Trick went to check on Solam.
Karut had also gotten an earful from the old man, which had finally made him behave. Only then did everyone have time to ask why they had gone out and how they'd managed to hunt all those animals.
"Ram saw that Auntie Zaira was having a baby today and wanted to find something to help her regain her strength. So Ram... no, I mean, I thought Alpine Goat milk would be best for her, so I dragged Ram out hunting. And we really did find some. We could've come back much earlier, but just after we caught those Alpine Goats, we ran into the Snow Tigers." Seeing that his dad wasn't going to hit him just yet, Krum explained how it had all happened. He really was an honest kid. He figured that if someone had to get punished, he could take it himself, and since Ram was injured, he decided to shoulder all the blame. But the poor kid had never told a lie before and nearly gave himself away.
Karut knew his son was usually honest. It was obvious that this idea had come from the clever, mischievous Solam. Karut wasn't angry about that. He was angry because his son was old enough to know better but still couldn't tell what was important. Ram wanted to go, so why had Krum let him? Not only had he failed to stop him, he'd gone along with the foolishness. Solam was young and didn't know how dangerous the winter forest was, but Krum should have known. If he was going to go out with Solam, then, as the older boy, he should have looked after him. Instead, his little brother had gotten hurt. That was what had made Karut angry.
But when he heard that the boys had sneaked out to hunt for Zaira and their newborn little brother, Karut was no longer so angry. Whatever else could be said, their hearts were in the right place. Even so, he glared fiercely at Krum. Good intentions didn't mean he could ignore the consequences. How could he make the adults worry like that? Karut had already decided that Krum would get a good beating when they got home, or he'd never learn. Still, compared to a moment ago, when he'd wanted to kill Krum, he'd calmed down a lot. Now it was just a bit of family discipline, nothing serious.
Krum caught his dad's glare and immediately fell silent, too frightened to say a word.
One of the warriors glanced at the adult Snow Tiger's corpse. "This is strange. Since when have we had Snow Tigers around here? What a rare sight."
"Yeah. This mother Snow Tiger looks a bit thin. Seems like she hasn't eaten in a while," another warrior said, studying the carcass. He was a well-known hunter in the tribe.
"When we saw her, one of her front paws looked injured. That must be why she couldn't hunt, so she got thin," Krum quickly added.
"That explains it. The mother Snow Tiger was injured, and she had two cubs with her. She hadn't hunted for a while and was starving. Then she saw you hunting Alpine Goats and decided to steal your prey." The hunter wore an expression that said it all made perfect sense.
"Then why didn't you just give them the prey? Even if the mother Snow Tiger was injured, fighting her would still have been dangerous. Haven't I taught you that the most important thing for a hunter is to stay safe? You went hunting, not looking to get yourselves killed." Trick had just finished checking on Solam and walked over, arriving just in time to hear their conversation.
Trick felt both relieved and angry. Of course he was relieved that the two boys had thought of Zaira and his newborn child. It made him feel their affection hadn't been wasted, especially in Solam's case, since he and Zaira had always treated him like their own son. But he was angry that the two little fools had overestimated themselves and gone up against three Snow Tigers. They'd ignored everything he'd taught them. Didn't they realize that a few goats meant nothing compared with two children?
"We were going to give up the prey, but the mother tiger didn't seem willing to let us go. And they were the ones who attacked first." Krum remembered the look in the mother tiger's eyes. He had clearly seen the naked killing intent in them. She hadn't just been trying to scare them into giving up their prey.
Trick was taken aback. Even a starving wild animal wouldn't usually pick a direct fight with another hunter if it could get its prey by intimidation. That would be both dangerous and pointless.
"Do you think that mother tiger had been attacked by someone before? Otherwise, she wouldn't have kept coming after you. Snow Tigers are very clever beasts," the first hunter guessed.
"That's quite possible. We don't see many Snow Tigers around here, so you may not know this, but they usually live alone. When breeding season begins, though, a male and a female travel together to raise their cubs. Maybe this Snow Tiger family wandered here from Frost Snow Land during the winter. Another tribe might have spotted them along the way and killed the male. Snow Tigers are clever and hold grudges. Maybe she hated the other Orcs and wanted revenge, so she tried to kill you." Trick offered his own guess.
