Chapter 51: Which One To Mount?

Sora looked over the mountain of hides piled before her and let out a low whistle.

"These people don’t hunt..." she muttered. "They declare war on the entire savannah."

There had to be more than thirty skins here.

In a single afternoon.

Their fighting ability was terrifying.

No wonder every unmarried woman in the tribe dreamed about claiming one of these warriors as a husband.

She crouched beside the pile and began sorting through them.

Ace’s collection was actually better than she’d first thought.

The rabbit fur was snow-white, soft as clouds, and practically begged to become a winter cloak. There were also fox pelts and thick sheep hides with glossy, even coats.

"They’re gorgeous..." she admitted, draping one over her arm.

Then she looked down at her own dark skin.

"...Although black fur against dark skin makes me look even darker."

She sighed dramatically.

"I’ll save these for after my glow-up."

The feather pile Lucas had brought was another story entirely.

Blue peacock feathers.

Emerald-green feathers.

Pure white ones.

Even shimmering kingfisher feathers that sparkled in the sunlight like tiny gemstones.

Sora’s eyes lit up.

Now these...

These could become real fashion.

She vaguely remembered reading in an old survival manual that ancient African tribes often decorated ceremonial clothing with colorful feathers.

A feather skirt.

A feather cape.

Maybe even a dramatic shoulder mantle.

If she was going to survive in this primitive world, she might as well become the best-dressed woman on the savannah.

As for Xavier’s collection...

She stared at the leopard skins, zebra hides, silver marten pelts, and wolf hides.

Then looked at Xavier.

Then back at the pile.

"...You really like stripes and spots, don’t you?"

Xavier blinked.

"I hunted what looked useful."

"No," Lucas laughed between bites of candied hawthorn. "He hunted whatever reminded him of Ace."

The Snake ignored him completely.

Sora couldn’t help laughing.

After separating the piles, she nodded with satisfaction.

The rabbit and sheep pelts would make warm blankets once the cold season arrived.

The feather collection would become decorative clothing.

The zebra and leopard hides had plenty of potential once they were properly tanned.

Nothing would go to waste.

That evening, Sora prepared mushroom chicken stew.

Since her monthly visitor had arrived, she decided her body deserved something nourishing.

The rich aroma drifted through the open-air kitchen long before dinner was ready.

When Lukan arrived, Sora handed him the bundle of candied hawthorn skewers she’d quietly set aside.

"For the tailor," she said with a grin.

Lukan accepted them with a gentle smile.

"Thank you."

The other three exchanged glances.

Lucas folded his arms.

"So... the tailor gets bonus snacks now?"

Ace sighed dramatically.

"I hunt all afternoon..."

Xavier nodded.

"I carry enough hides to furnish an entire village..."

"And somehow," Lucas finished, "the tailor still wins."

Lukan simply smiled while enjoying his candied hawthorn.

Sometimes silence was the greatest victory.

Dinner disappeared as quickly as usual.

No one questioned Sora’s cooking anymore.

Whether it was elaborate feasts or simple stews, she somehow made everything taste incredible.

Once everyone had eaten their fill, Sora cleared her throat.

"Tomorrow we’re making pottery again."

Xavier frowned.

"Didn’t we just make pottery?"

"We did."

Sora began counting on her fingers.

"I still need storage jars... cooking pots... water jars... fermentation pots..."

She kept counting.

"...and probably twice that many."

Everyone silently accepted their fate.

Lucas leaned toward Ace and whispered,

"Bring your blanket."

Ace nodded gravely.

"I learned my lesson last time."

Sleeping on bare ground after carrying clay all day had nearly broken him.

Lukan agreed to come as well.

Since he was already eating with them every day, helping was only fair.

Sora smiled.

"One more thing."

Everyone looked up.

"We’ll have guests tomorrow."

"Guests?"

"Clare and Zainabu."

"And their husbands."

Nobody objected.

More hands meant less work.

After dinner, Lukan gathered every hide Sora had selected and carried the enormous bundle back toward the village.

Naturally...

Everyone noticed.

An elderly woman blinked in disbelief.

"Lukan! Did you hunt all those hides today?"

He shook his head.

"They’re not mine."

"They belong to Sora."

"...All of them?"

"All of them."

Silence.

Dozens of fresh hides.

For one woman.

Another hunter scratched his head.

"Then where did they come from?"

"Lukas, Xavier, and Ace hunted them."

The entire village froze.

One woman was lucky to receive a single new hide every month.

Sora had somehow acquired more than thirty...

...in one afternoon.

"..."

"...She’s collecting husbands or collecting kingdoms?"

The women exchanged jealous looks.

Serena watched from a distance, her expression darkening with every passing second.

If Sora had never returned...

Every single one of those hides would have belonged to her.

Her fingernails dug into her palms.

Following tradition, Lukan soaked the fresh hides in the large tanning pool to remove the remaining fat before curing them.

As he lowered the last hide into the water, an odd sensation crawled across the back of his neck.

Someone...

...was watching him.

He turned sharply.

Nothing.

Only swaying grass.

The evening wind.

After scanning the area once more, he quietly walked away.

At first light the next morning, Sora arrived at the wild kitchen carrying her rolled-up sleeping blanket and bamboo water flask.

Lucas, Xavier, Ace, and Lukan were already waiting, each carrying enough supplies to survive a week-long expedition.

A short while later, Clare and Zainabu arrived with their husbands.

Clare had three wolf husbands—one grey, one brown, and one white.

Zainabu had two—a red wolf and a grey wolf.

Every one of them was broad-shouldered, heavily loaded, and carrying enough gear to start a new settlement.

"Sora!" Clare waved enthusiastically.

"We’re ready!"

Sora smiled politely.

"Morning."

Clare happily introduced her husbands one after another.

"They’re all from the same pack."

Sora nodded.

She barely remembered their names.

Thankfully, the previous owner’s memories helped a little.

Barely.

There were so many wolves that she was already mentally labeling them as Grey Wolf, Brown Wolf, White Wolf, Red Wolf, and Other Grey Wolf.

Much safer that way.

The wolf husbands greeted Lucas, Xavier, Ace, and Lukan with respectful nods.

The greetings were returned just as calmly.

Seeing everyone assembled, Xavier said,

"We should leave."

"One minute," Sora replied.

"We’re still waiting for someone."

Everyone looked around.

"...Someone else?"

A lone figure appeared in the distance.

As he drew closer, every expression became... complicated.

Ryan.

Clare and Zainabu didn’t think anything of it.

After all, they had brought all of their husbands too.

Naturally Sora would do the same.

Without another word, the wolves shifted into their beast forms.

The massive grey wolf.

The brown wolf.

The white wolf.

Then White Tiger.

Lucas’s magnificent phoenix.

Xaiver’s enormous purple serpent.

Lukan’s elegant silver wolf.

Finally...

Ryan’s since he was striking silver-scaled merman stood quietly beside them.

One after another, they all lowered themselves in front of Sora.

Waiting.

Expectantly.

Sora stared at the line of enormous beasts.

Then blinked.

"...Since when did all of you become this eager?"

Five pairs of very different eyes stared back.

Waiting for their answer.

Or perhaps...

Waiting to see which one she’d choose.