830 Encounter with the Bear Lydia Edition Part 2 - Kuma Kuma Kuma Bear

"......" "Lydia, wake up." My body is being shaken. "What’s going on?" I open my eyes to see my brother, shaking me with one hand while gripping a sword with the other. It’s a bit bright—morning, perhaps. "We're surrounded by wolves." His words instantly wake me up. Glancing around, I see we indeed are surrounded by wolves. I slowly stand up. There are five of them. "I’m sorry. I didn’t notice." Usually, I would awaken at the slightest sound. But it seems I fell into a deep sleep and missed it. Since entering this forest, we’ve hardly had any proper rest. Exhaustion from the giant snake must have been greater than we realized. But thankfully, my brother noticed before we were attacked. He readies his sword while I take up my bow. What do we do now? There are five in front, more lingering deeper in the forest. Five? Six? Even more? Their numbers blur together. We must first deal with the wolves right before us to reduce their count. I fire an arrow; it pierces a wolf, halting its movement. Prompted by the action, the other wolves charge. There's no time to think. I fire at any wolf that comes into sight. My brother skillfully prevents any wolf from getting near me. My arrows continue to find their targets. All that matters now is reducing their number, even by one. "Brother, to your right!" He reacts to my shout, confronting the wolf attacking from the right. I fire an arrow straight ahead. Distracted by the wolves in front, I almost miss the growing sound of something large slithering. "Brother, a giant snake is approaching!" "From which direction?" "To your right!" I scream from behind him, hoping he understands. What should we do? If we run, we show our backs to the wolves. Besides, outrunning wolves is impossible. "Lydia, run. Take care of Mother and Est." He shouts, charging toward the wolves. I quickly understand he’s doing this for my escape. It’s always been his habit to say, "If anything happens, I'll draw their attention. You run." I would laugh it off, joking I’d abandon him to save myself. But now, those words fail to leave me. Clutching my bow tightly, there’s no time to waste. If I don’t run now, we’ll both die. ...Brother. As I am about to sprint, the forest stirs. I soon realize why. The giant snake's speed has increased. "Brother!" As I scream, a nearby tree topples, revealing the giant snake. It devours a wolf instantly. The abruptness paralyzes me. I need to escape, yet my legs refuse to move. "Lydia!" My brother’s voice snaps me back to reality. The giant snake swallows the wolf, scanning for its next target. But why do I still hear slithering? The noise grows louder. "Brother, another one's coming!" Simultaneously with my yell, another head emerges. Wolves flee. But from the giant snake’s mouth bursts a liquid. The purple liquid drenches a wolf's body, and I instantly understand it’s poison. The poisoned wolf slows and collapses, causing others to flee. The snake pursues, its focus thankfully not on us for now, but on the wolves. It advances, chasing them. What I thought was a tail bears its head. Eyes lock onto us, preparing to spew more poison, but fortunately, it misses. The other head obstructs, dragging the snake in a different direction. "Run!" My brother’s voice brings me back, and we take flight. With the heads distracting each other, now is our chance. We run. Just run. The chaotic sounds fade behind us as we distance ourselves from the giant snakes. If they chase us, we won’t escape. My heavy footsteps, panting breath, and pounding heartbeat drown out all other noises. Please, let me hear the surroundings. My wish goes unanswered as my breath and heartbeat persist. We continue running until we reach the cave entrance. We can’t run anymore. My harsh breaths drown out everything, the thumping of my heart too loud. "Did we make it?" "What were those things, Brother?" "A body with two heads." Unbelievable as it is, there were indeed two heads. Just the giant snake was trouble enough, but with such a creature around, collecting Beltra herbs is impossible. "Do we have to give up?" I cannot argue against his words. The desire to collect Beltra herbs is as strong in him as it is in me. But with a monster like that nearby, going back is not an option. We survived by sheer luck, as the giant snake appeared while we fought wolves and perceived them as prey. Such a miracle won’t happen twice. Assuming it will is reckless. Before I can settle my thoughts, a sound I dreaded echoes nearby. "Brother, the giant snake is coming!" "Into the cave!" He lights the lantern hanging at his waist. We have no choice but to flee. Running into the cave, I follow the light he carries. The slithering noise behind us doesn’t cease. "Brother, it's entered the cave!" "Don’t stop. Keep running!" My brother and I keep running. Constant running has brought our legs to the brink of exhaustion. I want to rest, but I can't. Please, don't chase us. But my silent pleas go unanswered; the persistent slithering sound continues. As we delve deeper into the cave, it becomes more expansive. Perhaps this place was the giant snake's lair. It's still pursuing us. The struggle is overwhelming, and my mind begins to blur. Please, stop chasing