Not far from Thunder Valley, Zern, Olup, and four other chimpanzees were patrolling the area, searching for clues and traces of the scorpions, without success, which was both a positive... and a negative.

  "Nothing." Olup came back, nding from a tree, right before Zern, who was kneeling on the ground, touching the soil, trying to feel traces they may have left behind, underground.

  "They either departed early after provoking you and were already far away by the next day, or they hid close by. I have a feeling something is after them… not just us."

  "Why would they remain if that's the case?" Olup asked, "If they are really being hunted down, I would have already run away in their pce."

  "And where will you flee?" Zern asked, "Go south into the human territory? This is their best bet... Let whatever is after them come; fight the vilge that is supported by humans... If we don't come and help, the alliance will break down. If we come and help, we fight, we might kill him, and then they can be saved. Or we die, but weaken him… So they can move in for the kill. I'd do the same as them, to be honest."

  "If they are truly hunted, as you believe." Olup muttered to himself, "But… I still need to learn how to think like a human.... So... I never thought about those opportunities."

  "The clues we saw… clearly indicate that…" Zern stood up, smiling, "But it's just my specution. Still, I have a gut feeling they didn't leave because of what I just told you. We haven't discovered any traces of them since morning, and it is past noon by now. That's the first clue. If they are in a hurry to run away, they must have left behind something we can find... If not, it means they didn't leave. Simple as that."

  "For a human, you are quite smart."

  Hearing the voice... Both of them realized it was someone... they didn't know. Just as the foreign, young voice finished speaking, Zern had already crushed the jade in his pocket, turning his body into metal, and meeting the incoming, cwed, thin hand that sent him skidding backward.

  "Oh. Strong, too!" the short figure nodded, standing before them while Olup and the rest surrounded him at once.

  At first gnce, the figure was only around a meter tall, looking like a young, thin boy with short, bck, spiky hair. His body was covered, except his chest, with rough, grayish-brown colored, short fur and accompanying bck, horizontal stripes. Apparently, he wasn't afraid of them at all, as his human-like face wore a slight grin, showcasing his sharp canine teeth, and he let them surround him.

  "Those pointy-tailed bastards thought they were so smart..." He chuckled, "I already received news about your little hybrid vilge, stained with the smell of humans. I pnned to deal with you after I caught them... Oh well! This makes it easier for me."

  "You are alone against six of us," Olup spoke up, holding a staff, his fingers tightening around it. "Why do you think you can deal with us?"

  "Because I am stronger than you six. Don't worry, I know what kind of settlement you built nearby, and it has some strong fighters." He nodded, gncing around, "But I am confident that I could escape even if all of them gang up on me."

  "I want to see that happening," resonated another voice as Poli appeared, standing on his sword, floating above them all. Just as he finished, at the same time, Kang also arrived from the trees, coming through like a bulldozer, already having his bone armor surrounding his body.

  "Oh? That's unique. I dislike flying enemies; it's a cheap skill to have." The boy nodded, looking up at Poli before scanning his enemies. "That's all? No more is on the way?"

  "..." Poli furrowed his brow, listening to him... Being this confident... He had to take this seriously.

  "Okay, if those idiots can't deal with the rest staying at the vilge, they aren't worthy of keeping around." The boy chuckled, cracking his knuckles, "This is going to be the st chance I give them. I'll deal with you here and check out their progress after! Who knows? Maybe I'll munch on some of them for a snack if you manage to tire me out." he giggled as he targeted Kang right from the start, moving like a fsh, arriving before him in a blink and punching him in the stomach. It was a jarring contrast, watching a small, kid-like frame punch the giant, armor-wearing white goril in the belly, sending him flying and cracking his armor in a snap.

  "Seesh, you are a hard walnut!" He shook his hand with another giggle, dodging the strikes of Olup and his warriors, dancing around them, finally grabbing the st one's staff. Without any effort, he was pulling it forward before delivering another kick, supporting his body with his own tail that snapped free from around his waist. The poor chimpanzee, whose weapon was grabbed immediately, spat blood, flew backward, and knocked another to the ground, no longer moving.

  As for the boy, when his leg nded on the ground, two hands stretched out, grabbing onto his feet, trying to lock him in pce. Of course, it was Zern touching the ground a few meters away, conjuring the attack. With an excited grin, the boy just leaned back, bending himself like he had no spine, using his tail as support once again, dodging the incoming sword that shaved off a few strands of fur from his body, scattering it in the air.

  "You are good!" He ughed again before stabbing his tail like a weapon into the earth, freeing his leg and jumping backward before Kang could nd on him, returning from the previous attack. "My, my," he sighed, checking the shaved-off patch on his stomach. "That was close; you almost cut off my nipples, too. But, at least you are worthy of fighting me. My name is Matu. Remember it as you die," he ughed as his aura billowed out, and it was suffocating to experience... "Don't make the others from your tiny vilge wait in the afterlife~!"

