A Token of Gratitude and the Elf’s Solitude
Thanks to the medicinal herbs Sylvia had taught them about, Yume pulled through her illness. With each passing day, her complexion improved, and before long, she was back to playing innocently inside the cabin with Miko and Kenta. Seeing her like that, Akio, Ayane, and Alto all breathed a deep sigh of relief from the bottom of their hearts.
“I’m so glad Yume’s better…” Ayane murmured with quiet emotion.
“Yeah. It’s all thanks to that healer from the forest,” Akio agreed, nodding.
“Hey, Akio-san… I want to thank that elf lady properly,” Alto proposed. The other children quickly chimed in, saying they wanted to do something for the kind “big sister” as they saw her.
Akio felt the same. If Sylvia hadn’t helped them back then, Yume’s fate might have been very different.
A few days later, Akio prepared a small bundle containing a soft, neatly tanned rabbit pelt from a recent catch, and a batch of nut cookies that Ayane had carefully baked with all her heart. The cookies, made with only the natural sweetness of the nuts and roasted to a toasty finish, were her pride and joy.
“Alto, want to come with me?”
“Yeah!”
Together, Akio and Alto set out once more into the deepening forest, heading for the moss-covered rock formation where they’d first met Sylvia.
When they arrived, Sylvia was nowhere to be seen. Akio gently placed the bundle on the rock and decided to wait a while. But even as the sun climbed high and began to sink, she did not appear.
“Looks like we won’t see her today…”
Akio was a little disappointed but far from ready to give up. The next day, and the day after that, he returned to the same place at the same time, leaving the gift and quietly waiting for Sylvia.
On the third day, just as Akio was about to place the bundle on the rock as usual, a calm voice spoke from behind him.
“Back again, human? Persistent creatures, aren’t you.”
Turning around, Akio saw Sylvia leaning casually against a tree trunk. She blended into the forest just as naturally as before, her expression unreadable.
“Sylvia-san… Thank you again for saving our little sister. This is just a small token of our gratitude.”
Akio bowed his head sincerely and held out the bundle. Sylvia’s sharp eyes didn’t even flicker toward the gift—her gaze remained fixed on Akio.
“I told you, there’s no need for thanks. I simply did what the laws of the forest demanded.”
Her voice was still cold, but to Akio, it seemed slightly less prickly than before.
“Even so, it’s how we feel. Please… would you accept it?”
Sylvia remained silent for a while, then let out a small sigh. She lightly touched the bundle with her fingertips but didn’t take it. Her hand quickly retreated.
“… Leave it there. If I feel like it, I’ll look at it later.”
It might have been her way of offering the greatest concession she could. Akio smiled.
“Thank you.”
He set the bundle down on the rock.
“That’s all, then? If so, leave quickly. Humans wandering around unsettle the forest creatures.”
Sylvia urged them to go, but Akio wasn’t ready to give up just yet. He seized the opportunity to voice another request.
“Sylvia-san… If it’s not too much trouble, would you consider teaching me, even just a little, about medicinal herbs? We know so little. Someone might fall ill again someday…”
Sylvia’s brows twitched ever so slightly at his words.
“Such knowledge isn’t for human hands. The secrets of the forest open only to those who truly respect it.”
She dismissed his request bluntly, and Akio turned to leave, disappointed. But just as he did, Sylvia quietly spoke again.
“… That plant over there, with three red berries—deadly poison. Especially dangerous for children. It could kill them. Be careful.”
With that, Sylvia finally turned and vanished into the depths of the forest like mist.
On the way back to the cabin, Alto spoke to Akio with barely contained excitement.
“Akio-san! Sylvia-san… she taught us something! Just a little… but didn’t she seem a bit nicer than before?”
“… Yeah.”
Akio, too, had sensed something beyond Sylvia’s guarded exterior—a high wall, certainly, but behind it, something warmer, something unsure yet undeniably there. She clearly distrusted humans, but it wasn’t outright rejection. That clumsy kindness gave Akio a faint but precious hope.
Back at the cabin, they were greeted by the cheerful sight of Yume, now fully recovered, playing with Miko and Kenta using the wooden animal toys Akio had carved. Their innocent laughter and smiling faces filled Akio’s heart with warmth.
His relationship with Sylvia was only just beginning. The road ahead would likely be a rocky one, but Akio quietly vowed to never give up, to keep approaching her with sincerity.
The spring forest was brimming with the promise of new encounters—and the fragile, yet hopeful bonds waiting to be nurtured.
What do you think about this chapter?
