The bag was incredibly heavy. When Pot set it down on the ground, Tangerine felt a distinct vibration travel through the vine-covered floor into his paws. Curious, he leaned in, gripped the opening of the bag, and pulled with all his might—it didn't budge an inch.
"Such... such incredible strength, meow!" Tangerine stared in shock at Pot and the other Grimalkynes who were just as tall and sturdy. "Are all the cats in your tribe as strong as you, meow? No, wait... Sparky, you're not nearly as tall as them."
Without waiting for Pot to answer, Tangerine turned his gaze toward Sparky, looking immensely relieved as if he had finally spotted a "normal" person.
Sparky: "..."
Where are your manners?
"That's just rude, meow!" Sparky finally couldn't hold it back. He didn't want his distant forest cousins to think of him as some poor, stunted cat. "I am their Chief!"
"That's right. Usually, we all listen to Sparky," Pot said, patting his round belly. "He's very smart, meow. But technically, 'Dragon-chosen' warriors like us only listen to the Glavenus Boss, meow! We are the New Grimalkynes!"
"But the Glavenus Boss is getting harder and harder to see, meow," Sparky sighed. Pot and the others followed suit, letting out synchronized sighs.
Even though the Dragon-chosen warriors were far stronger than average Grimalkynes, they were still frail compared to the Glavenus Boss. It was painful for them to realize there was almost nothing they could do to actually help him.
"The Glavenus Boss?" the Bugtrappers, who had been hovering nearby with cautious curiosity, poked their heads out. "What is that, meow?"
"Is it the Glavenus Boss who made you look like this, meow?"
"So strong, meow! Whoa, your belly is so springy, meow!"
"How much do you eat in one sitting, meow? Do you ever go hungry?"
"Dummy, meow! Being this strong means they must eat a ton, and they probably spend all their time hunting, meow!"
"So cool!"
"..."
A cacophony of meows filled the air. The Bugtrappers, who had survived and thrived in the "survival of the fittest" environment of the Ancient Forest, generally maintained a policy of isolation. They preferred to hide in the shadows of the leaves, avoiding powerful monsters and gathering food in the corners. They tended to shrink back whenever anything strange appeared.
However, the Bugtrappers were friendly at heart. Now that Sparky had come straight to their door with Tangerine—a member of their own tribe whom they trusted—to vouch for them, they didn't hesitate to show their kindness.
For a small tribe struggling to survive, there was no room for intrigue or hidden agendas; they were even more tight-knit than the Glavenus tribe had once been.
They brought out plenty of food and water to treat their guests, but Sparky and his crew found it hard to even open their mouths to eat.
"Eat up, meow!" Tangerine urged from the side. "The Chief brought out the good stuff today, meow!"
"Uh, I... I think I'll pass, meow," Pot said, scratching his belly.
He wasn't born this tall and strong. He had been lucky enough to receive a scale from the Glavenus Boss, and on a whim, he had ground it up and eaten it, which led to his current physique.
Once upon a time, he had known the pain of hunger, struggling to hunt and find food in the Wildspire Waste. He knew exactly how difficult it was for these Bugtrappers to gather what they had—and since a small snack wouldn't fill him up anyway, he didn't want to waste the food they had worked so hard to collect.
"Eh??" The surrounding Bugtrappers' eyes widened. "Is there really a cat who doesn't like to eat, meow?"
"It's not that we don't eat, meow. It's just..." Pot glanced at Sparky. Seeing that Sparky was currently having a piece of smoked meat forced into his mouth by Tangerine while casting a pleading look for help, Pot spoke up: "Are you interested in hearing about our savior, the great Glavenus Boss, meow?"
"Of course, meow!" the Bugtrappers replied without hesitation.
"I've wanted to ask since the beginning, meow! If the Chief hadn't brought out the food, I would've asked sooner!"
"Quiet! Quiet, meow!" The Bugtrapper Chief grumpily suppressed his rowdy tribesmen before asking, "What exactly did you come here for, meow?"
"To invite you to our festival, meow!" After swallowing the food in his mouth, Sparky spoke up. "The Great Gastronome! It's a festival to celebrate our tribe being under the protection of the Glavenus Boss, meow! Because of him, we can live safely and never have to worry about food again, meow!"
