Identity
1656 Words
Chapter 017: Identity
“How could a woman possibly be in the FORBIDDEN FOREST?!”
Hans's voice rose, not in anger—more in shock. The pestle in his hand stopped midair.
“Are you making fun of me because I've never set foot there?”
Halvir did not change his posture. His body remained upright, those broad shoulders barely moving.
“No matter how many times you ask,” he said flatly, “my answer won't change.”
His tone was calm. Too calm.
That was exactly what irritated Hans even more.
“Huh…”
Hans let out a rough breath and turned his face away.
“Your name is Anindira…”
“Yes.”
Anindira gave a small nod.
Hans shifted his gaze to her. Not hurried, nor careless. His eyes traveled from head to toe—not judging her beauty, but reading signs understood only by those accustomed to seeing the body as a landscape of life itself.
He stepped closer and crouched.
His fingers paused a few centimeters from Anindira's wrist before pulling back, replacing touch with careful observation.
“No problems,” he finally concluded. “Your body is healthy.”
Halvir immediately turned toward him.
“Are you sure, Hans? Anindira traveled for three months from the border of the Forbidden Forest to Blue Forest Village.”
Hans lifted his head. His gaze hardened.
“She is your woman, Halvir. I would never treat her health carelessly.”
His voice was firm, almost sharp.
For a moment, the easygoing doctor disappeared, replaced by absolute seriousness.
“Some of your blood vessels are slightly obstructed,” Hans continued, his voice softening again as he looked at Anindira. “But that's normal. Exhaustion from a long journey. You just need proper rest and enough food.”
Anindira blinked.
She could see the sincerity in his eyes. Hans wasn't speaking to comfort her. He was making sure she understood.
“His hearing and sense of smell are many times sharper than mine,” Halvir said, turning toward Anindira. “When he concentrates, he can even tell where your blood is flowing. Once he becomes familiar with you, he'll know if something is wrong with your body.”
The explanation came naturally, without anyone asking for it.
Hans raised an eyebrow.
“Hm.”
He stared at Halvir for a long moment.
Far too long.
Since when does he know how to be kind to a woman? Hans muttered inwardly.
His irritation slowly faded, replaced by confusion.
Something was different.
Halvir was still Halvir—the same expressionless face, the same stiff voice—but there was a faint gentleness that Hans had never seen before.
“Halvir,” Hans finally said, “it seems you have a lot to tell me.”
“Annoying,” Halvir replied shortly.
Hans chuckled.
They had known each other for nearly three decades.
He knew very well that this answer wasn't a refusal. It was simply a habit.
“At least good news should be shared with people close to you, right?” Hans said with a smile. “Don't be cruel to me, or I won't be able to sleep from curiosity.”
He moved to a long table.
Several wooden chests and shelves filled with herbs occupied one corner of the room.
Hans sat cross-legged, picked up the pestle, and began grinding medicinal ingredients again.
Thud... thud...
A slow rhythm filled the wooden house.
“Um... Kak Halvir...”
Anindira hesitantly held Halvir's wrist.
“Hm?”
Halvir turned toward her.
His voice softened automatically.
Once again, Hans noticed it.
“Kak, is he...” Anindira's voice grew smaller. “The same as you?”
Halvir frowned.
“Hm?”
“Ca—can he change... forms?”
Anindira stammered.
She did not dare look directly at them.
Silence.
Hans stopped grinding.
Halvir fell silent.
Both of them processed the meaning behind her question.
“That... um...” Anindira inhaled. “Change... into a Jaguar... like Kak Halvir...”
The silence broke.
“Of course I can!” Hans exclaimed immediately.
Anindira flinched.
She still wasn't used to voices suddenly feeling much closer than they should be. A Beast's hearing always made distance feel deceptive.
“But I'm not a Jaguar,” Hans continued casually. “I'm from the Lion Clan.”
“Hey!”
Halvir's tone suddenly turned sharp.
“Was she asking you?!”
Hans shot him a lazy glance.
“You weren't answering immediately. I heard her. This is my house. What's wrong with that?”
“Sorry—I'm sorry!”
Anindira hurriedly lowered her head.
“I didn't mean to be rude. I'm sorry if I offended you, Sir.”
“Hans,” the man interrupted quickly. “I'm Hans. Don't worry about it. I'm not offended at all.”
