When she ran after Morilia through the village, Nicole saw women and children hurrying past her in the opposite direction. Meanwhile, more and more men seemed to be heading in the same direction she was.
Soon enough, Nicole heard squeaks and human voices. The closer she got, the louder the sounds became—until, rounding another hut, she saw the scene: the village gate was wide open, and strange, rat-like creatures were pouring in.
For a few seconds, she just stood there, stunned, watching as the monsters attacked the first people they saw.
What the fuck are those?They look like dog-sized rats. Ew. And what’s that? Their backs look like some kind of… chitin? And their tails look pointy too.
A sharp slap across her cheek snapped her out of the daze. She blinked a few times and looked at Morilia.
"Wake up, girl! Get to work! Unless you want to get stung and poisoned by one of those bastards. It hurts—badly."
As Morilia said that, one of the rats lunged at her, but she swiftly stabbed it in the head with deadly precision.
Only then did Nicole truly grasp the situation. She looked around and spotted one of the creatures closest to her. Mimicking her teacher, she tried to stab it, but the rat dodged and, without breaking pace, lunged for her leg. Nicole saw its huge teeth in a gaping mouth, ready to feast on her flesh.
Luckily, she managed to step back in time and counter with a spear thrust. This time, her weapon connected and pierced its armored spine with a sickening crunch. The creature let out a loud dying squeak, and Nicole was already searching for her next target. But to her shock, the rat's tail flicked as it died, launching a sharp tip in her direction. Miraculously, it missed her by inches.
Oh great. Not just poisonous overgrown rats—they can shoot darts too.
As she caught her breath, Nicole looked around. Everyone was either locked in combat with the creatures or hauling away those too injured to continue fighting.
She quickly spotted Morilia, who danced across the battlefield with graceful brutality, her spear soaked in blood and a confident smile on her face.
After taking down three more rats, Nicole began to tire.
Damn. Training and sparring is one thing, but an actual fight for my life? That’s something else entirely. I really need to get stronger—and train more seriously for monsters.
As the number of creatures began to dwindle, Nicole shifted tactics. Instead of hunting new targets, she began helping others who were struggling. She backstabbed one of the rats attacking a villager, who gave her a nod of thanks before moving on.
That’s actually a genius idea. This way I’m still helping in the fight—and some of them might remember I helped them personally.
She kept up the support strategy until it seemed the attack was finally over. Nicole and the others stood in a bloody mess of oversized rat corpses. She wiped sweat from her brow and spent the next five minutes making sure every last creature was truly dead.
Good. Looks like they’re all gone.
After checking the last nearby corpse, she noticed Morilia talking with a group of villagers. Women and children had started returning, many looking with interest at the battleground.
Nicole turned to head toward Morilia, but a noise behind her made her freeze. One of the rats leapt to its feet and darted into the village. People screamed and scattered, desperate not to be its next prey.
Damn it.
Nicole sprinted after it but wasn’t fast enough. The rat—larger than any she’d seen today—pounced on a young girl who had tripped trying to follow her mother. It bit into the girl’s arm, then climbed a nearby hut and disappeared from sight.
Nicole didn’t hesitate. She and a few guards followed the sound of the girl’s screams, eventually cornering the rat between two huts. Nicole approached from one side, a guard from the other.
The girl lay unconscious, blood pouring from the wound on her arm still clutched in the rat’s jaws. The creature began to panic, swinging its head between Nicole and the guard. They edged closer, trying not to spook it into hurting the girl further.
When Nicole was close enough, she lunged with her spear aimed at the rat’s torso. The creature dodged, receiving only a shallow wound—but it released the girl.
Now that she was clear of danger, Nicole and the guard wasted no time. They killed the rat quickly, then rushed to the girl’s side. Blood pooled beneath her. Nicole crouched and checked her pulse.
"She’s dead."
Nicole swallowed hard and lifted the small, fragile body in her arms.
She can’t be more than five.
"Do you know her mother? Or someone we should… give her to?"
"Just leave it to me. The village is small—we all know each other."
"Thank you. I… I don’t think I could face her parents."
She handed over the girl’s body. The guard nodded and walked away slowly. Nicole stayed behind, her gaze locked on the rat’s corpse.
Fucking overgrown pest.
Out of rage, she kicked it—once, then again. Her hands trembling, she drove her spear into its body again and again. She wasn’t crying, but her chest felt tight.
This isn’t fair. Sure, people die all the time. But not like this. Not in some random alley, killed by a rat.
She only stopped when the creature was nothing more than a mess of blood, chitin, and bone. She tried to breathe slowly—but then turned and vomited beside the carcass.
Afterward, she felt a little better—enough to return to the front gates. The rats were gone and she didn’t care where.
