Eren was flabbergasted by Jorlen's behavior—did he want to get killed here in the middle of the jungle?
"What are you doing?!" Eren cried out loud, panic evident in his voice.
Jorlen didn't care about Eren's frantic shouting; he continued to attract the boar—and he succeeded.
The gigantic boar turned its head toward the commotion, its eyes igniting with flames as hot air pumped through its nostrils. The one-horned boar started making intimidating moves, kicking the ground with its hind legs to scare off its enemy. But instead of running, Jorlen started a conversation.
"Oh, look at those juicy muscles on its thighs," Jorlen said, almost drooling in the middle of the crisis.
"Jorlen, let's run! We'll be killed if you fight that thing!" Eren said hurriedly, his body already positioned to flee.
"Run?!" Jorlen scoffed. "Eren, don't you recognize that thing? It's a fire-breathing one-horned boar! Its meat is rare—it's a miracle we spotted one here. Let's hunt it and roast the whole thing!" Jorlen said, both calm and excited.
"It's the best piece of meat you eat before you go on a diet!"
Eren started running in the opposite direction the moment Jorlen said "hunt," remembering his mother's words to avoid troublemakers—yet he had done exactly that on the very first day.
Eren ran as fast as he could without looking back.
"Eren, don't run! The boar will start chasing you if you run!" Jorlen warned.
As soon as Jorlen spoke, the boar charged toward them with speed that didn't match its massive body.
Hearing Jorlen's words, Eren involuntarily stopped in his tracks. His face turned grim as he realized the boar's speed—if it truly chased him, it would definitely kill him. Nervously, he glanced between the boar and Jorlen.
In an instant, the boar attempted to bypass Jorlen to chase after Eren. But before it could, Jorlen sprinted forward to intercept it. The boar, noticing Jorlen charging head-on, ignored Eren and redirected its attack toward him.
Jorlen's speed increased, his demeanor shifting as [Autom] surged toward him like a moth drawn to flame. His body became enveloped in jade-green fire, forming an armor-like barrier. He wielded a round shield and muttered:
"Flames unyielding, judge my worth—if I stand, burn within me."
Jorlen and the boar clashed head-on, sending a powerful shockwave through the forest. Jorlen was flung ten meters away, while the boar remained standing, unmoved.
Jorlen's expression darkened from the impact, but he immediately stood up with a serious look on his face. Without hesitation, he rushed toward the boar once again.
Noticing the incoming attack, the boar conjured a dense fireball in its mouth and spat it at Jorlen.
Jorlen leaned forward, bracing himself behind his fire-clad shield. The fireball struck with force, sending another shockwave through the area. Jorlen was pushed back two steps but steadied himself quickly.
The boar and Jorlen locked eyes.
Jorlen screamed, "Come on!"
Both started running toward each other for another clash, their footsteps shaking the ground.
Jorlen's speed surged in an instant, and just before impact, he let out a scream loud enough that even the instructors might have heard it.
Boom!
The shockwave rippled outward, knocking Eren to the ground. He looked at both combatants in disbelief.
Can anyone really fight a two-meter-high giant boar head-on?
This battle became an eye-opener for Eren—it made him realize the sheer strength of awakened fighters.
Both Jorlen and the boar remained locked in place for a moment. Then, suddenly, fire erupted from Jorlen's body, pushing the boar back a step.
The boar let out a cry that echoed through the surroundings, then pushed back against Jorlen, forcing him to step back as well. They remained in a stalemate.
Jorlen screamed once more and shoved the boar with all his strength—sending it toppling onto its back.
Jorlen's jade-green flame armor and shield dissipated, yet he stood in the same spot with a calm expression.
Eren looked at Jorlen, now standing unprotected, his nerves on edge.
Did he exhaust all his energy? Eren didn't know what to do, panic rising in his chest.
"Jorlen, run from there!" Eren shouted as he started running again.
Jorlen smiled at him. "Have you ever tasted one-horned boar skewers?"
Eren was momentarily confused.
While they were talking, the boar stood up once more, though staggering and shaking its head. Its breath flared with fire, its eyes igniting once again as it made a final charge toward Jorlen.
Jorlen extended his hand, and in his palm, a crimson flame ignited—the same fire the boar had spat earlier, but now triple the size.
The boar roared and charged at him with all its remaining strength.
Jorlen smirked, sidestepping just before the impact, and smashed the fireball directly onto the boar's face.
