Pushed by poverty and hunger, Agois plans a dangerous hunt to fuel his ambition. A terrifying Demon Beast awaits.
Agois and Lustin were training in a valley situated between two small, densely wooded hills. This small valley was a place they had found while wandering in the forest a year ago and had since considered their own domain. It remained hidden because people rarely ventured into this area, and the surrounding hills provided natural seclusion. It was the perfect spot for Agois, who cherished tranquility and was passionate about training.
Then there was Lustin, Agois's closest friend. A boy slightly shorter than Agois, with short brown hair and large brown eyes. He could be called handsome, but not as much as Agois. Lustin had a lazy character; but could he truly be lazy when he had a friend like Agois? Lustin's father was also a warrior, like Agois's, but belonged to a different mercenary squad. Their family's situation was not very different from that of Agois and his family.
That was why Agois had instilled his wild ideas about gaining strength in his good friend Lustin, who, though not very smart, loved to be lazy. Poor, lazy Lustin had been training with him for a year now.
Lustin lay on the ground, gasping for breath, and looked at Agois, who had been maintaining the Horse Stance for an hour. He was worried. His friend had been training like a maniac for two days, and Lustin had never seen Agois so angry and furious since they met two days ago. Something he didn't know had happened, but Agois hadn't told him, so he respectfully didn't ask. It was as if Agois was calming his anger by taking it out on himself. He stayed in the Horse Stance longer than usual during every session, and his shadowboxing sessions had turned into punching trees; he only stopped when his knuckles bled. He had added more weight to his lifting sessions. He kept mumbling, "I must get stronger, more, more!"
"Agois, stop, my friend. You might get injured if you push your body beyond its limits," Lustin warned, his voice anxious and tense.
Hearing this, Agois knew he had reached his limits and that pushing too hard would not be beneficial. For two days, he had deviated from the training plan his father had set for him, but this was the only way he could calm himself. Still, he wasn't blindly increasing the intensity of his training; he wanted his body to gradually adapt to this strenuous routine.
Finally, he slumped to the ground. His heart pounded as if it would burst out of his chest. As he slowly regulated his breathing, Lustin couldn't hold back anymore and turned to Agois with a serious tone: "Hey man, are you going to tell me what's going on now? What's been up with you for two days?"
Agois hadn't told Lustin about the unfortunate incident on Heven Street two days earlier. Even though Lustin was his best friend, Agois wasn't the type of person to talk about such things or complain. The only thing he could do was strive for strength. Thinking these thoughts, Agois turned to Lustin and replied:
"Don't you see the state of this city? Don't you see the barrenness of these lands? More people die here every day from hunger and illness than from casualties in war. And my father still hasn't returned. Isn't all this reason enough?" Although he was hiding another reason, what he told Lustin was not wrong.
"That's why we have to get strong fast. You're aware of the Iron Body Realm, aren't you? We have to reach the Iron Body as soon as possible, and we won't succeed by following the normal plan. I need to increase the intensity of my training. Look, friend, our family situations are similar; that's why I want you to join me, but the choice is still yours."
Lustin looked at Agois. His lazy, anxious expression had been replaced by seriousness. Though he wasn't as smart as Agois, he was also aware of these harsh realities. Despite his laziness, he seriously nodded to his friend and said, "If we want a better life, better food, and survival, we don't have another option, do we?"
Agois smiled. He knew this lazy friend and wasn't surprised by his choice. Despite his laziness, Lustin was aware of some things; Agois's influence certainly played a part, but Lustin wasn't a stupid kid either.
"You lazy brat, you actually have courage and determination, huh! I'm surprised, hehehe!" Agois teased his friend.
"Hey, hey, we're the same age, man. The word 'brat' doesn't suit your mouth," Lustin retorted playfully. Then, he prepared a sensible reason to end the training: "I think that's enough for today. It's starting to get dark, and our folks will worry about us. Besides, this forest can be dangerous after dark."
To Lustin's surprise, Agois agreed, "You're right, my mother might worry a lot. Let's go before it gets dark. Also, Lustin, we will be training like this from now on. Prepare yourself for it."
Hearing this, Lustin complained with a completely weary and exhausted expression, "Ugh, I used to be able to be a little lazy. This training regimen is going to kill me."
"Then think that you can be as lazy as you want once you gain strength. Think of good food and drinks, my friend. So stop whining," Agois snapped, looking at his friend's discouraged face.
