The Bear (7)
“Are you ready?”
“Yeah.”
“If we leave this place today, we’ll likely never return. Once you reach your new home, you’ll be living with other people. There might even be kids your own age.”
“‘Might be’? Didn’t you say you were taking me somewhere you knew?”
“I do know the place, but it’s not where I live.”
Srem packed his share of the supplies as he spoke. In front of him, Asdin, having finished his treatment and standing perfectly upright, was packing his own gear. Watching him, Srem wore an expression of awe, just as he had for the past few days.
“Hah, truly.”
“Uncle, why are you doing that again?”
“No, it’s just amazing no matter how I look at it. I fed you well and used herbs meticulously, but how did you heal in less than three weeks?”
“I guess I just have a fast recovery rate.”
Asdin brushed it off. Winter had passed, and spring had arrived. His wounds had healed long ago, but Srem still marveled at Asdin’s extraordinary resilience, sometimes giving him that look. Just like now.
It was because Srem didn’t know that Asdin could manipulate Essence.
But this time, Asdin showed a rare reaction. He glared at Srem with an expression that suggested he was deeply bothered.
“Is it that fascinating? Uncle?”
“What?”
“You’ve been looking at me like that for a while. Like you’re watching a lizard tail grow back.”
Asdin grumbled lightly. He was grateful for the interest and concern, but he didn’t appreciate that unusual gaze.
Srem responded to Akasa’s reaction with a sheepish look.
“It’s because it’s a waste, you brat.”
“A waste?”
“In my eyes, if you had a body as sturdy as yours, you’d have been perfect as a temple attendant. You’re a smart kid, so I think you know that much. But for some reason, you chose to hide and live in this wilderness instead.”
“Yeah.”
“Do you have any regrets?”
The word Srem uttered pierced deep into Akasa’s heart. Regret? What could he possibly have to regret? All of this had happened in a realm he couldn’t even have imagined, all to keep him alive.
If he were to regret anything, should he have just waited quietly for death at the National Soul Festival?
Asdin recalled the previous year, when he had crossed the desert, relying on a single voice to survive. He answered shortly.
“I don’t.”
“That’s a relief.”
Srem said that much and finished packing. After checking one last time to ensure nothing was left behind, the two finally set off on their journey.
Asdin looked around, his heart strangely fluttering.
For over half a year, this place had sheltered the boy who had been cast out into the world.
The place where he found the deer carcass. The place he stopped for reconnaissance. The place where he had killed the Taung. Traces of a life that could hardly be called small were etched into the land.
[It feels different, doesn’t it? Seeing it as you leave like this.]
Asdin nodded. Srem was walking right in front of him.
[When you first arrived, you couldn’t even properly look at the place you were leaving, could you?]
Asdin thought he didn’t really know. No one in the middle of fleeing would have the luxury of admiring the scenery. Asdin preferred to think of the people he wanted to return to rather than the places he couldn’t return to. And those people no longer existed in this world.
His life in the wilderness had taught Asdin how to miss the dead, and yet, how to keep living.
The distance between him and the fast-walking Srem widened slightly. Thanks to that, Asdin could answer Urnil, even if quietly.
“Will I be able to live well when I go to this new place?”
[Who knows? To others, you were a precious royal. But there are no princes or subjects there. There will only be people like you.]
People! Asdin shivered at the resonance of that word. To a boy who had left people behind and longed for them, the meaning of that word was special.
[These will be the days in your life when you are closest to others. Since you’re an outsider coming in, there will be friction. But don’t worry too much about things that haven’t happened yet. Even if you aren’t a prince, your life won’t be filled only with bad things. And as I always say, I am by your side in any situation.]
Akasa nodded firmly. If he didn’t, he felt he would cry again.
[Let’s try to fix that tearfulness.]
“Yes, yes….”
“What are you doing? Hurry up!”
Akasa lifted his gaze to the front. Srem, who had already gone quite far ahead, was standing on the roots of a large tree and shouting.
“Coming!”
Asdin answered energetically and ran forward.
The forest path Asdin ran along was filled with many budding flowers.
It was a warm spring day.
“It will take about four days to reach the village we’re going to.”
“Is it that far?”
Asdin asked, surprised by the travel distance. Since he had only ever moved based on his nesting grounds, he had never had to travel such a long distance.
“The Exile forest is much wider than you imagine. And that’s a loose estimate. We’re going to try to move a bit faster than that.”
It might be a grueling march for a young body, but Srem argued that the more days they spent camping in the wilderness, the more dangerous it would become. After all, it wasn’t just pure Exiles who inhabited this forest.
Asdin agreed.
Therefore, it was three and a half days later that the two, who had been following a tributary of the Laoras River for a long time, arrived at their new home.
Anyone else would have considered it an astonishing record.
“We’ve arrived.”
“This is….”
“This is Demz Village, where you’ll be living from now on.”
Asdin looked at the scene unfolding before him, holding onto his pounding heart.
There were fences and well-tended land. Nearby trees had been logged, and the wide ground among them had been cleared into fields.
