Denki woke up some time later with a headache, to find he was tied to a tree. There were a lot of feminine voices around, and he could see several girls in armor walking around. Some of them were older women, even some elderly ladies. Not all of them wore armor. But most were young. A few were younger than him. There was a fire off to one side where some meat was roasting. He didn't see Kyoka anywhere-- or Tibult.
"Uh... pardon me," he said to the nearest girls, who jumped and gave him wary looks, "Where's Kyoka? And... why am I tied up?"
The warriors ignored him, even looked disgusted and moved farther away.
"Civil..." Denki muttered to himself.
"I wouldn't speak, if you know what's good for you," an older woman said, polishing a knife, "We are not tolerant of people who try to charm us. A misplaced word could get your tongue removed from your throat."
Denki didn't answer her, just leaned as far away as he could while tied up.
* * *
Kyoka was off at a different part of the camp (which was the size of a legion), having a long argument with the leaders of the tribe. "He is not dangerous. You have no reason to capture him and beat him! How many times must I say!"
"It is hard to believe you," Rin, the Warrior who headed up the healers in the camp said, "When a bard could easily put an enchantment on you. Were you not attacking him when we came to your assistance?"
"No, I wasn't! I was trying to keep you all from attacking my guide!" Kyoka had explained to several people already, and it was like beating her head on a wall.
"It might be best to believe her," said Hanta, the leader of the hunting part of the tribe.
"I don't trust a bard," said the leader of the scouts, Kyoka's own matron, Sekko.
[ Hanta ハンター means Huntress, Rin 凛 means dignified, Sekko is a Japanese word for spy, or patrol. 斥候 Not the same as Seiko.]
"We're well aware," Rin said flatly. As might be expected, she was the most even tempered of the three-- also had been Momo's mentor until the queen had selected her.
Kyoka wondered where the queen was and chose now to ask.
"The Queen has taken several of our strongest warriors to go west and try to hold off the Dark Lord's magic from entering this territory," Hanta said, "You know of our neighboring tribe, King Bakugo. They lost much of their land. We don't want it to go any farther. For now, the enemy of our enemy is our friend. Those squatters won't get off our territory without a nudge or two."
"In her place, it's up to the three of us to decide what to do," Sekko said severely, "and I don't trust a bard."
"That doesn't make him guilty," Rin spoke up, to Kyoka's relief.
"Well, then, let's put it to the test," Sekko said, "Before the goddess. We'll see if there's any enchantment lingering on her."
"What?" Hanta said, "Do you know how painful it would be if it were true?"
"It's necessary. We must have complete purity in this tribe. No room for spells that could cloud judgment or corrupt our magic," Sekko insisted.
She had always been like that, Kyoka reflected. Sekko had been the one who brought her to the tribe when she was a baby. Kyoka didn't mind her strictness-- it was just part of being a warrior, upholding the excellence and bylaws of the tribe.
