Primitive Man

Chapter 71: Familiar white

Garnt patted Maro's head affectionately and then pointed in the direction of the ongoing battle. Rona followed his gaze, her eyes widening as she observed the fierce struggle taking place not far from where they stood.

"Maro, can you ask them to stop attacking my people?" Garnt asked like he was talking with another human.

As the battle raged on, Maro turned to Garnt, a newfound determination in her eyes. She looked at him as if she had suddenly understood something profound. Without hesitation, she began to howl, her voice echoing through the forest.

"Is this really happening?" Rona was dumbfounded by the chain of events that kept happening.

To everyone's surprise, the other wolves in the area responded to Maro's call. They started to retreat, leaving the bewildered villagers who were already wounded by the unexpected attack. The tide of battle began to turn in their favour.

"Don't attack wolves. Just collect the wounded people and get ready to go back," Garnt shouted since he didn't want his villagers to kill any wolves in Maro's pack.

Garnt continued to pat Maro's head, his expression filled with gratitude. "Thank you, Maro. As always, you're a good girl," he whispered to the wolf.

Maro, in response to Garnt's appreciation, started licking his face, causing Garnt to chuckle despite the chaos around them.

[She looks like a dog. No wonder those cute creatures evolved from these animals.]

Eva commented as she couldn't help but find Maro's cuteness to be something deadly.

One of the villagers approached Garnt and Rona. They nodded in agreement with the decision that had to be made.

[Garnt, it's time we collect everyone and leave for now. The damage is too much, and you can't fight off twenty men with our villagers wounded.]

Eva added showing, that she supported their decision to leave.

Garnt glanced back at the distant mine, his resolve unwavering. He knew he had to come back and take what was rightfully theirs. "I promise, one day we will reclaim the mine and it will be after I massacre everyone in that mine," he said to himself with determination.

With Maro and the other wolves by their side, they began to gather their fellow villagers and make their way to safety, leaving the battlefield behind for now.

The bond between Garnt and Maro, the wolf, had played a pivotal role in their survival, and they carried the hope of returning to reclaim their land in the future.

***

As Garnt and the villagers made their way to safety, they couldn't help but notice a growing presence behind them. A pack of wolves, not too far off, was following them, their eyes locked onto the group.

The villagers exchanged uneasy glances, uncomfortable with the idea that these wolves were the ones who had attacked them earlier.

"Don't worry. They won't attack again. Just keep walking," Garnt reassured the group. As he spoke, he noticed Maro's peculiar behaviour.

She was walking alongside him, but every few steps, she would brush her body against his leg, as if she were trying to mark her territory and seek comfort at the same time.

Her antics brought a faint smile to Garnt's face, adding a touch of warmth to their tense situation.

Rona, always curious and observant, turned to Garnt with a puzzled expression. "Garnt, how do you know that white fur wolf?" she asked, her voice laced with curiosity. "How did you manage to become friends with an animal like this?"

Garnt smiled warmly at Rona, his eyes flicking towards Maro, the white fur wolf, as he continued to walk. He was hesitant for a second, but then he decided to reveal the bittersweet story, that he never wanted to bring out. "I killed her mother and father," he said simply, his tone matter-of-fact.

Rona's eyes widened, and she couldn't help but look at Maro differently now, her gaze filled with a mix of sympathy and curiosity. Garnt noticed her reaction and began to share the story of how he had first encountered Maro.

"It all started when we were almost new to our village making process." Garnt started to tell the story going back to the past.

The scene shifted to a time when Garnt and his family were still a small group of nine or ten struggling to survive. They were frequently attacked by a group of aggressive wolves that had established a den dangerously close to their camp.

Unable to take all the attacks of the wolf, Garnt and his aunt had decided to confront the wolf pack before they posed an even greater threat. Armed with determination and desperation, they ambushed the wolves, resulting in a brutal confrontation where the villagers massacred the pack.

"We had some injuries, but because of my traps and stealth skills, we managed to kill more than half of their pack without raising any alarm," Garnt muttered, as Rona sighed knowing it would be possible for Garnt and he then continued with his story.

Amidst the cries and chaos, drawn by the faintest of sounds, Garnt and his group entered the wolves' cave cautiously. There, he found a little white fur wolf, peacefully asleep amidst the chaos. Other villagers attempted to kill it, but Garnt halted them.

He knelt beside the sleeping pup and looked into her innocent eyes. "We don't need to kill a child," he declared firmly. Garnt decided to take the young wolf under his care.

Garnt went on to explain how he had brought the wolf pup back to the village, raising her like a surrogate mother. Maro had grown attached to him, considering him as her protector and provider.

"She might not even know that I have her parents' blood on my hand, but I always did my best to raise her like a real wolf." Garnt finished his little sad story.

Rona listened to the story, her gaze shifting between Garnt and Maro. She felt the weight of the bond that had formed between them and couldn't help but feel a sense of sadness for both Garnt and the wolf who had lost her parents but had found a new family in their village.

Rona wanted to hug both of them and tell them that it wasn't their fault, but then Garnt showed that he wasn't weak enough to worry about something that had already been done.

"That day my hatred for the wolves vanished and I learnt a valuable lesson. Just like us, they are also trying their best to survive.

At the end of the day, their actions are just as justifying as ours." Those were some heavy words for Rona since she still had the brain of a primitive woman, but still, she managed to understand the basic idea.

"We should be grateful for everything and shouldn't waste anything. We should never kill for fun. We should only kill to survive. I want everyone in our village to understand that and become more human."

Rona felt more and more her respect for Garnt increasing as a leader, and her heart started to pound every time she looked at his face when he explained everything.

"What is this sensation? Why does my body feel hot?" She questioned herself, puzzled by the unfamiliar sensations coursing through her body.

When she asked why the wolf was now in the wild, Garnt's gaze grew distant and pained.

"I didn't want to keep her," he began, his voice tinged with regret. "Every time I looked at her, I was reminded of how I killed her parents. It was a constant burden on my conscience. So, I decided to do something different for her."

"..."

"Yeah, I trained her like a real wolf. Maybe, a little too strong since she can easily hunt bears without any help and then I left her in the woods when she is strong enough to survive on her own."

Rona listened intently, her curiosity growing. She asked, "But why didn't she come back? Wolves have a good sense of smell, right?"

Garnt looked at the wolf, and as if on cue, she approached and rubbed her body against his leg affectionately. He smiled at her and then turned back to Rona.

"She's more intelligent than most other wolves," Garnt explained. "I believe she understands more than we give her credit for. She wanted to prove herself to me, to show that she could fend for herself and be more than just a pet."

[Or maybe she just misunderstood your intention. After all, animals can't really understand humans.]

Eva added to the context and Garnt knew that might be the real reason.

Garnt couldn't hide the affection in his eyes as he patted the wolf's head and called her by name. The wolf whimpered softly, nuzzling his hand, and Garnt's heart warmed.

Rona watched this interaction and felt her own heart race. She couldn't deny the bond that had formed between Garnt and the wolf. As she observed Garnt's actions and heard his words, a thought crossed her mind. She finally understood the unfamiliar sensations coursing through her body.

"I wish I could be like Maro," She muttered to herself, but then she realized how absurd her words sounded.

"This sensation," she whispered to herself, "it's admiration, respect, and maybe even something more." Rona was beginning to realize that her feelings for Garnt were evolving into something deeper than she had ever imagined.

As Garnt pondered whether he would keep the wolf this time, Rona couldn't help but hope that he would, as it was clear that they had both found a unique connection in this wild and untamed world.