Chapter 40

Chapter 40: Chapter 40

For several seconds, Ingrid could not understand what she was looking at. The windows had been completely smashed, the walls were damaged in several places, and the roof looked as though someone had taken a heavy weapon and practically split it in two.

The grass surrounding the hut had been trampled and flattened, with pieces of broken wood scattered across the ground, while the door that had once stood at the entrance was nowhere to be seen. Even the small things Ingrid had left around the hut had been thrown around or crushed beneath someone’s feet.

The damage was far worse than anything she had expected. Ingrid slowly clenched her hands as anger began rising inside her. This was the only place the original Ingrid had considered home. She had lived there alone, slept there, cooked there, and slowly started making plans for her future there, only for someone to destroy it while she was away.

Ingrid took a slow breath and stared at the wreckage, her voice becoming dangerously quiet as she asked, "Who did this?"

A low laugh came from behind her and Ingrid turned around.

Falcon stood several steps away with four other Beastmen behind him. His arms were folded across his chest, and the smug smile on his face immediately made Ingrid’s anger burn even hotter. The four people standing with him looked equally comfortable, as though they had come here specifically to watch her reaction. Falcon looked past Ingrid toward the ruined hut before returning his attention to her.

"You’re finally back," he said with a mocking smile. "I was starting to wonder if you would keep running around the village with your new friend and forget this place existed."

Ingrid stared at him without answering, and Falcon seemed to enjoy the silence. He stepped forward slightly and looked her up and down before saying, "You should have come back sooner. You would have seen what happened to your little home."

Ingrid’s fingers tightened at her sides. "I asked you who did this."

Falcon’s smile widened. "The Village Chief gave the order."

For a moment, Ingrid simply stared at him. "What?"

Falcon took another step forward, clearly enjoying the confusion on her face. "You heard me, Ingrid. The village Chief has decided that you’re no more welcome into this place. From now on, you’ve officially been banished from this place forever." Falcon finished speaking, and the smile on his face grew wider.

But I froze, my heart beating frantically, "What do you mean by ’banished’?" Ingrid questioned, "Are you saying that... The chief is sending me away from this place? Why? What did I do for you all to treat me like this?"

Falcon crossed his arms, "Do you really need me to explain it to you, Ingrid?" Falcon stepped closer to me. "It seems you’ve forgotten what I warned you about, Ingrid. I told you to never cross me or else you’ll regret it. But you went ahead to do just that." His eyes flashed with anger and jealousy.

"Who told you to get the Merchant’s Guild’s Master’s attention, who told you to find the Star Glow Herb? Now, you’ll pay for the embarrassment you caused me and my father!" Falcon’s voice grew harsher with each word he spoke and for a moment, Ingrid’s head couldn’t wrap around what he just said.

"Wait... Are you saying you did all this because of what happened back there at the market?" Ingrid’s pupils shook in disbelief, "I earned what I got fair and square!"

"Fair and square? You stole the Master’s attention from us! Today was the day that my father and the village Chief would get recognised by the Master but because of you... Because of you my father was punished and beaten and the position that the village Chief had been trying to get all these years was given to someone else!"

"How the fuck is that my fault?!" Ingrid yelled back, "Your father was the one who caused trouble!" Ingrid stepped forward and jammed a finger on his chest, "Everything your father had was due to his own making. How could you blame me for that? You destroyed my house and you’re giving me this puny excuse? Do you think I’m that easy to bully?!"

"Just accept it fat bitch." One of the Beastmen behind Falcon crossed his arms, his lips pulled into a smirk, "You’re no more wanted in this village. Everyone has been trying to get rid of you from the moment you came. You’re the only one who’s been blind enough not to see it!"

The insult hung in the air, and Ingrid slowly turned her eyes toward the Beastman who had spoken. He looked pleased with himself, as though calling her fat was enough to put her back in her place. Ingrid looked at the other four Beastmen one by one, noticing the same smug expressions on their faces as they stood behind Falcon.

"What the fuck are you saying?"

Falcon laughed under his breath. "You still don’t understand, do you? Ever since you came here, our village has become a joke to everyone outside these walls. Wherever we go, people laugh at us and ask about the fat woman from our village."

One of the Beastmen stepped forward, his face twisting with resentment. "Do you know what it’s like to be bullied everywhere you go because of someone like you? People point at us, laugh at us, and ask whether all the people in our village are as useless as you. They mock us because of your fat body and the trouble you keep bringing to this place."

Ingrid’s expression remained still, but her fingers slowly curled into her palms. She had expected insults from Falcon, but hearing them speak about her body as though it gave them the right to destroy her home only made the anger bolder.

Another Beastman folded his arms and looked toward the ruined hut. "The Chief has had enough. Everyone has. You were given chances, but you kept making trouble and embarrassing us. Now you have nothing here anymore."

Falcon’s smile returned as he walked closer. "So take the warning seriously, Ingrid. If you keep hanging around this village after today, this house won’t be the only thing we destroy."

He paused for a moment, letting his words sink in before his expression hardened. "We’ll come for your life next."

The four Beastmen nodded behind him, making it clear that they were not simply trying to scare her. Falcon turned around and started walking away with the others.

Ingrid watched them leave for several seconds. She looked at the remains of her home one more time before slowly turning her head toward the five Beastmen.

"If you think I’m going to let you walk away after doing all this, then you’re wrong."

Falcon stopped and glanced over his shoulder. A grin slowly spread across his face as he turned around. "And what the hell are you going to do about it?"

Ingrid did not answer him immediately. She simply looked towards Lysander, who had remained a short distance away.

Her voice was cold when she spoke. "Lysander."

His purple eyes shifted toward her instantly without saying a word.

"Break their arms. All of them."