Tonics and Choices

Solam had always been a good kid. Though he possessed knowledge from another world, he had no memories of his own life there, so there was nothing wrong with calling him a child. But that knowledge had also made him mature on the inside. When he was around the other kids, he could be childish, but more often he acted with far greater sophistication and cunning than they did. So even though he wasn't very tall, he was definitely the king of the kids. That was why seeing their leader suddenly acting cute was so embarrassing for them.

"Little Ram, why are you still so skinny? Solari, it looks like you'll have to put some more meat on Ram's bones. Just look at how sturdy Krum was at ten." Oh, right—I forgot to mention that Krum was Solam's cousin, and Karut was his uncle. Solam had never really accepted Karut in that role, though. As for his cousin...

You only had to see how he constantly ran Krum around in circles to understand. It wasn't that he had anything against them or disliked them. As I'd said, the divide between a transmigrator and this world made it hard for him to accept certain things. His sense of alienation from his old world, combined with his inability to fully fit into this one, always made him stand out. That was another reason he was always getting picked on.

The others knew a little about his background, too, and felt sorry for him, so they generally didn't mind his odd ways. His uncle and aunt knew more, and so they felt even sorrier for him. That made things a little awkward between them. Granny Karom, on the other hand, was more open-minded because of her age and experience. She didn't care much about such things, which made it easier for Solam to feel close to her.

"Tell me about it. Last time, I specifically asked Trick to get some Giant Strength Deer blood and a Deep River Lizard heart for Ram. It still hasn't done much good. He barely eats, and how's he supposed to grow if he won't eat meat? Looks like I'll have to find him more tonics from now on." Solari considered the matter seriously.

Solam's face immediately turned green. After all, he owed half his success at beating all the other kids to these two kindly older women.

Because Solam was mixed-blood, he looked much "frailer" than an ordinary Orc child. Ram's grandfather had been afraid he wouldn't be able to raise the boy, so he entrusted him to Granny Karom and his daughter-in-law Solari. Solari had just lost a child, so she was especially anxious and afraid she might somehow let Solam die, too. As a result, the two of them had tried every trick they could think of to fatten him up.

So Solam had been fed all sorts of strange things since he was little, like Giant Strength Deer blood. It was supposed to be very nourishing, especially when drunk raw. These deer were hard to catch and extremely clever. The slightest disturbance would send them fleeing, and if they couldn't escape, they fought to the death. With their immense strength, when they went all out, even Owlbears couldn't hold them back.

(Owl bears are covered in thick, dark feathers mixed with brown-black to tawny fur. Their hooked beaks are a dull ivory color. A fully grown male Owlbear can stand eight feet tall and weigh as much as 1,500 pounds. Adventurers who have encountered Owlbears and lived to tell the tale often speak of the bestial fury they saw in the creatures' blood-red eyes.)

Deep River Lizards weren't actually lizards. They looked a little like giant salamanders. But they stayed deep in the river and rarely came ashore, so they were difficult to catch. On top of that, his aunt was always asking the clan's hunters to collect strange animals or herbs that looked downright bizarre, all to nourish her precious Ram. As a result, Solam was always feeling hot all over and getting nosebleeds... He was getting far too much nourishment. All in all, it was a wonder Solam had managed to grow up healthy while being forced to eat such strange things every day...

In fact, there was a misconception in Avalon: everyone thought Solam was underdeveloped from birth. But from the perspective of the outside world, a Half-elf developing this much by the age of ten was already unusual. Half-elves didn't grow as slowly as Elves, but a pureblood Elf could live for a thousand years and took two hundred years to mature. A Half-elf's lifespan depended on the purity of their Elf blood, ranging from 350 to 500 years. They took at least fifty to eighty years to mature, too. But Avalon had been isolated from the rest of the world for so long that its people didn't know this. They assumed that Elves and Orcs were mortal enemies, and that meant they ought to be strong, too. They knew even less about how long it took them to mature.

"Come on... Granny, I'm already doing fine. I don't need any more tonics. I had a nosebleed just the other day. If you give me any more, it'll kill me." Solam grabbed Granny Karom's hand and pleaded with her as hard as he could. He was genuinely afraid of those things now. "I may be skinny, but I've grown up without getting sick or hurt. Please, no more."

"You need them. Your grandfather hopes you'll become a warrior like your father. How can you do that without a strong body?" Granny Karom gazed at Solam fondly, but her voice was firm.

...Looking at Granny Karom's serious expression, Solam felt powerless to argue. After all, she genuinely wanted what was best for him.

