Reincarnated to the Past 48

A/N: after 8 months… it finally gets updated.

-VB-

Reincarnated to the Past
Chapter 48

-VB-

It took for a full week for Chief Ghigari’s funeral to come to an end with the attached festivities.

It was also at the end of that week that the politics began to creep into everyone’s lives.

It was publicly known that Ghigari wanted me to be the successor. There were others who didn’t want that.

And so the Lower River Kettins held a village-wide meeting on a sunny day.

With most of the people seated in a circle around the main orators at the center of the village squ-... uh, circle, four people had the floor for the village to cheer and boo.

One of them was me, “Wiseman Alan.” I was the war hero, the innovator, the healer, and the wiseman. The second was an elder and sibling of Ghigari, Elder Damahn. I had a hunch about why he was here. The third speaker was one of Ghigari’s grandchild, a young teenage boy named Reyan. He was younger than Ureya. Ureya and Reyan. Yeah, I could see where the naming scheme c-.

Actually, how did they come up with Johaken and then name their last two children Ureya and Reyan? Hmm, whatever. Reyan was also the only child of Ghigari’s eldest who left for his adventure.

The last person was the one who surprised me the most.

It was Johaken. The man got here fast enough to participate in the last days of the funeral and festivities, but I didn’t expect him to be here to speak.

I also noted that a lot of the villagers were giving him the stink.

I raised my hand up with a closed fist. The small talk among the villagers came to an end.

“Before we begin, I would like to remind everyone that we are all here for the sake of our families, friends, neighbors, and the tribe!” I spoke loudly. “All of us here want what is best for us, don’t you all agree?”

They nodded, and the villagers seemed less tense now. Good.

“Whether we verbally attack each other or compliment one another is secondary to what is best for the village and the tribe! So even if something said today might irk or irritate you, please forget it when the sun sets as long as it was not made personal!”

I looked around and saw everyone nodding, some even calling out “aye” in favor.

“Good. Then let us start. Today, we are discussing the succession of the chief. All of you know who I am. I am Wiseman Alan Marris. I have come to you from far away but married one of your own, Ureya. She is my wife and I love her very much.”

That got a few of the ladies in the crowd giggling and cooing while some of the men looked off put by the public declaration of affection. It also was a strategic declaration. After all, if I claimed that, then who was going to say that I also didn’t love the village and tribe she came from? She was my connection to the tribe, and my declaration made that connection unambiguous and strong.

“Chief Ghigari chose me as his successor not because I asked for it in exchange for all of the improvements and knowledge I have but because he decided that I was the most suited to the role! He believed me to be the warrior capable of defending both the honor and lives of the tribe against any outside threats! I trained you against the Scythians! I struck down the Istrians! I went above and beyond to take out the threats looming over in Byzantions! I have subjugated it all, and their wealth flows to us now! I have not used my newfound influence and wealth to make unreasonable demands! This will not change if I become the chief nor if I don’t.”

Then I stepped back to let the others talk.

Johaken stepped up first.

“I am Johaken, son of Ghigari. You all know me,” he said and the villagers nodded. “And you know that I have no desire to become a chief with my good brother here.”

This was expected.

“My good brother will lead us to prosperity where I cannot. I have my hands full simply living in Istria, and I know that this has already made me non-contendor in most of your eyes but not in the eyes of some. I am here to make it clear to you all. I do not desire my father’s position.”

He stepped back and then Elder Damahn.

“I am Damahn. I support Wiseman Alan Marris.”

Then he stepped back.

… I mean, thank you. I did expect him to do that because Ghigari worked hard to convince him the last few days before his death. At the same time, couldn’t you have said something more?

I knew that the man was blunt, gruff, and grunty, but not so brief as to say less than ten words in a tribe-wide meeting.

Finally, it was Reyan’s turn to speak. The black haired teen with fire in his eyes stomped up to the center of the open circle.

“Where is the pride of the Kettish?!”

Wow, starting off strong, aren’t you?

“We are a proud people. I know we are. We may not hold the high fertile plains of our kin to the west, but we are the bulwark that have stood here against the Scythians and Thracians! We are strong even without them! Why do you praise the man who made us weaker by tying ourselves to the Thracians?! Sure, Wiseman Alan made a lot of things easier, but was he also not the one who professed time and time again that he did not want to be the chief?! Then why are we even considering someone who doesn’t want to be the chief to be our chief?! Are we so desperate as to push a man who doesn’t want the position to become the chief? Are we that weak and feeble?!”

… Oh damn, he did have some good arguements. However, he was making a mistake there. It was good to start off an argument by pointing out the flaws of the opposition, but if he failed to give them what he was better about, then it would turn back on him.

“But do I not have the blood and tradition of our people? Am I not of the Kettish?”

An appeal to kinship. It would work… had he been actually been to battles with the rest of the tribe. However, he had been too young back when the Scythians came and he didn’t volunteer for Byzantion Subjugation.

He had been too young and Ghigari’s most precious grandchild (because the rest of his children were adults who disappointed him one way or another).

But he spoke too brashly, too assuredly, and too arrogantly.

What did a kid who didn’t have a kid of his own, go to battles, or even wars know about blood and tradition? Blood was one spilled together in the defense of the tribe, and tradition was whatever that kept the tribe alive.

After all of our short introduction, we let the villagers speak their questions.

Questions about how each of us would lead a tribe and so on.

Unlike Reyan, I was able to answer them all because of my experience and actual plans to lead since I was at this position. Reyan … if I had to describe his current stance, he was a reactionary. He just didn’t like what was happening to the tribe and how quickly it was changing.

I glanced around and saw a few who looked like they agreed with Reyan but didn’t trust the boy because of his inexperience and lack of backing. Soem didn’t care. They also made a very minority of opinions, some voiced and others not, but they were part of the tribe as well.

I wondered how I could get them to change along with the tribe for its benefit…

Eventually, the talks came to an end, and the vast majority of the village raised their cheers for me.

Today, I officially became the Chief of the Lower River Kettish.