Childhood
001. Luca
Luca was taken in by the hunting master, Wolf, when he was five years old.
His parents and family didn't die or anything. Down the mountains, he lived with his parents, big brother, and little brother in a village.
Luca was born with an appearance that is quite rare in this world. His white hair and purple iris were all unique to his village.
It is a small village in the countryside. He was discriminated against as a matter of course, even before he could remember. Though, not everyone was cold to an innocent child. However, the head of the neighborhood watch, the second highest position in the village after the Village Chief, abhorred Luka. A few of his subordinates got involved.
It was the drifter, Wolf, who found Luca sitting alone at the edge of the village at the base of a tree. He did not receive any of the sweets that's given to the children at the Spring Flower Festival.
Wolf had exterminated a magic beast that had strayed into the village about 20 years ago, and had settled there as a hunter at the behest of the former Village Chief. He lived in the mountains near the village and was taciturn, having little contact with the villagers. After the current Village Chief took over, he was not even invited to village gatherings. He was not hostile, but he was not a villager either. He was simply the person that would occasionally sell hunted meat to the people, this was Wolf's position.
The reason he went down the mountain that day was because he happened to catch a moose and felt like taking it to the flower festival. Wolf later said that it must have been the guidance from the spirits. He lived and breathed in the mountains, and he believed in a higher being in nature.
Luca does not know how Wolf talked to his parents.
But he was taken out of the house after the flower festival and sent to live in Wolf's cabin.
At first he was given a bow, which was little more than a toy, so that he could get used to it. The bow hardly bends and the string, which had poor elasticity, would only unimpressively flick out wooden arrows.
Luca aimed at a small rabbit that was about to dig a hole, but it was hit and ran away.
That was Luka's first hit.
Wolf wanted Luca to get used to walking in the mountains, so he let him follow. Luca stepped on branches, hit bushes, and missed countless prey. He could hardly keep up with an adult and could not even walk a quarter of the route Wolf had planned to take. Still, Wolf was patient and showed Luca how it was done.
How does he tread the mountains? Where does Wolf's eyes look? What kind of beasts graze and what kind of tracks do they leave behind? How does he hold his bow? How does he breathe? How much strength is he putting into it?
Luca was smart.
He quickly imitated what he could. If it was something that could be learned, he learned it immediately. What he knew he lacked, but could not do anything about, was physical strength and muscle power.
He could not draw a strong bow because he lacked strength and he couldn't get a long range.
So, why don't he just try to get closer?
If the arrow would not penetrate the hide, why not hit the place where the arrow would pierce?
The first successful hunt that Luca got was with a rabbit. It was hunted around the cabin while he was away.
Seeing the arrow in the rabbit's eye and neck, Wolf was pleased that Luca had done well. Though, Wolf simply thought it was a coincidence at the time. After all, he had no way of knowing that it was the result of wisdom and hard work that Luca had devised to compensate for what he lacked.
0 Comments