69
Chapter 69
The Demon Beast Forest.
A vast woodland where the highest concentration of beasts in the Demon Realm resides, and where the dimensions between the Continent and the Demon Realm intertwine.
As with any wild place, the Demon Beast Forest is a land ruled by the law of the jungle. To the strong, it is a bountiful land overflowing with food, but to the weak, it is utterly ruthless, offering no guarantee of safety.
One must worry about shelter and food every single day. The moment a sweet fruit appears before one's eyes, the first thought must be how to defend it. One must constantly stay alert and keep their edge sharp.
Concepts like cooperation or teamwork are unthinkable, unless one belongs to a race like the Goblins. Being smaller than oneself simply means being prey, and being of similar size means being an arch-rival in a bloody battle for survival.
This is the basic mindset held by most of the predators living in the Demon Beast Forest.
"Gasp, ugh...!"
The young Savage Boy, who had just lost a territorial struggle, shared that same mindset. Because of this, he had fought a life-or-death battle with the Nocturnal Silkworms of the forest, and having been defeated by their numbers, he was now fleeing.
The Savage Boy feared the future. Now that the Nocturnal Silkworms had stolen the cave he lived in, what was he to do? The harsh environment of the Demon Beast Forest was far too merciless for a young boy to survive.
However, the Savage Boy did not let go of his will to live. Remembering the times he tore the meat of monsters stronger than himself with his teeth, and recalling when he risked his life to infiltrate a wyvern's cave to drive a stone knife into a sleeping wyvern's eye, the Savage Boy strengthened his resolve.
I will survive. I will devour those who try to eat me, and I will cut the throats of those who try to kill me, living as long as I possibly can.
He couldn't imagine what lay at the end of this life. He hadn't even solved the immediate problems of food and shelter. However, the Savage Boy wanted only one thing: to eat his fill and sleep warmly. To realize this simplest of desires, the Savage Boy continued his small struggle.
"Hut...!"
Even now was no different.
Step-.
As he limped along the treetops while clutching his wound, a living being entered the Savage Boy's sight.
It was an appearance he had never seen before. The figure was small, not much different in size from himself. The being wore thin, pure white clothing over its body.
There was no hair visible on the skin of its hands. Yet, it didn't look like the skin was hard and tough like a lizard's either.
It was a curious appearance, but the Savage Boy felt hunger before curiosity. A searing emotion boiling from deep within his heart heated the Savage Boy's mind.
'A female!'
Having seen many beasts in the Demon Beast Forest, the Savage Boy knew.
Generally, males are stronger than females.
In other words, females were weaker than males. Physically.
The being before him was clearly a female. A white, delicate face without a single blemish further solidified the Savage Boy's thoughts.
The Savage Boy crouched, gripping the tree branches with his limbs. Ready to spring forward at any moment to devour the prey weaker than himself.
Now was the time.
Whoosh-!
"Kuaaaaakh!"
"...I saw you watching me for a while, and you've finally shown your teeth."
The Savage Boy shot forward like an arrow. Leading with the claws and teeth that had shredded the hides of many beasts.
Where should he start eating the prey before him? The stomach, which didn't look to have much fat? The thighs? Whatever the part, he expected it to be quite soft. Unlike the monsters of the Demon Beast Forest, the white being before him seemed to have neither thick fur nor bulging muscles.
Chomp-.
Whirl-.
"Gah!"
But what on earth was this?
The future the Savage Boy had envisioned did not happen.
Instead, it was the Savage Boy who was caught by the jaw of the White Being's arm and thrown in a shoulder toss.
Crash-!
A suffocating impact surged from his back through his entire body.
Slammed violently yet softly into the hard ground, the Savage Boy gasped for air, unable to even let out a scream. His blood surged once, and his vision went pitch black.
Through his fading consciousness, the Savage Boy heard a voice.
"Now, let me see what kind of beast dared to jump me... Oh, it's a person?"
It was the first time in his life he had ever heard such words.
