Kai stopped a few meters from the clearing before the log palisade became fully visible.

  He didn’t raise his hand to stop the group; he simply slowed his pace, and the others imitated him. Ivark adjusted Sira’s weight over his shoulder, and Katherine stayed at his side, close enough that the fabric of her clothes brushed against his arm.

  Kai observed the structures in the distance. Main hut at the center. Five others around it. Six in total. He counted silhouettes in motion, tried to identify weapons, escape routes, possible blind spots. Then he spoke without looking away.

  “Kat, what’s the leader’s name?” Kai asked while flexing his fingers slightly around the club.

  Katherine took a second to respond. Her ears moved back before stabilizing.

  “Mira,” Katherine said quietly while pressing her fingers against her skirt.

  Mira.

  Kai gave a slight nod.

  If the vilge was small, authority would be concentrated. If he removed the head, the rest would fall apart. Or become more savage. He didn’t know yet.

  “We advance,” Kai said as he began walking with firm steps.

  They didn’t run. They crossed the edge of the clearing as if it already belonged to them.

  The lookout saw them first. A figure on top of the palisade straightened abruptly.

  “Arm!” the lookout shouted as she brought a horn to her lips and blew hard.

  The sound cut across the clearing like a hollow blow. Armed figures came out from the huts almost immediately. Six in total. Two with spears, three with daggers, one with a short sword. They spread into an irregur line in front of the entrance.

  Kai heard Katherine’s breathing change behind him. He didn’t turn, but noticed how her hand tightened slightly on the fabric of his shirt.

  The screen appeared in his vision.

  [System][New Mission][Defeat the catgirl vilge][Reward +200 XP]

  Good.

  The six finished positioning themselves. Then a space opened between them.

  And she came out.

  Taller than the rest. Straight posture. Chin raised. A visible scar crossed her left cheek up to the edge of her eye. She carried a spear, but didn’t point it; she rested it against the ground like someone holding a symbol rather than a weapon.

  She walked forward without hurry.

  Her eyes went straight to Katherine.

  “I thought you had died,” Mira said while tilting her head slightly and forming a restrained smile.

  Déjà vu.

  Mira shifted her gaze toward him, evaluating him from head to toe without hiding it. Then her eyes moved to Ivark and stopped on the orc’s back.

  Sira struggled.

  “Mira!” Sira shouted while trying to free herself from the rope binding her wrists.

  The other five tensed immediately.

  Mira didn’t shout. She didn’t get agitated. She only adjusted the spear more firmly against the ground.

  “Return her,” Mira said while fixing her gaze on Kai and then on Ivark.

  Kai took half a step forward. He didn’t raise his weapon. There was no need.

  “And if I don’t?” Kai asked while lifting his chin slightly.

  Mira held his gaze without blinking.

  “Return Sira to us… and Katherine,” Mira said while gesturing slightly with the tip of her spear.

  Katherine moved behind him. She didn’t step back, but her breathing became faster.

  Kai didn’t turn.

  “I won’t return her to you, Mira,” Kai said while straightening his back and pnting his feet on the ground.

  Silence tightened like a rope.

  One of the catgirls stepped forward, lowering her center of gravity.

  “She belongs to us,” another said while gripping her dagger with both hands.

  Kai observed micro-movements. Shoulders tightening, weight shifting forward. There was no fear on their faces.

  It was preparation.

  Mira raised her hand slightly and the others stopped. There was a clear hierarchy.

  “Who are you?” Mira asked while tilting her head and analyzing his posture.

  “I’m the one who saved her,” Kai replied while gesturing slightly with his thumb toward Katherine without taking his eyes off the leader.

  Mira let out a faint sound through her nose, almost a ugh.

  “Saved?” Mira repeated while spinning the spear with a small movement of her wrist. “She didn’t need saving.”

  Katherine stepped slightly to the side, just enough to be seen.

  “Yes, she did,” Katherine said while clenching her teeth and keeping her gaze lowered.

  Kai noticed the competition in the way two of the catgirls looked at Katherine. They were evaluating her.

  “They tried to kill her,” Kai said while taking another half-step forward and shortening the distance between himself and the defensive line.

  Mira didn’t respond immediately. Her eyes moved to Katherine, then to Sira, then back to him.

  “The cn’s decisions do not concern a human,” Mira said while slightly raising her chin.

  There it is.

  Territory.

  Property.

  Hierarchy.

  Kai felt the pressure in his chest, but didn’t step back.

  “Now they do concern me,” Kai said while resting the club firmly against the ground.

  Ivark took a step forward, adjusting Sira more securely over his shoulder.

  “Master,” Ivark murmured while adjusting his grip, waiting for an order.

  Mira looked at him with barely perceptible disdain.

  “An orc as an escort?” Mira asked while narrowing her eyes.

  “A very useful orc,” Kai replied without looking at Ivark.

  One of the catgirls tightened her grip on her spear.

  “Let them go and leave,” another said while stepping half a step forward without breaking formation.

  Kai calcuted distances.

  Six against three.

  But they weren’t six equals.

  Two were hesitating.

  One was looking too much at Katherine.

  Sira was restless.

  Mira was the key.

  If she falls, the rest will hesitate.

  Kai took the final step forward and officially crossed the invisible line of their territory.

  “I didn’t come to negotiate,” Kai said while locking his eyes on Mira.