Chapter 38

Nicole paced around the hut, deep in thought. Okay. Bee tribe. Merchants. What exactly should I try to trade? I have no idea what they can bring themselves, and before Soi went for her daily forest training, she said that outside of food from the other tribes and the dyes they produce in their territory, bees bring whatever they get from trading with others… Meaning that I can expect anything and nothing at the same time.

She formed a wooden cube in her hand. I can make statues, carvings, figurines… animals they’ve never seen or heard about. Should be interesting enough for them. For a test, she made a small wooden cat, printing it out of her palm. "Iloe, what do you think?" The catgirl was sitting on a chair, swinging her legs, silently watching Nicole.

"Seems pretty. But why don’t you just make more of that shampoo thing you invented?"

Nicole smirked. "Ha, you think I’m not planning that? But for that, I need a lot of animal fat. So I’m waiting for Soi to bring it. But shampoo alone won’t be enough. I should take my time and make something really impressive." I can’t be left with no currency in case I want to get something from the merchants.

She placed the cat on the table. I have to imagine the objects very vividly to make them. She closed her eyes, and after a minute, a wooden turtle fell onto the table. Hm… I just got an idea. Nicole suddenly took her shirt off and laid on her belly on the floor. "W-what are you doing? Everything o-okay? Nicole?" Iloe stared wide-eyed, already panicking.

Nicole giggled. "Hey, hey, calm down. I just realized that since I’m restricted by size depending on where I create the object, I just need a bigger area. And my back is my best shot." She closed her eyes again and imagined an ornamented wooden chest. It took some time and exhausted almost all the wood in her storage, but it worked. Nicole pushed the chest off her back and sat up. "See? It wouldn’t work with my hand." Then she stood up. "Hey, don’t you have things to do? I’m not asking you to leave, don’t worry. But are you sure you can spend your whole day just sitting here?" As she spoke, Nicole placed the animal figurines into the chest.

Iloe shook her head. "No. I’m just an amateur alchemist. I… I’m not really making any progress to help my mother anyway…" She looked down, then quickly perked up. "Watching you work is better than being a blind kitten, mixing alchemy ingredients at random and hoping I stumble on a solution." She smiled, but Nicole could tell it wasn’t a happy one.

"Wait, wait, don’t be so harsh on yourself." Nicole placed a hand on Iloe’s shoulder. "As long as you keep trying, you’re moving forward. I’m sure one day you’ll achieve your goal." She smiled warmly. "But taking breaks is important too."

Iloe sighed. "I know. But more and more I feel like I’m a failure, and all my efforts will end up pointless." Fuck, I have no idea what more to say to cheer her up. Nicole grabbed the crate, took a few steps toward the exit, and looked back over her shoulder.

"Wanna come with me? Making figurines takes a lot of time and is a pretty boring process, so… with you it’ll be ten times better." Not perfect, but all I can do is keep her away from dark thoughts. She walked out of the hut, hearing footsteps behind her.

Iloe joined her, and the girls left the village, heading into the rainforest. Nicole approached the nearest tree and started absorbing it with one hand while forming small animals, skulls, and other little things that came to her mind, dropping them into the chest. The whole time, Nicole tried to keep small talk going, in case sad thoughts were still clouding the catgirl’s head. When the chest was full, the sun was high in the sky. "This should be enough." Nicole wiped sweat from her forehead with the back of her hand. "It's probably lunchtime already. Let’s go back."

At the village, they were lucky to arrive right at the start of lunch and didn’t have to wait in line. As usual, it was steamed vegetables with meat, plus the flatbreads that, since the day Nicole revealed the baking process, had became a norm for the villagers. The girls took their plates and, instead of joining the others, went to sit on a bench nearby with a view of the beach and ocean.

At first, they ate in silence. Is this the right time to ask her? She may be too shy to initiate the topic herself, and I really want to make things clear. Nicole licked her lips. "Iloe, listen. One thing’s been bothering me the whole day, and I feel we have to talk." While chewing her food, Iloe raised her eyebrow in a silent question, clearly having no idea what Nicole meant. "It’s about the previous night. You made it pretty clear how you feel about me. And, uh, I don’t really know how this works in your society." Fuck, why am I talking like a highschooler? Back on Earth, I was asked out many times, and many said they loved me. But now it’s like something is different. Though I have to say most things here feel different, even if shouldn't.

Iloe swallowed too fast before speaking, almost choking. Her cheeks immediately turned red, and she hid her face in her hands. "S-sorry! I-it was probably just in the heat of the moment!" Nicole set her food aside. "Are you sure? You seemed pretty genuine back then. There’s nothing wrong with it, I think. I just want to talk about it."

