“I can sense a large presence, but I don’t think it’s the black bear. There’s a faint scent in the air too.” She tiptoed ahead. True to her tiger side, her footsteps were silent as she made her way through the teeming undergrowth. She stopped behind a tree and peeked around it.
“Aaah, it’s just a tree deer. They don’t have much of a scent,” Samya said. “Let’s go around it. They’re fierce when agitated. Since we’re not hunting today, it’s not worth the bother.”
There weren’t any deer-like animals around the cabin, but since we were now farther out, it was only natural that we’d come across some different creatures.
“Agreed,” I said. “Our goal is the city anyway.”
We skirted around the area. As we walked away, I turned around for a peek at the creature and saw an enormous deer calmly grazing in the grass. It was immediately obvious where the name “tree deer” had come from—its antlers looked exactly like the branches growing all around us.
“How do they prevent their antlers from getting stuck in the trees when they’re so tall?”
“The largest antlers do get caught and snap off occasionally,” Samya answered.
“Oh, is that how it works?” I guess tree deer were clumsier than they looked.
“When I start hunting again, I’ll catch one and show you,” she said. “The biggest horns will have marks from where they’ve already broken off once or twice. Unlike the horned deer, the tree deer’s antlers are just for camouflage, so it doesn’t matter if they break off or not.”
“Nature is amazing,” I said, awed.
I knew very little about biology in my old world, and my installation for this new world hadn’t included any scientific knowledge. It had already been fascinating to see the tree deer with my own eyes, and Samya’s narration had made it even better. I felt like I was watching a nature documentary.
“Tree deer usually attack by kicking at or head-butting their enemies. It’s a fierce opponent in close quarters,” she cautioned.
“Eh, I’ll worry about that when I get close to one.” I gave an exaggerated shrug.
She glanced over at me with a wry smile.
Samya and I made good progress after our encounter with the tree deer. After a while, we decided to take a quick lunch break. As we chatted, we each confirmed that we could still navigate back to the cabin in case of an emergency, even though it was now far behind us. In Samya’s case, beastfolk were able to identify their location using subtle markers in their surroundings, such as different scents. They were forest dwellers after all.
On the other hand, I relied on the knowledge and muscle memory that’d come with the installation package. Of course, I wouldn’t be telling Samya or anyone else that little secret. I was a guest in this world, after all. The Watchdog had said that my presence wouldn’t affect anything, but I didn’t want to take any chances by leaking unnecessary information.
We continued onward. The plan was to press forward to the road without rest. As we hiked, we encountered several other animals, but they were all harmless. We didn’t stumble across any carnivores. Samya explained that they were staying away because they could tell I was strong, but my theory was that it had to do with Samya and her scent. Of course, I wasn’t such an ignoramus that I would turn to a woman and say, “Your smell is keeping the beasts away.” If I wanted to live to see retirement, I’d keep my mouth shut.
The trees started to grow sparse, and before long, we came to the main road. We’d be in the city in no time.
Even though this was a major thoroughfare, I still didn’t see any people or even crop fields around us. I asked Samya about it, and she said, “The forest is a vast, unknown, and dangerous territory for the average person.”
“Are there any bandits around?” I asked.
“Not many. Soldiers patrol this road, since it leads into the city.”
“How do you know?”
“Hey, I have the right to go buy things in town too!” she snapped.
“Of course, of course.” I backpedaled quickly.
Samya had said that she rarely left the forest, and I’d mistook “rarely” for “never.” Come to think of it, even beastfolk who lived primarily within the woods would still need various things like salt, as well as fabric, needles, and the like to make the clothes they wore. According to Samya, beastfolk traded the animals they hunted for supplies.
“It’s a risky gamble for bandits to attack anyone on this road,” Samya continued, returning to our previous conversation. “The soldiers aren’t idiots. They patrol the area randomly rather than on a fixed schedule.”
These soldiers seemed passionate about their duties. I respected that.
“On top of that,” she went on to say, “there’re beasts and forest creatures to worry about, at least if you’re a normal human.” If a bandit troop were looting a caravan and a wolf came charging out of the forest, the tide would turn in a heartbeat. The bandits would quickly transform from hunters into prey. Wild animal attacks were rare, but the odds were still high enough to dissuade any gamblers.
As we talked, the remaining distance disappeared beneath our feet. Before I knew it, I could see the city’s outer walls in the distance. Both Samya and I felt reinvigorated by the sight and continued forward with fresh energy. There wasn’t much distance left to cover—just one last push.
Actually, the walls were only called “outer” for historical reasons. When the city had first been built, the walls had made up the border and the defenses for the settlement, but over time, another fence had been built around everything. Our target, the city’s Open Market, was just beyond that fence.