In Asterion's territory, hostile large monsters were truly a thing of the past. As long as they watched out for snakes, insects, or small predators, the Grimalkynes could hunt and gather in safety—all of which were well within their ability to handle.
"There's endless meat at the Great Gastronome, and more fruit wine than you can drink, meow!"
"There are games, too, meow! Hara brings new things every year, meow!"
The Grimalkynes who followed Sparky chimed in one after another, eager to show their distant cousins every wonderful thing about their home.
Sharing!
"Re—really, meow?" Even the Bugtrapper Chief was stunned. His eyes went wide as he imagined the scene described by these outsiders.
If nothing else, the idea of "endless meat" sounded like an unbelievable dream.
"Of course it's true, meow!" Sparky said with a serious face. "Why don't you all come along and see for yourselves, meow?"
"That... that makes sense, meow," the Bugtrapper Chief said, scratching his head.
He didn't suspect Sparky or the others of having any ill intent. After all, with how strong those "fat cats" like Pot were, they could have easily wiped out his entire tribe. Since they were this powerful yet so friendly, they had to be good cats.
"Can you tell us more, meow?" the Chief asked.
"Certainly! Let me give you the full story, meow." Pot patted his belly happily. "It all started back when our tribe was in dire straits, meow. Back then, we were just like you—few in number, and every hunt meant potentially never coming home, meow. But then one day, the Glavenus Boss appeared outside our old village, meow..."
It was a long story.
As the sun gradually set, the bonfires in the Bugtrapper village rose and eventually died down. When the sun rose again, the Bugtrapper Chief finally made his decision.
They were going to the festival to eat.
Asterion was unaware that a bunch of "country cats" were heading his way; he was currently busy dealing with an Acidic Glavenus.
This one had the same temperament as Mirrorblade. Upon hearing that Asterion had returned, it had charged over wanting a head-on brawl. Asterion, not in the mood for a "tutorial" fight, simply jabbed his tail needle into its body, putting it to sleep on the spot.
Tranquilizer fluid is so convenient!
The festive atmosphere was growing thicker, and Asterion was enjoying this long-lost sense of liveliness. It was certainly more vibrant and interesting than a forest filled with only the sound of wind and rain.
He and the Bazelgeuse brothers hadn't been idle either. During this time, they had been constantly invading neighboring monster territories to hunt. They killed everything from the meatiest local prey to the local apex predators, bringing them all back to serve as meat for the Great Gastronome.
None of them were particularly powerful monsters, though. Perhaps because he went there so often for a "snack," Asterion noticed that no truly strong monsters had appeared in the areas bordering his territory for a long time—even if he hadn't marked those areas as his own. Logically, they should have been unclaimed hunting grounds.
Maybe they sensed the danger?
Asterion felt a bit of regret.
Regardless, the meat he and the Bazelgeuse brothers had hunted was now piled high across the exposed canopy of the Great Tree. Many Grimalkynes were working there from dawn to dusk, even keeping lanterns lit through the night.
They had to process the usable meat before the life energy within the carcasses dissipated. Otherwise, given the temperature and humidity of the Ancient Forest, the meat would rot quickly and wouldn't last until the end of the festival.
Balancing massive wooden platters on their heads—filled with chunks of meat of all sizes—the Grimalkynes moved like a conveyor belt on an assembly line. One after another, they transported the processed meat from the canopy down to the middle layers of the Great Tree.
When Sparky led the Bugtrappers back to the village, this was the scene that greeted them—a sight they hadn't even dared to dream of.
Meat?! Why was there meat everywhere?!
The promise of endless food was actually real!!
But what shocked them even more was the scale of the Glavenus tribe. Everywhere they looked, they saw cats with the same signature black fur, occupying every space from the trunk to the branches.
"Don't worry, meow. Everyone is very friendly, meow," Sparky said with a chuckle as he led the way at the front. "We didn't waste too much time; we've arrived just in time, meow. Tomorrow is the Great Gastronome."
Gulp.
