Chapter 8
Chapter 8
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 8
Chapter Title: Subjugating Red Rock
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We descended along the river, our backs to the water mist.
The combat conditions were ideal.
This heavy fog was an obstacle for our own movement, but it also made it hard for the enemy to spot us.
I hadn't enforced strict marching formations, yet they still fell into line as best they could.
Eagle's Eye ranged ahead of the main group to scout the direction.
Where the river widened before narrowing, we halted.
A wind blew from the west.
A faint fishy smell wafted through the air.
"We'll rest here."
"Halt the march."
Black Stone relayed my words.
His vocabulary had improved remarkably.
He'd even understood and applied words like "march" and "halt."
The tribesfolk took out their packed lunches and ate on their own.
Smoked meat, fruit, and mushrooms, washed down with a bit of saltwater.
Of course.
With battle imminent, they only ate enough to stave off hunger.
I finished resting and climbed the embankment.
"The fog has cleared quite a bit. Eagle's Eye! Any enemy movement?"
"The fog kept most of them from stirring today, except for a few."
"Got it. Keep watch until we depart."
It was a relief that the other tribesfolk's vocabulary was growing too.
Just not having to break down every word saved a ton of time in conversation.
I turned to survey what would soon be the battlefield.
It matched our prior scouting exactly.
A peninsula where the river curved in a wide C-shape.
Water on three sides.
The village sat on flat ground.
Not on high ground, so a flood would have been disastrous.
Still, with only one entrance, it was defensible against enemies and beasts alike—a solid choice for primitives.
No fences.
Women hauled water while children ran about playing.
Two guards.
One with a stone spear, the other a stone axe.
I gauged the river depth around their village.
"The current looks swift and deep."
Even rafts would shatter there.
They hadn't accounted for a slower section anywhere.
I wrapped up the final recon and returned.
Black Stone and Blue Tree approached on their own.
They knew their roles as advisors.
"We proceed as planned. Black Stone, treat any wounded."
"Don't worry."
Eagle's Eye arrived soon after.
"The enemy is off guard."
Not quite a surprise attack, but striking before they could prepare was smart.
"Move out!"
A nod.
No one was dumb enough to yell.
We didn't bother hiding our approach either.
The two guards at the entrance spotted us late.
They exchanged excited chatter, then hurled their stone spears.
"Heads down!"
Thud thud.
The spears bounced harmlessly away.
Another one bent to grab a rock.
An arrow from Eagle's Eye sank into his thigh.
"Gaaah!"
Blood sprayed as he collapsed.
His wailing stirred the village depths.
Women and children scattered in panic; men grabbed weapons and rushed out.
Up close, what I'd thought was a fence was just piled wood debris.
We smashed right through.
Soon we clashed with the enemy primitives.
Familiar black hair.
Black eyes too.
They looked very familiar to me.
Though their attire left much to be desired.
"Uwaaa!"
The enemy primitives charged, weapons raised.
Their armament wasn't much different from when I'd first seen my own tribesfolk.
Stone axes, wooden spears.
Crude javelins at best.
"Kill!"
They rushed in a frenzy.
Hardly surprising.
But.
Clack! Clack!
We advanced in turtle formation, shields to the fore.
Their thrown axes, rocks, and javelins struck the shields and fell.
The front line collided with the foes.
The enemy primitives flailed about, then fell into panic.
Group tactics unknown to this world.
Facing such advanced tech, staying calm would have been weirder.
'Did I overcomplicate this?'
Complacency crept in, but I stamped it down.
Leather armor and shields or not, letting your guard down meant death.
Battlefields were unpredictable.
Spears thrust through shield gaps; enemies dropped without knowing what hit them.
Occasionally, shields parted to let reserves snag demoralized foes.
Those captured were bound with prepared ropes.
Crunch!
Pfbt!
Meant for knockouts, the clubs split skulls instead, deaths piling up.
"Hit their legs to immobilize them instead."
"Got it!"
Telling them to hit just hard enough to stun might've been too tall an order.
Half the survivors would be idiots anyway.
We swept the enemy overwhelmingly.
In the blink of an eye.
Was this even war?
The foes collapsed without escape.
Of fifteen, six dead; the rest bound or stabbed somewhere.
We'd taken zero casualties.
That's when it happened.
"Uwaaa!"
A roar from the rear, with heavy footsteps.
His massive bulk made even me flinch.
Like a bull charging a matador.
'That's their chief.'
I sensed it instinctively.
The Yellow Tribe had been weak overall, but chiefs ate well and rested, growing huge and strong.
Fog hunting alone, he'd heard the screams and come running.
"Make way!"
The shield wall parted.
Duels weren't recommended in battle.
But this wasn't an era for romance—it was survival.
Crushing him physically would make absorbing their tribe smoother.
I gripped my club and charged.
He thrust his spear straight at me, momentum and bulk behind it.
I had no intention of taking it head-on.
I pivoted on my left foot, countering with my club.
Crunch!
"Guek!"
He clutched his shoulder and rolled on the ground.
"Huh?"
I'd heard bone snap, yet he rose again.
I rushed in and smashed his temple with the club.
Thwack!
Down for good.
Despair filled the enemy tribesfolk's eyes; our primitives raised spears and roared.
"Uwa! We won!"
"The chief beat their chief easily!"
"......"
I hadn't beaten him to death.
That would have been a problem.
*
The riverside reeked of fish.
Up close, their camp wasn't in great shape.
Before subjugating them, we gathered and laid out the bodies one by one.
Lucky there was no real family concept yet.
In later eras, "avengers of their parents" would swarm.
But here, you knew your mother's face but not your father's customs.
Chiefs might differ, but he was alive, so the women and kids felt fear over enmity toward us.
The surviving elderly, women, and children huddled at the hut edges, trembling in each other's arms.
The enemy warriors were all bound or wounded.
Amid the fear, only the huge man's eyes still burned with life.
I stood before him.
"Your name?"
"Red Rock."
"Red Rock. Join my command. I guarantee your survival."
"You won't kill me?"
"No reason to."
He nodded.
To lead a tribe in this era, he knew population was key.
Red Rock glanced back briefly.
Seemed lost in thought.
He alternated looks between his ragged tribe and our gear.
If he could think at all, he'd sense our civilization was on another level.
"You're strong."
"Yeah. Honestly, even a hundred warriors charging wouldn't give me confidence."
Red Rock nodded readily.
Acknowledging the tech gap.
And.
"You're strong too. I accept your offer."
The coolest subjugation ever.
In later eras, this wouldn't fly.
They'd thrash desperately, right?
But in survival times, allying with the strong was obviously smarter.
Shields and group tactics must've shocked them.
Even I, a Primitive Era Online vet, could hardly believe it, yet our tribe and theirs were already bonding.
"What is this thing?"
"A shield. Our chief made it."
"Chief?"
"Leader."
"I see! Your leader's not just a fighter—he's smart too."
"Of course. Join us, no more starving. And when enemies come, the chief kills them all."
"Ooh!"
These era's macho men snorting approval.
Of course, their illusion that I could solo all enemies had some rose-tinted glasses on.