“All the more reason to gut it first! I would’ve done it by now, but no one in the village will help me track it.”
“Why don’t you just leave?” I ask. “They don’t treat you very kindly.”
“Ye got family, Leaf Water?”
The muscles in my jaw twitches. “Only my mother.”
“Do ye ever argue with ’er?”
I shrug. “Sometimes.”
“And ye love ’er anyway?”
“Of course.”
Feng nods slowly. “We may be at odds, but they’re still my family. When I kill that dragon, fame and fortune’re as good as mine. I’ll be able to provide for ’em all. They might not understand yet what an opportunity this is, but they will.”
She makes camp beside the old remnants of a hearth, collecting up bits of dried grass and small branches. Feng goes about starting a fire wordlessly, likely having grown accustomed to long stretches spent in silence. She produces two pieces of flint fromone of the many pouches attached to her belt, striking them together again and again until a spark finally appears. She’s so consumed in her work that for a moment, I wonder if she’s forgotten that I’m here.
“You’re very resourceful,” I comment. “Hunting. Making your own medicine. Starting a fire… It’s quite impressive.”
“A three-year-old could do this.”
“I can’t.”
“Then yer an idiot.” Feng hits me with a hard glare. “But I could tell that just by lookin’ at ye.”
I huff. “No need to be rude. I have a great many talents, too.”
She arches a brow but doesn’t press further. Her disinterest is palpable.
This is the chance for me, I suddenly realize, to ingratiate myself to this prickly huntress and learn about the Southern Kingdom. I stare at my gray thread, once again lifeless on the ground. Even if I could follow it to the dragon, there’s little chance I would survive the journey without Feng’s skills as an outdoorswoman.
“My lady,” I say after a while. The fire crackles to life, the growing flames melting the chill from my bones. “Please, allow me to accompany you on your search for the dragon.”
Feng sneers. “Why in the hell would I do that?”
“I’m an excellent cook. I can keep us well fed. Whatever you hunt, I can roast.”
“It’s not that hard. Ye stick it over the fire and yer done.”
“I can tell you stories and keep you entertained.”
“Yer chatter’ll only scare the beast off.”
I sigh. “Many hands make quick work?”
“Ye just want to kill the beast and hog the glory for yerself.”
That’s untrue—I wish the creature no harm, even if it could well devour me in a single bite. As brief as our connection was,it was undeniable. I have so many questions—all of which will go unanswered if Feng manages to find and slay the dragon first.
“I confess that I could make use of a few scales,” I answer, a partial truth. “For my ailing mother back home. I care not for the hunt. But you know as well as I do that it would be foolish for even you to take the creature on alone. I believe our meeting was fated. I can… I can fight.”
“I thought ye said yer a teahouse owner.”
“A man can know how to do two things. Besides, this is clearly an intelligent creature to have evaded mankind for so long. Wouldn’t it be wise to have someone watching your back?” When Feng doesn’t answer, I add, “I’m indebted to you. For saving my life. The others don’t seem keen to join you, so let me. You can even use me as bait. With a helping hand, you will certainly achieve greatness.”
Feng is silent for a while. The shadows grow long as the silver moon climbs yet higher into the sky. After a seeming eternity, she finally speaks.
