"Is Nicole here? Izab has ordered us to bring her to him."
Nicole stepped forward and stood beside Soi.
"Huh? What does he want from me?"
"You'll find out when you face the elders. Follow us, or we’ll be forced to make you."
With that, the guards turned and walked off. Nicole and Soi quickly followed.
The group soon arrived at the large building where Nicole had previously spoken with Izab. Inside, several Torakai were already gathered. Izab sat in his usual spot, and to Nicole's surprise, Dellas was there too—positioned between Izab and the exit, standing on the left side of the room.
Next to him stood a few villagers Nicole didn’t recognize.
Oh, hell no. Not this moron again. What does he want from me now?
A little farther off stood another man—after a moment, Nicole recognized him as the guard who had accompanied her to retrieve her spear and old clothes from the storage.
The guards bowed to the elder and then stepped aside to stand near the exit, leaving Nicole and Soi before Izab.
"So, what’s the occasion?" Nicole asked boldly.
Izab raised a hand, silencing her.
"Soi, this doesn’t concern you. You may stay, but step back."
Soi obediently moved to stand by the wall.
"Good. Since the other two elders didn't attend, I’ll act as sole judge today."
He paused before continuing.
"Nicole, you are accused of assaulting a villager, stealing his possessions, and taking supplies from the village storage."
He gestured to Dellas and the villagers beside him.
"You may explain."
Dellas smirked.
"A few days ago, I was fishing on the beach, trying out a new spot away from the village. Then this… woman appeared out of nowhere and took the fish I had just caught! She told me to undress and that she’ll rape me—or else she’d take all my precious fish that I had been catching since early morning! I tried to resist, but she attacked me out of nowhere! I blacked out, and when I woke up, the fish were gone."
What the actual fuck?! I didn’t expect him to stoop this low—to completely make up a story like that. Especially after what he did to me!
Dellas paused dramatically, then continued.
"But I, like a proper Torakai, showed her mercy and didn’t report her. But today, I saw her sneaking into the storage hut. The guard was distracted, and I saw her take a fruit! I couldn’t stay silent anymore. I had other matters first, but when I could, I came straight here. That’s the end of my story, Elder Izab."
He bowed theatrically.
"That’s insane bullshit and you know it!" Nicole burst out.
Again, Izab raised his hand.
"Wait your turn, girl. Next accuser: Retika. Please speak."
A blonde girl stepped forward. She had long, blonde hair and even through everyone in the village Nicole saw so far looked good, Retika was of a rare beauty. Perfect figure, toned body and her simmetrical face features made her a sight to behold.
So that’s who she is. But what kind of garbage is she about to say? I don’t even know her personally.
"Last night, I was with my friend Joreth at his house. Then, out of nowhere, she barged in, shouted at me, and said Joreth was supposed to be hers! Then she beat me and threw me out of the hut. Elder Izab, I ask you sincerely—punish this wild, crude… creature."
Even from across the room, Nicole could see Retika’s eyes glisten as if she were holding back tears.
"If… if you want, I can show you the bruises she left on me."
"There’s no need, Retika. If that’s all, let’s hear from the witness."
Izab turned to the guard from the storage hut. The man looked uncomfortable, and Nicole noticed how his eyes flicked nervously toward Dellas and Retika.
"Uh… I didn’t see her take anything, but when she left the storage, she was acting a bit strange… So… I think it’s suspicious."
Nicole stared at the whole scene in disbelief.
"Now, Nicole. What do you have to say in response to these accusations?"
WHAT THE HELL AM I EVEN SUPPOSED TO SAY?!
"Obviously, I didn’t do any of that. They’re all lying. Ask Joreth. As for Dellas—yeah, I beat him. And he deserved it. I went swimming, and when I came back, he had taken all my clothes and said I had to have sex with him to get them back. So I taught him a lesson."
Dellas quickly jumped in.
"It was just a joke! I would’ve given them back!"
"Oh, really? Doesn’t matter. I’m not sorry for what I did. Next: the fruit and the night. I was walking around the village when I heard voices from a hut. I saw Retika and Joreth arguing. After she left, I… spent the night with Joreth. In the morning, he gave me the fruit. That’s it."
Should I add that he said he stole the fruit from his grandfather for Retika? Oh—wait. That explains why she’s here. Someone’s mad they didn’t get the gift, hah.
Retika pointed at Nicole accusingly.
