Chapter 6

A cool breeze swept by, carrying with it the earthy chill of the soil.
When I pressed my palm against the ground, the heaviness in my chest seemed to ease just a little.

After finishing my short break, I got back to digging up herbs. The mountain was so rich with them that I hardly needed to move far. My hands worked busily for quite a while, until something caught my eye—yellow petals wrapped tightly around a pink bud, peeking through the thick grass.

“Oh, Feramint!”

Feramint was a rare find. Its seeds didn’t spread well, so it was hard to come across. Pretty to look at, but also powerful as medicine—it was a treasure to an herb gatherer like me.

I set my basket down carefully and dug around it. The soil was soft, still holding on to its coolness. I hadn’t even dug much when the roots of the Feramint appeared. Gently, I loosened the dirt around it and pulled it free. Its long stem and tangled little roots came up all at once. Without shaking the soil off, I placed it in the basket.

The basket wasn’t full of herbs, but with Feramint in it, this haul was more than enough.
I came down the mountain, walked for about fifteen minutes, and entered the village gates.

“Oh? You’re back early today.”

The village guard uncle, patrolling with his sleeves rolled up, had sweat trickling down his cheeks. Even standing near him, I felt the heat rolling off his body.

“Yes. Look at this.”

I held the basket out toward him. His eyes went straight to the Feramint.

“Well, well. Could that be… Feramint?”

I nodded enthusiastically.

“Hah! Looks like Kark’s got some luck today.”

“Yes~ Hehehe~”

Being praised made me feel good. A chuckle slipped out before I could stop it, and when I tried to hold it back, it only came out as a muffled “hehehe.”

“No wonder you came back earlier than usual. Hahaha, you’ve made even me happy.”

We parted with a laugh. On the way home, I noticed the villagers all reacted much the same as the guard uncle, so I ended up carrying the Feramint in my hand all the way back.

I set the basket down in the kitchen and went to find Grandpa.

“Oh~ You’re back?”

“Yes, Grandpa~”

Grandpa was the village chief, the one who had taken care of me since I first came here alone.

“Did you bring back Feramint again today?”

“Yes, Grandpa. I got lucky~”

From the way I came home early, Grandpa must have guessed right away.

“Hohoho, perhaps our Kark will earn the recognition of Rocky Mountain.”

Grandpa always called Eagle Rock Mountain simply “Rocky Mountain.”

“Recognition?”

“There’s an old tale passed down through the generations. They say an herb gatherer who digs up four Feramint roots in a single year earns the mountain’s recognition.”

I tilted my head.

“But I’ve only dug up two so far.”

“Hoho, and yet isn’t there still plenty of time left in the year? You’ve already found two, so your chances are high. How old are you this year, Kark?”

“Fourteen.”

“This old man also found Feramint when he was around your age.”

“Wow, really?”

I could hardly keep still from excitement.

“If I get Rocky Mountain’s recognition, what happens?”

“You’ll be able to gather far more herbs. You’ll start spotting herbs that other gatherers would walk right past. That way, you’ll save time and won’t need to roam the whole mountain.”

“Wow, that’s amazing. I want to be recognized as soon as possible! So if I dig up four Feramint roots in a year, that’s when it happens, right?”

“Hohoho, that’s right.”

My imagination ran wild. No more exhausting treks across the mountain. I could finish early, bring back herbs quickly, and spend more time playing with Grandpa.

“What’s got you grinning like that? Hoho.”

“Hehe, if I gather herbs faster, I can come home and play with you, Grandpa.”

He patted my head warmly.

“Hoho~ That makes me happy too.”

I need to find more Feramint, fast!

A new goal had taken root inside me.

The next morning started out like any other—except for one thing.

“Heuuuhhh~”

Grandpa’s sleep-talking was the fault of the drinks he’d had the night before.
Every so often, he would drink with the village men, but last night he came back especially drunk. It was strange how he could stagger left and right and still manage to find his way home.

Even now, the smell of alcohol lingered thick in the house.

“Heuuuhh~ Totoro tree… hehh… Totoro tree… munch munch…”

He tossed and turned, mumbling “Totoro tree” over and over.

Hearing it reminded me again of that tree. Grandpa had told me about it so many times that I probably knew more about the Totoro tree than anyone. Not just herb gatherers—ordinary people knew of it too. The tree itself was rare, but what truly made it famous were its fruits.

The fruits of the Totoro tree had no set season. But once they appeared, within two hours they would dry up and fall to the ground. When that happened, they would sink into the earth where they fell. If you picked a fruit within that two-hour window, it had to be processed within two days. If not, it would wither all the same. And if someone picked one too early, the Totoro tree would never bear fruit again—two years later, it would wither and die.

It was a story so well-known that almost no one on the continent was unaware of it. Thanks to Grandpa, I, an herb gatherer, knew even more details.

The effects of the Totoro fruit were said to differ for each person. Some who ate it never needed food again for the rest of their lives. Others gained resistance to heat and cold, able to walk through freezing winters in summer clothes. Some grew incredibly strong.

Such people really existed on the continent—few in number, but famous wherever they went. There was even a story about an herb gatherer who once stumbled upon a Totoro fruit and sold it for a fortune to a passing noble. Since the fruit withered two hours after picking, Grandpa always said that both the gatherer and the noble were lucky that day.

No one ever found out what kind of ability that noble gained.

“Hehh~ Totoro…”

Grandpa, who had lived his whole life as an herb gatherer, had one dream—to see a Totoro tree fruit with his own eyes. Whenever he came home drunk, he would always tell me about that dream. Just last night, he’d spoken of the Totoro Tree again before drifting into sleep. But this was the first time I’d ever seen him muttering about it in his sleep the next morning.

“Heuuhhh~”

He let out a strange, wordless groan and sank deeper into slumber. Watching him like that only made the thought of the Totoro tree stick in my head all the more.

After staring for a while, I gathered my things and stepped outside. The village was already bustling with elders busy at their morning tasks.

As I reached the village entrance, a booming voice called out to me.

“Oh~! Kark!”

Sure enough, it was Uncle Valrof. Auntie was beside him, sweeping the yard, while he was splitting firewood even this early in the morning.

I bowed politely.

“Good morning~!”

“Hahaha! Good, good. The village chief is still asleep, isn’t he?”

Uncle straightened his back and wiped his forehead with a thick forearm.

“Yes. He drank with you again, didn’t he?”

Uncle looked unwashed, like he’d overslept. His hair was messy, and his eyes were swollen with fatigue. Right then, Auntie jabbed him in the side with the broom handle.

“Urk…!”

He clutched his ribs where he was struck, just as Auntie scolded him.

“You should think about the chief’s health before drinking! If you keep this up every single day, something bad will happen!”

“Bwahaha! Don’t worry. Back in the day, the chief was famous all across the Cross Kingdom for his drinking. A man like that? He won’t go down so easily! If anything, I’ll be the one to drop first. Hahaha!”

“I can’t live like this, honestly!”

With a loud shout, Auntie tossed the broom aside, stormed into the house, and slammed the door behind her.

Uncle leaned closer and whispered to me with a grin.

“Haha, did you see that? She’s sulking because I didn’t spend time with her last night.”

“Ah… I see. Well, Uncle, I’d better get going.”

“Haha! Alright, then. Do your best today!”

“Urk… You too, Uncle.”

Uncle Valrof slapped my back hard and burst into hearty laughter. He was always more energetic the morning after drinking.

I hurried away before he could get even more lively—if I lingered, my back surely wouldn’t survive.

Thanks to my quick steps, I arrived at the foot of Rocky Mountain earlier than usual. The day was already heating up, and rushing there made my body burn with sweat.