The forest was utterly, profoundly silent. The four sisters and I stood frozen, a tableau of shared disbelief, staring at the dead monster pinned to the legendary, unbreakable tree. The only sound was the faint drip… drip… drip of dark blood splattering onto the forest floor.
Eve was the first to move, her warrior instincts overriding her shock. She marched up to the Shatterwood tree and grabbed the shaft of her spear, planting her feet and pulling with all her might. The spear didn't budge. Not even a millimeter.
"It's… not moving," she grunted, her knuckles white, her muscles straining. She let go, her hands trembling slightly, and stared at the spearhead buried deep in the pale, metallic-looking wood.
Sera finally let out a long, shaky breath. She turned to me, her blue eyes wide with a look I couldn't quite decipher—a mixture of awe, fear, and something else, something deeper. "I can't believe it," she whispered. "Satvik… do you have any idea what you've just done?"
I was still feeling the phantom energy of the throw humming in my own muscles, a power that felt both alien and completely natural. "I… I stopped it from attacking Sia," I said, the simple truth feeling ridiculously inadequate.
Eve whipped her head around, her expression one of pure, unfiltered incredulity. "You don't get it, do you?" she snapped, though her voice lacked its usual bite, replaced by a tone of stunned confusion. "You really don't know anything about monster ranks or adventurers, do you?"
I could only shake my head, feeling like a student who'd just been asked a question in a class he didn't know he was enrolled in.
She let out a frustrated sigh, running a hand through her jet-black hair. "That thing," she said, pointing a trembling finger at the monster, "is a Carrion Strider. A Silver-rank threat. That means it's a D-rank monster. You need a full party of elite, A-rank adventurers—heroes, basically—to hunt one of these things, and even then, it's a dangerous job." She then slapped the trunk of the tree. "And this is a Shatterwood. A legendary tree. You're not supposed to be able to even scratch it with a normal weapon. Your spear… it went through like it was rotten wood." She stared at me, her crimson eyes searching my face for an answer that I didn't have. "What you just did… it wasn't just a good kill. It was a miracle. An impossibility."
I looked at the spear, then at my own hands. An A-rank party… The words meant little to me, but the sheer awe in her voice was unmistakable. I walked over to the tree, gripped the spear shaft with both hands, and pulled. With a loud, groaning shriek of stressed wood, the spear came free. Eve's jaw dropped.
After that, there wasn't much to say. We all seemed to be in a collective state of shock. But the practicalities of survival quickly took over. The monster was huge, and getting it back to the cottage was a team effort. Even with my enhanced strength, it was a heavy, awkward burden. The journey home was a slow, sweaty, and strangely triumphant procession.
Back at the cottage, Eve's business-like demeanor returned. She pulled out a sharp, well-worn skinning knife and immediately set to work, her movements quick, precise, and brutally efficient. She was in her element.
I watched her for a moment, my own hunger a gnawing pit in my stomach. "So…" I began, feeling a little foolish. "Can we… eat this?"
Sera, who had been catching her breath, let out a laugh. It was a bright, wonderful sound, completely free of the worry that had burdened her before. "Are you serious?" she said, her eyes sparkling. "Satvik, this meat is a luxury! A half-kilo of this would sell for at least ten gold coins in the city. Just the smell of it cooking is enough to make a king drool. And it's incredibly nutritious. It's packed with energy."
Sia, who was examining the creature's fearsome, razor-sharp talons, chimed in. "And those are even better," she said, her voice a warm purr. "The teeth and the talons. We can sell them to a blacksmith for a small fortune. They can be used to make amazing arrowheads and daggers. They're sharper and stronger than any steel a village smith can make."
My attention, however, was on the hide. As Eve skillfully peeled back the tough, leathery skin, my new instincts, the ones blessed by a god, kicked in. My mind was suddenly flooded with a new kind of data. I wasn't seeing a monster hide; I was seeing a material. I saw its tensile strength, its flexibility, the unique, subtle pattern of its scales. My fingers twitched. I saw supple leather for boots that would never wear out. I saw a breastplate, tough enough to stop a sword but light enough to allow for agile movement. I saw… potential.
"Excuse me…" I said, my voice quiet. Eve looked up from her work, a questioning look in her crimson eyes. "Can I have the skin?"
She looked bewildered. "The hide? Yeah, of course. You're the one who defeated it. It's yours." She wiped her knife on a rag. "It's valuable, but… what will you do with it? Are you thinking of selling it?"
