Because of his earlier display of skill, those tribesmen watched Arlan with warier gazes. ƒгeewebnovёl.com
The one in the lead spoke once more, and to her surprise, Oriana heard Arlan’s suave voice responding in kind, not a single word familiar to her.
"Ihan artkh iok ehmut esmah." (We mean no harm.)
Oriana was taken aback.
’What? Can he speak tribal language as well?’
Oriana peeked at them from behind the tree and watched the strange scene before her—a warrior and a prince sharing a conversation as equals, despite the visibly stark differences between their status, culture and appearance.
"... eyil ke iah idab tohob ek itlag tamik naj anel?"
(...don’t you think death is too heavy a price to pay for ignorance?)
"An erak hsihsok elawrahab enpoth epmah. Iah mayin enpa elgnu."
(The jungle has its own rules. Outsider, do not try to impose your beliefs on us.)
Despite the calm manner of their leader, the rest of his tribe remained vigilant. They didn’t lower their arrows aimed at the prince, even after their leader and Arlan reached some sort of agreement.
Arlan continued to talk, his expressions and voice dignified and without a tinge of any fear but there was sure a threat in his calm tone that Oriana could understand at least.
"... em ertahk egolad ok nalc mut yak irup?"
(I do not come alone. You have seen all my companions while following us along the way and you can guess the level of their strengths those knights have. The law of the jungle is where the strongest survive. Isn’t the life of your people too heavy a price for being stubborn? Will you drag your entire tribe into this mess?)
The leader’s silence stretched on in response. In the end, he let out an unhappy grunt.
The leader said in the end, "Oaj bas ahay es elhep tsayrus."
(Only this once and make sure your people leave our territory before sundown.)
They talked something more and Arlan then looked at Oriana. "Let’s go."
’That’s it? Are they letting us go? What did he say for them to let us off so easily?’
Oriana carefully stepped out of the tree’s protection to come to Arlan’s side. Her movement caused three archers to aim at her. Arlan held her hand to indicate his intention—that he would continue to protect her.
His action received a nod from the leader, whose command was interrupted by a man’s shout.
The atmosphere grew tense once more when a fellow tribesman came running from afar. He was out of breath, scared and panicked as he yelled foreign words to his people.
The leader’s expression changed as he listened to him.
"What are they saying?" Oriana asked in a low voice.
"Nothing related to us."
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