Fishballs and Noodles (2)
âAlright, take me to your tribe. Doesnât it get confusing since you both share the same race and name?â asked Ye Lang, letting Tigress go.
âWhatâre you talking about? Weâre not from the same race at all! Sheâs from the feline race and Iâm from the tiger race. I canât believe you can make such a mistake!â retorted Tigress immediately.
Feline race? Up until now, Ye Lang had assumed that Taeya belonged to the tiger race. Upon hearing Tigressâ words, Ye Lang looked at Taeya, and then Tigress, and then opened his mouthâŠ
âIt canât be! Thatâs almost the same thing!â blurted Ye Lang.
âThe same? You said youâve met my people, and they looked like her people. If thatâs the case, why arenât my people over there, by her side?â Tigress asked while pointing towards Taeya. She was certain that Ye Lang had seriously mistaken the current situation.
âTheyâre really all the sameâŠâ Ye Lang mumbled while meekly nodding.
âEveryone over there belongs to the feline race. You seriously canât believe that weâre of the same race! Just look! How exactly are we alike?â Tigress was flabbergasted. Where Tigress was pointed, in the middle of the red legion were warriors from the tiger race. Although the two races indeed looked similar in terms of physical features, the tiger raceâs solid physique and menacing aura were significantly different from the feline raceâs smaller and weaker physique.
It was from this observation that Ye Lang realised he had seriously mixed up the two races. He had unknowingly acted as a double agent for the two races.
But still, he had felt that he wasnât responsible for this mix-up. If there was someone to be blamed for this, it was Tigress.
âYou canât blame me⊠you guys really do look similarâŠâ mumbled Ye Lang.
ââŠâŠâ
Tigress was speechless. Since Ye Langâs childhood, Tigress was the only individual from the tiger tribe heâd ever known. So naturally, heâd assume that everyone else from the tiger race wouldâve looked like Tigress.
Furthermore, it was true that Tigressâ physique and height had more or less fit the feline raceâ description. No wonder Ye Lang was mistaken!
âFine, I guess Iâm the odd one out for looking almost like a member of the feline race. But we do have some very obvious differing traits, like our ears and tails. Surely you couldâve noticed that?â continued Tigress.
âOh yeah, Iâve noticed that. I just thought that changed once you grow older,â explained Ye Lang.
âBut I wasnât expecting your height to remain the same. Say⊠Iâm a head taller than you now, Tigress,â continued Ye Lang, gesturing with his hand.
ââŠâŠâ
Tigress was annoyed at his words, she was tempted to bite him for it.
âSo what if Iâm short like that, you got a problem with it?â pouted Tigress, making herself appear more adorable.
Although she wasnât the only one from her race that was rather short, Tigress looked especially youthful in her short stature. She had not grown much after her thirteenth birthday and she still retained her youthful, adolescent-like looks.
âI can protect you, not a problem!â replied Ye Lang, with a mock salute.
âIâm always the one looking out for you, dummy. The day when youâll be the one protecting me will be the day when pigs fly,â
Tigress thought to herself.
Still, she was happy with Ye Langâs words, and she replied with an eager nod.
âAlright! Now that youâve cleared things up, letâs get down to business! Since your little tigress had surrendered, blue has won the war!â Athena interrupted, who wanted to remind the pair that theyâre in the middle of a war zone.
âYour presence alone is already an advantage, so weâve basically lost,â retorted Tigress. Without Tigress, the red legion would have descended into the same old scenario and the outcome would have been obvious.
Had Athena not been in the battle, there was still hope for the reds. But with Athenaâs presence, this battle had resulted in a checkmate.
ââŠâŠâ
The whole battlefield was silent. Everyone was looking at each other awkwardly. This was not the outcome they were expecting.
Without Tigress,  the battle would be one-sided and the red legion would definitely loseâŠ
âWait hold up, are you guys really fighting for real?â asked Ye Lang, who was squatting and observing the fallen soldiers.
Ye Lang couldnât help but notice that the âfallenâ soldiers looked funnyâŠ
âHey, itâs over!â
Suddenly some of the âfallenâ soldiers had jumped to their feet, seemingly resurrected.
âHey look, theyâre alright! What kind of battle is this? No oneâs dead,â exclaimed Ye Lang while pointing at those soldiers.
âThis is a war, itâs just the kind that no one dies,â Athena and Tigress replied in unison.
âHuh? Is this all just acting? No wonder, everyone here looked young!â said Ye Lang, who had wondered why so many aspects of this battle looked so weird.
Most glaringly, although it was a war, it was relatively muted, and everyone within the war zone still lived life normally.
Furthermore, there wasnât a single adult warrior among the crowd, which was definitely unusual. Every war always had its fair share of adult warriors.
Everything happened exactly as planned on the sand table but Ye Lang had expected some accidents to occur. However, the actual battle had gone a little too smoothly.
Although Tigress had injured Thomasâ ear that time, it wasnât personal. Had it been a matter of life or death, Tigress would have definitely speared Thomas dead. To be merciful to the enemy, would be unfair to yourself.
Although Tigress was an adolescent, she is still, after all, a member of the tiger race. To be vicious was in their nature.
Her warmth for Ye Lang was only meant for him, and no one else. Even her initial attitude towards the other members of the Ye family was rather cold as compared to her attitude towards Ye Lang.
Looking at the situation, it was no wonder Tigress played such an important role in this battle. This was also a good opportunity to gain some experience, hone her skills, and command some troops.
As everyone knows, itâs easier to talk, strategise, and come up with scenarios. But when a real war happens, itâs every man for himself and itâll be an all-out slaughter!