"Okay, okay, I didn't say anything. Let's go, it's getting cold. I'm so hungry. And if we continue training like this, even the food at home won't be enough to satisfy us, my friend. What are you planning to do?" he asked, giving his friend a mocking look as if the plan was utterly naive.
People who train their physical strength eat more; if they intensify their training, they need to eat even more, because nourishment is essential for a strong body. Perhaps that's why a certain intensity of training was prepared for Agois and all poor children, based on their budget.
As they walked towards the forest exit, Agois gave a thumbs-up to his friend's smart question. "Don't worry, I thought about that too. You'll find out tomorrow," he said with a mysterious smile.
Lustin had a feeling that smile wasn't a good sign. He knew his friend, after all. "Oh, my beautiful laziness," he sighed inwardly.
They had now left the forest. Since Lustin's house was in the opposite direction from Agois's, they parted ways. Soon after, seeing the door of his familiar home, Agois thought of his father. He still hadn't returned. After the recent incident, he was even more worried about his father; this world was dangerous. Thinking these thoughts, he started knocking on the door.
Mina, who opened the door, knew her son was coming, and with a mix of anger and worry, she said, "I suppose it occurred to you to come home. Didn't I tell you to be back before dark?"
In fact, it had gotten dark by the time he arrived, and Agois knew he was wrong. His heart ached when he saw his mother's worried expression. His mother had become more anxious and worried after the incident on Heven Street.
"I'm sorry, Mother, I just didn't realize how time passed while training. I won't be late again, I promise," he explained with a sad look. He knew his mother; if he didn't calm her down this way, she might not even let him go out.
Mina looked at her sad son, realized her reaction was sufficient, and smiled, saying, "Alright, but no more coming home late. Go wash up and eat your dinner. You must be very hungry at the table."
Hearing this, Agois quickly went to the bathroom, washed his hands, and sat down at the table. He was ravenous. Seeing the food on the table, Agois quickly began to devour it. The meal consisted only of rice porridge, soup, and a piece of dry bread. Agois finished his food quickly. He wasn't full, but he couldn't say so. His mother was already setting aside most of the food for him and his sister. Agois knew his mother ate less, and it was slowly becoming visible in her pale skin and physique. This was why he felt an even greater urgency to become stronger.
After quickly clearing the table, he went to look at his mother, who was putting Fel to bed. He saw his mother stroking Fel's hair. Fel was asleep. His mother looked at him and smiled, asking, "Did you already eat?"
Agois's heart shattered looking at that pale smile, but he didn't show it. With a forced smile, he said, "Thank you for the meal, Mother, your cooking is the best as always."
No matter how many times she heard her son's compliment, Mina was happy every time. After putting Fel to bed, Mina and Agois went to the living room. Agois asked his mother anxiously, "Is there still no news from Father?"
Hearing the question, worry clouded Mina's face, but she quickly composed herself. Looking at her son, she calmly said, "Don't worry, your father must be fine. Your father is a strong man, Agois."
Agois knew his mother was also very worried, so he didn't ask further. "Good night, Mother," he said and went to his room.
Mina sighed behind her son. Her banished worry returned, and her eyes filled with tears. Almost silently to herself, she cried, "Where are you, Crone? You swore you'd come back, you must. I can't do this without you. I can't raise our children without you."
Agois returned to his room and sat down to meditate. Although he had been meditating for a month, he couldn't feel the sensation he used to feel. Perhaps due to his worry for his father and the stress and tension from the incident on Heven Street, he could no longer achieve his former state of calm mind. He had too many worries. Even though he knew this, he couldn't relax. Sighing, Agois gave up meditating and fell asleep.
The next day, Agois and Lustin were sharpening long, thick pieces of wood branches in the same valley. Lustin couldn't take it anymore and burst out: "Hey, you said you had a plan about food, are you going to tell me now? And why have we been messing with these stupid wood pieces all morning?"
"Because we're going hunting, my friend. We're going to hunt a Demon Beast: the Stone Boar," Agois said with a smile.
"Hey, hey, even though the Stone Boar is the weakest Demon Beast, it's still stronger than even those in the Iron Body Realm. Do you want us to die, my friend?" Lustin snapped.
"I know that, but it can solve our food problem in the short term. That's why we have to take this risk. If we can't even do this, how will we become Cultivators, tell me? We have to do this."
"How are we going to do it then? With these stupid pieces of wood?" Lustin asked angrily.
"Don't worry, Lustin, I have a plan. Just listen to me, and we'll succeed," Agois said confidently.
