Overwhelming Firepower

The children watching were wide-eyed. They had heard about barbarians from the stories they heard from their parents, the elders, or from other older children.

In those stories, barbarians were barely human. They devoured naughty children, burned villages for fun, and lived only for slaughter. To many of them, barbarians were monsters wearing human skin.

They would paint their faces with the blood of their fallen enemies. They only knew battle and found joy in massacre. But the Barbarians they saw in the play were completely different from what was told to them.

They did not cackle. They did not rush forward in mindless bloodlust. They spoke with conviction. They argued about honor. They extended a hand instead of raising a blade.

These barbarians were warriors who understood courage. Warriors who knew loss. Warriors who recognized another warrior’s worth even when his own people had discarded him.

Some children unconsciously leaned closer to the stage. Others glanced at their parents, confusion flickering in their eyes. A few tugged at sleeves.

”Father,” one child whispered, careful not to disturb the play, ”are barbarians really like that?”

Some parents opened their mouths, ready to answer out of habit, only to hesitate. The words they had always used suddenly felt wrong, too simple, too convenient.

”... I don’t know...” The Father answered, confused as well.

Even the nobles were quite surprised by Lucen’s interpretation of Barbarians. The Barbarian tribes were one of the frequent threats the Thorneharts needed to deal with. They had thought that by now, both sides were mortal enemies, but this play makes it seem like they respect each other.

They then looked at Vardon Thornehart to see his reaction, but as usual, the man was as stoic as ever.

With no answer at hand, the play continued. The former knight arrived at the home of the Red Wolf Tribe.

The illusion shifted again.

The jagged hills softened into a wide basin surrounded by stone pillars carved with ancient symbols.

Fires burned in steady circles, not chaotic, but deliberate. The Red Wolf Tribe’s settlement emerged, tents reinforced with bone and leather, weapon racks arranged with care, children training with wooden spears under the watchful eyes of elders.

This was not a den of savages. This was like any other human village, simply people gathered and trying to live their lives.

The former knight stepped forward, his boots crunching against packed earth. Conversations slowed, then stopped. Eyes turned toward him, curious, wary, respectful.

An old woman approached first, her back bent but her gaze sharp. Spirit tattoos traced her arms and neck, faded but numerous.

Even though her body had deteriorated, the former knight knew as well as the audience that this person was a true warrior.

”Hm... Mighty warrior of the stone walls. What brings you here?”

The former knight looked at the elderly woman, who was filled with great power, and closed his eyes as he started explaining the events that brought him to this place.

When the members of the Red Wolf Tribe heard the former knight’s story the started trembling. The anger being emitted by all, women, children, and everyone in the tribe was emitting killing intent at the moment.

The purple tower mages were making a red aura surround the actors who were playing the red wolf tribe members and also the illusions on the stage, to make the killing intent visible to the people watching.

The one who was emitting the strongest killing intent was the elderly lady standing in front of the former knight.

”HOW DARE THEY!!!” The elderly lady spoke in a tone you wouldn’t imagine would come from an old lady.

”To dishonor such a glorious warrior as yourself! Those foolish, cowardly people who hide behind their stone walls! Not only do they ravage the land to feed their greed, but they toss out the one who had protected them, a great warrior!”

The old woman’s shout echoed across the basin, raw and furious. The red aura thickened, rolling like heat from a forge, making several audience members unconsciously tense in their seats.

For a moment, it felt as if the Red Wolf Tribe might truly march on the stone walls that very night.

After saying all of that, the elder finally calmed down as she breathed a deep sigh. Seeing her act like that, the other barbarians calm down as well.

”It is not worthwhile to get mad at fools. Since they have thrown you out. Warrior of the stone walls, the one who has won a thousand battles. We, the Red Wolf Tribe, welcome you to our family.”

The second the elder said those words, every person in the Red Wolf Tribe stood up and pounded their chest like they were war drums.

The former knight stood frozen as the sound washed over him. The audience watching the scene were also entranced by the sight and sound.

The elder stepped closer. ”In our tribe,” she said, her voice steady once more, ”warriors are given the respect they deserve. Their courage protects the people weaker than they are. They are like your high walls that surround your own tribe, but they are not as cold.”

The former knight lowered his head for the first time since arriving. These people were different from the ones he knew. Their emotions and thoughts were laid bare, as if hiding them was shameful.

’These people have shown such sincerity, but...’ The Former knight was thinking, of course, since this was a play, there was a voice-over to tell the audience what he was thinking.

The voice-over softened, echoing his thoughts across the theater. ’If I accept this... Then I am truly no longer the knight I was before...’

His mind returned to stone walls bathed in torchlight. To soldiers saluting his back. To citizens who once cheered his name and later whispered it with fear.

To the moment the decree had been read, clean and cold, as if discarding him were nothing more than adjusting a ledger.

This was conveyed to the audience by using illusion spells in the background.

’I see... I’m no longer a knight, and I must accept that... Fine, since I cannot return, then I must move forward to my own future.’

The voice-over became firm. The actor playing the former knight was able to convey his renewed conviction with his eyes alone. Lucen, who was watching the play backstage, was impressed by the level of acting being shown.

”Thank you for accepting me.” The knight spoke to the elder. ”From now on, I will do my best for the Red Wolf Tribe.”

”Warrior, there’s no need for such things. The Red Wolf Tribe is simply a large family.”

The elder placed a weathered hand on the former knight’s chest, right over where his heart would be.

”In a family, we do not serve,” she said. ”We live together, we protect one another, we stand together. That is all, nothing more, nothing less.”

For a heartbeat, the former knight did not move, and after a while, he placed his own hand over the elder.

”I.... Understand,” he said. The people watching could feel the weight of those words. For the former knight who valued the code of chivalry until the end, the words spoken were far heavier than any he had said before.

”Then from now on, you are one of us! Our brother shall you cast away your old name and receive anew?”

The former knight twitched when he heard the question, but then he shook his head. What was there to hesitate about?

The eyes of the former knight sparkled with unknown brilliance. Of course, this was just another effect brought by illusions.

”Fine... Since I no longer have a home to return to. Then what is the point of the old name, my old code? There’s no longer meaning to hold onto a name that has been dishonored and only holds memories that have no use for me... Then I shall cast away my old name, and hope you grant me a new one to signify the start of my new life.”

The elder nodded her head and spoke in a clear tone for all to hear.

”From this day onward, you shall no longer be known by the name given to you by stone walls and those who shackle your freedom. From this day on, you are part of the Red Wolf Tribe and shall be named Xolik Ogihaadaa.”