RB Chapter 139 Conflict

"I know that some of you lost your loved ones due to these insects...and for that, I am truly sorry..." Kiwuka, whose face had had a grin previously gained solemnity. She bowed down sincerely.

"Heh! This woman's acting skills are top notch." Elena scoffed.

"We have always seen her by the side of the elder and wondered what was her ability was, as she never participated in the war...it is truly surprising that she is the one behind this colony of insects." Dora said.

"...but we had to get rid of the scourge, that was the ten clans! All those bystanders who died should be honored as heroes. Their names should be etched in our hearts and never be forgotten!" Kiwuka rose up and continued. Her gaze was penetrating.

"I will atone for my sins by helping our city regain our lost land. My ant colony will be the vanguard and will slaughter all the beasts that it can!" It was like she had made a vow.

"Hail miss Kiwuka!"

"Hail! Hail! Hail!" 

Cheers broke out from the crowd and all those who had lost their close ones shed tears of gratitude upon getting her apology.

"She cleared away their resentment with a speech, impressive." Sally praised sincerely.

"She's our enemy, you know that right?" Dora gave her a weird look while reminding her.

"That means that I take her seriously. I won't be careless if there ever comes a day that I face her." Sally replied coldly. She had added Kiwuka to the 'Those to watch out for' list in her mind.

"War is upon us and it is just a few minutes away. All of you can find a place to relax until the appointed time comes." Kiwuka finished her speech and walked back to seat in a chair. A tree had grown out from behind the stage and it was providing shade for the upper echelon.

"Elder Muti's biological abilities are related to plants, so he might be the one who grew that tree." Chloe said to the others who had been shocked by its abrupt appearance.

"I know. They did say that those who had merged with plant genes were slow, but it seems energy channelling removes that disadvantage." Leah commented.

"Anyway, let's look for a place." Eric changed the topic, before leading the way. They passed through the crowd and walked to the edge of the clearing.

"Why are you following us?" Chloe's voice came from Eric's back.

He had been deep in thought so he hadn't noticed that Monki's group had decided to follow them.

"Being around you is safer than being by ourselves." Sally was the one who answered.

"Heh! What if I just slaughter all of you?" Chloe had a grin plastered in her face but the murderous aura seeping out of her body was real. They had stopped and Eric was looking for a suitable spot within the grass. He decided to only deal with those people after finding a spot.

"We have no ill intentions." Sally gestured with her hands. The murderous aura was so dense that her face had paled, but she was doing her best to explain.

"Chloe, let's first settle down." Eric's voice cane from her back. She gave them a vicious glare before joining up with the others.

"We four, are going to form a group, but it must be seemless. So, we need to discuss this beforehand." Eric said the moment they sat down.

They were directly sitting down in the grass since there were no chairs. They were in a circle, facing each other.

Since Monki's group wanted to stay close to them, they chose a relatively close are to occupy.

"I will tell you this first, I like being on the frontline, so I can be the main attacker." Eric started.

"I will coordinate with Eric since I too, attack head on." Chloe was the second. Eric nodded as he knew her combat style.

"I too like to do the same, but since I focus on agility, I will be the back up or something." Elena was the third.

"I can support. I can fight on the front line too, but it's better if I just support you with my poison." Leah said.

"So, if we meet a strong beast, Chloe and I will be the main attackers, while you two will occasionally support as you see fit. I hope you don't dissapoint us." Eric assigned their roles.

"The formation will only be used in troublesome beasts. For those which are weaker, you could act as you see fit." Eric pointed out.

"I want to join your team." A voice came from the side. It was Sally's.

"Sally! Are you abandoning us?" Monki was the first to protest.

"You are the reason why I want to leave this team. If Mugumivu had been here, I wouldn't have left the group, but the moment you arrived, you offended those kids. We had discussed beforehand that we will join up with them in the absence of Mugumivu, but your childishness..." Sally shook her head in exasperation.

"She is right you know." Dora also took her side. She was staring at her nails. It was as if she was looking at a new continent or something.

"Stay. We are three. We can make it work. Don't care about what Mugumivu said. He's going to be like a commander, enjoying the peace at the back lines, while we will be risking our lives on the frontlines." Monki threw a tantrum.

"I know that you are jealous, but such childishness shouldn't be brought onto the battlefield. Here, a decision made based on your emotions could cost you your life." Dora advised. She didn't even look at him. The more that she got to know Monki, the more dissatisfied she started to get.

'Its no wonder that girl Njibwa chose Mugumivu.' She shook her head in pity.

"Monki. You know that I choose my steps carefully based on logic. We were never friends in the first place. I only joined your group because Mugumivu was the one who could give me the greatest benefits, but now, that boy, is the one who gives me the highest chance of surviving in this war, do you understand?" Sally pointed at Eric's group.

They had heard every word of the trio's conversation and looked at Sally in a new light.

"You are so cold. Do you have a low EQ or something?" Eric couldn't help but ask.

"No, its just that I surpress my emotions. They are useless. I don't want my life to stay mediocre. Even being a scion of the ten clans isn't enough for me. I want to see the pinnacle of evolution. In order to reach that goal, I can't be tied down by useless things such as emotion." Sally explained. Her voice was cold.

Monki's face was spotting an ugly expression. Being criticised by these people made him feel humiliated.

"So, you can also become shameless, like hanging around us. You don't feel any shame in that behaviour." Elena asked sarcastically. She felt that that woman's thinking was flawed.

"Shame...is that important if I can live? Hmph! That is the naive thinking that you young ones still have. Take this woman for example, she sleeps with many men, changing them like clothes, but have you ever seen her become embarrassed?" Sally pointed at Dora.

"Chloe is different from all of you." Eric refuted her claims.

"...heh! I doubt that. She is a battle maniac, a crazy person." Sally scoffed.

"I am leaving. I will hunt alone." At this time, Monki stood up and left.

"At least he understands he's the problem." Dora commented.

"You are one cold woman. All the more reason not to let you join us. I want teammates I can trust with my life. With your self preservation mindset, you would abandon us if we encounter a life threatening situation, so I don't want you in our team." Eric's voice took on a colder tone at the last words.

"It seems that my efforts have been fruitless. Its time to think of another solution." Sally stood up and also walked away, probably to search for a team to join.

"What about you slut, what are you going to do? Why are you still even here?" Elena insulted.

"Little girl, I thought you had matured after surviving your tribulation, but it seems I was wrong." Dora simply shook her head and walked away. The insult hadn't caused any change in her expression.

"Pathetic." Elena scoffed, dissatisfied that the woman had looked down on her.

"Their group collapsed that easily!?" Leah was shocked.

"They had only come together due to benefits. Now that they have finished diving them up, they were bound to split sooner or later." Eric commented. He didn't attach too much attention to them.

"Now, we can only wait for the war to start. I heard that by nightfall, after the start of the war, an adventurer style camp is going to be built, exclusively for those of us energy channellers." Leah said.

"Where did you hear that?" Eric asked.

"From the people who had been near us. For now its a rumor. I have no way of verifying it though." She pointed to the people around.