Moreover, Liuli always felt that this question was not easy to answer.
She felt that if she were to ask, it would inevitably be somewhat rude, yet if she did not ask, the question would remain stuck in her heart, which was not ideal either.
It seemed she would truly have to find someone trustworthy, or at least someone kind, to ask properly in the future.
Since the number of people participating in this hunt was not very large, they could not herd a large mass of prey together like in a large-scale hunt. Instead, they had to search small areas one by one.
Such efficiency was certainly not high, but fortunately, having fewer people meant they required fewer resources, so they did not need to catch that much prey anyway.
Furthermore, with the help of magic, tracking prey had become much simpler.
Additionally, spells did not startle other animals the way bows, crossbows, or firearms did, making the entire hunting process quite easy.
“Serveyia, we’ve caught so much prey. Can we really eat it all?”
“If we can’t finish it, there are other ways to preserve it. There are many, many things that magic can do.”
“If that’s the case, then why didn’t we bring enough food when we set out? That way, we wouldn’t have to hunt, right?”
Logically, since it had only been a few days since they departed, if they had brought enough food, it would be impossible to have run out already.
Therefore, the fact that they were eating fresh prey now meant that no one had brought sufficient food from the start.
In other words, this hunt might have been planned long ago.
“After all, one needs to find some fun during a boring journey. Don’t you think this is a rare activity, Little Fox?”
“Since you put it that way, Serveyia, then alright…”
In truth, Liuli did not think this was a rare activity.
After all, she had no real interest in hunting.
Moreover, even if she did not have an overly saintly heart, she still felt a bit uneasy seeing the bloody scenes of the hunt.
Although it was only temporary, it still made her somewhat unhappy.
“Little Fox, what about a well-behaved pet, like a rabbit?”
“A rabbit?”
While Liuli was still dazed, a sentence from Serveyia brought her back to her senses.
Following the direction Serveyia was pointing, she saw a rabbit resting there.
“That’s right. It’s a White Rabbit. It fits your requirement for a gentle pet, doesn’t it?”
How should she put it?
Although it met her requirements, she did not really want to raise a rabbit.
Liuli remembered reading somewhere that rabbits had almost no intelligence and could not even remember their masters.
They were the typical kind that would love whoever fed them and ignore whoever did not.
If possible, Liuli still wanted to raise a slightly smarter pet. That might even save her some trouble.
‘But, I always feel that rabbits are a bit silly.’
Liuli actually wanted to say “stupid,” but after thinking about it, that word did not seem very cute, so she changed her description.
“But Little Fox, you should know that, generally speaking, smart pets aren’t very gentle.”
“At least we could find a balance between the two, right?”
If she really wanted an extremely gentle pet, Liuli felt she would be better off growing a flower.
Flowers were so well-behaved; they did not even open their mouths to make noise.
One only needed to water them regularly, remove pests every now and then, and pull some weeds. Caring for them was truly simple.
‘I feel that if a pet has a certain level of intelligence and can recognize that I’m the one who is good to it, making it listen would be easy, wouldn’t it?’
Liuli could not say if this idea of hers was a fantasy, but since it was her pet, it was reasonable to have some requirements, right?
“But children don’t skip their rebellious phase just because you’re good to them, do they?”
Uh, how to put it… Liuli had not expected Serveyia’s words to be so realistic.
After all, she seemed to have talked back to her parents back then.
If she put it that way, was she actually worse than a pet?
“I’m not trying to pour cold water on you, Little Fox, but in reality, you don’t need to consider so much when raising a pet. Once you meet a pet you like, you’ll understand. What flaws? You’ll want to give it the very best of everything you have.”
Although she probably should not think this way, hearing Serveyia’s words, Liuli felt as though Serveyia was treating her like a pet too.
“Serveyia, why do I feel like there’s a hidden meaning in your words?”
“Is there? It must be your imagination, Little Fox. How could I have a hidden meaning?”
Serveyia explained with a smile, but Liuli felt she was clearly brushing her off, even if she had no evidence.
“Liuli, Liuli! I want to show you my hunting skills!”
While she was still thinking, Fina had approached at some point.
Seeing the bow in her hand, Liuli asked instinctively.
“Fina, do you know how to use a bow?”
In Liuli’s view, the ocean was not a very suitable place for bows and arrows.
