Blink brought Almond back to the hall where he had been temporarily imprisoned.
However, this time it was packed with squirrel hybrids.
They were put into three groups. The disciples, dressed in brown robes, numbered near one hundred.
Then there were what was known as the elites, dressed in black. There were roughly fifty, and at their head was Master Acorn.
Finally, there was a smaller group of five, all dressed in red robes. At their head was Clan Mother Redleaf, who stood in all of her voluptuousness.
As Almond entered and made his way to the disciple area, he heard much chatter about him.
"Is that not the one they say came from another world?"
"Don't be a fool. Do you really believe that?"
"But look at his title. Reincarnated one. I've never seen that before."
"Could be be the prophet mentioned in the squirrel bible?"
Almond felt tense. Even the elites on the far side of the hall were whispering about him.
Master Acorn made his way over to Clan Mother Redleaf, whispering so that only she could hear.
"Is it fine to leave him with the disciples? He easily has the strength of an elite." He asked curiously, but his sister shook her head.
"No, make him work his way up like everybody else. Besides, it will inspire the others."
Master Acorn nodded his head and returned to the group he was in charge of.
Eventually, Clan Mother brought the entire ball to silence by simply raising her hand.
Almond stood close to Blink, or rather she stood close to him. At times, he even found her holding onto his arm, as if to mark her territory.
He was fine with this, however, he also noticed many more beauties in the hall that he someday hoped to sample.
One step at a time, Al.
"Clan Members." Mother Redleaf began. Her voice was delicate, yet stern, and carried throughout the entire hall. "As you all know, we will soon mount our attack on Branchville, the village which was once ours, but has now been claimed by the disgusting Rats."
Grunts of agreement and nodding heads spread throughout the room.
Almond didn't join in. For the time being he was scanning the crowd and viewing statuses.
He gathered that the disciples were all Copper or Iron ranked, whilst the Elites were all Bronze. Above them, the few clan members who wore red were silver.
There was no one higher than silver within the entire clan.
Is it the same for the Rat Clan?
"We do not know the number of their forces, and they have the home advantage. Our scouts have all been captured, so we haven't been able to gather much information. In every way, we are at a disadvantage." Clan Mother Redleaf continued.
Almond gulped.
Doesn't this sound like a death wish?
However, when he looked around, the Squirrels didn't seem to care. They all carried a deep hatred for the Rats that stopped them from caring about their safety.
All they wanted to do was claim their village back.
"But it doesn't matter. Tonight we will fight with such passion, that there will be no other outcome possible other than victory!"
Those words brought a cheer from the entire forces. Even Almond found himself being riled up, which caught Blink by surprise.
After the noise settled, Clan Mother Redleaf lifted a map.
"Now, my squirrels. Pay close attention. This is the battle plan that will lead us to victory."
---
A few hours later...
Almond sat atop a tree that outskirted a small village in the distance below him.
It wasn't far from Nutheart and was almost identical in design.
The only difference was, it was no longer inhabited by Squirrels, but rather rats.
As the sun had set and night had arrived, Almond was unable to see much of what was going on inside.
After all, squirrels were not known for good night vision.
Yet every now and then, he spotted robed individuals with thin furless tails coming out of their backsides, and white whispers.
"So that's what a rat-hybrid looks like." He said quietly.
He was by himself, as he and a small group of others who were spread throughout other nearby trees, had been given very specific orders.
When you hear the great bell ring, charge for the village hall.
He could see the hall now. It was nested in a tree, though much larger than any other treehouse he had ever seen.
He had been equipped with a wooden katana like all the other disciples, yet he knew nothing of how to use it.
In fact, he had no idea how to use any of his abilities. His mana manipulation was high, but he had not been shown how to manipulate the magic essence.
He would have to rely on his hyper agility and wits to get him through the battle.
...
After waiting a while longer, Almond finally heard it. A faint bell rings in the distance.
At the same time, his system pinged.
[Quest Received: Recapture Branchville Village from the Rat Clan]
[Reward: N/A]
[Optional Quest Received: Slay a Rat Clan Elite]
[Reward: Combat Talent]
Before he could focus on the quest, he heard the rustling of leaves as the various disciples jumped from branches towards the village below.
Almond was caught by surprise, but swiftly remembered that it did not matter.
His hyper agility made him faster than others.
When he leapt down from the trees, his speed was ferocious.
He drew the wooden katana from his back and held it ready and he travelled down the dirt paths leading into the village.
There was a young female disciple ahead of him, running across the rooftops.
He glanced away for a moment, and when he did, he heard a sickening scream.
When he looked back up, he saw it.
The Squirrel Disciple had been grabbed by a man in black, who had his teeth deep into her neck, ripping flesh from her body.
Almond froze.
This was the reality of war, and the strength of the Rat Clan.