Although Lustin was hesitant, he knew Agois; if he wasn't confident, he wouldn't dare attempt something so dangerous. Gritting his teeth, he encouraged himself, "Let's do this."
Then, Agois and Lustin sharpened more pieces of branches. Afterward, they went to the area where the boar roamed. They planted the sharpened branches, with their pointy ends facing up, in a hole that Agois had prepared beforehand, large enough for the boar to fall into. Then, they covered the hole with shrubs. Agois cut his hand with a knife and dripped blood onto the dried meat he had prepared earlier. After coating it sufficiently with blood, they placed the meat on the shrubs and walked away. The Stone Boar was a Demon Beast, and it would be drawn by the smell of blood.
Agois and Lustin hid behind a rock fifty meters away from the trap, holding their breath with excitement and tension. Inside, they kept mumbling, "Come on, come on, one more step." And after a short, tense wait, the boar took one more step and fell into the hole.
Crack! All the branches and wood pieces in the hole broke with the sound. Suddenly, a boar with horns over three meters long and red eyes, snorting smoke from its mouth, erupted from the hole. Its eyes were crazed with rage as it scanned the surroundings.
At that moment, Agois was ready for the final stage of the plan. After giving a signal to Lustin, he quickly darted from behind the rock, threw a stone at the Demon Beast, and taunted, "Hahaha, you stupid beast, catch me if you can!" And he started running at full speed in a specific direction without looking back.
Seeing this, the enraged boar immediately started chasing after him at full speed. Agois knew the boar was after him from the heavy thudding footsteps behind him. He was tense but trusted his plan, so he increased his speed even more. The Demon Beast was normally fast, but Agois was agile and confident in his speed; he wouldn't be caught in the short term, which was all he needed for his plan anyway.
Agois quickly ran towards a tree, slowing down as he approached it. But the boar didn't care; it accelerated, seemingly intent on ramming into Agois and tearing him apart with its horns. Agois, slowing down, waited for the boar to get even closer: Ten meters, five meters, three meters, two meters away, Agois suddenly darted and quickly maneuvered to the left of the tree right in front of him, passing the tree by a hair's breadth. But the boar was not so lucky; crashing into the tree with a loud bang, the boar fell to the ground with blood streaming from its neck. The tree swayed a few times but did not topple; its roots were clearly solid.
Seeing this, Agois first moved away, not immediately approaching the boar. After a while, Lustin also arrived. Seeing the boar covered in blood, Lustin was overjoyed; they had succeeded. But he, too, didn't approach immediately, thinking it might not be dead yet. After about three minutes, Agois cautiously approached the boar and, confirming it was dead, let out a deep breath and collapsed onto the ground.
He had placed the sword his father was going to gift him when he reached the Iron Body in the tree. The boar, rushing at full speed, had rammed headlong into the sword. In fact, it was the boar's own power that killed it; ironic, isn't it?
Lustin, with wild excitement, exclaimed, "Ha ha ha ha, we did it, my friend, we did it! Just the two of us, we managed to hunt a Stone Boar. Even my father can't hunt it alone, and a team would struggle, but you and I hunted it, Agois. My friend, you are truly amazing," he said.
Agois, resting and recovering, felt a great satisfaction surge through him. It was his first hunt, and it was a mighty Demon Beast. After recovering, Agois turned to Lustin and said, "Now it's time to get to work, my friend, time to reap the fruits of our labor." They were going to butcher the boar, and they had never done it before. But they knew they had to skin it first, and they set to work. Two boys had killed a boar weighing over two hundred kilograms, and now they were butchering it. It looked comical from the outside, but in this world, it was considered normal.
"Before helping Lustin, Agois sat down on a rock nearby to regulate his breathing. His body was exhausted, but the feeling of satisfaction filling his heart was priceless. It was his first hunt, his first great achievement.
With this satisfaction, he closed his eyes. At that very moment, the blue-violet pearl that had entered his palm and vanished two days ago began to radiate an aura from the depths of his mind.
Agois's body trembled as if it had suddenly caught fire. A current of warm, powerful energy began flowing within his body, an energy he had never felt before. This energy passed through his veins and muscles, sweeping away every trace of fatigue.
Could what he experienced that day have been real? Was the strange pearl that appeared in his hand and vanished into his palm not just a hallucination? What was this energy circulating inside him, taking away his exhaustion? It felt very cool and light. Could it be the legendary Nel energy?"