70
Chapter 70
"Gasp! Huff! Pant!"
A young boy is running for his life, completely panicked.
"Huff! Hah! Gasp!"
The boy's ragged breathing highlights the urgency of the situation. Behind him, a herd of dozens of boars was chasing the boy.
After leaving the sleeping woman and wandering aimlessly through the night, the Savage Boy realized at some point that he had taken a wrong turn, but it was already too late.
How many creatures could possibly survive after daring to enter the territory of the Tom Boars? The Savage Boy was gambling against those abysmal odds.
"Squeeee!"
The Tom Boar is a ferocious beast with the head of a boar and the body of an emissary. While a single individual is strong in battle, a herd of Tom Boars charging all at once is not inferior to any other powerhouse in the Demon Beast Forest.
Naturally, with the physical capabilities of a mere human boy, even escaping was not easy. The Savage Boy ran with all his might, but the distance between him and the herd was steadily closing.
"Hah! Huff! Gasp!"
Who was there to blame? It was his own fault for letting his guard down, which should always be pushed to the limit, because he had been intoxicated by a moment of fullness.
The Savage Boy gritted his teeth. The Tom Boars were chasing him so closely that even a moment's hesitation would mean being caught, leaving him no time to climb a tree.
He had no room to think about where to flee. The Savage Boy simply ran and ran, as if wherever his feet landed was his only path.
Squeeee!
"Aaaaaah!"
How long had he been running like that?
The boy suddenly felt the ground vanish beneath his feet. It was a sensation as if he were floating in mid-air.
The hot pressure radiating from behind him diminished. Feeling puzzled, the boy looked back to see the Tom Boars staring blankly at him.
Whoosh—.
"Uwoooooh!!"
In the next moment.
The boy, who hadn't even realized he had jumped off a cliff while running frantically, was liberated from gravity.
*****
"Ugh, uuuh...."
The Savage opens his eyes slowly.
In his blinking vision, a woman is sitting there.
Wung—.
The woman was gently holding the Savage's wrist, infusing it with a mysterious white Light Aura. Each time the white Light Aura entered, the Savage felt a strange sensation as if his body were healing.
"Heal-."
"Kugh...."
"...Oh? You're awake. Don't try to get up! You still need more rest!"
"Kaaah! Kuak!"
As soon as he saw the woman's face, the Savage instinctively struggled. However, his body immediately stiffened due to the terrible pain surging through his entire frame.
With spasms that felt like flesh tearing and bones breaking, the Savage took a deep breath. He had experienced such pain a few times before, but the difference now was that someone was by his side.
Naturally, the current situation was more dangerous than before. The boy was in such a Defenselessness state that he could die if someone so much as flicked a finger, and unfortunately, that 'someone' was right next to him.
Yet, why?
"I smelled blood coming from below the cliff and ran over to find you... What on earth happened? Ah, you can't speak, so you probably won't understand this question."
The woman did not attack the boy.
She simply continued to silently hold the boy's wrist, continuously injecting spheres of white light.
Having no strength to move an inch, the boy could only watch the woman's actions. Occasionally, his body continued to shudder and spasm involuntarily.
"Ugh...."
Letting out a faint groan, the boy struggled to open his eyes once more.
The woman's delicate features, which he hadn't seen properly before, came into his blurred vision.
Dew-like sweat on her white cheeks, a sallow and pale complexion, and lips that were trembling precariously.
He hadn't noticed before, but looking closely, she didn't seem to be in very good health either. He wasn't certain, but the boy thought it was 'because the woman was doing something to him.'
...Why?
Why was the woman not attacking him?
Why was the woman smiling at him?
If that smile were the lure of a Venus flytrap, he should have been devoured long ago in his defenseless state.
If the woman had any ill intentions, he should have died when she found him fallen from the cliff, or even when she first subdued him.
There was no profit for the woman in keeping him alive.
The boy could not understand her.
"Kugh...."
However, there was one thing he felt he could be certain of, even if only faintly.
"Your color is finally returning. Thank goodness."
The woman would not harm him.
Despite having two clear opportunities, the woman who did not attack him.
"Now, try eating some of this. I figured you wouldn't be able to move your jaw in your current state, so I made some soup. It's hot, so take it slowly—blow on it and sip."
