February 10, 843
In a dense forest, a stag stood in a relatively open clearing, enjoying the tender, juicy grass.
Whoosh!
Suddenly, an arrow whistled through the air and pierced straight through the stag's neck.
"Uuugh..."
The stag barely managed a pitiful cry. Without even the strength to flee, it collapsed in a limp heap and lay there, panting heavily.
"Beautiful shot, Arthur!" a man called out in admiration.
Two people emerged from the nearby bushes: Arthur and Kane, who had come out to hunt.
"Your archery just keeps getting better, Arthur. Right through the throat with one shot." Kane walked over, put the stag out of its misery, then pulled the arrow from its throat and handed it to Arthur.
"It was just luck." Arthur took the arrow and returned it to his quiver, merely shrugging rather than boasting.
"Oh, modest, too." The more Kane watched the humble Arthur, the more fond of him he became.
A year had passed since he had first taken Arthur hunting. Arthur was now ten years old.
To be honest, Kane was still astonished by the boy. He had originally thought Arthur's desire to hunt with him was nothing more than a passing whim.
Yet from the very first day Kane took him hunting, the boy had displayed remarkable talent and intelligence.
First, he followed all of Kane's instructions and patiently asked him about hunting techniques every time.
Not only did he learn them all in a short time, but he also suggested more methods, such as animal traps.
The boy was also hardworking and had even greater stamina than Kane. After long stretches of trekking through the mountain forests, Kane would be left panting with exhaustion.
Arthur, meanwhile, would not even be flushed or out of breath, leaving Kane questioning everything every time.
The boy also had abilities in archery and tracking prey that far surpassed his own. After only a week or two of archery practice, he could accurately hit targets over ten meters away.
As time passed, he had become capable of accurately hitting fast-moving animals from dozens of meters away.
Combined with Kane's marksmanship, their teamwork had sent the number of animals they caught soaring compared to before, including plenty of large game.
Arthur and Kane took the extra game to a butcher's shop in Shiganshina District to sell, bringing the family an additional source of income.
More income meant a better standard of living. Every meal at home was now especially plentiful.
"The hide's in excellent condition. Let's go, Arthur." After draining the stag's blood, Kane inspected its fine hide and prepared to take it to Shiganshina District to sell.
"All right." Arthur nodded and began helping Kane move the heavy carcass.
Then the two found the horses they had hidden in the bushes to avoid startling the stag.
Kane loaded the stag's carcass onto his horse's rump and secured it tightly.
Arthur mounted his own horse.
The two rode toward Shiganshina District.
A little over half an hour passed.
Kane and Arthur arrived at the market in Shiganshina District.
"Well now! Kane, you and Arthur have caught something good again!" called a burly, rugged-looking middle-aged man with only a few hairs on his head when he spotted the stag behind Kane.
"That's right, Rug. And Arthur shot this deer himself." Kane happily patted the stag behind him.
"I envy you, having such a good boy. Look at this-top-quality game, too." Rug glanced at Arthur, who stood silently beside them. Arthur gave him a slight nod in greeting, and Rug went back to inspecting the stag.
"Of course. When have we ever brought you anything inferior?" Seeing the envy in the eyes of those around him, Kane unconsciously straightened his back.
"Ah! Comparing that useless boy of mine to Arthur... I don't even know where to begin." Rug sighed, growing irritated at the thought of his good-for-nothing son.
"All right, enough chatting. The usual arrangement, with meat from the best cuts?"
"The usual." Kane nodded.
"Right, here you go! This is the payment for this one. Count it." Rug took out a money pouch from behind him, counted out a sum, and handed it to Kane.
Kane counted the money, confirmed that the amount was correct, and happily tucked the bills into his belt pouch.
"A pleasure doing business!"
Kane and Rug smiled and shook hands.
"Uncle Kane, it's Mikasa's birthday today. I ordered a gift at a shop, so I need to stop by."
Arthur, who had been silent until then, spoke to Kane.
"Go ahead." Kane immediately waved him off. Of course, he knew Arthur had been preparing for Mikasa's birthday for quite some time.
With Kane's permission, Arthur left his horse there and headed toward the gift shop.
Soon, Arthur reached the busiest shopping street in all of Shiganshina District. A few days earlier, he had spotted a lovely bracelet in a jewelry shop.
He had not brought enough money at the time, so he had put the purchase off.
Now he had enough money, and today happened to be Mikasa's birthday. Arthur decided to try his luck and see whether the bracelet was still there.
Arthur arrived at the jewelry shop. Luckily, the bracelet he wanted was still in the display case.
Seeing that it had not been sold, Arthur decided to buy it and walked into the shop.
"Welcome." Hearing someone enter, the shopkeeper hurried out with a smile, only for his expression to fall as soon as he saw it was merely a child.
