Kanga swiftly climbed up the riverbank and quickly wrapped a yellowed koshimaki around his waist.
Demba, still naked, grabbed his spear.
He switched his grip, ready to throw it at any moment.
A small figure emerged from the thick green bushes along the banks of the Ishikari River.
The person wore a loose-fitting garment adorned with thin, indigo patterns.
From a distance, it appeared to be a small, elderly woman.
The figure tottered towards the group of four, waving their arms erratically in all directions.
Irika, having climbed out of the water, threw her clothes on over her wet skin.
“They look like an Ainu. They’re saying something.”
Irika, wrapping her obi, jogged over to the figure.
Demba and Kanga remained in their positions. A faint breeze blew from the river.
Demba twitched his nose. He glanced at Kanga, who gave a small nod.
They continued to watch the figure without changing their stance.
Irika approached the woman, who began speaking to her in a loud, unfamiliar language.
Irika nodded several times. She said something, then bowed her head slightly. The woman, still speaking to Irika, turned and started back the way she had come.
Irika returned, her face turned upstream.
“She seems to be an Ainu grandmother. She said it’s dangerous to avoid the stepped path and head upstream.”
After a short pause, Demba asked, “Why?”
“Apparently, a young man from a village called Kotan got caught in a snare trap and got injured just up ahead.”
Demba glanced at Kanga, who tilted his head.
“Hmm,” Demba muttered, pondering.
“It’s not an unlikely story,” Kanga said.
Demba nodded. “The enemy is cunning. It wouldn’t be strange if they set traps considering someone might stray from the path.”
He fell into thought.
“Should we go back to the path?” Irika asked, looking at Demba, who seemed deep in thought.
After a moment, Demba said, “Yeah,” and placed his spear down, picking up his clothes.
The four of them were currently south of Chirai Otu, in the village of Shinotsu—approximately 10 kilometers north of present-day Ebetsu City. Here, the Ishikari River makes a large northward bend, approaching the Shinotsu Canal.
At that time, the area where the river diverges from the canal was a wetland with clusters of low trees. The stepped path veered northward here, merging with what is now National Route 275, continuing northeast along the route of the modern-day national road.
Continuing in their current direction along the Ishikari River would lead them through Sappinai and Banno, reaching Urausu in approximately 16 kilometers.
From Urausu, it was about 14 kilometers to Takikawa, roughly a day’s journey.
The four of them resumed walking silently along the stepped path.
A gentle hilly region stretched out to their left, covered in low trees that occasionally obstructed their view.
In such areas, Demba proceeded with extra caution, straining his senses to detect any hint of traps.
It was afternoon.
Demba glanced up at the sky.
Dark, heavy clouds were slowly beginning to cover the sky from the east.
“It looks like rain,” Irika, walking behind, said as she looked up.
“Yeah,” Demba replied. “Traps are harder to see in the rain. We need to either get through before it starts or find shelter.”
When the view cleared, Irika moved to walk alongside Demba.
“There’s still quite a distance to Sappinai. We should probably look for a place to shelter from the rain.”
“Hey,” Emariya, walking behind, called out.
“Aren’t you all hungry? I am.”
Demba and Irika turned to look back.
“That’s true. We haven’t had a proper meal,” Kanga agreed from behind.
“It’s understandable,” Demba thought.
He and Kanga, who had been chasing game in the wilderness for days, were accustomed to hunger.
But the women were not. For the past two days, they had only eaten the dried portable food that Emariya had brought.
There was a rustling sound in the bushes ahead. Startled pigeons flew out from a katsura tree.
Demba and Irika instinctively crouched low. Kanga and Emariya also quickly squatted down.
“Could it be him?” Irika whispered almost inaudibly.
Demba shook his head. “If it were the enemy, they wouldn’t make such a mistake. It’s probably an animal.”
He swiftly assessed the wind. They were downwind, so their scent wouldn’t be detected.
There was another rustling sound.
Something was moving in the bushes on the mountainside.
Demba strained his eyes. He could see brown fur with white spots blending into the grass-colored bushes. It wasn’t a very large creature.
“An Ezo deer. Still young.”
It had its head buried in the bushes. It was fidgeting but showed no sign of running away.
“Something’s odd. Is it searching for food?” Irika leaned forward suspiciously. There was another sound of it shaking.
“Does that deer have antlers?” Demba asked without taking his eyes off the target.
“If it’s a male, it should. But they should still be short this time of year.”
“It might have its antlers caught in the bushes. Now’s the time to take it down.”
Demba adjusted his grip on the spear, preparing to throw, but then remembered the spearhead was not sharp enough.
With this makeshift spear, he wouldn’t be able to bring it down in one throw.
“Leave it to me,” Irika said, stopping Demba with her hand as he looked at the spearhead.
Demba looked back at her. “I’m still a hunter, you know,” she said with a smile. Demba nodded.
Irika took her bow from her shoulder, drew an arrow from the quiver without taking her eyes off the deer, nocked it, and approached cautiously, keeping low.
Demba followed closely behind. Emariya and Kanga stayed crouched, not moving.
The two of them advanced silently.
They got within about 18 meters of the deer.
The deer had its head turned towards the mountain.
Irika moved slightly to the mountainside, nocked the arrow, and drew the bowstring.
She released.
The arrow flew straight and lodged into the shoulder area near the base of the left front leg.
The deer’s vital spot.
The deer let out a faint cry. It kicked its hind legs a few times but couldn’t move its head, so it couldn’t escape and eventually collapsed sideways into the bushes.
“We did it!” Irika, jumping with joy, ran towards the deer.
Something felt off. A fleeting sense of doubt crossed Demba’s mind.
“Don’t move!” Demba shouted, leaping forward and tackling Irika.