"Are... are we going to see the Glavenus Boss, meow?" The Bugtrapper Chief swallowed hard and asked nervously, "The monster really won't hurt us, meow?"
No matter how extravagantly Sparky and the others had praised the Glavenus Boss back at their village—how smart and great he was—the local cats had nearly fallen into their fire pits when they heard that a dragon ruled the tribe.
"Of course not, meow," Sparky replied without hesitation. "Look at the meat in your hand, meow. What could go wrong?"
The Bugtrapper Chief looked at the dense leaves above, then at the meat in his hands, and took a bite—it was rich and savory.
"Nothing, meow." In an instant, all his worries vanished. "The Glavenus Boss must be a good one, meow!"
The logic was simple: meat doesn't lie.
As Chief, Sparky guided the long-distance guests to familiarize them with the village. The sounds of "Whoa!" and "Meow!" never stopped. Sparky didn't show any impatience or look down on his forest cousins; instead, he felt a bit sorry for them.
It was for this reason that Sparky wanted these forest Grimalkynes to join the Glavenus tribe, just as most of the other tribes in the Wildspire Waste had eventually joined. It was better for everyone to live a good life together.
Many Grimalkynes shared Sparky's mindset. After all, the Bugtrappers' fur color was quite unique. Every now and then, a black cat would come over to say hello, and some even went home specifically to bring back gifts.
It was a remarkably harmonious scene.
"That over there is a pipe for transporting heat, meow. We came from the distant Waste, meow. It's very hot and dry there, so we didn't adapt well to the forest environment, meow. With the help of the humans, we built that thing, meow. It can burn fire..."
"What are 'humans,' meow? Humans are—ah! Over there, those are humans, meow! They're very smart and helpful, meow. You can get them to work for you just by giving them a little meat, meow!"
"Hey, hey, Sparky, I can't exactly let that slide, you know?"
Just as Sparky was acting like a tour guide, passing on "shady" tips on how to use hunters, the hunter he was pointing at walked over with a dark expression to correct him.
"The tasks the Glavenus tribe gives us are considered Special Investigation Quests. Even if you didn't give us anything, we'd help as long as the request is reasonable. The Guild pays out separate rewards for these missions."
"So? What are you trying to prove, meow?" Sparky said with a mischievous grin.
"To prove we aren't working for free, meow!" The hunter wasn't actually angry. He was holding a skewer of sizzling, oily meat, and his voice was muffled as he spoke.
"Understood, meow. The cats will continue to issue Special Investigation Quests, meow."
"Don't exploit the loopholes! Whatever, I'm just an ordinary hunter anyway. I'll leave those headaches to the Admiral and the Commander," the hunter said happily, looking at the different-colored Grimalkynes behind Sparky. "Are they guests too?"
"For now, meow," Sparky shrugged. "I'll work hard to make them stay, meow."
"Oh! Good luck then!" The hunter gave a thumbs-up. "You're looking more and more like a real Chief, Sparky! The Great Gastronome is getting livelier by the minute!"
For those who chose to stay here and already viewed the New World as their second home, the feeling of wandering through a festival was nostalgic... and certainly more crowded than the festivals held back at Astera.
There were thousands of cats here, after all.
"Eat well and drink well, meow!"
"Eat well and drink well!"
Using the common greeting of the current Glavenus tribe, the hunter went back to enjoying the festival. Sparky continued to lead his cousins around, telling them where not to go and what not to be afraid of.
As Sparky was speaking, the Bugtrappers suddenly took on expressions of pure terror. A bird-like beak clamped onto the back of Sparky's clothes, hoisting him up before tossing him onto a broad back.
"...Don't—don't be nervous, meow! He's a friend, meow!!" Before he even found his footing, Sparky hurriedly patted the neck of the Kulu-Ya-Ku brother, shouting down to the Bugtrappers who were so terrified they were about to scream—and some of whom had already drawn weapons. "This is what I told you about, meow! The Glavenus Boss's partner! The Egg-Thief, meow!!"
"Kwah-gack!!"
Showing no shame at the slightly embarrassing nickname, the Kulu-Ya-Ku brother instead stretched his neck out proudly and struck a stylish pose.
————
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