Hunters: The Prequel - Chapter 278

The village held a village meeting every week. These meetings were basically get-togethers, and the villagers spent time dancing and laughing with each other regardless of their status. Elders weren’t elders at that time, and the Village Head was also an average Joe during these meetings. If a Tiger was present at the meeting, he/she also would shed off that title for the night.

The Ceremonial Fire was a bonfire that was lit to remember the sacrifices of the ancestors of the village. It served as a reminder to each generation that the village was standing because of the passionate sacrifices of those who came before. As the fire burned, an attendant constantly added kindling to keep it going. The tinder added represented the names of villagers who had lost their lives. Since each person died once, the fire burned for them once, and never again. But the Village Head was promising Samoa that the fire would burn for his friends forever. It was a great promise weightier than gold.

“Have you calmed your emotions,” Village Head Fan kindly gave Samoa a few valuable seconds to calm himself. The Elders weren’t in a rush either. They looked upon the boy struggling to hold his emotions in kindly. It wasn’t easy to lose a loved one, and they understood that very well.

“I’m okay Village Head Sir,” Samoa was able to swallow the pain after a while. Then he proceeded with his report.

“It was in the inner regions that we realized that the population of the High Class Magical Beasts had increased by 200% and Mythic Class Magical Beasts population had increased by 150%.”

“How could that be,” one of the Elders stood up in shock.

They all felt a chill run down their spine. Unlike Middle and Low Class Magical Beasts, High and Mythic Class Magical Beasts didn’t have a high fertility rate. Because of that, their territories were large. So even a 50% increase in their population would mean that their territories wouldn’t be large enough for them. They wouldn’t be satisfied with that. And they could spill out of the inner regions and into the outer regions. Their invasion of the outer regions would cause a butterfly effect. Middle and Low Class Magical Beasts, as well as the weaker High Class Magical Beasts that occupied the outer regions would escape the Enchanted Forest because of the new threat. And where will they escape to?

The Village!

And what would the strong High and Mythic Classes do? They would also leave in pursuit of the Middle and Low Classes. In other words, it was going to be one of the worst kinds of Overflows. It was going to be an Overflow led by Mythic Class Magical Beasts!

“Yes Elder. That was exactly how Joe and I felt when we discovered this. As I walked back with Sir Frowning Tiger, I connected the dead Giant Rats to the inner region’s population boon. Some Mythic Classes have already invaded the outer region. It was likely because of their invasion that the population of Middle and Low Class Magical Beasts has increased so drastically.”

Magical Beasts had a strange tendency to procreate when they felt their lives were threatened. Whenever they felt their lives were being threatened, they would procreate and then flee. That was why the main job of the powerful Adventurers of the village was to eliminate the strong and troublesome Magical Beasts of the outer region. But this time the threat came from the inner region. It was a region no one visited, so they had no idea that the Mythic and High Class Magical Beasts had outgrown their estimated number. It was a situation they hadn’t prepared for.

“Mythic and High Class Magical Beasts have low fertility rates. It is impossible for them to suddenly reproduce many offsprings suddenly. There has to be an external factor”

Samoa’s words generated nods of approval from all present. His words couldn’t be truer.

“But then I remembered. Joe and I observed a set of large and unusual footprints when we were in the inner region. From the prints alone we could tell that the creature that made them was powerful and overbearing. The cold feeling of death washed over us by observing those prints alone.”

“Back then I didn’t think much of it. I only thought it was a very powerful Mythic Class Magical Beast. But I was wrong.”

“Are you saying it is a Legendary Class Magical Beast,” an Elder asked. The older man’s lips shook as he made the suggestion. The Elders were scared, and why wouldn’t they be. They were old men, so they were alive during the descent of the Winged Serpent. It was a period of tyranny and fear for any human, and they still remembered it. Why would they not be scared at the prospect of the terrible past repeating itself?

