Tribal Lord: SSS Ranked Taming Primitive Beauties and The Beasts!-Chapter 56: Execution

The moment Mira heard the words, she froze. Then realization hit her like lightning, making her face flush instantly.

She pushed herself off Ash in one swift motion, nearly knocking him flat again.

"I—I was just..." She stammered, flustered beyond belief.

Ash slowly sat up, rubbing the back of his head with an awkward smile. Leon hopped off and fluttered onto Ash’s shoulder this time.

Mira quickly ran toward Uncle Zan and hugged him tightly. "Of course I’m worried about you too, Dad!"

Uncle Zan snorted but wrapped one arm around her nonetheless. "Hmph. You didn’t look worried."

"I was!" she insisted, her face still red.

Behind them, several warriors exchanged knowing glances.

Ash stood up slowly as he dusted off his clothes. His gaze briefly drifted toward Kargan, who was still lying on the ground under Vakra’s watch.

The warmth from a moment ago faded instantly.

He ignored the small reunion between a daughter and a father as he walked slowly, approaching the middle-aged man with a calm expression.

Mira noticed this and was about to follow him, but Uncle Zan held her back and shook his head.

"Tell me, what have you done this time?" Ash asked, his eyes had never left the bulky middle-aged man the entire time.

Before Kargan could even respond, Ash continued. "Just be honest, and I promise you that I won’t implicate the others."

Kargan’s expression turned complicated for a moment before sighing deeply. "Okay... I’ll tell you everything."

’Oh? That was easy.’ Ash thought to himself, as he had never expected it to be this easy.

He had even prepared himself to be cruel and to torture him if it meant letting him spill everything.

Subsequently, Kargan spilled everything, and only after listening to the details did Ash think that the situation was actually much better than he had thought.

According to Kargan, the news technically hadn’t been leaked yet because the few people who knew about it had been killed by the 5th Rank he had invited.

"You better not lie your way out, or it won’t only be you who gets punished." Ash knitted his eyebrows.

Before Kargan could reply, Garnak appeared beside him as he brought an old man with an unrecognizable face in his left hand. He then threw the old man to the ground casually.

Looking at the bruises all over the old man’s body, especially his unrecognizable face, Ash felt a little bit satisfied.

"Tell me from the beginning..." He looked at the old man expressionlessly.

He paused for a moment, then continued as he glanced at Garnak. "If you don’t want to die by his hand, that is."

The old man shivered uncontrollably when he heard it, imagining what he had just gone through getting beaten up by Garnak.

He finally gave in and told everything after a small thought, as he thought that he could at least save his own life by doing so.

After listening to the story, Ash sighed in relief since both stories were the same.

"Tell everyone to gather in front of the main hall." Ash chuckled lightly, then started leading his group toward the stronghold through the wreckage wall.

The order spread quickly.

In less than a minute, the entire Ragh’Tal stronghold was in motion.

Warriors left their huts and gathered in the open space before the main hall. Members of the tribe assembled in widening circles, murmurs spreading like ripples across water.

By the time Ash stepped forward, hundreds stood before him.

In front of him, two figures knelt.

Their hands were bound tightly behind their backs with thick rope. Their knees pressed into the dirt.

The late afternoon sun cast long shadows behind them, stretching like dark omens across the ground.

Ash stood on the raised stone platform before the main hall, his expression calm. Behind him stood Old Ni, Uncle Zan, Garnak, Vakra, and the other 5th Ranks. The atmosphere was heavy, thick enough that even the wind seemed to hesitate.

Leon perched silently on Ash’s shoulder, unusually quiet.

Ash swept his gaze across the crowd.

He did not raise his voice, yet when he spoke, every murmur died instantly.

"Kargan..." Ash began calmly, "Was once one of us."

A faint tremor moved through the crowd.

Kargan kept his head lowered and stayed silent.

Ash’s tone did not rise as he continued. "But he chose betrayal."

"He conspired with an outsider. Invited a 5th Rank into our stronghold. Intended to seize control. Intended to overthrow leadership."

"Because of his actions," Ash continued, his eyes steady, "Our tribe was placed at risk."

His gaze sharpened slightly. "A risk that could have cost lives...."

"An extremely high price has been paid because of that." He continued after a brief pause, thinking about the limitless rank upgrade that he had wasted.

Silence fell again.

Ash’s eyes lowered to the kneeling man. "All of this... could have been avoided if he had not rebelled."

