He wanted to take Little Bear away, but the tiny cub clung to its mother's corpse and refused to leave. It cried out mournfully, whimpering as it licked her again and again.
Kaede sat on the ground beside it, waiting. The little thing would understand eventually. Its mother's body temperature had plummeted and was already growing cold.
Large flakes of snow began drifting down from the sky again. The cub must have tired itself out from licking, because it curled up beside its mother, leaned against her, and fell asleep.
He tried to take the chance to carry the little thing away, but when he picked it up, he realized its paws were still gripping its mother's fur, holding on tight.
He put the cub back beside its mother. The sight stirred him deeply.
Under the laws of nature, animals were subject to survival of the fittest. As he comprehended the Power of Runes, he was also learning about the rules of nature. Snow Wolves could kill Ice Bears for food, and Ice Bears could slaughter Snow Wolves to stave off hunger. This was simply part of nature.
As a successor to a Nature Deity, he had to revere and respect nature. Doing so meant acknowledging himself and comprehending the rules; it was a form of spiritual cultivation. He should not have interfered with this hunt.
But now he saw that even among animals living under nature's laws, there was a bond of family that moved him. This was no cold rule, but love that warmed the frigid ice field. That was why he could not help stepping in to save the cub.
In that instant, he seemed to understand something. The strange sensation was like something inside him had been touched.
The three Runes in his mind blazed with