71 – Wolf Cub Tree (3)
Cain pretended to hit the ax from top to bottom. Lily covered her mouth and Mary seemed quite surprised as well, as she pulled her body towards Cain.
“You hit me down? Really?”
“I was a little scared, but I think I was more angry than that. The thought, ‘This is my land, how dare a wolf come and growl?’ Her mother always got so angry when rude people came. So she took it down.”
“Are you dead?”
She asked as Lily covered her mouth. Cain looked at Lily blankly and shook her head.
“No. No matter how brave she is, she is only eleven years old. She wasn’t old enough to freely wield a hatchet as long as her arm.
The wolf cub pulled itself up with its hind legs, and the ax blade was stuck about two spans away. It didn’t break my wrist because it got stuck in an exposed tree root instead of bare ground, but the real problem came after that.
The ax wasn’t pulled out. “It got stuck so hard.”
The wind blew like a wolf was mocking. The horses purred eerily and shook their heads.
“So what happened?”
“Even if you try to pull it out with both hands, it won’t work. I was wondering what to do with this, but then the wolf came to his senses. It growled and swung its broken front paw, trying to bite and scratch my hand.
It seems like he knew that the ax was a very precious item to me and a threat to him. In the end, I put down the ax and retreated. The wolf continued to growl and rested his chin on the axe. It felt like he was saying, ‘From now on, this is mine, so don’t even think about taking it.’
My body stiffened as I thought, ‘What should I do with this?’ I felt like I would be scolded for losing the ax rather than for not being able to catch the wolf.
When I think about it now, I wonder if my parents scolded me more for rushing to catch the wolf cub than for losing the axe. Anyway, that was more important to me at that time. “I couldn’t even catch the wolf, and my ax was taken away.”
Maria tapped the corner of her roof.
“It was pretty similar then and now, huh?”
“In what way?”
“It goes as it wants at a very strange point.”
“Do you think so? “I thought you were really brave ever since you were little.”
Lily pulled her legs up onto the coach seat. He held her in his arms and leaned his head against her slightly. She lay down on her back as if Maria had no choice.
“Okay. What wouldn’t be pretty in your eyes? How did your parents not catch it? “I heard you say it.”
“It wasn’t like that. “For an 11-year-old, I came up with a pretty smart idea.”
“What was it?”
“You’re hiding it. What.”
A sound of suppressed laughter was heard from the roof of the carriage. Cain gently scratched her head as if he was embarrassed even thinking about it now.
“Because it was after the storm, a lot of leaves and branches had fallen. They piled them up in front of the den where the wolf was hiding. To prevent the neighborhood kids from entering, I tried to think of a good move after blocking it for now. But then suddenly the wolf cried.”
“You cried?”
“Did you say howling? It wasn’t like a long, long “Aww” Sound trying to find the group. I literally whined and cried while rubbing my body against the ax blade and the tree. I couldn’t even see where the growling momentum from before had gone.
Well. It was a bit absurd. The fact that the guy who was acting so fiercely piled wood in front of her made her so scared and whined. It must have seemed so absurd to her childish thoughts that she even sat down next to her and asked. ‘Are you scared?’”
Lily gasped, covering her face with her hands. “What should I do, it’s so cute…” .”
“Oh my god, he was such an old man. It’s gross. “A child should be a child.” Maria looked very perturbed.
“Then. “Yes, did you answer?”
“No. Growling. She was hungry because she didn’t eat breakfast, and she thought there was nothing more to come out of her fight with this guy, so she said, ‘If you’re scared, I won’t pile on more.’ She turned around. Then he whined even more. As if telling you not to go.
Perhaps, she thought, and stretched her hand little by little towards the ax. She just watched quietly and then growled again when she got close enough to grab it.
‘What are you telling me to do?’ She couldn’t say it out loud because she was afraid someone would hear her, but she was very annoyed. He must have been quite confused, too, as she growled and whined repeatedly.
But soon, rather than feeling irritated, I felt sleepy, tired, and hungry. I already couldn’t sleep well because of the storm… I should just go eat something. And she just turned around.
At that time, her head became a little brighter. ‘Ah. I thought, ‘Maybe this guy is hungry like me?’ Because her younger siblings did that too when they were babies. Just as you whine when you’re hungry and sleepy, I thought wolf cubs would be like that too.
The wolf whined and growled as if he was embarrassed, but he ignored it and ran towards the back road of the forest. I knew where the workers were setting traps for catching rabbits. Sometimes, when I went to take out the trash, there was always a dead rabbit hanging there.
Sure enough, even though the storm was that bad, there was still a rabbit stuck. I was a little reluctant to catch a dead rabbit, so I tied it to the end of a large tree and ran back to the wolf.
“Okay. Eat. “Eat and get well soon.” And then I threw it away. He noticed it and then grabbed it and ate it right away. I also noticed this guy and placed thicker branches and leaves at the entrance.
I couldn’t hear anything, so I wondered what was going on this time, and found that the rabbit was sleeping comfortably with its nose stuck in its body. I think I thought it was just like a baby. Even though I get all kinds of irritated, I still fall asleep when I’m full after breastfeeding.
