Chapter 53: A brave woman
"Gundo," One of Gundo's friends began, her voice filled with admiration, "I must say, you're truly lucky to have a son like Garnt. He's not only a capable leader but also a caring and devoted son."
The other women around Gundo nodded in agreement, their eyes filled with admiration for Garnt. "Yes, indeed," one of them chimed in. "I wish I had a son like him. My brat is always outside trying to follow stupid challenges in the village."
Another woman added, "Garnt is a rare gem. You must be so proud of him, Gundo."
Gundo couldn't hide the pride in her eyes as she looked at Garnt. "You're right," she said with a proud smile. "I am incredibly fortunate to have a son like Garnt. He's a remarkable leader and an even more remarkable son."
She wanted to boast more about him, but at the same time, she knew Garnt didn't like when others complimented him too much. So she held back trying not to make Garnt uncomfortable.
The women continued to shower Garnt with compliments, expressing their admiration for his qualities and achievements. Gundo basked in the warmth of their words, her heart swelling with pride for her son.
As they spoke, a young girl not older than twenty suddenly decided to go offensive and try her luck on Garnt.
"Patriarch," she began tentatively, her cheeks flushed with excitement, "I couldn't help but think, with all your qualities and abilities, maybe it's time to consider finding a mate, someone who can share in your remarkable journey.
I mean, just imagine the incredible children you two would have together."
A chorus of enthusiastic agreement filled the room as the other women eagerly voiced their support for the idea. They exchanged knowing glances and nudged each other, clearly excited about the prospect of Garnt having a family of his own.
"Isn't that great? If Garnt wants you can mate with my daughter," One of the women suggested and the girl, who wanted to turn this event to her advantage knew things were not going great for her.
Gundo, on the other hand, felt her heart drop at the suggestion. She shot the young girl a sharp, disapproving look, her eyes narrowing like daggers. She had no intention of letting anyone come between her and her son, especially when it came to such personal matters.
The room fell silent for a moment as the young girl realized the gravity of her suggestion and the disapproval in Gundo's gaze. She quickly averted her eyes, her cheeks reddening with embarrassment. But to everyone's surprise, Garnt simply chuckled and ruffled the girl's head like she was a kid.
"You know," Garnt said with a warm smile, "that's an interesting thought. I appreciate your concern, and I'll certainly consider it. But for now, let's focus on the tasks at hand, shall we?"
The girl didn't expect that kind of reaction, and for some reason, it felt wrong to be treated like a child when he was way younger than her, but at the same time, she couldn't help but enjoy Garnt's head pat. The same hands that showed her that humans can be more than animals.
Gundo was left utterly flabbergasted. She had expected Garnt to dismiss the idea outright, but his response had caught her completely off guard.
She couldn't help but wonder what was going through her son's mind as he left the room, leaving the women to exchange excited whispers about the possibility of Garnt finding a life partner and starting a family of his own.
"Damn it! If this goes on I can't protect my kid from these women," Gundo thought, but then she had a sudden realization.
'Wait! Why am I against the idea of him getting along with another woman? Isn't that good for him? I can see the faces of his children.'
Gundo didn't know what was happening and she felt her mind getting more and more confused thinking about Garnt.
"Ugh~ ever since I saw Ayra and Garnt in that room, I feel this unpleasant feeling in my body. It's so unpleasant, I want to get rid of it." She said and paused for a minute, as her memories went back to that day when she saw her sister bouncing on her son's cock and begging for more of his love.
After all the overthinking she had done, Gundo finally decided to go and meet with others to plan the battle they were going to face, so things wouldn't get too messy when the time was right.
***
Rona sat beside her ailing parents, their faces etched with exhaustion and illness. Rona's eyes were filled with sorrow as she watched over them.
Her mother and father, both coughing weakly, turned to her with remorseful expressions. Her mother's voice, raspy and strained, broke the silence. "Rona, we're sorry we couldn't provide you with a better life like we promised."
Rona gazed at them with a gentle yet determined look in her eyes. She reached out and grasped their frail hands in her own, a small smile playing on her lips. "Don't worry," she reassured them. "Everything will be alright.
I'm doing okay with our people."
It wasn't the most confident tone, but her parent couldn't help but believe their daughter and rely on her.
Sometimes they felt like they were being too much for their daughter and wanted to relieve her from her responsibility, but at the same time they knew if they died she would be truly alone in this cruel world, so they kept fighting their disease without giving up.
With those words of solace to her parents, Rona rose from her place beside her parents. She knew it was time to leave the cave and continue with her job as the leader of this small group.
She left them in the care of the compassionate woman who had supported her in caring for her parents during their time of need.
*Sigh
"Why are we different from these other humans with us? They follow me like obedient animals if I feed them. Am I the strange one who wants to be more than some kind of a wild animal?" On her way to the lake, she kept thinking about several things.
The path to the lake was a winding one, surrounded by the soothing sounds of nature. Rona finally reached the water's edge and knelt down, cupping her hands to collect some water to wash her face.
As the cool liquid touched her skin, she felt a drop land in the lake, creating ripples that mirrored the turmoil in her heart.
With a sudden realization, Rona touched her face and felt the wetness of her eyes. She hadn't even noticed that she was crying. Hastily, she wiped away the tears, not wanting anyone to see her vulnerability.
"Why is this water coming out of my eyes? This is strange." She wondered what could cause this since she had no idea what crying was.
Her thoughts returned to her parents, and the uneasiness in her heart grew. She missed them deeply and worried about their well-being. However, her reverie was interrupted by the sight of a man running toward her.
"Leader! Leader! We are getting attacked," He shouted almost sounding rather scared.
Quickly composing herself, Rona wiped her face once more and rose to her feet, ready to fight back.
"Is it wild animals again? Or some kind of an idiot in our place wants to get killed?" With her voice getting rather intimidating, Rona questioned.
The man didn't answer her quickly, but after taking a few breaths in he decided to tell them about the big news that was going to change her life forever.
"It's another group of humans. Too many humans, more than us. We are going to get killed," He shouted scared, but Rona didn't hesitate.
Seeing no weapons close to her, she quickly looked at the tree and broke a branch from it to use as a weapon. She made sure the end of the branch was pointy so she could stab her opponent.
Her heart pounding with a mixture of fear and determination. She could see the group of people with spear-like weapons guarding the area, their faces stern and determined.
The tension in the air was palpable, and Rona couldn't help but wonder who these people were and why they were attacking her group.
As she got closer, she noticed that they wore different clothes unlike their half-naked attire, distinct from the clothing her own group typically wore.
Their faces were unfamiliar, and she couldn't recognize any of them. It was clear that they were not a part of any neighbouring cave she had encountered before.
Rona's mind raced with questions, but she knew that nothing she could do at this moment would save her group. It was a helpless feeling, but she was determined to find out why this attack was happening.
Carefully, she moved closer to the guards, trying not to draw too much attention to herself. She observed their body language, trying to gauge their intentions. Were they here to plunder their resources, or did they have some other motive?
She overheard snippets of conversation among the guards, and it became apparent that they were not here for a simple raid. They spoke of a place they were searching for, a place of great importance to them.
Rona couldn't quite make out the details, but it was clear that their mission was not just about attacking her group.
But then she heard the voice that caught the attention of the people, and just by looking at him, Rona knew he was the leader of this group.
A young-looking man, who held her beloved spear that she made for hunting with a rather impressed face.
'It looks like things are not simple this time'