Contrary to the belief of everyone from the TBOAH!World that Cale was really that oblivious to his true feelings and behaviours, the next chapter of the record began with a much calmer ambience. An ethereal image of dawn light the hall, cleansing the eyes which had spent the last unknown hours watching the gruesome and gory details of the annihilation of Arm's First Battle Brigade.
<Chapter 150: Vicious (5)>
Dawn was approaching. The ocean was calm now that the storm was over. Cale looked up at the sky that was no longer covered by the large rain cloud that covered half of the Hais Islands and then lowered his head. He had a single thought in his head.
‘… Scary bastards.’
Everything was destroyed. Other than the ships that reached the islands, all of the ships were floating in pieces after the whirlpools and the Whales got to them. He could see corpses floating like black dots as well.
“Human … are you shocked?”
Cale looked toward the Black Dragon, Raon.
“Human, is this too much for you? We had no other choice.” Raon shook his head as he started to speak in a serious tone.
“Sometimes, one side must die or get injured badly in order for the other side to live. You need to firm your resolve to survive the upcoming chaos. Goldie gramps said that there is nobody as unlucky as you.”
“Raon.”
“Yes, I can understand how unlucky you are. So just trust me, the great and mighty Raon.”
“Let’s go down.”
“…Alright.”
Cale let Raon’s comments in through one ear and out the other as he headed down to the Hais Islands.
Raon was, of course, correct – to everyone who was not comfortable or used to the sight of battlefield, the images of destruction that were shown across the various Hais Islands were enough to make them nauseous. For the others, however, it was simply something they'd become desensitized toward seeing, so it did not bother them anymore.
The battle had continued from the moment the sun went down to right before the sun came back up. This overnight battle was, as expected, won by Cale’s side. It was a battle that they could not lose. The Whale tribe, the Tiger Tribe, and Cale’s group. Who would expect all of these strong forces to gather together to fight a common foe?
TBOAH!Alberu resisted the urge to comment on how incredible what they had accomplished under Cale's command really was. There was now very little doubt in his mind that if they had had a strategist like this leading the war against Arm, then maybe they also could have fared better against them. HE gulped and looked down at his own hands, feeling slightly uncomfortable with himself for thinking such envious things about the TCF!World.
Cale’s feet landed on the sand. Hais Island 6. This was the island that the sword master Hannah was fighting on last night.
“What a mess.” Cale’s gaze headed down in a diagonal direction to see Hannah just casually sitting on the ground. Her bloodied blade was stabbed into the sand. Hannah raised her head and started to speak as if she was responding to Cale.
“Isn’t it great to look at?”
She was covered in blood. Cale took out a potion and threw it toward Hannah.
“Enjoy it after you check your own condition. The Saint-nim will faint if he sees you like this.”
TCF!Jack cleared his throat lightly before sighing heavily when he noticed how TCF!Hannah tried to inch away from him so as to avoid being nagged by him. He opened his mouth to scold her anyways, however, before he could speak, TCF!Lily spoke up.
“Miss Hannah! You're really strong! It's so cool!” TCF!Lily exclaimed in excitement. Given the fact that Lily wanted to be a knight, seeing Hannah, who had reached the pinnacle of swordsmanship – as a Swordmaster – it was inspiring and greatly motivating to the young girl. Seeing this, TCF!Jack decided to let it go and made a mental note to berate his sister into being a better role model for Young Master Cale's little sister when they were in private.
Hannah caught the potion and then started to laugh. Cale looked away from Hannah who was laughing even while bleeding from the injuries she received from the enemies’ swords and arrows. Cale continued to look away as he watched the rising sun as well as the rest of his group slowly approaching Hais Island 6.
“Hey, Cale Henituse.”
“What?” Cale responded to Hannah without looking back. She continued to speak in a quiet but crazy voice.
“That was not enough blood.”
“… I know.”
“After all that, you still wanted to fight more?!” TBOAH!Rex gasped he sounded almost genuinely horrified, but TCF!Hannah just rolled her eyes, folded her arms across her chest, and sat back to watch the Palantír while pretending to be perfectly calm.
“Young master Cale!”
Witira quickly rushed to shore. He heard a quiet voice along with Witira’s shout.
