Chương 53: Chapter 46

Barbarians from Tribe Pearot were heading toward the tribehold. How they had missed each other, Hakon couldn't tell, but Pearot's tribesmen were closing in on the outskirts leading to Tribe Taskur, all while he and the other young warriors were likely much deeper than they were. Eyes narrowed, Hakon studied their weapons and bodies for blood and signs of combat. His vision improved greatly as he infused his eyes with mana, providing him all the information he needed.

There was only one small group of Barbarians, and none of them seemed to have been engaged in combat for a while. If anything, it appeared like they avoided threats of all kinds with a vigilance unlike the average Barbarian. They moved through the forest with great care, avoided making any sounds, and blended in with the forest around them. Smelled like the forest? Hakon frowned deeply at that. Why did they blend in with the forest all of a sudden?

Hakon had been certain their scents had guided him to them, but clearly that was not quite right. Yet, it didn't feel entirely wrong either, even if the scents he had noticed previously no longer existed. Curious, Hakon stayed exactly where he was, focusing on the sensation while maintaining [Stealth] all the same. He watched the Barbarians, his instincts screaming at him, telling him to charge and kill them, but he remained unmoving. That was, until Pearot's tribesmen headed even closer to the tribehold.

Hakon, changing his focus to [Silent Steps] for the time being, skulked through the forest and followed them from a safe distance. He was itching for bloodshed, but knew better than to attack. Especially since the entire group emitted a presence strong enough to warrant his attention. Even if he was too far from them to use [Inspection], he knew dealing with all of them alone would be a foolish ordeal. Staying level-headed was crucial, and so was learning all about Pearot's intentions.

So he followed them as they closed in on the tribehold and didn't move even when they finally reached the border. He wasn't worried about his tribe and waited with patience he didn't know he had until they left once more. Nobody noticed Pearot's Barbarians. They arrived at the border of Tribe Taskur, studied their structure, possibly even their movements, numbers, and more, and left before anyone could notice them.

Hakon held his breath and closed his mind to bloodthirsty thoughts as Pearot's Barbarians moved back, passing not too far from him. They failed to notice him, which was proven by the Ancestors' rewards, but that didn't make things better. If anything, looking at the Scripture of Improvement made him frown. [Silent Steps Lv. 11 → Lv. 12 Stealth Lv. 6 → Lv. 7] Instead of 'Scripture of Improvement,' Hakon only saw a small parchment with the two Skills that improved.

That wasn't all that bad, but it was also not that important right now. Tribe Pearot's presence was. The Barbarians moved through the forest without exchanging any words. Silence hung in the air, broken only by the occasional brush against a bush and the crushing of branches and smaller plants, neither of which was loud enough to be noticed by the groups of young warriors they passed. Hakon felt something in the distance.

It was nowhere near as potent as it had been when he searched for Pearot's Barbarians, especially now that he had to hold back from using [Sensory Expansion] and [Mana Sense], but weirdly familiar scents hung in the air. Teraq is among them, he muttered inwardly as his head swiveled to the left. In the distance, he heard voices and rustling bushes, which only made him tense up more.

Hakon was half-certain the Barbarians from Tribe Pearot would attack Teraq and his group, but they barely looked in their direction before the strongest among them motioned for the rest to keep moving. While not everyone looked like they agreed with the decision, they followed their leader back to a small encampment. Hakon almost barged into the makeshift camp by accident. He had been so focused on the newfound sensation that he missed when the Barbarians stopped in their tracks.

Distracted, the bushes around him rustled, forcing him to leap to the ground and put his whole mind into using [Stealth]. He adjusted his position and used the surrounding environment to effectively turn invisible, but he couldn't be certain that nobody noticed him. Hence, Hakon stayed unmoving for as long as needed. That gave him enough time to use his senses to figure out what was going on with the new sensation and all those scents he had noticed… or felt?

Hakon didn't plan on staying too long near the makeshift camp, but it was increasingly difficult to find the right time to leave. Astrid and the others were probably still waiting for him back in the clearing, and, knowing them, they were cussing him out for taking so long. Well, Björn probably was. Regardless, they were impatient enough that it was only a matter of time before they would start searching for Hakon. And once they found him, they'd find Tribe Pearot's makeshift camp as well.

That would lead to a lot of bloodshed–their blood. After all, more Barbarians from Pearot found their way into the camp as time passed. By now, he had no idea how long he had been forced to stay there, Hakon could sense close to a dozen different scents. He had heard enough voices to know that there were more than half a dozen Barbarians there as well, so it was fair to assume that the camp housed ten, maybe a few more, enemies.

Enemies that, once Hakon got the opportunity to inspect them, turned out quite troublesome. [Barbarian – High Threat (1st Ascension)] [Barbarian – High Threat (1st Ascension)] The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings. … [Barbarian – Extreme Threat (2nd Ascension)] Hakon had to tweak [Inspection] a little to analyze the last Barbarian, but it worked. He connected the danger coming from the Barbarian with the Skill and his memories and experiences, improving the Skill considerably.

[Inspection Lv. 9 → Lv. 11 Scent of Lifelight (New) Lv. 1 → Lv. 2] [Scent of Lifelight] was a nasty Skill. It was hard to put into words, but the Skill formed once he had figured out that the sensation and scents came from the Barbarians, and that each sensation was connected to a particular scent and Barbarian. He had yet to learn more about the Skill, but [Scent of Lifelight] triggered more easily for stronger opponents. The higher the potency of their presence, the easier it was to sense them.