Based on that deduction, the stereotype that races from the ocean were not good with bows had already taken root in her mind.
“Liuli, you don’t know? This isn’t an ordinary bow. It’s a Magic Bow! Naturally, what it shoots aren’t ordinary arrows, but Magic Arrows. Magic Arrows aren’t afraid of water! I’ll show you right now!”
As Fina spoke, Liuli saw a Magic Arrow fly out and strike a large tree 50 or 60 meters away.
“Though I can’t compare to those professional archers who hit the bullseye every time, I’m very confident if it’s just about hitting the target!”
“So, Fina, you’re relying on magic rather than the arrow itself?”
“Exactly!”
“But if that’s the case, why choose a bow and arrow? Logically, using magic directly should be more efficient than shaping it into an arrow, right?”
“Well, Liuli, don’t you think this looks cool?”
As Fina spoke, she pulled the magic bowstring in her hand, showing off in front of Liuli.
Although Liuli instinctively wanted to warn Fina that she should not dry-fire a bow, she realized it was a Magic Bow, so it probably did not matter.
After all, a Magic Bow clearly did not need the physical structure of the bow to deform and store energy for the arrow, so there was no need to worry about a dry-firing accident.
“But why a bow? Staves, katanas, or spears — all of those could serve as a medium. Don’t you think those weapons are cool, Fina?”
“I wouldn’t say those aren’t cool, but bows left a deep impression on me when I was little. It’s like — hm, a lifelong obsession?”
Actually, Liuli felt that the bow did not suit Fina.
The bow in her hand was much larger than a standard one and did not look very easy to use.
Although the weight of a Magic Bow was much lighter than a normal one, looking at Fina’s movements, Liuli could clearly feel she was not skilled.
Many of her movements were incorrect.
It was lucky she held a Magic Bow; if it were a real one, she would likely get injured.
“Have you considered switching to a different weapon, Fina?”
“Eh? Not really. After all, I’ve been using bows since I was a child. Do you have some thoughts, Liuli?”
“Not exactly, I just feel that you aren’t very suited for the bow. Besides, I think your posture is wrong. If it were a real bow, I’d worry that you might get hurt.”
“So that’s the reason? Liuli, are you worried about me?”
After Liuli said that, she saw Fina approach her with a look of pleasant surprise.
With a wave of her hand, the Magic Bow vanished into a phantom, and then she hugged Liuli tightly.
“I am worried, but — but can you let go of me? If you don’t, it’ll be someone else’s turn to worry about me!”
Liuli felt that ever since Fina “reconciled” with the issue of her gender, her attitude had become much more intimate.
This was an intimacy Liuli had never experienced before.
No matter how good the relationship between boys was, they would never hug each other this tightly.
This seemed to be an intimacy unique to girls.
“Hehe! But Liuli, what weapon do you think would be suitable for me?”
Fina chuckled and let go, stepping back slightly.
She looked at Liuli, then at the bow that had reappeared in her hand, thinking aloud.
“Actually, my mother also told me I wasn’t suited for the bow, but I always felt she just looked down on them. If you also think it’s unsuitable, I’ll just change it.”
Although she kept saying she could change it, anyone could see Fina’s reluctance.
Beautiful childhood memories leave indelible marks even in adulthood.
Liuli did not want to destroy Fina’s cherished memories, so she had to find a way to comfort her.
“If you really like bows, Fina, you don’t have to change. However, the bow you have now is far too large and quite inconvenient. Plus, your posture is wrong. Even if it doesn’t affect the actual combat, others will still find it awkward to watch.”
“Well, since you said so, Liuli, I’ll give it a try. But since you’re so familiar with it, can you teach me how to use a bow?”
“Me? Me? I can’t do it. I only have a slight understanding of bows; I’m nowhere near the level where I could teach someone.”
Even though she had been pointing out flaws for a while, Liuli knew very well that she had no ability to teach.
If she tried to teach and Fina ended up getting hurt despite not being injured before, she would have made a huge mistake.
“But I don’t really want to learn from anyone else… otherwise, I wouldn’t have failed to learn archery until now, right?”
This was a bit difficult to handle.
It was not that she could not withstand the pressure, but she felt like she was being roasted over a fire.
“But Fina, this isn’t a joke. If you get hurt because of this, I’ll blame myself.”