I went back into the forest to hunt, deep into the forest, where the serious hunters didn't smell like booze, laughing and chatting with themselves.

I went deep into the forest to search. I hid myself and listened. No ringing in my ears meant signs of life: small birds chirping, squirrels and rabbits frolicking, and deer and foxes running away. Some got caught by traps, others by well-placed shots.

When I went deep into the forest, I could only see old trees covered by moss and mushrooms, where the animals roamed freely with little caution. Those with proper skill came here, hiding themselves. I can no longer smell perfume; I can no longer hear laughter and meaningless chats.

  I went deep into the forest to find water. This forest isn't big; there are no mountains or giant trees. It hasn't been here long enough for anything huge to be here, maybe a bear or a large wolf. I don't know. It should be big. The only thing big in the forest would be a predator.

I went deep into the forest until I thought I was alone. Some time has passed, and now I can hunt. As I crept and crawled around, I saw it, by the water that ran through the forest, a bear, a big, bigger than any other brown bear I've seen before, grey-furred. It's not native to these parts or maybe a rare breed, something that could easily get you the top spot; it had an arrow in its back; someone else had seen it before me. It was alter and dangerous, and I must approach with caution.

I stood by a tree, waiting till it lowered its head to drink, and drew my bow, aiming for the eyes or the neck; as I lined my shot, a loud whistling filled the air; someone else shot first. Not at the bear but at me, at the tree I hid beside, to be specific. The blunt arrow tip, shaped like a ball with holes all over, is a calling arrow used to alter guards. Alter. Guards. Alter bears, it was coming at me; I was not alone, but running away was pointless, so I, to my stance, waited for it.

It ran at full speed, relatively fast for its size. It would uproot an oak tree if it hit it like that, but a well-placed shot between its eyes should kill it, but a bust in the air followed by the sound of metal piercing bone, the way the bear's head swung to the side before it crashed into the ground. It was dead; the arrow in the back of the head said as much, but from where?

I was deep in the forest, but its killer was deeper; it revealed itself from the other side of the stream, a hooded figure; the green of their cloak matched the forest, concealing them well; as they approached, it turned white, with golden writings on it, a typical outfit for elf hunters, the petit build, blond hair, long, by the length 60 maybe 70 years hard to say without seeing their face, their eyes especially. It was their kill, and they've come to collect it; I could fight, win, take it and leave, but that would be bad; they were the emperor's guests, and Father had plans for them. So, I nodded and went on my way.

I went deeper into the forest, hoping there was something bigger or rarer, or I could find its den, the cubs and the boar from earlier and add some deer. No, that bear was unique; I needed to find something better than exceptional. As I crossed the stream, I saw something between the stones the fish gathered around; it was right about where the bear stood. I reached in and picked up a small piece of gold; a vein must be nearby. I was about to put it in my pocket when I saw a tooth stuck in it; something tried to eat it. An animal tried to eat it. 

I went upstream, looking for any sign of it, footprints, fur that fell off, more of its teeth, even a piece of its horns. Time had passed; others must have gone back by now, carrying deer, multiple rabbits, and even boar or wolves. I think I heard an ox or something like that on my way in, but none of them would be as good as that bear, and if I'm right, I hope I'm right, none of them, not even the bear, would be as good as my catch.

After 20 to 30 minutes of my walk going upstream, I saw it, a vormund elk, nearly 3 meters on all fours, still in adolescence, the fur like red sand, the skull broad with a very prominent jaw, used for eating minerals, golden horns, sharp dangerous, a wolf's carcass still hanging from them, it's malnourished the horns aren't too big, so the vein must not be wealthy. A vormund elk is different from a regular elk because of its horns. Horns of the minerals they consume; in the north, we have ruby Vormund elks running around. It's bigger than this one, with much prettier horns, but this would have to do for the event.

The bone of a vormund elk is very thick, and my arrows wouldn't pierce through easily, so I can go for the eyes; I don't want to put too many holes in the trunk; it'll ruin the fur and the meat; maybe I could break a leg, walk up and slit its throat, yes. Other wolves may be around, but I don't want to attract them. I still have to carry it back. No, it's still the best option; dealing with the wolves may not be ideal, but I must deal with it.

Line my shot, aim for the leg, rush in, a slit the throat. Ready a second arrow if it tries to get away. 

The sun has gone past its highest point. I had some wolf repellent on me past noon, which I had overlooked earlier. The elk is heavy, but I can make it back; the blood is dripping, leaving a trail, and some of it gets on me, making it hard to hold onto the legs; at this point, after having to break three of the legs, the thing is wobbling on my back, I'm finding it hard dealing with the horns getting caught between tree branches, if I had a cloak and some rope I could drag it through the forest. I'll be late at this point. I don't know when the event ends, but I'll be late.

"There he is!!" a loud voice, a male older than me. I turned my whole body to see him. It was Dimitri, the man I stepped on, with two other fancy-dressed people and two others dressed for hunting; why were they looking for me?

"Wow, look at what he got. What is that?" "I don't know, but I'm sure he'll be willing to part with it for a price." They stood before me, all within a certain height. I don't have time for this; I must deliver this elk.