He had thought a sale had come his way, but it was just a child.
Arthur gritted his teeth at the shopkeeper's snobbery but held his temper. He simply pointed to the bracelet he wanted in the display case and addressed him.
"Could you take that bracelet out and let me have a look?"
"Go on, get out! Don't interfere with my business. Can you even afford it?" Seeing Arthur ask him to take that bracelet out of the case, the shopkeeper waved him away impatiently.
What a snob, Arthur cursed inwardly. Without a word, he took out his wallet and opened it.
The moment the shopkeeper saw the bills inside, his expression transformed, and a radiant smile appeared on his face again.
"Please, come in." He hurriedly took the bracelet Arthur had pointed to out of the display case and carefully placed it before him.
Arthur was very pleased with the exquisite patterns on the bracelet.
After asking the price, he took the bills straight out of his wallet and slapped them onto the counter.
The shopkeeper accepted the money with a broad smile, then packaged the bracelet in an elegant gift box at Arthur's request.
"Take care!" The shopkeeper watched Arthur leave with a beaming smile. His attitude was completely different from before-a snob through and through.
After leaving the jewelry shop, Arthur went to the tailor's.
A few days earlier, he had ordered a custom-made scarf there, also intended as a birthday gift for Mikasa.
"Is the scarf I ordered ready?" Arthur entered the shop and asked the owner, who was reading a book.
"Oh, it's you. The scarf is ready." Recognizing Arthur's face, the owner nodded and had an assistant bring over the finished scarf.
Arthur took the finished red scarf from the assistant and gently ran his fingers over it. Its texture was wonderfully smooth; clearly, it had been made from excellent material.
"We knitted this scarf from the finest yarn in our shop."
The tailor spoke with great pride.
"I'm very happy with it." Pleased with the scarf, Arthur took out his wallet and paid the remaining balance in full.
"Is it a gift for someone?" the tailor asked as he wrapped it for Arthur.
"Yes! It's for my little sister. Today's her eighth birthday." Arthur nodded and put away the wrapped scarf.
"You really are a good big brother!" Hearing that Arthur had bought it for his little sister, the owner could not help praising him.
After exchanging a few pleasantries, Arthur said goodbye to the owner and left the tailor's to find Kane.
"You're back. Did you get everything?" Kane asked when Arthur returned.
"Yes, everything's ready."
"Then let's head home."
"All right!"
After saying goodbye to Rug, the two set off for home.
Soon, they rode back home before dusk.
"Dad! Arthur!"
They had barely arrived and had not yet dismounted when Mikasa, who was tending the vegetables with Yumiko in the garden, happily waved to them.
Arthur and Kane tethered their horses, then walked over to Yumiko and Mikasa.
Arthur hid Mikasa's presents so the surprise would not be spoiled.
"Darling, how did the hunt go today?" Yumiko asked, setting down her work.
"We did very well today. Arthur and I caught a deer and took it to Shiganshina District to sell."
"You're back just in time. Dinner's almost ready," Yumiko said, looking at the gradually darkening sky.
"Let's go. It's our precious daughter's birthday today, too." Kane smiled and stroked Mikasa's little head.
Much later, once the sky had gone completely dark, Yumiko brought the meat stew and all sorts of delicious dishes to the table.
Today was Mikasa's birthday.
So she had prepared an especially lavish meal, with vegetables, meat, and all kinds of desserts.
After the family enjoyed a cheerful dinner together, it was finally time to give the presents.
Kane gave Mikasa a delicate snow globe.
Yumiko gave Mikasa a lovely floral dress, which fit her beautifully when she put it on.
When Arthur's turn came, Mikasa looked at him expectantly, eager to see what sort of birthday present he would give her.
Arthur smiled at her expectant expression, then took out the bracelet and scarf he had prepared.
"It's so pretty." Mikasa adored the bracelet in Arthur's hand. To her, anything Arthur gave her was something to love.
"Arthur, why did you buy something so expensive?" Yumiko could tell at a glance that the bracelet must have cost a great deal and spoke with a hint of reproach.
"It's all right, Aunt Yumiko. It's just a little something from me." Arthur waved away her concern, then gently took Mikasa's hand.
As Mikasa watched shyly, Arthur put the bracelet on her himself, then gently wrapped the scarf around her neck.
"It's so warm." Feeling the warmth of the scarf around her neck, Mikasa felt wonderfully warm for some reason she could not explain.
"Happy birthday, Mikasa!"
Arthur offered her his wishes tenderly.
"Thank you, Arthur!" Deeply touched, Mikasa threw her arms around him.
Beside them, Kane and Yumiko were moved by the sweet scene. In their eyes, Mikasa and Arthur truly were a perfect match.