"Mom, you're the one who makes all the decisions about Solam, so whatever you say goes. But look, it's almost time for the pups to open their eyes. Shouldn't we start choosing?" Uncle Ramk rescued Solam, reminding them that it was time for the ceremony. The Direwolf selection ceremony had to begin before the pups opened their eyes, so that the first thing they saw when they opened them would be their future owner. In the eyes of the Avalon Orcs, this was the most important moment in the bond between a Direwolf and its owner. They believed it marked the beginning of a lifelong partnership.

Before the ceremony, the family chose a few underage children to serve as potential owners for the pups. Then they placed the Direwolf pups in the middle of the tent and had the children call to them. Whichever child a pup went to would become its owner. The family could choose as many children as they liked, but they usually picked the strongest ones, so that they might grow up to be excellent warriors and bring honor to the family.

"Then let's have little Ram, Krum, and Neruda. There's no need for so many. Those three will do just fine." Granny Karom held a high position in the clan, so her word naturally carried weight at home. She made the decision outright. Uncle Ramk didn't say anything; he simply turned to fetch the pups, which suggested he'd already known.

Everyone was a little surprised. Krum and Neruda made sense, but Solam didn't look like an excellent warrior by Orc standards. He was too skinny. He might be king of the kids, but adult Orcs didn't pay much attention to children. To them, big was good and strong was beautiful—a very straightforward way of looking at things. Still, when they remembered that Solam had grown up beside Granny Karom, and thought of his background, they kept their opinions to themselves. It was someone else's family matter, and no one—not even the chieftain—could question whom they chose. Even so, they didn't have much hope for Solam's future.

Before long, Uncle Ramk carried out three Direwolf pups whose eyes were still closed: one white, one black, and one brown. Calling them pups was almost misleading; in his previous life, they would have been about the size of dogs. Ramk placed them in the middle of the tent, and the three children gathered around them. Solam was incredibly excited. He knew exactly what the others thought of him, and he'd assumed he wouldn't get a chance. Now Granny Karom had given him such a wonderful gift. How could he not be excited?

"Awooo... awo... oo!" As soon as the three children took their places, they began imitating Direwolf howls to draw the pups toward them. Granny Karom watched Solam howling away, his face flushed with excitement, and felt a rush of warmth.

To be honest, she didn't think Solam had to become a warrior. He'd been smarter than the other children from a young age. Becoming a Shaman would be a perfectly good choice, too.

But Solam's grandfather, Chieftain Kramsh, very much hoped that his grandson would grow up to be an excellent warrior like his youngest son, Garush. Granny Karom knew that this was only natural. In an Orc tribe, Shamans held high positions and were deeply respected. But excellent warriors were worshipped.

Shamans were spellcasters, after all, and outsiders tended to think of them as a little odd. Warriors were different. Orcs revered strength, and watching warriors fight could stir their blood and set their hearts ablaze. So an Orc child's first choice was always to become a great warrior—even if they were a Shaman.

Many Shamans in Orc tribes also served as warriors. Some even used totem poles as their spellcasting implements. They would cast spells with them in ordinary circumstances, then, when necessary, cast Bull's Strength on themselves and swing them in great, sweeping blows, smashing their foes over the head. A totem pole weighed at least fifty or sixty pounds. It hit almost as hard as a spiked club. Even Granny Karom used a flail; she was a practitioner of brute force, too.

But with little Ram's physique, he'd probably only be able to become a pure Shaman. Still, that was a path he could take. Granny Karom resolved to have a serious talk with Kramsh. After all, the boy was growing up.

While Granny Karom was lost in thought, all three children had picked up their Direwolves. Solam's was a pure white Direwolf pup. Direwolves were usually black or brown, but the Orcs didn't think the color meant anything special. It was white—so what? It wasn't going to turn into something else. It was still a Direwolf.

The white Direwolf pup lay in Solam's arms, drowsy, and opened its eyes. It looked at Solam, then licked his hand with its tiny pink tongue. Kram immediately handed Solam a leather waterskin filled with wolf's milk. In Avalon, female Direwolves rarely nursed their pups directly, and their nursing period was short. So before a female Direwolf gave birth, the family would make sure she was well fed, hoping to collect as much of her milk as possible before the pups were weaned.

It was precious stuff. Once made into cheese, the Avalon Orcs considered it the best of tonics, and it kept well. Only the injured and women in confinement were allowed to eat it. After the selection ceremony, the family usually gave some to each chosen child in a leather waterskin. It was both a blessing, wishing the children health and strength, and a way to help the pups, taken from their mothers, get used to the transition by giving them some milk before they had to eat meat.

Solam quickly took the waterskin and poured a little onto his hand for the pup to lick. That would strengthen their bond and help the pup get used to his scent. Everyone was happy to see the two of them interacting. The other two pups still hadn't opened their eyes and could only sniff around blindly. This meant Solam's pup was stronger and healthier than its siblings. Everyone was glad that a strong Direwolf had chosen Solam.