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Chapter 68: Hunting Season (3)

“What...”

The man placed the manticore’s hide and heart in his sack. Then he ripped apart the manticore\'s wing joints to extract their bloody membranes. He harvested various parts of the manticore’s body for purposes unknown to Crockta and Tiyo before turning around and heading back to where he had come from.

Crockta and Tiyo stared blankly behind him.

The man suddenly stopped and said, “Follow me.”

Then he continued walking. Crockta and Tiyo exchanged wary looks but ultimately followed the man.

“The area will become noisy again now that the manticore is dead,” stated the man in an accusing tone, as if attributing the cause to Crockta and Tiyo.

Tiyo grumbled, “Hmph, then you shouldn’t have helped us and instead just left us to our own devices.”

“That’s what I wanted to do...” the man replied while glancing at Tiyo with emotionless and cold eyes that made the latter flinch. “But Schola kept whining.”

“Schola? Who’s that?” asked Tiyo.

The man didn’t respond.

They headed to the hunter’s fort. The scenery was different from earlier even though they were walking the same path, and even the distance seemed to have increased. They hadn’t walked this much earlier, but they retraced their steps for a while. Crockta double-checked the compass to make sure the direction hadn’t changed. The compass was pointing in the same direction.

“The forest seems to have changed,” mumbled Crockta.

The man smiled. “That’s why it’s the Forest of Monsters.”

“Does the forest keep changing?” asked Crockta.

“You didn’t know? So, you really came here without thinking it through,” said the man.

He fastened the sack on his shoulder. The manticore’s blood dripped from the sack.

“Why are you guys trying to go to the north when you know so little?” asked the man.

“To find my father,” replied Tiyo. “Do you happen to know the adventurer Annatto? My father was a great adventurer who freely traveled back and forth from Quantes to the north.”

The man laughed at Tiyo. “I have never seen someone who could freely travel to the north.”

“Hmph, you probably haven’t seen him because you came here late. How long have you been here?!” asked Tiyo.

The man replied calmly, “Fifty years.”

“...!” Crockta and Tiyo’s eyes widened with surprise.

The man appeared to be in his early fifties. If he had been here for fifty years, then how old was he now?

“I came here when I was around forty,” said the man.

“Then you are...” Tiyo was unable to finish his sentence.

The man was at the end of his lifespan as a human.

“Are you a hybrid species?” asked Tiyo.

“I’m just human,” replied the man.

“I don’t believe you,” said Tiyo.

A human couldn’t be that healthy at ninety.

The man continued, “I’m from the Shakhan tribe.”

“Shakhan...” Tiyo nodded in acknowledgement after hearing that the man was from the Shakhan tribe.

Crockta didn’t understand, so he looked at Tiyo for an explanation.

Tiyo elaborated, “Shakhan is an old tribe of hunters. I heard they are extinct now.”

“People from that tribe live that long?” asked Crockta.

“I don’t know. There’s not much that’s known about them... but if he’s not lying, then that could be the case...” Tiyo lowered his voice. “The Shakhan tribe is known to never let go of their grudges.”

After hearing about the near-extinct Shakhan tribe, hunters who never let go of old grudges, Crockta thought the man seemed quite pitiful.

“But he said fifty years, so he should have seen my father. He must be lying,” said Tiyo.

“It could just be that they never ran into each other,” replied Crockta.

“But still...” Tiyo glared at the man’s back with suspicious eyes.

Crockta interrupted Tiyo’s train of thought and asked the man, “Do you know about the Temple of the Fallen God in the north?”

The man didn’t look back but shook his head. Silence ensued.

Crockta spoke again, “At least give us your name.”

“...” The man hesitated before replying, “Just call me Shakhan.”

“Give us your name,” said Crockta.

“It’s Shakhan,” the man repeated.

The man from the Shakhan tribe said his name was also Shakhan. He seemed to have an interesting backstory.

Crockta and Tiyo followed Shakhan in silence. Before long, the trio arrived at Shakhan’s fort, with its moat and spiked fences. As they had done earlier, they walked across the shallowest part of the moat and crept through the hole underneath the fence. Crockta realized that this was the only entrance into the fort. The artifact concealed the existence of this place, and its moat and fences were sturdy, yet the man had also fortified the stronghold with a compact entrance. It was truly the work of a meticulous hunter.

Upon the trio’s return, the cows began letting out long cries, “Mooooooo...”

Shakahn laughed out loud as he greeted the cows. It was such bright laughter that Crockta and Tiyo couldn’t believe it was coming from the cold man they’d met. Shakhan approached one of the cows and hugged its neck.

