Chapter 119: The Helsik Tribe?

"When the Verminus Plant infected a lot of our people, we lost a lot of friends and family, some more than others. Witch Anuwol lost her entire family: her mate, children, and grandchildren." Telah explained

Kanan couldn’t even begin to understand how Anuwat felt. The pain of losing a loved one was bad enough, but to lose your entire family, that was a deeper pain that not a lot could relate to.

Sure, Kanan lost his entire family as well, but he didn’t see it as the same. In his eyes, he was what his family wished to protect, to thrive, and to have a family of his own. And he had succeeded in doing that.

He was able to not only grow into a powerful figure in the village, but also have many children. It was he who would now be wishing for his children to grow up and live fruitful lives.

But Anuwat was already old. She had children and grandchildren. It was only right that she would pass first, knowing that her family would thrive without her. Instead, she saw her entire family pass on while she still lived. Her entire bloodline gone just like that.

"Kanan. You don’t understand how much this will mean to Anuwat. Having her grandson back will make her live another decade. I’m sure of it!"

"I’m glad that a miracle was able to bloom out of all this death and destruction. It’s not every day when someone gets their happy ending."

Everyone nodded at Kanan’s words.

"Phew, okay. Now that this battle is over, have everyone capable burn the corpses. We shouldn’t take any chances. Once that’s taken care of, we’ll start rebuilding the surrounding area and plan our next move."

Nala looked at Kanan with a bit of confusion. "Our next move? Didn’t we already beat the Verminus Plant? What more is out there?"

"Unfortunately, our battle is not over yet. When I was killing the Verminus Plant, it told me that it had other versions of itself, and once it takes control of the surrounding villages, it will come back for us. But that’s not all. It tried to take over my body."

"What?"

"Kanan, are you alright?"

"Do we need to perform that cure method on you?"

"I’m fine, don’t worry. I’m immune. You can say it’s thanks to Lord Nemean. Currently, I’m working on a way to make everyone immune, but that will take some time."

They were all fascinated by this revelation. Then again, Kanan did have divine blood in his veins, so they expected nothing less from Lord Nemean’s descendant.

"There’s something else I want to tell you all about. It has to do with the Verminus Plant. This heavily relates to the Typhon Tribe."

"What is it?" If it had to do with the Typhon Tribe, Telah wanted to know what it was. She would do anything for her people, and if Kanan had something related to that, she would listen, no matter what was said.

"As the Verminus Plant was dying, I saw some flashes in my head, images of a location that had a massive plant dwelling underneath the surface of a destroyed village. I’ve never been to the old Typhon village before, but the ruins look similar to the carvings you make and the tattoos you all bear."

"Can you describe it to me, if you can?" Telah asked.

"Yeah. It looked like this." Kanan explained everything he saw, giving every little detail he was able to, leaving nothing out.

The more he spoke, the more Telah reacted, her expression shifting from shock to anger to fear, then disgust, and back to anger.

Once Kanan finished speaking, Telah confirmed that he was indeed describing the old Typhon Tribe’s Village.

"So the main body of the Verminus Plant is located underneath our old village? I see. I will lead a team to go and destroy it!" Telah had had enough of the Verminus Plant and wished to see it gone. It had taken too much from her people. It was now time to get rid of it once and for all.

"That time will come. We don’t have to worry about it attacking us for the time being. Its mind was destroyed, only leaving its husk of a body behind. Though I do wish to rebuild and repurpose the old Typhon Village in the future."

"Really?" Telah’s eyes beamed with excitement. "You mean it?" ℯ

Kanan nodded. "Yeah, though, changes will be made. For example, I wish for some of our people to move there as well. We will expand our reach in the area by occupying two villages and building a huge civilization by connecting the two locations."

"We’d control the whole south and west." Elder Hal commented

"Exactly."

"I’m on board with this plan. Whenever you are ready to act on it, I will support you. And, to make things a lot easier for our people to accept, I will bear your child."

Silence

"S-Sure. But that’s for later. For now, let’s focus on rebuilding this village."

"E-Excuse me, Elders." A Nemean warrior politely interrupted everyone, bowing to show her respect.

"Hmm? What is it?" Elder Trena asked

"We’ve found something that you might want to see." Behind the woman warrior was a Typhon Warrior who carried a dead body, presenting it to everyone.

"A dead body? Is that one of our own? Or has this person passed from the Verminus Plant attack on your tribe a while ago?" Kanan asked the Typhon Warrior

"N-No, sir. This person isn’t from our tribe. According to the Nemean Tribesmen, they aren’t from yours either."

"Hmm?"

"The Helsik Tribe." Elder Lars muttered.

"The Helsik Tribe? I’ve never heard of them." The tribes didn’t really interact with each other unless they lived close or were mortal enemies. So it made sense that Kanan wasn’t familiar with them.

"It’s not surprising. We can count on one hand the number of times our tribe has interacted with them. They live to the north, past the plains and in the swamp."

Kanan instantly perked up. "The swamp?"

"That’s right."

"Shit."

"Kanan? What’s wrong?"

"That’s where the other Verminus Plant is."