  "Vilge strong. Bugs won't hurt." Kang snorted, rushing at him again, smashing down with two hands, but he could only hit the ground. Matu moved way too quickly, easily dodging him, but there was another one who was just as quick... Because a flying sword met him on the path he took, one that he needed to block with his cwed hands, letting electricity and sparks fly all around them.

  "You clearly underestimate us." Poli's words came from the left, delivering a punch, while Zern's fist whizzed through the air from the right.

  "Maybe a little. Still, it's not enough!" Matu replied, swatting once at the ground with his tail as two earth pilrs rose up, blocking the human duo's attack while the boy himself dealt with the sword coming at him from the front.

  "So he can use spells!" Olup grunted, striking at him from behind, but was blocked by Matu's tail before the mongoose just sank into the earth, disappearing.

  "Watch out!" Zern shouted to one of the chimps, but it was too te, as Matu burst out from the ground behind him, skewering him through the chest with his tail, grabbing onto his arms and using him as a shield as he rushed at another who dared not to attack because of his screaming friend. Sadly, that hesitation sealed both of their fates, as Matu just flung off the first chimpanzee, tearing him apart before cutting into the second one with his cws, gutting him on the spot.

  "Let's start with the pesky ones first; your sticks and pokey-pokey attitude get me riled up~!" He giggled, grabbing a piece of flesh from his tail and munching on it like it was some kind of snack.

  "Don't let him separate us! Attack at once!" Poli shouted, trying to rush over, but the mongoose sank again, disappearing underground. "Zern!"

  "I can't feel him clearly; he has better control over the surroundings than I do!"

  "Tsk! Group up!" Poli ordered, watching the battle from a higher vantage point, floating above them all.

  "Under you!" Zern's warning almost came in time, but as soon as Olup heard him, he felt a cw grab his leg as it went right through his thigh, tearing through it easily.

  "Gotcha~!" Matu's voice resonated in his ears as he wanted to drag him down under the earth, but Olup ughed out loud instead.

  "Yes, you are right! Got you! Do it, Kang! Don't mind me!" he held onto the thin hand with his other foot, cmping down with all of his strength, surprising Matu.

  Kang only flinched, but without any secondary hesitation, he smashed down with all of his strength, sending tremors through the ground itself. The next moment, the earth cracked, and trees fell over as the soil rippled, as if a massive boulder had been thrown into a ke. When the dust settled, what remained was Matu, standing a few meters away, blood dripping from his mouth and ears, his tail broken, and a bone sticking out from it, just like from his left hand, which was completely deformed.

  "Well… shit." The boy spat out some teeth, sticking out his tongue, and licking up his blood.

  Surprisingly, Olup was still alive, apparent from his heavy breathing and moaning, but his lower body was pulverized into nothing... Where once his legs used to be, there was only bloody, meaty paste remaining. He was bleeding from all of his orifices; clearly, the impact shook up his insides, which was lucky for him, knocking him out, so he didn't have to deal with the pain.

  "I give you this match, monkeys!" Matu nodded, "But you know this means we need to have a rematch," he winked at them before shrinking and turning into a small, furry mongoose, scurrying off.

  "Check Olup and hurry back to the vilge!" Poli shouted before rushing after him, not wanting to let him escape.

  …….…..

  It was only minutes after Kang and Poli left the vilge when the ground, after a few shakes, broke up at multiple points inside the vilge, and a dozen scorpions climbed out from underground, turning back into humanoid form and indiscriminately starting to wreak havoc. However, they did not expect the swift response from the demons living inside as Rem's sweet yet commanding voice came from the air just as they appeared.

  "Ready, Aim… Fire!"

  From above, a barrage of differently colored arrows began raining down on them at once. They were made from simple wood and crudely crafted metal arrowheads, yet they were infused with the fairies' different affinities, be it fire, wind, water, small sparks, or even purple-colored poison. In the sky, the colorful, little winged muffins were holding bows and short quivers strapped to their waists, constantly letting loose their arrows, hitting the attacking foes.

  Shaman also rushed ahead of the others and took action, throwing a fsk at one of the scorpions closing in on him, aiming at the seemingly old prey. When it crashed onto his tail, swinging in the air as he sshed at it by reflex, the fsk exploded into foul-smelling tar, spttering all over him. It didn't take a second before painful crying escaped the scorpion demon's mouth as it ate into his body, be it the scales or flesh, right down to the bones.

  "How does it feel? I made these to water those talking treefucks with my love!" Shaman ughed maniacally, tossing out more fsks, having his biggest field experiment.

  "You are still coooool, you old monkey~" Pongo ughed while she was surrounded by two scorpions, yet their every attack was missing her... and strangely... her voice was less clouded than usual.

  Pongo's eyes were surprisingly clean, if someone knew what to look for. More than that, they moved rapidly, counting the movements of every muscle of their attackers and dodging their strikes by the least amount of energy needed. It made it seem like they purposely missed her, just as the rest of the orangutans who, since st night, had stopped using their… supplements.

