Chương 70: Give Me Back My Fish

The strange person had actually gotten in line. Kichan picked up one fish skewer. The flesh was well-cooked. The outside was crisply dry, and oil rose from within. The garlic-tasting root and the pepper-like fragrance clung to it. Kichan held the skewer out to the strange person.

"Just one." The strange person took the skewer. First, they smelled it. Their eyes changed a little. Then they took a bite. They paused briefly. Even the sound of the valley stream subsided low. Then they said slowly.

"Good." Kichan, without much thought, reached for his share. That was when the strange person's hand naturally took a second skewer. Kichan's hand stopped.

"Hey." The strange person ate the second one too. A little faster than the first. Clear madness flickered in their eyes. Riphiel caught her breath. Valkyrie, holding the scale shield, did not move above the water. The saber-toothed tiger lowered its tail. Dust quietly hid behind Kichan's shoulder with the scales still in its mouth. Even seeing that reaction, Kichan simply thought it was the level of tension when a stranger showed up.

"Is it because it's someone you've never seen?" Riphiel moved only her lips, as if speaking through clenched teeth.

"They are indeed someone I have never seen, but…" In that gap, the strange person picked up a third skewer. Kichan grabbed their wrist.

"That's mine." The strange person looked at Kichan.

"Is that so."

"It is."

"Still, it is better to eat it before it gets cold." And they ate it. Kichan's eyes sank cold. Riphiel spoke immediately.

"Kichan, just a moment—" Kichan was already holding his wake-up rod.

"Give me my fish." Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation. The strange person looked at the twig now bare of meat.

"I already ate it."

"Then take a hit." Kichan swung the wake-up rod. Riphiel could not even scream and only opened her mouth. Valkyrie leaped up from the water holding the small spear, and the saber-toothed tiger pulled back. But the strange person did not get hit. They stepped back several paces, skewer still in hand. Saying they had stepped back was an understatement — they were too far. The person who had been by the fire moments ago was now standing on a rock on the other side of the water.

The wake-up rod passed through the space where their shoulder had been and struck the stone ground. Boom. The rocks by the water split. The fish skewers by the fire swayed. The strange person slowly chewed the remaining fish on the rock on the other side. Kichan said quietly.

"You're doing that on purpose."

"Because it's good."

"That's why I said you're doing it on purpose." Kichan raised the wake-up rod again. He did not aim for the head. He aimed for the wrist holding the skewer and was about to lift his foot. Just then, the strange person walked back toward the fire only after putting the remaining fish in their mouth. Riphiel said, her lips stiff.

"That person is probably—" Without looking back, Kichan said.

"I don't want to hear a name right now."

"But—""Stay still." Hearing those words, the strange person smiled for the first time. The laughter resonated not only with the sound of the valley stream, but small through the rocks by the water and the tree bark as well.

"A human who takes food seriously." Kichan answered.

"Someone who talks like that steals and eats other people's food?" The strange person looked at the last remaining skewer. Kichan looked at it too. Both of their gazes moved at the same time. Dust had bitten that skewer first and bolted. A moment of stillness. Kichan and the strange person looked at Dust at the same time. Kichan said quietly.

"Even you?" Dust flicked a leg. Confidently. Kichan reached out his hand.

"Give it here." Dust backed away half a step. The strange person's eyes rested on that small black creature. For the first time, their gaze lingered on something other than the fish.

"What is that small thing?" Kichan blocked in front of Dust.

"My family." The valley stream went quiet for a moment. Riphiel caught her breath. The saber-toothed tiger pressed lower. Valkyrie, floating above the water, did not move. The strange person slowly repeated Kichan's words.

"Family."

"Yeah." Kichan put his wake-up rod over his shoulder.

"You stole my food, and now you're staring at my family. You're really crossing the line." The strange person looked at Dust, then at Kichan. Between curiosity and laughter, an ancient light mixed.

"A human calls such a thing family too."

"I don't like your tone." The strange person tilted their head.

"Is that so."

"It is." Kichan adjusted his grip on the wake-up rod. Valkyrie gave a small tremble above the water. Dust hid behind Kichan's shoulder with the last fish skewer still in its mouth. Riphiel seemed to have no strength left to stop it.

"Kichan."

"What."

"It might be better to stop for a moment—""Would you stand still after someone stole your food?" Riphiel quietly shut her mouth. The strange person did not withdraw their smile.

"Is that fish so important." Kichan answered immediately.

"Because I made it."

"I see."

"So it's mine."

"That logic is simple."

"Why break something simple." The strange person was silent for a moment. Then they said quietly.

"Interesting." Kichan's eyes went colder.

"Pay for my fish." The strange person's eyes deepened a little.

"Pay, you say." They laughed softly.

"Everything here is mine." Kichan gripped his wake-up rod again.

"I caught it, seasoned it, and grilled it."

"Is that the condition of ownership."

"That's not something someone who ate someone else's food gets to question." Riphiel closed her eyes and gripped the saber-toothed tiger's neck.