The moment Simon Stone saw the monkey tribe—or rather, the moment the tribe saw him—the entire forest's cacophony of howls abruptly fell silent.
One by one, the pitch-black figures froze in place among the trees, wide round eyes blinking as they stared at him.
"Where is the Monkey King?" Simon Stone shouted.
He had originally planned to rejoin the group and beg for a couple of fruits to eat, leaving the challenge to the Monkey King for another time. But after letting his imagination run wild, his confidence surged, and he skipped the whole rejoining part.
After speaking, he immediately felt a bit of regret. He hadn't eaten—where would he find the strength to fight the Monkey King? But since he had already said it, how could he back down now?
So he straightened his back and puffed out his chest, determined and unafraid.
A large gray monkey leapt up, grabbed a vine, and swung to a spot above Simon Stone's head. "You looking for the Monkey King?"
"I want to challenge him," Simon Stone declared loudly.
"But we don't have a Monkey King here," the monkey said, scratching his head.
A sudden, awkward silence hung in the air for three seconds.