Capítulo 9: Chapter 9: A Successful... and Failed Domination
Marco's POV
"She's less confident when faced with the real thing, huh."
I now understand why the adult version of Marco could easily get Hekapoo's favors, but never ended up getting "eaten" by her.
So, if I want to move things forward, I should be more proactive.
"Well, let's now focus on developing this place and changing the old laws, shall we?" I say, looking at the elders of the Oja tribe's domain.
They all nodded, despite their obvious reluctance.
There were some minor reforms: for example, I'm the absolute ruler, but the transmission of orders and details of their execution will be left to the elders.
Of course, if there are any difficulties in carrying out the order, I'll be contacted by the elders.
There's also the fact that from now on, hunters must deliver all the blood from their prey to me, and if I'm particularly satisfied, they can receive my "blessing."
They asked me questions about this blessing, but I simply gave them a vague answer that will only fuel their greed.
'Got a disability? An illness? Or problems with ethical food? Then my blessing is for you.'
Besides that, there haven't been any major changes in the tribe.
The only notable change is the requirement to have a raven during hunting and at home.
I used the excuse that they're excellent pets and that I like seeing them in the village. In reality, they're there to watch for any anomalies to purge or anything interesting to discover.
...
6 months later
"Usurper!!!" yelled a young female warrior as she brought down her makeshift sword toward me, but she quickly found herself on the ground after I dodged her strike at the last minute and tripped her.
"Your family will never reclaim their throne with such weak strength. Are you sure you don't want my blood?" I say to the dark-skinned young girl on the ground.
I feel a bit like Muzan saying that phrase, but whose fault is it?
She should've been stronger.
"Go die!" She got up, cleaned off the dust, and left the training grounds.
Another attempted murder under the guise of a duel has failed again, poor child...
"Too bad. You're the only one somewhat worthy of having my blessing without too many 'restrictions,'" I muttered honestly.
Yes, this girl is the one who caused me trouble when I first arrived in the tribe.
Turns out she's the heir of the tribal chief who had attacked me fiercely back then.
Even though their goddess testified in my favor to the tribal people, she hates me for having "stolen" her throne.
Ridiculous. I simply took my trophy; it's my right as a conqueror, isn't it?
"You shouldn't treat a girl so roughly."
Hekapoo arrived shortly after Ehwa, the former chief's daughter, left.
"These natives only understand force and nothing else," I replied with a shrug, sharing my opinion on the matter.
I was exaggerating a bit, as they had started to appreciate my leadership since the reforms, but they were still far from satisfying me.
There was also the fact that they no longer really feared me; on the contrary, they were starting to admire me.
This had slowed down the progression of my powers, which had grown enormously during the first months.
The reason? I didn't want to torture intelligent beings. So I had settled for humiliating and degrading them in various ways (except sexually, of course).
That had worked for a while, but then a strange phenomenon occurred:
The tribe members had started working much harder to prove that my "advice" wasn't useful to these jungle veterans.
Of course, they had failed in their endeavor and had humbly bowed before my intellectual superiority, coming from my books.
Their total submission, after accepting my advice and degrading insults, had greatly boosted my strength.
But then troubles appeared.
The tribe had started to develop, but also to change on several levels:
Social, hygienic, sanitary... They had experienced a qualitative leap that had drastically reduced the disease rate.
All this looks good on paper, but their submission was no longer due to fear of my power, but to their admiration.
In short, I had shot myself in the foot.
"Should I erase their memory and start over?" I muttered before dismissing the idea.
Too much work.
"Did you come just to watch me with Ehwa or is there something else?" I said, turning my attention back to Hekapoo.
She smiled before nodding slightly.
"Indeed, there are unusual phenomena in the forest."
She started explaining a situation that some hunters had reported to her.
"So there's a dark mage in my forest?" Now that's interesting news, but also concerning.
I had planned to visit other regions of this dimension to find other Hekapoo clones, as she keeps complaining about my inactivity lately.
Unfortunately, there are no more clones in this forest. I literally searched it thoroughly using various weapons, rats, and birds.
"Yes, and he seems to be a practitioner of necromancy," she said, adopting a posture that highlighted her modest but strangely captivating chest.
Too bad, this isn't the time... Marco, stay focused.
"Oh, crap!" Hekapoo's words reminded me of an important canon event where Marco had been transformed into an animal by a damn necromancer for years.
This event actually took place in this exact dimension.
"Is there a problem with your creatures?" Hekapoo came closer with a worried tone after seeing my face turn pale.
Hekapoo is now aware of a number of my abilities, as it's difficult to avoid that when living together for months.
However, I've always been careful to keep the most dangerous aspects unknown to her.
For example, my ability to impose a contract or my growth governed by the fear inspired by the concepts of "domination" and "demon."
"Not really, but I just remembered something unpleasant," I said honestly.
I quickly regained my composure to avoid worrying Hekapoo further and began to coldly analyze the situation.
I'm facing an unknown mage with necromancy abilities, possibly also transmutation, and unknown intentions.
Great, a perfect recipe for disaster.
I'll contact Brunzetta to better cover my bases. I'm sure she'll be up for an adventure and a fight against a dark mage hiding in the forest.
"Can you ask the hunters to summon Brunzetta for me?"
After a nod from Hekapoo, I headed toward the elders.
When you have subordinates, might as well use them to assess the threat and find countermeasures.
Anyway, they owe me that much after I shared some of my powers and knowledge with this damn tribe.
....
Ehwa's POV
Damn demon.
You might have put the whole tribe to sleep with your powers, but it won't work on me, Ehwa of Oja.
I know you're not a good person, and I'll never forget the humiliation of losing my dignity that day.
Just thinking about it makes that place hurt...
"Ehwa!" A familiar voice rang out behind me as I was heading to the blacksmith to replace my weapon forgotten on the training grounds.
"Sonia," I said, turning to face a close friend.
(Image)
"I've been... looking... for you... everywhere," she said between pants, out of breath from her frantic run despite her poorly suited clothes.
"Have you heard about the forest area that suddenly died?" she asked after catching her breath.
"A forest area died? Can you explain more?"
Sonia began explaining the sorry state of a forest area that had become sterile and dead overnight.
According to the elders, there had been use of dark magic, and some claim it smells of necromancy, particularly because of the footprints left on the ground.
"This is the second time a large-scale anomaly has occurred in this forest," I said thoughtfully.
"Yes, the last one was caused by Bloody Smile, our chief," she said without thinking too much, before we both widened our eyes, realizing what this implied.
Looking at Sonia's face, it was clear she had drawn the same conclusion as me.
We are slowly but surely approaching another war for control of the forest.
"I hope Master Marco can handle the situation," she added, a fanatic look in her eyes, a facet of her that I admit I hate, even if she remains my best friend.
This strange devotion had started since she received that damn blessing, but it was necessary given her situation.
"I hope there won't be a power change either," I muttered.
Although I hate Bloody Smile, he has brought an era of prosperity to this tribe.
That's why, when I win an honorable duel against him, I plan to force him to become my subordinate, thus reclaiming my lost dignity and honor.
REFLEXIONES DE LOS CREADORES 
Soul_Eater_0252
Soul_Eater_0252 Author's Note:
Yes, I'm going to start posting here again.
No, I haven't gotten a new PC (I'm writing on phone here). So please report any unpleasant changes.
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