take care of Serkai for me."
"Hmm, alright."
I put my sister's hand into Vargen's and stepped forward, spear in hand.
"Uueung..."
From behind, I heard my sister's whining. Well, she's probably telling me to be careful. I'll take it that way.
"Keong!"
The pack leader, its face full of scars, barked, and the Frost Wolves charged, kicking up snow that scattered in the wind.
The human-sized Frost Wolves drew closer. The warriors' breaths grew rough, but no one yelled.
Living in this village, I've come to like this one thing, if nothing else.
The warriors here fear battle but still muster courage and throw themselves into the fight for survival.
Life is a series of hardships. And the warriors here fight against them.
Keurreureuk, keurreureu...!!
The drooling beasts were right in front of me.
I gripped my spear and took a deep breath.
"Hoo... heup...!"
At the same time, I kicked off the snow-covered ground and swung my spear upward.
Pueok!
"Kyaeng!"
A Frost Wolf caught in the jaw flew into the air, tumbling across the ground as shouts erupted simultaneously.
"Uraaaaa!!" "Huaaa!!"
Pueoeok Puk Seogeok
All around, warriors and Frost Wolves clashed, snow scattering in the wind and melting under the heat of battle.
Cheolpeok
I stepped on the ground turning muddy and thrust my spear with all my strength.
Puuk!
The moment my spear pierced the neck of a fallen Frost Wolf, another leaped over its comrade's corpse.
"Damn!"
Instinctively, I let go of the spear and leaped back.
Kwaang!
Where I'd stood, its claws slammed into the ground, sending snow flying.
They're clever. They look like they only use their fangs, but they freely use their claws and tails too.
Then from behind, Vargen's voice came.
"... Wait, something's wrong."
Keurreureureureuk...!
Looking closely, a Frost Wolf with blood-red eyes was drooling and staring at me.
It's definitely strange. Its fur seems a bit darker too.
Even back when I lived in the forest, I'd never seen a Frost Wolf this big and powerful.
And it's huge...
Kwaang!
In the middle of that thought, I blinked, and the wolf's claws were right in front of me.
"Kkeuk!?"
Kwadeudeuk!
I raised my right arm to block on instinct, but the claws tore off flesh, and blood sprayed.
Kung!
"Keok...!"
I gritted my teeth and got up even as I rolled on the ground from the intense pain. Then, the beast's eyes turned not toward me, but to the side.
Following its gaze, I saw Serkai beside Vargen.
"You bastard... where the hell are you looking?!"
Something surged inside me. The Core I felt in my heart pulsed along with it, and heat enveloped my whole body.
Using that strength, I kicked off the ground and shot forward like a cannonball.
Kwaaang!
My left fist slammed into the face of the beast that had been drooling at my sister.
Kwaang!
"Kyaeng!"
It flew backward and rolled across the ground.
"Uwaaaaa!!"
Something inside me raged violently, and the air shimmered with heat.
In an instant, the world slowed, and the beast came into sharp focus.
I kicked off again, and the moment it got up from its roll, I spun my body and drove my heel into its head.
Kwadeudeuk!
Its head shattered, its red eyes returned to their original black, and its body stiffened before collapsing.
"Haa... haa..."
I noticed steam rising thickly from my body. What the hell? Was I this strong?
Suddenly, I felt a tingling in my right arm.
Chiiik
I lifted my right arm, and the wound was slowly healing.
What is this...?
The second heart inside my heart pounded even harder, and heat restored my body.
At the same time, strength slowly drained from me.
I looked around, and by then the Frost Wolves had fled. The warriors were staring at me from among the corpses.
"... A warrior recognized by Winter...?"
"No way..."
Chiiiiik
I could hear the warriors murmuring with serious faces.
What? Is there a next stage after the one embraced by Winter?
Then, Vargen slowly approached.
"... Lukar. Your wound?"
I looked at my right arm. It had been a deep wound, but it was gradually closing.
"... I'm fine. Though I don't know why."
"Because you are a warrior recognized by Winter."
Vargen put a hand on my shoulder and continued with a stern face.
"A warrior recognized by Winter means... you've just set foot into the legendary realm of the God of War."
"God of War? What's that..."
"... I'll explain in detail later. The hunt ends here."
Vargen looked around and shouted.
"It's early, but the hunt is over!"
The warriors nodded with stiff expressions and began loading the Frost Wolf corpses onto the cart.
I don't know what it is, but something seems to have happened.
"Lukar, come to the training ground starting tomorrow."
An abrupt notice. I looked up at Vargen.
"Huh? What about Serkai?"
"Bring her along. I'll assign someone to look after her. You're a warrior recognized by Winter."
"No, what does 'warrior recognized by Winter' even mean..."
I started to say, but Vargen had already turned and walked far ahead.
Tch, whether it's the warriors or Vargen, they're all equally tight-lipped.
The steam billowing from my body gradually subsided, and the surroundings were being tidied up.
I picked up my spear with my mostly healed right arm and loaded the two Frost Wolves I'd hunted onto the cart.
"Hold on. Leave that one with the red eyes to me."
I turned to see Uncle Truga.
"Huh? But this is mine."
"I'm not saying I won't give it to you. It'll be used as evidence when the warriors of Herkan gather to discuss something."
Well, if that's the reason... I handed the wolf over to Uncle.
"But seriously, what's so special about this wolf?"
"... Hmm, it's evidence that the sun is being stained black."
"The sun? You mean the sun?"
What the hell? I searched my memory.
Hmm, I don't know. I've never heard that story.
"What, you still don't know?"
"Well, no one tells me anything."
"Tch, I'll tell you later. I keep forgetting you're only seven years old."
Muttering that, Uncle hoisted the wolf onto his shoulder and followed the procession back to the village.
I held my sister's hand and followed behind them. When I returned to the rear where the children were, their glances were strange.
Hmm, it's like a spiteful look—the kind that makes you want to punch them.
"What are you looking at, you bastards?"
I snarled, and the kids turned their gazes forward again.
Hmph, kids who cower that much—why'd they stare so boldly?
And so, we finished the hunt early and returned to the village.
From the moment we got back, the village became bustling. As if preparing for something.