Chapter 65: New Clan Members
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 65: New Clan Members
I scratched my head as I watched Mev leave, a strangely happy expression on her face. Her initial dejected look was completely gone, and I couldn't quite get used to her suddenly cheerful departure. In any case, I was relieved that things had worked out. I sat down in a corner of the tent and began to recall the conversation I'd had with Black Spear before meeting with Mev.
“Not all of them, but most are Green Skins who fled from the Warrior's Exam.”
Black Spear had spoken in a somewhat stiff voice. Seeing his grim expression, it was clear he didn't view them favorably.
And for good reason. Fleeing from an ordinary battle is a deeply dishonorable act. So, for Green Skins who fled the Great Tribe Leader's exam, there was no way those under his authority would look upon them kindly.
“Then... they are...”
“The Green Skins who refused the Great Tribe Leader's exam and fled have formed groups of a sort, but they do not raise their own banners...”
“Hmm...”
“If they had any shame, they wouldn't dare raise their own banners.”
It seemed that even those who had saved their own skins by refusing the exam were aware they had committed a dishonorable act.
“Does that mean they are repentant now, Black Spear?”
“I have never spoken with them, so I cannot say for sure. However, if they do not regret their actions, they cannot be called true Green Skins. They are, after all, ones who have already abandoned their honor...”
“I see.”
From a Green Skin's perspective, those who fled the Warrior's Exam were undoubtedly wretches not even worth dealing with, but from a human's perspective, they weren't so detestable. This was especially true for me, as I believe that fleeing is a valid option when you cannot win. The clan members who thought similarly to me would likely feel the same.
Of course, those who truly have no concept of honor must be excluded, but there must also be those who gave up the exam out of necessity or for the sake of their tribe's well-being. If they are such individuals, they are worthy of joining our Blood Dagger Clan. Having roughly organized my thoughts, I spoke to Black Spear.
“Is there some law that forbids accepting those who fled the Warrior's Exam?”
Black Spear's eyes widened in surprise at my words. He seemed to have a rough idea of what I was thinking.
“I have never heard of such a rule, but... Blood Dagger... are you planning to take them in?”
“That's right, Black Spear. There must be Green Skins who failed to complete the exam for unavoidable reasons. I want to give them another chance. Just because they have lost their honor does not mean they are no longer Green Skins.”
“Hmm...”
“Was I not also a warrior who had lost his honor?”
“I see...”
No long explanation was needed. With just that, he would have understood exactly what I meant. Fortunately, if there was no rule against accepting them as clan members, it would be a tremendous gain for us. Even if we succeeded in bringing them in, there might be conflicts with existing members or some who couldn't accept them, but for now, increasing our numbers and revitalizing the clan with new blood was the priority.
“You are a deep thinker... One chance... another chance...”
At my words, Black Spear muttered the word ‘chance,’ and with that, our brief conversation came to an end.
The conditions I explained to Mev for recruiting new clan members were, of course: a group with many females; a group that has lost its honor but is repentant and reflects on its past; and finally, a group that has a shaman. Given that our clan had no shamans at all, we would unconditionally welcome anyone with the shaman class among the newcomers.
Those were roughly the three conditions I had given Mev.
And so, I had no choice but to wait a few more days for Mev to bring back good news. While waiting, I learned a few things about Green Skin reproduction from Black Spear, and one of the most interesting aspects was race.
Among Green Skins, mating and conception are possible even between different races, excluding extreme cases like Ogres and Goblins, of course. The interesting part is that a child's race follows that of the mother. For example, if Mev and I were to mate, the child would be a Fairy. If Jung Hayeon and I had a child, it would be an Alraune.
The child can also evolve under the continent's influence the moment it is born, so it wasn't a critically important detail, but it was quite fascinating. I didn't yet know exactly what influence the father had on the child, but I suspected he must also affect its growth.
Another thing was that Green Skins develop incredibly quickly. They weren't puppies, but a warrior could fight after just three years and would reach full maturity in about seven. In a way, reproduction was an essential element for strengthening the clan. For reference, the lifespan of a Green Skin was quite long.
The last thing I learned was about probability. If a Goblin and a Goblin mate, the chance of conception is high, but if an Orc and a Goblin mate, the probability is relatively lower. The fact that they could conceive at all was a wonder in itself, but that's how it was.
I figured that was probably why Jung Hayeon hadn't become pregnant yet. It seemed the gap between the Ancient Orc and Alraune races was wider than I'd thought. In Jung Hayeon's case, it might also be because she evolved from a human, but the fact that she wasn't conceiving easily was good news for me.
