A tear slid from Jira’s eye, and then his features twisted into a ferocious scowl.
“To get me to do her bidding, she willingly mated with me.
I left a deep bite mark on the inner side of her thigh.
It shouldn’t have completely faded yet.”
Dora’s face went deathly pale.
Her body trembled uncontrollably as tears spilled from her eyes.
“He’s lying!
I didn’t!
I didn’t!”
Mating with a Wandering Beast was the ultimate disgrace for any young female.
This revelation was tantamount to roasting Dora over an open fire.
“We’ll know if he’s lying or not once we check.” Misha raised an eyebrow.
She hadn’t expected such a welcome surprise.
“No!
What gives you the right to examine my body?
I won’t allow it!”
Dora, looking utterly panicked, hid behind her father with a blatantly guilty expression.
With that reaction, everyone present immediately understood the truth.
Saki’s chest heaved violently.
He closed his eyes, forcing down the rage boiling within him.
“Clan Leader of the Deer Clan, this is our tribe’s private matter.
I must ask you to step away.”
Reya, however, disagreed.
“Dora destroyed the tribe’s salt storage, which affects both the Deer Clan and the Rabbit Clan.
This is a matter for all three clans, not just a private affair of the Dog Clan.”
Klein nodded.
“The male Reya is right.
This is a matter for the three clans, and the Clan Leader of the Dog Clan owes us an explanation.”
The other males began to clamor, demanding a public explanation.
With things having reached this point, Saki could no longer deny it.
He had no choice but to speak up.
“Because of her jealousy, Dora framed Misha.
I am willing to pay thirty medium-sized prey as compensation, and I will have Dora apologize to the young female Misha in public.”
“Is that all?” Reya frowned.
“What about the destruction of the tribe’s salt storage?”
“Although Dora damaged the salt storage, most of the salt is still intact.
I am willing to repay all of it to the Rabbit Clan and the Deer Clan.”
Saki had originally intended to hoard that salt for himself, but that was no longer possible.
“Chief Saki dares to openly show favoritism and cover up for his own female cub in front of everyone.
It’s truly hard to trust you anymore.
I suggest you hand over half of your Clan Leader authority and let a capable male inherit it, so you can supervise each other,” Misha said coldly.
She hadn’t caused this entire scene today just for some trivial apologies and compensation.
“You…
don’t push it too far!” Saki’s eyes were bloodshot, and his teeth ground together audibly.
“What does everyone think?” Misha looked at the crowd.
Who wouldn’t want to be the Clan Leader?
“I agree.”
“I agree too.
What the Clan Leader has done really makes him untrustworthy.
Today he can slander Misha for Dora; another day he might dare to slander other young females.
This is unacceptable.”
“Exactly!
Dora has a wicked temper and doesn’t get along with the young females in my family either.
If she gets upset one day, wouldn’t the Clan Leader lock my young females in the dark room just to appease her?”
At the mention of their young females, the men became even more unwilling to back down.
Misha was very satisfied.
This was exactly the effect she wanted.
A soldier who didn’t want to be a general wasn’t a good soldier, especially in the cutthroat Beastman World, where the strong preyed on the weak.
She added, “Clan Leader of the Rabbit Clan, Clan Leader of the Deer Clan, what do you think?”
The Rabbit Clan Leader hesitated slightly.
After all, he had known Saki for many years and couldn’t bear to see things end up like this.
Klein, the Deer Clan Leader, also remained silent.
Misha continued to add fuel to the fire.
“Chief Saki can harm a young female for his own selfish desires today.
There’s no guarantee he won’t harm the Rabbit Clan and the Deer Clan for other benefits in the future.
After all, the territorial dispute is about to begin.”
She didn’t need to say more; her point had been made.
The Dog Clan, Rabbit Clan, and Deer Clan were neighbors.
Every three years, the three tribes engaged in a territorial dispute.