“Yeah, I brought them because you kept pestering me, so stop whining. That’s it. Good,” said Shakhan, who seemed to be communicating with the cow.

Crockta and Tiyo tilted their heads curiously. Shakhan turned toward them. His hard and cold face had taken on a relaxed expression. He even smiled with his eyes as he looked at them.

“He’s my first son, Schola,” Shakhan introduced while patting Schola’s head. Then he pointed at the two other cows. “Over there is Penando. Next to him is Akilleh. They will become great hunters as members of the Shakhan tribe. Please greet them.”

Crockta and Tiyo awkwardly bowed their heads at the cows as they eyed Shakhan’s innocent face warily. They weren’t sure whether he was joking or if he truly had that much affection for his cows. Shakhan then gathered the cows and whispered to them. The cows waved their tails in response.

“It’s a law of Shakhan to treat guests well,” said Shakhan with a solemn face to the cows.

“...What’s going on, Crockta?” Tiyo elbowed Crockta’s side, but Crockta didn’t understand either.

Nevertheless, Crockta took a step forward and said, “The cow named Schola is very smart.”

Shakhan suddenly raised his head while petting Schola. “Huh?”

“He knew all of the directions and paths in the forest even though he’s a cow,” explained Crockta.

“A cow?” questioned Shakhan.

“I’m talking about the cow you call ‘Schola,’” said Crockta.

“Huh?” Shakhan stared blankly at Crockta.

Then he looked at Schola standing next to him. He blinked and then looked back and forth between Crockta and the cow.

After that, he looked Crockta straight in the eye and said, “Ah... Yeah, a cow...”

Suddenly, Shakhan’s expression turned cold. Crockta and Tiyo couldn’t believe it was the same man who had just been smiling and petting his cows. He wore the same expression as when they first met.

“Yeah. He’s a cow. Just a cow. You said this cow is smart?” said Shakhan.

“Yes,” replied Crockta.

“Such useless talk. A cow is just a cow. I raise them for milk.”

Crockta got goosebumps at Shakhan’s sudden change in behavior.

Nevertheless, Crockta tried to continue the conversation. “You introduced him as your son earlier.”

However, Shakhan continued to say weird things. “What? What are you saying?”

“Huh?” wondered Crockta.

“All of my sons are dead,” said Shakhan.

“Earlier you said Schola...”

Shakhan blinked blankly.

Crockta said again, “You referred to those cows as Schola, Penando, and Akilleh.”

“I did?” Shakhan tilted his head in confusion with a questioning look on his face. Then he shook his head. “I just gave my dead sons’ names to the cows. It doesn’t have any meaning. The dead are dead.”

After that, Shakhan swiftly went inside the log house.

Schola cried out, “Moooooooo...”

Crockta had a weird feeling about this. Shakhan said he had been here for fifty years. He had been hunting monsters alone in this dark forest that no one visited. Had he gone mad from being in this isolated and dangerous place?

“Crockta...” Tiyo called out from behind Crockta. “Is it okay to stay here...?”

Tiyo also found Shakhan’s behavior unsettling.

Crockta placed his hand on Tiyo’s shoulder and said, “He doesn’t seem like a bad person, so let’s first find out more about the forest from him.”

Crockta and Tiyo followed Shakhan into his house. As soon as they entered, they found a monster’s skull staring at them straight in the face.

The skull was huge. Although its facial structure resembled a human’s, it was much larger than a human skull and had a protruding mouth with teeth that were sharp like saw blades. It was an ogre’s skull. However, there were two of them, and they were aligned together as if they were conjoined.

“Two-headed ogre...?” muttered Tiyo.

Skulls of various species were displayed inside the house, attesting to Shakhan’s prowess as a hunter. Aside from the skulls, diverse body parts like hands, teeth, and tibia provided a record of his hunts. The house looked like a bone museum. It was impressive that Shakhan had hunted all of these creatures by himself in the Forest of Monsters.

There were hunting tools hung in a corner of the room. Shakhan was fully equipped with everything a hunter needed—a longbow so large it seemed impossible to fully pull its bowstring, a compact shortbow, a knife to dismember the enemy, and an axe.

“Is vegetable and egg stew okay with you guys?” Shakhan’s voice came from behind the kitchen door.

“Thank you,” said Crockta.

“Wait a bit,” said Shakhan.

As the smell of food being cooked wafted from the kitchen, Crockta and Tiyo entered it. Inside, hot steam rose from a boiling pot on the stove.

Crockta and Tiyo sat down at the table.

“Is there anything we can help with...?” asked Tiyo.

“No,” Shakhan replied sternly.

