It’s been several months since I brought Ram to my home. Between then and now, I have done terrible things to the boy that no one should ever try to repeat with their children. But I regret nothing!
The brat had a bottomless pit when it came to meat. There was plenty of fruits and berries around my home but he wouldn’t be satisfied unless he tasted cooked flesh.
The little devil even dared to snatch my fried fish from my plate during dinner. He even ate a week’s worth of jerkies, this infuriated me to the point I made the brat swear he would only eat meat that he could catch or kill himself.
My madness had a purpose to it. To make the brat self-sufficient with his diet and develop his muscles and mind for the training instore for him in the future.
Who needs a stick to teach kids a lesson. My solution is to starve them till they comply. It worked wonders on the men who served under me in the army. If they tried to complain about their deteriorating health then I would provide them the same food I fed to the pigs to keep them alive.
I forced the boy to watch the Cranes that had long sharp beaks who stood still at the edge of the lake before thrusting their beaks at the passing fish. I hoped he would get inspired to imitate their technique.
Sadly, He didn’t pay attention to this and stuck to using a fishing line with a metal hook because it was easier. A few days without being able to catch any dinner made him more attentive to studying the cranes.
Eventually, he switched from using the fishing line to spearing them as they passed his spot with a wooden trident I made for him. After a few failed attempts he speared his first fish. Then another and another until half his basket was full.
That same day he had to learn how to take a life. It was quick because his predator instincts clouded his mind. Later he shed a few tears for the fish he killed but he quickly got over it, repetition and hunger breed apathy.
His technique of spearing improved the more he hungered for bigger fish. As his confidence built up he began to learn the best spots they gathered to ambush them. One day he managed to spear a fish half his size in one strike.
I taught him how to cut the fish into fillets and the proper ways to preserve the fish. He wanted to put the meat inside a cold box or something but I informed him that many tech advancements in his world were absent in Cormund.
He was disappointed at first but he got over it quickly when I showed him how the preservation techniques each imparted a different flavor on the fish. He soon grew interested in seasoning the meat with the herbs that grew around our home. Frying the fish was a bit tricky but he soon became quite skilled at cooking all kinds of fish.
This event made me realize the kid had amazing potential if I forced him to live on the edge. So I convinced him to stop fishing and made him hunt for wild game in the forest with his spear to help him hunt for meat.
He was reluctant at first since he just started earning a steady supply of meat but then I tempted him with the smell of roasted pork I alone hunted. That made him salivate enough to leave behind fish and explore new kinds of meat.
He had zero experience in hunting land-based prey, I was amazed by the fact his world never taught their young to hunt. For three days he came back home with nothing but a disgusting look towards me as I ate my steaks.
“Why can’t I find anything in the forest? I can hear them everywhere but I can’t see them.”
“Follow the smell of their s*** then you will find them.”
He looked confused.
“Anything else?”
“If you can’t find them then make them come to you with bait.”
“Any other words of wisdom.”
“Death from above always works.”
He scratched his head as he tried to process how to put it all together.
“Why do you have to make everything so hard?”
He turned around and went to his room.
My sage advice was thankfully absorbed by him in the end as he did try it out the next day. He took a bag of edible seeds and fruits from my storage as material for bait. I didn’t mind so long as it was being used to improve his skills as a hunter.
This time I decided to follow him from a distance and see what he does with my suggestions. I had spent so many years in the army scouting enemy positions that it was impossible for this amateur hunter to sense my presence.
Ram searched the forest floor for tracks and dung for an hour until he came across huge piles of s*** left by big predators but none that he was capable of hunting. He backed away to an area he felt that safe from the risk of an attack.
I could tell he was reaching his limits and wanted to give up. But his stomach controlled the body instead of the brain. His hatred towards me and my plate full of roasted meat fueled his determination to find his prey.
An hour later he managed to come across small droppings and decided to place the bait he brought along. Then he climbed a nearby tree to wait and hide.
Within thirty minutes several piglets arrived at the spot where he laid his bait. Their little pink snouts sniffed the ground cautiously. Boars are known for never looking above them for danger, so he was not spotted by them even when they came right under him.
The fact they were cute baby piglets didn’t bother him. He could only see cooked meat wandering around below him. The greed on his face showed he wanted to catch all of them. Spearing one alone would not be sufficient to satisfy his cravings.
Suddenly I heard loud grunts and snorts. A large boar entered the ambush zone. Its sharp tusks and smelly hide caught his attention. This must be the mother of the little piglets.
From my vantage point, I shifted uncomfortably as I tried to decide if I should stop him from attacking the Boar or let it play out. In the end, the little demon moved quicker than I could make a decision.
He jumped off the tree branch and brought down the sharp end of his spear directly over the eyes of the Boar who let out a loud squeal the moment they connected. The spear punctured its right eye and went in deep.
The Boar screamed like a banshee as it kicked up a cloud of dirt. Luckily Ram had managed to grab the back of its hairy hide for dear life. It tried to shake him off but the struggle didn’t last long as the body slowly slumped over. It involuntarily twitched a few times before staying still for good. Ram then let go of the hide and crumpled on the ground next to the fallen beast. He was exhausted after the adrenaline rush faded.
During the struggle, the baby piglets had scattered into the brush but once the dust settled they slowly returned one by one to nudge their dead mother. Ram reached out to the closest one and stroked its back. The piglet perked its ears up, seeming to enjoy the comfort of the rub.
