I, Lacson is a hunter. I used to live with my grandpa in the woods but now it's only me.
I don't blame him for leaving me but it's quite his time really.
It feels lonely living in a cottage in the woods but I can't help it.
"AHH!"
That scream isn't distress but struggle. This woods has a lot of Beasts. But by the looks of it the there is only one screaming.
I rushed to the scream I just heard jumping on trees by tree just to reach it.
I saw the beast which seems to be a great world. They hunt alone without a pack, because they don't need it.
I ran towards it with my machete and with the momentum I accumulated while jumping on the trees I twisted my body and it swirled like a waterwheel in which the river waters are prevalent.
I used that force to hit the Wolf's nape in which it died by having it's spine severed.
I looked at the person who was distressed in which is dressed quite fancy.
Probably a noble, I hate them so much. They're the reason grandpa has to suffer.
But I looked at the noble much more carefully. The chest was curvy and their hair is long.
Oh. It's a noblewoman.
"are you okay?"
I asked with a worried tone, if they're prideful like the last one I'm going to leave them here.
"y-yes... Thank you"
To my surprise she didn't acted like I expected. Though her sword seems to be trashed.
"There's a town nearby" I said as I walk towards her "we can report that your missi-"
At that moment she started wobbling and all I could do is catch her.
...
She fainted, well dealing with a beast without a knowledge in the forest would be suicide. Can't blame her to be exhausted.
I carried her in my back. She seems to be of high ranking. Her uniform is red and white. And to top it off she had white-bluish hair, which seems to be curly. Her eyes was Emerald but it shines like a diamond would.
Though I was finished assessing her I went back home- to my little cottage.
It's not that small but you can't call it big either. It's a middle house honestly.
I let her rest in my room as I started cleaning my grandpa's room that wasn't used for like... 2 years. It seemed like yesterday when I heard him yelling at me, good times.
It took a while to take off all the dusts but all is good when I remembered about the wolf that was killed. Of course I came back and started dismantling it. The rack I use to dry pelts are open, might have a new one to dry honestly. And this meat? Simply delightful. I gathered all the edible and sellable parts then left the remains to other parts of nature.
I can sell the fangs and bones. It took me 2 hours to go the village to sell the items to a local shop
"Ugh... Did you just... Dismantle then came in here again"
"It looses its quality the more I waste time, and besides the sun is about to settle down"
"true, so... Great wolf fangs and liver?"
"yeah"
"here"
I got about 7 silver. Enough for me to live on bread for 2 months. But bread is not the only one I'm going to buy.
By the way.
This is Felto is a local material gatherer. Since there are people who aren't registered to the adventurers guild they sell their stuff here.
Well, I checked the ingredients back at home before going here. I need black pepper and some green chili peppers.
Salt can still last me about a week.
I went to their respective shops and of course I couldn't go in because of the smell.
"Lacson! I told you not to come in here smelling like that!"
"sorry, I need to sell the parts fresh hehe"
"don't hehe me!"
This one is Marian, she's already in her 30's but she's still fierce as I remember.
"here's Black pepper and the green chili pepper you asked, that'll be 4 silver"
"any discount?"
She looked at me like I'm crazy I laughed then handed her 4 silvers. Seasonings are mad expensive.
I started walking back home with hands full of stuff, the sun is about to go down, so I tucked my stuff and started leaping from tree to tree. I managed to get there on 15 minutes. My biological clock is inhumane.
I went ahead and placed the ingredients down on the table, then checked the guest. Still asleep from fainting, well time to get to work.
I have onions that I picked from my garden and have them cleaned. I heated my pot on medium, starting with the onions I sliced them along the crushed garlic. I took out the meat from the wolf earlier that I deemed edible. Ribs and then the hind legs.
Before the pot becomes fully hot I make sure to put oil in it. Tiny in amounts though, cooking oil is precious. When I reached and placed my palm above the pot and deemed it warm enough I placed the garlic and Onion in it and of course, saute. The smell was appetizing
After a while I then put the wolf meat ribs, which was of course I made into tiny pieces before hand and used my slotted spoon to saute again for a few minutes. Then placed the lid for the pot.
After that I heard the rumbling stomach behind me in which I looked at a woman holding her stomach drooling around the floor. I can't help but look at her and laugh.
"Hahaha! You could've slept for a while you know"
"I... I can't help it" she speaks embarrassed
"Well take a sit, it will take a while before I finish this."
She did as followed and sat on the chair across the table, there was three there actually but now it's two chairs because my grandpa just left. Of well good this I didn't bother to put the chair back on the attic.
I opened the lid on the pot and poured fish sauce then covered it again. It took a while so while that is cooking I cooked rice without a rice cooker. It's not really tough. The hard part about this is that the Merchant from the east only comes in here once a week with 5 kilo of rice. It seems to be sold a lot before coming to the nearest town.
"wow... You can cook two at a time?"
"yeah, quite a skill to have, right?"