The young males of the tribes would duel, and the victors would determine the size of each tribe’s territory.
Klein narrowed his eyes and immediately made his stance clear.
“I agree with the young female Misha’s suggestion.”
Since it involved the territorial dispute, the Rabbit Clan Leader no longer hesitated.
“Chief Saki’s actions were indeed inappropriate.
Who’s to say unfair things won’t happen again in the future…”
Saki’s face turned ashen.
“Fine.
I am willing to hand over half of the Clan Leader’s authority, and its ownership will be decided by a duel.”
Soon, the Dog Clan Tribe held a duel for the clan’s authority.
Every male in the tribe was eligible to participate.
Eager to try their luck, the young males cracked their knuckles and eagerly stepped into the arena.
The weakest contenders were eliminated on the very first day, followed by slightly stronger participants on the second.
By the fifth day, the crucible had left only six males standing: Reya, Jisen, Caesar, Carl, Bo Ya, and Buta.
The final match would be a free-for-all brawl.
The last male standing would claim half of the clan’s authority.
To ensure everyone was at their best for this ultimate battle, the final match was scheduled for three days later.
At that time, the Rabbit Clan Leader and Klein, the Deer Clan Leader, would both be present to ensure fairness.
During these three days, the remaining males did nothing but train their bodies and conserve their energy, preparing for the final fight.
He paused at the doorway, scanning his surroundings, yet nothing seemed to be missing.
Everything was exactly as they had left it.
Misha looked at him in confusion.
“What’s wrong?”
“There’s something off about the house, but I can’t quite put my finger on it,” Reya said, his expression grave.
Misha glanced around but didn’t notice anything unusual either.
She secretly asked the system in her mind, “System, is there something wrong here?”
[The host will know after a single scan!
By spending just 5 points, you can get 5 scanning opportunities!]
Misha rolled her eyes.
This system was always trying to swindle away her points.
“Tomorrow is the final duel, so we need to be careful.
Don’t touch or eat anything in the house,” she advised him.
“Okay.” Reya nodded obediently.
Early the next morning, Reya went out hunting and caught a few rabbits to stave off his hunger.
Even when getting water from the stream, he waited to watch other animals drink first before he did, ensuring it was safe and untainted.
Meanwhile, a large crowd of males had already gathered in the plaza of the Dog Clan Tribe.
All eyes were on the five males standing in the center.
Klein and the Rabbit Clan Leader had also arrived early to watch the battle from the sidelines.
“Young female Misha, is Reya not here yet?” Saki scanned the area, a flash of smugness crossing his eyes.
“He’ll be here in a moment.” Misha, holding the little black bear, shot him a sidelong glance.
Her insubordinate attitude made Saki glare in fury.
“He dares to be late for something as important as the battle for the clan’s authority?
Can we even rely on him to protect the tribe?”
“Whether someone is capable is proven with their fists, not your mouth.”
Ever since they had openly vied for power, all pretenses had been dropped.
Misha had no intention of feigning harmony with Saki any longer.
“You, you…” Saki was flushed red with anger, the veins in his neck bulging.
“Misha, the Clan Leader is right.
The battle for the clan’s authority is very important, and it’s better to be cautious.
Reya being late is already a bad sign.
If he was too afraid to show up, he should have at least said something beforehand.” Caesar feigned an understanding tone, stopping just short of an outright accusation.
Yet, his words clearly implied that Reya had fled at the last minute and was utterly unreliable.
“Who says I’m afraid?” Reya walked over slowly, carrying a woven basket on his back.
He set the basket on the ground and pulled back the animal skin covering it, revealing a pile of bright red fruit inside.
“I was worried the young females might get bored watching the duel, so I specifically asked Reya to pick some fruit for everyone to snack on.
Is that not allowed?” Misha looked provocatively at Saki.
Saki’s entire body trembled with rage.
He looked as if he wanted nothing more than to tear her apart right then and there.