[1st POV]
It started with anger.
Now I was amused.
Because who the fuck does this pussy think he is?
An injured lion would be easier to take down by three lions than an uninjured one? Are you fucking kidding me?
I could take three lions with two hands tied behind my back and with my eyes closed. I could be a lion worm and still mop the floor with three lions.
But the reason why this arrogance amused me instead of making me angrier was the intelligence behind his words. It was not so much that he was delusional about his own strength, but rather that he simply did not realize the extent of my capabilities.
Ignorance, not denial. There was a difference.
"What was your name again? Scarface, right?" I asked. Out of all the lions I had faced, it was easy to remember that name.
Not only because of the scar on his eye, but also because it was awfully similar to Scar's name, and he was a remarkable lion.
Scarface did not answer. His body was pulled back like a bow, ready to launch out and fight or turn back and run. I couldn't tell which one he was planning to do from his posture.
He was extremely smart. I could tell that alone from speaking to him and also by the information Grim had told me while coming here.
He not only came here to propose this deal with me but also to scout out for future conflict. He did not come here straight for me, preferring to find where I had left my mark, to see my patrolling path. He remembered the terrains and so on.
The broken prides of the frauds I had killed also came to him. The reason why he came immediately afterward was because he thought I would be at my weakest after fighting those.
It was impressive really, to see a lion who would think like I do. It made me wonder if he was a reincarnated human too.
"If you don't want to talk, then fine," I said and launched off.
Four limbs worked as one, and I was already at incredible speed from the start. I saw his eyes widen briefly at the speed with which I crossed the distance.
Scar did not move yet. He instead ground his paws on the ground, like how a bull would when about to charge. Stupid, I thought to myself, and I roared.
I could tell from the moment he saw me move that he realized he had underestimated my physical ability. I leapt at him when I got close, paws out and claws curving forward, ready to grab.
I was used to fights, especially fights with other lions. Whatever he was about to do now, I thought it would be nothing new I hadn't seen. And whatever action he might take, it would be rendered useless. Stronger lions had tried, and all had failed to stop me.
But contrary to all my expectations, what he did caught me completely off guard and managed to stop me.
Sand.
The motherfucker threw sand in my eyes.
I closed my eyes quickly, but some still managed to get in. My leap continued until I crashed on where he once stood and grabbed empty air.
I still could not see clearly, but no attacks came. And from the sound, I could hear a lion running away.
I laughed.
I laughed hard.
I rubbed my eyes for a bit before I opened them again to see his fleeing figure. I could've easily caught up at this distance. I was not faster than other lions in the long run, but in short-distance bursts, I could speed-blitz them all.
But I didn't move, letting the chance to catch up to him slowly slip away.
I moved my eyes to see the place where he once stood. The plain lacked much vegetation because a buffalo herd had grazed there not more than a week ago. The ground was marked with small caves of their hooves.
The ground was basically dried mud. I saw that when he ground his paws like a bull, he was actually grinding up those chunks of dry mud back into sand.
He was smart, extremely so. He was able to come up with a plan to escape the moment he saw that I was faster and stronger than he thought.
"Follow after him, Grim," I said, my face still splitting with a smile.
Oh, how long had it been since someone outsmarted me and made me a fool? Most lions I met before only seemed to make me greater, but Scarface had completely outsmarted me in every step of the way.
I was moaning about not finding equals anymore, but it seemed the universe heard my prayers and sent me a remarkable opponent.
"I will enjoy this, very, very much," I said.
It seemed the both of us had approached while underestimating each other. I thought he would be like any lion, maybe a tad bit smarter. So I did not take precautions. I had been careless.
Scarface just taught me to never let my guard down and to never let my brawns get over my brains.
And next time, I am coming to him.
..
..
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[3rd POV]
Scarface looked back over his shoulder and was relieved to see that Leo was not chasing after him.
He breathed out a sigh.
"That monster," he said to himself but still continued to run.
He would admit that a part of him was ready to fight, ready to fight to the bitter end to carve a better chance for his brothers.
But when Leo puffed out his mane and charged, a part of Scarface that thought he would stand even the slightest chance died.
He had brains and brawns, the deadliest combination in nature.
Due to the high alert that he was in, Scarface did not miss the vulture that was following his tail. He hummed to himself and made turns to confirm that the vulture was indeed following him.
He recalled the time in the Serengeti where they never had vultures in the sky, and those same birds returned with Leo.
"They are his subjects," he concluded. The vultures were not simply following Leo to find opportunities for his big kills. No, these vultures also took orders.
"I never thought of that," Scarface said. He had always found allies with his brothers, so it never crossed his mind to find more.
Scarface changed direction completely to head toward the thick jungle of the Serengeti. He did not really like being tailed like this. Under the cover of those trees, he thought he would give less away to the vulture.
Scarface did not waste a single moment lingering in the Southern Serengeti. He made his journey straight back to his pride. Because of this, a journey that normally took more than a day lasted less than half the time.
Only when he saw his brothers approaching from a distance as he entered the Central Serengeti did Scarface calm down.
"It's good to see you return safe," Sikio said. The other two brothers also made their way toward Scar.
They were in the middle of a patrol when they smelled Scarface's scent. The place they were meeting was the outskirts of their kingdom with the rest of the pride nowhere in sight.
"I came back... somehow," Scarface admitted.
"So? What was he like?" Hunter inquired immediately. "Was he too much of a disappointment?"
"It surprises me that you did not take him down by yourself," Morni said.
They circled around Scarface, who stopped. They checked for injuries and saw no signs of a fight happening.
"We need to drop that, all of us," Scarface said.
The three brothers paused and tilted their heads.
"We need to drop the mindset and adopt the one we had," Scarface said. "Run it back to when we fought against the Talek Coalition."
The Talek Coalition was a huge lion coalition formed near the Talek River in the Maasai Mara. These kings ruled the Mara for the longest time until the Four Musketeers finally defeated them.
But during that war, the Musketeer brothers were the weaker ones, so they fought an uphill battle and somehow came out victorious.
"Are you for real?" Sikio asked in wonder.
"What happened?" they asked.
"Listen to me, brothers," Scarface said, his tone lowering an octave and his voice turning grave.
"We share the world with monsters."
"We must prepare for a losing war,"
..
..
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