"And if you have any worries, meet 'Big Mouth'. Who knows? Your worries might be completely resolved."
"······."
'Big Mouth' is the tribe's only shaman and healer. I said okay for now because I was grateful for her concern for me.
"Yeah. I'll go and look."
As if he had finished saying what he wanted to say, 'The Moon Rises' hurriedly left the shack so as not to disturb me.
"Is it right to seek out a sorcerer?"
In Korean terms, 'big mouth' can be seen as a shaman. Suddenly, something I saw on the Internet came to mind. When you are psychologically anxious, you can find peace of mind and body by pouring out your worries and concerns to someone.
"Yeah. Just listening to me can help."
Of course, I won't go into detail about how I'm from the distant future and have gaming system capabilities.
"By the way, why is the chief looking for me?"
I felt anxious for no reason.
'You're not telling me to leave, are you?'
Even now, no one within the tribe has touched me or made me do anything separately. While staying in this village, I continued to eat only rice.
To be honest, I was a little bit aware of it. Of course, whenever a quest came up, I joined the hunt and earned a little bit of money.
However, it probably wouldn't have been of much help in hunting.
"Whew! I don't know why you're calling me, but I have to answer correctly if I want to stay safe here."
Now there was nowhere to go. Also, the area outside the village was extremely dangerous to wander around alone.
* * *
Communal hut. The elders of the tribe were smoking cigarettes and talking about 'the very big soy sauce, Icheonil'.
"The great soy sauce chief, Lee Cheon-il, has been teaching fighting techniques to the children and warriors of the tribe since morning."
"That's right. The town seems to be more lively now that the guys who usually wake up late are waking up early."
"It looks nice even to me."
The 'Forest Hunter' sat deep in thought, listening to the elders' conversation without saying a word. After watching him from the side, it seemed that Lee Cheon-il was only big in stature, but as expected, he didn't know how to do anything properly.
His hunting skills were poor, and he didn't know how to dismantle hides. They didn't even know how to make things or weapons that were necessary for real life.
'I don't know how I survived in the forest.'
At first, I didn't like my current position very much, but I called for Lee Cheon-il at the request of the elders.
'······Still, I'm grateful that you're teaching me fighting skills.'
At that moment, a warrior waiting outside the hut spoke.
"A very large soy sauce jar, Lee Cheon-il, has arrived."
The elders, including the 'Hunter of the Forest', straightened their posture.
"Come in."
Lee Cheon-il, who had been waiting outside, entered the communal hut filled with cigarette smoke.
'You smoked a lot.'
Maybe it's because I don't smoke, but I still can't get used to cigarette smoke.
'Ouch! I can't breathe!'
As I unconsciously frowned because of the cigarette smoke, the 'Hunter of the Forest' coughed uncomfortably and said.
"Ahem! Since we've come to the communal hut, you should smoke one too."
I wanted to give up. However, since it was an old tradition of the tribe, I couldn't refuse it. Exchanging pipes and smoking a cigarette was a sacred ritual that purified each other's souls.
He took the pipe handed to him by the 'Hunter of the Forest' and smoked it. He smoked the cigarette only through his mouth, without inhaling deeply into his lungs.
Phew!
After a while, in a good atmosphere, the chief and the elders began asking questions. I tried to answer truthfully and honestly as possible.
"Are there any inconveniences or difficulties you face while living in the village?"
In fact, there were many difficulties and more than one or two inconveniences. A hard bed, drinking water, shower facilities, etc.
But, if I wanted to stay here, I couldn't tell the truth. He paused for a moment and spoke calmly in these languages.
"The townspeople. Friendly. Comfortable. Good."
"I'm glad you're doing well here."
"thank you."
There was a back and forth of questions and answers for a while. The expressions on the faces of the chiefs and elders grew brighter as they heard my answer.
As the silence flowed for a moment, the gazes of the elders sent silent pressure, and the 'Forest Hunter' slowly opened his mouth.
"You're teaching fighting skills to the children and warriors of the tribe these days?"
"Yes. Fighting skills. I learn them. They want to. So I teach them."
I couldn't explain it in detail in the languages I know. However, the elders looked at me with satisfied expressions, as if they understood what I said.
The 'Forest Hunter' cleared his throat and opened his mouth again.
"I was going to ask you to do this anyway… Since you've taken the time to teach the children and warriors fighting skills, I'd like to thank you on behalf of the tribe."
"······."
"Please continue to take care of us. And we would like to help you… Is there anything you need to teach the children and warriors?"
"···hmm!"
I was a little nervous because I thought I'd be told to leave, but in an instant, my body relaxed.
'Whew! Thank goodness. I was nervous for nothing.'
I didn't answer right away, but thought about it carefully.
'What do you need?'
I briefly thought of the gym, but then a notification sound came into my head.
[Tiring!]
[Quest has been started.]
[Quest: Complete the unconfirmed map of New York.]
[Reward: A certain amount of experience points.]
It's a new quest.
'Map making···'
I was so out of it last night that I didn't get to really look into the special ability 'Map Making'. But, I felt like it would be of great help to me as I go forward in life.
First of all, I was humbled.
"Warrior. Training. Not really. Needed."
"······."
The 'Forest Hunter' paused and glanced at the elders.
"Then is there anything you would like to ask?"
He asked boldly, as if he had been waiting for those words to come out.
"Please. I have it."
"Don't be afraid and speak comfortably."
"Hunting. Going out. Far away. Somewhere. Going. Me too. Taking you. Going."
Before the 'Forest Hunter' could answer, the elders spoke one by one as if it were nothing.
"Haha! I don't need to ask for a favor."