Iloe peeked through her fingers, still covering her face. "R-really? You’re n-not mad, r-right?" Nicole chuckled. "Should I be?" Iloe sighed. "It's just… I feel ashamed." Nicole blinked in surprise. "Ashamed? Of what? I don’t think you did anything wrong."

The catgirl shook her head. "That night… No, every time I see you with Soi, or even when you just mention her, I feel jealous. It feels like my heart is being pinched. And I know it’s wrong to be like this. You and Soi are close. And you’ll find others too. A-and no matter what I do, I’ll feel bad." She sobbed.

Interesting. Born in a world where open relationships are normal, yet internally she rejects her culture for some reason. "I understand how you feel. Maybe I wasn’t in your place, but I understand. And I’ve already decided to try and blend in with this world’s customs and do what I want. And I’d be lying if I said I don’t enjoy the freedom of this island." Shit, that came out worse than I planned. She was already sad, now I’m afraid I made it worse. But I don't want to lie to her and promise things I don't want to. "It may be harsh, but I think you have two options from my perspective. One is to walk away and distance yourself from me, to wait until you can maybe find someone else. The other is to bear with it and stay by my side. Maybe you’ll feel better with time. Either way, I don’t want to push you away. And I’ll understand if you want to go."

Iloe took a deep breath and stood up, facing away from Nicole. "I need time." She walked toward her hut. "Take all the time you need, Iloe." Nicole said before picking up their plates to return them to the kitchen area. I should check on her from time to time.

By the evening, when Soi returned, Nicole made several variations of shampoo, adding different grasses and flowers. When she finished and poured the liquids into wooden bottles, it was already deep into the night. Before going to sleep, Nicole quietly moved through the village. At Iloe’s home, she peeked through the window and saw Iloe already in bed. Good. At least she didn’t hurt herself or do something equally stupid.

The next day, Nicole created two larger sculptures—serpent-like dragons with long, coiled bodies. Their mouths were open, and after gathering some seashells, she formed two spheres and placed them inside the dragons’ mouths. This makes them look better than just plain wood.

As she lay in bed, Nicole thought about tomorrow. My first time meeting someone outside the Torakai. I have to be careful with the traders. The following morning, Nicole sat in the hut, continuing her water-form training to focus on something other than the upcoming meeting. She had previously asked Soi to notify her when the bee caravan arrived.

After a few hours, the catgirl came. "Nicole, the Voru’kais are walking through the gates right now." Nicole stood up, breaking the water form and returning to normal. "Great. Now come with me - there’s one more thing to do." The girls headed to the beach and took a quick bath, applying the shampoos. After that, they quickly went to the village’s main square.

As they approached, they saw the entire village gathered around three large wagons. Nicole couldn’t see anything through the crowd, but she could hear Izab’s loud voice but not the words. Fuck, everyone is so loud I can’t hear what’s going on. Noticing her annoyance, Soi patted her shoulder. "Don’t worry. It’s just the traditional invitational speech. After Izab finishes, many will leave. Not everyone is actually interested in trading." A few minutes passed, and nothing changed. "Alright, fuck it. Let’s go bring the goods. Maybe it’ll be over by then."

Back in the hut, the girls covered the statues and chest with animal pelts to hide them and surprise everyone. Carrying everything took some time - the two dragons and the chest full of wood were heavy and awkward. I should have thought of making something to carry them with. When they returned to the square, Soi’s words proved true - the Torakai swarm was gone, replaced by smaller groups surrounding the carriages. As they approached, Nicole saw Izab and someone who appeared to be from the Bee tribe sitting on a bench. So that’s how the Voru’kai look. Their whole body was a black exoskeleton except for the head, which had yellow skin and black hair. Short white fur covered the neck. On the back, there were transparent, insect wings. Seems a bit alien, but I expected worse.

"Oh, Nicole, come here." Izab interrupted her thoughts.

When the girls approached, the elder nodded toward his insectoid companion. His face looked like that of an old man, though the exoskeleton on the rest of his body showed no signs of age. He had short black hair. "This is Jathun. He is the leader of this caravan. And he was very interested in meeting you, Nicole." Jathun inclined his head in greeting. "Indeed, Bone Witch. I heard you are rather a unique being."

Bone Witch? What the hell? "My name’s Nicole. And I’m certainly not a witch. And yes, as you’ve probably already noticed, I don’t belong to any tribe." She spoke calmly, with a hint of pride, not shy about herself.

"Indeed. And you—and your Torakai friend—wear clothes I have never seen before. As an old merchant, I am intrigued by your... uniqueness." Jathun said, scratching his chin as if he had a beard, despite not having one.

Great. Now I just have to play my cards right. Nicole smirked. "I understand. Yet as a merchant, you should also know that nothing comes for free. I have many things to offer, but I expect something worthy in return."

"Indeed."