The Ugly Duckling Of The Tiger Tribe-Chapter 183: The tail is our history

This is a fantasy world, so there should be something similar right? But I’m not certain because I never added such a detail to my own book.

The guard, a stout mouse with a scar across his snout, gripped his spear tighter. He stayed silent, his jaw locked in a stubborn, loyal defiance. He wouldn’t betray the secrets of their legalities to a predator.

But at least his silence gives me the confirmation that there is something like that here. If there was nothing like that, he would’ve looked confused or at least tried to deny it.

I let out a long, weary sigh. "Well, I really hate being ignored."

I gave Fenric a sharp, subtle nod.

Without a word, Fenric moved. It was too fast for the Mouselings to react. He reached out, his massive hand closing around the guard’s torso. There was a sickening, wet crunch—the sound of beetle-husk armor and ribs collapsing at once.

The guard didn’t even get to squeak in pain before Fenric tossed the limp body into the shadows like a piece of trash.

"No worries," I said, my voice smooth and terrifyingly calm as I looked back at the horrified crowd. "There are a lot of you anyway. We can keep going through them all until someone feels like being a little bit helpful. Fenric, let’s thin their ranks."

The Great Chamber was paralyzed. The smell of copper blood filled the air, clashing with my berry scent. I turned back to the Matriarch. Her eyes were wide, white circles of pure terror.

"You’re a merchant, right? You like to go a little over the top?" I smiled, a slow, predatory baring of teeth. "Well, what do you know? Though I’m not a merchant, I also like to go a little over the top. So let’s continue."

I asked another guard but they began to deny. I already confirmed they were lying, so it was tiring. As much as I love crushing rats, I don’t think I would like to keep at this all day.

I need results.

Suddenly, I looked at the terrified queen and the corner of my lips tugged up in a cunning grin.

I extended a single claw—sharp, curved, and gleaming. With a flick of my wrist, I brought it down.

The Matriarch’s long, scaly tail was severed in a single, clean stroke. Yes, I’m that talented.

A high-pitched, agonizing scream ripped through the chamber as she clutched the stump, her body convulsing in my grip. The guards fell to their knees, their spears clattering to the floor. They weren’t just outmatched; they were facing a monster that didn’t play by their rules.

"That was for the ’thieving’ part, by the way," I whispered into her ear as she sobbed. "The next one is for the ’bitch’ part. And the one that’ll come after is for your greedy eyes on my husbands. So, do you want me to continue to the next or will you get on with that oath?"

The rabbits were shaking so hard the troller was rattling, but for the first time, I saw Robi look at the Matriarch without an ounce of fear. He saw her for what she was: a small, broken thing.

Yeah, that’s how it should be. A rabbit shouldn’t be scared of a rat. It’s not done. No matter what, anyone would favor a rabbit over a rat and I’m that biased.

"The Gate!" the Matriarch choked out through her tears, her face pressed against the floor as I finally dropped her. "Give them the grain! Double the weight! Just let them leave!"

But that wasn’t what I wanted right now. I frowned, my head growing dark.

"The oath," I reminded her, my voice dropping to a gravelly whisper as she writhed on the floor. "I’m waiting."

The Matriarch clutched the bleeding stump of her tail, her white fur stained crimson. She looked up at me, her face contorted in a mix of agony and pure, soul-crushing defeat.

"In the Warren..." she wheezed, her tiny chest heaving. "The tail is our history. It is our balance. To swear upon the tail is to swear upon the soul of the tribe. A tail-less mouse is an outcast... a ghost."

So, that’s why they all refused to talk even when death was right in front of them. But I guess this queen is more scared of death than of being an outcast.

"Please... Put me down, so I can make the path." She was sobbing, crying, and choking on her tears, but I felt no pity whatsoever.

She was the bully first. I just responded in kind.

I let her down and she coughed her lungs out while holding her throat.

I hated her pathetic display and seethed.

"Hurry up."

"Y-yes."

She reached out with a trembling hand and touched the severed piece of herself lying on the cold clay. The guards watched in a deathly, sacred silence. This wasn’t just a physical wound; it felt like a spiritual execution.

"I swear," she choked out, her voice echoing through the hollow chamber. "By the blood spilt and the length lost, the Warren-City shall never lift a spear against the Long-Ears. I 𝐟𝐫𝕖𝗲𝘄𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝕧𝐞𝚕.𝕔𝕠𝐦

Our doors are forever open to them. I swear the grain given today is a tithe of peace, never to be reclaimed. If I break this... may the earth collapse upon us all."

I watched her for a long moment, making sure I saw the genuine terror of the supernatural in her eyes. This wasn’t a contract she could find a loophole in. She had just cursed her own lineage if she crossed me.

"Good," I said, finally straightening up and smoothing out my tunic. I looked at the rabbits, who were staring at me as if I were a goddess made of lightning and starlight. "Robi, check the grain. Make sure it’s the high-grade stuff. If it’s dusty, I’m taking her ears next."

The Mouselings scrambled. They didn’t just bring the agreed amount; they brought sacks of the finest, most polished rice and golden wheat, piling it onto the troller until the wooden frame groaned. They worked with a frantic, silent speed, terrified that if they slowed down, Fenric would start ’thinning the ranks’ again.

As we marched toward the massive Western Gate where we had come in from to see the rabbits off, the crowd of Mouselings parted like a sea of grey fur. No one hissed. No one squeaked. They stood in absolute, frozen reverence.

"Robi," I called and he looked at me. I placed a hand on his shoulder and gave him a piece of advice. "Listen to me carefully, okay? Your tribe can live off yourselves, right? For the time being, until the next season, or until next spring, lay low. Do not come to trade with the Mouseling tribe, and avoid them if you can. Do you understand?"