*****
"K-hagh!? Kuaakh! Kyaakh!"
The Savage Boy flailed his arms wildly.
He remembered clearly what had happened before he lost consciousness.
The enemy he had underestimated was actually an incredibly powerful warrior, and the Savage Boy had been suppressed without any chance to fight back.
In the wild, being suppressed is synonymous with death. That was the way of the world. Even if an enemy seemed stronger, if you could somehow knock them out, you would devour their flesh or kill them while they were unconscious.
The fact that he had woken up meant he had risen before the enemy could kill him. For all he knew, his internal organs could currently be getting eaten.
That was why he flailed his limbs. To drive away the enemy who was surely doing something to his body.
However, what his frantic limbs actually struck was...
Flutter-!
Only a thin piece of cloth. A fabric thinner than a leaf and softer than down.
"Kuakh?"
"Oh, you're awake?"
The voice he had heard before passing out echoed again. The Savage Boy immediately snapped his head toward the sound. There, in his line of sight, stood the white female from before.
...A female far more powerful than himself.
"Kyaaaakh!"
The moment the Savage Boy saw the woman, he let out a raw, primal scream. It was a fear etched into his memory.
The shock of seeing the woman resonated through his limbs. Naturally, his hands and feet trembled, and the Savage Boy curled his body into a ball.
The fact that she hadn't killed him was a relief, but conversely, it made the situation even more dangerous. It meant she could kill him at any moment, regardless of whether he was asleep or not.
"It's okay, you don't have to be afraid. I won't attack you."
The Savage Boy could not understand the woman's mysterious words.
As she reached out both hands toward him, the gesture looked like nothing more than a threatening move.
Since the only things the Savage Boy had ever received from other creatures in the Demon Beast Forest were attacks aimed at his life.
"Come here, I've prepared a meal. I wasn't sure if it would suit your taste, so I made it as universal as possible."
"Kuakh! Kuaakh! Kyaakh!"
The Savage Boy could not comprehend the woman's selfless kindness.
"Kuaaaaakh!"
He bared his teeth and snarled. Considering the enemy's power, it was a meaningless struggle, but that was all the Savage Boy had ever learned.
Show hostility, threaten the enemy, and cling desperately to survival.
Even the strange warmth of the soft cloth covering his body felt awkward to the boy.
"Are you not hungry by any chance? Though your stomach looks like it's sticking to your back...? I wanted to have a meal together and hear how a child like you ended up living in the Demon Beast Forest..."
"Kyaakh! Kuaakh! Kuakh!"
The woman took a step forward. The Savage Boy instinctively took a step back. If he could escape, he wanted to run.
The woman's constant mumbling of incomprehensible words continued to fuel his anxiety. That spiraling dread, meeting his starving stomach, only amplified his confusion.
Then, as if realizing something, the woman raised a finger and spoke.
"Ah! Or could it be... that you can't speak?"
"Kuakh! Kyaakh!"
"Ah... that's why you can't let your guard down. Well, in that case."
The woman stepped slightly to the side.
"Now, uh... how should I put this? Do you want some yummy-yum?"
"Kyaakh...?"
The meal, which had been hidden behind her slender frame, was revealed.
It was a meal that looked warm at a glance, with steam rising softly from it. The aroma of golden-brown roasted meat stimulated the boy's hunger.
The boy could not resist the temptation. He had never learned how to hold back. In the wild, where one might die tomorrow, patience was something no one possessed.
"Kuaaaaakh!"
The moment he saw the food, the Savage Boy lunged forward on all fours and began stuffing it into his mouth frantically. He didn't care if his cheeks puffed out as if they would burst, or if white soup smeared across his face.
There was plenty of food. Every dish was piping hot. Yet, even through the pain of his tongue and the roof of his mouth nearly burning, the Savage Boy did not stop his gluttony.
He didn't know when, where, or who might snatch the food away.
Having experienced such things numerous times, the Savage Boy didn't know how to savor food. He had to eat as much as possible, as quickly as possible, while that 'strong female' was simply watching him.
