Spring is such a joyful season, isn't it? After a long, cold winter, it's a time when people can finally start a new year without having to endure the cold. Food is easier to obtain, and the variety is gradually becoming richer.So, when winter turns to spring, it's the most important festival of the year for many people. Not only humans, but also dwarves, orcs, elves, and even ogres place the most important celebrations in spring. But, of course, every story is unique, and some folks, like the residents of the underground world, might have a different experience. For some, like the snow demons, spring might not be their favorite season. But for most of us, spring is a time of joy.When the warm and humid air currents made their way across the coastal mountains, reaching the village of Rutherland, the villagers knew that spring had arrived once again.
Rutherland, nestled at the foot of the Coastal Mountains, is a tiny, unassuming spot in this vast mountain range that stretches for thousands of miles. It's one of the many human settlements in the area, part of the Barony of Tak and the territory of the Holy Alliance Empire.But even if you measured it straight-line distance, Baron Tak's castle is still almost 300 kilometers away. The baron's tax collector only comes to visit during the autumn harvest, and even then, the lord doesn't seem to notice much. The tax is pretty small, just a few local products found only in the mountains, and it doesn't really affect the villagers' daily lives. But the village's production is limited, so if the tax gets bigger, it might start to affect their survival.
Life in the mountains isn't as hard as it seems, though, as long as you put in the work throughout the year.When spring comes, the land outside the village is ready to be cultivated, and crops are sown for harvest in summer.Hunters start to enter the forest, and at this time, the monsters that have been hungry for a winter in the depths of the forest gradually wake up and start looking for food. They can be dangerous and extremely aggressive. But there's a silver lining: some of these monsters have special glands that can be used as precious medicinal materials or spices. These are only in the best quality at this time of year, and can be sold at the highest price.Every year, hunters brave the dangers of the forest, and although there will be casualties, they will still go into the mountains as they always have.So in Rutherland Village, the goddess of the forest and hunting is really appreciated. You know, in addition to the Eternal Dragon, there are as many gods and beliefs on the Norland continent as the stars above.The Norland continent is a land of abundant resources, a land that worships strength, and a land with strict hierarchy.Even a remote and peaceful village like Rutherland is deeply marked by the times.The villagers are simple and sincere, but they also respect the strong and despise the weak. Even in a small village with just a few dozen households, there's a hidden hierarchy.
Outside the village, a small figure appeared. It was a boy, carrying a basket on his back that was almost as tall as himself, filled with breadfruit.In the spring, the winter's reserves were almost depleted, and the new crops hadn't been harvested yet. This fruit, which tasted not very good, was an important food. It was easy to get, just go to the woods next to the village to pick it up.
Behind the little boy, three teenagers who were a whole head taller than him appeared in a group.They were holding hunting bows and short forks, with short knives on their waists, and carrying deer, rabbits and other prey on their backs.Although they were less than ten years old, they could go into the mountains to hunt. Their prey wasn't some kind of wild beast, but rather tame animals.The main way to hunt was to rely on traps, but this was already very difficult.Most of the civilians and nobles in the town were still learning and practicing under the wings of their parents at this time.The leading boy suddenly shouted, "Hey, Eldrin, where is your father? Didn't he teach you to hunt? When I was your age, I ventured into the mountains alone to set traps and catch rabbits!"A nearby boy laughed and replied, "Children without fathers can only pick up fruits!"The three older boys laughed and walked past the little boy towards the village, their steps relaxed, and it was hard to tell that each of them was carrying dozens of kilograms of prey.The little boy ignored the teasing and kept walking towards the village with his basket on his back. A kind, middle-aged man sitting at the entrance of the village had seen the whole thing. He waved to the little boy and called him over.Then he gave the boy a piece of dried monster meat, rubbed his head lovingly, and asked, "Little Eldrin, aren't you angry that Piru and the others bullied you like this?I will teach them a lesson later.Even if they are children, they should not speak too harshly."
Surprisingly, the little boy shook his head and said, "No, I'm not angry."The man scratched his head thoughtfully, feeling a bit puzzled. He thought he was scared of the older boys and couldn't help but want to say something.Children in the mountains might not have many things, but they're always full of joy and spirit.The little boy smiled and said, "Even without a father, I have the best mother!"
After hearing this, the man just shook his head and smiled, saying, "That's it, that's it."The little boy hummed a cheerful tune, carrying a big basket on his back, and skipped happily towards the village. Eldrin's gloom had been swept away, and he felt rejuvenated. His mother had always told him that he should always try to find joy in every moment.
