In his sleep, he dreamed of the time before all his roses were devoured by those savage sheep. That time was still clearly etched in his mind.
.....
The voice of a little girl, soft as silk and calming like the rustling of bamboo, combined with a necklace made of bone shook the body of a seventeen-year-old white-haired youth who was still deep in sleep on the bed. The youth's body was completely buried under a thick blanket made of wild deer skin, protecting him from the biting night air that made goosebumps rise.
"Brother! Brother! Brother Lian!" The girl kept shaking the body of the boy named Lian. It seemed she was often assigned to wake her brother up. She puffed out her white cheeks, looking annoyed and bored having to wake him up every morning. Suddenly, she smiled, rounding her emerald green eyes that reflected the morning sunlight streaming through the window. Haha, it seemed she had an idea!
With her tiny legs, the girl took small steps and climbed the supporting frame of Lian's bed. She almost fell, but with her strong little hands, she gripped the bed frame tightly. After standing on it, she jumped while shouting, "Brother Lian!"
Lian's body felt like it was crushed by a giant rock, making a cracking sound. Even though his younger sister was light, the impact of her jump landing on his body still felt painful. Especially because her feet landed right on Lian's back, making him jerk awake as if dreaming of falling into darkness.
The girl quickly jumped down from the bed and stood waiting on the floor, turning her gaze elsewhere, pretending as if Lian did not know she was the culprit.
Lian sat up on the bed with messy blankets, grimacing to hold back the pain in his back, as if it would never heal. He stretched his body for a few moments before finally glancing at the culprit who made his mornings always feel like sleeping on a rock.
"Meilin, what are you doing? Why are you looking at the wardrobe? Why are you acting so innocent, Meilin?" Lian leaned his body closer to his younger sister, then slowly flicked her forehead, making the little girl retreat a few steps while holding her tiny forehead.
Her emerald eyes seemed glassy. Lian knew his sister was only pretending, because he only flicked her gently. And Meilin did this every time Lian flicked her forehead, so Lian started to feel a bit bored.
The first time I saw her about to cry because I flicked her forehead, I might have panicked back then. But every time, every time I flick her, she is always like this. Can she only pretend to cry? Lian sighed heavily and got out of bed. After tidying his bed, Lian walked toward the two-door wardrobe that had no mirror. The wardrobe was made of teak wood, built and joined entirely from wood without any strange materials.
He looked at several pieces of clothing made from various animal skins, specifically deer, sheep, and goat. Although they were all made of animal skin, these clothes had different uses. The deer skin clothes were for hunting, the sheep skin clothes were for winter, and the goat skin clothes were for daily wear.
Since today I will go hunting with Brother, I will bring the goat skin clothes and deer skin clothes. Lian picked up the clothes he had decided on earlier and stepped out of his room, followed by Meilin's small steps.
There, he saw his mother and older sister cutting up rabbit meat that Lian had caught with his brother three days ago. Their faces were very similar, and their hair was also white.
"Mother, Sister, I will go to the river to clean my body," said Lian to his mother and sister, then he took a set of leather clothes belonging to Meilin from the table and ran out of the house, followed by Meilin. They always bathed together. Sometimes Meilin bathed with Lian, sometimes with the other brother, sometimes with her older sister. But Meilin bathed with Lian more often than with the other siblings.
Outside the house, tall trees towered as if wanting to reach the sky with strong roots planted in the depths, surrounding and protecting Lian's house from outside threats. Sunlight could only penetrate through the gaps in the leaves. Yellow leaves fell and scattered on the ground, covering it.
Lian opened the wooden fence and ran among the trees, leaves and twigs rubbing against each other, creating the sounds of nature that soothed the ears.
While running past the melodiously whistling trees, Lian saw a black-haired man, five years older than him, sharpening a small twig with a knife. He was Lian's older brother.
"Brother," Lian ran closer, stopping suddenly, making Meilin almost crash into him if she had not quickly stopped her tiny bare feet, "how many arrows have you made today?"
Lian's brother answered while continuing to sharpen the twig in his hand, "About fifteen arrows are finished, this is a supply for the next few days. We will hunt rabbits and deer again if we find them. Yesterday, I saw a few rabbits about one kilometer southwest of here. We will go there."
One kilometer, that was a long distance. Usually we only hunted about one hundred meters in any direction. Was it possible that the game animals had run out, making us have to explore the forest even further? That was a good opportunity, with that I could see the forest even further away. Lian nodded his head enthusiastically and continued his run toward the river.
Upon arriving there, a calm river flowed, with several birds landing to quench their thirst, accompanied by the sounds of insects that added to the liveliness of nature.
Lian took off all his clothes and placed them on a rock at the riverbank. After finishing, Lian did not immediately wet his body in the river, but instead helped Meilin take off her clothes. After they were ready, they jumped into the river together and began wetting their bodies with the cool and clear river water.
.....
A few minutes later, Meilin and Lian came out of the river and quickly put on their clothes. Their white hair was still very wet, they did not dry it, only letting the wind dry it naturally.
They walked away together, carrying their old clothes that had been washed clean.
At home, Lian hung his clothes and his sister's clothes to dry, then quickly went to his room to get his hunting clothes. Hunting day was the day Lian liked the most, with that, he could see the forest further and wider, while also practicing his archery skills. In his life so far, he could only hunt rabbits, deer, and sheep. He still had trouble hunting larger animals, unlike his brother and father, who had once hunted a bear, whose skin was now made into the thick clothes they used.
Bear skin symbolized strength, courage, and protection. Bear skin also represented the spirit of a tough warrior and protector from evil spirits. Leaders or warriors often wore bear skin as cloaks or head coverings to show their strength and courage. Furthermore, bear skin was believed to carry the spiritual power of the animal, because bears were viewed as majestic, wise creatures, and capable of surviving in difficulties.
Thus, Lian had a strong desire to become stronger so he could hunt a bear with his own hands and wear clothes made from its skin. After putting on his hunting clothes and shoes, Lian enthusiastically left his house and ran toward his brother after taking his bow and quiver beside the house.
His hunting clothes were equipped with a hood, a small bag, and a place to store a knife placed at the waist.
As he was about to leave, a heavy and deep voice suddenly called his name. Lian was very familiar with that voice, it was his father's voice, who should have been splitting wooden logs with an axe.
Lian turned his gaze toward the source of the sound and said, "What is it, Father?"
Lian's father had a fierce posture, coarse hair that had almost entirely turned white, and a muscular body even though he was over fifty years old.
"Do not go too far, the outside world is a dangerous place," Father warned. Lian could only nod wearily. Every time he went hunting, his father always warned him about the dangers of the outside world. But Lian himself did not even know what the outside world his father meant actually was.
Throughout his life, he had always been in the forest, Harmonius Alba. He never went too far when hunting, so what was his father so worried about? Lian himself wanted to ask his father a few things, but he kept it in his heart, knowing that his father would not tell him.
"Alright, Father! Don't I always obey Father?" Lian answered with an annoyed tone. He did not want to keep his brother waiting too long.
"Go!" His father waved his hand toward the forest while looking at Lian. Without saying a word, Lian immediately ran through the trees until he finally arrived at his brother's place.
"Did Father warn you again?" Lian's brother, who was checking his arrows, saw Lian running very fast until he almost challenged a tree. He knew the reason Lian ran like that, in the past he was the same, always warned by father about the dangers of the outside world.
"Yes, that is how it is." Lian approached and took several arrows that had sharp points made of triangular stone. He stored them in the quiver, feeling ready to hunt.
Lian's brother tested his bow as he nodded in satisfaction, then slung it across his chest. "Alright, as long as you don't trip over a rock like last week."