“… Thank you for keeping your promise.”
Cale had kept all of his promises. He kept her alive and gave her an opportunity for revenge just like he said he would.
TBOAH!Hannah tensed in her seat and gulped, suddenly feeling emotional. It struck her hard in the chest to watch her counterpart receive a helping hand. She, herself, knew how hard things would have been if TCF!Hannah had rejected Cale Henituse’ offer. TBOAH!Hannah could not help but thank the gods and their lucky stars for sending Cale Henituse their way because she knew without a shadow of doubt that without him, TCF!Hannah and TCF!Jack would have met the same horrific fate that they did.
Hannah looked toward Cale, who was pretending to not hear what she said while walking toward Witira, and opened the lid of the potion. Cale and Witira were soon in front of each other.
“Young master Cale, there are no living humans in the ocean.”
Cale just nodded his head after hearing Witira saying that they killed everyone with a smile on her face. She thought that this serious look was more Cale-like than being happy and continued to speak.
“First of all, we took care of all of the First Battle Brigade members. We are currently looking for the few subordinates who are hiding in cracks in cliffs, caves, or other random locations. I presume that we will be able to take care of all of them by lunchtime.”
“Wow… And just like that Arm’s First Battle Brigade is done?!” TBOAH!Glenn gasped in genuine awe and amazed fear. A sudden thought occurred to him when he glanced toward TCF!Glenn.
“What did Cale Henituse do when he found out that the Mercenary guild had a strangely conflicting relationship with Arm and other factions in Leeb-An City…” The question made him very nervous.
She was someone who had overwhelming strength, but this battle was difficult due to the number of enemies.
“We will take care of all of the bodies and the broken ships.”
Cale, who had been quietly listening, started to speak. “What about the ships that are still intact?”
That made Witira look toward the ship currently docked at Hais Island 6. Each island had some ships in good condition as well.
“I’m not sure. How should we take care of them? We don’t really need them, so should we give them to another kingdom……” Witira, who intentionally did not finish her sentence, could hear Cale’s voice.
“Can I have them?”
“Excuse me?”
Cale asked without any hesitation. “I wish to take the remaining ships with me. Is that not allowed?”
Witira thought about how hard Cale had worked to create the whirlpools. She thought that she could see the exhaustion in Cale’s eyes as she looked at him.
“No, that is fine. We have no use for the ships and we’d rather give them to you than to another kingdom.”
“Great.”
Cale worked hard to prevent himself from smiling.
“It's so cute how he asks for permission to take them even though he knows we have no need for such things.” Paseton whispers to his older sister. Shickler who overhears Paseton laughs behind his hand, while Archie simply gives Paseton an amused smirk as if to tease Paseton for his remark.
"And just look at how happy he is with such a small thing!" Witira nodded at her father's teasing tone. The only sign that Cale heard them was the way the tips of his ears turned a slight shade pink in embarrassment.
The ships he needed to use with the Golden Turtle Ship had rolled into him as a bundle. It would be a great sight to receive the Northern Alliance’s ships with the secret organization’s ships.
“Oh my… that is a f*king lovely image…” Jopis smiled elegantly from place beside TBOAH!Litana and TCF!Litana.
“Really? I think so too!” Valentino wholeheartedly agreed with a vicious smile. Cale and the children in the front row decided not to turn back for the rest of the viewing because of all the vicious expressions that were on the faces of everyone behind them.
Cale could hear Raon’s voice in his mind. Raon was speaking into Cale’s mind even though he was not invisible.
– Human, good job! We got some ships for free!
Raon definitely was getting smarter.
Witira laughed happily, while TCF!Tasha cooed and excitedly talked with TCF!Obante and TBOAH!Tasha about how cute Raon was. TCF!Alberu watched his aunt and her counterpart gush together over Raon's cuteness and then smiled to himself and turned to look toward Cale whose full attention was by now on the six children crowding around him and Kim Rok Soo - they'd been talking about desserts and snacks for a while now and TCF!Alberu wondered why the Goddess hadn’t immediately laid the table with the kid’s requests the moment they asked for them.
