Chapter 12: 12-Grandmaster

“What did I say about dragging food to the barn?” A certain crossed arm Grandpa Rodan glared at a certain sheep named Dolly

“Meh!”

“Don’t you give me that tone! I told you many times not to drag the food to the barn. It leaves a mess and I have to clean it up!”

“Meh!”

“What do you mean that’s what I should be doing? I was the one who raised you. Without me you wouldn’t be able to go out and catch food in the first place!”

 “Meh!”

How one ‘meh’ can speak so much, Rowan would never be able to understand. He watched as one man and animal bicker with each other. If it had happened while he was in the capital, Rowan would have thought a person talking to animals is crazy. However after his experience over the last few days, he had experienced things that he wouldn’t normally believe during the last few days.

For instance, that rooster.

Grandpa Rodan had seen the boys looking at him and quickly finished up his conversation with Dolly before addressing them. “Ahem. No time like the present. Now’s the perfect time to learn how to skin and clean this monster. It's a good skill to learn when you’re out in the wilds. It normally best done at a water spot where we can wash up a bit, but i don't think we want to drag this corpse for thirty minutes. Rowan return to the house and grab the knife hanging on the wall in the kitchen please?”

Rowan did as he was instructed and ran back to the house. He returned shortly after with the knife Grandpa Rowan wanted. It was a small knife, no bigger than the boy's hand, but it was sharp. The knife had originally been covered up with leather, but Rowan took a sneak peak as he returned back to his Grandpa.

“Thank you. Now the first thing you do is drain the blood….”

Without hesitation, the knife was plunged into the wolf. Grandpa Rodan slashed downwards skillfully as if he had done this hundreds of times.

It took all of Rowan’s willpower not to gag at the sight of blood and smell. Even Aaron who was observing the whole time looked green. That was probably the one thing Rowan had to be thankful for. Even though it was silly, both boys didn’t want to look ugly in front of each other. Whoever threw up, first loses. It was an unspoken competition between the two with an established rule, but they had shared a look between them when Grandpa Rodan began cutting.  

That was how the unspoken agreement between the two began.

“...and we’re done! Think you got the hang of it boys?” Grandpa Roden said as he wiped his hands clean of blood. Several hours had passed since they started on the wolf. The process could have gone much faster, but the elderly farmer had taken his time to give tips and advice to the young boys on how to best handle the post processing of the monster corpse.

Not to mention that the wolf was larger than a man. The large size made it more time consuming to handle.

“I think so Grandpa.” Rowan said. After a while he had gotten used to the smell and sight, but he still felt squeamish at the thought. He had seen blood before when he witnessed the knights training at the castle, but looking at the insides was something completely different. At most, the knight would have a few broken limbs that could be fixed at the healing ward. The ten years old boy had never seen an animal die in front of him like this, nor experience seeing the innards of a once living organism.

“Good. The next monster we get, you can try it yourself. Practice make perfect.” Grandpa Rodan said cheerfully.

“... I don't understand why i need to be here for this.” Aaron finally spoke up after overcoming his desire to throw up. Halfway through, Rowan had thought the noble’s child would puke, but he was proven wrong.

Rowan had to give it to Aaron. The noble was tenacious if not anything else.

“Sure, you don't personally need to learn this skill since you’re a noble. You can always have someone else do it for you. However its a good survival skill to have if you’re ever on your own.”

“And why would I ever be on my own?” Aaron asked

Grandpa Rodan shrugged. “ Don’t know, but life has a way of making unexpected things happen. Sure, you’re a noble, but look at you now. You won't always have an escort or servants with you.”

“...tch.” Aaron spat out as he couldn't refute to Grandpa Rodan’s answer. What he said was the truth, but that didn’t mean he had to like it.

“Alright let's clean up and we can take a break. These guts can be used as food for the pigs or fertilizer, whichever works. We have enough food for the pigs so we can use it for the fields. Normally if you were out in the wild, we would bury it as it would attract unwanted attention.”

Grandpa Rodan clapped his hands and urged the boys to move along.

Rowan looked at the bloody guts that had formed a small pile on the ground. The urge to throw up almost succeeded this time.

***

They had quickly cleaned up and were now taking a break in the room in the house. Grandpa Rodan had seen how the boys looked and decided that it was enough for the day and pardoned them from any more work. Right now the old man was brewing a pot of soup with the meat he had just acquired.

