Elizabeth stood up and confidently stepped out of the tent. Neria and Riven immediately fell into step right behind her, flanking her left and right sides like two unyielding, living shields.
The moment she stepped into the open air of the camp, Elizabeth felt the weight of dozens of tense, expectant stares. The gathered inhabitants watched her every move and gesture in absolute, breathless silence.
Those heavy, scrutinizing gazes only faded when her silhouette crossed the threshold of the largest, central pavilion. Only then did the paralyzing tension leave the chests of the crowd in the plaza, slightly easing the heavy anxiety hanging over the clan's future.
Inside the main pavilion, Elizabeth slowly scanned the spacious, herb-scented interior.
The general layout was essentially identical to her first visit. The only visible change was that the old, worn-out pile of dry grass in the corner had been entirely replaced with fresh, fragrant straw, topped with a new, soft bedding made from the meticulously treated hide of a massive beast.
“Sharu, out of respect for the departed, we did not dare move or displace any of his personal belongings. Everything in here is now entirely at your disposal,” Neria said in a deep, respectful voice.
“There is no need to hastily throw anything out or move it around. Many of the items gathered here over the years are priceless treasures and keepsakes. I will use them slowly and thoughtfully.”
Elizabeth shook her head, knowing perfectly well that as an outsider, hastily discarding the deceased elder's belongings would be seen as profound disrespect, instantly breeding deep resentment and hidden animosity among the clan's elders.
“Sharu, what are your first commands? What should be our immediate priority?” Neria asked. Hearing the new leader's measured and tactful response, her previously rigid posture noticeably relaxed.
“What happened to the previous Shaman's body? How was his burial handled?” Elizabeth asked with genuine concern.
“In accordance with his final will, we ceremonially cremated his mortal remains at dawn,” Neria answered. She reached into her cleavage and withdrew a small, smooth, snow-white object about the size of a thumb, presenting it reverently to Elizabeth as she whispered:
“This is the only thing that did not burn in the sacred fire. It is all that remained after his cremation.”
Looking at the white, perfectly smooth, subtly gleaming stone resting in her palm, Elizabeth was literally struck speechless. A shocked whisper escaped her lips:
“A Soul Seed…”
“What exactly is a Soul Seed?” Riven asked, intrigued. He scratched the back of his neck, fixing his violet eyes on the small object.
“Occasionally, such pure essence condenses after the complete cremation of a person who has accumulated boundless merit and maintained spiritual purity throughout a long life,” Elizabeth explained calmly, drawing on the freshly assimilated knowledge and Sharu scripts still aligning in her memory.
“And what is this merit?” Neria pressed earnestly.
“Simply performing selfless, good deeds for one's people without end,” Elizabeth answered curtly and emphatically, looking at the white crystal.
“Our Sharu was undoubtedly a magnificent man… truly the greatest and noblest man under this sky.” Neria and Riven nodded with deep emotion and respect, fully agreeing with those words.
“Keep this Seed very carefully in a safe place. In the future, the moment we reclaim our lost Ancestral Lands, I will personally erect a grand temple to house this relic and eternally honor his great sacrifice for the clan,” Elizabeth said solemnly, carefully returning the object into the chieftain's hands, treating it as the most precious monument to the departed elder.
“En, we will do just that.” Neria nodded piously, taking the Soul Seed with both hands and returning it with the utmost care to its place between her breasts.
“Sharu, what are we to do now?” Riven asked, undisguised worry weighing heavily on his voice. “The reserves of dried meat in our storehouse are already dreadfully low. If nothing changes, it will soon become incredibly difficult to meet even the basic caloric needs of our Warriors.”
Elizabeth slowly sat down cross-legged on the hide bedding, resting her hands comfortably on her knees, and asked in a pragmatic tone:
“How many battle-ready Totem Warriors do we currently have across the entire tribe?”
“In total, we have only seven Warriors left,” Neria answered, her throat tightening.
“That few?” Elizabeth was genuinely shocked by the number, furrowing her brow deeply.
“Originally, our main force numbered over twenty. But during the migration and our retreat, most were mercilessly killed or captured alive by the Totem Warriors of the Green Snake Tribe,” Neria quickly and bitterly explained.
“According to your intelligence, are they still alive, or were they executed immediately?” Elizabeth asked, narrowing her blue eyes slightly.