"Munch! Khak! Ha-u! Heu-aa!"
However, despite the boy's desperation as he fanned his mouth to eat faster.
"There's no need to rush. Eat slowly."
The woman picked up a roasted drumstick that the Savage Boy couldn't quite reach and slowly held it out to him.
Snap-!
The Savage Boy grabbed the roasted drumstick and devoured it in one bite. He chewed and swallowed even the chicken bones with a loud crunch.
Watching the Savage Boy, the woman wore a satisfied smile. From the boy's perspective, it was a smile that defied all logic. As did the woman's mysterious act of yielding her food to him.
"Fufu-."
As if promising she would never harm him.
With a face of infinite purity, the woman waited for the boy to finish his meal.
"Munch, munch."
The boy found the woman bothersome, but he was so preoccupied with the warm, delicious prey before him that he couldn't keep her in his mind.
To the boy, the woman's smile...
Was not much different from that of a Venus flytrap, which lures insects with a tempting scent only to devour them ruthlessly.
"It's okay, it's okay."
"Grrrr- munch."
"It's not much, but please eat plenty. I've prepared as much food as you need."
Yet, ironically.
Even though the boy believed it was a trap, and felt that the smile was a lie.
He could not bring himself to shake it off.
The 'warmth' he was feeling for the first time in his life...
Was just that sweet.
*****
Soft breathing-.
The Savage Boy stared quietly down at the woman sleeping defenselessly before him.
Surprisingly, unlike the Venus flytrap he had compared her to, the woman imposed no restrictions on the boy even after the meal was over.
She did not bind his body, nor did she tear away a single piece of his flesh.
She had simply lit a campfire, told him to have a peaceful night, and laid down on a square piece of cloth.
Naturally, the Savage Boy did not sleep. He kept his eyes closed, pretending to slumber, while waiting for an opportunity.
He could not afford to let his guard down.
In the wild, it was common to smile to one's face and then drive claws in the moment the opponent was most careless.
"Whew..."
The woman let out a comfortable sigh in her sleep. The descending night air grew heavy and cold.
The Savage Boy gazed at the sleeping woman with cold eyes. It was a freezing look that bore no resemblance to the warmth of the meal from when the sunset dipped below the horizon. It was also somewhat eerie.
"..."
Step-.
The beast moved.
He approached a pile of scattered rocks and gripped the stone that looked the sturdiest.
It was a stone heavy enough to easily crush a human skull.
"..."
A target that is asleep or unconscious is always the best prey. Until a direct stimulus is applied, they cannot take action regardless of what the beast does.
He didn't think biting with his teeth or hitting with his fist would be enough to kill the human before him. He needed a more certain move, one that would end her life instantly.
Right now, this stone would be that move. The beast believed this firmly.
Whoosh-.
The beast raised the stone high. Below the stone lay the woman's delicate face.
If he just slammed this rock down right now, he could cave in that face and monopolize all the food the woman possessed.
If he did that, he wouldn't have to envy the Nocturnal Silkworms who stole his cave. The food the woman had was delicious, and her soft cloth even kept the body warm.
A flower of greed bloomed in the beast's heart. The thorny bud trembled precariously.
All he had to do was strike it down.
She had given him mysterious food, but he didn't know what schemes were hidden beneath. To survive in this harsh wild, he had to attack first before being attacked.
The beast's hand trembled. He had faced far more dangerous situations several times, so why was he so nervous? Or rather, why was he hesitating?
He just had to close his eyes and slam the stone down once...
"Ugh..."
The stone fell.
Not onto the woman's face, but onto the ground beside her. It was placed quietly.
An unknown emotion suppressed the Savage Boy's murderous intent. Suddenly, he felt uneasy.
"Whew..."
The woman breathed in a steady rhythm. Unable to bring himself to break that serene breath, the Savage Boy quietly left the area like a beast defeated in a territorial struggle.
Into the forest.
Into the wild.
Back to where he belonged-.