"That’s suspicious! Why were you walking around at night? To steal, obviously! You’re a thief!"
"No, I’m not! I was just horny, you dumb fucking bitch!" Nicole snapped.
She was quickly losing patience with the whole situation.
"Why isn’t Joreth here? He could clear all this up."
"I already sent a guard to fetch him," Izab said calmly, unfazed by the arguing.
Moments later, Joreth entered with a guard, looking nervous as he approached Izab.
"Joreth, tell us. Who stole the Escu fruit?"
"Uh… um… how would I know? The guard told me what this is all about on the way here. All I can say is, yes, I argued with Retika, and after she left, Nicole came. That’s all."
Wow, I thought he’d be more honest. Whatever. I didn’t do anything wrong, and I’m not giving that fruit back. Should’ve eaten it when I had the chance.
Izab let out a long sigh. His voice was stern.
"I see. Listen. First of all—" he pointed at Joreth, "—you’re the real thief. You think you’re good at sneaking around? You’re not."
Joreth’s eyes widened, mouth opening in shock, but no words came out.
"As for the rest, I don’t know who’s telling the truth about the fighting, and I don’t care. You’ll either stop arguing now, or settle it in a duel. What will it be?"
Silence fell over the room. Then, Retika sighed.
"Fine. I don’t need to prove anything to this girl. I’ll get another Escu fruit. Fighting over it is pointless. I’m not a fighter anyway."
Nicole smirked.
"Good. I don’t care about you either. But you…" she turned to Dellas, her smirk turning into a grin,
"…you wasted enough of my time. And I’ve been planning to train anyway. Let’s fight. Two weeks. We meet at the guard training grounds. If you don’t show, the whole village will know you’re a pathetic coward."
Dellas grinned back.
"Let’s make it interesting. If I win, you’re mine. There aren’t many slaves in this village, and having one would raise my status. I’ll enjoy that body of yours… then sell you off. How about that? Scared now?"
Wait, they have slavery here? Huh. I never thought about it… Doesn’t matter. He won’t win.
"I think you’re forgetting something. You won’t win. And when I do… Hey, Soi, what should we do with this dumbass?"
Soi, who had stood silently this whole time, stepped beside Nicole.
"Hmm. Why not make him your slave?"
"Hell no. I don’t need that idiot around. He’d just be a pain."
"True… Then let’s banish him from the village. It’s not the first time Dellas has caused trouble. No one likes him anyway."
"Nah, we should get something out of it. Just exiling him gains us nothing. Oh! I’ve got it. You’ll have to give me ten different fruits that permanently increase my strength—like the one I got from the elders when I first arrived."
"Fine, whatever. Not like you’ll win anyway."
"Hah. We’ll see."
Nicole turned to leave, but Izab stopped her.
"Wait, Nicole. It’s not over yet. Before we end this, I must officially punish Joreth for his crime."
The elder stood and approached the young man.
"You stole from the village storage, which is a crime against our entire community. However, since it was just one fruit, I can't be too harsh. You’re sentenced to join the Gildwood transport team when they return. You’ll make three trips with them—unpaid, of course."
Joreth swallowed hard.
"I… I understand."
"Then everyone is dismissed."
On the way back, Nicole turned to Soi.
"Um, what exactly is Gildwood? I assume it’s some kind of tree?"
"Mhm. Let me explain. Those trees absorb sunlight during the day and get really hot. Even at night, they stay warm. Gildwood—also called 'Sun Trees'—have valuable fruit and tough wood. But they only grow high up in the mountains. Plus, they’re often surrounded by a dangerous plant called Scarlet Flower."
"What’s so bad about those flowers? Honestly, with everything I’ve seen, I wouldn’t be surprised if they tried to eat people alive."
"I don’t know the full details, but they rot everything around them—except Sun Trees, for some reason. That’s why our village sends out special teams to harvest Gildwood. Not everyone comes back… But those who do are celebrated."
"Ugh. Is everything on this island trying to kill me?"
What is this place—a fucking Australia?!
"Haha, no! But you do have to be careful."
The rest of the evening passed uneventfully. Nicole ate the Escu fruit and immediately felt a subtle change—she was lighter on her feet, her movements quicker and more agile.
Hm, makes sense. Soi mentioned it is used to add lightning powers to their claws.
Afterward, the girls spent some time at the beach before heading back home.