Nicole listened to her surroundings, then realized—there were footsteps not far away. She turned toward the sound, which came from right behind her house. Nicole crept closer, her muscles tense, ready to either run at or away from the stranger.
As she circled around the building, hiding behind one of the walls, she peeked out—and her eyes widened. The same husky-like animal she had saved a few hours ago was at her material stash. It placed some rocks nearby, walked away, then returned with a few more. But after that, the animal stopped, looked around, raised its nose in the air, and turned its gaze directly toward where Nicole was hiding. Noticing her, it barked once and darted into the forest.
Huh, that was strange. It seemed to be helping me, but once it saw me, it ran away. Tsundere monkey, hah? Well, at least it didn’t try to hurt me.
That evening, Nicole tried to make a bonfire, again. As she had the previous day, she stood over the pile of wood and leaves, holding a magnifying glass. She hoped it would work this time, even though some of the materials were still a little damp. Then she heard the rustling of grass. Slowly, carefully, she looked in the direction of the sound, not wanting to scare away whatever it was.
As expected, it was the same creature. It peeked out at her curiously from behind bushes and a tree. Nicole pretended not to notice and turned back to her task.
When darkness began to fall and there was still no smoke or fire, she gave up.
Shit. Well, yesterday wasn’t so bad without a bonfire. Maybe tomorrow I’ll get lucky.
She went inside her small home and sat on the floor, three mosquito corpses in front of her. Using the metal tip of her spear and a flint knife, she cut off their stingers and wings, then had Tora analyze the different parts.
After a while, she had them separated into groups—three barbed stingers and fragments of thin muscle. She tried to retrieve poison pouches, but one had been destroyed in the fight, and the other two were too fragile, their liquid spilled out, forming a small pool on the floor. As for the chitin and scraps, Nicole planned to leave them under a tree for the dog-monkey to eat.
But as she stepped outside, she saw the animal already there. It was standing next to the old bonfire spot, holding a rock in its hand and raising it toward the setting sun—mimicking what it had seen her do earlier.
It’s copying me… Maybe I could tame it. It seems smart enough to handle basic tasks, like gathering food.
Nicole walked out slowly, holding the leftovers in her hand. The animal noticed her immediately, but this time it didn’t run. She stretched out her arms.
"Here, take this." she said softly.
After a moment, the animal grabbed the food but stayed in place. Nicole stepped back, facing it the whole time. The creature sat down and began chewing on the chitin, trying to pick off the leftover meat.
Well, looks like it’s not afraid of me anymore.
Nicole went back inside and tested the stingers by stabbing them into a piece of wood. They pierced easily.
Great. I lost one of my two flint knives, but now I’ve got three throwing knives. Almost. If I ignore the fact they don’t have edges and my aim sucks. Still—better than nothing. And maybe Soi will help me train later.
With nothing else to do, Nicole went to sleep. That night she rested better than the last, thanks to the lack of rain and slowly getting used to her surroundings.
In the morning, Nicole stepped outside—and was greeted by a loud bark right beside her.
"Fuck, you nearly scared me to death." She muttered.
The creature sat at the entrance to her hut, panting with its mouth open and big blue eyes fixed on her. Nicole slowly placed her hand on its husky-like head, surprised when it didn’t flinch. Encouraged, she began petting it like a dog, scratching behind its ears. It whimpered softly from time to time.
"You’re just like a normal dog, aren’t you? At least you act like one."
Strange that I tamed it this easily. Not that I mind.
"But you should have a name, right? How about… Mike?"
The animal gave her a look of clear disapproval.
"Yeah, you’re right… Then maybe..."
For some reason, one word appeared in her mind: mignon, meaning cute in French. It was back from the times when her adoptive parents forced her to learn French.
"...Mignon?"
This time he barked.
"Well, then it’s settled, Mignon."
Nicole spent the next three days in the woods, roaming around or improving her home. She expanded the hut, reinforced the walls, and built a place for a bonfire inside, with a hole in the roof for the smoke.
She also tried to teach Mignon basic commands, but quickly realized she didn’t need to. He could already handle simple tasks like carrying or gathering things, and he had no problem following dog-like commands such as fetching.
"Maybe you were already trained? That would explain it. But I’ve never heard of anything like you—and I’ve never seen you in the village. Did you escape from a previous owner?" Nicole wondered aloud as she scratched behind his ears. "Well, no way to test that now. I just hope whoever you belonged to doesn’t get mad."
During those days, she had several dangerous encounters with forest creatures, forcing her to use all the pink dust Morilia had given her. Thanks to it, in the end she was left with only a few scars.
By the end of the fifth day, Nicole decided it was time to check on Soi. The next morning, she gathered the most important items—food, tools, and trophies—then, with Mignon by her side, left her home behind.
This time, instead of cutting through the forest, she followed the river.
If I go through the woods, I might miss the village. But if I follow the beach, I’ll find it sooner or later.
But she hadn’t considered that this route would take much longer. By the time the sun set, she hadn’t even reached the coast.
Fuck. Sleeping out in the wild isn’t ideal. But without rest, I’ll just keep getting weaker, and if I meet a predator, I’m screwed.
She glanced at Mignon walking beside her.
Guess I’ll have to hope his sense of smell is as good as a dog’s.
She leaned against a large rock and tried to sleep. Fortunately, nothing disturbed her during the night. After a small breakfast the next morning, she continued down the river.
Suddenly, Mignon froze, sniffed the air, and began to bark and growl. Nicole slowed her pace and crept forward cautiously. Then she saw it: a massive bear with crimson fur standing by the river.
Oh fuck. Rubropecto. I remember seeing one in the village… though that one was dead.
She stepped back, planning to circle around without disturbing it. The beast dipped its long tongue—from a big mouth located on its chest into the river to drink.
Halfway around, Nicole froze in terror. A blue water bubble enveloped the bear, sticking to the ground like gum. The beast thrashed inside, panicking. Nicole could see bubbles of air leaving beast's open mouth. Then, with a splash, a spider larger than the bear leapt out of the river. Its body was blue and green, half-transparent, with countless bubbles shifting inside it's big rear part. Grabbing the bear in several of its limbs, it began to spin it, wrapping it in dark-green webbing.
Nicole stood with mouth open, too terrified and shocked to move. Beside her, Mignon barked furiously, drawing the monster’s attention. The spider stopped webbing the bear, turned its head, and charged at them.
They both bolted, but Nicole could hear it—the rapid pounding of its legs right behind her. She sprinted faster than ever before, weaving through the trees.
Suddenly, she heard a whimper. She looked back in horror—Mignon was trapped inside one of the same blue bubbles. But the spider didn’t stop chasing her.
Nicole pushed forward desperately, but after a few more meters, her foot caught on a root. She stumbled, hit the ground—and the water trap struck her.
Liquid engulfed her, thicker than water, pinning her limbs. Her vision blurred blue as she struggled for air. She saw the giant spider looming closer… But just before she lost consciousness, a figure appeared in the corner of her vision.