Avarosa Tribe

"Forgot you don't have any stamina right now." Ato pulled out the Demon Sword again and cut off one of the boar's powerful hind legs.

"..." Aatrox felt insulted. He was a mighty Celestial Warrior, yet a human was using him to cut meat! Still, he endured it, keeping his complaints to himself.

Ato carried the pig's hind leg, over two meters long, over to the others. Quite a few of them were secretly swallowing their saliva.

For people who hadn't eaten anything in three days, fresh meat was irresistible.

"Warrior, uh... are you really giving us this enormous prey?" Rugg remained wary.

"If you don't mind sharing it with the Avarosa Tribe—and treating your tribe's 'god' as food," Ato said coolly.

"We don't mind, we don't mind..." Rugg waved his hands repeatedly.

If that foolish Frost Priest hadn't insisted on worshipping a beast as a god, their clan wouldn't have suffered such a devastating disaster! They were all eager to vent their anger by eating it.

As for sharing with other tribes, that wasn't something they needed to worry about right now. If they didn't eat soon, even if they survived today, what about tomorrow? Or the day after?

They were already too weak to hunt again.

"I'll leave it to you." Ato tossed the pig's hind leg beside the fire. "Remember to save me a portion."

The long-suffering people rushed forward all at once. Rugg took a meat cleaver from the belongings they'd hurriedly carried away and began cutting up the meat on the spot.

Years of hunting had taught every Freljordian how to skillfully butcher and cut meat.

Rugg didn't have time to remove the hair. Instead, he made a vertical cut, scraped the red-and-white meat from beneath the skin, then cut it into smaller, irregular chunks. He threaded them onto branches and handed them to the others to roast over the fire.

People here knew how to barbecue, too? Watching them bustle about, Ato was overcome by a wave of nostalgia.

Wounded, Tryndamere clutched his chest and slowly sat down beside the fire.

His wound had already scabbed over. At this rate, it might not even leave a scar after a few days.

"Am I still human?" Tryndamere murmured.

"Of course." Ato glanced at his "masterpiece."

"There's just some magic inside your body that'll gradually take effect. I like making deals. You took one of my attacks and agreed to look for the Avarosa Tribe; I gave you prey in return. That's fair."

"Also, you need to keep your emotions under control from now on. Otherwise, you'll suffer worse than death."

"Thank you for the warning. I'll honor our deal and go look for the Avarosa Tribe tomorrow."

Silence fell for a while, until the aroma of meat reached them. Tryndamere swallowed without thinking.

Healing took energy, and after three days of accumulated weakness, he didn't even have the strength to stand.

"Eat." A freshly roasted skewer appeared in his field of vision. Ato handed Tryndamere the first one.

"...Thank you."

Tryndamere struggled to lift his hand and accept the skewer. The fatty, lean meat melted in his mouth. There were no seasonings, but he felt like he might cry.

A warm sensation traveled down his throat, soothing his stomach, which had been empty for so long.

He didn't eat too quickly. Since he was a child, the clan chief had taught everyone that if they went without food for a long time, they should eat their first meal slowly once they had food again.

After more than an hour of hard work, everyone was full and content, sprawled across their fur mats.

There was still more than half of the hind leg left. It was hard to imagine just how much meat the Giant Tusker Boar had carried.

In the Freljord, each meal a tribe member received was barely enough to stave off hunger. It was rare to eat until their bellies were full like this.

And because meat made up nearly all their staple food, even though their portions were small, the Freljordians generally had muscular builds from all their physical labor.

After resting a while longer, the survivors got to their feet. With their strength restored, butchering the Giant Tusker Boar was no difficult task for the powerful Tryndamere and his people.

They skipped the bleeding stage. Ato had dragged it a long way during the day, and its blood had already drained away.

That was what puzzled Ato. With such a strong smell of blood, why hadn't any other predators come to attack him?

After working for most of the night, they finally finished processing the entire boar. They set the useless bones haphazardly beneath an old tree.

They cut the edible fresh meat into neat strips, wrapped them simply in twine and coarse cloth, and loaded them onto the carts carrying their belongings. The three carts were packed to the brim.

A faint glow like fish bellies had appeared in the eastern sky. Dawn was nearly upon them.

"Shame about those bones. I can't even imagine how delicious the broth would be, but these carts just can't fit them." Ato eyed the big bones longingly.

"Then we'll be on our way. Thank you again for your generosity."

Tryndamere held the rope of one of the carts. His wound had scabbed over and would fall off in a few days, leaving fresh skin beneath.

"May Avarosa watch over you." Ato imitated the way the Freljordians spoke. "You'll find someone there worth protecting for the rest of your life."

"I'll take your word for it." Tryndamere nodded, then called to the others. They headed west along the river.

But Ato didn't truly leave.

In the Freljord, food was the hardest currency.

With three carts full of fresh meat, Tryndamere and the others were bound to attract covetous eyes. The threats wouldn't come only from humans; ferocious beasts were waiting for their chance in the shadows, too.

Ato had to make sure Tryndamere reached the Avarosa Tribe safely, so he stayed out of sight and watched for possible attacks.

What he looked forward to even more was Tryndamere's first meeting with Ashe. It was a story the game had only briefly mentioned.

Ashe was a kind person. After she broke with Sejuani of the Winter's Claw, she took in a group of Hearthborn and wanderers as the first members of her tribe.

She wouldn't leave poor Tryndamere to keep wandering across the ice fields.

"I can smell the CP." Ato closed his eyes, wearing a knowing grin. He planned to find somewhere nearby to spy when the two groups first met.

What was CP...? Aatrox didn't understand, so he said nothing.

Tryndamere and the others took turns pulling the carts and resting, so they didn't move very quickly. Ato followed behind them, keeping his distance.

Time flew by. After they'd traveled west for a week, they finally spotted a village in a flat river valley. A flag fluttered atop one of the houses at the outskirts, bearing an emblem.

Tryndamere knew what it was: the emblem of the Avarosa Tribe.