Hohsalle cocked his head. “No. What about you?”
Van shook his head. Just as Hohsalle was about to heave a sigh of disappointment, he added, “It didn’t give off any light, but it did have a powerful odor.”
“Odor? Was it unpleasant?”
Van narrowed his eyes as he thought back. “It smelled like ashimi, but much stronger. The scent was so intense that it seemed to pierce my head. My nerves tingled the whole time I carried that sack.”
Hohsalle stared at Van, stunned. An idea bounced wildly around his mind—an absolutely crazy idea, but one so enticing, he simply couldn’t dismiss it.
“Is it abnormal to see light shining from that medicine?” Van questioned. “Or to think it has a strong smell?”
Before Hohsalle could respond, someone piped up from behind him. “Yes, it’s abnormal. But it’s also fascinating.”
Milalle had thrown off her bedcovers and was struggling to sit up.
“Get back into bed,” Hohsalle ordered. “It’s too cold for you to be up.” He reached out to pull the covers over her again, but she laughed and pushed his hand away.
“I’ll be fine. My fever’s gone down. If you’re worried, I’ll wrap myself in a blanket. You’re the one who should take care not to catch a cold, sitting on the edge of your bed with your bare feet dangling.”
The room brightened. Sae had stoked the embers in the fireplace and put on some wood that caught quickly and burned brightly. “Would you like to come over here by the fire? I’ll boil some water for tea,” she said, hanging an earthen teapot on an iron hook above the flames.
Hohsalle chuckled. “This is a strange state of affairs. Here, brewing us some tea, is the woman who fell into a ravine and was presumed dead. And standing beside her is the escaped slave she was sent to pursue. Am I dreaming or what?”
Milalle joined him on his bed and flung a large blanket around his shoulders. Hohsalle pulled her inside the blanket with him. Laughing, they climbed down from the bed together. Settling themselves in front of the fireplace, they cuddled and let the warmth slowly penetrate their bodies.
Van took a seat before the hearth, too. In the firelight, his face appeared much gentler than Hohsalle had imagined.
“I must apologize to Makokan tomorrow,” Sae said. “I’ve caused him nothing but trouble.”
Hohsalle flashed a crooked grin. “That’s an understatement. He came rushing back from Oki in a panic, sure that you were dead. He searched all over for you in vain. Now that he’s finally found you again, you go and slip something into his drink and knock him out cold.”
Although Sae looked flustered, a smile rose to her lips. While preparing and pouring the tea, she briefly outlined what had happened so far. Once he grasped the whole picture, Hohsalle cursed silently. Tohlim. That sneaky old fox. He’d been pursuing his own ends all along while pretending to cooperate with their search for the runaway slave. Makokan had gone all the way to Oki only to be hoodwinked into returning empty-handed.
“Honestly! Makokan’s so useless,” he grumbled.
Sae shook her head. “No. That wasn’t part of our plan. We really were attacked by Kinma dogs.”
“You were?”
“Yes.” Sae glanced at Van. His lips twisted in a wry smile.
“It seems that several hunters laid traps for me at the same time,” he explained. Yotalu, who’d sent the trackers to bring back the escaped slave and hated leader of the Lone Antlers. Hohsalle, who saw Van, a survivor of black wolf fever, as a valuable medical specimen. Tohlim, who sought him for similar reasons, but a different goal. And Kenoi of the Ahfal Oma, who desperately needed a new leader capable of controlling the Kinma dogs.
As Hohsalle listened to Van recount his tale, his throat grew parched. Looking up at Sae, he said, “Open that cupboard and get down a bottle of mokoi, would you? There should be some cheese in there, too.”
Milalle glared at him. “We’re in the middle of their story. This is no time for liquor. Besides, she’s already made us some tea.”
“Oh, hush. I want something stronger than that!” Hohsalle accepted the bottle from Sae and splashed a dollop in the cups she’d just finished pouring. “Not for you, though,” he said, skipping Milalle’s cup.
“I didn’t want some anyway,” she retorted.
The pleasant aroma of mokoi mingled with that of the tea. The hot liquid slipped down Hohsalle’s throat straight into his stomach, warming him instantly. He took another swallow.
Milalle sipped the hot tea and sighed with contentment. Hohsalle’s arm rested against hers, and she felt its heat slowly seep into her body.
When his voice had first roused her, she’d remained under the bedcovers, listening drowsily to their conversation. Even now, sitting here before the fire, she felt she must still be dreaming. It was as though they were in some different time, floating in foam and gazing at this world through bright translucence. Anticipation bubbled to the surface of her mind, filling her with restless joy. Hohsalle was undoubtedly struggling to suppress his excitement, too. Noticing Van and Sae watching them with gentle smiles, she supposed that she and Hohsalle must appear like eager little children. She blushed.
I wonder what their relationship is. They had started as hunter and hunted, yet they seemed to share a comfortable bond, like that of a couple who’d been together for many years. They maintained the quiet bearing of people who’d endured much hardship, and there was sadness beneath their warm expressions.
Hohsalle caressed his cup with his fingers. “So they took the girl hostage to lure you to them.” He frowned. “But that doesn’t really make sense. If they needed someone to lead the Kinma dogs, why not choose one of their own? Why were they so fixated on you? You don’t even belong to the Ahfal Oma.”
Van stared into the fire for some time without answering.
“It’s hard to describe in words,” he said at last. “Remember that I told you that your medicine has a powerful odor to me? Something strange seems to have happened to me after I was bitten. For one thing, I was strong enough to break those shackles.”
Pausing occasionally to search for words, Van told them about his heightened sense of smell and how his body reacted when the Kinma dogs approached, that feeling of turning inside out, and about how, in that state, his soul resonated with those of the dogs so that he could control them like a handler leading them by a leash.
Hohsalle hung on every word, letting out a long sigh when Van finished. “Well, that’s an incredible story. And their dog handlers can’t do that?”
“No, I’m pretty sure they can’t.” Van rubbed his arm and gazed at Hohsalle. “If you know what’s going on inside me, I’d be grateful if you could explain it. Has this happened to anyone else?”
Hohsalle glanced at Milalle and then shifted his eyes back to Van. “To be honest, we’ve never heard of any other cases like it. I can tell you what I think might be happening based on what we already know, but it’s nothing more than a guess, and any competent physician would likely scoff at my ideas.”
“I still want to know. Please tell me.”
Hohsalle gave a short laugh. “Oh, but it’s not that simple. It’ll be hard to understand without knowing the assumptions we make about living things.”
Van smiled faintly. “I realize there’s no comparison between what I know and the wisdom of the Otawalle. Could you outline things as you would to a child?” Van was gripping his knees so hard that his fingertips had turned white. “Yuna and I were bitten by Kinma dogs and survived. But we’re not the same as before.” A shadow lurked in Van’s eyes as he watched Hohsalle. “If you can, please tell me. What’s happening to us? Why do people get sick? And why do some people who get sick recover, while others don’t?”
Hohsalle’s expression turned grave. “All right. I’ll do the best I can.” After moistening his lips, he said, “But if you’re satisfied with my explanation, I want you to do me a favor. Give me some blood.”
Van’s eyebrows shot up. “Blood?”
Hohsalle nodded. “Remember the little tube with the needle that I used to give Milalle medicine in the cell?”
“Yes.”
“Just three of those vials will do. Please give me some of your blood. If you’re satisfied, that is.”
Van gave him a long, probing look and then nodded.