Morilia approached her, smiling.
"So, how’d you like that? Some call me crazy, but I enjoy it every time something dumb enough tries to attack the vill—"
Slap.
Nicole’s hand landed hard on Morilia’s cheek, turning her head.
"How did I like that?! A girl died in front of me! Because of me! How—"
Slap.
This time, Morilia slapped Nicole. She grabbed her by the neck, grip tight enough to make breathing difficult.
"What was that, girl? Calm down. Someone died. So what? Everyone dies. That girl—or her mother—was stupid enough to be there. Doesn’t matter. What does matter is that you get strong enough to protect the ones you do care about. Did you know her? No? Then why aren’t you angry all the time—people die every day."
She let go and walked away. Nicole coughed, regaining her breath.
She… maybe she has a point. Maybe they're just used to death here. But how else am I supposed to react to a dead child? Especially when it’s my fault.
Some booze and a cigarette would really help right now.
Nicole returned to her and Soi’s hut. It was afternoon and Soi wasn’t there—probably still in the forest.
Too tired to train or talk to Morilia, Nicole picked up the AI pen and began updating the info she'd gathered about the island, hoping it would distract her from the day's events...
When Soi came back, Nicole told her about the attack by giant rats.
"Oh, yeah. I already knew. We heard the horn. But since it wasn’t an extreme emergency, my mentor and I decided to stay in the forest."
"And how did you know it wasn’t?"
"Oh, right. You probably don’t know—there are a few different horns used to signal how serious the threat is. Since those were just Chitarrats, it was a small danger. I heard only two guards died, and a younger girl who was just unlucky."
"Y-yeah. Though no one should have, in the first place. By the way, how often do these attacks happen?"
Soi took a moment to think before answering.
"Well, it happens from time to time, but I think it’s about once every thirty or forty days, on average."
"Oh, okay. At least it’s not too often."
The next morning, Nicole went to the training grounds with a heavy heart. When she arrived, Morilia greeted her as usual.
So are we just going to ignore what happened yesterday?
"Hey, uh, can we talk for a second?"
"I already said, it doesn’t matter. I don’t care. If you want to cry about it to someone, go ahead."
"I think I get your point, but I can’t just forget about it."
"I never said you should. Just…" The woman sighed. "Not with me, alright?"
Nicole nodded slowly. "O-okay."
"If we’re done with that, let’s start."
Over the next few days, Nicole fell back into her training routine. Olimar joined them a few times to spar with her again. She won two out of the three matches.
Nicole tried not to think too much about the girl’s death. After all, she had something important to focus on—her duel with Dellas. She was already in bed when it hit her: there was only one day left before the deadline.
The next morning, after finishing their warm-up routine, Morilia spoke with a serious expression.
"Alright. The big day is almost here. You should take today to relax, so you can do your best tomorrow. We’ll finish early. But I can’t let you go without any training at all."
Morilia spun her spear and stuck its tip into the ground, releasing it to stand upright.
"Like the first day. Come at me. Show me your best."
Nicole smiled, then mirrored her by planting her own spear into the ground.
"Don’t mind if I do."
"What?"
Nicole attacked without answering. Closing the gap, she threw a few punches, then jumped back before Morilia could counter or grab her. She repeated the tactic a few times but quickly noticed it wasn’t working. Morilia just stood in place, arms raised in a defensive stance, smirking at her.
Is she mocking me? No way I’m falling for that. No matter how strong she is, she can’t just tank my hits forever.
Nicole kept up the strategy, careful not to stay in range for too long. She aimed her punches and kicks at different parts—arms, legs, torso—but nothing made Morilia react.
"Come on, girl. I said do your best! Are those your strongest hits? You’re not beating anyone with that!"
Nicole was starting to get bored—and curious. What if she stopped caring about defense altogether? What would Morilia do?
This time, she attacked relentlessly, without backing off. She kept striking until she was panting and slowing down. Only then did she step back.
Morilia smiled slightly and stretched her arms. Nicole noticed she was breathing hard too.
"Well, that’s at least something."
Then Morilia stood in front of her, completely unguarded.
"Now, hit me as hard as you can. Put everything into that one strike."
Nicole sighed and stepped closer. She bounced in place a little to get into rhythm, then kicked hard, aiming at Morilia’s head. Even though it was blocked in time, the impact was enough to make the woman groan slightly.
They continued practicing close combat for the next few hours. Nicole found herself recalling Krav Maga training, and by the end, she felt more confident fighting without a spear. It was afternoon when Morilia finally called it.
"That’s enough. Like I said, we can’t overwork you today. But before you go rest—one more thing. Wait here."
She left and headed toward one of the huts on the training grounds. A moment later, she returned carrying a leather package tied with thick rope. She grinned and handed it to Nicole.
