Hunters: The Prequel - Chapter 285

“Village Head Fan is late,” outside the Central Demarcation Line, Frowning Tiger looked towards the approaching beast horde with a grave expression. Next to him was Rash Tiger, whose jovial smile was nowhere to be found. Just like Frowning Tiger, Rash Tiger had a scowl on his face as he watched the stampede of Middle and Lower Magical Class Beasts draw closer and closer as each second whittled by.

“He is. But he surely must have a good reason” Rash Tiger stated, his eyes glued on the beast horde. He didn’t even want to turn his eyes away for a second.

“Were all the traps put in place,” Frowning Tiger asked? This time his statement wasn’t meant for Rash Tiger. It was meant for the handsome young man who stood behind him.

“Everything was done as requested, Sir Frowning Tiger,” Samoa answered, with an anxious look on his face.

Frowning Tiger nodded at Samoa’s response. This was a threat outside their current capabilities. So it was necessary to include some craft and guile in their plans. Samoa and Joe were scouts belonging to the most prestigious scouting party in the village. They had extensive knowledge on Magical Beasts and knew just what would be good enough to cause them some damage and whittle away their numbers.

Middle and Low Class Magical Beasts weren’t the ones they should be focusing on. It was the horde of Mythic and High Class Magical Beasts that they had to worry about. They had to preserve their strength as much as possible, so that they would be able to deal with the greater threat more effectively when it appeared.

Suddenly, the air next to Frowning Tiger rippled, and a figure appeared right next to Frowning Tiger. The intruder startled Samoa – who only saw the space surrounding his idol warp, and a strange man appear – greatly. But Frowning Tiger didn’t seem bothered by the newcomer. He didn’t make any attempts to defend against any sneak attacks or ambushes. Rash Tiger who stood next to him also continued to gaze ahead, staring unblinkingly at the Beast Horde like it had taken something valuable from him. He also ignored the person who had suddenly appeared next to them.

“The villagers in harm’s way have been returned to the safety zone,” Blistering Cheetah, the fastest Predator in the village, was the one who so suddenly appeared before the Tigers and Samoa. Since Village Head Samoa wasn’t here, Frowning Tiger was in command. Although he was not the most powerful Predator or Tiger for that matter in the village, he was the one Village Head Fan trusted the most. Since Village Head Fan wasn’t here, Blistering Cheetah reported to him. Besides, the first zone was leading the defense, so technically, their Tigers had the highest command here.

“What about the other Zones. Are they prepared?” Frowning Tiger turned to Blistering Cheetah and asked.

“They are. Everyone is accounted for. All 2 Predators, 10 Thrashers, 42 Animal Hunters and 57 Soldiers for each zone are accounted for”

Blistering Cheetah stared straight into Frowning Tiger’s cold eyes and replied. Apart from the fact that the First Zone had 43 Animal Hunters and 58 Soldiers, their numbers were pretty much the same as the other zones.

“What about your unit? Did you run into any trouble?” Frowning Tiger asked.

Blistering Cheetah wasn’t the only Predator of his unit. His unit wasn’t bound to any zone, and was meant to provide support for any zone that needed it. Apart from Blistering Cheetah, there were 3 other Predators – 2 more Cheetahs, and 1 Mongoose. However, Blistering Cheetah was the one in charge of the unit. There were 5 Thrashers assigned to his unit as well, but they didn’t have any Animal Hunters or Soldiers in their unit. Since it was meant to be an elite unit that focused on speed and support, anyone below the Thrasher level was well, trash. Even the Thrashers that were assigned to Blistering Cheetah’s Support Unit were famed for their speed amongst those of the Thrasher level. Adding Animal Hunters and Soldiers to the unit would impair their mobility and destroy the one purpose for which they were created. For such an elite force, Frowning Tiger didn’t want any injuries at such an early stage.

“Minor issues. But they were taken care of easily” Blistering Cheetah understood Frowning Tiger’s worry, so he set his heart at ease by letting him know that there were no major issues.

