Chapter 1030 Rite of Passage
Adhara looked at the closed door as her mind wandered to the realm of confusion.
It wasn't supposed to end up this way.
Sure, she planned to win the duel against Drakar as that would end the dispute on the border calmed down, but she never really expected that Drakar would deliberately lose the duel. He should've been pressing to win.
Knowing that this dispute started due to his kingdom's losses, it was weird for him to do this.
Had he wanted to win the duel, he could've at that last moment.
'I don't understand, why did he do this...? Is there something that I didn't see through?'
Despite the fact that she should've been glad, she felt like something was amiss, and it felt like she was missing a piece to make this situation clear. Adhara lifted Flamy and rubbed its head while she pondered about the matter in silence.
But as of this moment, she decided to be glad that it ended the way she wanted.
Soon enough, she was called as the ritual was ready.
Under the guidance of the seers who were the ones in charge of the ritual, she went through the entire traditional rite of passage of the Tigerman. Since their tradition is still thick in their culture and has taken the form of a tribal tradition, the ritual is quite traditional.
Although it was called a rite of passage, it was not the actual thing.
It was tailored for external leaders.
Some parts of the ritual were akin to the one done by the Elders when they were appointed.
However, the time to do the trial was toned down a lot.
Changing into a new set of clothes that were prepared for her to do this trial, a vibrant cloak coupled with a leather chest piece with symbolic engravings, and a ceremonial headdress, she blended with the Tigerman that were present to witness her ritual.
Firstly, Adhara went through the Trial of Hunt.
Armed with the Tigerman race's traditional weapon—a ritual-blessed wooden spear—she was tasked to hunt down three Vajra, mutated tigers that were blessed with the lightning elements and formidable power in the seventh-rank realm.
She couldn't use her elemental prowess, she needed to do it raw with the wooden spear.
Nevertheless, she did it without much difficulty.
Completing the trial, she was immediately placed at the center of a totem formation while several female Tigermen initiated the Inking of the Stripes ceremony—skillfully adorning Adhara's body with the sacred black stripes of a tiger.
It consists of being donned with the stripes while the seers do the ceremonial dance.
Using the Vajra's carcasses, they were summoning ancestral spirits to bless Adhara.
A ceremony that lasted hours long.
However, when the ceremony was finished, she was brought to a grand feast that was solely prepared for her—the star of the ritual. Adhara was congratulated by the people which was quite surprising, considering that the Elders were quite hostile towards her.
But then again, it must've not been her as an individual that was the problem.
It was the fact that their tradition was rejected.
Now that Adhara went through the tradition willingly, they were starting to open up to her.
Even the Elders came to talk to her one by one, giving her their blessing.
Among them was the Elder who was angry at her earlier, and he surprisingly apologized for his rude behavior and explained that the tradition is very sacred to them. It was natural that he would've reacted that way.
On the other hand, appreciating the honesty, Adhara didn't press the matter and let it go.
Just like that, the feast went by smoothly without hiccups.
Despite knowing that she was a part of one of the strongest factions in the new era, the one that Rex was leading, she never really felt like she was in one of the strongest factions. More likely than not, they were always battered and attacked.
A perilous journey to reach the top of the food chain.
But at this moment, looking at the Tigerman cheering around her, she now felt it first-hand.
It was true that she had power as an important individual in the Silverstar Pack.
However, while looking around at the cheering Tigermen, fully accepting that they were now an ally of the Silverstar Pack with equal standing, a frown appears behind her smiling face as she couldn't shake the unease.
Drakar's face flashed inside her mind.
'None of the Elders brought up the topic of the losses they suffered to me' Adhara turned to look at the Elders to her sides. 'Also, they seem to be very reasonable. I can't imagine these Elders going as far as invading the Dwarven territory, potentially jeopardizing the alliance...'
'Was it really only him who was bitter for the losses?' She pondered heavily.
Since she was aware that the Elders knew nothing about the border dispute, then it must've been Drakar who was going behind their back. However, the man she clashed with earlier, the one who chose to let her win the duel and withdraw his force did not strike her as an unreasonable man.
Adhara is specifically good at reading people thanks to her innate emotional sight gift.
From that, she could tell that Drakar was also not unreasonable.
Due to that, she was curious as to the reason that made him invade the Dwarven territory.
Initially, Adhara thought that she would meet a problem here.
Specifically, she foresaw potential issues arising, particularly with the Tigerman Kingdom not wanting to be a part of the alliance anymore from learning that Drakar was bitter with the amount of losses they suffered defending the Dwarven Kingdom from the Demons.
Unlike the Tigermen from the new era that was fine, he woke up and was met with this.
Naturally, it's understandable if he's not fully on board.
But from the look of things, it doesn't seem to be the case as Adhara expected.
Now, she wanted to ask Drakar what was the reason behind his invasion, but she would have to wait for that until the entire ritual was finished. Eventually, after the feast ended with the entire population eating to their fullest, the last step started.
It was an oath that was led by the Elders himself.
Adhara only needs to solemnly make an oath to always care for the Tigerman Kingdom.