"That's a request, I can easily grant it."
"I thought it was some big favor. Hahaha!"
The 'Hunter of the Forest' thought for a moment, then asked with an indifferent expression.
"Very big soy sauce, two thousand days! Yes. Before that, I would like to hear the reason why you asked me that."
"······."
Suddenly, the story took a different turn than I expected, and I was speechless for a moment.
'I can't tell you because of the quest.'
Just then, a suitable excuse occurred to me.
"I'm good at fighting. But my hunting skills are lacking. I want to learn."
A faint smile appeared on the lips of the 'Forest Hunter' at my answer, then disappeared. The elders around him praised and exalted me.
"That's a very good attitude for a great warrior."
"Yes, the more a person learns, the better."
"Haha! I have an unmarried granddaughter in my family. If you like her, you can connect her with my granddaughter."
"What? We decided not to talk about that here."
"Who doesn't have a granddaughter?"
"The feelings of the parties involved are the most important, so let's do it fairly."
The elders bickered among themselves as if they had chosen me as their granddaughter's groom. At that moment, the chief hurriedly ended the meeting as if he was offended by their conversation.
"Okay, I'll grant your request. Come in."
"thank you."
When I came out of the shack, I burst out laughing at the absurdity of what had just happened.
"I don't even think about who to give rice cakes to, but I'm drinking kimchi stew first."
And a new quest appeared.
[Tiring!]
[Quest has been activated.]
[Quest: Work with the villagers to build a food storage facility.]
[Reward: A small amount of experience points.]
"I guess I won't be going out today either."
* * *
Eastern part of the upper reaches of the Muhekunnetuk River (Hudson River). A clan of the Pequot tribe settled upriver among thick forests and swamps.
The Pequot tribe, numbering about one hundred and fifty, was busy preparing for war, day after day. And they were having a meeting in the communal hut, centered around the chieftain, 'Brave Snake'.
"What's going on with the boat crossing the river?"
"It's still drying."
"Keep drying it so it's not lacking."
"Yes, Chief!"
The warriors of the tribe who had sent out scouts returned safely with good news. We've had quite a bit of trouble finding Lenape men to become slaves for the tribe, but so far things have been going smoothly.
'You dare kill my warriors and run away?'
Blood is the price of revenge. It must be trampled down so thoroughly that it can never be revealed again. For a moment, a strong murderous look flashed through the eyes of the 'Brave Snake'.
"How many soldiers are currently participating in the war?"
"About seventy."
"···hmm!"
No matter how I thought about it, there were not enough warriors. This raid was not about stealing food or kidnapping women, it was about war.
The 'Brave Snake', who intended to kill all the Lenape men regardless of their age, gave immediate orders.
"I heard that the Lenape tribe of the Great Turtles is also a fairly large village. Shouldn't they have at least twice as many warriors as they do?"
The 'Horned Toad' who had been reporting in front of him nodded his head slightly as if agreeing with the chief's opinion.
"If that happens, it will be easier to win the war."
"Then send men to the neighboring tribes and ask them to support the warriors in my name and honor."
"Understood, Chief!"
The 'Horned Toad' answered forcefully. After a while, as the tribal council was over and the Horned Toad was hurriedly leaving the hut, the Brave Snake muttered with a leisurely expression.
"A white person... I don't know how big he is, but he would be perfect as a slave to lift my feet."
* * *
It was a little hot because it was midday. In addition, his whole body was drenched in sweat from digging the ground hard to create a food storage area with the tribesmen.
Pook! Pook pook pook! Pook! Pook!
The hoe in my hand dug the ground without hesitation. Two young men who were digging the hole with me were also working hard on the other side.
When the two-meter-wide hole became twice as deep as my height, the chief immediately gave the order to change shifts.
"Stop it, switch places with other people."
"Yes, Chief!"
Just then, the shift changer came down a wooden ladder into the hole I was in. The people who were in the pit with me climbed up the ladder one by one.
The 'Hunter of the Forest' looked at me as I emerged from the pit and gave me a compliment, not a compliment, with a look of approval.
"Is it because you're so strong? You work quite quickly compared to the other guys. Let's go rest in the shade over there for a bit."
"yes."
I picked up the furred hide that the 'Forest Hunter' had given me and walked towards the shade with the young men who had dug the hole with me.
After wiping the sweat from my face, I rested in the shade and watched the next task.
"That's enough depth for the entrance. Now, we'll dig a little bit to the side to create space."
"Yes, Chief!"
The work crew, which included the 'Honest Bear', began digging the ground again under the direction of the 'Forest Hunter'.
This time it's not a pit, it's a cave.
"Hmm! Is this similar to the kimchi pots our ancestors used to make?"
By the way, it seemed like the work of building a food storage facility wouldn't be completed in a day.
"It looks like it'll take a few more days to complete the quest."
* * *
As the sun set, the work of building food storage facilities was postponed until the next day. After washing my dirty body in the river, I returned to the hut and had dinner.
"The days go by so quickly."
I lay in bed and tried to force myself to close my eyes, but I couldn't sleep. And I kept thinking about the reality right before my eyes, and my mind became confused and depressed.
"When I'm working hard, I don't even think about it."
After a while, I came out and was standing in front of the shack where the sorcerer was staying, with a conflicted look on my face.
'Whew! Why did I come here?'
After hesitating for a while, I turned around. At that moment, a voice called 'Big Mouth' was heard from inside the shack.
"I've been waiting for you to come for a long time. Why have you come now?"
"······."
Stop! I stood still without saying anything.
"I have a lot to tell you. Why don't you come in quickly? Why are you doing this?"