"Hah!"

"""Hah!"""

"Hah!"

"""Hah!"""

Gundar watched the Aslan Tribe members practice their spearmanship early in the morning.

Ulric stood at the very front, acting as a guide for those at the back.

Leone, Yuni, and Jason were among the organized crowd behind Ulric, thrusting their spears forward as they practiced the four forms of the Heaven Piercer Spear Arts.

All Aslanians were required to learn this Martial Art. Leone was no exception. He’d always participate in the morning exercises, gradually increasing his strength and stamina.

On the other side of the field, the members of the Stormhorn Tribe and the Bloodtusk Tribe also practiced the first two forms of this Martial Art.

They were very surprised at first. After all, none of them expected that they’d be allowed to learn this martial skill.

In fact, they found the martial book handed to them a few days ago so mysterious. All they had done was read, yet that was enough for them to quickly grasp the concept of the martial art. 𝗳𝚛𝗲𝕖𝚠𝚎𝚋𝗻𝗼𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝚘𝐦

The breathing technique was also quite good, and the elderly who practiced them even felt a little healthier than before.

Leone’s stats had also increased a little bit after months of continuous training.

In fact, Leone was the most enthusiastic among everyone since he understood better than most that increasing his own strength was very important.

He was the Great Chieftain of the Aslan Tribe, after all. Seeing him working hard in his training inspired the warriors of the Aslan Tribe to work harder as well.

When the morning practice ended, Leone was covered in sweat. However, he felt really good exercising this early in the morning.

"Sister, let’s go!" Runa called out to Yuni.

"Okay," Yuni replied.

The ladies of the Aslan Tribe headed back to the fortress to bathe in the underground river together.

The men, on the other hand, except for Leone, went to the river near the temporary settlement of the Bloodtusk Tribe and the Stormhorn Tribe to bathe.

Since Leone’s safety was paramount, he was only allowed to take a bath inside the fortress. In fact, Maximus had even built him a bath half the size of a swimming pool, all for himself.

While the young man was happy to have his own private pool, he also felt a bit lonely since he was the only one who used it.

Occasionally, Blitz and Maximus would join him as well.

Just as he was heading to his bathroom, Kael suddenly appeared with his granddaughter, Aria, trailing behind him.

The young lady bowed respectfully to Leone, to which the young man gave her a nod of recognition.

"Are you going to take a bath, Great Chieftain?" Kael asked.

"Yes," Leone replied.

"How about you let my granddaughter wash your back for you?" Kael asked with a smile. "She is good with hands. In fact, she is very good at giving massages. I’m very sure that you will love it!"

Leone flinched when he realized that the old man was once again trying to hook his granddaughter up with him.

Sometimes he felt sorry for Aria since Kael didn’t seem to know when to give up. There were even times when Leone had almost agreed to the sly old man’s proposals just to prevent Aria from feeling awkward or embarrassed because of her grandfather’s actions.

"Maybe next time," Leone stated, making sure that the smile on his face didn’t crack. "See you later, Aria."

"Please enjoy yourself, Great Chieftain," Aria replied with a beet-red face.

Leone walked briskly after that so Kael wouldn’t call out to him a second time.

He also made sure to properly lock the wooden door that led to his personal bath to ensure no one would be able to sneak into it.

"That old chieftain sure is consistent, Young Master." Hassan stepped out of Leone’s shadow. He had no intention of following the young man to the bath. "However, why do you keep refusing? I’m very sure gaining some experience will serve you well. Are you worried about what Yuni will say if Aria warms your bed?"

Hassan wasn’t born yesterday. He could tell that his Young Master was quite conscious of Ulric’s beautiful daughter.

But instead of answering, Leone pretended not to hear the masked man’s words as he removed his clothes and stepped into the pool to wash his body.

He and Yuni were close. Though, he only became truly conscious of her when he saw the vision that led to the tragedy of the Aslan Tribe.

Leone watched as she took the initiative to kill herself, rather than be humiliated by the warriors who had invaded their domain.

That feeling only intensified when both Varus and Ragan appeared in the Aslan Tribe when it was time for the middle-ranked tribes to demand their tribute.

Leone’s original plan was to endure their harassment. Yet, in the end, he wasn’t able to take it.

