Okay, I seriously need to know how they spotted me."
Arin grumbled as he stared back toward the oak tree that had betrayed him. The canopy was still shedding leaves from the absurd number of arrows that had been fired into it. Even now, he could see several shafts protruding from branches that had done nothing wrong except exist near his hiding place. At least he wasn't currently covered in arrows himself.
That thought alone made him shiver.
The image of becoming a human porcupine was disturbingly easy to imagine. Given enough time, his family would probably find a way to turn it into a formal training exercise. Fortunately, the rubber-tipped arrows had only left bruises rather than permanent damage. Unfortunately, the damage to his pride was proving much harder to heal.
"Grandpa, I call foul play."
Arin marched out of the tree line and toward the group of elders gathered near the archery range. Several of them were discussing the results of the hunt while pretending not to notice his approach. They were the titled elders of the family, better known as the members of the Elder Council. In Arin's opinion, they were also the people most responsible for his suffering.
Karl merely looked amused.
"Nope," his grandfather replied immediately. "We gave them permission beforehand." He folded his arms and looked entirely too pleased with himself. "For the first time, they were allowed to cooperate fully during the hunt. It was a special decree approved by the council."
Arin stared at him in disbelief.
Then he turned toward his grandmother.
"Grandma, I protest."
His voice carried enough outrage to make several elders look over. Arin pointed dramatically toward the forest as though presenting evidence before a court. "They broke tradition first. I only pulled out all the stops because they abandoned the rules before I did. This was clearly retaliation."
He dropped to one knee.
"Please do something."
The performance was flawless.
At least according to Arin.
His grandmother looked down at him with the same expression someone might use when watching a child perform a play in the living room. The combination of sincerity and obvious manipulation was somehow both impressive and embarrassing. Several nearby elders had already started hiding smiles.
"Don't be so dramatic," Annemiek said.
Her tone was calm, but Arin immediately knew she wasn't buying it. "We were testing a new training format for the future. You performed quite well, all things considered." A faint smile appeared on her face. "Unfortunately for you, your father was involved."
Karl suddenly looked much less relaxed.
The old man knew his grandson well enough to understand that this conversation was dangerous. Arin was at his most troublesome whenever he felt wronged. Worse, he was clever enough to sound reasonable while causing maximum damage. Karl found himself paying very close attention to his wife's reaction.
Meanwhile, Arin was genuinely offended.
Contrary to what everyone seemed to think, he wasn't acting. This had been advertised as a game. Somewhere along the way it had transformed into fifty adults coordinating a military operation to hunt him down. There was a significant difference between those two concepts.
"Wait," Arin said. "So I was a guinea pig?"
Before his grandmother could answer, he immediately continued.
"And nobody told me?"
His expression became even more wounded.
"If I had known this wasn't a normal test, I would have approached it completely differently. They practically tortured me. You need to bring them to justice."
Then he deployed his secret weapon.
The puppy eyes.
Arin had watched his younger sister escape countless punishments using the technique. It seemed overwhelmingly effective despite making absolutely no sense. Unfortunately, he failed to realize that the maneuver looked considerably less adorable when performed by a grown man.
Karl was not watching Arin.
He was watching Annemiek.
Specifically, he was monitoring her face for signs that he should start running.
"No," Annemiek replied calmly. "I approved the idea myself."
Arin froze.
The puppy eyes failed instantly.
"It should teach you to respect your elders."
The statement earned immediate outrage.
"Grandma, that is where you're wrong."
Arin rose to his feet with all the confidence of a lawyer who had just discovered a critical piece of evidence. Several elders immediately leaned forward in anticipation. They had seen this look before and knew exactly what was coming.
"I respect my elders tremendously."
The declaration was delivered with complete conviction.
"Did I not hand over my tea for safekeeping to all of you?"
A dangerous silence followed.
Arin sensed weakness.
Naturally, he attacked.
