The women around us had two different reactions to what was happening. One group was trying to understand Ducat.
“Hey, try to pinch my nipples.”
“Like this?”
“Ow…! What, it just hurts, it doesn’t feel good at all!”
“Well, obviously.”
“I don’t understand elder Ducat.”
“Me neither.”
The rest looked at us with mixed feelings.
“Is it fine for an elder to behave like this toward a child?”
“Isn’t it too much?”
“Why is she doing this like it’s normal?”
It was elder Fevalto who interrupted them.
“And why not? Look, everyone. Can’t you see how happy she is? What about Aeth and Libes? Have you ever seen women so happy with their lives?”
“No, but still…”
“Have you never thought about this? Why should only men be happy? Don’t we women have the right to do things we like too? It’s only fair since we work so hard for the tribe.”
Some of the audience nodded in agreement while others didn’t seem convinced. Elder Fevalto truly was something else. To think someone advocating for women’s rights would appear in front of me, in a world and time where people didn’t even know how to start a fire without magic. That was so interesting.
Just like that, I acquired two new sexual partners, my collection growing nicely. Elder Fevalto ended up being quite the dominatrix, borderline sadist during sex, while elder Ducat was the exact opposite, getting happier the more she was blamed. The two made an incredible combination where I would dominate and get dominated at the same time, no doubt something few men would experience through history.
Time passed quickly. In between rounds of fun, I continued to work on forging weapons and armor for myself. Magic training was still the same, too, with me emptying my magical reserves every day. This was getting harder as time went on, since my reserves were very large now. I couldn’t be completely certain, but I thought I had enough magical energy to compare to an elite warrior by now.
Soon enough, Dyla and I became ten years old. This age was important for children, especially for boys.
For the girls, this marked a point where they would be taught the rest of the skills they were too young to practice before, like making spears or butchering beasts from scratch, as well as things about child rearing, for later.
As for boys, they were finally considered old enough to go on their first hunts. Of course, they wouldn’t participate actively. The plan was to be inserted into existing hunting groups and stay at the back, learning from the other warriors.
The two other boys my age were already part of training groups linked to hunting groups, so things were easy for them. They were seamlessly integrated into those groups and went out hunting. The problem was me. Even though warrior Kalam hadn’t done anything about it, he was still well aware that I was by myself all the time. As such, he grabbed me and went on a tour of the warriors' quarters in the caves.
Warriors usually lived together with their hunting group, eating, drinking, and sleeping in the same area. We went through several such places, but mostly met warriors shaking their heads.
“Who’s that kid? Alone? No way.”
“We don’t want him in our group.”
“We have nothing to teach him.”
The most influential groups instantly rejected me. We continued touring the less important groups, getting met with similar rejections, until two warriors recognized me. They were the ones who were guarding the grotto the day Libes got hurt by a beast.
“Aren’t you the one who hunted a Warek a few cycles back?”
“Ah, yes, it’s him, I remember.”
“That’s me, warriors.”
“Hmm… Okay, we’ll take you in. You have potential.”
“Really?”
“Yes. But, even though you managed to hunt a beast when you were still small, you still have to stay at the back and listen to us.”
“I understand.”
“Good. Hunting a Warek is great, but it’s nothing compared to a blessed beast. You should never grow arrogant. Even seasoned warriors can die from them.”
“I’ll be careful, warrior.”
“At least, you listen well. All right. I’m warrior Aldrui, the leader of this hunting group. We’re going on a hunt in two days, so be prepared.”
The group that had chosen me was far from being the best or the most influential. They were made of five warriors, who all looked average in terms of strength, with only the leader Aldrui seeming a bit stronger than the rest. Hunting groups had variable sizes, but that criterion wasn’t related to their influence. It was all about how powerful the warriors in the group were, especially the leader. And that made sense. The strength of the most powerful warrior in the group dictated both survival chances and what level of beast could be hunted.
I had gotten included in a below-average group, but I wasn’t about to complain. I only knew theoretical knowledge about hunting in this world, and I dearly needed practical experience. Even though I wouldn’t be part of the action, watching what others did would surely be extraordinarily helpful. Plus, I would be able to see the beasts for myself, something I could only randomly picture in my mind so far.
Two days later, I met with the five warriors at the entrance of the cave, everyone equipped with a bunch of stone spears in their hands or on their backs, including me. I wasn’t about to reveal my metal weapons in front of others. Warrior Aldrui inspected me for a moment before nodding.
“All right. Let’s go. Keon, you stay in the back.”
“Yes, warrior.”
We left the grotto and were met with the fresh air of early spring. We started walking straight forward quickly, as our leader explained.
“Our goal is to hunt two or three beasts. We can’t hunt more than this because we’ll need to carry them back to the cave. If three warriors have their hands full because they’re carrying the bodies, that only leaves two warriors to fight any potential beast, and that’s the strict minimum. Remember, Keon, you should always have at least two warriors ready to fight at any time.”