us. Just when I feel it’s hopeless, I spot a distant light. A light in a place like this? The exit should still be far away. If there are people, they might be adventurers. We could inadvertently get them involved. My brother notices too and shouts for them to flee. As we draw near the light, we see a person riding on a bear. A bear in front, a giant snake behind. There's no escape route. As I'm about to give up thinking, a girl’s voice calls out, “Run!” My brother decides it’s better to face the bear than the snake, so he charges towards it. There’s no time to waste; I run too. Just when I think I can't go on, a dark figure rushes past me. Sounds of battle erupt behind us. I stop running and turn around. There, a girl in black is fighting the giant snake. The sight before me is unbelievable. She's battling such a massive creature and moving with incredible speed. Just as it seems she's been eaten, the snake's mouth implodes. As it collapses, I glimpse what appears to be a rock within its mouth. Did she defeat it? But no, it has more than one head—it's a two-headed snake. As this realization dawns on me, I see movement near its tail. Before I can shout, my brother cries out. "It's still alive!" The head attached to the snake's tail moves. It truly survived. He screams to warn about the venom it might spew. In a confined cave like this, that would be disastrous. The girl struggles to counter it. Should I assist with my bow? But if I hit her, it'll be disastrous. She's alone, fighting because we brought this upon her. It’s something we should never do as adventurers. Helpless, we watch. A small girl, the bear’s companion, speaks to it, handing it something. The bear throws the object toward the giant snake. I stare in disbelief as the bear hurls something straight at the snake’s head, striking it squarely. Did it shatter? Was it a vial? As the snake writhes and opens its mouth widely, the scene unfolds like before—a rock emerges within its mouth, shattering it, and the giant snake collapses. "...Brother, did she take it down?" "Yeah." When we were on the brink, those two girls appeared with a bear and defeated the giant snake. No one would believe this tale. "Brother, we should thank them," I suggest. "Indeed," he agrees. As we approach to express our gratitude, I notice the girl in black is actually dressed like an adorable bear. When we inquire, the small girl explains, "She's a bear enthusiast. Don't mind her attire." So I refrain from commenting further on the bear costume. The girl dressed as a bear is named Yuna, and the small girl introduces herself as Mane. To our surprise, Mane, who we assumed was a child, turns out to be a half-elf older than our parents. Discovering this, we decide to address her respectfully as Mane-san. Despite the oddity of using "san" for someone who appears so youthful, she is a lifesaver. We exchange stories. Yuna reveals she’s an adventurer, while Mane-san works at the royal capital’s Magic Ministry. They inform us the vial thrown at the snake contained a liquid it detests. Upon learning Mane-san’s affiliation, my brother swiftly inquires about connections with alchemists, which I immediately understand. But if Mane-san works there, she might know that alchemist as well. "If we go on like this, we'll be exploited. And you too, Sis," he acknowledges. I understand, yet... As my brother and I deliberate, Mane-san interrupts. "Oh, just say it already! Are you trying to tell me something?" We nod, steeling ourselves. We propose a deal with Mane-san. My brother rapidly requests they buy the harvested herbs at a fair price, introduce us to an alchemist, and promises to collect herbs when needed. Mane-san insists we explain in detail. We share about my sister’s illness and how we can't defy the alchemist. Mane-san, knowledgeable in herbs, agrees to make medicines for us. She promises to buy our herbs at fair prices. All that remains is collecting Beltra grass for Mane-san to make the medicine. However, a wolf pack disrupts the route to the Beltra grass. They may not be there, but they might return. Having seen Yuna and Mane-san defeat the giant snake, I begin to think they could handle any monsters. Torn between asking them to help and worrying they might claim the resources, the dilemma weighs on me. They are officials from the royal capital's ministry, after all. Should they command us not to collect, we'd be powerless to disobey. That’s how the nation works. My brother suggests we gather herbs on our own, but they ask what we'd do if monsters like the giant snake appear. Our only option then is to run. This time, we were saved by these girls. Without them, we’d be dead. And they reached this place while collecting herbs in just two days. Those words alone are enough to gauge their prowess. My brother finally concedes and pleads for their help. Yet, the decision to bring us along rests with Yuna, Mane-san’s guardian. Yuna asks in return for directions to the herb's habitat. Sharing it feels like offering our lifeline. What if they deceive us? Perceiving our hesitation, they assure once they gather their targeted herbs, they'll leave this forest alone. They offer to request our services if more herbs are needed. Having been saved by them, we accept Yuna’s terms.