He is not just saying useless words for encouragement. Tesrat has become older but she still has at least 50 years to try and coerce her cells to switch to metabolizing Mana for vitality. She is still alive and it is better than what some get. Sauron has been fighting a lot of wars these years so a lot of warriors from the original Iron Fur pack have died. It is a boon that she still has her life ahead of her.
"Yes, I suppose you're right. But what are the chances of me becoming an Alpha of Alphas?" She asked.
He replied, "It is very high if you ask me. You have shown progression all these years. You haven't stagnated so there is still hope for you."
His reply made her sigh. She understands that life is precious because she has lost many Betas over the years. But things are not looking good for her. She is getting close to death and her situation will only get slightly better even if she becomes a Mana entity. Sure she will get more lifespan but she will be expelled from the pack too. Sauron is not willing to share his pack with another leader so he has not taken a second in command.
Any new Alpha of Alphas from the pack is free to challenge him for the position of pack leader or just leave the pack with their life. But Sauron is constantly expanding and taking every good place available on the mountain range. New Alpha of Alphas have to go to unsafe places to start their own pack. It is not a good prospect for her or a good encouragement for her to become a Mana entity.
"Who can live as an Alpha of Alphas under the shadow of Sauron?" She lamented.
Ragnarok didn't reply. His silence made her chuckle deprecatingly. She thought to herself, "You bear part of the blame for the current situation."
She thinks Ragnarok is also to blame for the current unpalatable situation for new Alphas of Alphas. But she didn't dare voice her thoughts.
Sauron has become a hegemon in the surroundings. The iron fur pack is an overlord and their chief shaman is someone that other Omegas are begging to teach them. Sometimes she thinks it will be better if she stays a member of this pack because she doesn't want to become an enemy of this pack. She has seen what happens to the enemies of the Iron Fur pack over the years.
He looked at the pile of animals by the side and spoke, "So you're here for your blessing. Have you decided on which one you want?"
She replied. "Yes. We want the 13 protective charms, 1 healing blessing, and 12 power charms."
"That will cost you 27 offerings. As an old friend, I'll make it 25 offerings. I will also throw in a free power charm for you to complete the blessings for your squad." He told her.
She smiled and said, "Thank you so much, Chief Ragnarok. You're a lifesaver."
He waved away her praises, "Don't worry about it. What are friends for?"
She told him why she wanted his blessings. "One of my Beta is injured. He broke an arm. He can heal it but we don't want to risk it. The charms are for each of us."
He nodded in understanding. "Bring the one that needs healing first. Then everyone should take turns"
The animals in the pile are offerings for him. They are in exchange for his blessings. His blessings have become quite popular all around the mountain range for their power and usefulness. It is one of the major reasons for the strength of the iron fur pack.
Sauron is very strong. He has no match throughout the mountain range but Sauron is only one person. He is the backbone of the tribe but he can't be everywhere at once. The strength of his warriors is also very important. Ragnarok has managed to double the strength of the warriors and effectively double the strength of the tribe. Even Sauron himself comes for the blessings.
It is the job of the shaman to strengthen the warriors but the other shamans are not like him. They only offer a single blessing which is the power tattoo. They bestow it upon warriors using the dead prey that they bring as offerings. Those power tattoos are permanent but they cost two offerings for a single one.
A warrior will need at least 10 power tattoos before they can experience a significant increase in strength. That means a warrior will need 20 offerings for them to see a 1% increase in their power. They will need exponentially more offerings to gain more power. The amount of offerings needed might be higher than that depending on the skill of the Shaman.
As for him, there are several blessings that he offers. There is the healing blessing which is just a healing spell. Warrogs have very strong regeneration abilities. They can heal broken limbs but they cannot regrow severed limbs. His healing spell can heal detached limbs as long as they are rejoined and he can heal almost every sickness so it is very popular.
There are other blessings like the protective charms which is just a tool that creates a protective barrier for a short while. It is from a simple barrier spell but the Warrogs don't know it. They think it is a divine blessing since it can block any type of attack.
The power charm is another consumable tool that empowers its users for a limited time. He used a wind spell which makes the user faster. Its users experience a sudden boost to their speed so it gives an illusion that they are stronger. They attack faster and move faster due to the spell. Hence, they believe that gained extra power.
Ragnarok thought to himself in ridicule, "Sometimes, being among ignorant people isn't such a bad experience. I can sell them off and they won't even have an inkling of it."