Chapter 153: What you up to, Carl?

"Is something the matter, Kanan?" Loknya asked, getting a bit closer.

"It’s just that Carl wasn’t here at all during the fight. Also, where are the scouts? None of them are present, even now that the battle is over."

"He’s right, Mom." Nyalok chimed in. "It is odd that no scout is here, including Carl. Also, this isn’t the first time he’s been a no-show when it comes to battles like these."

"Wait, has this happened before with him?"

"A few times, yeah. He helps out with smaller battles, but for the big ones, he usually comes back hours later saying that he needed to fend off some beasts to prevent them from entering our village. He’s nothing but a coward. That’s why I didn’t want him as my mate."

Kanan remembered Nyalok mentioning that Carl was a coward and refused to be his mate. Now things were coming full circle.

"I shall look into this matter separately," Loknya said, coming to her conclusion. "For the time being, I need to focus on what’s right in front of me."

"I understand, mother."

"We’ll help in any way that we can, so just let us know, alright?" Kanan had no plans to sit back while others were suffering. He could help, then he would.

"Thank you, Kanan. Then can you start by bringing our injured to the healing huts, please?"

"It will be done."

---

Kanan and his friends spent the whole day helping the Helsik tribe with their many post-battle issues.

The healing huts were swarmed with injured warriors and hunters, while those who could move freely were stuck rebuilding what was destroyed.

By the time Kanan was able to get some sleep, it was already equivalent to two in the morning.

On his left, Lopis slept, her arms wrapped around his own, and on his right, Fera was sleeping on his chest.

"Psst, Kanan, wake up," Nyalok whispered, poking him on the cheek.

"Mmmnn."

"Kanan! Get up! Carl is back!" Her whispers got a bit louder.

"F-Five more minutes, Aunt Glena, I’m fired." He couldn’t even say ’tired’ correctly.

"Tsk." Nyalon gripped his balls hard, and that jolted Kanan awake, his body rising at a perfect 90-degree angle. It was a miracle that Fera and Lopis didn’t wake up.

"W-Wha...What happened? And why do my balls hurt? Was Fera sucking them as I slept?"

"Oh, so this woman is your mate as well?" Nyalok asked with a slightly jealous expression.

"Huh? Nyalok? What are you doing here?"

"Come with me. Carl is back."

"He is? Now? Wait, were you waiting for him this whole time?"

"I was."

Kanan had nothing but respect for her dedication.

"Alright. I’m right behind you."

The two left the living quarters silently and moved stealthily as they approached Carl’s home. It was a small but cozy hut, one enough to house three people.

Thanks to spirit energy, Kanan was able to see in the dark pretty well, and because of that, he was able to spot Carl doing absolutely nothing.

"What are we looking for? Did he leave a trail of some kind that we can follow?" Kanan asked

"Not that I know of. I wanted to see if we could catch him doing something out of the ordinary, bust into his house, then beat his ass!"

’She and Viola would be best friends.’

They watched Carl for over an hour, analyzing his habits, scanning his home, and even distracting him for a bit to get a closer look at what was inside his residence.

Unfortunately, they found nothing of substance.

"Dammit. I was sure he was hiding something. That rat has always kept secrets ever since he moved to the village."

’Hmm? Ever since he moved to the village? What does she mean by that?’ So Kanan asked Nyalok

"Well, Carl’s father isn’t from the Helsik Tribe. His mother, a great warrior among our people, went on a mission to kill deserters. This brought her to the edge of the mountain where they tried to escape."

’The mountain range extends all the way out here? I didn’t see it when traveling! Maybe it extends outward.’

Nyalok continued explaining. "After killing the deserters, Carl’s mother was injured and, due to being close to the monsters, was in grave danger. On the brink of death, she was saved by a tribe that apparently lives in the Harshlands. There, she was nursed back to full health. When she returned ten years later, she brought Carl."

"Wait, so you’re telling me that Carl grew up in another village for the first nine years of his life?"

"That’s right. Everyone knows this."

"I would be taken aback more than normal, but after hearing that a tribe lives in the harshlands, Carl being only half Helsik doesn’t faze me." He knew that the Typhon Tribe lived in the harshlands when they had to flee their original village, but they lived on the very edge of it, closer to the mountain where it was still safe.

"Yeah, even we’re shocked that people live in that monster-infested area."

"Tell me, Nyalok, do you know what this tribe is called?"

"Hmmm. I don’t remember. I think it was called something like Rall. Tall? Roar? Thrall! It’s the Thrall Tribe."

Kanan had never heard of such a tribe. He would ask his elders once he got back home if they knew of this place.

"Hold on, Kanan, look at that!" Nyalon pointed to a weapon that rested on a weapons rack inside Carl’s home.

"What about it? It’s a harpoon."

"Yes, but that’s not Carl’s own! It belongs to Seejuk. She’s a scout, like Carl, but if there’s one thing she loves, it’s personalizing what belongs to her. Do you see that carving in the handle?"

"Yeah."

"That’s Seejuk’s work. She carves that symbol into all of her belongings because she says it looks cool. So tell me, what would he be doing with her harpoon?"

"Now that, Nyalok, is a good question. We should check the routes your scouts take to see if there is anything we can find there."

"Smart. Follow me."