Chapter 174: Lobak’s Departure or Stay

Looking at the two people on the ground who clung to each other even in death, Ophelia sighed.

Just then, a white-haired elderly male beastman walked out, holding a sheepskin scroll and the Clan Leader Token. Tears welled in his eyes. “Ophelia, I am the Great Elder of the Tiger Clan. This is the map of the Tiger Clan Tribe and the Clan Leader Token. The Clan Leader asked me to give them to you.”

Bai Ma, seeing that the White Tiger Clan Leader was willing to face death, had mercifully allowed him to see two final people. One was his female cousin, and the other was the tribe’s Great Elder.

Ophelia solemnly accepted the items and announced loudly, “From today onward, the White Tiger Clan will submit to my Fuzu Tribe and be renamed the Tiger Department. You may elect a department head yourselves. In three days, come to the Fuzu Tribe to coordinate with me.”

The White Tiger Clan males, having witnessed their Clan Leader’s suicide with their own eyes, were deeply agitated.

“Even if we die, we will never submit to the Fuzu Tribe!”

“We feel the same!”

Ophelia wasn’t angry at their resistance; she simply shifted her gaze to the Great Elder of the Tiger Clan.

Understanding her intention immediately, the Great Elder nodded and turned to the few fiercely protesting males. “Fellow clansmen, the Clan Leader said that his death has nothing to do with Ophelia. Ophelia is an excellent Clan Leader. By following her, our tribe will surely grow stronger.”

“B-But,” a male beastman argued, still unwilling to accept it.

The Great Elder cut him off. “You all heard it with your own ears just now. The Clan Leader admitted to the mistakes he made. Everyone, listen to me. Stop making a fuss.”

Seeing that the males had gradually calmed down, Ophelia finally spoke in a slow, steady voice.

“If any of you don’t want to join the Fuzu Tribe, I won’t force you. You are free to leave.

“For those who do join, I am willing to share our farming and breeding techniques if you are interested. This is something the Tiger Clan Leader had been discussing with me previously.

“I will give you three days. I hope you can think this through carefully. If anyone decides to stay but tries to cause trouble later, don’t blame me for showing no mercy.”

With that said, Ophelia returned to the Fuzu Tribe with Tyler and Klein.

When they arrived, they saw a scrawny little beastman standing outside the three-story stone house. The little beastman was covered in bruises and injuries, his mouth purplish, and his purple eyes devoid of life. Hearing the commotion of Ophelia’s return, his eyelids twitched slightly, but they soon drooped down again.

“Mother, you’re back?” Wendy ran out of the stone house on her short little legs. Because she was running in such a hurry, she tripped over a rock by the roadside, and her small body swayed as she pitched forward toward the ground.

“Ah!” Wendy’s face went pale with fright. Her first instinct was actually to cover her little face.

Seeing her fall, Ophelia became incredibly anxious, but she was too far away to catch her in time. Right at that moment, a pair of thin arms wrapped around Wendy. The two small figures tangled together and tumbled to the ground.

Wendy waited for a moment, and upon realizing that there was no pain, she opened her eyes in surprise. Only then did she see that Lobak had used his own body as a human cushion to protect her, preventing her from getting hurt.

Ophelia hurried forward to help Wendy up, carefully checking her body for injuries. Tyler also picked Lobak up from the ground, his heart aching slightly as he noticed the fresh scrapes on the boy’s elbows and knees.

“Mother, I’m fine. Lobak saved me,” Wendy said, shaking her little head as she claimed credit on Lobak’s behalf.

Ophelia’s hanging heart finally settled. Only then did she turn to look at Lobak in Tyler’s arms. “Lobak, thank you.”

“It’s nothing, Clan Leader Ophelia.”

“Princess, Lobak is injured. I’ll take him to the treatment room to tend to his wounds,” Tyler said.

Looking at the countless scars and fresh wounds covering Lobak’s body, Ophelia couldn’t help but sigh inwardly, wondering just how much inhuman abuse the child had suffered since he was young. “Go ahead.”

“No, there’s no need. Clan Leader, these are just minor injuries. They’ll heal in a couple of days,” Lobak said quickly. He had heard about the Fuzu Tribe’s treatment room. He knew the medicine there was highly effective, but it was also incredibly expensive—far beyond what he could afford. “I don’t have any compensation to pay you.”

Ophelia gently rubbed his head. “Silly child, you got hurt trying to save Wendy. Why would I ask you for compensation? Go with Tyler to get your wounds treated. When you come back, I have something to discuss with you.”

Twiddling his little fingers nervously, Lobak was carried off to the treatment room by Tyler.

By the time they returned, Klein had already prepared lunch. A fragrant roasted lamb leg was placed in front of Lobak.

Lobak was at a loss for what to do, constantly swallowing his saliva. Although his stomach was growling with hunger, he continued to endure it.

“Go on, eat,” Ophelia urged softly, having heard his stomach GRUMBLE.

“Yeah, yeah! Hurry up and eat, Lobak! You’re so skinny. You need to eat more so you can grow chubby and healthy,” Wendy chimed in, having scooted over at some point. She pushed her own small bowl in front of Lobak. “This is my meat porridge. I’ll share it with you.”

Although Lobak couldn’t understand Wendy’s babbling Dragon language, he could roughly guess her intentions. Biting his lip, he shook his head. “There’s no need. I’m not hungry, thank you.”

Seeing Lobak refuse, Wendy’s eyes immediately reddened. The little female cub’s teary eyes were filled with accusation.

Lobak’s first reaction was to look at Ophelia. Seeing that she wasn’t angry, he breathed a sigh of relief but quickly became flustered again. “D-Don’t cry.”

Wendy huffed and pushed the stone bowl further toward Lobak, an urging expression on her face. “Eat!”

Lobak blushed and hurriedly nodded. “Okay, I’ll eat. Please don’t cry.”

“Since she offered it to you, just eat it without worrying,” Ophelia smiled. “Our family doesn’t have that many rules.”

Seeing Ophelia’s earnest expression, Lobak stopped hesitating. He held the stone bowl and began to drink carefully. The soft, glutinous rice porridge, steeped in the savory aroma of meat, melted in his mouth. The delicious taste made Lobak’s nose sting with unshed tears.

He wondered if this was what rice porridge tasted like. He had never eaten it before. He had previously seen Hu Ya eating rice porridge, and the smell alone had been incredibly fragrant. But because of his lowly status, he hadn’t possessed the right to eat it. The meal he was having today was better than anything he had eaten in the past few years. Even if he were to die tomorrow, he would be willing.

After everyone finished eating, the little dragon cubs voluntarily took their respective tableware to the kitchen.

Lobak felt a bit awkward and wanted to help, but Tyler pressed him back down into his chair. “The Princess has something to say to you.”

Hearing this, Lobak immediately grew nervous. He anxiously picked at his thumb and looked at Ophelia.

Ophelia smiled and ruffled his slightly coarse hair. “Don’t worry, it’s nothing major. The Tiger Clan Leader is dead. No one will hurt you anymore. I want to ask you—do you want to return to the Tiger Clan?”

“I-I don’t know.”

Although he was young, he had grasped from their conversation yesterday that the Tiger Clan Leader had made a massive mistake—a mistake that had cost him his life. However, aside from the Tiger Clan Leader’s tacit approval and Hu Ya’s relentless bullying, the other little beastmen in the Tiger Clan Tribe weren’t very friendly to him either. Therefore, even with the Tiger Clan Leader and Hu Ya gone, he would still be bullied by the other little beastmen if he returned to the Tiger Clan.