The woman, who used a rounded spoon to feed the thick liquid into his mouth.
'She will not attack me'.
It was a crazy thought, but he felt he might even be able to trust her with his back.
"Slurp...."
"That's it, good boy. Now, now, you overate far too much yesterday evening. There's plenty of food, so from now on, try to chew slowly."
"Slurrrp... kugh... uuuh...."
It was warm.
It was cozy.
She was different from the humans of old, who had thrown him into the dens of beasts—people he couldn't even remember now.
He was safe by the woman's side. He didn't have to shiver from the cold, nor did he have to starve.
It was like the perfect sanctuary.
"Kugh...."
"You don't seem to have anywhere else to go, so how about staying with me? Just until your body recovers, that is."
"Slurp... mm... gulp."
"Haha, right. What's the point of talking to a child who can't even speak? Just enjoy your meal."
For the first time since he began living in a world filled only with wildness, the Savage Boy felt an infinite love that his stomach couldn't even fully contain.
*****
Several days passed while the boy stayed in the sleeping bag the woman provided.
During that time, the woman spent her days gathering food or Nursing the boy by his side.
The boy did nothing but quietly watch her.
Before long, the boy's body had become quite healthy. No matter how great his regeneration was, he couldn't have recovered that actively on his own; it was thanks to the mysterious white energy the woman infused while nursing him.
The boy did not know the source of that energy or its side effects. However, one thing was certain.
Every time that energy entered him, his wounds healed. Torn flesh knit back together, and broken bone fragments were reconstructed even stronger.
"Kua?"
"Hmm? What is it?"
"Kyaak."
"Ah, you want some food?"
"Kyaaak."
"Alright, alright, just wait a moment."
The woman was the embodiment of a giving tree. Toward such a woman, the boy gradually let down his guard.
His heart was at peace when they were together and anxious when they were apart. He used to feel safest when he was alone, but without realizing it, the boy had become colored by the woman.
"Can you walk now? Do you want to try standing up?"
"Uoh."
As the boy's body recovered significantly and he practiced sitting or standing, the woman would support him without showing a single sign of struggle.
Whenever that happened, the boy would purposely lean his body against the woman. The warm heat conveyed whenever their skin touched was nothing short of a drug to him.
The boy was slowly becoming addicted to the woman. Without even knowing it.
"Chirping little sparrow, are you hungry too?"
"Here, eat this grain and find some strength."
"Look at that sparrow, sweetie. We gave it just a few tiny grains, yet it sings so happily. How joyful it is to be kind to a small creature."
The woman had an incredible affinity for nature. Even the beasts of the Demon Beast Forest, who usually showed only their teeth to the boy, eventually lowered their tails like gentle lambs after experiencing her 'grace,' despite their initial hostility.
Even the ferocious Tom Boars and the Nocturnal Silkworms that had stolen the boy's cave showed no aggression toward her. It wasn't that way from the start, but since the woman never attacked them, they naturally responded in kind.
It was as if she were a being completely blessed by God. Birds sang for her every morning, and beasts refrained from attacking her. This wasn't solely because of the 'strong power' she possessed.
Of course, not every beast and plant was like that.
"Are you cold? You look far too underdressed; would you like to wear some of my clothes if you're okay with that?"
"Uoh."
"Hehe, you like being warm, don't you? By the way, how long must I keep calling you 'you'? It's frustrating that you can't speak."
"Kuaaa?"
"Right! I'll teach you how to speak! It won't be easy, but we have plenty of time anyway!"
Even after several weeks had passed and his body had fully recovered, the boy did not leave the woman's side. The woman, too, did not push him away.
The woman had already become far too deeply embedded in the boy's life for him to leave her. He was now more captivated by the emotional abundance of her company than by the fullness of food or the warmth of the environment.
"Now, try repeating after me."
"Uuh?"
The woman spoke as she gripped a palm-sized stone.
"Stone."
"Stone?"
Next, she gently stroked a towering tree with her palm.
"Wood."
"Wood?"
"You're doing great! Alright, sweetie. Let's try a little more."
The woman's finger pointed toward the sky. The boy followed her gaze, blinking with an innocent look in his eyes.
"Sky."
"Sky?"
"Perfect! Hmm... and... what else would be good? Ah!"
The woman showered him with praise as the boy followed along well. Without even knowing what she was doing, the boy simply felt happy.
