Elders' Council
"Huff. Huff. Huff."
I'm scrambling up the mountain right now. The moment I saw the plateau flipping out, my brain flipped with it—I've gotta get back fast was the only thought in my head.
"What the hell were the others doing, letting things get that bad?"
I was getting pissed for no reason. If you think about it, who was gonna step into a fight between the elders? Me and the rest of the tribe were just shrimp caught in a whale brawl.
I hope Marien made it back okay...
We'd split up right after. The vibrations were strong enough to reach down to the base of the mountain, so they must've noticed in the Border March too. If we got spotted in the middle of it, that'd be trouble. She said she was confident she could slip away without being seen, so all I could do was trust her and head back.
Luckily, the chaos was just that one burst. Nothing else exploded after.
"I'm back! What happened?"
"Oh, Ursa. Where've you been?"
"It's over. You missed a hell of a show."
They'd clearly seen the plateau blowing up, but the village was fine.
"Where are the elders?"
"Probably past the canyon. It was a sight."
I followed the directions and crossed to the north side of the plateau. The terrain was a total wreck from the battle.
"They really went at it, huh."
The ground was churned up into mud, trees and rocks ripped out by the roots and scattered everywhere. And right in the middle of that ruin were the culprits.
"...What the hell's going on here?"
Rippling Earth Serian was squatting like a delinquent, twirling her staff. In front of her were the passed-out Wolf Elder and the Tiger Elder on his knees with his hands up.
...The Bear Elder was off to the side, replanting a uprooted tree.
"One more time, repeat after me. What?"
"...Don't pick fights with someone who hasn't even Awakened."
"And?"
"...Don't suspect your own kin without proof."
A carnivore getting chewed out by a herbivore. The Tiger Elder's ears were folded in half, his face all mopey. None of that boisterous vibe from before.
"Sis!"
"Ursa!"
Serian jumped up and ran over.
"You must've been scared, huh? Aww, poor thing. Don't worry, sis took care of the naughty elders for you."
"...Yeah. Thanks."
How'd she "take care" of them to trash the ground like this? Felt like I'd missed the good stuff, just like everyone said...
"Wolf Elder, time to get up."
The Wolf Elder, who'd been face-down pretending to be out, twitched.
...Faking it, huh.
Sheepishly getting up, the Wolf Elder glanced around cautiously, then timidly raised a hand next to the Tiger Elder.
"Enough. Both of you, stand."
They shot up in sync the second she spoke.
...These are the elders, right?
"Perfect timing—the person in question's here. Let's clear up this old misunderstanding."
The Bear Elder appeared in a flash too.
"Elders. Apologize to Ursa."
Under Serian's pressure, the Wolf Elder spoke first.
"Sorry, kid. Like the Bear Elder said... guess the long war made me paranoid. You two knocked some sense into me, so I won't suspect you blindly anymore."
"...."
Blindly. Meaning she still had her doubts.
Serian glared, reading the implication, but the Wolf Elder clammed up.
"Hmph! If we'd fought at full strength, I'd have won."
The punishment over, the Tiger Elder was cocky again.
"Then rest up and settle the grudge properly. You lost, so follow the rules."
Serian glared seriously, and he shrank back.
"Ah, no, that was just talk for Murugan... Ahem! Still, no apology from me. I'd have done the same even if it happened again. After a good rest, of course."
"Yeah. But we won~."
"...So you're refusing?"
"Shut it, you. Rules are rules. We lost at the Elders' Council, so we'll honor the winner's call. Ursa, we recognize you as one of the tribe. I won't doubt you anymore."
His eyes changed as he looked at me—sincere. No cold suspicion, just a mischievous glint like a playful kid.
"Let me reintroduce myself. Tiger Elder, Bite-Crushing Fangs Ragnar. Call me Tiger Elder."
"Y-yeah. Nice to meet you, Tiger Elder."
We shook hands to seal the peace.
...His grip was brutal; my hand throbbed.
