V2Ch153 New Village Leader

It was long past night. The trial was still in motion. I was ever so slightly getting tired. Not physically. I just wanted to go to sleep because it was about the time that I normally would.

The young beast-man near the elders was getting more and more restless. My competitors were no match. The two porcupines, or, whatever they were, were my toughest act so far.

Two beast-men came at me at the same time. Both wielding swords. I was bored of their attempts. When they came close, I slapped the two blades together and broke them off before throwing them to the side. The two beast-men didn't know what to do. They ran away as if I was going to come after them.

I let out a yawn. That was my first mistake. A blade came down on my shoulder. The impact was strong enough to force me to bend my knees. I wasn't about to let them touch the ground though. I grabbed the handle of the blade and kneeled down before lurching forward, jerking the blade out of my attacker's hand. A good distance and a quick turn let me view the one that embedded the blade into my shoulder.

A heavy rhino-type beast-man was looking back at me. A large horn and a massive flat-toothed smile greeted me. A real heavy hitter was sent after me.

"Who is that guy?"

"I've never seen him before..."

"Is that your cousin?"

"No. My cousin is fat."

Whispers from the crowd implied that he was not of the village. Did someone send him in to "take care" of me? My eyes dashed over to the young beast by the elders again. He has a smug look. I'm willing to be he is behind it. Why? I don't know.

I pulled the dagger out of my shoulder. The blade was a common make that the members of the Assassins Guild liked to use. It was probably coated in poison. Not that it would affect me.

The rhino was slowly and confidently closing the distance between us. I let a smile slip and tossed the blade into the air. He took a step back, probably assuming the blade would go straight at him. The blade spun in the air multiple times before it was brought back down. I popped it back up by the butt of the handle. Again and again, I knocked the blade up in a seemingly impossible chain of events.

"Now this is something I know how to play with. But... I can't make it do what it was made for. Not right now. I think... Now, I seem to recall the rules saying something specific."

He got tired of my juggling act and charged at me as one would expect from a rhino. I tossed the knife up much higher than I had before. I took several steps back, implying that I was worried about the charging mass. When I got close enough to the wall, I hopped back and pushed off from the wall, clearing the enemy and landing clear across the pit. I heard the sound of the crash.

I held out a hand to my side. The knife came down and the blade slid right between my index and middle fingers. Once more, I began to juggle the blade without slowing down.

"I recall, someone said, if I kill a member of the village, that the trial would end..."

"That is correct."

The young beast-man interrupted. I looked up in annoyance.

"A member of the village."

I repeated. The rhino got his bearings and turned back to me. One of his eyes was closed shut. He wasn't happy.

"But, does the trial end if I kill someone that isn't from the village?"

The young beast-man eyes narrowed.

"You..."

He pointed at me.

"And her..."

He then pointed at Babur.

"Are the only ones not from this village."

I raised an eyebrow.

"Really?"

The blade came down. I'm sure everyone watching me was expecting me to pop it back up into the air. I caught it and spun around, releasing it with a little extra oomph. The blade flew straight at the rhino's head. The blade embedded itself into the rhino's horn so deep that the blade guard was the only thing that stopped it. The tip of the blade pierced the skin of his forehead.

He fell backward onto his ass after realizing what had just happened. He screamed and ran toward the wall, scrambling to get out of the pit and away from the "pit viper" he was likely paid to tumble with.

"Boss! Boss! Save me! I can't do it!"

The young beast-man seemed flustered at the cries that came from the would-be assassin. He stood out front, ignoring some questioning that came from the elders behind him. He ordered the guards to get the rhino out of sight.

"What is happening? Nyone of the elders knyow this beast. Amur?"

Nimer prodded his assistant while walking slowly toward him.

"Sit down, Nimer. The elders are useless to this village. We need real leaders that can pave the way for the future. All you do is sit and discuss things that have no relevance in this age. We need to make further advances with technology. We can make life so much better, but you refuse to allow anything more advanced than a wooden weaving or sewing machine."

"Amur! What is this nyonsense? What has come over you?"

"THAT!"

He pointed at Babur again.

"EXILES ARE SENT AWAY FOR A REASON! You and your old ways. I would have had her killed on sight if I was in charge... If? I AM in charge. I AM your replacement Nimer. Give me the role of the village leader. Do that, and I will spare you and her."

"AMUR! STOP THIS!"

Nimer began to cough. His stress was overcoming his age.

"Who do you think you are?"

"How dare you speak to the elders like that."

"Come over here. I'll spank you till you remember your manners."

"Amur! What are you saying? Come home. Let's talk this over."

The village members were losing their tempers with Amur. The last loud sentence caught his attention.

"No, mom. I belong in a leadership role. I will reinvent this village. I will reinvent the Beast Lands. I will reinvent the Eyse! We don't need mana to tame the world. I've seen some of the new technologies that the dwarves have. I've brought some newer technology from the north. Let me show you all."

He let out a loud whistle and a wide variety of beast-people pushed through the crowds with rifles. Similar, but of a different design from the ones the anurans had. Multiple rifle-wielding beasts came up behind the elder's seats and pointed the guns at them.

"This is my time. Accept me as the leader of the tribe, or suffer death in its newest form. Start with HIM as an example."

His eyes looked like they were supposed to have fire in them as he pointed at me.