Magic Beasts

10. Magic Beasts

Once the fire was lit and the flames had stabilized, Tori placed a purification stone into a pot of drawn water and set it over the heat. As he began preparing dinner, he started talking to Shia about magic beasts.

"Magic beasts are, just as the name suggests, 'beasts that possess magic power.'"

"Magic... beasts...?"

"Yep. I talked about magic power before, right? Just as humans possess magic power, there are other living creatures that have it too. Those are magic beasts."

"Huh."

"It's not just living creatures; plants have it, and it can even dwell within things that aren't alive."

"Things that aren't alive?"

"Let's see, for example—"

Tori paused for a moment. Holding two thin sticks between his fingertips, he deftly plucked a jagged stone from the bubbling pot.

"This is one of them. Something in which magic power dwells within a stone is called a magic stone, and this particular one is a magic stone called a purification stone. You know what it's used for, right?"

"To make water clean."

"Exactly. The light-gathering stones you found before are also a type of magic stone. Though those require processing by a Magic Item Maker rather than being used as they are."

"Hmm..."

"Anyway, back to the story."

Removing the stone from the pot, Tori picked up a knife and continued as he began peeling vegetables.

"Magic beasts are stronger and larger than beasts of the same species. For instance, the snakes you said you could catch—when they become magic beasts, they're called Serpents. On average, they're five muts (※) long, and their girth is thicker than Shia's width. On top of that, the most troublesome part is—"

"The troublesome part?"

"Their high level of aggression."

"...They attack?"

"Probably. Well, I can't say it's absolute."

Shia knit her brows. Indeed, it didn't seem like she could possibly catch a snake of the size Tori described.

What if she had a weapon?

Shia looked at her own hands. She held a small knife, currently battling with a vegetable peel. Since she was still practicing, the peel was quite thick, but that was a minor detail to be forgiven.

Though small, the blade was longer than her own claws. Would this be enough?

As if reading her thoughts, Tori spoke.

"Shia, if you encounter a magic beast, the absolute golden rule is to run away."

"Ah."

"The best thing is to not encounter one at all, but if you do, your first priority should be to run away without trying to fight."

"……Yes."

"Good. And since you're probably more sensitive to presences than we are, let's work on developing your ability to predict those kinds of dangers."

"…Mm, okay."

To Shia, who knew nothing of the outside world, Tori was the model for how to survive. Thus, she nodded obediently.

Tori's neatly peeled vegetables and Shia's misshapen ones were all tossed into the pot.

This was as far as Shia could help; the final touches were, naturally, left to Tori. Still, unlike when her mother had taught her, Shia was now studying seriously. That said, the road to improvement seemed long.

Once they had finished eating and cleaned up, Tori, who was adjusting the campfire, told her to go to bed first, so Shia hurriedly climbed up to her sleeping quarters.

The long-awaited hammock. Her bed was the one strung slightly diagonally above the first one.

She climbed the overhanging branch and settled into the hammock. Looking up, the flames of the campfire cast flickering shadows against the canopy of leaves, and the soft, rhythmic popping of the wood was soothing.

Though Shia had been somewhat excited about the hammock, she soon fell fast asleep.

In the middle of the night, Shia's hammock swayed slightly.

"………?"

"Shia, are you awake?"

"…Tori...?"

"Shh, keep your voice down."

"…?"

Rubbing her eyes as she sat up, Shia's fur suddenly stood on end.

What was it? A dreadfully unpleasant presence was approaching.

As Shia froze, Tori wrapped her in a cloth-like material. Just as she was about to ask what was happening, he hushed her again with a "Shh..." Then, something large moved beneath the tree, sounding as if it were dragging itself along.

Could this be...?

She sent a silent gaze to Tori, and he gave a small nod.

A short while later, the sound of violent splashing and the shrill scream of an animal echoed from a distance. Shia pressed her ears flat and covered them with her hands. Even so, she couldn't block out the sound of the agonized death cries.

After some time had passed, Tori tapped Shia on the shoulder.

"Shia, it's okay now."

At his voice, she gently let go of her ears and tentatively lifted them. Indeed, the terrifying, unpleasant presence from before was gone.

Shia turned her gaze to Tori, who was right beside her.

"…Was that a magic beast?"

"Yeah, it was a Serpent, like the ones I mentioned. It seems that wetland really was its territory."

"…Something was attacked..."

"Yeah. Probably some animal that had come to the water."

"…Was it eaten?"

"Probably."

Tori spoke matter-of-factly. The law of the jungle was the way of nature. Such things happened daily, even without magic beasts. For all they knew, they could have been the ones eaten.

However, remembering the death cries from a moment ago, Shia let her ears droop ever so slightly.

"Anyway, it should be safe for the rest of the night, so you can go back to sleep, Shia. Dawn is still a while away."

"………"

"…Can't sleep?"

As she nodded—her ears still pinned back against her head—Tori murmured, "Well, I suppose that can't be helped," and effortlessly scooped up Shia, who was still wrapped snugly in her cloth.

"Wah!"

The hammock, which had been at eye level for Shia, was only around chest height for Tori, but she was still surprised by how effortlessly he lifted her.

"You're still so light. You should eat more, Shia."

With that, Tori sat down in the wide crook of the branching limbs, holding Shia in his arms. He leaned against the trunk, with Shia tucked securely in front of him.

"It'd be dangerous if you fell. Well then, shall we talk until you get sleepy? Is there anything you want to ask?"

"Anything I want to ask..."

If there was something she wanted to know, it was about that magic beast called a Serpent.

"Tori, you said the wetland was its territory, but why weren't we attacked when we passed through? Was it because it wasn't hungry?"

"Hungry, huh..."

Tori gave a small laugh, and his body shook, causing the cradled Shia to sway with him.

"When you put it that way, it's a physiological need, so I suppose it can't be helped."

"Is it not that?"

"Well, that might be part of it, but Serpents are basically nocturnal. They usually just hole up in their nests during the day."

"Hmm. So, since we were up in the trees, that's why we didn't get attacked?"

"That's also not quite right. But I suppose it means we were hidden among the trees. You see, Shia, snakes have something called pit organs that allow them to sense heat. They can detect the body temperature of living things. That's why—though I know it's just for peace of mind—I covered you with that cloth."

"Whoa. Tori, you know so much."

"Well, I've had all the time in the world, after all. I learned from books, from people, and from my own experiences. You can just go right on learning plenty of things yourself, Shia."

Just as Tori said, there were still many things Shia didn't know. Many things she had to learn.

Even this time, if Tori hadn't woken her, she wouldn't have noticed the Serpent's presence. There was a possibility she could have ended up inside its belly without ever knowing what hit her.

Shia, who had prided herself on having better ears and nose than most people, felt a bit discouraged. She was overwhelmingly lacking in real-world experience.

Feeling crestfallen, Shia leaned her body against Tori. Perhaps thinking she had become sleepy, Tori's hand began to gently pat her back at a steady rhythm. It was the same motion her mother used to use when putting her to sleep.

Even this close, she still couldn't sense any trace of "life force" from Tori, but she decided not to mention it again.

Because Tori's heartbeat was ticking regularly, and Tori's arms were warm.

The rhythm of the patting became a gentle lullaby, and because of that, though she had felt she couldn't sleep, her eyelids gradually grew heavy.

Amidst those hazy thoughts, she remembered.

Tori had said it could sense the body temperature of living things, and that was why he had covered her with the cloth.

………Then, what about Tori?

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※ One mut = one meter