TCF!Alberu took a few seconds to understand why she hadn’t. She was obviously following Cale’s orders for her not to do so – because Cale was busy bargaining with the children about eating all their vegetables during lunch if they wanted those snacks for afterwards. TCF!Alberu wisely decided not to get involved with Cale's parenting, least he incur Cale's wrath by saying the wrong thing.
Cale casually petted the head of the Dragon who was looking at him with sparkling eyes. He then looked toward Rosalyn, Mary, and Ron as he started to speak.
“How was it?”
“I quietly took care of everything.”
“Good work.”
Ron had his benign smile on his face as he quietly stepped away. Cale saw that even Choi Han had arrived as he lifted his head up. He could hear the sound of a crow cawing.
At the sound of the crows, everyone remembered that this record was meant to initiate the healing process of the Tiger tribe Shaman, Gashan, from the TCF!World and the TBOAH!World.
At the same time, the roar of wild animals echoed through the quiet ocean and the island. It was the roar of the Tigers who had lost their families and tribe members. There was both joy, sorrow, and anger in their roars. Cale looked toward the crow that Gashan had sent as a signal that they were done and started to speak.
“Let’s go to Hais Island 9.”
Hais Island 9. This was where everyone had agreed to gather.
Once again, TBOAH!Gashan felt that it was difficult to breathe, and his heart shook at the roaring echoes that came across the Palantír. By the time he’d made it across to the Western Continent it was already too late, so to hear that many voices, it sent both hope and happiness through his entire body, but he also felt grief and pity for those who still hadn’t made it. Despite that, TBOAHHGashan was immensely grateful to Cale for giving his tribe a chance to avenge themselves and for also taking them in.
The twenty Tigers with Gashan at the center were looking toward Cale with reverence as soon as he got to Hais Island 9. Male, female, young, and old.
TBOAH!Gashan stiffened and held his breath. His eyes frantically roaming and memorizing the scene upon the Palantir, where for the first time, he was able to see the faces of all the survivors of his tribe. Thanks to Naur gradually panning the recorded image, everyone was able to clearly see the faces of each member of the Tiger tribe that had come across from the Eastern Continent looking for Cale.
These Tigers that were huge regardless of whether they were young or old were all smiling at him with a bright smile that only Tigers could have. Gashan approached him with his eyes closed. He has a smile on his face. Unfortunately, all of them except for the very young and old were covered in blood. They were all covered in the blood of their enemies.
TBOAH!Gashan was emotional at the sight of these healthy and strong Tiger tribe survivors. Despite the perilous journey to get there to the Hais Islands from the Eastern Continent. None of them looked like they were hurt, starving, or afraid. Instead, they all looked like they wanted to fight some more.
TBOAH!Gashan didn't know he was crying until his had buried his face into his hands and felt a warm and firm hand gently petting his back – TCF!Gashan seemed to understand what his counterpart was going through and was offering him comfort and the reassurance that it was okay for him to mourn and grieve and also celebrate the successes of the TCF!World as their own successes as well.
Gashan cautiously started to speak to Cale. “Young master-nim.”
“No.”
The Forest of Darkness was not an option. Cale was taking that out of the equation right away.
“No, I just wanted to thank you.”
Cale looked toward Gashan with a gaze that was full of suspicion.
“Huh, why is he refusing?” TBOAH!Rex asked, confused. No one dared to answer and Cale didn't even bother to turn his head to even acknowledge the question – to be honest, Cale hadn't heard the question because he was still busy listening to the conversation Raon and the TBOAH!Black Dragon were having about their new favourite snacks which they would get after lunch.
The shaman gently continued to speak. He sounded like a grandfather reading a children’s book in his old and gentle voice. The only issue was that he was speaking with a mouth covered in blood.
“We were able to get proper revenge thanks to your abilities. We were able to hunt properly for the first time in a long time.”
One of the young Tigers that had not reached their full size yet thanked him with sparkling eyes.
TBOAH!Gashan groaned as another familiar face appeared upon the Palantír – it was another flame that had been snuffed out too early by those Arm bastards during his lifetime. TCF!Gashan watched his bereft counterpart and understood the reason behind TBOAH!Gashan's broken spirit.
“Young master-nim, thank you very much!”
Gashan lowered his head toward the child and continued to speak with a bitter smile on his face.
