Condition

At sunrise, Alex rose and with his subordinates went straight to Scar's tent. Due to yesterday's conflicts, members of Scar's tribe sometimes looked at them hostilely.

"Stop! What do you want here?" 

Looking at the guard who halted them, Alex calmly replied, "Tell Scar that I've made my decision regarding his proposal. Say that I want to speak with him as soon as possible."

Apparently irritated by Alex's manner of speaking, as if their chief were inferior to him, the guard, though wanting to beat Alex, knew he couldn't lay a finger on him. So, he could only swallow his pride and deliver Alex's message to his chief. "Wait here!"

Normally, Alex's subordinates would have found this attitude offensive, but knowing they would soon be of the same tribe, they held back.

Alex noticed it was a good idea to inform the others about what would happen today. Previously, he had only spoken with Martins and Max, but today he alerted the other members. Aurelio was the hardest to control; he could barely keep quiet. If it weren't for Martins restraining him, he would have been shouting for all to hear.

It didn't take long for the guard to return.

"The chief has asked for you to come."

Acknowledging with a nod, Alex entered Scar's tent.

Looking at Alex, Scar asked the question he had been pondering all night, "So? What's your decision?"

Sighing, Alex replied, "I will accept."

When Scar heard the response, he nearly jumped, restraining himself only because it would collapse the tent.

"But, I have a condition."

Hearing that Alex had a condition for acceptance, Scar's happiness crumbled.

"So, what's your condition?"

Looking firmly at Scar, "My condition is... fight me!"

Caught off guard, Scar asked, "Sorry, could you repeat that? I don't think I heard you correctly."

Repeating once more, Alex approached Scar, "I said the only way for me to become the chief of your tribe is if you fight me."

"Okay, okay, okay... Have you gone mad? Wait, you want to fight me? Seriously? Have you forgotten what I did to a crocodile? I haven't told you, but that was three years ago. That means if I were to face a crocodile like that again, I'd probably defeat it without much difficulty."

"I know you're amazing, but fighting me for leadership may not be the right choice. And even if we were to pretend, I'm not sure I can control my strength and not hurt you," Alex calmly said. "Don't worry about that. Just fight in the way you think best. I'll defeat you and simply take your place. And don't be mistaken, I don't need you to pretend to lose. I may be physically weaker, but don't think you can defeat me without giving it your all."

Alex stepped back to leave the tent and said before exiting, "Come out here. You wanted to give me your tribe, and I will accept your tribe, but on my terms."

As Alex left the tent, there was silence with Scar alone.

Suddenly, Scar's surprised expression turned into a cold, emotionless one as he snapped his fingers one by one, pondering what to do. He's truly impressive, but this could ruin things. Hmm, so what do I do now? The sound of snapping fingers was the only sound within the tent as Scar's thoughts swirled in his head.

Outside the tent, Alex, unaware of Scar's thoughts, calmly sat on a rock waiting for Scar. His subordinates already knew what he was doing, but others wondered. Some simply thought he was observing the camp, some grew suspicious, and others just went about their lives without paying him any mind.

Then, Scar emerged from his tent and approached Alex.

"You know I can't control my strength, right?" Scar asked, looking seriously at Alex, awaiting a response.

"I've already told you, you're underestimating me too much. If you want me to take your place, this is the only way it's going to happen," Alex replied.

Sighing, Scar said decisively, "Well, if you defeat me, it just means I was truly right. So, how are we going to do this?"

"Simple, a three-part competition," said Alex with a smile.

"A competition? Of what?"