Everyone stared at Drake as if he was crazy. Well, he probably was. After all, he was berating a major of the Menoraz Army in front of his subordinates. Major Erinster was red as a tomato, a vein popping up on his forehead as he pointed a finger at Drake.

"You... You..."

"Denying to help the Taurons just because they are different... I think you too agree that this is wrong, right major?"

Smiling as if he hadn't heard the officer mutter curses, Drake stroked his Yscalent, and knelt besides it to check it's paw. There was nothing there, he just wanted to sound as nonchalant as possible.

"I can only see two options for someone who not only discriminates Barbarians, but actively tries to exterminate them by remaining idle while they suffer. Either said person is a coward, who doesn't dare to stand up against the bad elements of Ricker, or they are in it too. Either way, you... Err... That person is unfit to be a soldier, much less an officer, don't you agree?"

"Arrest this man! Arrest him right now!"

That was too much for Major Erinster. He stepped forward, yelling at Drake. Although he had yet to say a name, or accuse anyone formally, it was more than clear as to who he was referring to. In a short few sentences, the major's prestige had been trampled, and he couldn't accept it.

After hesitating for a few seconds, three or four soldiers aimed their rifles at Drake, who was still looking at his Yscalent, seemingly unaware that he was now being held at gunpoint. When he turned around, his mouth opened with fake surprise.

"Oh? Arrest me? Why?"

"You are throwing around false accusations, and trying to tarnish my good name! Insulting an officer is a crime!"

"Insulting an officer? But I didn't insult anyone, did I? I was just talking about a cowardly, unworthy, and disgus... Oh, I see. You thought I was talking about you, Major Erinster? I would never."

Stunned, the officer stared at him as Drake got closer, pushing the rifles aimed at him aside as if they were toys. Then, he put his hand on the major's shoulder as if he was an old friend.

"I do have a suggestion to make, however. If you know that person, kick them out of the army. Don't let trash like them destroy the good reputation Menoraz has."

"What are you waiting for?! I told you to arrest him!"

"Hahaha!"

Looking at the soldiers dismissively, Drake decided to drop all pretenses, and laughed out loud. Inside, his heart was beating rapidly, and he had only been more nervous when his life was on the line, but he didn't let it show on his face.

"You can't arrest me, major, since I did nothing, neither did I say any names or accuse anyone. Or, rather, you can preemptively lock me away, but you don't want to do that. That would mean an investigation, and a whole lot of other sh*t that would end up with you in the cell I was supposed to be. So, how about no arrests today?"

The soldiers looked at each other warily, unsure of what to do. They didn't know what Drake's endgame was, but they knew better than anyone that Major Erinster had been neglecting his duties, and they didn't want to risk being considered accomplices. Meanwhile, the civilians had already understood what was going on. In a matter of days, the entire story would spread like a wildfire.

"You looked at my companion with greed, major. If before I only wanted to give the Taurons justice, now I will make sure you suffer the consequences of your actions."

That was whispered to Major Erinster, who trembled. He could feel killing intent in Drake's words, and instantaneously regretted looking at Kniivar.

"W-Who are you?"

"Just a civilian. Nothing more, nothing less. But I don't like injustices, and you are committing a pretty big one, blue-coat."

Before the officer could recover from his shock, and decide to truly arrest him, Drake mounted his Yscalent, and left the outpost as quickly as possible. On the way out he grabbed his rifle, still being held by the soldier at the gate.

--------------------------

"F*uuuuck... That was scary."

After he was quite some distance away from the outpost, Drake let out a sigh of relief. He knew he was being unnecessarily reckless by openly confronting Major Erinster, but he woke up in a foul mood, and felt like punching the person responsible for it. Since that would be enough reason to arrest him, he settled for the second-best option, which was lashing out at the officer. It was worth it.

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Both Frainer and Kniivar looked at him curiously, but didn't pay much attention to his thoughts. They were young and simple-minded, after all. As long as Drake was happy, they were happy too. If he was angry... Well, Iferes could be quite vicious if they wanted to.

"To Ricker we go, then. We should probably be more subtle this time, though. Well, I should."

Even as he said that, Drake could already see the city appearing on the horizon. Differently from Park, Ricker was well-taken care of. There were citizens going about their daily lives happily, the streets were patrolled by police officers, and all in all, the city flourished with life. Drake attributed it to the fact that they weren't under the iron fist of a gang like Scarred Jack's.

Remembering something, he looked at Kniivar, and paused momentarily. If what the Taurons had told him was true, the reason Ricker looked so promising was because there was no lack of greedy people - like Major Erinster - that stopped at nothing to get what they wanted. If they, like the officer, coveted Kniivar, Drake would probably do something really stupid.

"Hey, Kniivar? Are you okay with staying behind for now? Just this first visit, so I can get a feel of how the people of Ricker behave."

The Ifere's head tilted to the side, and the green eyes stared at him, making Drake chuckle. However, his companion seemed to get the message, and went to the side of the road, finding a comfortable bush, and using Wood Realm to shape it like some sort of umbrella, to protect it from the sun. Drake raised an eyebrow at that, but said nothing. He was glad Kniivar wasn't sad to stay outside Ricker, because it pained him to make his companion do so.

Shaking his head at the already sleeping Ifere, he patted Frainer, and urged his Yscalent to continue forward. The wind-type creature snorted, it's tail stretching a little, and started running.

