A Stray in the Ant-wolf Territory
After waking up early in the morning to check on the hides, the dried pepper, and the fields, checking the fish traps in the river, washing up at the waterfall, and meticulously inspecting the traps set in the forest, Chester and Monia finally returned to the Beach Villa.
Over time, they had been moving various items to the Beach Villa whenever they had a spare moment, so the once-barren shelter was now quite well-stocked.
First, there was the roof. Hanging from the rafters of the Beach Villa were strips of meat, various fruits, and wild plants drying in the sun.
In one corner of the villa lay an assortment of tools they had crafted for experiments, hobbies, or practice.
And just as Chester had originally planned, they had set up windbreaks around the villa. They weren't anything grand—just simple barriers made of bamboo. Naturally, the beach was already lined with plenty of bamboo stalks split in half, which they had been using to harvest salt.
"Every time I look at this..." Monia began.
"Yeah?"
"I think the bamboo on this island is going to go extinct because of us."
"Hahaha."
Chester couldn't deny her words.
"It's just too convenient to use, that's the problem."
"Exactly."
"Well, the area we're roaming is only a tiny fraction of the island anyway."
There was their main home territory, centered around their shelter and extending to the Beach Villa. There was the river territory, which encompassed the river, the lake, and the waterfall. Across the river lay the honey territory, stretching from where they had found honey to where they had gathered resin. And now, there was the Ant-wolf Territory, which they had finally been able to explore after driving the beasts away.
Listing them out made it sound like they had traveled far and wide, but in reality, it was barely a fraction of the Floating Island's vast expanse.
While keeping an eye out for any passing ships on the horizon, Chester and Monia occupied themselves with light chores at the Beach Villa. They braided ropes, twisted vines into cordage, and repaired their claw knives.
Chester disassembled his dulled claw knife, discarding the wooden handle that had split and grown loose. He slowly ground down the blade to restore its edge, carved a fresh handle, and fitted the blade back into place.
After binding the blade and handle tightly with cord, Chester picked up a suitable piece of wood and began whittling it to test the newly sharpened knife.
"Hmm. Not bad."
Monia, meanwhile, was crafting a new bow. Her previous one had broken just a few days ago. While Chester rarely broke his bows because he preferred his sling, Monia was a different story. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn't get the hang of the sling, so she had long since abandoned it to focus entirely on archery.
Perhaps her hard work was paying off, because her skill improved with every bow she broke and remade. During their clash with the Ant-wolves, she had been far more helpful than Chester had anticipated.
"I think I have more talent for the bow than my father, at least!"
"True. If the Duke found out, he'd probably faint from shock. A daughter who shoots better than him?"
"Fufu. He might be so shocked his heart stops! He always treated me like a doll, and now that doll has surpassed him."
"I suppose that's possible."
"It's decided. When I kill my father, I'll use him as a target for my bow and end him very, very slowly!"
"Oh."
Monia voiced such a brutal thought without batting an eye. Sensing Chester's slight surprise, she pursed her lips, thought for a moment, and then spoke again.
"...Well, actually, never mind! There's no real point in doing that anyway."
"Yeah, good choice. Let's try to live with as few dark thoughts as possible."
"Okay."
Monia watched Chester for a moment before asking,
"Hey, Chester. Do you dislike the fact that I want revenge?"
"Huh?"
"Even before, when I said I'd get revenge, your reaction was a bit... lukewarm."
"Ah. No, I don't mind. I think anything that can serve as a driving force to keep you alive is good. To survive in a place like this, you need a strong will and a reason to keep going."
However...
"Value yourself before your revenge."
"...Y-yes."
After hearing Chester's answer, Monia silently focused on carving her bow. But if Chester had looked at her face, he would have seen her blushing furiously, wearing a goofy, helpless grin.
"Ehehe. Hehehe."
Hehe, hehe.
After spending some time at the Beach Villa watching for any ships passing by, the two resumed their exploration of the Ant-wolf Territory.
Since they had already secured so many resources—chili peppers, black pepper, and grains—at the very start of their exploration, they intended to search the Ant-wolf Territory as thoroughly as possible.
Of course, they might not find anything else, but there was always a chance of discovering something new.
"I hope we find more of those fruits."
"Ah, those? They were delicious."
"They really were."
The Ant-wolf Territory had been so thoroughly dominated by the pack that there were barely any other creatures to watch out for. The few that did settle here, like the spiders, likely did so because they weren't the type of prey the Ant-wolves targeted.
The Ant-wolves hunted any dangerous creatures or prey that entered their domain, and the ecological vacuum left in their wake was filled by other organisms.
This, in turn, attracted other creatures that preyed on those organisms, which the Ant-wolves then hunted as well.
Creatures that managed to secure their safety here could establish much larger territories and gather more food than they would elsewhere. Naturally, these prominent territories drew in more prey, which the Ant-wolves would hunt once again.
Of course, if this cycle repeated indefinitely, the ecosystem would collapse, leaving only one-sided predators.
