Warrior

"Why haven't they broken in yet?"

Outside the valley, a young Wildling asked impatiently.

He had a long face, dark skin, and a powerful build. Around his neck hung a necklace strung with animal teeth.

Any experienced Hunter would have recognized them as tiger fangs.

This was the custom of a renowned tribe in the Red Mountains—the Tiger Tooth Tribe.

For the tribe's warriors, hunting tigers was the highest honor. Whenever they killed a tiger with their own hands, they would remove its longest, sharpest fang and string it onto a necklace to wear across their chests, displaying their valor.

The Wildling who had spoken had dense rows of fangs hanging around his neck, and the longest among them was over five inches.

One could only imagine how enormous the tiger he had slain must have been.

Beside him stood two young Wildlings with faces remarkably similar to his own. Their tiger-fang necklaces were just as densely packed and equally eye-catching.

These three were the sons of the Chieftain of the Tiger Tooth Tribe, the strongest tribe in these mountains—the famed Three Warrior Brothers.

The eldest was Chika, the second was Chimu, and the youngest was Chiman.

After discovering the expedition's tracks, the three brothers began gathering warriors from nearby tribes, intending to drive these damned Reachmen from their territory. Though the Wildling tribes of the Red Mountains often fought among themselves, they were natural allies when it came to dealing with the Reachmen.

However, after discovering that the expedition included more than two hundred well-equipped, well-trained soldiers, the brothers did not act rashly. Instead, they followed in secret while waiting for warriors from the various tribes to assemble.

When the expedition reached its destination and began building a camp, Chika grew anxious.

He could see that the Vale the cunning Reachmen had chosen was exceptionally easy to defend. If they were allowed to establish a solid camp there—or even a castle—the Wildlings would lose control of this land forever.

By then, under the Tiger Tooth Tribe's formidable reputation, more than two thousand Wildling warriors had gathered around the three brothers. Yet Chika still did not dare launch an attack recklessly.

After all, when facing the Reach's regular forces, the Wildlings were at a complete disadvantage in both weapons and physical prowess. Unless they held an advantage of more than ten to one, they would never dare confront them head-on.

Although they now had roughly ten times the numbers, the Reachmen held the advantageous terrain of the valley, so Chika still wanted to wait for more Wildling reinforcements.

But as time passed, the Reachmen would build more defensive works. Chika could neither attack nor delay any longer, leaving him trapped in a dilemma.

With no other choice, he sent men to launch sneak attacks and harass them, hoping to slow the construction of the camp while testing the Reachmen's fighting strength. They had even captured two scouts who had come out to investigate.

Yet he had not expected the Reachmen's reaction to be so fierce. It was as if they had stirred a hornet's nest. At dusk, more than a hundred fully armed soldiers actually left the valley, attempting to search for their companions.

Rather than being alarmed, Chika was delighted.

The two captured Reach scouts had told him that the expedition had a total of more than two hundred soldiers. Half were elite troops from House Tyrell, while the other half were recruits the pioneering knight had only enlisted shortly before setting out.

And now, House Tyrell's most elite troops had all left the camp!

This was a perfect opportunity!

As an excellent Hunter, Chika never hesitated when his prey exposed a weakness.

Thus, once he confirmed that the House Tyrell soldiers had gone far enough, he decisively ordered an attack on the Reachmen's camp.

In his view, a hundred or so recruits and a knight said to be a famous good-for-nothing among the Reach nobility could never stop the assault of more than two thousand warriors, even with the terrain on their side.

However, once the battle truly began, things gradually started to feel wrong.

The resistance inside the camp was unexpectedly fierce. The narrow, deep entrance to the valley seemed like a bottomless abyss, constantly swallowing the lives of Wildling warriors.

"They should break through soon." Chiman, the youngest, was also somewhat anxious, but he still tried to reassure them. "There are only a hundred or so recruits in the camp. They should have already suffered heavy casualties."

"What about our warriors? After fighting for so long, how many have been killed or wounded?" asked a tribal leader who had come to lend aid.

The question plunged everyone into silence.

Under the cover of darkness, no one knew the extent of the casualties.

They could only hear the brutal sounds of slaughter and smell the thick stench of blood.

Chika, the eldest, suddenly rose to his feet and drew his blade.

"I'll lead the charge myself!"

At these words, everyone showed delight, as though the moment the Tiger Tooth Tribe's greatest warrior entered the battle personally, the enemy would immediately collapse.

Chika had only taken a few steps when someone grabbed him.

"What is it, Chiman?"

Chiman leaned close to his elder brother and lowered his voice.

"Brother, the more I think about it, the more something feels wrong. This may very well be a trap deliberately set by the Reachmen!"

Chika froze. "What trap?"

"Brother, think carefully. If we can't take this camp after a prolonged assault, and then the House Tyrell force that left earlier suddenly returns to attack us, what will happen?"

Chika's eyes widened abruptly, but in the next moment, they narrowed again.

He patted his younger brother on the shoulder.

"You may be right, but it's too late for us to retreat now. You and Chimu watch our rear. If the House Tyrell troops really return, hold them off at all costs! As long as I break into the valley, we win this battle! Every Reachman inside will die!"

With that, Chika turned and strode away without hesitation.

Chiman sighed to himself.

He knew his elder brother was right. It was already too late to realize the danger.

Most of the Wildling warriors were crowded inside the valley now. Retreating would be difficult even if they wanted to, and if they fled without being defeated, the Tiger Tooth Tribe's reputation would be utterly ruined.

So at this point, the three brothers could only advance. There was no retreat!

Just as Chika gritted his teeth inwardly, a Wildling suddenly ran over, shouting in panic.

"Bad news! The Reach force that left earlier has come back to attack us!"

Chiman's heart sank. So we really fell into their trap.

But he knew he absolutely could not panic now. Otherwise, this hastily assembled Wildling coalition might collapse on the spot.

Thus, facing the stunned crowd, Chiman smiled calmly and called out in a clear voice.

"What are you afraid of? There are only a hundred or so Reach soldiers! I'll take three hundred warriors and stop them!"

Inspired by Chiman's courage, the crowd regained their composure and began praising the valor of the Tiger Tooth Three Brothers.

Knowing there was no time to waste, Chiman immediately found his second brother, Chimu, gathered more than three hundred Wildling warriors, and quickly formed them into ranks outside the valley to face the House Tyrell force appearing behind them.

Looking at the menacing army before him, Chiman suppressed his inner unease and forced himself to remain calm.

So what if it is a trap?

As one of the Tiger Tooth Tribe's three finest warriors, Chiman had wandered along the edge of life and death countless times.

But never once had he shown his back to an enemy!

"Warriors of the mountains, follow me! Charge!"