Chapter 72: Chapter 72: Your speech is finished. Release me, you shameless bastard
Soren looked over the survivors.
"This female carries my scale."
Every eye dropped to Swanly’s wrist.
The pale snake scale gleamed against her skin.
Soren’s voice became quiet.
"No one raises a hand against her. No one threatens her cubs. No one insults her in front of me."
Kael’s growl lowered, but it did not disappear.
Soren continued.
"Anyone who comes against her will not leave Riverbone alive."
No one spoke.
Not Garran.
Not Maela.
Not Arion.
Even the old Riverbone elders who disliked Swanly’s influence stayed silent.
They had watched Soren crush one of Selka’s ribs and throw her beyond the trees without even breathing harder.
Swanly pinched the inside of his tail.
"Your speech is finished. Release me, you shameless bastard."
Soren looked down at her.
The smallest cub planted himself in front of the coil.
"Snake."
Soren raised one brow.
The cub pointed a tiny finger at him.
"Snake still bad."
The eldest moved beside his brother.
"Let Mama go."
The second cub narrowed his eyes.
"If not, cubs fight."
Their little fists rose.
But none of them were truly trembling with rage this time.
The smallest was already bouncing on his toes, almost enjoying himself.
Soren looked at the three tiny threats.
"Will you bite me?"
The smallest opened his mouth.
Swanly snapped her fingers.
"No biting."
His mouth closed.
He thought carefully.
"Kick."
The eldest nodded.
"Three kicks."
The second added, "Very strong."
Soren slowly loosened his tail.
Swanly stepped free.
The cubs rushed toward her as if they had personally defeated the white snake ruler.
She bent and gathered all three against her.
Kael came behind her and wrapped one arm around her waist.
He pulled her and the cubs into his chest.
His dark golden eyes remained on Soren.
Soren’s gaze dropped to Kael’s arm.
The air between the two males tightened again.
Raku purposely stepped between their lines of sight.
"We still have more than one hundred people standing at the gate."
Neither looked at him.
Raku sighed.
"The infection may end before this argument does."
Soren finally turned toward the survivors.
His expression lost every trace of amusement.
"You are not accepted into Riverbone."
The words fell across the clearing.
For a moment, no one understood.
Then panic exploded.
"No!"
"Please!"
"We have cubs!"
"Our shelters were destroyed!"
"The infected are behind us!"
Females dropped to their knees.
Wounded males lowered their heads.
An elderly tortoise beastman clutched his walking stick and bowed.
"We have nowhere else to go."
A bird beastwoman wrapped her damaged wings tighter around two trembling children.
"We will follow your rules."
"Please do not send us back."
Maela lifted her head.
"Lord Soren, surely you cannot punish an entire tribe for the behavior of one female."
Brea immediately nodded.
"Yes. Selka caused this."
Swanly turned her head.
Brea had been laughing beside Selka minutes earlier.
Now she looked personally betrayed by her existence.
A thin male among the survivors shouted, "She struck Swanly after we came asking for shelter!"
Another female pointed toward the forest.
"She has always thought she could say anything because Chief Garran favored her."
Vessa rose halfway from the ground.
"You all praised my daughter before!"
"We did not ask her to ruin our only chance of surviving!"
"She should have kept her mouth closed."
"She called those cubs disgusting!"
"Who insults cubs while begging another tribe for food?"
Brea lifted both hands.
"I tried to stop her."
Nerin looked at her.
"No, you did not."
Brea’s spotted ears flattened.
Swanly stared at them.
So now they had voices.
When Selka had been standing above Nerin and striking him, no one had spoken.
When she insulted Kael, no one had spoken.
When she wished three cubs dead, everyone had discovered a deep love for silence.
Now their shelter was gone, and courage had rained from the sky.
Nerin stood apart from the shouting.
His soft green eyes stayed on Swanly.
He took half a step toward her.
Then stopped.
He seemed to be waiting for her to look at him.
She adjusted the smallest cub against her shoulder and turned toward the crying families instead.
Nerin’s hopeful expression slowly collapsed.
His broken antler dipped as his head lowered.
The joy he had shown when he first saw her was gone.
He looked devastated.
The survivors began lifting their packs again.
Some were crying too hard to walk straight.
The system appeared directly in front of Swanly’s face.
It cleared its tiny throat into one glowing fist.
{Ahem. Host.}
Swanly closed her eyes.
Not now.
The system produced a shining task card and pressed it against her forehead.
{Task Seven: Recruit at least ten trustworthy survivors into Riverbone. Reward: six hundred points.}
Swanly stared through the glowing card.
Do I have to choose from these people?
The system smiled sweetly.
{No. Host may wait for another healthy group of more than one hundred beastpeople to stroll through the infected forest. Perhaps they will arrive immediately after breakfast tomorrow.}
Swanly’s ears flattened.
At least some of them must be infected.
The system crossed its tiny arms.
{Is that truly why Host wants them gone?}
Swanly glared at it.
The system glared back with the confidence of someone who could not be slapped.
Fine.
She was angry.
She wanted Sunmane gone because every face connected to that tribe made her cheek burn again.
She wanted Selka thrown into the forest a second time.
She wanted Arion to stop staring at her.
She wanted Garran and Maela to choke on the pride they had carried to Riverbone’s gate.
But the hungry cubs had not slapped her.
The injured beastwomen holding torn hides against bleeding wounds had not threatened her.
Some of these people might have supported Selka.
Others might have simply spent years being too frightened to oppose their rulers.
Swanly exhaled.
Scan them.
The system brightened.
{Mass infection scan beginning.}
Golden light spread across Swanly’s vision.
It swept over every survivor.
Swanly immediately frowned with anticipation.
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