However, as the island's environment shifted, a period would arrive when the Ant-wolves became less active. During this lull, the creatures previously hunted by the pack would spread across the territory, stabilizing the ecosystem and establishing themselves. Then, when the weather grew warmer and the Ant-wolves emerged once more, they would be hunted again, maintaining the current balance.
"So that's why there are so few animals here."
"Exactly."
Chester explained his theory to Monia, who had been wondering about the scarcity of wildlife in the Ant-wolf Territory.
"Nature is simple yet complex. But it's always logical. It might look incredibly complicated on the surface, but if you think about it for just a moment, the reasons become clear. Anyone can figure it out."
Chester offered an example.
"For instance, weaker creatures have a lot of offspring. Since they die easily, they need high numbers to ensure their species survives. But stronger creatures have fewer babies."
"H-having babies..."
Monia's face flushed bright red.
Having babies requires... that! In bed! Squeak, squeak!
Monia had never received proper education on the matter. Deeming it a "vulgar poison" that ruined a woman's elegance and made her crude, the Duke had planned to teach her only the basic bedroom etiquette right before her marriage to the prince.
Of course, other noble families did the exact opposite, thoroughly educating their daughters in accordance with the old adage: "Rule a man's night, and you rule his house."
Thus, contrary to the Duke's intentions, Monia had picked up various bits of scandalous information while having tea with her followers at the Academy.
Squeak, squeak!
Of course, since she had only overheard fragments without any proper context, she didn't know the details, but she had a vague idea of how the deed was done.
"..."
Monia glanced at Chester. He didn't seem to care in the slightest.
"..."
At that, Monia's expression instantly soured.
"Why the long face?"
"Nothing. It's nothing at all."
"Nothing," she claimed, yet she subtly nudged closer to him.
Chester noticed her sudden proximity, but since she often closed the distance like this out of nowhere, he didn't pay it much mind.
And above all, something far more pressing than Monia's mood appeared before them. It was an Ant-wolf.
"Eek! An Ant-wolf!"
Monia gasped and recoiled in shock, and Chester instantly drew his machete. However, the two of them quickly lowered their guard.
The creature before them was not one of the fully grown adults they had fought. It was a pup, so tiny it could easily fit in the palm of Monia's hand. It was so severely starved that its already small frame was painfully gaunt, and it was barely clinging to life.
Whimper... whimper...
Sniffing the air, the pup crawled forward with everything its trembling body had, but it collapsed after only a few paces.
"..."
Monia was at a loss for words. Even if it was just a pup, it was hard to believe that the same species of Ant-wolf that had threatened even Chester could look so pitifully weak. She didn't know what to do.
"Um, Chester..."
"Hmm."
Chester approached the pup. Looking at the machete in Chester's hand and the collapsed pup, Monia instinctively braced herself, assuming the creature's life was about to end.
Chester knelt down and examined the little Ant-wolf.
Its eyes are closed. Has it not even opened them yet? Why is a pup this young outside its den?
Chester soon realized the answer.
Did they force themselves to move with their young after losing to me? To flee?
Out of the nine that had attacked, only three had survived. Utterly defeated by Chester, the remaining Ant-wolves must have decided they couldn't win and chose to flee.
And this little guy got separated and lost.
It was a common occurrence in nature. When a pack migrated, some members would fall behind or get separated, leaving them stranded. Normally, pups would be kept safe in the center of the pack during a move, but with only three adults left, managing that would have been incredibly difficult.
An Ant-wolf.
A canine species. And still a pup. Suddenly, a possibility crossed Chester's mind.
Could I raise this thing as a hunting dog?
What if they could tame and raise a creature with hearing and smell that far surpassed a human's, along with sharp animal instincts?
We'd be able to explore the forest much more safely than we do now.
Besides, Ant-wolves were highly intelligent. Because of their intelligence, if the pup realized that being raised by humans was beneficial to its survival, it would likely allow itself to be tamed much more easily than most other animals.
"Not a bad idea."
Chester sheathed his machete back into his basket and pulled out his water skin. He carefully tilted it, letting a small stream of water trickle down right in front of the pup's snout.
Sensing the moisture, the pup instinctively began lapping up the water with its tongue, quenching its parched throat.
"Good boy, good boy."
Chester smiled as he watched the pup, then looked up at Monia.
"Monia, I'm thinking of raising this little guy. What do you think?"
"Huh? Can we actually raise it?"
"Yeah, probably. My father taught me how to tame and train beasts."
Chester possessed knowledge of training not just hunting dogs, but even falconry.
Though my memory on how to train hawks is a bit hazy.
"If we raise it, it'll be a huge help to us. What do you say?"
"I'd love to! Yes!"
Monia, who had been utterly captivated by the pup's adorable, fluffy appearance from the moment she saw it, cheered and threw her hands up in the air with a bright smile.
That day, the two of them picked up a cute little puppy.
"Isn't it a wolf, though?"
"If it's raised by humans, it's a dog. Who cares if it's a wolf?"