I only smiled at them before giving the order.
"Alright, everyone. Stop what you're doing. It's time to go to the river and catch something to eat."
Hearing that
Everyone immediately turned and run toward me.
They grabbed whatever they could use a small wooden bucket, two empty cloth sacks, and each of them held a wooden stick I had told them to bring.
"Let's go were ready!"
"I've been waiting for this!"
"Yay! We're going to catch food!"
I watched the children swing their sticks excitedly.
Especially Kerran, Malic, and Taren, who had been gloomy when we first meet. But look at them now just hearing the word eat was enough to brighten their faces.
"Did you bring everything?"
"Yes!"
"Yes, boss!"
"Yes!"
They answered happily.
"So aside from Ren, everyone's coming?" I said, turning to him.
"Is it okay if you stay behind? They all seem eager to go."
"Yes, it's fine," Ren replied.
"I can't move my leg yet anyway. So I will guard the cart and the things. You go on ahead."
"Alright. Let's go, everyone Ren will guard our belongings for us."
"Okay, boss!"
The group immediately set out.
The sun was still low, morning mist clinging to the trees like thin cloth.
The children walked ahead of me, whispering among themselves, their feet brushing against the damp grass.
Masha carried a small woven basket, checking it every few steps as if afraid it might disappear.
Troy dragged his stick along the ground, leaving crooked lines in the dirt, while the twins argued quietly about who would spot the river first.
The air smelled fresh, mixed with wet soil and crushed leaves.
Somewhere deeper in the forest, they passed birds and wild animals one after another. Thankfully, they did not encounter any dangerous creatures.
The sound of running water faintly reached my ears.
"We're close, Brother Soren," Troy said excitedly.
They could hear the river now. It was very close.
The children straightened at once, their tired faces lighting up.
With only a few more steps, we finally reached the river.
It only took a few minutes to get here in where they come from.
The trees opened up, revealing shallow, clear water flowing lazily between the banks.
The tide was low, exposing wide stretches of the riverbed. Smooth rocks of all sizes lined the sides, some half-buried in mud, others stacked naturally as if placed there on purpose.
Sunlight reflected off the water, making it glitter between the stones.
Small ripples moved around the rocks, and in the quiet gaps, I could already see fish shadows darting beneath the surface.
Unfortunately, we didn't have the tools to catch fish yet.
So for now, our target was river crabs.
"This place is perfect,"
The children gathered at the edge, eyes wide.
I raised my hand, stopping them before anyone stepped into the water.
"Listen first," I said. "What we're catching here are crabs."
"Crabs?" one of them asked it was troy.
The others also looked confused. They thought they were here to catch fish when they heard they were going to the river.
"Can we eat those?"
Judging by their reactions, none of them had seen crabs before.
"Yes," I answered honestly. "And they're very delicious."
"They look like river spiders but have hard shell," I continued, "and they like to hide under stones, especially when the water is low like this."
The children leaned closer when they heard that they were edible.
"We won't go deep into the river," I said. "It's safer to stay near the edge for our safety.
Soren continued.
"Crabs have sharp claws that can really pinch you, and it hurts."
This made the children afraid after hearing that it could hurt them, except for Masha and Troy, whose face expression showed confidence as they prepared to catch those delicious crabs without getting pinch.
I took one of the sticks from the children.
"That's why we'll use sticks instead of our hands so we will not get pinch."
I picked up a flat stone near the bank and slowly slid my stick underneath it.
"Crabs cling to the bottom or the sides of rocks. If you lift the stone too fast, they will just run."
Carefully, I tilted the rock just enough.
A small dark spider shape with shell scuttled sideways.
It's a small crab.
"There," I said.
I guided the tip of the stick toward the crab's larger claw and let it pinch down.
Once it grabbed on, I lifted the stick slowly and dropped the crab into the wooden bucket.
The children gasped.
"That's how you do it," I said.
The moment I finished, the children burst into motion.
They spread out along the riverbank but did not go as Soren instructed, sticks in hand, carefully flipping rocks just like I showed them.
Small splashes echoed as stones were turned over by them, followed by excited shouts whenever something moved.
"I found one!"
"It ran away!"
"There's no one in here."
"Hey, there's another!"
Some lifted the rocks too fast, sending crabs scuttling back into the water, while others copied my movements more carefully like Masha, trapping them between stick and stone.
The riverbank quickly filled with laughter and hurried footsteps.
Every time a crab snapped its claws, the children squealed and jumped back, only to rush in again with renewed courage.
I stood nearby, watching closely, correcting their movements and stopping anyone who got too close to the water.
Soren saw the children full of energy and excitement, laughing, chasing crabs, flipping stones, and helping each other.
Their playful, eager movements and happy faces made the scene feel warm and lively, almost like they were just playing rather than working.
I felt warmth in my heart as I watched them.
Is this how parents feel with their children?
I don't know.
Slowly, one by one, crabs began to clatter inside the wooden bucket,
I didn't just watch—I joined them.
I moved along the riverbank, eyes scanning the stones near the shallow water.