“Unfortunately, it is entirely possible they have been dead for a long time. But it is equally probable they were clapped in irons and forced into slave labor at their camp,” Neria hissed through gritted teeth, the veins on her temples throbbing with impotent rage.
“And how far is the Green Snake Tribe currently located from our settlement?” Elizabeth asked with a faint sigh, calculating internally that as long as the captives hadn't been executed, there was still a real chance to rescue and recover them, even if they were currently toiling as slaves.
“We are separated by roughly five full days of marching. But if our Totem Warriors set off at a full sprint, the distance could be covered in about three days of travel,” Neria explained. Seeing the thoughtful expression on the girl's face, she assumed the young Sharu was simply terrified of another attack, so she quickly added in a stiff, reassuring tone:
“But you can rest entirely easy, Sharu. The scouts of the Green Snake Tribe will certainly never venture into these barren parts.”
“Oh? What makes you so certain of that?” Elizabeth asked, genuinely surprised.
“Prey and wild game are simply too scarce and scattered in these lands to make venturing here worth their while,” Neria explained coldly, making it bitterly clear that this extreme poverty and the harshness of the terrain were the only things that had saved the remnants of their clan from absolute slaughter.
“In other words… that means we have absolutely no conditions here to sustain steady growth and expand our tribe?” Elizabeth fixed her intense, scrutinizing blue eyes directly on the woman's face.
“Yes… I'm afraid that is exactly what it means.” Neria hesitated for a moment before nodding sadly.
“Good, that is vital information.” The corners of Elizabeth's mouth curled up into a barely perceptible, confident smile. Although they lacked resources, she had been trained in logical thinking, where all massive problems were solved methodically, step by step.
“Sharu, our current situation is truly far from good. Every single day, we struggle immensely just to hunt down any worthwhile prey,” Riven interjected, his face clouded with worry.
“Tell me exactly how your hunts usually go,” Elizabeth demanded pragmatically, intending to fully grasp the logistical details before making any decisions.
“Ordinary, edible animals are dreadfully scarce in these woods, and true Wild Beasts saturated with energy are almost nonexistent here. Just tracking down and finding any sizable prey takes our men an entire day of grueling marching. Hunting enough meat to satisfy even a fraction of our needs requires at least three days of continuous, back-breaking labor in the wild,” Riven shook his head helplessly and sighed heavily.
Before passing away yesterday, the elder had managed to thoroughly explain the classification of the local fauna to Elizabeth. Based on their power and energy saturation, Wild Beasts were divided into four primary tiers: Common Beasts, the more powerful Elite Beasts, Ancient Beasts, and Royal Beasts.
Conversely, wild chickens, pheasants, forest rabbits, and ordinary boars were treated merely as normal animals, completely devoid of aura.
However, for Totem Warriors to maintain their inhuman strength, advance their Totemic Marks, and sustain high vitality in combat, they had to regularly consume massive quantities of highly nutritious Wild Beast Meat and constantly undergo grueling physical training.
After a moment of deep thought, Elizabeth looked up and asked:
“The dried meat we currently have stockpiled - how long will it last our people?”
“Do you mean the rations calculated exclusively for the Warriors, or for absolutely every member of the Tribe without exception?” Neria asked for clarification.
“I am asking about everyone, of course. My goal is to reach a point in the near future where every single member of our tribe, from child to elder, can eat fresh meat until they are completely full, every single day,” Elizabeth stated with deadly seriousness and calm.
“…”
Neria and Riven were literally struck speechless. They exchanged a look of pure bewilderment before staring at their newly appointed, twenty-year-old Sharu exactly as one would look at someone who had completely lost their mind.
How could anyone in their right mind utter such naive, foolish words in a world plagued by eternal starvation?
Even during their greatest golden age, when they safely inhabited the fertile Ancestral Lands, the tribe had never been able to afford the luxury of letting every single clan member stuff their bellies with meat without restriction.
“Sharu… what you speak of is absolutely impossible to achieve,” Neria instinctively touched her curved horns and explained with a heavy sigh:
“The meager scraps of dried meat our tribe currently has in reserve wouldn't even last a single full day if we allowed everyone to eat their fill.”
“That's the honest truth. The little kids in the camp have appetites exactly like starving Wolf Cubs - they can devour mountains of meat in the blink of an eye,” Riven added with an exceptionally bitter, helpless expression.