A Taste of Heaven
An arrow flew from Monia's bow. Unfortunately, it struck the ground a good distance away from her target.
"You call that close?"
"That was definitely close!" When Chester questioned her definition of the word, Monia replied with shameless confidence.
"You must be tense because it's a real hunt, but you can take your time. We have a bow, and we have the distance. At this range, that thing can't do a single thing to us."
Chester pointed toward the creature, which seemed entirely unaware that an arrow had just been shot at it. It had briefly glanced in their direction when the arrow whistled past, but that was it. Now, it was back to leisurely gnawing on a tree trunk.
It was a round, plump little thing. Aside from its chubby appearance and its peculiar habit of chewing on wood, there was nothing particularly remarkable about it.
I hope all that bulk isn't just fluff. If its roundness was merely an illusion created by thick fur, there would be very little meat on its bones.
While Chester harbored those practical concerns, Monia nocked another arrow and carefully took aim. "Phew..."
The bow they had crafted was undeniably crude. It was nothing more than a branch shaved into a curved shape; they hadn't carefully selected the wood, nor had they performed any of the curing processes required to make a proper bow. Lacking both the knowledge and the proper materials, this was the best they could manage.
They viewed it as a disposable tool—something to be used until it snapped and then replaced—so they weren't particularly attached to it. Still, having a ranged weapon with decent power was a massive step forward, even if its range and impact now fell short of Chester's sling.
It wasn't that the sling itself had been upgraded; rather, Chester had simply mastered the weapon through sheer practice, naturally unlocking its true destructive potential and range.
Just as Chester's thoughts drifted from Monia's archery to a comparison between the bow and the sling, Monia released the string. *Thwack!*
Unfortunately, the arrow struck the tree trunk instead of the creature. Startled by the sudden impact, the plump animal bolted into the brush.
"Ah!"
"Well, can't be helped," Chester said.
"Yes..." Monia sighed.
Chester always advised her not to dwell on mistakes or failures. He believed in learning from them, but warned that letting them weigh you down was a recipe for disaster. Of course, mastering one's emotions was easier said than done.
Monia had desperately wanted to show off the archery skills she had practiced so diligently in her spare time. She had snapped two bows during her training sessions and had to craft replacements, which had given her the confidence that she would perform well when the time came.
This is much harder than I thought. She had secretly felt quite proud of her progress, but shooting at a live target in the wild was a completely different beast compared to aiming at a stationary mark.
"You'll get the hang of it with practice," Chester offered.
"I'm going to work even harder!"
"Right, right."
The two continued their trek along the river. After walking for what felt like hours, the edge of the island slowly came into view.
"Oh."
"Wow..."
The edge of the island where the river terminated was a sheer, dizzying cliff—vastly different from the sandy beach where they had first been marooned. Aside from that single beach, the entire perimeter of the Floating Island was made up of these precipitous cliffs.
"Why is the ground so white here?"
"Hmm? Bird droppings."
"Eek!" Monia, who had been examining the white-speckled ground with curiosity, shrieked and leaped backward at Chester's casual explanation.
"B-bird poop?!"
Chuckling at her dramatic reaction, Chester stepped closer to the edge of the cliff and peered down. There are a lot of nests down there. The sky was thick with birds. They swooped along the cliffside, diving to catch fish in the ocean below or snapping up insects hovering over the island's edge.
A few birds even swept past Chester and Monia mid-hunt. "Kyaah!" Monia shrieked, nearly losing her footing as a bird suddenly veered sharply away from her face.
"No! Not the bird poop!" Driven by the sheer, desperate horror of landing backside-first on a pile of droppings, she somehow managed to flail her arms and regain her balance.
"You stupid birds! Come down here! Come down right now! I'll catch you and roast you alive!"
While Monia shook her fist and screamed at the birds circling lazily overhead, Chester, who had been staring intently at the cliffside, spoke up.
"Monia."
"Yes? What is it?"
"Do you want to eat some eggs?"
"What? Eggs? Really?! There are eggs here?!"
"Yeah."
Monia scrambled to his side and peered over the edge. Sure enough, nestled in the crevices of the cliff face were dozens of bird nests, each containing speckled white eggs.
"Oh my goodness! Eggs! They're real eggs!"
"Did you even like eggs? I don't recall you eating them much back then."
"Hehehe, what do you take me for? I am well aware that eggs are a staple ingredient in fine desserts!"
"Ah, right..."
But Monia's excitement quickly deflated. "But... how do we get to them? They're all the way down the cliff."
"We could tie a rope to a tree and rappel down, but I'd rather not take unnecessary risks."
Perhaps they would find a safer way to harvest them later. Taking comfort in that thought, they decided to step away from the edge.