"Nngh...!"
"Kahaha! This kid's got some real spirit, huh? Holding up like that."
"Ow...!"
Serian gripped her staff.
"Ah, no! It wasn't bullying—just purely testing! Hey, Ursa!"
"Yeah?"
The Tiger Elder called me desperately.
"Since I misunderstood, lemme teach you something good as apology."
"Like what?"
He grinned.
"You ever hear of qi?"
.
The Tiger Elder's "reward" was a gift beyond imagination.
"Mana exists everywhere and can be used anywhere. But first, you gotta know how to handle it."
Qi—aka mana. The formless energy in all things, the miraculous fuel that strengthens the body or powers magic. He was gonna teach me how to wield it.
"This is straight-up special treatment. Normally, you learn after the adult rite and earning your Trace Name."
Tiger Elder bragging, Serian jumped in.
"Doesn't matter if it's you or not, Tiger Elder. I can teach her!"
"Rippling Earth, you're a druid—your way of handling mana is different, isn't it?"
"Ha! Finally said something right. Ursa, if you don't wanna go druid, learn from me."
Druid. Serian's displays were insane. Different scale altogether. But...
"You know druidism bans killing, right? Skills you can't use in a fight have limits."
Why even someone as strong as Serian had to be non-combat. Druids couldn't take life with druidism. She knew that better than anyone, so she just shut up.
But a question popped up.
"Wait, sis Serian. Didn't you use druidism hunting rabbits last time?"
To block the charging earth wave, she'd tangled vines to trip it. Made the hunt easy. Used defensive vines on the plains too. Helped hide us, and definitely for killing.
"I didn't kill it directly. Indirect's fine."
"Oh."
Looser rules than I thought. Based on results, not intent, huh.
"Everyone's body has qi flowing through it. Some are born with a lot, some not. That's why they say someone has 'strong qi.'"
"Kahaha! And you were born with a ton. Natural warrior."
The other elders nodded. I could agree with that.
"People instinctively handle qi sometimes. But that's not enough to unlock your true potential, so we train to comprehend mana control. We call it Awakening."
"But kids are too young—their bodies can't take it. So usually after the adult rite."
"You, though? You're ready now. Tanked our qi clash, so Awakening'll take you a day tops."
"On the flip, a kid without Awakening doesn't react to qi, which made us suspicious."
Back when the two elders pressured me, it hurt because they deliberately pushed qi at me. Pure qi clash—they called it a qi fight.
Serian fumed, recalling it.
"Exactly. They ganged up on a kid with a qi fight? Crazy?"
The Wolf Elder defended hastily.
"N-no, at first it was just a little qi. But the kid showed no reaction, so we ramped it up gradually..."
Gradually? Felt like a sudden wallop.
The Bear Elder mediated.
"Well, no harm done, so let's move on."
"Yeah. We get you're mad. Didn't expect you'd flip the earth."
They fought that hard over messing with me? That's my sis!
"Anyway, this matter's settled."
"Got it."
"Tiger Elder, teach her right if you're doing it. Got it?"
"All talk. Don't worry!"
After trashing the place, they slipped back to normal like nothing happened. Beastkin were chill, but this was next-level no hard feelings.
"Ursa. Come to me starting tomorrow."
"Every day?"
"Yep."
Every day, huh. Means he'll keep an eye on me. Maybe that's why he's helping with Awakening? Failed to exclude me, so surveillance instead?
I shook my head. Too cynical. Think positive.
Anyway, daily training from tomorrow. Sounded simple, but I should take it with a grain of salt. These were elders—heads of their tribes. Even if they called me talented, who'd never heard that? All child prodigies here.
"Alright. Head back. Everyone's waiting."
The genius who'd devoured the youngest elder led the way.
Now!
"Sis!"
"Huh? What’s—"
I plopped the flower crown on Serian's head as she turned. I'd brought it as a peace symbol for the village, but timing was awkward till now.
Serian fiddled with it.