This year, little Eldrin was six years old, and he had learned to be happy.The middle-aged man was named Bobby, the blacksmith in the village, and the boy's mother was said to be a magic apprentice.When she came to Rutherland Village alone, the little Eldrin in her arms was still in her cradle.She was not a very beautiful woman, but she was gentle as water. Her arrival brought a new, hopeful atmosphere to the small village.For the first time, the village had a doctor, Elaine. She opened a small pharmacy on the edge of the village, and although she could only make the most basic potions, she saved the lives of more than one villager in the first year. This heartwarming gesture was met with gratitude by the village elders, and they officially welcomed Elaine into their fold as a valuable member of their community.Rutherford Village is a place where life unfolds at a tranquil pace. The majority of its residents are hunters, but there are also a few professionals, including Elaine, who not only serves as a doctor but also a blacksmith. The village chief, a retired non-commissioned officer, also plays a crucial role in keeping the village running smoothly.Life in Rutherford Village is a beautiful blend of tranquility and community spirit. Time seems to move at a leisurely pace, and before they know it, spring has come around again.Little Eldrin has grown another dozen centimeters, and now he looks like a child of eight or nine.According to the tradition of Rut'theran Village, he should have learned how to make and lay traps to hunt rabbits and other small creatures. In a forest not far from Rut'theran Village, there are many small monsters of this kind, but large monsters are almost nowhere to be seen. That is the reserve where the village trains children.Hunters never hunt small animals there, but they patrol regularly to clean up the dangerous large monsters that occasionally break into the deep forest.However, every few days, little Eldrin still carries a basket up the mountain. It's not too big, but it shows that he's still picking fruit. Breadfruit isn't the most delicious, and there are a lot of them all over the mountain. The villagers like the delicious monster meat, even if it's not the tastiest. It can make you stronger, though.Eldrin started picking fruits when he was little, just like his mother wanted. He also had to collect herbs, four kinds of each season, and then process them according to the established and complicated process.Half of the process had to be completed when picking the herbs, and the other half had to be done after returning home.What he didn't understand was that breadfruit also had to be processed in a similar way, and the process and time were much more.No one in the village had ever done this. Breadfruit was the easiest food to get. After it was ripe, it would fall to the ground naturally overnight and could be eaten directly after picking it up.However, his mother required that breadfruit could not be picked up from the ground, but had to be picked from the main trunk.There were fixed requirements for the size and color of the selected breadfruit, and the picking method was also special. Eldrin didn't understand why, and he didn't think there was any difference in the taste of the breadfruit brought back by the special method, but as long as he didn't pick the breadfruit according to the requirements, his mother would pick it out.After several times when she gave him a hard time, little Eldrin no longer played tricks, but was serious and did every tedious step well. It wasn't until winter, when the breadfruit couldn't be picked anymore, that his mother let him know this was to help him develop perseverance.This year, Eldrin was seven. At seven, he remembered that he had to be persistent in doing things.If there was anything unpleasant in his memory of being seven, it was that he had breadfruit for dinner every night.This little thing eventually became one of his lingering nightmares in his childhood.
The new spring has arrived, and Rutherland Village remains the same. Bobby the blacksmith is still single, Elaine's pharmacy business has not improved, and the village chief is as strong as ever and always rushes to the front when a difficult monster appears.Eldrin was finally able to learn how to set traps, and it's been great to see him grow so much. Meanwhile, Piru and his friends had already started carrying short bows and following the hunters from the village into the mountains. They're growing up so fast! They're already ten, and in the city, people might think they're fifteen or sixteen.
Making traps is a science, and you need a lot of experience, keen eyes, nimble hands, and a little luck. It's hard to make a trap without getting hurt, unless you're an experienced hunter. Eldrin is so talented! For the first time, he showed his talent by outsmarting the boys in the village. The traps he laid on the first day were a great success and were praised by adults in the whole village. Bobby, the blacksmith, told everyone about it and was so happy that it seemed as if Eldrin was his own son.However, almost everyone in the village knew what he was thinking. If Eldrin could call him father, Bobby would probably be willing to close the blacksmith shop.
