Acquisition

"me? What are you talking about? Are you saying that you would give me your tribe? So, you might have made a mistake, but you would be willing to give your entire tribe to someone else because of a mistake?" Even though Alex wanted an answer, he didn't think Scar would be so radical as to offer his own tribe, relinquishing his position as chief to give it to another person he barely knew.

Scar, still kneeling, said, "I know I'm being radical, I may even be making a mistake, but when my men said you were here just passing through, I wondered, where do you intend to go? And after you mentioned the theory that this place was the land in the past, I understood that you were truly remarkable. Despite being here for less time than me, you not only gained the position of chief of a tribe, you elevated their level higher than mine. Even though I could make spears, I never managed to make functional bows, but you, in addition to achieving that, made shields. And do you think I didn't notice your dagger? I'm sure that's not made of stone; you already work with metals. Having my tribe under your command would only be beneficial if you're the kind of person I think you are, and this is something I wanted to propose since our conversation; I just didn't have a good excuse for it."

Alex remained silent as Scar spoke. Inside, he was still trying to understand what was happening. Someone offering a tribe with more than 90 individuals like this? He might be right about me, but how can I be sure he's not plotting something? I can't make a decision like this out of the blue.

"Uhmm, I understand your proposal, but I can't accept it just like that. Even if you want it, have you thought about the opinion of the others in your tribe?"

Sighing, Scar replied with regret, "I know it might be difficult to deal with them at first, but I believe with time they will adjust, and in the end, they might even be grateful."

Not knowing what else to say, Alex could only ask to return. "Let's go back, besides, we've already taken enough time."

Standing up, Scar from the ground spoke one last time before they returned to Scar's tribe territory, "Alright, thank you for listening to me, and I'll wait for your response."

Simply nodding, Alex, along with Scar, rejoined their subordinates and departed.

Upon arriving at the tribe, Alex and the others went to their resting area. Alex called Martins and Max to talk inside his tent.

Taking the initiative to ask why he had called them, Martins asked if it was about the fight between them.

"It's not about that, but I can't say it's unrelated either. Scar proposed that I become the chief of his tribe!"

Confused, both Martins and Max, this time, it was Max who hurried to speak.

"I know they messed up, but offering us this entire tribe seems very rushed."

Martins questioned whether it was out of fear of us or for another reason. "They might be afraid of us. Our weapons are better, and they're still alive thanks to us, after all. Maybe their chief realized they need us but doesn't have anything to offer for our help, so the only solution he found was to bow down to us."

Max agreed with Martins' thoughts. "That could really be the case, Chief. I believe Martins might be right. Even if their chief is strong, he wouldn't defeat us with our weapons."

Finally speaking, Alex responded, "Scar told me that after our conversation, he had already started to consider giving me his tribe, and he wants to use his mistake as an excuse. I'm starting to think the mistake he claims to have made was just a way for him to test us, to discover our capabilities. Since he saw that we're truly better than them, I think he convinced himself that handing his tribe over to me would be best for them."

Agreeing with Alex, both Martins and Max asked whether he intended to accept or reject the proposal.

Answering their question, "I wanted to hear from both of you before accepting or rejecting his proposal since I need your opinion."

Martins replied, "I think you should accept. It would increase our power, and we could settle here more easily when we bring the others here."

"I agree with Martins, but I believe the real problem will be with the natives," added Alex.

"Even if I accept, these people don't know me, they don't know us. So if I accept, I have to make them accept me somehow," Alex said thoughtfully.

Smiling, Martins provided a solution, "But wouldn't that be the easiest? Just do what you did with me, defeat him in combat."

Max chimed in, "Oh, that could really work. That's how you started as our chief, and even though some of us didn't accept you at first, eventually, we did. Personally, I can say that at the beginning, I didn't accept you as chief, but after seeing you create various things, I fully accepted your leadership."

Pondering, Alex considered, "A combat for the position of chief, huh? Well, I think that could work."

"Well, I'll have to think more about it. For now, you can go," Alex said, dismissing them.

As Martins and Max left, leaving Alex alone in the tent, he continued to ponder whether this should be the choice he should make. Initially, he only became chief out of convenience. The only thing he could gain this time was labor, something that could be useful since he still planned to build a raft to transport the animals and his tribe to the other side of the lake.

"I guess being his chief could indeed be really useful."