Blistering Cheetah’s unit did come across some Magical Beasts as they rescued the distraught civilians who had moved outside the Demarcation Line. But those beasts were weaker Low and Middle Class Magical Beasts famed for their speed, which had run away from the main group. Unfortunately for them, they came across fighters who specialized in speed and were easily dealt with.

“That would be all, Blistering Cheetah,” Frowning Tiger dismissed his colleague. Blistering Cheetah nodded his head and before Samoa could fully process what was happening, the man disappeared just as suddenly as he appeared.

“So that was Blistering Cheetah!”

Samoa exclaimed within the depths of his mind. Since Frowning Tiger hadn’t bothered to lower his voice when he addressed Blistering Cheetah, Samoa heard him clearly when he called out the man’s name. This was someone famed for his insane speed, and Samoa had finally seen for himself today that his reputation was well deserved.

“Let’s return,” Frowning Tiger stated. Without waiting for Rash Tiger’s response, he began to walk away. Rash Tiger looked at the incoming horde one last time. He tore his eyes away from the threat and followed Frowning Tiger. Samoa quickly walked behind them, all the while looking around anxiously.

The three men had left the First Zone of Defense to see the situation better. Now that they had seen what they wanted to see, there was no reason to remain here. They were walking back to their men. Samoa was confused. He didn’t know why he was asked to follow Frowning Tiger. He had to sneak into Village Head Fan’s house and leave with Arthur. But Frowning Tiger was keeping a close watch on him. It made it impossible for him to get out of the Tiger’s sight.

“Does he know? But how?” Samoa thought to himself. He raised his head and saw the fighters belonging to the First Zone standing orderly with no fear. Every man and woman wore strong leather armors crafted from beast hides and possessed an air of ferocity about them. As they gazed at Rash Tiger and Frowning Tiger who were returning, their vision was full of respect and admiration. As for Samoa who was behind them, they looked at him with envy. Being chosen to accompany Tigers was a sign that they appreciated his talent. So naturally, they all knew that Samoa was someone the Tigers saw as having the potential to become a Predator. That alone was enough to draw their envy.

“Don’t worry so much,” Rash Tiger gave Samoa a pat on his back upon seeing the look of anxiety on the younger man’s face. He assumed that Samoa was anxious about the battle.

“Village Head Fan would bring Arthur himself,” Frowning Tiger suddenly stated. He flashed Samoa a rare smile and then turned his head.

“So he knew,” Samoa sighed. He finally understood why it became so easy to sneak out after their first attempt. It turned out that Village Head Fan had been watching over them secretly.

“So what now,” Rash Tiger wondered as the trio stood before the well-structured miniature army. Samoa didn’t dare join them upfront. He ignored the looks of admiration and envy the other Thrashers sent his way, and walked to the Thrashers who stood behind Frowning Tiger and Rash Tiger to take his position.

“We wait,” Frowning Tiger said, and closed his eyes. Rash Tiger didn’t say anything more. Frowning Tiger was a Control Type. But he couldn’t just control his body’s reactions and power, he could also sense things from afar. He knew that Frowning Tiger was giving his all to listen to the stomps of the approaching beasts. His friend was searching for signs of disturbed movements to determine if the traps had gone off.

Finally, after two minutes, Frowning Tiger opened his eyes.

“They were more effective than I thought,” the normally stoic and expressionless man had a slight smile on his face. It seemed the traps worked better than he expected.

“Over half of their forces have been wiped out. The others are in complete disarray. They have lost their prior unity and would be easier to deal with now”

He smiled as he informed Rash Tiger.

“Good,” Rash Tiger laughed heartily. He then turned to address the crowd of fighters behind him, and did what Frowning Tiger wasn’t good at.

“Men and women who have toiled for this village all your lives. The beasts that threaten the sanctity of our home are in chaos from our traps. They are ripe for the picking. Tell me, is this the time to cower?!”

“No Rash Tiger Sir!”

“Would we wait here like sitting ducks?!”

“No Rash Tiger Sir!”

“Would we back down and abandon all we love and hold dear?!”

“No Rash Tiger Sir!”

“What should we do?!”

“We should fight!”

“What would we do?!”

“We would fight!”

“Then what are we waiting for? Let’s fight!!!”