  As for the gorils, they formed a circle around the weak and young in the vilge to defend them, while the rest of the chimpanzees ganged up on the enemy, using their numbers over them. It was by Niji's order, telling them that at least two had to take on one at a time.

  Combining everything, the raining arrows, the coordinated attacks, and the surprisingly prepared teamwork from different tribes was something none of the scorpions could have imagined. They thought that after those with the strongest powers left, the mission would be easy... A panicked vilge, without its main pilrs, wouldn't pose a threat.

  Orsi, at first, was truly frightened while one of the female gorils picked her up, protecting her with her own body, rushing to the others. From there, watching the battlefield from the safety of their backs, she was amazed by what she saw.

  "Young Master is so strong…." She murmured softly, watching Reignar, who was also giving his best, facing off against one of the scorpions who were, in human terms, way above him.

  "Tsk…" Reignar clicked his tongue and found himself way underpowered against his enemy, but he couldn't just leave. Not now.

  Even though his hands were covered with a bronze-like luster and dancing fmes, strengthening his strikes, he couldn't cast spells like Isha or Zern and couldn't penetrate the scorpion's tough armor. He could only dance around the warrior, assaulting him constantly, keeping up the barrage of attacks, and forcing him to defend his weak points that Reignar slowly identified, trying to aim at them.

  "You may wait for me to exhaust my energy… but it's too bad for you; I can go on all night, buddy!" he smirked, keeping up the barrage, "But I seriously need to pick up the pace, or I'll be dead if, from now on, I need to fight battles like this," he grumbled nonetheless.

  Soon, the scorpions found themselves in a dire situation; some of them were already lying dead on the ground. It was... a failure, and they knew that. So, when they tried to retreat back the way they came, the worst had happened to them: Kang had arrived. He nded in the middle of the scorpions, grabbing onto one of them, lifting him up, and just tearing him into two while roaring, using the lower body of the torn warrior as a club, smashing against the closest one he could reach.

  It didn't take long to break them, and Kang, enraged by what happened with Matu, just grabbed those who even surrendered and smashed their heads into nothing, leaving none alive. There was no mercy to give...

  He had just finished off the st scorpion when a whistling sound rang out, and soon Emi showed up on the wall, a little bit out of breath, clearly showing she was hurrying here, arriving at the st moment.

  "Emi?" Niji asked with surprise.

  "Mm." She nodded, reguting her breathing, "I was sent here by my Queen. Where is he?"

  "Who?" Shaman asked, wiping his face with a cloth.

  "Their leader," she said, pointing at the scorpions.

  "Escaped. Poli after him." Kang answered, and soon Emi shook her head before rushing out again.

  "Idiots!" her voice echoed just before disappearing once again.

  "Where are the others?" Reignar approached the giant white goril, asking the same question as the battle was over, having time to look around and notice the rest of the group was still missing.

  "Coming. They have injured, slower. I hurried," Kang sighed, sitting down, looking tired.

  "Was he strong?"

  "Very. But now injured. Poli strong. No problem," he said confidently, having faith in him, letting himself rest, seeing that most of the vilge was indeed fine.

  …….…..

  Sharp, ringing noises echoed between the trees as Poli's sword struck against Matu's cws, chipping away at them very slowly as they fought while running through the forest.

  "You are persistent; I give you that," Matu groaned, fending off another round of attack, continuing to rush forward, dodging trees and branches, not only Poli's sword.

  "I won't let you escape."

  "I get it, really, I do," he chuckled, seemingly calm as they exchanged another fsh of moves in mid-air. "I would do the same. The only difference is that I would follow you silently until you let your guard down. Because you can't tell if the one in pursuit has a backup pn or not..."

  He just finished saying it when they arrived at a minor clearing. The moment Matu's feet touched the ground, it shook and crumbled, revealing a bottomless pit where multiple tunnels led deeper underground, to who knows where. Matu, shrinking back to his small, mongoose form, scurried into one of the holes, disappearing from view...

  "You little rat…." Poli spat, floating above the pit, watching the dozens of tunnels.

  "Ahaha, I learned this from one; it was a pain in my butt to hunt her down." his voice came from all the holes at once. "Anyway, I had fun fighting with you, don't worry... I am also persistent; I'll be back soon for a rematch."

  Then, just as he finished speaking, only the wind remained, accompanying Poli, who floated there for a long minute before sighing to himself.

  "Damn it…" He groaned as he turned his back to it to leave when, without a sound, four sharp-cwed fingers aimed at him, striking out from one of the tunnels like bck lightning.

  Before it could hit him, though, his sword, covered with blue electricity, fended off the attack as he performed a back kick, but Matu just retreated the moment he sensed his attack had failed to catch him off guard.

  "Bastard." Poli cursed, looking down at the ground, expecting such an attack, especially after Matu's previous speech.

  "Can't help it; I had to try," came the ughing answer, "I'll remember you, human… and I'll come and find you… until then… see ya~!”

  After that, the silence had reigned supreme once again, and when Poli turned his back one more time, no attack came at him... This time, Matu was indeed gone.