Leaving the cliffs behind, they began to explore deeper into the forest, keeping the river just at the edge of their vision rather than walking right along its banks.
"Let's head toward the waterfall," Chester said.
"Alright."
Though they hadn't ventured very far from the water, the vegetation here was markedly different from what grew near the riverbanks, with all sorts of unfamiliar plants crowding the forest floor. Unfortunately, none of these strange plants showed any signs of being the grains they so desperately sought.
With no grains in sight, they wandered through the woods for a while.
"That scary dragon from last time isn't around," Monia noted.
"Yeah. I wonder where it's hiding?"
"Don't say things like that!" *Smack!*
Monia smacked Chester's shoulder for teasing her. Yet, the mere reminder of the terrifying crocodile made her shudder, and she instinctively clung closer to his side.
Chester smiled as she pressed herself against him in fear, but his eyes remained sharp, scanning their surroundings. Even when they were exploring the familiar territory near their shelter, Chester never let his guard down. Months of living on the island had made him familiar with the terrain, but it had not made him complacent.
The primary threat to watch out for was the bear. The sweltering heat of late had kept it out of sight, but they had spotted it occasionally in the distance before. Chester's theory that the small bear was actually a fully grown adult seemed to hold water, as every specimen they had glimpsed from afar was remarkably petite. They had always changed their route immediately to avoid them, so he didn't know much else, but a bear was still a bear. Avoiding a confrontation was always the wisest choice.
The second threat was the canine predators. It was the same species Chester had once caught using his ground-fishing trap. They were pack animals; whenever they spotted one, three or four others were sure to be nearby. Those initial few were merely scouts; if one looked closely, a pack of about ten more would be fanning out silently in the distance, tailing them. Having frequently stumbled upon their burrows, Chester had marked those areas to ensure they stayed far away.
They hunted in organized packs, lived in underground burrows, and were only slightly larger than small dogs. Chester had dubbed them Ant-wolves.
Traces of these Ant-wolves were visible even on this side of the river. He spotted overlapping paw prints, tufts of coarse fur caught on tree roots, and piles of droppings. Because they designated specific communal areas for their waste, their latrines were highly conspicuous.
Though small, Ant-wolves were pack hunters with disproportionately large, sharp fangs. A single bite could easily prove fatal. Thus, Chester was grateful that their obvious tracks made them easy to avoid. Even if they were caught off guard and surrounded, the beasts' anatomy prevented them from climbing, meaning Chester and Monia could easily escape by scaling a tree.
Though I am a bit worried about whether Monia can actually climb a tree...
As he walked, lost in these thoughts, Chester suddenly froze. His eyes locked onto an insect resting on a nearby flower.
"Huh? Chester? What is it?"
"..."
It was a bee.
Is it a hornet? No, I've seen this species before. Its venom isn't highly toxic.
A sting would cause severe swelling and intense itching. If left untreated, it could become serious, but with quick first aid, a few stings were manageable. Of course, a sting to the neck could cause the airway to swell shut and lead to suffocation...
"Chester? Chester?"
The danger of dealing with bees versus the reward of sweet, golden honey. Chester weighed the risks against the benefits.
Honey... I've only ever tasted it once.
Years ago, his father had taken a risk he would normally never dare, all to bring home a small comb of wild honey for his son. That taste... had been nothing short of divine. For a boy whose only experience with sweetness had been wild berries or the tiny drops of nectar sucked from flower stems, that honey had been a revelation—so rich it was almost bitter, a dizzying, intense sweetness that seemed to scorch his tongue.
I really want some. His mouth watered at the memory. If we're careful—extremely careful...
"Monia."
Chester stopped himself. This wasn't a decision he should make alone. In the past, he would have taken charge without a second thought, but things had changed.
She was no longer the spoiled Duke's daughter whose very shadow irritated him, whose breathing grated on his nerves, and whom he had once wished would just drop dead. He had come to respect her as an independent human being who was growing stronger by the day.
"I think we can harvest some honey."
"Honey?!"
"But it's going to involve some risk. What do you want to do?"
"..."
At the mention of risk, Monia hesitated.
"...Could we die?"
"Possibly. But the chances are very low. Honestly, as long as we're careful, it's highly unlikely."
"But the risk is still there."
"Yes."
"..."
Monia was torn. Her mouth watered at the thought of honey, but Chester's warning gave her pause. Chester actually took my feelings into consideration before deciding, but... oh, what should I do? Her mind wavered between caution and desire.
Watching Monia practically tremble as her desire battled her reason, Chester chuckled and patted her on the back.
"So, do we want honey or not?"
"...Yes, please..." Monia mumbled, her face flushing red with embarrassment.
And just like that, the two abandoned their original plans for the day and began preparing for a honey raid.