Chapter 19: They’ll pay with blood

Thanks to his enhanced senses, Kanan could feel that she was closing the distance. He cursed under his breath at the notion of potentially having to fight a blessed person.

"Slow down, boy, we’re not done yet." The woman appeared in front of Kanan and swung at his face at insane speeds.

He barely managed to block, being pushed back, but felt a punch to his belly, then an uppercut, and finally, he got kicked in the chest.

"Garghhkk! W-Wait!" Kanan yelled.

"No."

Kanan swung, missed, got hit in the rib, backed away, only to get kicked in the back; then he was tripped and fell on his face.

"Ughh—Nnnghhh!" He felt a foot press onto his back, stepping hard against his spine.

"Tell me, child, how is your people faring? Still vomiting blood? Or maybe you’re too busy digging graves to worry about the bloody mess."

"So it was you?! Filthy Typhon Tribesmen!"

The woman pressed harder onto Kanan’s back. "Talk, or I’ll break your back."

"Nngh! W-Why are you doing this? What have we done to make your people attack us?!"

"Nothing personal. It’s just survival of the fittest." She twisted her foot.

"Y-You’ll die for this!"

"Oh? Do you wish to die then? Given by how you’re not answering my question!"

Kanan used his strength to push the woman off his back, getting up and kicking her into a tree with his enhanced strength.

He could see the look of confusion on her face as he managed to overpower her, but he didn’t stay around long enough to learn what she would do to him next.

"Don’t think you can get away from me, boy." Once again, she appeared in front of Kanan; however, he didn’t stop moving and ran into her like a bull.

He stumbled, nearly falling, but managed to keep running. No matter how skilled a hunter he was or how strong his body had become, he would be a fool to fight someone who was blessed.

Blessed people, even the weakest of them, could easily overpower those who weren’t blessed. This didn’t even take into account those who actually knew how to fight.

Using up all the strength in his legs, Kanan broke through the forest and could see his village in the distance. So, gathering every ounce of breath he could, he shouted at the top of his lungs.

"WE’RE UNDER ATTACK!"

Thanks to his enhanced voice, his cry managed to reach the ears of Verl and Earl, and they quickly spotted Kanan running in the distance.

They moved like professionals, Verl leaping into action while Erl alerted the village warriors of what Kanan had just shouted.

"Kanan!" Verl shouted. "Duck!"

Kanan instantly dropped as a flash of light tore through the air. It would have cut off his head if he were any slower, and the light exploded as it crashed into a round-like structure that surrounded Verl.

"Fucking rat! I’ll at least kill you before giving my report!"

"Not on my watch!" Verl arrived and held his sword at the woman’s chest. "Kanan, go back to the village where it’s safe. I’ll handle her."

Warriors stormed out of the village the moment Kanan reached the place. Each of them was equipped with iron weapons, freshly sharpened and well-maintained.

Guards followed them out of the village, but stationed themselves around it to protect the place from any outsiders who would try to sneak their way inside during the chaos.

Finally, hunters picked up their weapons and patrolled the village on the inside in case a person managed to get past the guards.

"Kanan!" a woman called out. "Get home, get to safety."

"Yes, Warrior Selin." Kanan didn’t argue and rushed back to his hut, where he saw the Village Chief waiting for him alongside Glena.

"Kanan." The chief stood. "I’m glad that you’re okay. Tell me, what happened?" He got straight to the point, no beating around the bush.

"I went out to hunt as usual, but when I arrived at the hunting grounds, I changed my mind. So, I decided to check the traps before leaving and noticed that they had all been tampered with. Thinking that something could be wrong, I headed back home, but a woman from the Typhon Tribe attacked me."

The Chief clenched his fist out of rage, but his face didn’t show it. The Typhon tribe was a rival of their Nemean Tribe for centuries. Competition has always been strong between the two, but neither Tribe has ever engaged in a full-scale war. Only small skirmishes.

"Do you think the Typhon tribe plans on attacking us?" Glena was worried about their future. She desperately wished that there would be no conflict. Going through more death and destruction was not something she wished to expierence again.

Kanan felt the same.

"Worry not. I’ll ensure that their tribe doesn’t lay a finger on any of our people. They would be fools to do so. Our tribe may be weaker than it was generations ago, but we are not helpless. Kanan, stay here where it’s safe. I’ll be back with good news."

Before leaving the hut, the chief spoke one last time. "And if they do attack us, they’ll pay with blood."

"Kanan!" Glena rushed over to Kanan and embraced him dearly. The thought of losing him was already fresh on her mind, so learning that he was attacked by a rival tribe had her heart threatening to leave her body.

"I’m okay." He whispered. "I’m okay."

"Please, please stay in the village until your ceremony. My heart can’t handle this anymore. I don’t want to worry about you all the time when you have no way to defend yourself. Please stay here, where it’s safe, with me."

It was the tears that got Kanan. He didn’t like seeing Glena cry; it brought up horrible memories. The day he lost his cousin, she cried for weeks on end, and comforting her only made her cry even more.

So he understood why she felt this way, how it feels to get the news that your loved one is or could be hurt.

"Okay." So he agreed. "I’ll stay. I promise."

"Thank you. Thank you."