The fruit had rotted, its skin cracked, and a pungent acidic scent slowly crept into the air, like a secret that could no longer be hidden. It was once ripe, glistening under the light, promising a sweetness that quenched the thirst of anyone who looked upon it. But now, its flesh had blackened; the beauty of its past was merely a faint shadow, drowned in ungenerous time.
The worms inside wriggled with joy, as if celebrating a destruction they did not create, but were now fully enjoying. They never knew the delicious taste of the fruit when it was still whole. For them, destruction was paradise, and the remnants of sweet memories were merely bitter spices left in every ravenous bite. With every passing second, the fruit's body was torn apart, vanishing little by little, like memories slowly forgotten until the pain recedes in silence.
And there the memory lay prostrate, rotting with time, eaten not by anger or hatred, but by the reality that even beautiful things can shatter soundlessly—that beautiful things can be destroyed by stubbornness and stupidity considered trivial. The only things remaining from that rotten fruit were dry seeds, silent and helpless, waiting to see if they would grow again or be buried forever in the cold earth.
Lian threw all the rotten fruits to the ground. He didn't want a single worm remaining in any fruit; he didn't want to make his sister sick. After discarding all the potentially damaged fruits, Lian then took one fruit, pressed it with both hands, and split it into two parts. He gave the larger portion to his sister, who remained silent with a blank stare.
Lian then patted his sister's shoulder. "Meilin, look at this fruit... It's fresh and hasn't been bitten by a single worm. I know you don't like Shorea fruit, but I couldn't find the Greya fruit you like. It's not the season for them to grow. It's summer now; perhaps in a few days, summer will change to autumn. Just like we moved from the Land of Memories, heading to the 'outside world.'
"Your big brother now knows that the 'outside world' is a very dangerous place. There are many wild beasts there, maybe even more savage than bears? Hahaha. But we have no choice, little sister. This stupid brother of yours will go and take revenge on the wild beasts that destroyed our Land of Memories. So, please try this Shorea fruit; it's ripe and tastes sweet. Don't you also like sweet things... Or salty? Hahaha. Look at your brother, Meilin; your brother almost forgot what you like."
Even after his long speech, interjected with a bit of joking, the only response Lian received was silence from his sister. Her eyes refused to even look at him, refused to glance or move even once.
Lian let out a heavy breath. He then fed his sister, putting the Shorea fruit into her mouth.
He was a little worried that Meilin would just stay silent, but fortunately, that worry soon vanished when Meilin's jaw began to move as the fruit was placed in her mouth.
.....
A few minutes later, after they had filled their stomachs, Lian once again carried his sister on his back to continue the journey. Of course, at a slow pace.
During the journey, Lian saw a beautiful purple-winged butterfly circling them, as if trying to cheer them up.
"Look, Meilin!" Lian pointed at the butterfly. "Aren't they beautiful? Don't you like butterflies! Hahaha, this time your brother isn't wrong. I clearly remember how you used to chase butterflies when you were little, even accidentally ate one out of curiosity. I still remember how happy you were chasing them. Look, do you want to chase it again? No? Alright then!"
Lian kept walking. A few minutes later, he accidentally saw several small stones with sharp edges. Seeing this, Lian thought:
What if I make a bow right now? I accidentally found suitable stones. With that, I can hunt rabbits for us to eat...
Lian nodded in agreement with his own thoughts. He then lowered Meilin under a tree, leaning her against the trunk.
"Wait for Big Brother a moment, Meilin. Brother will make a bow for hunting; with that, we can eat rabbit meat."
Lian then looked for a tree with a straight but flexible branch. After a few minutes of searching, he finally found it. He cut the branch with his knife, separating it from the main tree. After measuring it and feeling it was the right size, Lian cleared away small twigs and rough bark, then slowly shaped the wood so that its curve was even from end to end.
Once even, Lian looked for hanging roots that could be twisted into a string. He chose a tree with strong fibers that wouldn't break easily. After fashioning it into a rope, Lian tied it to both ends of the wood, ensuring the bow curved slightly when the string was attached. Once all parts were securely in place, Lian tested its flexibility gradually by pulling the string slowly to ensure no parts were cracked or loose.
Lian nodded, satisfied with the result.
Although this was only his third time making a bow, because he often watched his older brother make bows for him whenever his broke, Lian was able to slowly craft it just like his brother used to.
Looking at the bow, Lian remembered the past when he made a bow for the first time. He was about ten years old then. Seeing his brother making a bow, little Lian asked Lin, his brother, to teach him. But, being small and it being his first attempt, he failed immediately. The knife he used to carve the wood slipped and injured his hand quite deeply. After that experience, he refused to make a bow again. But that changed when he was thirteen; he tried again after being persuaded by his brother. Having seen him make bows several times, Lian succeeded on his first try that time.
Lian's face softened slightly remembering those times. He then slapped his own head quite hard and returned to the present.
To use a bow, naturally, one needs arrows. So, Lian took six dry twigs suitable for arrows. He carved them slowly, cleaning the bark using his knife. After finishing, he sharpened one end of each twig, took the six sharp stones he had seen earlier, and tied each stone tightly to the sharpened ends.
After testing them by shaking them a few times and seeing the bindings weren't loose, Lian nodded and decided to try it out.
Lian nocked an arrow onto the bowstring, pulled it carefully, aimed at a fruit on a distant tree, and released it.
The arrow shot out with a force that made Lian's hair flutter slightly. The arrow pierced through several falling yellow leaves before finally embedding itself in its target, even sticking into the tree trunk.
Although he initially doubted his own handmade arrow, seeing it work well made him feel a little happy with his own ability. If he were still in the Land of Memories, Lian would surely have bragged about it, especially to Lin.
The bow and arrows work very well. All I need to do next is hunt... Lian thought as he approached the tree with the embedded arrow.
Let me think... If I find a deer on the way, I definitely won't hunt it. Even though it has a lot of meat, the meat is tough if not cooked properly. I can't cook as well as Mother or Sister Heliana, and I would definitely have trouble cleaning and butchering deer meat relying only on this knife.
Even though Brother Lin could do it, it's a different story if I'm the one doing it. Another problem is, how would I carry that much meat? How would I preserve that much meat? It would be very troublesome.
So the best choice is to hunt rabbits. Rabbits are small animals; rabbit meat isn't as tough as deer meat. One rabbit is enough for one or two meals. I can also clean it easily and carry it without any issues. As for preservation, I'm sure the rabbit meat I hunt will be consumed in less than a day...
Lian nodded, agreeing with his own decision. He looked up, climbed the tree in front of him, and after reaching his target, retrieved his arrow.
After coming down, Lian stored all the arrows on his back, tying them together with a rope made of hanging roots.
"Alright, time to hunt."