“That’s highly unlikely,” Samoa shook his head. “If it were a Legendary Class Magical Beast, the Magical Beasts would be far more united and wouldn’t cross over regions. I think it’s a Pseudo Legendary Class Magical Beast. Only they can augment their race’s procreation abilities, but not have enough strength to keep them united”

A Pseudo Legendary Class Magical Beast was a Magical Beast formerly of the Mythic Class that had suddenly gained the new ability of increasing the procreation rate of Magical Beasts in a particular area. There had already been instances of them appearing in Enchanted Forests around the large cities and towns. And in every instance in which they appeared, there was mass destruction. In short, the village wasn’t in the greatest of positions now.

“Did you see any more evidence of this Pseudo Legendary Magical Beast,” one of the Elders slowly asked. His eyes were filled with fear and his question was born from this fear.

“Just the prints Elder,” Samoa admitted. That was all he had to back his claims. Although it seemed logical that the only way to prove the strange happenings ongoing in the Enchanted Forest was to make the soundest assumption – which was that a Pseudo Legendary Magical Beast was behind it – the only evidence Samoa had to back his claims was his theory and the footprints.

“So you may be wrong,” the same Elder pushed those words out of his shaking lips. Although it sounded like he was accusing Samoa, his tone was filled with hope and expectation, rather than blame.

“Yes Elder, but the chance of that happening is low,” Samoa stated.

It was true that the only thing he could associate to the supposed Pseudo Legendary Magical Beast was its overbearing footprints. But all other information led to the fact that a powerful creature had caused the Mythic and High Class Magical Beasts to experience a surge in fertility rate. Samoa also wished his information was false, but he didn’t think it was. The more he thought about it, the more likely it seemed to be true.

“But there is still a chance,” the elder exclaimed agitatedly. “We should send other teams to verify the information. We can’t rely on the boy’s words alone. A situation of this magnitude requires more evidence!”

Samoa bowed his head in silence as he listened to several of the Elders voice their opinions on the matter. Only one or two, which included Joe’s father, believed that Samoa’s theory was sound enough and that it was vital to start defense preparations. The others believed that they had to send in other teams to verify the information. Samoa didn’t feel hurt at all by the lack of trust. This was because he knew that it was fear that was pushing their minds to the brink. It was their fear of a powerful beast encroaching upon a village they loved that made them eager to see his theory proven wrong. They were scared, and Samoa didn’t see why they shouldn’t be.

“If I may interject, Village Head Fan,” Frowning Tiger suddenly spoke. Unlike Samoa, he had the authority to address the Village Head by his name.

“You may,” Village Head Fan nodded his head at Frowning Tiger and gave him the permission to speak.

“Thank you, Village Head. The Enchanted Forest Scouting Party is made up of 5 individuals. All these individuals are Thrashers, with one of them being a top level Thrasher almost at the level of a Wild Cat.”

Although the Scouting Party was entirely composed of Thrashers, they weren’t of the same level. Joe was the weakest in the team, and he was followed closely by Samoa. It wasn’t any surprise since they were the youngest in the team. They were only Beginner Level Thrashers, and hadn’t really adapted to their new strength yet. When they do adapt, they would have the same strength as two of their deceased comrades and become Mid-Level Thrashers. The last level was the Top Thrasher level (every power ranking, not just the Thrashers, was divided into beginner, mid, and top levels). It was a level reached by only one person in their team. This person had been placed in the team to protect the Scouting Team, rather than contribute to their work since he was an average scouter. His name was Lax and he was almost at the level of a Wild Cat. But this person had also died.

“We have no Scouting Party with this kind of firepower. Yet most of them died, and were it not for myself and Rash Tiger’s timely arrival, the last two survivors would have died as well.”

Frowning Tiger’s cold words tugged at the heartstrings of the elders. Although this village was ruled by the higher hierarchy, it was still a village, and the people were much closer to each other than in the cities. Apart from the Tigers who were so busy that they rarely showed their faces, even to the elders, everyone knew each other. So they knew those who died. And it hurt. But they could be comforted by the fact that Samoa and Joe had survived.

They understood that Frowning Tiger’s words were meant to remind them of how dire the situation was. It was so bad that even Thrashers, including a Top Level Thrasher, weren’t enough to stabilize the threat. It took two Tigers to get them out alive. To send other teams would be heartless, especially since it was their fear that was driving them to make such a decision.