Anyway, I returned home and had breakfast. When my father asked me where I had been, I said I was worried about the orchard so I took a look around. I thought it was a very plausible answer, but I think my father viewed me with somewhat ambiguous eyes.
My father knew that I was diligent, but he didn’t seem particularly attached to the apple tree. But my father didn’t have any more problems. Except when he asked me if I had seen the hatchet on the firewood pile behind me and I answered, ‘I don’t know.’
Luckily, I took a break from studying for about a week. The monastery also suffered quite a bit of damage from the storm, and I also had to help with household chores. For some reason, the lord’s soldiers even come forward to repair the fence and the collapsed roof. They were busy moving around.
Bells were also hung throughout the village. If a wolf appears, anyone who sees it nearby can quickly run over and ring the bell. Then, the person who heard the bell could also ring the bell to warn the villagers to flee to a safe place.
Adults said that. A pack of wolves attacked a village a little further away than the next village, so it was about the same distance as the next village. Many people were killed and injured, and many livestock were also injured.
‘It’s not a wolf. A devil in wolf clothing. ‘You have to kill them and burn them.’ That’s what our grandparents used to say.
I thought of that little wolf. It didn’t seem like a devil at all. I knew that the devil was a guy with horns, a bright red body, and a long tongue.
I was offended that he took my axe, but he was scared of the dark, so I threw him a rabbit that whined, and he ate it, saying it was delicious, but then he buried his nose in it and went to sleep… Well. I didn’t know what the devil was, but he didn’t seem like one.
It was the same for about a week after that. Clearing away twigs, trimming hedges, and throwing damaged trees into the forest was a big job.
The adults tied the wounded tree tightly with a rope and went to the village herbalist to get some ointment for the wound. If you apply it between trees, the trees will heal quickly.
Thanks to you… I was able to get this little guy a lot of things. It was thanks to the storm. A bird that fell dead, a rabbit caught in a snare… A lot of rabbits were caught in particular. The rabbit hole was overturned once, and those who had nowhere to go came out and wandered around, only to get caught in a trap.
I gradually became friends with the wolf. He still growled when I got close, but he didn’t hesitate to give me food. Now, he must have heard my footsteps and even if I pull back the bushes, he doesn’t say anything. It just stayed quiet, holding its breath, but when it saw me, it even went so far as to gently wag its tail.
I gave him something to eat every time. He ate incredibly well. Because I ate everything I was given. The bones that I couldn’t eat were put aside. He must have been so smart that even though his front legs were sore, he somehow managed to dig the ground, put the sewage in there, and bury it.
When I asked, ‘Is it delicious?’, He came towards me while gently wagging his tail. Even with my tongue panting. I thought it looked just like our dog, so I held out my hand, and while debating whether to growl or whine, it soon rubbed its cheek. That must have been something of a compromise on his part. I also stroked his head.
I didn’t bother to take the ax, and he didn’t growl either. I think that was a promise between me and him. A promise not to harm each other.
The wolf cub grew up really fast. So much so that I doubt that it grows as it eats. The front feet seemed to have some bone in them, so they moved quite well. It’s been about 4 or 5 days. There’s been a change in this guy.
You said you blocked the entrance with bushes, right? But when I opened the entrance, it started whining instead. I was embarrassed. Why is this guy doing this? Is there anything uncomfortable? So I removed all the bushes that were covering it. Then, it hid deeper into the tree cave.”
“Um… Have you at least adapted to the darkness?”
Maria asked
“Have you become so accustomed to living inside that you no longer have the courage to go outside?”
Lily also shared her opinion.
“Both will be correct. He was afraid of the outside world. ‘Hey. What’s the matter. ‘There’s nothing to be afraid of,’ he said, extending his hand a little deeper. Of course, I didn’t stick it out. I’m afraid he’ll be surprised. Instead, I made eye contact and held it out slowly, very slowly, as if asking to see this.
The wolf didn’t shake me off or bite my hand. I stuck out my tongue and gave his hand a little lick. It was very annoying. ‘Ruler. What’s the matter. ‘Are you scared?’ She put her hands above her head, and this time she stuck out her tongue and gasped.
Only then did he come out. My leg was completely healed. He rubbed his body next to my squatting body and flopped down next to me. ‘We are friends now. ‘Right?’ She asked. The guy didn’t say “Bruise,” But instead he put his front paw on my leg as if he was joking.
Well… How to play with wolves. Since I didn’t know anything, I just played like a hunting dog. All that afternoon. When I picked up a stick and threw it, he went and asked. I stroked his head, then picked him up and threw him again….
The sun has already set. He must have been tired, so he went home and lay down. ‘See you tomorrow,’ I said and returned home. I slept very well that night. My parents asked me what good things were happening these days, and I said I was happy because I didn’t study. I said roughly. Actually, it was a lie. Because studying writing was fun.
And when I went to visit him the next day, he wasn’t there. “It was just an axe.”