It was also how Hakon managed to sense the first group of Barbarians, because the first sensation came from the Barbarian at the 2nd Ascension. It suppressed all other sensations and spread further than the others. Their enemy was coming for them. But this was not the time to praise his gains. Hakon moved as soon as the last group of Barbarians stepped into the camp. He masked his own movements with theirs and retreated slowly into the forest.

When he was confident nobody was following him, he exhaled deeply and made a run for it. [Scent of Lifelight] remained active even without his doing, but he empowered it more than necessary to locate all the life around him. He discovered a group of monsters, some of which appeared juvenile, yet they didn't attack him. He didn't strike out either, his senses spreading further outward as he triggered [Sensory Expansion].

More scents surged toward him, and it wasn't long before he found the first group of young warriors. They looked battered, their bodies shredded and drenched in blood. But they were still alive and looked satisfied.

"Hakon!" one of the young warriors called out with a vibrant smile, which looked more vicious than anything given his appearance.

"You came to celebrate? Where are the others?"

"Come with me," Hakon called out in a steely voice that allowed no disobedience. The Barbarian's lips parted, but they sealed shut as their eyes met.

"Yes," he called out, and the others followed as well. Pushing through the forest with a mission in mind and several Skills to guide him, it didn't take long before he'd collected three groups. Four if his own group was included. He guided the young Barbarians to the clearing, where Björn, Astrid, and Eren were already waiting.

"Where have you–" Astrid called out, but stopped to inspect the men and women stepping into the clearing behind him.

"Why is everyone here?"

"That's not everyone," Hakon corrected her without thinking. Either way, the details didn't matter all too much.

"I found them on my way back."

"Back?" Björn got to his feet, looking serious. He sensed his friend's tension right away and reached for his war axes.

"Back from a camp I found," Hakon clarified.

"A small camp of Barbarians. Tribe Pearot's people. I found a group of them near the forest's outskirts, inspecting the tribehold, studying it." The young warriors took the news in stride. Anger bubbled beneath the surface, and some clutched their weapons tightly enough for cracks to echo through the clearing, but they did not rush right back into the forest to find Pearot's people. Blazing flames burned in Astrid's eyes as she unsheathed a set of arced shortswords.

"They dare to eye our territory? It's time to crush them." She sounded almost excited as she spoke, while the others let out deep growls of affirmation. Hakon raised his hand to silence the others, but the words died on his tongue. He initially brought the young warriors together to ensure their survival. If they'd found Tribe Pearot's Barbarians before him, he did not doubt for one second that they would have charged ahead. No matter how confident they were in their strength, the young warriors stood no chance.

He planned to bring them together, make sure they survived, and return them to the tribehold, doing what a Successor was supposed to do. To take care of his people. But was that really it? Was that really the best thing for them? No… it was not. It was cowardly, maybe even stupid, and it was most certainly foolish. They were Barbarians, born to fight, to grow stronger, to earn the Ancestors' favor, and to die in battle with a Saga filled with all kinds of wondrous achievements.

Running away from battle was not the way of Barbarians.

"They need to recover." Hakon pointed toward the first group he'd collected. They looked exhausted and were heavily injured even though a tremendous amount of mana pumped through their bodies. All things considered, it appeared that they had ascended or leveled up multiple times not too long ago. That was great, but it didn't mean they were powerful enough to handle Pearot's Barbarians. Not without Runeskins and being at a much lower level than the others. Their Skills… Hakon grimaced inwardly.

He wouldn't be surprised if he knew more about the extent of the young warriors' Skills than they did. He knew they would die against the older Barbarians skulking through Tribe Taskur's land.

"We need a plan."

"A plan? Lead us to them and we kill them!" Björn rumbled, weapons raised. An intense sensation came from Hakon's friend as he spoke about killing Pearot's Barbarians, and the other young warriors joined in on it, expanding its range of influence drastically. They too were thirsting for battle, appearing almost cheerful as their weapons shot high up, forcing Hakon to intervene with [Intimidation]. His presence erupted forth, crushing the intense sensation coming from Björn and the others.

"If you want to die Sagaless, I can lead you to the camp. Charge straight at their strongest if you want to earn the Ancestors' approval, but remember that he is at the 2nd Ascension when he tears you apart." Hakon couldn't help but growl, turning to his friend.

"But don't drag others into a worthless death. Don't let them die a death unworthy of our kind." Björn didn't seem pleased, but at least he had the decency to look away in shame. That had to be enough for the time being.

"We will come up with a plan, and you will join us," Hakon declared, closing the matter before turning to the others.

"The camp is not all too big. There shouldn't be more than a dozen warriors, but that doesn't change anything. Every single one of them is as strong as I am, possibly stronger." That did not even include the 2nd Ascension warrior, who was definitely stronger than he was. His words dimmed the young warriors' excitement considerably. As much as Barbarians were born for battle, rushing at opponents as strong as he had mentioned was not something they would survive. That was more like certain death, which was wasteful.

They'd waste their lives, but also the Ancestors' gifts, which was unacceptable. Those present understood that much very well. Even Björn did, his head swiveling back to listen more intently.

"If we want this to work, to defeat them and make them part of our Sagas, we will have to do this in the right way." Hakon called out, thoughts swirling through his head, only to be discarded and adjusted at Enhanced Comprehension's behest.

"I have a plan…" He cleared his throat after a while, sharing what was on his mind.