Chapter 92
Nesheleka felt like she had forgotten something important that day.
The day had been hectic since morning. There was a huge commotion about armed kin being found dozing off outside the settlement.
All the adults took up weapons and went outside. Nesheleka and the other children were strictly told not to leave the building.
Even by noon, the adults hadn't returned. As she and Goltgo grew anxious, a familiar voice finally reached their ears.
"I wonder if everything's okay..."
"Probably. I don't hear any angry shouting."
They exchanged glances and peeked slightly out the window.
They saw a familiar adult from the settlement washing weapons and fur stained green, probably from blood.
Neither Nesheleka nor Goltgo were too young to not understand what that green color meant. They pulled back their faces in silence and whispered to each other. There were children even younger than them here.
"Looks like it's okay."
"Yeah. Still, I wonder what happened."
"It was those ones, right? The ones who always said nasty things whenever we met."
"Probably."
The armed kin who had come. Why had they come so close? Why did the adults leave with weapons without saying anything? Why were the children told not to leave the building?
That day, Nesheleka realized just how much they were hated by those around them. Were only adults among the attackers? Perhaps even friends they once lived with before moving to this settlement were among them.
It was heartbreaking. More than anything, the fact that they had almost been killed by those who were once their companions.
"It's sad."
"Yeah."
"Even though we were told to get along."
"Yeah."
Get along. Someone had said that to Nesheleka. It had left a deep impression. But for some reason, she couldn't remember who had said it, what they looked like, or when it happened.
She turned to look at Goltgo, who had nodded and said "Yeah."
"What's wrong?"
"We were told that, right?"
"Yeah. So what?"
"Who told us?"
"Huh? That was..."
Goltgo tried to answer but froze.
Who was it again? That murmur hung in his mouth.
Goltgo didn't seem to remember either. It wasn't something said that long ago. And yet, when, where, who—none of it came to mind.
It felt like something really scary had happened just before those words were said.
She desperately searched her memories, but couldn't recall it. It was like only the words had flown in from somewhere and were just sitting quietly in her heart.
"Hey, Goltgo."
"What?"
"Let's get along."
"...Yeah."
From outside the building, they heard someone calling them.
It was her father's lively voice. Though he had recently always worn a serious face and talked about difficult things, now he sounded cheerful, as if all his worries had vanished.
"Let's go."
"Yeah."
Without knowing anything, Nesheleka and Goltgo stepped outside the building, bringing along the little children who responded to their family's voices.
The sky was clearer than usual, and it somehow felt like it was watching over them.
***
The settlements that had been fighting each other soon scattered.
Because those who tried to attack Nesheleka and Goltgo's settlement were all slaughtered. Rumors spread that someone in their settlement used terrifying magic, since all the attackers had fallen into a deep sleep without exception.
It was a complete misunderstanding, but the two originally feuding settlements blamed each other for the loss of their companions. They didn't blame Nesheleka and Goltgo's settlement simply because they feared that terrifying magic.
As a result, the conflict intensified more than ever, and most adults lost their lives. There was no way they could seek refuge in the settlement they had tried to attack first—Nesheleka and Goltgo's—and they had no choice but to wander in search of a new home.
Nesheleka's father and Goltgo's father took in the surviving children. They believed it would be too pitiful to drag children along on a hopeless journey. Many of the children who were almost adults soon disappeared from the settlement. They were afraid to blame anyone, but they didn't want to remain in the settlement that had scattered them.
It seemed they had gone after their scattered parents. Their chances of survival were slim, but Nesheleka and the others decided to pray for their future happiness.
***
With the two settlements gone, Nesheleka and Goltgo's settlement had to expand.
Dangerous beasts like Azargan might claim the now-empty territory.
Strangely, Azargan's presence had vanished from the nearby area a few days prior.
Wondering why, a few hunters from the smooth-skinned tribe went to investigate the forest. That evening, they returned with Azargan's corpse.
Though it had been buried underground and had started to decay, the wounds clearly showed it had been cut with terrifying sharpness.
They didn't plan to eat it, but thought of processing its tough hide.
"I wonder who defeated Azargan."
"Who knows? The flesh on its back was cut out, so it was definitely killed for food. Maybe they buried the rest to keep other beasts away."
During dinner, when Nesheleka asked her father, he answered with a serious expression.
"Hmm," she replied vaguely, putting meat in her mouth. It wasn't Azargan meat. It was from a Kushéra that had been hunted along the way.
"I wonder if Azargan tasted good."
"Thinking like that is foolish."
At her father's strong words, she nodded. Azargan was a terrifying beast. You shouldn't try to hunt it. Meat gained at the cost of someone's life had no value. That was the belief spreading in this settlement.
***
"Nesheleka. What's that drawing?"
"It just kind of came to mind."
Some time had passed since Nesheleka and Goltgo had become adults.
With her work done and some free time, Nesheleka had started drawing for no particular reason.
She drew on the ground, letting her imagination guide her. Though the drawings vanished quickly with the rain, lately both children and adults had started enjoying them.
"Is that us...? But we don't have fur on our faces or limbs."
"Yeah. It's half us, half Goltgo's kind."
"Huh?"
A figure wearing fur, combining thick body hair and smooth skin.
When she remembered those important words—get along—this kind of image started appearing in her mind.
"Get along. I thought maybe if there were no differences between us and Goltgo's kind, we could get along better."
"I see. That's interesting."
Then, for some reason, Goltgo drew the blade he had at his waist.
Peering at the drawing, he began shaving the fur from his face with the blade. The surrounding adults from his kin shouted, asking what he was doing.
"It's hard to see by myself. Nesheleka, is it coming off clean?"
"Yeah. It's clean, really clean."
"Alright, here we go."
Goltgo continued shaving the fur from his neck and hands.
A fair amount of thick fur fell to the ground.
"How's this? Something like this?"
"Yeah, something like that. It looks kind of cool."
"Heh. Then I'll give this to you, Nesheleka."
He said, offering the shaved fur to Nesheleka.
"Huh?"
"You can weave it into a decoration or something. Wear it like in the drawing."
"Ah!"
Mimicking the gesture of placing it on her head, Nesheleka finally understood Goltgo's intention.
She picked up a bit of the fur and held it tightly to her chest.
"Thank you, Goltgo."
"Yeah."
Perhaps inspired by their exchange, the young adults around them began shaving their own fur.
The smooth-skinned folks mimicked the gesture of placing it on their heads.
"Oh, it feels nice and cool."
"How should we use this fur?"
"Wash it first. Then we'll talk."
Lively, cheerful voices echoed all around them.
Everyone getting along. For some reason, the drawing on the ground looked like it was smiling to Nesheleka.