The explosion cracked the ground, creating a crater as the force of impact shook the area.
The boar stopped moving. Jorlen looked at its crushed face with satisfaction.
Eren walked toward Jorlen and the boar, disbelief etched on his face.
"Jorlen, how are you so strong?" Eren asked, his voice filled with curiosity.
Jorlen stood there, brimming with a smile, his expression practically demanding praise.
"Okay, let's leave quickly. Dangerous predators will be lurking around because of all this commotion," he said.
Eren had a lot of questions to ask, but since Jorlen mentioned dangerous predators, he held back. Instead, both of them worked together to build a log sled to drag at least half a ton of boar meat, knowing they couldn't carry it on their shoulders.
After leaving the dense jungle, the two finally relaxed, sitting on a stone to recover their stamina, which had drained from dragging the boar halfway to their tent.
"So, how long have you been training? Did your mother teach you?" Eren asked.
Jorlen pondered for a moment before answering, "I haven't done any training."
Eren was shocked. Then how can he create armor and a shield out of flames so strong? he wondered.
"Once I awakened my Verse, I was naturally able to manipulate my Innate Flame," Jorlen explained.
Eren wanted to ask how Jorlen could conjure fire identical to the one-horned boar's flame, but he decided against probing further into something that might be a secret. Instead, he turned his attention to the massive boar lying before them.
"What are we going to do with this? We can't eat the whole thing—it must weigh at least 800 pounds," Eren said.
Jorlen remained silent for a moment before a grin spread across his face. "Let's set up a stall and sell skewered meat to the students. We'll make a massive profit," he declared.
"We need a lot of Fire Stones to train our Innate Fire. If we rely only on the Aetum in nature, we won't make any real progress," Jorlen added.
"Fire Stones? Are they expensive?" Eren asked, his concern growing. He didn't have much money—only ten gold coins, his mother's long-time savings. He had to spend wisely.
"Low-grade Fire Stones cost around 50 silver to 2 gold coins, while high-grade ones go for 10 gold coins," Jorlen replied.
Eren's face darkened. With my money, I can barely afford one high-grade Fire Stone…
"As for super high-grade Fire Stones, which contain immense fire energy, they can cost up to 1,000 gold coins," Jorlen added.
Eren dismissed the idea of buying Fire Stones for now. If he could learn to harness nature's fire energy, he would consider earning gold coins for them later.
For now, he focused on their immediate business plan.
Eren and Jorlen agreed on a 50-50 profit split. Even though Eren hadn't contributed to hunting the boar, Jorlen generously decided to share half the earnings with him.
The two started dragging the log sled toward the tents. As they neared the camp, other kids noticed them hauling something massive. Instantly, a commotion broke out.
"Did those two really hunt a one-horned boar?!"
"That's a huge achievement!"
Some students watched with envy, while others doubted whether they had actually slain the beast themselves.
Amid the chaos, Jorlen seized the opportunity to advertise their skewer stall—specifically offering discounts to the town kids he had beaten up earlier.
They dragged the boar to the center of the tent area. Eren went to ask his friends for help, while Jorlen went to his personal carriage, where his mother had packed various spices. He also approached some academy seniors, offering them a commission in exchange for helping set up the stall.
An hour later, their skewer stall became wildly popular.
Each skewer sold for 10 silver, but town kids got a discount at 7 silver—a bargain compared to other food stalls. Jorlen didn't care much about the money, and Eren had no say in pricing. However, some village kids complained about the special discount, questioning why town kids got a better deal.
The town kids, meanwhile, were overjoyed and quickly forgot about their previous betting losses.
Anne managed the counter, while Anto took charge of her favorite job—cooking the meat. Eren and Klara handled crowd control, while Jorlen, Leo, and Mark focused on cutting and seasoning the meat.
The overwhelming success of their stall even attracted academy seniors and instructors. The one-horned boar's meat was a delicacy—a rare treat no one wanted to miss.
Jorlen personally sent some skewers to Head Instructors Edward and Charlotte, believing it might help them overlook his earlier reckless actions.
By the time the sun began to set, the village students also arrived at the camp.
When they finally wrapped up their business, they had earned nearly 190 gold coins.
Jorlen took 70 gold coins, while the rest went to Eren, who adamantly shared his portion with his friends.
Now, Eren had 30 gold coins—which made him incredibly happy.
After their successful venture, everyone gathered near the tents, where Edward stood at the entrance, preparing to give some kind of instruction.