“Thank you, Kak Hans...”
“You're welcome. Anindira, right?”
Anindira nodded.
Her smile was small, but sincere.
Hans's friendliness wasn't really for Anindira.
It was simply courtesy.
Yet Anindira still felt it, and that alone made her feel more comfortable.
“You're amazing!” Anindira suddenly exclaimed.
She looked at Halvir, then at Hans.
“Can everyone here transform?”
“Amazing?”
Hans frowned.
“What's so amazing about it? Everyone can. Haven't you ever seen it before?”
Anindira shook her head.
Her face was innocent, without the slightest trace of deceit.
Hans and Halvir exchanged glances.
“How is that possible...” Hans murmured.
“I really don't know,” Anindira said softly. “I'm just an ordinary human. I can't transform like that...”
Silence returned.
“Anindira,” Halvir said as he gently patted her head, “of course you can't. You're a woman.”
Hans let out a short chuckle.
“Anindira,” Hans asked directly, “have you ever lost a mate?”
“Hans!”
Halvir's voice exploded.
“Sorry.”
Hans raised a hand.
“But we need to understand this. I'm sure this has been bothering you too.”
“Both of you, calm down!”
Anindira quickly interrupted.
“Sorry, Kak Hans... I don't really understand what you mean.”
Hans fell silent.
He exhaled before looking at her more seriously.
“A mate...” he said slowly.
Anindira frowned.
She knew the word, but it felt strange to her ears.
“What does that have to do with me?” she finally asked. “If you mean losing a mate... no. I've never had one. So of course I've never lost one.”
Hans froze.
“Anindira,” he said quietly but firmly, “a woman who has never had a mate still carries her father's identity scent. We men can smell it very clearly.”
The pestle in his hand stopped moving.
“That scent fades once a woman has a mate. Even if it's with a man from the same clan, the scent is still different. That's common knowledge.”
Hans's gaze sharpened.
“So how is it possible that you know nothing about this?”
“Hans!”
“I don't mean any harm,” Hans replied quickly. “You know that.”
Halvir let out a breath.
“I know. That's why I brought her here. Because I trust you.”
Hans smiled faintly.
“Thank you.”
Then he turned toward Anindira.
“You heard him? Halvir trusts me.”
Unlike Halvir, whose face was almost always expressionless, Hans could display all kinds of expressions.
His eyebrows were lively, his eyes flexible—sometimes sharp, sometimes warm.
He was also polite, knowing when to press and when to give space.
Yet there was one fundamental similarity between him and Halvir.
Both of them were straightforward.
With wisdom so subtle it barely felt intentional, Hans slowly guided the conversation toward a safe place.
Not an interrogation.
Not a trap.
A space where Anindira was free to speak honestly—without hesitation, without fear of consequences.
Anindira took a breath.
“From everything I've experienced over the past three months...” she said softly but steadily, “I can tell that this world is not my world.”
The words hung in the air.
The trust Anindira had shown—placing Hans on the same level as Halvir—was surprising.
Even to herself.
Halvir and Hans, who had only wanted to understand the situation, both fell silent.
Their postures changed.
Their shoulders stiffened.
Their full attention focused on Anindira.
“In my world,” Anindira continued, staring straight ahead, “there is no such thing as humans transforming into animals. The same goes for the powers all of you possess.”
She paused before turning toward Halvir.
“Even though I've only seen Kak Halvir, from everything we've talked about... I've concluded that it's normal here.”
Her voice was honest, almost innocent.
“Things like that don't exist in my world.”
Hans rested an elbow on his knee.
His expression turned serious.
“Anindira,” he said slowly, “if the men there can't transform and don't have powers like ours, then how do they protect women?”
“Men and women are the same,” Anindira replied without hesitation. “No one can transform in my world. Just like what I saw from Kak Halvir.”
Silence descended once more.
“Halvir.”
Hans glanced sideways with a probing look.
“You didn't know any of this?”
Halvir shook his head.
“She even spoke a different language,” he added. “We had trouble communicating at first.”
Hans released a short sigh.
“No wonder your accent is so strange...”
Anindira smiled faintly.
She didn't fully understand the word accent, but his tone was clear enough.
“Who were you with when you ended up in that forest?”
Hans's next question sounded calm—
far too calm to be mere small talk.
- Writer
- chap_listContents
- likeADD