"It isn't my fault Father is upset. It wasn't even his tea to begin with." He pointed accusingly toward the older generation. "If anything, I'm incredibly filial. The real issue is that none of my uncles voluntarily offered their tea when they turned eighteen."
Several elders immediately looked elsewhere.
Others suddenly found the sky very interesting.
Annemiek felt a headache coming on.
The problem was that Arin technically had a point. Years ago, Karl had absolutely stolen the tea reserves of their sons the moment they became adults. At the time, both she and Karl had participated enthusiastically in the operation. Now those actions were returning to haunt them.
Worse, Arin knew it.
The boy was exploiting legal loopholes in family tradition.
"Therefore," Arin continued, "I believe Father and my uncles should be punished."
His tone remained completely serious.
"The precedent is clear."
Karl closed his eyes.
Several elders started coughing suspiciously.
Others outright turned away to hide their smiles.
Thankfully, salvation arrived before Arin could continue.
Lilly emerged from the forest.
The moment Annemiek spotted her, she immediately shifted her attention. It was a desperate maneuver, but a necessary one. Allowing Arin to continue speaking would only deepen the hole everyone else had fallen into.
"Hey, Arin."
Lilly walked over while brushing pine needles from her sleeves. Unlike most of the others, she looked genuinely impressed. "You did quite well today." Her gaze moved toward the forest. "Honestly, I think we should run this exercise more often."
Arin blinked.
Lilly ignored him and continued.
"Having fifty people hunt a single target forces everyone outside their comfort zone. The hunters need to coordinate better, while the target needs to think creatively. It's excellent training."
Karl looked pleased.
Arin looked horrified.
"I think that's an incredible idea," Arin agreed immediately.
Lilly narrowed her eyes.
The sudden agreement felt suspicious.
"Please let me know when we're hunting my father," Arin continued. "I'm going to turn him into a porcupine."
The speed with which he changed sides would have impressed professional politicians.
Lilly laughed.
"You'll have to ask your grandfather."
Then she tilted her head slightly.
"By the way, nice return fire. Did you know you hit two people?"
Arin froze.
His eyes widened immediately.
"I did?"
The revelation caught him completely off guard.
"Damn."
A mixture of pride and regret appeared on his face.
"If I'd known that, I would've picked a different escape route." He scratched his head awkwardly. "That's actually pretty satisfying."
Lilly nodded.
"One of them was Dennis."
Her expression remained calm.
"That one can be forgiven. Getting hit there was partially necessary." Then her eyes narrowed slightly. "The other two, however, are in desperate need of reeducation."
The smile never reached her eyes.
Arin immediately understood.
There was a reason Lilly oversaw much of the clan's training. People tended to focus on her friendly personality and forget that she was terrifying when evaluating performance. Suddenly, the absence of several eliminated adults made a lot more sense.
Arin slowly took a step backward.
Then another.
Just to be safe.
"Lilly."
"Yes?"
"I think there are some trainees hiding near the edge of the forest."
Lilly turned immediately.
"Really?"
Arin pointed.
"Over there."
Whether anyone was actually present remained highly questionable.
Still, Lilly nodded seriously.
"Thank you, Arin."
Then she vanished into the trees.
Arin silently wished those unfortunate souls good luck.
The moment she disappeared, he turned back toward his grandparents. The interruption had bought them a few minutes, but Arin had not forgotten his mission. More importantly, neither had they.
"Now then."
Karl groaned.
Annemiek sighed.
Arin smiled brightly.
"Regarding the completely false accusation that I don't respect my elders..."
Both grandparents immediately felt another headache coming.
"Grandma," Arin continued with absolute conviction, "I remain firmly committed to the principle that Father should be punished for not voluntarily surrendering his tea when he turned eighteen."
The argument had somehow returned.
Neither Karl nor Annemiek possessed a proper counterargument because they knew exactly how the tea had been acquired all those years ago. The more Arin spoke, the more uncomfortable the situation became. For once, the hunted had successfully cornered his prey.