“I need to take them to the Western continent because I think that we will continue to run into Arm if we stay in the Eastern continent. It would be great if there was even a small plot of land where we can stay until these children can grow up. We still have not gotten enough revenge either.”
Cale started to frown.
TBOAH!Zed frowned, corking his head, he felt mildly curious about why Deruth’s son was so against taking them along with him – after all hadn’t they just proved that they were valuable fighters who could assist him in the upcoming battles. However, rather than voicing his questions and revealing his ignorance, TBOAH!Zed kept quiet and continued watching because he was sure that eventually, his questions would be answered.
Gashan continued to speak. “We have also brought some offerings to give to the landlord.”
Cale looked toward Gashan. Gashan slowly took a jewel out of his pocket.
“The Tiger tribe is a tactful tribe. Each family gathered their medicinal herbs and precious items when they left their mountains.”
The young Tiger started to shout. “I brought some items too!” The young Tiger took out a small bottle from his wide sleeve. “These are two-hundred year old snake scales that were in our cave! I heard that they can become very strong arrowheads!”
“Oh… a bribe!” TBOAH!Rei muttered, and TBOAH!Litana scowled. She knew that Cale Henituse was two parts of a whole. On one hand, he was a good and genuine man, while on the other, he was a cunning and an unrivalled, strategist who could change the flow of the battlefield simply by stepping onto it.
Raon started to speak in his mind.
– Human, they seem nice.
‘Right?’
TBOAH!Litana frowned harder – thinking that Cale was changing his mind because he'd been offered such a ‘nice’ bribe. Witira, who knew better, didn't comment, and TCF!Litana, who noticed her counterpart once again misunderstanding Cale, sighed heavily and shook her head. She decided to maintain her silence – because she didn’t want to offend anyone and since TBOAH!Litana was keeping her thoughts to herself, she didn't seem like she was ready to pick a fight or embarrass herself. TCF!Litana hoped fervently that her counterpart would keep her mouth shut and not accuse Cale of doing something he would never do.
Cale thought about how the chances of getting even more intertwined with the secret organization would increase if he took the Tiger tribe to the Forest of Darkness. However, he had another thought at the same time.
‘When did avoiding things keep me away from these issues?’
Cale could not avoid the secret organization now that he was involved in the meeting between the four kingdoms and the Whales.
Cale looked toward Gashan and focused on the shaman’s closed eyes as he started to speak.
“I have a condition.”
“Oh, so there's actually a reason you didn't want to take in the Tiger tribe.” TBOAH!Litana mumbled, and TCF!Litana huffed loud enough at her counterpart in order to warn her to shut up.
It was at that moment. “Oooh, ooooooooooh-!”
Cale flinched.
‘What is wrong with this old man?’
Gashan suddenly opened his eyes. His white eyes were opened extremely wide as he started to raise his hand with the wooden staff in the air. His large body was shaking.
‘…This is scary.’ Cale subconsciously took a step back.
It was a little scary because it looked like TCF!Gashan was having a fit of some kind. However, no one knew what to ask the Goddess, and so Naur took that as a sign to keep playing the record on the Palantír.
“The n, nature is speaking to me!” Gashan shouted as he continued to shake.
‘Ho.’ Cale could not believe what was going on. However, Gashan’s next words made Cale fix his thoughts.
“The n, nature is telling me that our Tiger Tribe will have to fight against cold swords next spring!”
‘Wow.’ Cale was amazed. How could there be such a psychic shaman? He started to get the chills.
‘How did it know that I was planning on making the Tiger tribe fight against the knights of the Northern Alliance?’
Silence fell over everyone from the TBOAH!World who had been secretly doubting Cale moments ago. They suddenly realized how the timeline of events for the upcoming battles would be – they realized it the same moment it felt like ice had been poured down their backs. They'd forgotten about it while watching Cale 'play' with Arm – the Northern Alliance. The Guardian Knight and his Wyvern Brigade were soon going to come down south toward Roan and Breck.
Cale stared at Gashan who was starting to calm down. Gashan’s white eyes focused on Cale once he finally calmed down. Cale started to speak.
“That future will become true if you go with me. Are you okay with that?”