Not only did I not want to put the brakes on my growth at such a crucial time, but I also had no desire to see a child right now.
Just as I was continuing to organize what I had learned...
“Chieftain! Coming in!”
Mev burst into the tent. Mev, who had left on her mission a few days ago, looked at me and began to speak. Seeing her confident expression, it seemed she had achieved some decent results.
“How did it go?”
“There are about three decent-sized groups nearby... the ones without banners.”
“Go on.”
“All three settlements I found had a lot of females, and one of them was composed almost entirely of women.”
“One has an even ratio, and the other group is about seven parts female to three parts male?”
It seemed she had done a better job than I expected. As I thought, Mev is indispensable to this clan, I mused, then spoke to her.
“There are quite a few groups with a lot of females.”
“Of course, that's to be expected. Even though the women fight too, it's mostly the men who go out to hunt and sometimes don't return... Plus, until a few dozen days ago, there weren't many humans around here. And the ones coming in now are of a certain caliber...”
It was true, the situation in this forest where Black Spear resided had been terrible just a few dozen days ago. So much so that Black Spear had taken a gamble, staking his clan's survival on following me. If things were like that for the well-established Black Spear, it was a no-brainer what the situation was like for other Green Skins who had no clan and no foundation. They were surely enduring not only an incredibly difficult life but one that resembled that of the lower class in a human city.
First, I needed to meet each of them. Even if they hadn't planted a banner under the name of a clan, they were still distinct groups. There would surely be leaders for each, and speaking with them would be the first step in growing our settlement.
“We'll depart first thing tomorrow.”
“Okay.”
I took another moment to look Mev over carefully. Her disheveled hair and the worn-out soles of her boots, a testament to how much she had run, came into view. Her whole body was drenched in sweat; she must have run straight here as soon as she finished her reconnaissance. Feeling a pang of guilt and sympathy, I stroked her head, and she smiled brightly. Her face looked as if all her fatigue had melted away.
“Thank you.”
“No, no.”
Mev smiled and left my tent, and soon, the next morning arrived.
The morning was quite busy. If we were simply going out for a hunt, we would have prepared roughly and left, but this was a meeting with the leaders of other groups. Gark and Mev had advised that we needed to project an air of dignity.
Of course, this was nothing like a human affair where they'd wear suits to show respect.
This was purely for our Blood Dagger Clan to display its strength. Unlike when we met with the Green Goblin, Black Spear, or Goff Clans—whom we considered brothers—everyone was putting extra effort into their appearance. The warriors painting daggers on their faces and bodies with some unknown black powder were, for some reason, even more enthusiastic than when heading into battle.
Seeing the clan members gathered around the goblin who had painted everyone during that battle in the Tutorial, I couldn't help but smile.
I, too, slowly approached him and spoke, just as I had last time.
“I'd like one, too.”
“It's an... an honor! Kkireuk!”
It seemed the fellow had quite a talent for drawing. Not only was he painting the clan members, but it looked like he had also drawn a new banner.
Thanks to the announcement a few days ago that we would be meeting other groups, his artistic soul seemed to have been reignited for the first time in a while. As a result, Hark and Gark were waiting on either side of me, holding large banners emblazoned with a blood-soaked dagger. I didn't know if it was because we were meeting those who hadn't entered the Great Tribe Leader's fold, or because these could be their future subordinates, but their usual playful antics were nowhere to be seen.
I could tell for sure by how quiet the loyal Goblin Three Sisters of the Five Siblings were.
Because of this, they had even brought the Giant Wolf, Abar, from the Green Goblin Clan. I stroked Abar's fur, seeing her for the first time in a while. It felt like it had been a long time. Feeling sorry for having neglected her, I kept stroking her neck. The creature who hadn't even given me a glance when she first arrived slowly turned her head and rubbed her face against me.
“Grrrrrrowl”
I had only petted her a few times, but her anger seemed to have subsided. I smiled at her, and when it was finally time to depart, I climbed onto Abar's back.
Looking back from my mount, it seemed we had become quite a spectacular clan.
Behind me, as I slowly moved forward on the back of the Giant Wolf, followed two Orc swordsmen with banners strapped to their backs, a Fairy archer, an Alraune magician, and Orc warriors and Hobgoblin assassins. All of them marched with the dagger, the symbol of the Blood Dagger Clan, painted on their faces or torsos.
I raised my hand slightly, and a cheer erupted.
“For Blood Dagger!”
“For Blood Dagger!”
I, too, hoped this venture would go well, and slowly stroked Abar's back.