Kapitel 18: Angsty

Even if Kyle wanted to approach the presumed merchant, he remained calm and didn't rush towards him, acting as if he hadn't seen him.

He simply followed Tzc before his curiosity made him ask,

"Are you taking me to your tribe's Chief or am I going to be enslaved?"

Kyle had been suspicious about the trust Tzc had granted him easily, so everything would make more sense if he were to be enslaved right now.

This worried him a little bit, but weirdly enough, he didn't feel a desperate need to escape from the Nasga tribe's clutches.

Contrary to his expectations, Tzc shook her head almost immediately upon hearing his question.

"It looks like you've seen Zwark's slaves. Don't worry, we can't even feed ourselves properly, so how could ordinary tribesmen afford to feed someone else?

Furthermore, we have other things to take care of. Zwark is an exception, and he supports our clan!

I have to report to the tribe Chief that I brought you here and seek his permission to let you stay for a few days."

Kyle was astonished, but he remained calm and silent despite what he heard.

He simply nodded his head, while his mind was already rattling owing to his growing suspicion of Tzc.

Based on Tzc's words, Zwark must be the confident Nasga he had seen before.

At the same time, Zwark seemed to be the wealthiest in the entire tribe, which allowed him to feed slaves.

Thus, his assumption about the Nasga being a merchant must be correct as well.

If that wasn't the case, he wouldn't be able to feed his tribesmen and slaves as his energy fluctuations were not very distinct from the rest.

This meant he had yet to reach a high cultivation stage!

While following Tzc, he was deep in thoughts and was snapped out of it when Tzc stopped abruptly. He raised his head to see that they had reached the biggest hut. Tzc told him to wait outside and went inside the hut.

Kyle did as instructed and while waiting for the next ten minutes, he tried to determine the tribe's average strength according to the faint energy ripples of the primordial energy each tribesman was releasing.

The Nasga race was following the path of strength, Pryr.

Yet, 'strength' was what Kyle sensed to be the least in the tribesmen though he doubted if 'confidence' could replace it!

He had yet to sense energy currents that were stronger than someone at the Fortification stage!

It was obvious that the tribe was much weaker than he had initially estimated. There was not even a single Nasga at the Vitae stage which astonished him a little bit.

Kyle began to wonder how they had survived so far with such low combat prowess because the surroundings were very dangerous.

"It should be because the tribe is well hidden and small in size...As long as they don't attract a commotion and avoid stronger beasts, it's not impossible for the tribe to stay lowkey and unnoticed!"

Despite saying so, Kyle was able to tell that the primordial energy inside the Sadorla forest was weaker and less in quantity than the mana and spiritual force!

Since his Spirit Soul had begun to absorb all kinds of energy, Kyle was able to perceive the surrounding energies better, and it was even possible for him to clearly distinguish between them.

As such, he could tell that the Nasga's choice of habitat inside the Sadorla forest was extremely poor.

However, the same applied to the Lohar race that was also following the path of strength, Pryr!

Kyle couldn't help but shake his head, trying to make sense of the fact that two physically strength-oriented races decided to live in the worst possible location.

However, he knew that abandoning their current location to set up an establishment elsewhere would be even more difficult for them.

The adjacent areas were extremely dangerous, and posed a greater risk than openly venturing through the Sadorla forest! And based on his reading of their fluctuations, he knew that neither tribe was competent enough to carry out such a task.

While he was lost in thoughts again, Tzc returned, and she seemed to be unfazed as if nothing had happened, and Kyle was not sure whether this was a good or bad sign.

"The Chief has allowed you to stay here for three days, but we can't provide you with anything to eat because we are struggling with an acute food shortage!"

Kyle had already noticed that except Zwark, the merchant, who appeared to be healthy and well-fed, everyone looked hungry and weak while the slaves of the Lohar race looked sickly and severely malnourished.

As such, he nodded his head upon hearing Tzc's statement.

"Will I be able to meet Nasga Zwark right now? I have a few objects that could interest him!"

Tzc, who had already smelled the meat in Kyle's backpack, understood what he wanted to do. A faint smile emerged on her face, which looked grotesque, and Kyle managed to not flinch at the sight!

"If you want to sell him your meat, he will gladly accept the offer. We don't dare to go out to hunt because we have encountered too many unfortunate incidents.

You might understand the Sadorla forest's dangers, and we are glad to have someone like Zwark in our small tribe."

Kyle was still not sure why Tzc was being so friendly with him, and if there was some hidden motive behind her kind attitude.

However, what he could tell was that he shouldn't stay too long in the small tribe.

It might keep him safe from beasts, but his current situation and the Nasga tribe made him feel uncomfortable.

Somehow, he had felt more secure and comfortable in the wilderness!

Because of his gut feeling, Kyle could tell that something was off.

Thus, instead of staying idle, he decided to approach the hut in which Zwark had disappeared with two of the female slaves.

Four male and a sickly looking female Lohar had loosened the big backpacks from their back before carefully placing them on the ground as if they were made of porcelain.

The four men of the Lohar race looked as if they were beaten up badly, yet they stood in attention in front of the hut's doors as if they were guarding it.

However, Kyle was able to see a glint of fear in their eyes that intensified with every desperate cry that fell on their ears from the inside.

Meanwhile, the young girl from the Lohar race that seemed to be younger than Kyle was cowering in fear. She tried to slide in between the big backpacks, holding her long black-furred ears that twitched uncontrollably.

It was not difficult to assume what was going on inside the hut, and the closer he and Tzc came to the hut, the clearer the cries and muffled sounds from within the hut became.

Tcz had decided to follow him to prevent misunderstandings from occurring, but that worked in favor of Kyle!

While they were able to hear the gasping and moaning sounds of a male, the desperate cries of two females were clearly audible.

At this moment, Tzc looked at Kyle. She tried to figure out whether he would hold himself back from rushing into the hut, or if he would just barge into it, acting as the hero who saved the damsels in distress.

Yet, contrary to her expectations, the young man, she assumed to be from the Aldra race, was seemingly unfazed. It was as if he didn't care about the slaves inside the hut pleading with the merchant to have mercy on them.

But their pleas certainly fell on deaf ears and instead of showing mercy, the merchant made the female Lohars scream loudly, while the moaning reached its peak.

It didn't take long before Kyle could only hear the wailing noises of the two Lohars and merchant Zwark's panting as he had probably found his release.

Meanwhile, the young girl from the Lohar race looked extremely pale as if she would fall unconscious any moment.

When the merchant left the hut, she saw drops of blood dripping from his claws that had some shreds of skin and fur sticking to them.

She began to shiver uncontrollably as tears trickled down her cheeks, and even Kyle had to acknowledge that the sight was much more gruesome than he had expected.

It was not difficult to figure out that the two female slaves were not only used for laborious tasks but also to fulfill the merchant's desires!

However, what astonished him was that the black-eared girl was frowned upon by the merchant. He was just about to kick her when Zwark noticed Tzc and an unknown, young, and half-naked man standing beside her.

"Did you bring me a new slave? That's nice of you...but a male?" It seemed as if Zwark was dissatisfied, but before Tzc could say anything Kyle had taken a step forward as he introduced himself.

"Hello, esteemed merchant Zwark. My name is Kyle Lrae and I have to apologize, but I'm not a slave. Instead, I am here to offer you a deal!"