“Sending any other Scouting Parties would be nothing but declaring their death sentences – an act of cruelty because the top brass was afraid.” Frowning Tiger’s words were laced with venom.

The only team capable of exploring the inner region was a team of Tigers. But the Tigers weren’t scouts. These kind of missions were covert, and only a few of them were good at silent operations. If they had to take on such a mission, they had to go with a scout who would lead the way. Normally, that wouldn’t be a bad idea. After all, Tigers hunted the dangerous High Class Magical Beasts in the inner regions occasionally – about once every few months – to maintain their population. But the situation was different now. Since the Mythic and High Class Magical Beasts had grown in population, there may have been territory shifts. So the inner regions wouldn’t be what they used to be. It would be dangerous to dispatch their most capable group of warriors ahead of an Overflow. If they lost even one of their Tigers, defending the Overflow would become three times harder.

Samoa stood behind him with an expression of awe etched on his face. This was indeed a Tiger. Frowning Tiger got his point across, without caring much about the emotions and pride of the elders. He laid the facts down as they were. The elders were refusing to accept the news because they were afraid.

“It is true that an Overflow triggered by a Pseudo Legendary Class Magical Beast is terrifying. I am scared too. But being scared wouldn’t change anything. It would only leave us defenseless”

Like a bully who was overcome by kindness after taking candy from the small, scrawny kid, and came back to break off a piece of chocolate for him, Frowning Tiger added words that served to encourage the elders and at the same time let them know that they weren’t alone in their fear. Even he, a Tiger, was afraid as well. And although it didn’t show on his face, that was the truth. But unlike them, instead of succ.u.mbing to his fear, he was trying to draw strength from it.

“Frowning Tiger is correct. If we cower now, then we have already failed to defend the village. We must translate this fear into strength. For courage isn’t the absence of fear, but the ability to overcome it.” Village Head Fan smiled slightly as he spoke.

Unlike the Elders, he wasn’t displaying any signs of fear. This was likely due to his past. Unlike the elders who weren’t used to battle, Village Head Fan was the strongest Tiger in the village! His past exploits were still sang by the youth of today, and his prowess was legend itself. He was the son of the former village head, but he used his own power to prove that only he was worthy of the position. So he was used to situations that were dangerous and life-threatening. And since he was still alive, one could infer that he had triumphed over all of those situations.

“I think Samoa had proven that his intellect is comparable to the Elders,” Village Head Fan stated. Some of the Elders blushed in shame since they felt that the young boy was even better composed than they were.

“I dare not receive such praise, Village Head Fan. I had a long time to process this information, but the Elders have just received it. I did much worse than them when I learned the truth for the first time.” Samoa understood that Village Head Fan was pushing him to flatter the Elders, so Samoa obliged. It wasn’t like he didn’t believe in what he was saying. It was true that the Elders were shaken, but he and Joe didn’t do any better when they first saw those prints. Samoa was able to maintain his calm because he had thought matters through during his walk back to the village, but the Elders didn’t have that luxury. It was Village Head Fan and Frowning Tiger who were very impressive since they were able to receive the information with calm hearts.

“You are a good lad,” an Elder complimented with a sigh.

“Indeed. I now understand why Head Fan is always speaking so highly of you,” another chimed in.

Village Head Fan had a small smile on his face as he gazed at Samoa. Although the circ.u.mstances were unfavorable, he could still smile.

“I believe that none of the Elders would object to me asking him for his suggestion on what we should do,” Village Head Fan asked. The Elders nodded their heads. None of them objected to his words, so Village Head Fan went on to ask,

“What do you think we should do?”

Suddenly being asked to advise the village on which direction to go left Samoa speechless for a split second. But he collected himself pretty quickly. He already knew what the village had to do. He had been thinking of a way to convince Village Head Fan when the meeting was over, but didn’t expect that he would get the chance to do so during.

“Then Village Head Fan, Elders, Sir Frowning Tiger, please forgive me for being so bold to suggest this,” Samoa was eloquent, and he showed this in his speech. Finally, he said what he needed to.

“The village needs to evacuate.”