The old chief Kramsh wasn't very interested in how the Snow Tigers had gotten there. Who cared where the hell the beasts had come from? All he knew was that they had nearly killed his grandson. If Solam hadn't been so capable and taken them down, he would've used the genuine Bloodfire handed down through his family to chop the beasts into pieces. What he wanted to know was how his two grandsons had defeated an adult Snow Tiger. He'd hunted those beasts when he was young and knew how dangerous they were. So he asked Krum, "How did you kill all three Snow Tigers? Those beasts are nothing to take lightly."
Everyone else was clearly wondering the same thing, and they all turned to look at Krum. With so many people watching him, he was obviously a little embarrassed. Head bowed, he mumbled, "I don't really know."
"What? You don't know?" Everyone echoed him, astonished by the answer.
"I really don't know. Ram and I were fighting the big Snow Tiger, while Frostfang and Bloodfang dealt with the two little ones. We were working well together at first, and we even wounded the big tiger. Then, somehow, it suddenly went Berserk and knocked me flying. I passed out. When I woke up, the Snow Tiger was dead, and Ram was unconscious beside it." Seeing that nobody believed him, Krum flushed and hurriedly explained.
Everyone exchanged glances, at a loss for words. Only the old chief seemed to be thinking something over. Everyone looked to him. He was experienced and knowledgeable; whenever the tribe faced a difficult problem, he was the first person they turned to for help.
"Maybe it was Berserk," the old chief said, not disappointing them. He gave his answer at once. At first, everyone looked puzzled, but after thinking it over, they agreed it was quite possible.
"Solam and I thought the same thing," Krum said, sharing the conclusion he and Solam had reached.
"No wonder Ram was so exhausted," Karut said, agreeing with the explanation. Trick had a different concern. "Could there be any aftereffects? Ram's still so young. Most children can't go Berserk until they're at least eighteen."
"He's fine. Solam just woke up a little while ago. He seemed tired, but otherwise there was nothing wrong. We can only say it's lucky Ram went Berserk early. Otherwise, this could have ended very badly." When the old man said that, Karut and Trick were first relieved, then broke out in a cold sweat. Berserk was no simple matter.
"All right, we found the boys. Let's not stand around in the snow. It's coming down harder and harder. We can talk once we're back." The old man looked up at the sky. The snow was getting heavier and didn't seem likely to stop anytime soon. There was no point standing around in the snow when they could discuss it on the way back. With that, he went to the sled behind them, picked Solam up in his arms, mounted One-Eye, and headed toward the camp. Karut and Trick could take care of the prey.
Karut had his son ride with him on his Direwolf. Trick loaded the two Alpine Goat carcasses Krum had dragged onto the sled behind them, then had his Direwolf, Frostfang, and Bloodfang pull it together. The three live Alpine Goats stayed tied to the sled.
Once everything was ready, they set off for home with the whole group.
Now that they had found the boys, there was no need to hurry. They should also be considerate of the Direwolves, so they traveled at a more leisurely pace.
Back at the camp, the people waiting were beside themselves with worry. Granny Karom was especially restless, as if a cat were clawing at her heart. She couldn't calm down at all. If she hadn't seen Zaira worrying herself sick, and feared something might happen to her, she would've gone along to search for the children. Granny Karom truly doted on their Solam. If the old bastard Chief Kramsh hadn't refused, she would have taken Solam home with her.
As far as Granny Karom was concerned, Solam was the best child in the world: handsome and obedient. Compared with other people's children, he was better in every way. Granny Karom had been dealt a hard hand with her son. His wife had died long ago without leaving them any children, and her son was stubbornly set against marrying again. So Solam's arrival had completely filled the old woman's longing for a grandchild. And because Solam had such a tragic past, growing up without a mother or father, she felt even more protective of him. It was no exaggeration to say she cherished him like her own heart.
Just then, an old man from the tribe came running over to say everyone was back. Hearing this, Granny Karom knew they must have found the children, or they wouldn't have returned so soon. Now she couldn't sit still at all. She wanted to go meet Ram herself and see whether he was hurt.
Zaira also couldn't sit still and wanted to go out to look, but Solari quickly talked her out of it. She had only just given birth and was still weak. Running outside was no way to take care of herself. They were still trying to persuade her when they heard Granny Karom, who had just gone out, roar.
"Kramsh, you bastard! What happened to my Ram...?"
Before you continue