Once again, the time had come for Zabuton’s children to set off on their own journeys.
It felt a little lonely.
However, some of the children chose to stay behind, and new ones were always being born. I had prepared myself for this cycle, so I managed to keep my composure.
The first-born children who had remained in the village were now about a quarter of Zabuton’s size. They were quite large, though it would clearly be a long time before they ever caught up to her.
I found myself wondering at what age they would begin having children of their own. If that happened, I would definitely need to consider expanding the Fruit Area to the north.
Meanwhile, Kuro and the others began shedding their antlers. It was a bit of a chore to gather them all up. I wanted to display them, but space was becoming an issue, so I eventually had to store the bulk of them in the food cellar.
Since the wolves often left on journeys to find partners once their new antlers grew in, I made an effort to play with them as much as possible before they departed. I had to retire the flying discs, though; throwing one triggered such a fierce scramble that it became dangerous. Instead, I crafted balls by carving wood into spheres and wrapping them in beast skin.
They were a massive hit. Even when I wasn't around, the wolves spent plenty of time playing with them on their own. I ended up making twenty or thirty of them. As long as I designated a specific spot for the toys, the wolves were clever enough to return them there by nightfall.
I also tried carving a thick piece of wood into the shape of a boar for hunting practice, but they tore it to shreds in less than a day. I thought I had made the legs sturdy enough, but I had clearly underestimated them.
After the boar incident, Kuro started pestering me for something. I thought about it for a while before realizing what he wanted: he wanted me to carve a statue of him.
I gave it a shot, emphasizing a certain sense of wildness in the design. It turned out rather well, and Kuro seemed satisfied with the result. The only problem was where to put it. Eventually, I decided to place it near the shrine built into the great tree, acting as a guardian statue.
Since guardians usually come in pairs, I decided to carve Yuki as well. I don't know why, but even though I intended to carve her normally, the finished product felt even more "wild" than Kuro’s.
I suppose my skill was just improving. I couldn't help but chuckle when I saw Kuro approach his own likeness, only to recoil in visible shock upon seeing Yuki’s.
While working on the waterway, I considered whether we could incorporate more fish into our diet. The only issue was the muddy smell, but Ria and her group already knew a solution. Apparently, if you keep the fish in clean water for several days, the smell disappears. It was the same principle as purging sand from clams.
I decided to give it a try. I hollowed out a large rock to create a water tank and filled it with river water.
"Does it have to be something other than river water?" I asked. The river water was drinkable, but I wanted to be sure.
"River water is perfectly fine," Ria replied. "The important part is making sure they don't eat anything for a while."
"I see."
The resulting whitefish was delicious. It made me incredibly grateful that I had already secured a supply of salt. I decided to start catching fish regularly to stock the tank. Anything that made our meals richer was a welcome addition.
Eventually, the time came for Kuro’s descendants—grandchildren or perhaps great-grandchildren—to find their own mates. While a fair number of them set off into the forest, the number was smaller than I had anticipated. About half of those born last year decided to stay in the village.
Shortly before the departures began, I finally witnessed their courtship rituals. Specifically, the way the females secured their mates.
First, the female would court the male. If he refused, she would challenge him to a duel and beat him into submission. If multiple females set their sights on the same male, they would either talk it out or fight amongst themselves. Even during these disputes, the females cooperated to ensure the male couldn't escape.
It seemed the females were the dominant ones in their society. The males generally took a passive "wait and see" approach, though they weren't just being lazy; they would hunt and display their strength to attract interest. If a male liked a female who approached him, they became partners immediately. If he didn't, he would fight her to maintain his independence and wait for someone else, but the males' win rate didn't seem particularly high. On the rare occasion a male initiated the courtship, he wouldn't force a duel if he was rejected.
It was quite the system. Fortunately, the fights never seemed to reach a level where anyone was seriously injured or killed. Not even their newly grown antlers were broken.
That realization gave me pause. What did that say about the injuries Kuro and Yuki had when I first found them? Since Yuki had been pregnant at the time, it couldn't have been a courtship ritual gone wrong.
It meant that after they had become partners, something had attacked them. I had spent a lot of time with Kuro and Yuki, and I knew they were incredibly strong. Even if they had grown stronger during their time here, it meant there was something in this forest capable of breaking their antlers and forcing them to flee.
I had been living a very comfortable, relaxed life surrounded by the wolves and Zabuton’s children, but I realized I needed to stay sharp. It was better to be cautious.
Now, about the mushrooms.
Ever since I first set foot in this forest, there was one thing I had pointedly ignored: mushrooms. In my mind, mushrooms fell into two categories: delicious or lethal. Even with varieties I recognized, the existence of toxic mimics meant they were always a risk. The mushrooms I saw in the forest were all strange colors and shapes I had never seen before. I had no desire to gamble with my life, so I had simply been tilling them into the soil with my Universal Farming Tool.
I had essentially given up on them. After all, mushrooms aren't exactly a crop you grow in a typical field.
Then, I had a sudden epiphany. It happened while I was looking at some wild mushrooms growing on a tree I had felled for lumber. If tilling the soil with the hoe form of the Universal Farming Tool created a field for crops, then perhaps using the tool on wood would create a substrate for mushrooms.
I wasn't aiming for anything as fancy as matsutake yet; I just wanted shiitake. I experimented with the wood, focusing my intent on growing them.
The result was a success, though I did produce a fair amount of waste wood along the way. It confirmed my theory: the Universal Farming Tool relied on a clear mental image and the proper substrate.
Emboldened, I tried my hand at shimeji. That was a success as well. My mental image was the bunashimeji commonly found in supermarkets back in my old world. I couldn't try for the high-end honshimeji because I had no idea what they actually looked like.
Next, I tried simply imagining a "delicious mushroom." I ended up with more bunashimeji.
That didn't quite work. I had been hoping for matsutake, but then I remembered that matsutake grow from the ground, not from dead wood. I tried imaging matsutake while tilling the earth, but that failed too. The conditions weren't right. I recalled hearing that matsutake are usually found near red pines.
I probably needed a red pine as a substrate. It would be a long-term project, but I decided to plant a few red pine trees.
Heh. Matsutake. I had high hopes.