Since they are apes and monkeys they should be the beastmen that are closest to being human. Whether that is a good thing or a bad thing remains to be seen, but I have some concerns. I really hope that they got the better aspects of humanity and not the worst ones.

  Although, I think that if they were truly as bad as humans then the other tribes would have destroyed them. In fact, the fact that they get along so well without fighting each other should be a good sign. I guess I will find out soon enough, I should reach the area in less than an hour.

  A little while later I spot the tribes, but at first it is impossible to tell that it is two separate tribes. Only after looking for a minute do I spot the five foot wide path that divides the two tribes. The majority of the tribe members stay on their side of the path with only a few crossing it.

  I slowly circle the two tribes and make sure that all of the members of the two tribes see me. Then I land outside of the two tribes in line with the dividing path and then shapeshift into my beastman form. Once I have shifted, I stand there and wait for someone from the tribes to invite me in.

  While I am waiting, I study the members of the two tribes to get a sense of what they are. The monkey tribe is more human than anything, only having furry ears and a tail. The ape tribe members are bulkier and have more fur than the monkey tribe members.

  While both are obviously not human, they are the closest to humans out of the beastmen tribes. At least in terms of looks, what kinds of attitudes they have remains to be seen. After a few minutes, two people step out of the camp, a female monkey and a male ape.

  Their dress is more fancy than that of the other tribe members that I have seen so far. That should mean that they are the leaders of the two tribes, which at least shows they take me seriously. Who knows what they have heard about me, rumors have surely spread this far.

  The question is which kind of rumors have reached here and what they have believed from them. I am sure that there are some pretty far-fetched rumors going around about me. Hopefully, the worst of them are only going around amongst the humans and not the beastmen.

  I study the two of them as they approach me, trying to get a hint as to their personalities. The female is the older of the two, with yellow fur with a few orange highlights to it. If she was a human I would say she was around fifty, but her body is still in shape and pleasantly curvy.

  The male from the ape tribe is younger, but far bulkier, he could equal three of the woman. He looks like a human body builder, just with more hair and bigger than a human would be. If he stood up straight instead of hunching over, he would probably be around eight feet tall.

  The author's content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

  However, as they approach I can tell that the male is showing deference to the female. It could just be respect due to age, but as leaders it could mean a lot more than that. I have a hunch that the female is going to be the important one to convince to join us.

  ??? says “So, you must be the one we have heard so much about. The one who wants to be the king of the beastmen. Am I right?”

  “Partially. I am the one you have heard about and I am working to unify the beastmen. However, I did not want to become the king, let alone an emperor, but I am not being given much choice.”

  ??? says “Well, that is an interesting position. Oh, how rude of me. My name is Haab and I am the leader of the monkey tribe. Beside me is Gruu, leader of the ape tribe.”

  “It is a pleasure to meet you both. Thank you for coming to speak with me.”

  Gruu says “You are only here because you want our soldiers for your war, right?!”

  “Actually, no. I don’t need your soldiers. In fact, I probably have more soldiers than you have tribesmen.”

  Haab says “If you don’t want us for your war, why are you here? What is your goal?”

  “Since I am not sure what you might have heard, I will start from the beginning.”

  I tell them about my arrival in this world and how I was originally a human in my old world. I tell them about how Krenocia summoned me and what she and Seronia wanted from me. I don’t go into full detail, I just tell them enough to understand the situation.

  I go over my hatred for slavery and those who support it, then how I started trying to help the outcasts. I tell them how I started trying to unify the beastmen just so the other nations would respect them. Then I slowly explain how things snowballed from there and the current situation.

  Haab laughs and says “I am not sure if you are blessed or cursed! You are telling me that you are basically being forced into becoming the emperor of the peninsula by circumstances!?”

  “Pretty much. I never wanted the responsibilities of a ruler. I would much rather just be an adventurer and explore this world.”

  Gruu says “Then why are you doing it? Why are you recruiting more tribes since it will just increase the responsibilities?”

  “I am doing it because there is no one else who can do it. While it is true that I could probably unify the peninsula without all of the tribes, but then the tribes would have less of a presence within the new empire. I want to unify the tribes so that all beastmen can be part of the empire and receive all of the benefits that that entails.”

  Haab says “What kind of benefits are you talking about?”

  I spend the next few minutes talking about the benefits such as the procedure and open trade. Not to mention protection against slavers and the coming demon invasion by the army. I also talk about all the jobs available and the various education that is available.

  Haab says “To be honest, that all sounds too good to be true.”

  “It is completely true, but I am not saying that there won’t be negatives. For one, adapting to all these changes will not be easy for some people. This will change your tribe’s way of life. For another, you will become subject to the empire and its laws. Your tribe will no longer be completely independent. You need to decide what is best for your people. I am just here to make the offer, you will not be forced to join the empire.”

  Haab says “If we don’t join, the tribes who do will leave us behind, won’t they?”