Water flowed through channels dug from the lower river estuary into the entire field, and structures made of wood and houses were scattered throughout the village.
Having lived under trees and in caves, Asdin couldn’t help but be amazed to see a village of this scale in the middle of the forest.
‘Weren’t Exiles always nomads, and people who attacked others?’
But the landscape before Asdin’s eyes completely overturned that common sense and experience. Asdin’s eyes sparkled as he stared blankly at the heartwarming sight of people living their lives. Srem ruffled Asdin’s hair and said.
“You brat. Look at your eyes sparkling with anticipation already. Aren’t you tired?”
“I’m fine.”
“I’m not. Let’s go in. It’s been a while since I’ve been treated as a guest.”
Srem, who burst into a cheerful laugh, soon led Asdin to a building made of wood. The wooden house was only one story, but the area looked quite large. Seeing the size, Asdin thought, ‘Isn’t that triangular roof unnecessarily wide?’
“Remember this well. This is the village chief’s house.”
Srem soon knocked on the door with the back of his hand and shouted.
“Hey! Chief! Are you inside? It’s me, Srem! I’m coming in even if you aren’t, and if you are and pretend not to be, I’m coming in anyway, so open the door yourself!”
While Asdin looked up at Srem in bewilderment at this bizarre greeting, the door to the chief’s house opened. A person appeared from inside the door, which had been opened at an angle. It was an old man with a thick beard.
“Srem? Is it really you?”
“Yes, it’s me.”
“My god. You even brought a kid?”
The surprised gaze that had been scanning Srem shifted to Asdin. Asdin bowed his head to greet him. The old man’s eyes narrowed.
“I didn’t know you were out there spawning kids recklessly. Did you have a kid this big?”
“Excuse me?”
“What?”
The response popped out from both of them at the same time. The chief scratched his head and added.
“Isn’t he?”
Asdin shook his head vigorously. A finishing blow was delivered to the chief, who was smacking his lips at that reaction.
“Are you trying to ruin someone’s marriage prospects? You can tell just by looking that he’s a Highsider.”
“If your wife is a Highsider, your child can be a Highsider. Anyway, so it’s not your kid, right? Then whose kid is it?”
“Wouldn’t it be a Highsider’s kid?”
Srem, who had conversely shut the chief’s mouth, smiled and said.
“Well, it’s been a long time since I’ve visited, but I’m glad you’re still healthy.”
“Nonsense. Why don’t you just curse me for not being dead yet? Well, it’s nice to see you again before I kick the bucket. Right. So, what did you really come here for?”
“I want to settle this child here.”
At Srem’s words, the chief observed Asdin as if studying him.
“Hmm. I expected as much when you said it was a child you brought… but to think it’s an Exile with Highsider blood. I’ve seen all sorts of strange things in my life.”
“Is that important? Let’s not use words that divide people in front of the kid.”
Asdin watched the reactions of Srem and the chief with a puzzled face. Although they were talking while smiling, the chief’s reaction seemed indifferent, and Srem’s reaction seemed very sharp.
Eventually, the chief shrugged his shoulders lightly, as if admitting defeat.
“Fine. It’s not hard to take in one child. But since you’ve come after such a long time, why don’t you help the village a bit before you go?”
“Since I’m here, I’ll pass on some hunting secrets before I leave.”
“Good. You look a bit tired, shall I prepare a place for you to rest?”
“I’d be grateful. I’m tired of sleeping outdoors. Is there an empty house by any chance?”
The chief shook his head and said.
“Unfortunately, no. The last empty house disappeared when another Exile settled here a while ago.”
“Then we’ll have to stay here.”
“Hmm. If you had more people in your party, I would have sent you back.”
“What kind of nonsense is that? Anyway, you’ve given your permission, right?”
Srem, who grinned, took Asdin and entered the house.
It was a natural action, as if he hadn’t done this once or twice. Srem guided Asdin to a room and told him to unpack.
He and Srem were in separate rooms. Asdin touched various parts of the house with admiring eyes. In fact, excluding the royal palace, this could be said to be the first building Asdin had ever entered.
Even though the chief’s house didn’t look that big, this small wooden house was well-equipped with everything needed for living.
Asdin, who had unpacked and sat on the bed, stood up in surprise at the soft touch he suddenly felt on his hands. It wasn’t as fine as the silk used in the Cellabris royal palace, but the quilt felt soft enough to Asdin’s hands.
“Rest. I’ll come to call you when the meal is ready.”
“Ah, yes. Thank you.”
The chief left without closing the door completely. As he sat on the bed and lay down to soothe his fatigue, the chief’s voice, which was moving away, reached Akasa’s ears.
“Geez. What were those people lacking that they even banished a kid like that?”
It was a remark blaming the people of the kingdom, but Asdin couldn’t say anything.
It was because he found it laughable himself.
If he knew that he hadn’t been banished, but had escaped on his own because they were trying to capture and kill him, what would that person say?
Such thoughts of Akasa didn’t last long. It was because he was extremely tired.
In the soft bedding he felt for the first time in a while, Asdin fell into a sleep as deep as a swamp.