He didn’t want his vision to come to pass, so he didn’t hesitate and killed both Varus and Ragan, even if it led to war.

"Hassan," Leone called.

"Yes, Young Master?" Hassan replied while standing beside the door, making sure that no one would disturb his Master.

"How many people have you killed?" Leone asked.

"I stopped counting after it passed a hundred, Young Master," Hassan answered.

"I have killed two people with my own hands," Leone stated before scooping up water with his hands to look at his reflection. "And I’ve indirectly killed hundreds more. Though I believe this kill count will continue to increase in the future. Back then, I thought I would feel guilty or perhaps have nightmares after the bloodshed ended.

"Yet, that didn’t happen. I felt neither guilt nor remorse. Instead, the only thing I felt was relief. Relief that it was finally over."

Hassan didn’t say anything and simply listened to the young man’s words.

Perhaps, this was something his Master had long been trying to keep inside his heart. He just needed an outlet to vent out everything that he had been holding back.

"Sometimes, I wonder if things might have ended differently if I didn’t meet Daedalus." Leone sighed as he sat on the pool and submerged his body, leaving only his head out of the water.

"Young Master, there are no if’s in this world," Hassan commented. "And it’s no use thinking about them because it has already come to pass. Reminiscing about the past is good, but don’t let it tie you up. If you allow it to linger, you will not be able to step forward to see a bright future."

Leone no longer said anything after that. Only the sound of water washing over his body echoed faintly inside the cavern.

A few minutes later, the young man stepped out of the pool and dried himself up with a towel.

He then took out his clothes from the storage ring and wore them.

When Leone headed to the door, he stopped to face Hassan and thanked him for listening to his ramblings.

There were very few people whom he could share his thoughts about the things that he hid inside his heart. Hassan was one of them.

Unlike the Aslan Tribe, Hassan’s loyalty was toward the young man’s mother, Lady Helen.

This meant that he could give him unbiased advice. He wouldn’t put him on a pedestal nor revere him blindly, unlike how members of the Aslan Tribe treated him.

"Do I seem lacking in your eyes, Hassan?" Leone asked, staring straight at the masked man’s eyes. "Am I really fit to become a Great Chieftain?"

Leone might look like a happy-go-lucky person in front of his tribe members. However, deep inside, he strongly felt the pressure of his position.

Back then, his decisions only affected himself. But now, a single order from him could cause the death of hundreds of people.

He truly understood this when the war was still ongoing. When Ulric and Jason had asked him to let them capture Travis and his warriors, he felt truly conflicted back then.

At the time, he even thought, was there really a need to risk their lives when they could just stay inside the fortress and wait until all of their enemies surrendered?

If they just waited, then no one would need to gamble with their lives on a mission which might lead to their deaths.

Leone had forgotten that he was leading barbarians, and not commoners, who didn’t need to pick up their weapons in order to survive.

The barbarians of the Borderlands had to adapt to their harsh environment where a group of monsters could raid their camps and kill their people.

They were born differently. Leone grew up living the privileged life of a noble, while the barbarians grew up with the intention of becoming warriors.

"Yes, Young Master," Hassan replied. "In my eyes, you are lacking, but that’s fine. Don’t compensate for what you lack. Instead, make what you have shine. Do you think your tribe members are blind?

"Of course they know that you’re lacking. Of course they know that you’re weak. But so what? You are their sun. All you need to do is be there for them, so that they can grow just like the trees in the forest."

Hassan patted the young man’s shoulder and smiled faintly.

"That is your gift, Young Master. Your presence alone puts people at ease. With you around, they feel that they can do their best. And one day... when you become a true King of a kingdom, you will look back on all the things that you’ve experienced in the past and say..."

"I’m glad I was exiled in the Borderlands."

Hassan then turned into black mist and merged with Leone’s shadow after that.

"Feel free to use that line when you talk to Yuni, or to any other pretty ladies you meet in the future. I’m sure that it will be a good pick-up line."

At first, Leone thought that Hassan was just messing with him. After all, how could he possibly say such a thing?

But, after a few moments of silence, the young man had to admit that it was truly a powerful statement.

"I’m glad that I was exiled in the Borderlands," Leone muttered one last time before he left the bath to resume his duty as the Great Chieftain of the Aslan Tribe.