Tiyo pouted in response.

Then Shakhan brought out a pot of warm stew and poured generous amounts of the stew into their bowls. His expression appeared softer now in the warm lighting of the kitchen.

“Tell me again why are you planning to go to the north?” asked Shakhan.

“I’m going to find my father. Crockta is looking for the Temple of the Fallen God. It’s also...” Tiyo said and then paused to take a sip of the stew, “...for the sake of adventure. I want to venture to new places.”

“Adventure...” Shakhan looked down at his fingers. “Are you that curious about new places?”

“Of course. That’s how civilization has always progressed! Through challenge and confrontation!” said Tiyo enthusiastically.

“Challenge...” Shakhan grinned. “My son used to say the same thing.”

Crockta and Tiyo became quiet at Shakhan’s mention of his son. Shakhan then rose from his seat and put warm milk on the table for his guests.

“My sons were great men of the Shakhan tribe. They were excellent hunters,” Shakhan said while pretending to pull a bowstring. “A hunter has to be serious and bold and also know how to be patient. My first son Schola hid in mud for over a month to catch a drake. He ultimately succeeded in piercing the drake’s mouth with an arrow in a remarkable demonstration of patience. He was the first Shakhan in history to capture a drake for his coming-of-age ceremony. Hahahaha.”

Crockta and Tiyo slowed down their eating pace.

“We are the last members of the Shakhan tribe, but I believe my sons will make the Shakhan tribe great again.”

“The last Shakhan...?”

“The others all left or died without having offspring. Now even those who knew the tribe have disappeared, and Shakhan has become a forgotten name. My first son Schola had a great plan in mind for the revival of the Shakhan tribe. He wanted to open up the north to the continent to spread the Shakhan name.”

“What do you mean by opening up the north?” asked Crockta.

“He said he would get rid of the Forest of Monsters with his own hands!” said Shakhan with twinkling eyes. “So he went off into the Forest of Monsters and then the origin of the Forest of Monsters... and... then what happened...?”

He scratched his head with a confused look on his face.

“Ah... Ah...” Shakhan placed his hand on his head. “What day is today? Wait... my head hurts...”

He suddenly got up from his seat.

Meanwhile, Crockta and Tiyo ate their vegetable soup with heavy hearts.

***

“Let’s open up the north, Father!”

‘No, it’s too dangerous.’

“We can do it. We are Shakhan.”

‘The Shakhan are hunters, not heroes. That thing is terrifying.’

“Our ancestors hunted dragons and used their hearts to create the Shakhan bloodline. I’m not scared at all. We were born with the blood of dragons.”

‘You are a great hunter, perhaps even more so than me. But son...’

“I can do it. It’s a mission that befits the last Shakhan.”

Shakhan chewed his meat. Its tough muscles stuck to his teeth. He gritted his teeth and gnawed at the meat. As blood dripped down his throat, he felt a burning sensation inside him. He closed his eyes, and a panorama of vivid memories surrounded him in all directions.

“Father, a Shakhan never forgets a grudge.”

‘No, it’s too dangerous.’

“I want to carry the elders’ will.”

‘That thing cannot be hunted.’

“There’s nothing a Shakhan can’t hunt. We are Shakhan.”

‘Listen to me...’

“We can’t let our enemies live!”

Reality and memories of his past merged in his mind and weighed down on him, pressing on his shoulders. It had been painful to breathe during every minute and every second that had passed by, but he had somehow endured up to this point.

“It’s that season again...”

As Shakhan chewed the last piece of meat, his mind became clear again. The taste of blood reminded him of arrowheads and blades, causing his body to tense and his muscles to swell. This was his final chance. Perhaps those visitors were a final blessing bestowed upon him.

“I won’t be lonely in the end, sons...”

‘I can’t live anymore.’

“...and wife.”

***

Shakhan returned. He had cold eyes like when they first met him. He was no longer the man who had excitedly talked about his sons.

Something was smudged on his mouth.

“There’s something on...” began Crockta.

“Hmm.” Shakhan wiped his mouth.

The stain on Shakhan’s mouth had looked like blood to Crockta.

Shakhan looked at Crockta and Tiyo wearily. “Do you truly intend to go to the north?”

“Yes,” Crockta and Tiyo replied at once with the same answer.

“Regardless of what danger lurks there?” asked Shakhan.

Crockta nodded. He had decided to take the risk when he embarked on this journey.

“Then I will tell you. There’s only one way to go to the north,” Shakhan said as he sat back down.

With a solemn expression and eyes gleaming ominously, he stated, “We have to kill the wicked beast.”