I’ve never seen a law enforcer fight anyone before. Despite my rebellious act of running away, I’m actually an upstanding citizen, and the only time I’ve ever encountered a law enforcer is when one came to school to recruit some less academically inclined students. I’ve heard that law enforcers were strong existences; they had to be to suppress fighting citizens. However, why does the chief of the law enforcers seem so weak?

“Ouch! Ouch! Ouch! Stop it!”

“You’re the one who wanted me to hit you! Flaming Blade!”

Senior Fluffytail is walloping the law enforcement chief with her sword. Even though it’s a weapon with a sharp edge, it’s not cutting into the chief at all. Instead, it collides with the chief’s armor made of spiritual energy. I think it’s the Swamp Toad Armor; I’ve never seen it in person before, but I’ve read a description of it in a book once, and the description matches up to the effects. Just to be sure, I’ll ask my mom. She’s not called Fighter for no reason. “Mom, is that the Swamp Toad Armor?”

“Yes,” my mom said without turning her head. She was sitting next to my dad, and both of them were looking over the edge of the branch, watching the fight. Their tails were wrapped around Two, presumably to prevent her from falling over and getting caught in the mess.

What about the technique Senior Fluffytail is using? Her sword is on fire, and upon making contact with her target, there’s a miniature explosion that occurs. “Mom, have you ever heard of squirrel flames before?”

“Squirrels don’t produce flames,” my mom said. “The fire is from a cultivation technique. It should be some sort of spiritual flame similar to the ones alchemists use to concoct pills. As for her combat technique, it’s very self-destructive. If you want to be like Senior Fluffytail, I suggest you give up on that idea.”

“Self-destructive?”

“Very self-destructive,” my mom said, emphasizing the first word. “She’s concentrating all her energy into one point before detonating it. It’s fine to use an attack like that as an ultimate move or finishing blow, but to use it repeatedly as a regular attack? She’s asking to die an early death.”

“How is she using it repeatedly if each attack requires all her energy?” That doesn’t make any sense. An all-or-nothing attack means all or nothing. Either it works spectacularly or it fails miserably. It shouldn’t be repeatedly used.

“She’s burning her vitality,” my dad said. “She converts her fat and muscles into energy to power her technique similar to the way a starving animal’s body consumes itself. As long as Senior Fluffytail eats a nice big meal full of meat, her body will recover. Meat must’ve been really cheap for her to acquire in the lower realms. A squirrel can’t fight like that here. They’ll go bankrupt.”

So, this is the power of meat and money. No wonder why everyone dreams of becoming a teacher. With a teaching license, they can get a discount on purchasing meat, and their salaries are much higher than any other job. A top-tier teacher has an even higher earning potential than an elder. I think Senior Fluffytail has a bigger problem than going bankrupt though. “How badly will she be punished for attacking a law enforcement chief?”

My mom turned her head towards me and narrowed her eyes. Did I do something wrong? She only looks at me like that when I fail to meet her expectations. “Didn’t you already learn this in school?” she asked. “Were you not paying attention to the teacher?”

“No, no, I paid attention.” Honestly, I did. I’m a very good student. If I’m not a good student, I’ll be beaten by my parents, and I don’t like pain. “The teacher said immortals and outsiders get special treatment, but he didn’t elaborate on what that treatment was because he said we didn’t have to worry about it for a long time.”

My mom stared at me for a bit longer before turning her attention back onto the ground where Senior Fluffytail was still walloping the law enforcement chief. The poor guy couldn’t seem to catch a break. Whenever he blocked an attack, another one would come immediately. “Senior Fluffytail’s identity as an outsider outweighs her identity as an immortal. If she agrees to submit under the ruler and join the tribe, then she’ll be punished with community service, likely serving as a teacher’s aide to help her learn the laws. If she doesn’t agree to join us, she’ll be thrown into the prison until someone pays her ransom. Since she doesn’t have any backing, she’ll likely rot in there until the end of time, but she won’t die because she’s an immortal.”

My dad scratched his chin. “However, if Senior Fluffytail happens to win, it’s possible an elder might take her into their family.”

Can Senior Fluffytail win? The two down there seem to be evenly matched. Although the law enforcement chief can’t fight back, Senior Fluffytail can’t break his defenses either. It’s only a matter of time before some reinforcements arrive to help out the chief.

“Damnit!” Senior Fluffytail stomped her foot against the ground. “Stop blocking everything!”

“Stop hitting me!”

“I’ll stop hitting you when you stop blocking!”

“Really?”

“Really.”

The chief lowered his guard. Then, he immediately raised it again when a sword flashed in front of his face. “Ow! You liar!”

“I didn’t lie! You blocked my attack!” Senior Fluffytail took a step back, pausing her relentless onslaught. Her eyes narrowed. “I didn’t want to use this forbidden technique that’s super effective against squirrels, but you forced me to!”

The chief narrowed his eyes as well, and the green glow spread up his arms and legs, engulfing his whole body.

Senior Fluffytail stretched out her arm towards the chief, her palm facing towards the sky. A box appeared in her hand. Even though the ground was far away, I could still smell a really strong fragrance. It made my stomach grumble. Senior Fluffytail took in a deep breath and said, “Behold! What’s in the box!?”

The chief’s brow furrowed, and he took a step forward. The green glow disappeared from around his nose, and he sniffed the air. “What—”

“Flaming Blade!” The box dropped to the ground as Senior Fluffytail gripped her sword with both hands and swung it at the startled chief’s face.

…I’m not sure what to make of Senior Fluffytail’s fighting style; however, I am curious. What’s in the box?