Kargan’s shoulders trembled slightly, but he said nothing.

Ash then turned his head slightly. "Old Ni."

The elderly War Chief stepped forward without hesitation. His presence alone was sharp like a drawn blade.

"You have long been the one to handle matters of discipline."

Ash’s voice remained calm. "How does Ragh’Tal deal with traitors?"

Old Ni did not blink. "Execution."

The single word was cold.

Ash nodded once, then he looked down at Kargan.

"Do you have any last words?"

Kargan slowly lifted his head with a pale face as he glanced at someone in the crowd.

"No."

Ash studied him for a moment before speaking again. "Don’t worry. I won’t implicate the others since you were honest at the end."

That much was true, as Kargan had confessed fully.

Ash lifted one hand and waved casually.

Old Ni moved without any hesitation. The blade flashed with a clean arc.

For a split second, silence hung in the air, then a soft thud could be heard.

Kargan’s head separated cleanly from his neck, rolling across the dirt before coming to a stop several meters away. His body collapsed forward with a dull sound.

Blood seeped into the soil beneath him.

The crowd froze. Even those who had suspected this outcome felt a chill crawl up their spines. Execution was not uncommon in this world.

But witnessing it directly under the Tribe Lord’s command was different.

At the edge of the crowd, a young man clenched his fists so tightly that his nails pierced into his palms. Blood began to seep between his fingers.

His eyes were red as hatred, grief, and conflict filled his emotion.

Ash’s gaze shifted briefly and saw him but said nothing.

Then his eyes returned to the remaining kneeling figure.

The old 5th Rank—the swordsman who had dared to step into his stronghold.

"Now it’s your turn..." Ash said quietly and placed two fingers lightly against his chin, as if contemplating something trivial.

The old man swallowed hard. Sweat dripped down his temple.

Ash’s eyes lifted again, and he chuckled. "Execute him too."

A faint murmur swept through the crowd.

Ash continued calmly. "It will serve as a warning so that no one dares to meddle with Ragh’Tal in the future."

The old man’s eyes widened. A chill ran down his spine. He twisted his neck slightly, glaring upward at Ash.

"Why?!" he demanded hoarsely. "You said you wouldn’t kill me!"

Ash shrugged lightly. "I said you wouldn’t die by Garnak’s hand. Not by others."

Realization dawned on the old man, and rage followed afterward. "You bastard!"

The old man suddenly exploded into motion.

Despite being bound, he used all his strength to twist his body and lash out, his bare foot snapping forward toward Ash’s chest in a desperate, furious kick.

However, before it could even reach Ash, a large palm intercepted it effortlessly.

Boom!

Garnak stood beside Ash without even looking strained as he blocked the attack. The way he handled it was so casual that it was as if he was catching a thrown stick.

Garnak’s lips curled slightly. "It seems that you haven’t learned the difference in our strength."

He tightened his grip slightly, and the crack resounded as the old man’s bone cracked slightly.

The crowd shuddered when they watched the scene in front of him.

Ash, on the other hand, watched the scene expressionlessly. "Torture him for a little bit before killing him."

The words fell without emotion, and a ripple passed through the crowd. 𝑓𝘳𝘦𝑒𝑤𝑒𝘣𝘯ℴ𝘷𝘦𝓁.𝑐𝑜𝑚

Garnak grinned faintly. "As you wish."

He released the old man’s leg and flung him casually toward the center of the clearing. The old man tumbled across the dirt before crashing onto his side, coughing violently.

Ash suddenly paused as if remembering something.

"Wait."

Garnak tilted his head at his words. Ash glanced sideways and chuckled. "Let Old Ni do it."

Old Ni, who had just finished wiping the blood off his blade from Kargan’s execution, raised an eyebrow slightly but did not object.

Ash gestured lightly. "Give him his sword."

Vakra chuckled and bent down, picking up the old man’s fallen sword from where it had been discarded earlier.

Without ceremony, he tossed it toward the old man. The weapon spun through the air and landed near the old man’s feet with a metallic clang.

For a brief second, confusion flickered across the crowd as they were confused why Ash would arm him.

The old man’s eyes flashed instantly in desperation as he thought of a desperate opportunity.

He then snapped the rope casually, as the reason why he was being tied was just for formality because it would be the same whether he was being tied or not with the presence of these 5th Ranks, especially Garnak.