I opened the lid of the pot, glad I'm learned about magic or else if I use the way people cook here my food would've been roasted.
Now the ribs have their water and oil rubbed off the meat and is now cooking along the oil, garlic and onion I'm cooking I can now place water which is a cup full. I covered it again and looked at the woman sitting across the table.
"So would you tell me your story?"
"oh- okay... But first, my name is... Yvonne"
"I'm Lacson"
"Well I was doing some hunting on my own then got lost"
"pfft, very plausible"
"ugh.. "
When I sneered at her story it seems I hit a mark. How could a noble got lost when the forest is clearly labeled as dangerous?
Wouldn't it be best if she just went the other forest which is much more safer than this one?
"well! How could you live inside the forest then!"
She claims
"I was born here"
She was shocked on what I said. How could a child live in the forest?
"don't worry my grandpa used to live with me"
"oh! So you weren't alone, okay"
"well yeah, for a while I won't be"
She seems confused by those words, but she soon realizes that what I said was a fact.
"well"
I snickered
"It's not bad eating with a stranger sometimes"
As I look at the food I'm cooking again. The rice is almost there. So I focused on the soup I'm making. I added the green tiny fruits which I call Kansas. Let it simmer for a while then placed all the vegetables, which includes tomatoes, water spinach stirred it for a while then added the green chili pepper, placed the cover and let it cook like that.
"That's taking a while"
Yvonne broods
"haha, of course, that's how I was taught after all"
"Your food here seems exotic"
"I agree with that haha"
I started to clean up the things I used to prepare the soup with and sat down across Yvonne
"What will you do after eating? Walking to town takes about 2 hours"
"So you walk about 4 hours in total just to buy and go home?"
"No I just walked today for you to understand"
Her eyes widened in surprise I can understand what she's thinking 'then do you run?' 'do you ride a horse?' which I found cute.
"I leap through trees since there is no roads here"
"What?!"
Answering two of her questions in mind seems to be more surprising.
I then started turning off the heat on both pots
I grabbed the plates and set them on the tables along with the utensils, all of them are made of wood. I served both rice and soup on a bowl which I served in front of her.
"How... How did you walked there for 2 hours without having the forest obstructing you?"
"I have a lot of patience so I took a lot of detour"
"ah... "
"so don't worry there's a path"
"huh?"
"I memorized the path on where I walked so don't worry"
"Hah?!"
She seems shook, dumbfounded and overall surprised. Her emotions are jumbled. But the food before her is much more important
She just sat down and ate
"T-this!"
"hm?"
"This is delicious! Like... " she gulps it down "Sour... But leaves a good after taste!"
"of course. So just keep eating or I'll eat your fill"
"ah!"
She seems a lively and cheerful woman, though her actions seems innocent but speaks a caged bird personality.
After eating my fill I placed it down the sink in which I have a bucket and cup ready for washing the utensils.
"uhm... "
I looked at her, she's fidgeting on the table. I sighed and asked
"What is it?"
"I-ill wash the dishes, I feel bad just eating here... "
"if you want to thank me just pay me solid"
"huh?"
"money"
I did the okay sign and she looked at me with a hint of disappointment.
"don't look at me like that, I need to live too ya know"
"True... "
I finished washing the dishes in which I dry on a rack and looked at her
"Since it's evening, you can sleep on my room, I sleep on the vacant room"
"What do you mean?! I-im already–"
"The vacant room is haunted"
She stopped speaking and puffed her cheeks
"G-ghosts and others aren't real!"
"then you can take the vacant room"
I chuckled
"n-no! Since you offered I will take your room"
So easy, can't believe she would be scared of ghosts, I chuckle at that idea.
"ah, any way, Yvonne"
"y-yes?"
"You're a noble right?"
"of course"
"What's your surname?"
"ah... "
She hesitated at the moment.
"Yvonne Al Fuduante"
I froze, Suddenly my head ringing reminding me of a young girl and a voice of an seemingly sick guy.
"Jessie, what's that?"
"My friend at school recommended me this Novel dad! You should read it too!"
The girl seemed excited, looked me in the eye.
"Dad, it's called 'The Fairy of the Castle'"
By then I realized. I was the one being called dad. And that memory is when I was dying of a disease and my daughter brought me a novel which was very popular then. I was reading the half of the book. On which the villainess back story was revealed. She was the child of the princess and a barbarian, who forced himself on the princess. A bastard child.
And that barbarian right now. Is me.
"Lacson?"
I looked at her, Yvonne eyes is filled with worries.
"ah, nothing I just remembered something about my grandpa"
"oh- well.. "
"good night, Yvonne, don't stay up late" I slowly closed the door. In the other side the last thing I saw was a slightly blushing Yvonne.
I sat down on the bed and started thinking for a while. I don't really have anything against the novel so I won't change anything except having a Villainess born, which of course, not forcing myself to the princess. Which is Yvonne.
I nodded agreeing with myself. We could just report a missing noble and the authorities will look for her.