Even though promises or oaths could be broken, for the entire Tigerman race, the pledge she uttered here transcended the fragility of mere words. Standing atop of a platform, she raised her fist over her pulsating heart and chanted the oath.
"I, Adhara Alpenore, the representative of the Silverstar Pack, solemnly swear to always bore good intentions to the Tigerman Kingdom, and to never bring harm to my allied kin and also their kindred spirits"
Upon hearing this, the Elders gave their marks on Adhara's forehead with their own inks.
Four line marks with different colors were left on her forehead.
A sign that she has been accepted by the Tigerman Kingdom and its people.
Despite the bad instances she experienced earlier, the Silverstar Pack's reputation managed to transcend even higher in the eyes of the Tigerman Kingdom, something that even Adhara could feel directly.
...
A moment later.
It was already night again when she finished the rite of passage ritual.
Returning to the border to inspect Ugrok, who had been assigned to stand guard, she found him reclining on the ground, seemingly sitting dormant in wait. Drawing closer, she gradually pick up her pace with concern plastered on her face.
She noticed several scratches marring Ugrok's body.
"Ugrok!" She exclaimed, jogging towards him with evident concern.
Upon hearing this, Ugrok slowly opened his eyes and saw Adhara crouching before him.
Scanning his body with her eyes, trying to see whether there was a grievous wound that she would need to be worried about, she asked, "I'm too late, am I? The fight already started. Tell me what happened"
Following that question, Ugrok recounted what had happened.
Just as she expected, the fight already broke out for a good moment on the border.
Despite the provocation from the Tigerman, the Dwarves were standing on guard without a sign of aggression. But based on what Ugrok said, their generals suddenly raised their signal and charged at the Tigerman.
It was vicious, and dead bodies were piling up on top of each other.
Even Adhara could see some of the corpses scattered around near them, victims of the fight.
"Ugrok came, Ugrok tried to stop them, and Ugrok shouted at them that you were here, and fighting a fight is not tolerated," Ugrok said weakly, trying to catch his breath. "The Tigerman stops, but the Dwarves..."
Listening to what he had to say, Adhara gasped.
Going into detail, Adhara learned that when Ugrok came, the Tigerman stopped.
Since their plan was to push forward until Adhara or someone associated with the Silverstar Pack came, they naturally stopped when they heard Adhara was here. But the Dwarves on the other hand kept fighting, forcing the Tigerman to fight back.
In the heat of the battle, with their adrenaline high, the fight continues again.
Due to the fact that he was standing at the center, Ugrok was also pulled into the fight.
This explained why he was in this state.
Ugrok turned to the side and pointed in a direction, "I think they are around there"
"Wait, they are still fighting...?" Adhara frowned.
Not wasting any more seconds, she quickly harnessed her fire elements and enveloped her entire form in flames before executing a far leap toward the direction Ugrok indicated. While in mid-air, she discerned that the fight was approaching its conclusion.
But the casualties were already catastrophic, literal bodies scattered everywhere.
It was hard to see bodies littered everywhere her vision traversed.
More importantly, it was especially hard to look at since both sides should be an ally.
However, both sides were not aware of this.
Fully immersed in the world of a bloody fight, they didn't realize that they had already been reduced to a fraction of their numbers. In a grand entrance, Adhara's body lit up the entire sky, turning into a sun and catching all of their attention.
Even with her presence alone, a part of the fight temporarily stopped.
Swooosh!!
Landing gracefully at the center of the battlefield, her fiery eyes scanned the vicinity.
A slight anger emerged inside of her at the sight of this.
Knowing that they were supposed to be preparing for the final fight against the Executor's forces, she was angry at their impulsiveness in fighting against each other. It was Drakar's doing, and despite her view of him earlier, the sight made her mad at him.
Noticing that some still persisted in fighting barbarically, Adahra gritted her teeth.
She channeled her entire elemental energy, her new violet fire, and also her wind element into a tangible force within the clasps of her hands. In a decisive and rapid motion, she brought her hands down vertically.
Kaboom!
Two sky-high walls of flames appeared, separating the two sides perfectly.
Some that were engaged in a duel were blasted, snapping them out of their battle mode.
"ENOUGH!!"
Adhara's roar thundered across the entire battlefield, surprising the two sides who were not expecting to be interrupted until the fight ended. But seeing her twisted countenance, all of them recognized that it was the Female Alpha.
It was also at that moment that they remembered that Ugrok warned them about her.
But the battle made them forget about that momentarily.
Looking to the side, she noticed a Dwarf wearing a more dignified armor who was bloodied across his entire form. One glance at him is enough to tell Adhara that she was one of the generals that were deployed here.
"Go back to your capital city..." Adhara muttered silently.
Upon hearing this, the general frowns as their territory hasn't been reclaimed yet.
Just when he was about to refute, not wanting to back away until the Tigerman left their territory alone, Adhara's eyes flared into a furious blaze, "I said go back and tell your King that I will be there, or are you going to disobey a direct order from me, general...?"
Despite his reluctance, there was no way he was brave enough to stay.
With a signal from him, the other Dwarves started retreating before the situation escalates.
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