Two gorillas had broken into Grylls's home again. One had been shot and subdued by Grylls, but the other had fled for its life.

It pushed through dense undergrowth and thick stands of trees, then climbed up and bounded from branch to branch. It moved with astonishing agility for such a heavy gorilla—a sign of just how desperate it was.

"Ooo! Oo-oo!"

Before long, the fleeing gorilla reached its troop. The others were in the middle of their unexpected fasting-pill feast, but their companion's frantic expression brought the party to a temporary halt.

"Oo?"

"Oo! Ooo!"

Sensing something wrong, the leader stepped forward. The fugitive gorilla explained everything that had happened. After hearing the full account, the leader's expression grew grave, and it issued an order.

"Ooo. Oo!"

"Ooo!"

First, they would scout the place and assess the situation. They were the ones who had invaded another's territory. If the owner had killed their fellow gorilla, they could retaliate then. The other gorilla nodded as the leader conveyed something roughly along those lines.

"Oo-hoo."

"Hoo..."

The leader handed its companion a fasting pill to calm it down. It had a feeling a fight would break out soon.

* * *

After completely subduing the gorilla, I killed it... No, I tied it up. I wanted to cut off its head and put it on display, but that wasn't really in my nature. More importantly, these things were fairly intelligent. There was a lot to consider.

'If they care about their companions, they'll definitely come back. Better keep this one alive for when they do.'

Seeing their companion dead might only enrage them further. One would be manageable, but several attacking at once would make for a tough fight. Even with the speed-sloth and Roundfur, I had no idea how strong the gorillas were as a group. What I needed was information. My best option was to use my captive as a hostage to get it.

'Let's see. Tie its arms behind its back, then its legs... It'll be ridiculously strong, so I'd better bind it tight.'

Gorillas were among the strongest primates, and this was the Forest of Four Seasons—a place where ordinary-sized animals were far scarier. So I bound the unconscious gorilla tightly with rope, making absolutely sure it couldn't break free through brute force.

What did I do about the bolts stuck in it? I just took some basic measures. They'd gone through so cleanly that I simply snapped off both ends.

Elixir? I had no Elixir to waste on thieves. Buying the cheapest potion at the auction house and wrapping it in bandages was plenty.

Caught the thief alive.

Wild Grylls

(Photo of a gorilla tightly bound with rope)

Some anon said it: the culprit always returns to the scene.

Apparently the fasting pills weren't enough for these gorilla bastards, because they tried to steal my fish too.

There were two. I shot one with my crossbow and subdued it, but the other got away.

For now, I'm planning to use this bastard as a hostage to get information.

└Heavenly Demon You have bound it well. Since ancient times, food thieves have been punished with flogging.

└Wild Grylls Food is my life out here, so I'm planning something worse.

└Heavenly Demon Cutting off its hands so it can never steal again would not be a bad choice.

└Wild Grylls Yikes... I'll stick with flogging.

└Sword Masta Just cut off its hands. As far as I know, my country does that to repeat offenders too.

└Wild Grylls ...

Moments like this really showed how hardcore people were in this era. The punishment felt barbaric, yet understandable at the same time.

└Allfather You certainly tied it up tight. From the looks of it, that is definitely a gorilla.

└Wild Grylls Right? I thought they were herbivores, but they tried stealing fish too.

└Allfather Their diet appears to have changed. Be careful. Its fellows will certainly come.

└Wild Grylls I've factored that in. I'm waiting for them.

└Suspiciously Is that one male or female?

└Why do you ask?

└Suspiciously I heard gorillas have a matriarchal society.

└Aren't gorillas orangutans?

└I heard male orangutans live alone too.

└You're beastfolk and you don't even know that? lol

└Suspiciously I'm allowed not to know shit, fuck.

The forum always had its share of lunatics. I chuckled without replying and left them to entertain themselves. If they crossed the line, the moderators would handle it. No need for me to get involved.

'Anyway, when is this thing going to wake up?'