"I realized this might help. Consider it a graduation gift."
Nicole took the bundle, unsure what was inside. "Thanks. But… graduation?"
"Yeah. I spent almost two full weeks training you, just so you can show that idiot his place. Tomorrow’s duel is your final test. Besides, I need to get back to my own training—and I bet you’ve got more planned than just standing here sparring every day, right?"
Nicole hugged Morilia. "Thank you for everything. I won’t fail you."
"Of course you won’t. I believe in you."
With her spear in one hand and the gift in the other, Nicole returned to her hut. She untied the rope and unfolded the leather package.
Hoho, that’s generous of her.
On the floor in front of her was a full set of leather armor: fingerless gloves, sandals, a knee-length skirt, and a torso piece. Nicole quickly put it on to check the fit. Once dressed, she walked around the hut.
Damn, she somehow managed to almost perfectly get my size. It’s comfy—and way better protection than what I got from Soi.
Caught up in the excitement, Nicole grabbed her spear and began posing as if she were in a fight. In her head, it looked badass.
Just then, the hut’s door opened and Soi walked in. She froze when she saw Nicole.
"Oh, you’re back already? Look what Morilia gave me!"
After a moment, the catgirl approached to get a closer look.
"That’s great, Nicole! You look absolutely amazing. There’s no way Dellas stands a chance against you!"
"Yep. This makes things a lot easier. I was thinking of borrowing a bit from you, or maybe making another deal with Izab. But now I don’t need to."
They chatted about the armor until their excitement settled.
"Morilia said I should relax for the rest of the day. Do you have anything in mind we could do together? Unless you’ve got plans already, that is."
"Hmmm." Soi’s expression shifted to a teasing grin.
"You know, a few days ago, when that whole thing with the Motherwort happened—you mentioned something like… b, d, m, s? I don’t remember exactly. Want to explain what that is?"
Oh right. I forgot that when you ask natives "what should we do", they usually think of sex first.
"It’s BDSM. It’s short for ‘rough sex with bondage and one person dominating the other.’ And well, that’s really all it is. But I guess you guys already do that stuff without needing names for it."
"Oh, all right. So… wanna do it?" Soi asked, licking her lips.
"Sure, but not now. Let’s spend some time together without making it all about sex. You know—like actual friends."
Slightly disappointed, Soi nodded.
Instead, they went to the beach for a swim, and when they got bored, they just sat on the sand talking. Nicole took the chance to ask about the island and its inhabitants. She learned that the harpies had villages on a giant flying mountain, and that near the center of the island was a place called Ezor’s Grave—so dangerous even the Lamias avoided it.
"Alright… and who’s Ezor? I doubt the most dangerous place on the island is named after someone unimportant."
"Oh, it’s simple. He created the world. But then he was betrayed and killed. And right where that happened, the wasteland appeared."
"Hm. I’m curious about the whole story. And you mentioned you worship a different deity, right? Why not the one who created everything?"
Soi looked proud. "Yes, Meriam—the Caretaker of the Torakai tribe. I’m probably not the best person to tell the full story, but here are the essentials: At the start, there was Ezor, who created the world. But he was lonely, so he created Yiavn and gave her part of his power."
Nicole listened intently.
"Yiavn was the one who filled the world with plants, animals, and tribes. But then an evil god named Posac came and killed Ezor. And he took Yiavn for himself."
"He just… came? Where from?"
"That’s a hard question. Some say he always existed, hiding. Others say he’s the son of Ezor and Yiavn."
Hm, that’s odd. Things this important are usually clearer in religions. Then again, I’m using Earth logic here.
"In any case, Posac and Yiavn had twelve children. Each one chose a tribe and became its Caretaker. That’s the short version—ignoring smaller stuff, like the pig tribe thing."
Nicole raised an eyebrow. "Pig tribe thing?"
Soi sighed. "It’s a long story, and not really important. At least, not while you’re here—safe from those… dirty animals. Most tribes prefer to forget they even exist."
"Wow, where’s all that hate coming from?"
Damn. All races turned against one? I wonder if the tribes hate each other too. Good old racism.
Soi stared out at the water in silence for a minute. Seeing her reaction, Nicole changed the subject.
"Have you guys ever tried to see what’s past the horizon?"
"Huh?" Soi blinked a few times, pulled from her thoughts. "If you sail far enough, a water vortex swallows everything. Or at least, that’s what people say, those who saw from afar those that actually tried."
"Oh. That’s…" Nicole wanted to say "strange," but considering everything she’d seen, she wasn’t sure what counted as strange anymore.
After that, they switched to lighter topics and eventually headed home. Nicole decided to go to bed early—just in case.