The next morning, Knight woke up quite early to the sound of the rooster, as he had a lot of work to do. Getting up early was a hassle for him; he was not a morning person. Usually, before his son was born, he would have woken up at 7 o'clock, but now he had to be up by 3 a.m.
There was no clock in his house, so he usually figured the time by the rooster's crowing in the morning, as they usually called out between 2 and 4 a.m. He laughed to himself, thinking the rooster was also not a morning person, crying out loudly at the injustice of the early hour.
After getting out of bed without disturbing his wife, he went to do his daily routine: sweeping the front of the house and using water to mop the floor. The morning dew made the stone floors slippery, and he didn't want his wife or himself to get injured. As for his son, there was still time before he would begin to walk.
After finishing his daily routine, Knight found that his wife had woken up. It was around 5 o'clock, and she was quite tired from looking after their baby the night before,as babies don't always fall asleep when you want them to.
She began her morning routine, which included boiling water to drink. The family had a habit of drinking hot water after waking up and before sleeping, though they hadn't been able to manage it the previous night due to the baby. it helped with digestion.
Once that was done, Knight headed to the forest. Since carnivorous animals usually hunt at night, herbivorous animals often come out in the early morning to graze, which was why he checked his traps at that time. The walk from his house to the forest was about twenty minutes. As he went, he saw other villagers already awake and heading to the fields.
Wyrm Village was surrounded by mountains and hills on three sides, with a river on the other. Because of this, the people depended on fishing and farming, as the forest was simply too dangerous. Even Knight himself had thought about quitting hunting, given his many dangerous encounters with wild animals.
Reaching the forest, Knight steeled himself, as every journey into the forest was dangerous. Wyrm Village was named after this very forest. It was said that hundreds of years ago, during the Dragon War, many dragons were slain here, and the land itself was soaked with their blood. When forest grew out of the very it was given the name Wyrm Forest—a fitting title for a place where dragons bled.
Though he didn't know if the legend was true, he knew the forest's danger was real. Hunters from the village had sighted a flock of wyverns deep within the woods. Knight kept to the path where he usually placed his traps, a system all the hunters followed to ensure their work didn't interfere with one another. Even in hunting, there was a humanity involved.
He picked up his pace as he heard a soft, whimpering sound—a desperate "meh-eh-eh." As he neared the trap, he saw a fawn with its leg caught in the snare. It looked very young, barely a year old. Usually, he would simply kill it; it was extra game for the pot. But after seeing how young and vulnerable it was, and having just become a father himself, he found he couldn't do it. After a moment's thought, he decided to take it home and raise it.
For a young fawn, he knew the safest method was to simply pick it up. He gently slid one arm under its chest, behind its front legs, and the other under its hindquarters. He then lifted it and held it securely against his own body. As he expected, the fawn's instinct when carried was to go limp.
He still had three other traps to check nearby. Two of them had caught rabbits, which were already dead, and the third was empty. Usually, after this, he would search for herbs in the forest's outer area, but today was a very busy day for Knight. With the fawn secure in his arms, he turned and made his way out of the forest.
Out of the forest, he quickly made his way back to the village. People were already gathering in small groups of two or three, basking in the morning sun and gossiping about village news. One of them, seeing Knight carrying a fawn and rabbits, called out, "Hey, Knight! We heard there's going to be a feast for your son. When are you going to invite us?"
Wyrm Village was small, so everyone knew each other well.
Knight spotted the man and laughed. "Don't worry, Leif. Even if I didn't invite anyone else, I'd be sure to invite you."
Leif laughed as well, his little plot being seen through. "I don't care much about the other food, but you have to be generous with the drinks!"
Knight laughed again. "Sure, there'll be enough to drink till dawn!"
People in the village didn't have many forms of entertainment, so when a feast happened, they tended to enjoy it to the fullest, with noise, meat, and alcohol being the main themes.
The other villagers laughed as they listened to the conversation between Knight and Leif. Knight quickly parted ways with Leif and headed home. Reaching his house, he saw his wife returning with water from the village's central well, as there was only one well for drinking water. The villagers typically used well water for drinking and river water for all other purposes.
"Lydia," he said as he secured the fawn, "didn't I say I would bring the water from the well? You shouldn't tire yourself. Just stick to the light work for another month or two."
Lydia, caught in the act, smiled bashfully. "It's not that much work. You'll tire yourself out, too, if I don't share some of the load with you."
Knight laughed heartily as he took the heavy water pot from her hands. "Don't you worry; this much work won't tire your man."
Lydia gazed at him, her heart swelling. Seeing the love for her in his eyes was deeply reassuring.
Lydia and Knight had first met in Morgate, a town east of Fiore's capital, Era. She was a victim of a dark guild; her parents had died defending their village from an attack. They had helped her escape by luring the mages away, sacrificing themselves. She had fled to Morgate, where she met Knight. Now, all she had left in the world was her husband and her son. So, when the love you give is reciprocated so fully, the feeling is indescribably precious.
After Knight returned inside and put the water pot in the kitchen, he recounted the story of the fawn to his wife. "So, I thought we could raise it," he said. "If we can't manage it, we'll just release it back into the forest. What do you think?"
Lydia thought for a moment. "Okay, let's try raising it for a day or two and see what happens."
Seeing his wife agree so quickly, Knight said, "Alright then. You look after the house; I'll go talk to Uncle Kaelan about the items for the feast and ask him about the guilds."
Lydia, seeing Knight was heading out again, called after him, "Okay, don't tire yourself out."
"I won't!" Knight laughed as he left.