Chapter 196: A Bloody Reunion, Part 2

{Ren}

Shanakans are perhaps the foundation to how a Demon can claim the throne as its next Demon King, at least within Padimon's history. Previously, like royalty, the title of chief within the Werebeast tribes was passed down by birthright, mainly to the first-born son. If there are at least two sons within the current chief's family, then those from the second-born and beyond can challenge the firstborn to a duel for that spot. That tradition still holds true in current times, and it probably would have stayed like that by itself if it weren't for one Werebeast that didn't throw it all out of proportion.

That Werebeast was Shanakan, who was said to train his body day and night since childhood, and didn't agree with how the current chief of his time ran his tribe. And so, in a bold display, when the chief's three sons were pitted against each other for the seat, Shanakan jumped in and challenged all three of them. Despite the odds against him, he came out victorious and held up the heads of the sons while in a mess of their blood to their fear-struck father. "Hand your seat over to me now, or join your sons!" he demanded loud enough for all in the tribe to hear, already impressed with him obtaining a three-on-one victory.

Shanakan's usurp for the chief's seat changed the course of history, as well as the tradition for acquiring roles of leadership. It was enough that this turning point of a duel was named after the one who introduced it to the country. Since then, while the title of chief can still be passed on to their offspring, those outside of that family who meet certain requirements were also eligible to duel for that position. To take on the seat as the Demon King was considered the 'Shanakan that tops all others', proving they are the strongest amongst all Demons in the country. This very duel, which pits the challenger's own life against everything the current tribe stands for, is what the young White Werewolf, Ren, proposed to her older brother, Lyles.

"You, a laughing stock to Werewolves everywhere, a 'pet' to a foul Human, dares challenge me for the position as chief?!" Lyles balked while the others in the tribe were in a stir.

"Since my life is already on the line, I might as well go all in," Ren said, her blade still pointing at her older sibling, "And your alliance with Chaos Barrage goes against my master's plans, let alone getting him involved. If becoming chieftess ensures his safety, as well as the tribe's, means I must take your head, Brother, then so it shall be."

"DO YOU NOT REALIZE WHAT IT MEANS IF YOU DO BECOME CHIEFTESS?! YOU, A SLAVE TO A HUMAN?! YOU'LL PUT THE TRIBE'S ENTIRE LIVELIHOOD UNDER HIS THUMB!" Lyles yelled, "What can you possibly hope to achieve as chieftess?!"

"Stop the tribe from running to their deaths, for one," Ren said calmly, "Whatever Rowling promised you from working with him, it isn't worth it. He doesn't care what happens to you. My master knows better people than him, those who are in good ties with Her Highness!"

"Her 'Highness' has done nothing for us! And her father was no better!"

Yeah, and after what Sue did, I still don't like her much, either. Why did I even bother bringing that up? Ren thought to herself, "Well Master is also strong! Stronger than you, and he's accomplished so much in a short time! If Her Highness can't get you what you want, he certainly can! He can go above and beyond whatever Rowling promised you!"

"You think that one Human, an adventurer with an unknown past, can exceed what Lord Rowling, a Demon Noble, can provide?!" Lyles exclaimed.

"Of course! Why else would he have you and nearly all of the other disciples have you try to take us out in such a carefully intricate plan?!" Ren exclaimed, "If my master was just any other Human, Rowling would take him out, himself, or hire a capable assassin to do the job, at least, but my master isn't weak like that! Her Highness, let alone Lady Noire, would not have invested such interest in my master if he was an average Human, either!"

"The Demon King has an interest in this … Jinma Kotori, was his name?" Kala asked in confusion.

"This is the first I'm hearing this as well," Rizz added in surprise, "I figured he was something to be assigned an escort quest to a noble, but even the Demon King acknowledges his strength?"

Ren found out too late that she said too much. She forgot that the Confession and Control settings in the slave magic on her was set to '0', meaning she has free will to act and speak as she pleases. As happy as she was to know that Jinma invests that much trust in her, she wished he'd take at least some precaution and leave the Control set to '1' while ordering her to keep that kind of thing unspoken. Despite it being set that low, they wouldn't get the truth out of her even if she was tortured, otherwise.

