Best Friends

"M-Mr. Jotun, can I go home? I-I miss my mother," Ramy said hopefully.

"Can you, you want to go home?" asked Arthur.

"Ye-yes, sir. Can I go home now?"

"Yes, I'll let you go now. Let me tell you my way home. Once from here, you will pass through the darkness of the Dark forest alone. Ah, or you need friend to go there? Or put it this way, I'll send my friend to accompany you along the way, Volka!! Come here!! I need your help!" cried Arthur.

The pupil of the innocent child's eyes immediately dilated when he heard Volka's word. He immediately stuck the index finger in his mouth and showed it to Arthur.

"Ssshh... Okay, I get it. I'm not going anywhere. I'm sorry, sir," the boy bowed his head helplessly.

"Smart boy!" said Arthur with a cynical smile that looked whiny and sly.

Who doesn't know Volka? The Dark Forest ranger creature that the villagers of Tanee feared after the Jotun. Volka never showed his form, and he only made a sound that would make humans unable to sleep with just one word.

"Stop bothering the boy, Arthur!" cried the father from a distance.

Stubborn and ignorant. That's Arthur.

However, lately, his hunting spirit has diminished. He spends too much of his time reflecting and being alone. When Rudolf spoke to him, Arthur wanted him and his family free from this curse.

Curse? Yes, the Howard family is a family cursed to be Jotun. Decades ago, they were the only family with many treasures in his village. However, they are known for their miserly families. Suddenly a witch disguised as a beggar comes to the Howard family home to discover how much they care for the little people. Dressed shabbily and holding a child, the beggar asked the Howard family for a glass of milk. And sure enough, the family rejected the beggar's plea. They give away worn wooden glasses and fill them with the drinking water of their former pet donkeys instead of milk. The family laughed at the beggar with satisfaction and without guilt.

"You may have many treasures, but you have absolutely no conscience!" cried the beggar with round eyes.

Then, slowly he showed his proper form that made the Howard family shocked instead of stubborn.

"You! You were the first to open the door for me and have your family laugh at me!" Point to the beggar who has now turned into a witch to Arthur.

Howard's family seemed devastated and shocked. But, unfortunately, regret looks too late because forgiveness probably won't be granted.

"In the name of the commoners, I condemn the Howard family to be a Jotun that all mankind will hate!"

That phrase is still lingering to this day for the Howard family. Especially Arthur, he felt very guilty because they were like this. The human body he once had now turned into an evil monster. His hands became large and elongated until he could touch his feet while standing. His hair was endless, the color of his skin turned to greenish ash, and the large, protruding teeth coupled with the yellow corneal area of his eye made anyone reluctant to see this monstrous creature.

In their first year of becoming Jotun, they are ostracized and expelled from their village. The residents snatched the Howard family's property around their home. One night, as the Jotun search for a haven, they meet Volka, the Dark forest ranger. So they are friends to this day.

"I don't want to call you by your first name, that name is too weak for a strong Jotun like you! Ah, Arthur. You said that was your middle name, didn't you? From now on, I will call you Arthur!" said Volka.

Since then, they have always hunted together. Except on a Friday night, Arthur or another Jotun would hunt down women and children alone. However, if any humans deliberately entered the Dark forest region, Arthur did not hesitate to finish them off and share the meal with Volka. Once upon a time, a man slowly went into the forest; he brought an arrow bow made of thick iron and pointed it at a deer. Seeing the incident, Arthur immediately ran at the man and attacked him.

"When are we going to eat this man, Father? The flesh of a child like you must taste very tender and sweet, hahaha," Arthur shouted as he brought his face closer to the child's cage.

"Come on, Arthur. Leave the boy, wait for the right time!" retorted Rudolf.

"Aarrghh, alright!" Arthur grumbled annoyedly.

The sun's light looks very bright through the sides of the forest through the cracks of the trees. Arthur, who used to spend time sleeping in his remote cave, now wants to go out and walk through the Dark forest during the day because he feels bored. Rarely does this happen, as Jotun used to act at night.

The monster walked with a furious and saturated feeling. Arthur's heavy breathing made the wind visible out of his large nostrils. Without footwear, wearing a worn brown camping cloth used as pants is the most comfortable to wrap his large body since becoming a Jotun.

"What interesting thing can I do in broad daylight like this?" he said inwardly.

He continued to walk along his paces regardless of the surroundings. He already knew where he was going.

"Gus! It's me, Arthur. Get out."

Ivar came to a vast and shady tree at the end of the Dark forest. The tree is very different from other types of trees. It was the residence of an old rabbit, Arthur's best friend besides Volka.

"What's wrong?! Why are you looking for me?" echoed the voice of someone coming from the tree.

"I need something different!"

"Bored? Again? Huh, I thought you were quite amused after befriending the dark lord!"

"Volka, you mean? For Heaven's Sake! You know, a creature like him would never show up when the sun was shining, and I couldn't possibly bother him! Don't be as sensitive as women, Gus!"

A banging sound was heard and led to the tree door. Suddenly a grayish-brown rabbit using a wooden stick as a prop for him to walk on appeared to open the door and exit his residence.

"If I were a human being, maybe I would take care of you and give you delicious meat every day for you to eat so that you wouldn't be this weak! Hahaha!" quipped Arthur.

"I am an ancient rabbit. I'm the only one left in this world, my family is gone. Nobody wants to take care of me. I'm not a spoiled rabbit!" grumbled Gus annoyedly.

Years of occupying the banned tree alone became a heavy burden for Gus. It makes his cheerful nature turn into a grumbling creature. No one wants to be friends with him except, Volka and Arthur. He only wanted to be friends with them because he respected the two monsters.

"Can you calm down a little, Gus? I just came, and you welcomed me like an enemy. Hey, I have good news for you."

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