Despite having been shocked by recent events, Aric and his tamed beast, the Basilisk wrymling, quickly got over it and he began skinning the other carcass.
He knew how to do this from his many years of experience working at the stable.
On the days when he was ordered to put down a horse due to illness or old age, he was also required to skin it for pelt that would be used to create saddlers, and the meat was distributed to those in need, himself included.
He spent roughly thirty minutes making quick work of the thick coat adorning the carcass, and he began butchering the meat, dividing it into clean-cut sections.
He felt a bit guilty for using his sword for such tedious tasks, but then he remembered who he got it from and the guilt dispersed like smoke in the wind.
He even had the urge to wipe his rear with —
[... Yeah, I probably shouldn't do that.]
"Sigh... What am I to do with all this meat?"
"Tweeet~ Gulp! "
The wrymling swooped in and swallowed a piece whole.
"H-hey! That was one of the best pieces you greedy bastard, spit it out!"
"T-tweet? "
The serpent pretended not to understand a single word he said and continued to push down the tenderloin down its belly.
"Tch... You're lucky I still have one more."
"Here! Eat these bones!"
He picked out a few bones he planned to use for himself and threw the rest at the wrymling.
"Tweeet~"
And it was more than happy to swallow them whole, including the innards, hooves and the large head despite its dangerous horns.
"Haha..."
[He's like a living waste pit.]
Aric chuckled and wrapped whatever was left of it with the large, cotton-like pelt, safe for the fat, which he gathered into lumps and placed to the side.
He the turned his attention to the twigs, dried wood and a cluster of dried vines which he had asked the wrymling to gather.
"Hm... Do you want me to give you a name?"
"Tweeet~ "
The wrymling was extremely elated, leaving him wondering once again why it could understand such concepts when it had just hatched.
But he grew weary of such thoughts and chose not to think about it anymore, so as to avoid a migraine.
"Alright... I'll think about it."
He said, causing the Basilisk to sulk.
Aric ignored it and applied some of the fat to the gathered wood, twigs and dried vines.
[Mana is a bit strange...]
[It's not exactly fire, but it has enough heat to ignite something that's flammable.]
Aric made a clever observation, having already understood the nature of the energy he wielded to an extent.
He then lit a fire with the plasma that lovingly clung to his being and began cooking a few pieces he hand-picked, the sizzling meat and fat exuding an aroma that caused his mouth to water, and gastric juices to fill up his empty stomach.
"Can you use your senses to find us some water?"
He turned to the wrymling and hoped it would say yes.
[I'll need water to drink and to soften this pelt.]
"Tweeet~ "
The wrymling chirped happily and slithered away, it seemed rather excited to explore the forest all on its own.
"..."
Seeing this, Aric felt... Strange.
"... Why am I so worried?"
He fortified his mind and swallowed the uneasiness that rose to his chest due to being separated from the Basilisk hatchling.
"Sigh... What am I, its mother?"
He couldn't help but utter those words, because although he had only been in the company of the wrymling for a few hours at most, the bond they shared was strong and genuine.
As though forged under years of shared hardships and happy moments.
[Is it because it's so cute?]
[Or maybe...]
[... I feel guilty about killing its mother?]
[No, definitely not!]
He pressed his lips together and attempted to make sense of why he was so fond of it, because it clearly wasn't —
Sizzle!
"Aaaargh!!! Damnit I burnt the tenderloin!!"
...
///
"Whew~ I'm so full."
Aric rubbed his satiated belly that was stretched to the extreme, it almost looked like he was expecting.
Despite not having any seasonings added, the Nyxhorn Bison's meat was extremely tasty, having a delicate balance of natural bitter, sweet and tangy flavors.
So he naturally couldn't help but indulge himself. He simply couldn't get enough of it.
"..."
He wiped the grease off his mouth and stared at the dark green canopies above, which deprived the forest bed of sunlight.
The distant echoes of wildlife somehow inducing his strange longing once more.
[Why isn't he back yet?]
[Did something happen?]
He felt slightly anxious, but...
[No... I can feel him, he's still alive.]
For reasons he couldn't quite explain, he could sense the wrymling's life force and vitality, and if he really focused...
[Ah! Here he comes.]
... He could pinpoint its exact location, as though he were watching it from above.
"Tweeet!! "
It announced its presence as it slithered fluidly through the treetops, and despite the fact that it was a newborn, its length was a sight to behold.
One could easily confuse it for a boa constrictor or a python.
"Sigh... You stuffed yourself again?! Is that why you took so long?"
Aric scolded, he could see the layouts of multiple small animals on the serpent's belly.
"Tweet."
The Basilisk wrymling chirped sarcastically and rolled its yellow eyes, its tail pointing at Aric's belly that looked like it would rupture at any moment.
"S-shut up I'm nothing like you!"
He felt slightly embarrassed and feigned a cough.
"Anyway, did you find water?"
He asked the wrymling that slowly slithered down from the canopies.
"Tweeet! "
It said yes, and wrapped itself around his neck like a scarf, licking his face with its forked tongue.
"Hehe, did you miss me?"
He gently pet the young serpent before it wrapped itself around his arm to lead the way.
"Alright then, let me first pick up these..."
"..."
"Wait..."
"Tweet? "
He studied the serpent's body.
"Huh?! How have you already digested all those animals?!"
His eyes widened in bewilderment at the young Basilisk's now slender frame.
"Tweet! "
"That's nonsense, where did it all go?!"
"Tweet! Tweet! "
"No way! Get off me, you're going to poop on my shoulders!"
"Tweet?! Tweet! Tweet! "
"Ugh! Stop biting me, get off!!"
The two bickered back and forth, their loud voices echoing throughout the quiet forest chasm.
//
The serene quiet of nature — Or rather, the eerie silence of the forest chasm soon returned as Aric and his wrymling concluded their bickering.
They'd been traveling for about fifteen minutes at that point, and Aric had wrapped all that remained from the Bison's carcass with its pelt and tied it with a vine, allowing him to drag it along the path.
"Tweet! Tweet! "
"Oh? We're here?"
[I don't hear any flowing water though...]
He feared that the wrymling had led him to a body of stagnant water, which was not safe to drink for obvious reasons.
Although he had earlier drank from the cave, he only did so out of desperation and because the water was so clear.
Crackle!
He ignited his body to survey the area, and it was just as he feared, the wrymling had led him to a pond of murky, dark water.
"Sigh..."
[I should've been specific.]
He mused and opted to just use it only to soften the pelt, hoping he'd find a safer source later on.
But...
[!!]
... He felt goosebumps, as though something was watching him, or rather, warning him not get closer to the water.