Awkward silence filled the vice lord's hut, and Rion stood before Marin with his hands folded behind his back.

Marin sat in the chair with his hands on the table as he stared at Rion with a displeased look on his face.

"Why did you challenge him?" He grumbled in a tone edged with irritation.

"I wanted to," Rion replied flatly as if Marin's irritation or disapproval didn't matter to him.

"Hah..." Marin exhaled deeply.

He lifted two fingers and said, "Even though you have defeated a squad leader, you still lack the qualifications to become one."

Rion's lips dropped slightly, and he muttered, "Qualifications?"

'There are qualifications to become a squad leader?' He questioned himself because he had never heard about any qualifications... and it made sense based on how secretive the den was with everything.

Marin nodded, folded one finger and said, "First, you need four squad members that are ready to join your squad... Now, considering that Kahrun, Yuura and Dora would probably join you, you still need one more squad member."

Rion frowned and began to think of anyone who might join him, but no answer came to his mind, so he decided to think about it later.

"What about the second qualification?" He asked.

Marin folded his second finger and said, "The second qualification is the most important... You lack the knowledge and experience of a squad member, so leading a squad at the periphery of the Purple Fog Forest is nothing more than a child's dream."

Rion frowned and said, "What do you want me to do? Join a squad?"

Marin shook his head and answered while pointing at him, "No, it would be a waste of strength; instead, I want you to become a sub squad leader."

Rion's eyebrows arched up in confusion, and he asked, "Sub squad leader? Is that a thing?"

Marin shrugged and answered, "It isn't. I just made it up."

Stunned, Rion blinked a few times and mumbled, "You just... made it up...?"

Marin nodded, folded his arms across his chest and said, "Yeah, as I am the vice lord, whatever I make up becomes a thing."

Rion was baffled by his nonchalance and questioned in his head, 'Is he the main character of some novel?'

Marin felt the inducing headache, aware of Rion's stubborn nature. He tapped the table and said, "You don't have to think too much of it, you just have to find a squad leader to teach you the ways."

Rion frowned and complained, "I don't want to be under a squad leader."

The vice lord leaned back in his chair, rubbed the closed eyelids with his fingers and asked in a tired tone, "Why is that?"

"I don't want anyone to control the decisions I make," he replied.

Marin nodded a few times and pointed out, "Won't you still have to listen to a group leader?"

"I would have to, but a group leader is way busier than a squad leader to affect my decision that much," Rion replied and showed no hint of stepping back from his decision.

A deep sigh escaped Marin as he stated, "Then I can't make you a sub squad leader."

Rion stared at him for a few moments before he asked, "You are not a Dhaevrak, right?"

Marin's eyes snapped open. He looked at him and questioned, "What are you talking about?"

"First, your name isn't of a Dhaevrak. Second, whenever I meet a Dhaevrak, I get a feeling of closeness..." he pointed at Marin and continued, "but I don't get that feeling from you."

A short chuckle escaped Marin, and he responded, "So your reasons are just speculation? What if I am just different from others?"

Rion nodded and insisted, "You are different because you aren't a Dhaevrak."

Silence descended and stretched for a few moments before Marin leaned forward in his chair and challenged, "Let's say you are right then... what about it?"

A faint smile appeared on Rion's face. "I didn't mean it as a threat or anything, I simply want you to teach me in return for me becoming a sub-squad leader."

"Why would I do that?" Marin countered with a puzzled look.

"You wouldn't want the first fifteen-year-old to ever become a squad leader to leave, right?" Rion chimed with a wide smile.

Marin blinked at his shameless statement. A chuckle escaped him, and he asked with his usual smile, "What do you want to learn from a man who isn't even a Dhaevrak?"

Rion chuckled and pointed out, "If you are not a Dhaevrak... doesn't that mean there are more humans out there?"

The Dhaevrak tribe was secluded and secretive, so most tribesmen didn't even know the existence of humans outside the red and black mountains. While Rion understood that there had to be more humans out there because of him being from a different world, he couldn't just say it because he wasn't supposed to know of it.

Marin frowned and said, "Even if there are... I can't tell you anything about the world outside."

'I expected that much,' Rion stated inwardly and said, "I know, and that's not what I want you to tell or teach me."

The vice lord raised an eyebrow and asked, "What do you want to learn then?"

Rion leaned on the table and answered with a bright smile, "I want you to teach me the common language of the world outside."

"Huh? I can't do that," Marin frowned.

Rion leaned even further, looked in his eyes and said, "Why not? Not like you'd be telling me anything about the outside world."

"... Why do you want to learn that?" Marin asked with a confused look.

Rion stepped back, looked out of the window and muttered with a warm smile, "I am just curious..."

Marin nodded and commented, "Curiosity kills more men than ignorance."

Rion turned his head toward him, a wide grin cutting across his face, "It will try only to fail over and over again."

An amused smile appeared on Marin's face, and he muttered, "You seem rather confident."

"I am quite hard to kill, you see," Rion stated with a smirk.

~~~

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