"Ren, while I cherish you as a friend, you know that I'll need to tell Jin of your slip-up as his wife, yes?" Umeiyon asked, a chill ran down the Werewolf's spine from feeling the Dragoness' sharp gaze on her, "Whatever you have planned in becoming the tribe's chieftess, I pray it will be enough to make up for your blunder."

I can't lose this duel more than ever now! Ren screamed in her mind, fearing more of the punishment that awaited her than her life on the line in the duel.

"A-Anyway, we're in a hurry to regroup with Master after being separated, so will you accept my declaration for a Shanakan?! Or is your pride as a warrior so low to not accept that challenge?!" Ren exclaimed, her attempt to provoke her brother sounding too desperate to not go unnoticed.

"I can practically smell the fear from you all the way here," Lyles said before sighing, "Knowing how scared you can be of confrontation in the past, it's a miracle you can stand like that in front of me now."

"I'm not the same cowardly pup you know before, but if you were in my shoes, you, too, would fear for your life when put in my master's hands," Ren argued.

"Aye, if you've witnessed Milord's power when he formed a contract with me, I imagine you would also fall into the 'regressed' ailment like your sister had just from being near it," Kenaka commented, "That was when she became his 'pet' in both the figurative and literal terms with the title she earned."

"Ah, I was envious of how she enjoyed getting 'tummy rubs' from my husband, but now I look back at it fondly as an adorable moment," Umeiyon added.

"For the love of the Immortals, please don't remind me of that in front of my brother!" Ren screamed on the brink of tears.

"Wait …" Lyles trailed off as he was starting to lose more color than usual, despite being one of the White Werewolf Tribe, "So, when you referred to yourself as this Human's 'pet' …"

"That's right, I was granted the title of 'Trained (Sex) Pet' after Master unintentionally brought me into the regressed ailment," Ren confessed, "He was quite apologetic when I came back to my senses, but I knew how kind he was, and not much had changed between us since then … well, aside from how good it feels receiving his praises, of course, both vocally and physically, especially the latter."

"I don't think I've ever seen Ren this happy before," Kala remarked with widened eyes, eyeing Ren's tail that was wagging faster and harder the more she recalled.

"That good, huh?" Rizz asked before looking to the side, as if seriously pondering over something.

"It can't be …" Lyles trailed off as he stared at his little sister in horror.

"Hmm? What's this? Could it be that you're familiar with these strange circumstances?" Umeiyon asked, "It was quite a shock for all of us, even me with my wide expansive knowledge. If this isn't the first time such a thing has happened—"

"Shut it!" Lyles yelled before pointing his blade at his sister, "Fine, I accept the duel for the Shanakan, and I'll make sure you and everyone in your party will be wiped out from existence!"

"Lyles? You seem to be on edge more than usual. Is something a matter?" Kala asked with folded wolf ears.

"Nothing is wrong! I'm just going to make sure my disgrace of a sister doesn't stain our tribe's history more than she already has!" Lyles exclaimed.

Interesting, he seems to know more than he lets on. I'd love to pry more into how Ren acquiring the Trained (Sex) Pet title can put him in such a stir, Umeiyon thought.

"... It pains me that you wish to get rid of me that much, Brother," Ren said as she held her upper arm, "Please understand that despite everything, you and the tribe are still precious to me, and I've always held great respect for you. Even so, I won't back down from what I believe in, and I'll never run away again. Are you sure you want to go through with the Shanakan and not talk things out?"

"... The only 'talk' from now on will be through our blades," he said.

"... Very well, but know that you've made me do this. Equip! Ninja set!"

At Ren's command, an armlet she had on where she was holding over her sleeve glowed before a bright flash enveloped her. In an instant, her outfit as a Thief was replaced with that of the Ninja, her current class. It wasn't the change of class that the Werewolf tribe, Kenaka, and Rizz that they were surprised about, it was the design of her new attire that left them speechless.