I stared at the still-unconscious gorilla. The instant it saw the speed-sloth, it had foamed at the mouth and passed out. That made me curious about the speed-sloth's past, but it wasn't an immediate concern. Information was what mattered. I should leave it alone for now.

'If only I could talk to animals.'

The ability to converse with animals—being a druid, in other words. Since this was a fantasy world, I'd checked whether such an ability existed, but it didn't. Occasionally, someone claimed they could understand animals, but apparently most of them were bullshitting.

'Even humans speak different languages. Imagine how much worse it would be with animals.'

While entertaining those pointless thoughts, I examined the gorilla carefully. Visually, it was a gorilla much bigger than me. Other than that, it was utterly ordinary. I couldn't find anything special about it.

"Sniff, sniff. Sniff."

"Roundfur, that's not food."

"Kyuu?"

I warned Roundfur in case he tried to eat the unconscious gorilla. All I had to do was wait until its companions arrived. And if they didn't... What choice did I have? I'd have to kill it. Disposing of the body wouldn't be a problem either. I could bury it or dump it in the river.

'Should I dig a hole in advance, just in case?'

I was discreetly picking up a shovel while considering that when I heard it.

"Ooh..."

The unconscious gorilla was beginning to come around. Seeing that, I quietly put the shovel down.

"Hey. You awake?"

"Oooo...?"

It stared at me in bewilderment, apparently still dazed. It didn't seem to recognize my face yet.

"Oo... Oo? Ooo?!"

Then it suddenly began writhing violently. Judging by its dismayed expression, it had realized it was tied up tight. Good thing I'd used several ropes, or it probably would have broken free in no time.

"Aooo..."

That didn't make its bolt wounds disappear, though. Unable to bear the pain, it soon stopped struggling. Now that it was quiet, it was time for a conversation(?).

"Hey. Look at me."

"..."

The gorilla slowly raised its head at my words. A moment earlier its face had been contorted with pain, but now it was stern again. It looked determined not to answer, no matter what I did. It really was like a person.

'I couldn't understand you anyway.'

There was no special reason I'd called out to it. I just wanted to see how it reacted. I'd planned to decide how to treat it based on its response, but it seemed like a stubborn one.

'Then how will it react to the speed-sloth?'

I went to fetch the speed-sloth, which was standing still, watching the forest. It didn't resist at all as I carried it over. Then I set Speedy down in front of the gorilla's face where it could see.

"Do you know th—"

"OOKYAAAH!!"

At the sight of the speed-sloth, the gorilla practically went into convulsions. Even bound with rope, it put on an impressive display. That was how terrified it must have been. I stared blankly at the thrashing gorilla, then turned to the speed-sloth.

The speed-sloth watched the gorilla flail and slowly raised a hand. Just as I moved to stop it, wondering if it meant to kill the captive—

SMACK!

Speedy delivered a resounding slap across its face. The gorilla immediately quieted down, looking dejected to boot. No, rather than dejected, it looked as though it had lost the will to live.

'What the hell has this little bastard been up to?'

I knew what the speed-sloth was capable of: speed too fast for the eye to follow, and razor-sharp claws. But I couldn't be sure whether it was notorious among gorillas or whether this one was a special case.

Still, it had quieted the gorilla down. That was good enough. I rummaged through my bag and took out the fasting pills I'd brought as emergency rations and a gesture of goodwill. I intended to show it one.

"Hey. Look at this."

"...?"

"You know what this is, don't you?"

The gorilla's eyes darted wildly when I held up a fasting pill. It clearly recognized it, which was as good as confessing that they were the thieves. I needed no further proof. With a snort, I slowly spelled it out.

"Fasting pill."

First, the fasting pill.

"Speed-sloth."

Then, the speed-sloth.

"Staple food. Okay?"

Finally, I mimed eating, and the gorilla went pale.

You might ask how I could tell when it had black skin all over and was covered in fur. Would you believe me if I said it just felt that way? Anyway, let's leave it at that.

'Looks like I'll have to wait for its friends after all.'

I asked the speed-sloth to watch the gorilla. Since I had no idea when the troop would arrive, I planned to inspect my weapons. First up was the crossbow, which had proved so useful. I cocked it so I could fire at any moment.