As time went on, Eldrin became quite skilled in his craft, venturing deep into the reservation to set traps that were both complex and large. He was determined to test his luck, hoping to catch a big catch.And catch one he did! One day, a Kamchatka wild boar appeared, running straight into his trap. The trap, made with care from thorns, vines, and nails, snagged the boar's front legs. The wild boar, despite its strength, found itself unable to break free from Eldrin's trap, which was meticulously crafted and balanced in every way.The struggle was intense, with both creatures pulling and shaking in a desperate attempt to break free. Eldrin, hidden nearby and observing, felt his nerves jitters as he struggled to trust his hunting knife. The injured wild boar posed a serious threat. The little Kamchatka wild boar was just a child, despite his brave demeanor.Eldrin was sure the prey couldn't escape, and he was about to rush out, when he felt a strong force push him out fiercely. He fell heavily to the ground, feeling dizzy and smelling a strange fishy smell in his mouth and nose. He heard the sound of a bowstring, and then the screams of the wild boar. A few cheers sounded nearby, and Eldrin recognized the sound. He climbed up and saw Piru and three other boys who had appeared out of nowhere. It was one of them who had just pushed him out. Piru was holding a hunting bow and looking at the poor Kamchatka wild boar with a smug look on his face.An arrow was stuck in the boar's neck. Hitting the boar with one arrow was no easy feat, even if it was caught. The boar was jumping and pushing its body around.
"You stole my prey!" Eldrin suddenly realized what they were going to do and shouted angrily."Everyone here can prove that I shot the wild boar. How can you call it robbery? Is it because you set a trap? Good hunters know that this kind of trap is only used to catch rabbits." Piru said, looking at Eldrin with a hint of disdain. He was almost a head taller than Eldrin, and his physique was clearly stronger. In fact, his strength was almost equal to that of an adult. This was because Piru was the son of the village chief, and as a retired non-commissioned officer, the village chief often hunted some powerful monsters from the mountains. Eating the meat of such monsters was very useful for strengthening the body.
"Then why did you come here to shoot wild boars?" Eldrin asked, leaving Piru speechless.They looked down on Eldrin's thinness, but had to admit that Eldrin was indeed very smart.It was said that he could write a lot of words.But Piru and the other young men did not respect Eldrin for this. They thought that knowing how to write wasn't directly related to hunting, so it wasn't clear why Eldrin was so invested in it.
This made Piru feel really angry. He waved his hand in a show of frustration, and a young man nearby stepped in front of Eldrin, pushing him to the ground.
Eldrin got up, his face red with embarrassment, his hands tightly holding the hunting knife. The energy he was showing made the other teenagers feel a strong sense of unease. In the end, the hunting knife wasn't pulled out. When he hesitated, Piru kicked him in the stomach.The teenagers rushed forward, snatched the hunting knife, and then beat him up with punches and kicks. Poor Eldrin took a beating, even having his head stepped on and his face crushed deep into the mud!
The mountain boys were strong, so the beating was really hard. Eldrin didn't put up a fight or beg for mercy, but he endured it all with a brave face.As Piru beat him, he became more and more angry, and his hits got stronger and stronger. He felt contempt for Eldrin's silent endurance.
"Still not convinced? Not convinced?"The boys beat him harder and harder.Eldrin seemed like a body that wasn't his own, and he just let them hit him.Before long, Piru was scared. He was afraid that if he really hurt Eldrin, he would definitely get a good beating when he returned home.The village chief was known for his strength, and Elaine had always had a good reputation in the village.The boys gradually stopped, and Eldrin slowly got up after a long while.Piru threw a few harsh words and walked away with the wild boar. When they were far enough away, little Eldrin, who was still in a lot of pain, fell down under a tree. He rested for a long time and then struggled to stand up and walked home.At night, Elaine looked at the bruised little Eldrin and burst into tears. The boy comforted her and said that it was okay, just a little painful.After applying the medicine, the boy looked at his mother and asked, "You still can't fight back?""Yeah!" Elaine gritted her teeth and nodded vigorously.
"Okay, I won't fight back, but I won't give in either."
In the following days, Piru troubled Eldrin several times, and the process was nothing more than beating him severely. But the worst times, until everyone was tired of beating Eldrin, he just couldn't get up at all. Piru didn't wait for the boy to surrender or beg for mercy, and he didn't even hear a groan.Every time they were tired of beating and were ready to leave, Eldrin would slowly get up and look at Piru quietly.That calm and peaceful look made Piru feel cold in the deepest part of his heart. It was as if he were looking at a dead person.From that year on, Piru began to have nightmares. Every time he beat Eldrin, he would have nightmares for days.Eldrin never resisted or struggled, and Piru became stronger and stronger, and the size difference between the two was even widening.But every time he saw Eldrin, Piru would see the boy's calm eyes, and then he would have nightmares for days. There was one thing Piru couldn't understand, which was why Eldrin didn't go to his father to complain.If the boy did that, Piru would at least be whipped a few times, but Eldrin never mentioned the beatings to anyone in the village.The boys gradually troubled Eldrin less and less, and once, when the boy smiled at them with blood on his lips, the boys dispersed. That was the last time they troubled Eldrin.
When Eldrin was just eight years old, he learned a valuable lesson in fortitude.