A delighted, genuine smile spread across my face. "No," I said, my mind already overflowing with designs. "I need it."
While Eve continued her work, Sera announced she was going to forage for some more mushrooms and herbs for the coming days. I was still starving after giving my meal to the sisters, and the thought of eating some of the Carrion Strider meat was making my mouth water. I decided to explore the area behind the cottage, to see if there was anything else we could cook with it.
To my surprise, hidden from the front, was a small but meticulously well-tended garden. There were rows of lush, green plants, heavy with ripe red tomatoes. There were chili bushes, their bright red fruits like tiny flames. I saw the familiar feathery leaves of coriander, the broad leaves of turmeric plants, and the sharp green stalks of garlic.
Vesper had followed me out, moving with her usual timid silence. She saw me marveling at the small, organized plot.
"You know, Satvik," she whispered, her crimson eyes looking at the plants with a gentle fondness. "There are so many exotic things here. The man who lived here before… he grew them. He was very kind to the forest." She hesitated for a moment. "I can even show you how to grow more, if you want."
She then moved to a small, delicate-looking purple flower. She smiled, a rare, breathtaking expression that transformed her timid face. She gently plucked one of the three tiny, crimson threads from its center and held it out to me. "This one smells so sweet and nice," she said, her voice full of a simple, pure joy. "I love it."
I took the delicate thread from her fingers. The scent was unmistakable. My heart pounded in my chest. I looked closer at the flower, at the other plants in the garden. I couldn't believe it. It was saffron. In another patch, I found the green, fragrant pods of cardamom. Nearby, the sharp, pungent buds of cloves. And on a small, climbing vine, the wrinkled black spheres of peppercorns. Spices. Spices that were worth their weight in gold in my old world, growing in a simple, hidden garden behind a rundown cottage. The mystery of the man who had lived here before me deepened, and I felt a strange sense of connection to him, a silent gratitude.
Back inside, the domestic scene that greeted me was something straight out of a life I could never have imagined. Eve had finished butchering the meat and was now watching me as I inspected some harvested wheat seeds I'd found in a sack. I poured a handful into a heavy stone mortar and pestle and began the rhythmic work of grinding it into flour.
"What are you doing now?" Eve asked, her arms crossed over her chest, her curiosity having won out over her usual stoicism.
"Making flour," I said, not looking up from my work. "For bread."
"It looks… fun," she said, her voice surprisingly hesitant. "I want to try."
I looked up and smiled. "You're my guest," I said. "Go ahead."
I showed her the motion, and after a few clumsy attempts, she fell into a steady rhythm, a small, rare, and very genuine smile touching her lips. The fierce warrior, the guardian of the family, was happily grinding flour.
Meanwhile, Sia was by the water bucket, humming a soft tune as she washed the fresh monster meat. She looked over at me as I directed Vesper on how to wash the vegetables we'd gathered from the garden. She caught my eye, and a playful, sultry glint appeared in her hazel eyes.
"I'm getting wifey vibes from all this, you know," she said, her voice a warm, teasing purr that sent a jolt straight through me. "Should I start calling you 'dear'? My mom used to call my dad that."
My face instantly burst into flames. I stammered, unable to form a single coherent word, which only made her giggle, a bright, melodic sound that filled the small cottage.
Just then, the door opened, and Sera returned, her basket full of mushrooms and fresh berries. She stopped in the doorway, a soft smile on her face as she took in the scene.
I stopped what I was doing and just… looked. I saw Eve, the obsidian protector, a smudge of flour on her cheek, happily grinding wheat. I saw Vesper, the timid ghost, carefully washing vegetables, a look of quiet concentration on her face. I saw Sia, the golden temptress, laughing as she worked, her eyes sparkling. And I saw Sera, the steadfast leader, returning home with more food, her presence a calm and reassuring anchor.
The cottage was filled with warmth, with laughter, with the rich, complex smell of spices and fresh food. It was filled with… life.
In my old world, I was a prodigy, an untouchable genius, drowning in a silent, golden cage. I had everything, and I had nothing. Now, I was here, in a world I didn't understand, surrounded by four beautiful, vibrant, and powerful women who, in the span of a single, insane day, had become my responsibility. My family.
A real, genuine smile spread across my face. The new Satvik Arya was finally, truly living. With adventure, surprise, and an excitement he had never, ever known was possible.