“Meh!”

With an extra guest next to him and constantly headbutting him.

“Alright, alright. Hold your horses. You know if we want the soup to be delicious we have to wait longer right? Headbutting me wont make it go any faster.” Grandpa Rodan said as he stirred the soup. “ i swear you think your ancestor was mated with a cat sometime ago. The way you bring back your prize and expect me to feed you. Where did I go wrong in raising you? What kind of sheep hunts down prey?”

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Rowan didn’t know if his Grandpa was addressing them or just speaking his thoughts out. One thing was for sure though, he could not help but agree that this sheep was not normal.

Rowan tilted his head and thought about it. Speaking of the sheep, most of the animals on the farm weren’t normal in the first place. 

Why was that?

As Rowan thought about it, he remembered the question that Aaron had asked him the first night they arrived.

He decided now would be a good time to ask his grandpa and see if he can get an answer.

“Hey Grandpa, are you a grandmaster?”

The spoon stopped moving. Dolly the sheep also stopped moving and became strangely quiet.

Perhaps it wasn’t the best time to ask the question?

“How did you hear that word?”

Rowan didn’t want to be a tattletale, but he couldn’t help but glance at Aaron who was aptly paying attention to the current conversation. Grandpa Rodan wasn't a fool, so he knew right away who was responsible, but the old farmer decided not to push the blame on the child.

“  Do you know what a grandmaster is?” Grandpa Rodan resumed stirring his soup.

“They’re supposed to be one of the strongest people?” Rowan answered back with a question.

“That’s a simple description. Aaron why don't we use that ‘noble’ mind to explain more what a grandmaster is to give Rowan here a better idea?”

Aaron grimaced at the Grandpa Rodan’s comment but obliged. “ Human strength can be measure in four stages. From novice, to intermediate, to master and then finally grandmaster. It is said they are the peak of humanity and are virtually one man armies. It is very rare for a person to reach the grandmaster stage, perhaps once in a century. A country with a grandmaster is considered a top militaristic nation.”

“ Good explanation.” Grandpa Rodan eyes twinkle in merriment as he addresses Rowan. “Do you think I fit the description of being one of the ‘strongest’?”

“I don’t know. I can’t imagine it, but it would explain why all the animals here are strange.”

Dolly the sheep looked absolutely offended at those words. How a sheep managed to  look so insulted, Rowan could not explain, but it just did.

Grandpa Rodan let out a deep bellowing laugh. “ Yes, that would explain it wouldn’t it? To answer your question; yes I am a grandmaster, but it's not the reason why the animals here are so peculiar.”

 “ I KNEW IT!” Aaron jumped up with a shout. One boy, one man and a sheep stared at him. Aaron coughed in hand and slowly sat down. “ I mean it was perfectly obvious, wasn't it? How come a person of your status is hiding out here then sir? As a grandmaster you should be able to enjoy the fame and status that comes with your prestige.”

Aaron's instant change in attitude struck Rowan as strange. The term grandmaster hadn’t fully sunk in yet.

“Truthfully? I grew tired of the politics in the castle. There are also other reasons. One of them being my presence wasn’t always a good thing. I left when the current king came into power.”

“How come? Aren’t you super strong? Isn’t that good for the kingdom?” Rowan asked in curiosity.

“ Hmm, how to put it? A ship cannot sail with two captains and the same can be said for a country. A country cannot have two rulers. Since i was so powerful, a lot of people deferred to me instead of the actual king. I decided it was well past time for me to retire from the court and go my own way.”

Aaron nodded his head in understanding. Rowan on the other hand… still didn’t quite get it. He felt like he partially understood it, but only about half of Grandpa Rodan's explanation. However there still remained an unanswered question.

“Are the animals so different because you’re a grandmaster then, grandpa?”

The elderly farmer chuckled at the question.“ Grandmasters can do a lot of things,many of them deemed impossible to an average man. However most grandmasters wouldn't be able to replicate the reason why the animals here are so different.”

“Then why are they different from grandpa Rodan?” Rowan decided to push on.

“That….would be answered tomorrow. The soup is ready, and the explanation would take a bit of time to clarify. Sooo, who’s hungry?”

“MEH!”

A certain sheep couldn’t help but cry out at the last question.

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