The woman's finger circled in the air as she pondered. Her finger finally stopped when her index finger pointed to herself.
"Irowel."
"Irowel?"
"Yes, Irowel. My name is Irowel."
"Irowel? Irowel! Irowel!"
"Hmm... and... you are..."
The woman, having introduced herself as Irowel, pondered once more. Her lost finger wandered hesitantly in the air.
Then, as if she had decided on something, Irowel's hand stopped.
"John."
"John?"
"Yes, John. My most lovely child. John. That will be your name from now on."
"John! John!"
Naturally, the boy could not understand Irowel's words.
Whether a stone was called 'stone,' a tree was called 'wood,' or the sky was called 'sky.'
And whether the woman's name was 'Irowel' and his name was 'John.'
The boy, John, understood none of it.
However—.
"John! John!"
"Speak it often. The words that stick to your tongue will soon become the words most familiar to you."
"Irowel! John! Irowel!"
John was happy, joyful, and content simply by spending time with Irowel.
Whenever Irowel closed her eyes and folded her hands, wishing that 'John could go to Heaven'...
He felt he could proudly tell her, 'Being here with you is Heaven enough.'
John was truly happy.
*****
"Kuaaaaak!"
"John? John! What's wrong!"
"Kyaak! He took it! The old wolf! He took Irowel's food!"
John, who had by now even built a small hut as a home to live in with Irowel, snarled fiercely, baring his teeth.
Hearing that sharp howl, Irowel quickly rushed toward the sound. The source was the food storage.
Arriving at the storage, Irowel was quite surprised to see John. He had a look of total indignation on his face.
"Scarface! That wretched wolf! He stole Irowel's food again!"
"Wait! John, calm down! Just being angry never helps! Scarface must have had a reason!"
"Irowel! There's a limit to how much you can forgive! This has happened so many times! Because you always pretend not to notice! This wolf bastard doesn't know when to stop!"
Scarface was a grizzled wolf living nearby. He frequently stole the food that Irowel and John hunted and gathered.
Usually, John suppressed his anger because Irowel would simply laugh it off, but this time, he couldn't stand it.
Having never known the act of giving, John couldn't understand Irowel's psychology of not getting angry even when robbed. Despite having spent months by her side.
"I can't take it! I'm going to teach him a lesson this time!"
"John! Stop! No!"
"Kuaak! You wolf bastard! How dare you steal Irowel's precious food!"
Enraged, John kicked off the ground. After months of abundance with Irowel, his legs were now packed with bulging muscles.
Besides, he was in his growth spurt. Having grown nearly two spans taller, John had almost reached Irowel's eye level. As the boy, who was quite large for his age, charged forward, he vanished along with a sudden gust of wind.
"John! John! Kugh...!"
Irowel tried to follow the lightning-fast John, but suddenly clutched her chest. a long-suppressed tightness stifled her breath.
"Huff, huff...!"
But she couldn't hesitate. An enraged John might actually crush Scarface's skull. Considering John's grown physical strength, it was entirely possible.
Swallowing the pain, Irowel pressed firmly against the ground. She didn't kick off as powerfully as John, but she flew like a feather, moving faster than he did.
After sprinting across the distance for dozens of seconds, Irowel finally caught up to John.
Having caught him sooner than expected, Irowel was about to demand why he had stopped.
But she noticed that John was standing there, staring blankly at a scene. That was the reason she had been able to catch up so quickly.
"John, what are you looking..."
Catching her breath, Irowel turned her head in the direction John was gazing.
Where her gaze landed.
"Lick, lick, lick—."
"Munch, munch—."
The grizzled wolf, Scarface, was with young wolves who were frantically eating the stolen meat.
And there was Scarface, licking the young wolves with utmost tenderness.
"...."
John was speechless. Until he saw them, he had intended to kill Scarface for stealing food again, but upon seeing the old wolf and the pups, his bloodlust vanished instantly.
Beside him, Irowel's lips moved as she spoke in a quiet whisper.
"Scarface is too old to have the strength to provide for his children. That's why he targeted my storage, which is relatively easier to raid."
"Irowel..."
"John, go get some food."
"Huh?"
"This time, try bringing the food to them with your own hands. If Scarface still steals after that, then it won't be too late to scold him."
"...!"