"Hey, stop. We're talking to you. You think just because you married the general, you're all that." One of the fancy-dressed ones was talking, with black hair and a pretty face, the kind Elliot would like. I stopped to hear them out. Wania wouldn't stop, and they wouldn't even call out to her, but she's not here, and I'm not one of them.

"That's right; you should listen to your betters," the other fanciful one said; he had small, brown spots on her face, dirty green hair, and his two front teeth were peeking out from his mouth, like a rabbit "Easy boy, a dog without his master can still bite you" Dimitri spoke. He walked up to me, close, within my reach. He must not be afraid; I was too soft last time; I'll have to try again the way Wania would. 

"Quite the catch you've got, the biggest I've seen all day. Why don't you sell it to me? I give you 200 gold coins for it." Dimitri's words don't make any sense. Can't he see the horns, or are the trees blocking it? Either way, 200 gold would still be a scam, even for a normal elk of this size. How much food could 200 gold buy, how many children could it feed, I wonder?

"I'll give you 300 for it," the pretty one said. "What are you doing that for?" Dimitri asked "I need a catch as well if you're just going to buy it from him; I'll at least buy it first", the pretty one continued. "You idiot, we could have just put some holes in it and said we hunted it together; now he's going to charge us more", Dimitri said again. They're wasting my time, and I'm here listening to them. I need to get back; their money is worthless. Wania is paying more, much more.

"Hey, get back here" sounds like the one with rabbit teeth. I wish they would leave me alone "Where are you going? Off to that whore you call a wife” I didn't stop for that; a husband would stop for that, but they're cowards. They won't say that in front of her. "Are you insane?" Dimitri hit him. "What? Why would you hit me?" the rabbit tooth complained. "Women who sell themselves are whores; she is just like any of them. Selling herself to a dirty mercenary to hold onto her position, my father said," The rabbit tooth one sure talks a lot, like he knows something. I should see for myself. "He's going to tell her what you said; what do you think-" The thud from dropping the elk silenced them. 

"Look, we're not with him. Just forget we were ever here, and we'll give you 500 gold," Dimitri said as I walked up to them. I didn't really care, though. Maybe I should hurt them. A husband should protect his wife's honour, and Wania is my employer. She's paying me to play the role of a husband, but it's a hassle. Oh well, I want the rabbit tooth; the rest are useless. 

One of the hunters stood in front of the rabbit tooth. I get it. Above all else, you have to protect the one who is paying you, but you're in my way. Sorry, dude, but it's part of the job. Knocking him out with my fist and tossing him aside, the others ran off, leaving the rabbit tooth with me.

"What else did your father tell you?" It's a simple question; I hope he answers. I didn't want to waste time; he was already shaking, and I might not need to do much, but he was wasting time. Maybe if I broke his arm, "Wait, stop, stop", he screamed so loud for just a dislocation. The leg? "I'll talk, I'll talk" I'm glad it worked.  "He said she was selling herself to you to keep her position. The emperor and he were talking about making you the next general. Don't tell her I told you this; they are trying to find out how she knew about their plan in the first place" Rabbit Tooth's looking pale, his voice getting quieter. "I'll pay you. Yes, you like money, right?" he passed out before he could hand me his pouch, but I'm still going to take it. 

I'm glad those boys came when they did. The hunter had rope on him, and I could use rabbit tooth's cloak. It felt really smooth in my hand, but what can you do? I wish I had the other cloaks, too. Having to tire the elk to my back is still uncomfortable.

I finally made it. It's gotten late, and it seems I'm the last to arrive. Everyone looks shocked by the elk, I understand. It's big, and they can see the golden horns shine in the midday sun. Wania is standing there waiting for me. At least she looks pleased with the elk on my back.

"I can overlook the lateness, quite the catch indeed", she said. "I've got some news about the emperor" Her expression turned mischievous in my words. I should follow her and present the elk to the elves for now.

"Honoured guest of the emperor, I, Wania Sapphire, General of the imperial armies, would like to dedicate my husband's catch to you," Wania said. "I would love to have you over for dinner at my home."

Everyone clapped; the elves were in awe of the elk. They could not see them in the sky forest, but they should have seen some in the mountain forests. "We've never seen a golden-horned vormund elk before; they're so rare, and the horns are usually oak and quite beautiful. We thank you for the gift" I can't tell who the leader is; most of them seem to be over 100, and the cloaks cover too much for me to say any of them, but this group appears to have six males and twelve females, the leader is definitely among them, she's hiding in with them.

The event is coming to an end. I was declared the winner. I didn't bother with the other activities of the night; I just wanted to wash the blood off. Wania suggested we leave since everyone would be leaving, too. On our way here this morning, I could sense her discomfort. I could use that.

"What's the matter, Agnius? Get in," Wania said. "Lady Wania, I have somewhere I need to go, and you seem to not want me around." I spoke. She looked at me and then at Helga and sighed. "Fine then, but we'll have a discussion when you return." She frowned. She always swings between emotions, but I don't think I have seen her frown.