"He's not dead," screamed Uno. Even though he believed that his father was still alive, there were times when doubts crept into his mind. What if he was dead? What if his father could never teach him how to use a bow? What if he could never learn how to target the heart of an animal?
This was one of those times when the doubt flooded his brain. But he didn't want to believe it. So, in turn, he just got angry. He got angry at himself, he got angry at his father, and most of all, he got angry at Tucko.
He lost his friends and his father, and Tucko still found a way to make it even harder. This guy was a prick. The worst part was that Uno knew that he was much stronger and faster than Tucko in every way. Even he knew that.
However, he couldn't do anything about it. If he was the one who instigated the fight, then he would be the only one punished. After all, in the hunter's eyes, Tucko still had a bright future ahead of him while Uno was dead in the water. So, it made much more sense to put their care and resources into Tucko.
"Really? He's alive? Then can he teach you how to make a Spike Trap? I guess not!" Tucko teased.
Tucko wasn't even doing his own Spike Trap. He had his other friends do it for him. In the hierarchy of student hunters, Tucko was the top dog. Ever since Uno lost his father, in everyone's eyes, he became vulnerable. He became weak.
If they didn't support Tucko, then they would also be one of the students being bullied. They couldn't afford that. They were also hoping to become one of the premier hunters in the village to support their family, so they couldn't spare any help to anyone else.
Everyone was out for themselves. Even if they felt sorry for Uno and hated Tucko, they couldn't say anything. They just had to keep working on themselves and hope that they would become a very good hunter in the future so that they wouldn't have to bow their heads to guys like Tucko.
"Who's there to teach you how to catch a snake with your bare hands? Who'll teach you how to swing through vines and catch a monkey? That's right, no one–because he's dead!"
Uno balled his fist so hard that his knuckles turned white. "I can still hunt better than you without anyone teaching me. But you need five teachers just to fail at beating me in sword fighting!"
The rest of the boys turned silent when Uno said that. They had to restrain themselves from laughing because what Uno said was true. Even after being taught by five experienced hunters, Tucko still failed at beating Uno in a sword fight.
Tucko's cheeks turned beet red when he heard that. It was especially embarrassing that no one dared to speak up for him. It was as if everyone was acknowledging that he was much weaker than the fatherless Uno.
That can't be true!
"You! You! YOU SHUT UP! You don't even know the first thing about hunting!"
"Oh yeah? And what's that?"
Tucko then turned his chin up, feeling extremely proud. "The first thing to know about hunting is that you go after the weak and ill." Tucko's smile turned more and more sinister. He wanted to teach Uno a lesson and show him that he was not better than him.
"I knew that," Uno answered back. Of course, he knew about it; it was the first thing that his father taught him when he was old enough to join hunting classes.
But instead of feeling defeated, Tucko turned so much more arrogant. His eyes were looking down at Uno, and his whole demeanor showed that he considered Uno as someone very pitiful.
Uno looked at Tucko weirdly. He was acting very weird. He was never this arrogant before, as if he knew something that Uno didn't. Even the rest of the boys went silent when they heard Tucko's words.
"You should know that the hunting field has recently dwindled. There are less and less prey in the wild, while the predators are increasing at an alarming rate. My father even told me that they haven't seen any squirrels or mice in the fields even once since this weather cycle."
"Less prey and more predators means that the hunters will return with less meat for everybody. Even the Elder Hunter is struggling to hunt enough meat to feed his large family. Everyone ends up eating the meat reserves that were meant for winter, even though we are still far away from the cold season."
"The whole village is struggling. The hunters end up selling their precious hunting trophies to the traveling merchants in the hope of buying dried meat from them. They are selling deer horns, jaguar teeth, and even full bear fur just to replenish the food for the winter."
Uno couldn't help but think that Tucko was insinuating something. "What are you saying?" His voice turned low, and he subconsciously shifted his body weight lower as if he were hunting.
"It's all your father's fault! He must have died and angered the god of Icy Rock! Because of your father's foolishness, the Icy Rock God is now trying to punish us as a consequence!"
"You bastard!" shouted Uno. "Stop cursing my father or else I'll go there and beat the words out of your mouth!"
For the first time, Tucko felt the full force of Uno's wrath. It felt like he was facing a wild beast that was ready to pounce at him. Uno looked like a growling tiger looking at his prey with anger and fury in its eyes and mouth. It made Tucko lose his breath.
That can't be! Uno should be a weak fatherless guy. He should be the one to inspire fear in others because he was the son of one of the greatest hunters in the village. Everyone should bow down to his glory!
"St..stop that right now! Don't you know who my father is?"
Uno took one step forward, making Tucko fall to his butt.
"He is a hero of this village! You can't treat me this way!"
Uno took another step forward, making Tucko scramble to his feet to try and escape from this maniacal animal. Tucko felt like his face would get ripped off if Uno got near him.
"Guys! Save me! My father is an honorable man who is doing everything he can to save my village!" However, no one came to save him. Just like how they treated Uno like he was nothing, they also treated this as nothing but air. They simply watched on as bystanders.
"Have you no shame?! After my father made the sacrifice and sold off the weak to the merchants!"
Uno stopped in his tracks. For some reason, he didn't like those words. "What do you mean?"
Tucko slapped his mouth for being too chatty. He wasn't supposed to say that, especially to Uno. However, he realized that this would be a good way to put Uno back in his place. So, he decided to spill the beans.
"I told you before, the village is in the midst of a catastrophe. Without any food, it is the men's job to find a way and provide for their families. It just so happens that the human merchants are willing to exchange a few barrels of food and spice to use in exchange for slaves."
Uno stopped in his tracks. He didn't think that the other hunters would stoop so low. How could they sacrifice their own to a bunch of humans for food? There were other ways to live! There was vegetation and berries everywhere!
Instead, they decided to sell off other Thalls as slaves to the human traveling merchants. It was despicable.
However, something didn't feel right. There was one question lingering in Uno's mind.
"Who? Who are they trying to sell?"
Uno's words were broken, his eyes were moist, and his entire body was shaking. Seeing that Uno was starting to break down, Tucko smiled. This was what he wanted to see. He wanted to see the vulnerable Uno who he could trample easily.
"The weak are the first ones to get hunted," Tucko answered.
Uno's head was down, and tears flowed out of his eyes. "Who?"
Tucko smiled. "Looks like you already know."
The people that this village considered weak were a family without its provider. It was them. He couldn't believe that the village would turn against them like that, even though they were just trying to live quietly.
"YOU FUCKER!" Uno shouted, with his eyes bloodshot red. He charged towards Tucko and used his wooden sword to strike Tucko's head. He was far too fast for anyone to react.
TUCKKK
With one shot, Tucko's eyes rolled back to the back of his head. There was a large red mark on his cheeks, with bits of blood spilling out from his skin. Even though it was only a wooden sword without an edge, Uno's strength was too strong and cut Tucko's skin.
That wasn't enough. Uno decided to smash his sword on Tucko's body, his legs, his torso, and his arms, making sure to break every single one of them.
Only when it was over, did Uno run back to his house and save his family.