"Wh-what's this?"
"Flower crown. Made it with the kids yesterday. I got no family, so... givin' it to my family-like sis!"
"Ursa...!"
"...Thanks for taking my side, sis."
Her eyes reddened, a tear rolling down. I hugged her tight.
"Kahaha... jeez. Sniff."
"...Hmph."
Plan worked...
Minimal cost, maximum effect. That's strategy.
See? Other elders were touched too. Even the Wolf Elder, who'd eyed me harshly till the end, softened up.
A few flowers for this payoff? Jackpot. I desperately held back a cackle.
Ended on a high note. Time to really head back.
"Ahem, ahem. Quite... touching."
"...."
The Bear Elder kept fake-coughing beside us.
But he wasn't holding back tears of emotion.
"Flower crown. Ahem. Very. Pretty. Cough!"
"Ah...!"
He scratched his head like his scalp itched, staring at me.
Hinting he wants one too, right?
Sure, the Bear Elder was a solid ally—hell, my first real supporter in this life. He deserved one as much as Serian, but...
"Ahaha... Got one for you too, Bear Elder! Let's head to the village first. It's at home; I'll grab it quick!"
"...Ho ho. No need to go out of your way. But if you prepared it, I'll gladly accept."
His coughing stopped.
...Crap. I only made one!
.
Managed to sort the Bear Elder's crown without issue. Excused myself with a stomachache, raced to the flower field, and whipped one up fast. Good thing I'd practiced.
As I adjusted it for the chuckling, happy Bear Elder, the hawk beastkin—who'd vanished earlier—returned en masse. All wobbling exhaustedly.
"What happened to you guys? Where were you?"
Sharp Wind Lark, looking beat, answered.
"Hawk Elder... took us... for training..."
They collapsed after that one line. Totally wiped out.
"You can't sleep here! Go home!"
Serian shook them—no response.
"Aish! What a welcome. Where's the Hawk Elder? Hawk Elder!"
Looked around—no sign. Just the sprawled hawk beastkin.
One barely conscious answered.
"Elder said... this spot's too low... he'd watch from elsewhere... pass it on..."
So, camping outside the village? Allowed? And why bother...?
"That's him alright. Can't be helped. Not surprised."
"Sheesh... tell him to come for meals on time!"
The elders accepted it casually. Guess that's his personality. Hawk Elder was one weird bird.
"What's the Hawk Elder like?"
"Strong."
"Weird."
Mixed reactions. Short answers too.
The Bear Elder continued.
"...Among us, the strongest is Rippling Earth."
"Oh..."
"Hehe!"
Serian puffed up. She earned it—top dog so far.
"But in a deathmatch, it's different."
"...Mm."
The Bear Elder gazed at distant mountains.
"Sky-Piercing Feather, Garuda. None of us could beat him."
.
That night. Late into the dawn, I wandered the village. Too excited about starting mana training tomorrow to sleep. Lying there would've just been tossing, so I circled the village to calm down.
Cool dawn air. Clears the mind, for sure.
-Rustle.
"Hm?"
Sound from somewhere. Direction of the food storage shed.
Thief? Nah, not up here. Probably a patrol guard. Say hi?
"Hm?"
"Huh?"
Someone emerged from the shed. Not a guard.
A black-masked intruder.
...A thief.
"Thie—! Mmph!!"
As I yelled, he zipped over and clamped my mouth. Strong one. This is bad—
"Calm down. I'm not a thief."
...Huh?
I froze; he released and removed the mask. Freakishly round eyes. Feathers amid thick hair. Classic hawk beastkin.
But I'd never seen a hawk like this. Shook hands with all the ones who returned yesterday.
...Only one option left.
"Um... Hawk Elder?"
—Nod.
Bingo...
But, "...What're you doing here?"
"...."
His hands were stuffed with jerky.
"...."
"...."
Strongest of the tribe's elders, Hawk Elder.
Currently: food thief.
Our first meeting? Total disaster.