Rion wrapped the white cloth around his waist and stepped out of the hut.

Dora followed afterwards.

A few steps later, all of his fifty group members fell into his vision.

They greeted him with warm smiles, and suddenly, Waron stepped forward.

He knelt before him and muttered with a lowered head, "Please accept my apology for daring to test you, my liege."

Rion stared at him with a calm gaze and said evenly, "I didn't do all of this for you..."

His gaze shifted towards Armin and Moria. "Or those two, I did it for the people I care about, the people I love and for the Dhaevrak. I accept your apology, but..."

Waron lifted his head, looked at him and whispered, "But?"

"A man should take responsibility for their choices. You," he pointed at the other two and continued, "And you two will be tasked to help the gatherers."

"I accept, my liege," Waron said.

Moria's face held a troubled expression as he stepped forward and asked, "Are our squad members allowed to help us?"

Everyone looked at him with displeased expressions, but Rion's expression stayed the same.

His eyes roam through their squad members, and he said, "They are your people, you can use them however you want, but make sure that your choices do not escalate into a rebellion against you."

Moria fell silent.

He turned towards his squad members, but none of them even met his eyes, and they stepped back.

He felt a strange twist in his gut, his expression turned grim, and he muttered inwardly, 'What have I done...?'

He hadn't even talked to them about his disagreement with Rion commanding them. 'I was too focused on calling Rion unworthy,' he understood that as well as that, while doing so, he forgot to prove his own worth.

However, the same wasn't true for Waron and Armin.

Armin stepped forward and knelt before him and said, "I am grateful for your kindness, but I won't have my squad members suffer because of me."

'Oh? He can lead well, but his fiery temperament is stopping him from reaching the true heights,' Rion remarked inwardly.

He nodded, and his steps continued again. Everyone except for the former three rebels and their squad members followed behind him.

As they strode towards the site of the feast, Yuura stepped near Dora and asked, "When did you go to meet him?" His voice was edged, and he thought, 'How did she meet him before I did?'

Dora was able to guess his thoughts. She looked at him with an amused expression and said, "I didn't go."

Yuura frowned. "What?"

She chuckled and quickened her steps instead of telling him any further.

'What did she mean?' He wondered with a deep frown etched on his face.

As they walked forward, Rion noticed that there was no one in the settlement except the elders and the kids.

Kids below fifteen were simply not allowed there because of the tribe's secrecy, while the elders stayed behind to keep an eye on the kids.

Rion's eyes shifted between the kids who had yet to be burdened by the responsibilities of a warrior.

He watched how they played together with a wide grin, and their laughter reached him like his own as he had already unfolded his Zone.

A sweet smile tugged at his lips, and he noted inwardly, 'I must do this for them... I mustn't allow them to lose their smiles.'

Suddenly, a memory from his past life resurfaced in his head. He looked at his spear and mumbled under his breath, "With great power comes greater responsibilities..."

He chuckled.

Bum-bum... Bum-bum... Bum-bum...

The rhythm of heavy drums filled the area and shook the ground.

His aura instinctively moved to his eyes, and he gazed before him. The tribesmen stood in rows under the beam shelters, their expressions dark from what they had gone through a day before yesterday.

'It's finally here...' he mumbled inwardly.

The warriors of the den stood on the left while the former hunters stood on the right.

Varok and Valak, the two chiefs of the tribe, sat in the two chairs placed on the stage. Marin stood behind Varok with his usual kind smile stretching across his face.

Below the stage, more chairs were placed, and six of them were already occupied by Sovra, Kara, Grathar, Drokan, Naqir and Zaelyane.

'He isn't here, huh,' he sighed inwardly, eyes gleaming with disappointment for a moment.

As usual, Haden was nowhere to be seen, but his statue was there with them.

Bum-bum! Bum-bum! Bum-bum!

The drums became louder as he neared the site, and his heart also began to beat in their rhythm.

The tribe members' eyes fell on him, and all of them knelt while cupping their hands, raising them towards him.

His eyes scanned them, and his steady steps continued.

His group members turned to the left, and he continued his stride towards the chairs placed beside the stage.

As he neared the chairs, the six who were already settled in their chairs stood up.

They placed a fist on their hearts and mumbled in a low voice, "Glory to the High Commander!"

Rion smiled and gave them a nod before he sat down in the chair placed in the corner.

The next few minutes passed as the other group leaders and Arok reached the site and took their seats.

Many tribe members were shocked by Arok and Zaelyane's presence because of their usual reluctance to join such events.

They murmured within themselves but Rion didn't focus on them. His eyes were glued to those whose bodies were present, but their souls or minds were still grieving.

His fist clenched itself, and Haria's voice reached him.

"Calm down."

He nodded, took a deep breath and leaned back in his chair.

Marin gazed across the site, and his voice echoed throughout the area as he spoke while enhancing his voice using his aura, "I am extremely grateful that all of you are present here with me."

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