"For now, all we need is to buy supplies for the Tauron Barbarians. Nothing can go wrong, right?"

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Everything went wrong, and Drake felt like slapping himself for jinxing it. He had already known that the populace of Ricker held prejudice against Barbarians, but he didn't expect that it would be enough for a giant signboard saying that any 'filthy' Barbarians would be shot on sight to be erected at the entrance to the city. In fact, there were a lot of other... Names written on the sign.

The billboard, however, was just the start. The fact that the police force didn't seem to mind it was also a red flag, which Drake chose to ignore for now. The real problems began when he entered an emporium. A normal market wouldn't have the supplies he needed in the quantity he needed. After all, he had to feed an entire tribe. Money was also an issue, but one he hoped to solve by making a few calls later. For now, he would use his own.

Now, for the problem he had to solve when he entered the emporium. They were two, in fact, named Troy and Ikbar. As soon as Drake had opened his mouth to ask the clerk for the supplies, the two customers threw curious glances at him. The buff one, with tan skin, gave him a friendly smile, and asked why he needed so many food items.

Knowing that answering the question would mean trouble, Drake went ahead and answered all the same. It felt good to see their faces turn from friendly to confused and then pissed in a matter of seconds. Thankfully, they seemed to be more civilized than the other people that Drake had met. Instead of trying to beat him, or scream at him, they simply asked 'why'.

"Why what?"

"Why are you giving food to the Barbarians? They are murderers and thieves!"

"Didn't seem like that to me. The Taurons are starving, barely surviving with what they can scavenge from Kinton Valley. They don't have the strength to lift a stick, whatsoever kill and rob."

Their expressions didn't flinch even after they heard Drake, making him sigh. It was almost impossible to make someone change their minds with merely two or three sentences - he wasn't sure if that was good or bad - and he had neither the willpower nor the patience to make a speech now. Instead, he tried his best to sound as calm as he could.

"Look, I know some Barbarians did horrible things, but you don't hate humanity because of a few criminals, do you? Neither do you hate Iferes because some of them attack us. You can't judge an entire race because of what a few did."

Maybe it was because Troy and Ikbar hadn't tried to kill him immediately, like most people Drake met in the last few days, so he was willing to be somewhat polite. Still, all he earned was a strong glare.

"Humph! I want to see you treat those animals like humans when they attack your city. Let's go, Ikbar."

They stormed out of the emporium, leaving the shopkeeper slack-jawed, and Drake relieved. He was sure that in an hour, the entire city would know that he was friendly towards the Taurons, but at least he had avoided a fight. For now.

"So, can you sell me stuff, or are you also in favor of letting innocent children and elders starve?"

"Money is money, no matter who it comes from. Although I don't like Barbarians, all is fine as long as you pay for them."

The clerk woke up from his daze, and stared at Drake for a moment before shrugging. His answer made him raise an eyebrow, and he couldn't help but question it. It wasn't what he was expecting to hear, after all. But he supposed merchants would remain merchants even if the world was ending.

"Straight to the point, hum? But if I was a Barbarian, would you sell it anyway? Or is it only because I'm a middleman?"

The shopkeeper sneered, and Drake clenched his fists at the stare that was thrown at him. He knew it all too all. He was being looked down upon, and that didn't sit well with him.

"What is it?"

"If you knew what the Taurons did to us, you wouldn't side with those monsters. I don't know anything about this poison story you are telling, but I can tell you it was not the people from Ricker who did it, no matter what you think. Contrarily to the Barbarians, we are not murderers. Now, buy what you want and get the f*ck off my shop."

---------------------------

Half an hour later, Drake left Ricker with four or five Yscalents behind him, all carrying supplies. It had been expensive, even though the price was actually fair. Furthermore, he wasn't shameless enough to bargain, not after what he was told. The shopkeeper might as well have kicked him in the balls, because that's how he felt.

But he deserved it. He had listened to Tauron River, and immediately believed him. The fact that Higler was his friend, and that Barbarians were ostracized certainly factored in, but it was mostly just him wanting to poke his nose in other people's businesses. That wasn't necessarily a bad thing, but he hadn't listened to both sides of the story. Yet. Bothersome as it may be, he would do so as soon as he gave the supplies to the tribe. After that, he would return to Ricker, to get a grasp of the situation, and then make some calls.

"Kya!"

He smiled weakly as Kniivar bounced towards him from the side of the road. His companion was blissfully unaware of what was going through Drake's mind. So, he pushed these thoughts aside, and ruffle Kniivar's fur. His trouble was his, not theirs.

----------------------------

Fleeting Stone was standing watch, waiting for Drake to appear. He had a feeling he could trust the invader, even though some of the elders insisted that all he said were lies to get through Kinton Valley.

Facts proved he was right to believe in Drake. The same day the young man left, he came back, this time followed by a convoy of Yscalents, all carrying tons of packages. Fleeting Stone ran towards him happily, but Drake only gave him a sad grin before urging his Yscalent forward. No matter what the Barbarian asked, all he got were some grunts.

They continued silently for some time, until Drake suddenly stopped, a frown on his face. Changing his mind, he turned his mount around, handing the other Yscalents to the young Barbarian.

"You know what? You take those to the tribe, I need to go back to Ricker. Tell Tauron River that sooner than later, I will want to hear the whole story, not just bits of it. Got it?"

Without waiting for the stunned man to answer, Drake speed towards the direction he just came from, Kniivar running by his side, and Frainer floating near him.