RUSTLE, RUSTLE.

"Kyuu?"

"..."

Speak of the devil. Or the gorillas, in this case. Holding the cocked crossbow, I turned toward the sound.

RUSTLE!

Gorillas began emerging from the bushes, apparently with no intention of hiding. Not one or two, but exactly five. The one in the middle was particularly large. It was ahead of the others, suggesting it was their leader. More importantly, their 'equipment' differed too.

'Just like Allfather said.'

The leader was empty-handed, but each of the others held something. One even had a stone axe. I couldn't begin to describe how startling that was. Making a stone axe meant they understood the concept of crafting. They seemed more intelligent than I'd expected. I needed to stay on guard.

"Oooo! Oogh...!"

The hostage gorilla cried out excitedly at the sight of its companions. But as I'd mentioned, it had been shot. It couldn't help grimacing in pain. The presumed leader glanced at the hostage, then fixed its attention on me. I raised my sword and shield, ready to fight if necessary.

"Ooo! Ooo!"

"Oaah! Oah!"

Then the gorillas beside the leader began making a commotion. Or rather, they seemed horrified by something they'd seen.

"..."

It was the speed-sloth. Speedy had come up beside me without my noticing. Most of the gorillas began trembling in fear at the sight of it. The leader at least maintained its composure, but its expression was rigid. That meant the speed-sloth had a truly fearsome reputation among gorillas. Thanks to that, the 'negotiations' might go a little more easily. I opened the conversation immediately.

I smoothly held out one of the fasting pills they'd stolen, trying to convey the question: You're the ones who took the sack of these, right? The leader nodded, apparently understanding my meaning.

"Oo."

With a brief grunt, the leader gave an order. One of the gorillas brought over an object in response. The leader took it and threw it toward me.

FLOP.

But apparently empty, it fell short halfway through its flight. It was a sack—the sack that had held the fasting pills. There were no fasting pills inside.

'They've already eaten them all.'

I'd feared as much, but to think they'd eaten everything in so little time. All I could do was sigh. Would the bastards apologize, or would they brazen it out? Given the speed-sloth's notoriety(?), they ought to apologize, but who knew? First, I should see how the speed-sloth reacted.

"What do you want to do?"

"..."

The speed-sloth had been staring blankly at the sack, but at my question, it slowly began to move. The gorillas did nothing, merely watching with tense expressions. Eventually, it reached the tightly bound captive. I thought perhaps it had half given up and was going to release it, but...

SLICE!

That wasn't it. What the speed-sloth did was beyond anything I'd imagined. It sliced the gorilla's head clean off with its sharp claws.

Those claws had cut through an iron container. I'd even maintained them myself. Slicing through an animal's soft flesh and bones was nothing.

THUNK!

Ignoring the blood gushing from the severed neck, the speed-sloth went about its business. It skewered the gorilla's head as it rolled along like a ball, spearing it with its claws as though using a fork. Then it slowly raised its hand with the head still impaled and hurled it toward the gorillas.

THUD! THUD! RRRR...

The severed head came to rest in front of the leader, which stared down at it.

This was far beyond provocation. It was practically a declaration of war. At the same time, it brought home once again exactly what 'food' meant in the wild.

'... You crazy bastard.'

Now that was one macho son of a bitch. It also felt like it was starting an unnecessary fight. But considering the concept of 'territory,' this was a perfectly reasonable response.

In the suddenly chilly atmosphere, the leader reached down and picked up the head. Its expression was solemn, but I could sense a faint anger.

The leader tossed the head straight up. I watched, puzzled. It hadn't thrown it at me, but into the air. What was it trying to do? Just in case, I put my left foot forward so I could defend myself at any moment.

WHOOOOSH.

As the head fell, the leader drew back its right arm. The instant the head reached eye level, it drove that arm forward.

BOOOOM!!!

An incredibly violent sound rang out.

WHIIIIISH!!

The gorilla's head hurtled toward me like a cannonball.