Interlude – Ulfar

Ulfar

The Rite was a success. Of course, it was. Ulfar had always known that he was destined for greatness, and the Ancestors’ decision only confirmed that. It was inevitable.

He looked around, the corners of his lips curling into a smug smile as he bathed in the tribesmen’s attention. Young warriors and old Barbarians gathered around him to congratulate him on his firm connection to the Ancestors. They didn’t understand that the Ancestors had only awakened what had always been within him.

It might look like the Ancestors gifted him this legendary power, but he would have obtained it whether they favored him or not. That, if nothing else, was something Ulfar was certain about.

He savored the attention and the attempts of all those trying to get close to him, and he would be gracious enough to accept them. Even the fools who sided with Hakon before, were included. He was that magnanimous.

As long as Hakon suffers, Ulfar thought, glancing over at the pathetic excuse for the chieftain’s son.

Hakon was a nuisance, and he had always been. The Behemoth Blood responded, igniting his seething emotions and setting them ablaze. His rivalry with Hakon had lasted for as long as he could remember. Cycles of never-ending fights, some of which he lost because Hakon cheated, and others that resulted in his inevitable victory.

He was better than the chieftain’s son–of course, he was–and he deserved Hakon’s position more than anyone. It was his right to replace the old chieftain, and the Ancestors agreed wholeheartedly. So did his Ancient Power.

I passed their tests, Ulfar told himself, licking his lips at the thought of his next fight with Hakon. The next time they met, he would crush Hakon in front of Tribe Taskur and the Ancestors. He would rip him apart, demonstrating once and for all that he was the greatest. That he was the rightful leader of the next generation.

“The next Warlord,” he muttered, clenching his fists until cracks rang in his ears.

Looking down, his muscles bulged and his arms had expanded. Power thundered throughout his entire body, filling him with might he had never thought he would wield. Not this soon after the Rite.

He possessed a power of unknown potential, his rise to greatness confirmed, his future seemingly boundless.

A sense of relief filled Ulfar at the power coursing through his body. He had always been the greatest of his generation before the Rite, but now he was leagues above them. Now… now he could truly crush Hakon.

That simple thought filled him with excitement. Hakon had it all. Everyone looked up to him just because he was the chieftain’s son. They praised him for hunting monsters, even though he was only this strong because his father wasted his time teaching that fool.

If he taught me… Ulfar’s smile slipped and his mood dipped. If the chieftain had spent more time teaching him, Ulfar would have been much stronger. He was already a weapon master even before the Rite, yet he had been overlooked.

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He shook his head. Hakon got what he deserved. The Ancestors took everything away from him. He was nothing now.

“The Mind,” he chortled, even more certain now that he would become the strongest.

***