"Who are you?" The lady shouted in alarm, "What have you done to me?"
"I healed you, nothing else." Wittral said as wind blew on the lady, pressuring her to the bed, preventing her from getting up, "You haven't finished healing yet. Stay put for now and let the medicine do its wonder."
"Medicine…?" The lady blinked in surprise before staring at her legs, flexing the toes, "I thought I lost them."
"My medicine healed them." Wittral nodded, proud upon seeing her shock.
"I see," The lady relaxed, speaking after taking a few seconds to gather her bearings, "I'll repay you in the future."
"Where is this place?"
"Fral Island," Wittral said, "In the Dralh Sea."
"Dralh Sea…" The lady stared at the figure of Nurnur, observing her bald head, black clothes, and black mascara, stating in realisation, "So you guys are from the Cooter Clan."
There wasn't any tone of respect used in her statement. It was just…calm, as if she had just entered the territory of another group of humans.
Free Humans stared at Cooter Clansmen in awe, always, gazing at them as if they were sons and daughters of heavens, while them, the Free Humans were merely dirt critters that wouldn't be able to survive without the Cooter Clan's protection.
From their birth, the Cooter Clansmen received those gazes, treating it as if it were natural. But now, upon seeing the lady's nonchalance, whether it was Wittral or Nurnur, they were shocked.
A Free Human could look at a Cooter Clansman in such a way? It seemed absurd, but here it was, on her face, an expression that didn't treat the Cooter Clan as anything special.
"Have you seen us before?" Wittral thought maybe the lady wasn't bright enough to realise who she was talking towards. And hence, he stressed their identity, "We are Cooter Clansmen,"
"From the legendary Cooter Clan."
"I'm aware," The Lady expressed confusion as she stared at Wittral, "The Mammoth Clan and the Cooter Clan are the strongest forces in Sumatra. That's a well-known fact. I have interacted with the Mammoth Clan in the past, so I know…"
"Bah, what can the Mammoth Clan do," Nurnur commented sarcastically. "They are merely slaves with a bit of strength."
"Anyway," The lady didn't entertain Nurnur's comment and stared at Wittral to say, "My ship got destroyed during the voyage. I have heard about the Cooter Clan's ship-building skills. If you can arrange a ride for me, I'll be sure to pay handsomely once I return home."
"Watch the tone you're using toward us…" Nurnur glared in anger, unsettled by the lady's calm attitude towards them, when the usual way would be for the Free Humans to prostrate and sing praises about them for a few minutes at the very least. The lady didn't even react to the high-ranking medicine bestowed upon her.
Wittral cut off her statement as he stared at the lady with interest, "Hey, can you tell me more about your place?"
"Do you wish to know about the Brimgan Empire?" The lady asked, "Sure, I don't mind, as long as you arrange for my return trip."
"Consider it done," Wittral grinned as he introduced himself, "I'm Wittral, an elite from the Cooter Clan. What about you?"
"Inala," The lady introduced herself, "Successor of Asaeya Enterprises, Brimgan Empire's leading merchant house."
"Ooh," Wittral was impressed, "How strong is the Brimgan Empire?"
"Why do you want to know about that?" Inala asked, on guard.
"I'm just curious, that's all." Wittral waved his hand, "I want to know more about the world beyond."
He snapped his finger and commanded Nurnur, "Bring some tea and refreshments for our guest here."
"Okay," Nurnur's figure vanished.
"Do you mind a casual conversation over tea?" Wittral asked, "I won't pry for any sensitive information. So, please tell me whatever you can say about your place."
"That's fine by me." Inala nodded and waited until Nurnur brought in tea, set a table, and poured a glass for Inala. She then sat right next to them, taking charge of filling up the glasses of both Inala and Wittral.
"The Brimgan Empire is one of the strongest forces on Sumatra," Inala said, commenting at Nurnur's snort, "You needn't express your ignorance so soon."
"I'll give you a chance for that later."
"Don't you dare go overboard!" Nurnur glared, emanating her presence as the stone house trembled in response. She was at the 6-Life Stage, after all, a powerhouse.
"Nurnur!" Wittral shouted as the trembling stopped. Even though his presence was vastly weaker than hers, it instinctively shut her up.
"How strong are they?" Wittral asked, acting as if Nurnur's outburst never happened.
Taking a few seconds to calm her trembling body, Inala tried her best to ignore Nurnur and spoke, "Well, any of our Royalty is capable of killing multiple Gold Grade Pranic Beasts singlehandedly. In terms of individual combat prowess, we're very strong."
"Well if we're talking about the Empire's strength as a whole," Inala closed her eyes and acted as if she was calculating, speaking in the end, "By exhausting all our strength, we're able to kill the current Boar King at least twice."
"You can kill the Boar King?" Wittral shouted in disbelief, "That's impossible!"
"Not anymore," Inala laughed, "The Boar King died twice in his recent fight against the Mammoth Clan. He's only at the peak of the Body Stage at present. He's not as invincible as before."
"The Mammoth Clan killed him…twice?" Wittral asked as his expression was no longer jovial, "Are you serious?"
"You can ask for the details from the Mammoth Clan," Inala nodded, "Or if you have any of your people in the Dieng Canyon, you'll be able to confirm the battle scene yourself. I have no reason to lie to you about something like this."
"That event was so shocking that the news has been spread across various communities of Humans and Pranic Beasts."
"Tell me more," Wittral asked, feeling his horizons were broadened, continuing to listen with rapt attention. After some time, even Nurnur stopped her snide remarks, caught in the tales weaved by Inala.
'Alright, I have successfully captured their attention.' Inala thought as he talked about various topics. By not praising the Cooter Clan as a Free Human, when Wittral and Nurnur had been receiving praises from Free Humans throughout their lives, he was subconsciously sparking their competitive spirit.
They wanted to make Inala praise them. Hence, they listened to everything he said, trying to use the details for comparison and to showcase their Clan's superiority in the various sectors.
Unlike the Mammoth Clan that roamed the lands and interacted with various communities, the Cooter Clan was relatively secluded and hence more cut off in terms of information.
They didn't even know about the Boar King's loss of two lives, which was a major event in the Sumatra Continent's recent history.
Soon, the Death Hour approached, but Wittral and Nurnur were still listening to Inala speak with great interest.
"When that Centinger unleashed an artillery strike at us, there was a golden flash of lightning. And the next moment, its body was in eight pieces." Inala said, "Our fourth Prince is very domineering with his Spirit Weapon control."
"Say," Wittral asked after thinking a little, "It seems your Brimgan Empire has everything. Then, why did you venture out to such dangerous regions?"
"Ah, about that," Inala smiled wryly, "My grandfather said only the Cooter Clan can create the Influence Easing Elixir. Because of the problems with my Human Avatar, I had no other choice but to come here."
"Of course," Wittral grinned, "You came to the right place."
"Only my Cooter Clan can produce the Influence Easing Elixir."