It has been said that one of the deadliest weapons a female ninja, a kunoichi, could ever possess is her art of seduction. If there was an outfit that would best represent that notion, Ren might have been wearing a piece of it, if not the lack-thereof. Her top only consisted of a fishnet crop top, not even trying to hide the skimpy night blue bra underneath, while leaving her pale, soft belly exposed like before, ready to be rubbed by her beloved master at any time he wished. For her bottoms, in place of the booty shorts she's had on up to now is a black skirt that's designed to look more like a loincloth. It was similar to what Umeiyon has with her cheongsam, only having two thin strips of cloth that covered her crotch and asscrack, barely even reaching down to her mid-thighs. The sides of her legs and buttcheeks were left totally visible to any viewer, as well as the strings to her thong that matches the bra in color. A blue sash was tied around to have a large bow made at one of her sides, with sheaths for her dual-wielding daggers holstered at the lower back, sitting right above the base of her white wolf tail. Finally, with her Great Servant's Collar proudly adorned around Ren's neck in a matching night blue, the Silver Armory Armlet was fully revealed on her left arm, while her right thigh had a strap carrying a throwing knife and a few pouches with something inside them. It was the most exposing kunoichi outfit anyone had ever seen. 

If they were to call Ren an exhibitionist, they wouldn't be wrong to think such thoughts. She didn't dress like this purely out of her own preference, however. Though it was common for Werebeasts to wear minimal clothing for the sake of moving freely in battle, this level of exposure was really leaning on the dangerous side by even their standards. As the design was made to not only match Umeiyon's in color, signifying their deep friendship and bond as lovers in Jinma's harem, it was arranged to have 'ease of access' to her body for her cherished master, and only him at any time. Should anyone even dare graze the petite White Werewolf, she will make sure they would be brought to a swift end, as no one but her packmates and her master were allowed to touch her. In some sense, one could perceive this as a kunoichi's ultimate sign of loyalty to her master.

Ren, of course, showed Jinma and Umeiyon this setup the first time as they were going over her new Ninja gear and skills while they were still in Obina's room in the Ethereal Realm. After explaining her reasonings for the design choice, even taking into the consideration of the bonuses from the ludicrous gear and her titles granted when she got promoted to the Ninja class, Jinma had some mixed feelings over this at first. When Ren made a full demonstration of her 'ease of access' design, however, making sure her master was intimately involved, his rationality crumbled.

"Well … since you've gained a portion of my EXP from putting on the collar, it shouldn't be too difficult for you to handle most of the small fry dumb enough to approach you now," Jinma had said back then, "At least destroy their bodies, spirits, and wallets first while leaving them alive to serve as a warning, but if they really pose a threat, just … make sure you hide the bodies well enough for no one to see. Oh, and keep your Thief set on until the situation calls for a wardrobe change when we get into the dungeon. Also, unless we're in assigned battle formations or you're off on your own, you stay close to me where I can reach you, nearly at all times."

"I'm happy to see my choice of clothes has spurned you enough to take full advantage of it as a male, Master," Ren said, "By all means, feel me or pet me anywhere, any time, any place, these clothes will allow 'ease of access' to you and you only."

"I'll admit that's part of the reason why, the main reason though is so no one would have any funny ideas approaching you once they see who you belong to," Jinma said.

"... Y-Yes, most certainly, that will always be the case, of course," Ren replied while her face reddened and wolf tail wagged excitedly.

That was Jinma's conclusion to Ren's decision of her new Ninja set. Though it wasn't that long ago, the White Werewolf looked back at it fondly, especially the part about her belonging to him, and more so when he felt her exposed bum while saying so to bring the point home.

Her brother along with the majority of her former tribe, on the other hand, had mixed receptions of their traitor's new look. Kala was the only one among them who had curious interest in Ren's design choice.

"Take a good long look at this new White Werewolf, because that's all you're allowed to do, for this proud Ninja's body is only for her master to use as he pleases," Ren declares as she shifts into a fighting stance, her dual-wielding daggers at the ready, "I belong to Master Jinma Kotori, alone. Anyone who even dares brushes against this skin will be met with a swift end."

Lyles' anger peaked over how low one of his own blood had become. "I'LL ERASE YOUR DISGRACEFUL SELF FROM HISTORY!" he yelled before rushing in.

With the brother and sister born from the previous chief as the main participants, the duel that decided the White Werewolf Tribe's fate began with the first clash of blades that rang through the floor.