I decided it was time to reveal myself and see if the boy needed help. But as I got close I could hear the boy whispering to the piglets.
“I am going to call you Chop, you will be Ham, you are Ribs, this one Bacon and this one Loin. We are going to be best of friends.” The little demon declared as he stroked them all with a bit of saliva leaking out.
I hesitated for a few seconds wondering if the little demon was truly an innocent child or not. I shook my head and convinced myself that this was good mental development.
If he called them with cute nicknames and didn’t intend to eat them then it would be a bigger problem in the future. So I will ignore his dark side for now.
“So you finally made your first beast kill and that too an adult boar. Not bad, not to mention those piglets can be domesticated for the farm.”
Ram turned around in surprise at my sudden appearance. His face displayed shock before it turned to anger.
“The Boar is mine! The piglets are mine! You can’t touch them.” The Brat yelled as he got up to protect his trophies.
“Relax boy, I just want to help you bring it back home. You still don’t know how to butcher the meat and cook it properly. I thought I’d teach you those skills.”
Ram was so absorbed with scoring a kill he didn’t think much of what comes after.
“Ok, I will give a leg as payment for your services. I don’t want you complaining that I’m freeloading again.”
This brat is thinking like a grown-up already? Did I push him too far?
“It’s a deal, boy! Now let’s get out of here before the predators arrive.”
“Predators?”
“You didn’t think that predators won’t sniff the blood in the air and hear the death squeal? If you were alone right now I doubt you would have been able to defend your trophies.”
Ram scanned the forest around himself and suddenly realized how weak he was.
“It’s good to learn your place in the food chain.”
I let that advice sink in his soul as I picked up the Boar and helped Ram lead the little piglets to their new home. I made a crude pig pen using the timber I cut down for the farm, it would do temporarily. As the little piggies grow then so too the size and sturdiness of the pen.
That night I helped the brat learn to wield a butcher’s knife. His arms have grown stronger since he arrived in this world, Ram was able to break down the corpse under my guidance and did a decent job on his first try.
I then taught him how to dry the meat, salt it, and then the process of smoking it. By the time we were ready to cook dinner, he collapsed on the floor out of exhaustion.
I tenderly picked him up and placed him in his bed in his room. The kid had come a long way from the clueless boy who knew nothing about fishing and hunting.
I then wearily sat back at the dining table and used an iron poker to manage the firepit. I stared for a long time at the bright red flames as they licked the firewood. All I could think about was what kind of Warrior I could turn the boy into.
The main issue which prevented me from deciding on a martial discipline for him is his body being that of a hidden worlder. He is incapable of making use of the essence of the world to make use of processed Weapon and Armor Cores.
When a powerful elemental beast is slain, a single gem-like core is harvested from the corpse. The color of the gem indicated what element it had an affinity with. The core would be sold to Core Smiths who would use their skills to tame and transform the core into a weapon or piece of armor. The quality of the weapons and armors produced this way was considered far superior compared to the ones crafted by the hands of a blacksmith.
Longswords, Shortswords, Greatswords, Rapiers, Daggers, Warhammers, Maces, Hunter Bows, War Bows, Spears, Glaves, Katanas, and Kite Shields were the standard designs of all weapon cores. When it came to armors you had Fur, Leather, Chain Mail, and Full Plate.
But none of them look like normal weapons you would find in any blacksmith’s wares. Depending on the Grade of the processed core, the weapons and armors would take on the color of the elemental affinity and feature the physical traits of the beast the core was harvested from originally.
A Dagger made from the processed core of a Fire Elemental Panther Beast would have a crimson blade with a panther head handle. The blades had a chance of inflicting burn damage to the opponent if it scores a critical hit.
F Tier cores showed the least signs of traits and color but as you went up the grades they become more prevalent and distinguishable. When it came to the final S Tier the warrior could even summon a corporeal elemental Beast to fight for him or her like a summoner.
Sometimes if the warrior possessed several S Tier cores then they could summon all of them to battle. But none ever dared to do it as it would mean directing several corporeal beasts at the same time while leaving yourself exposed to a direct attack.
If you had enough money and the services of a high-ranked Core Smiths every core was upgradable and could be customized to your specific requirements. But upgrade and customization are too expensive for the masses who preferred to just trade or buy a new processed core of a higher grade.
The ones who profited the most were the Core Smith Guild. They controlled Cormund’s economy as they set the final price of refinement and sale price of processed cores. Even the emperor had to bend the knee to get the services of a Master Core Smith.
A core’s grade quality started from F Tier and went up to A Tier. But Master Core Smiths could upgrade A grade cores into S Tier which were highly sought after by Generals, Nobles, and Royalty.
From the stories, I heard as a child from my grandfather. He suffered a lot of discrimination for not being able to activate a weapon core or even an armor core because he was a hidden worlder. It prevented him from being able to find a place in the army and lead a life of respect in the greater society.
I don’t want the boy to suffer the same fate as my grandfather. But is there any solution to this problem?
I combed my deep pool of memories for something that could be useful to him but nothing stood out except…wait, there was that village!
I got up from my wooden chair and went to the storage room where I hid my armament chest under the floorboards. After several minutes of digging and rummaging, I found it.
A black core that glistened from the twinkling star at the center. It was as big as my hand, much larger than any core one would be able to obtain from a normal elemental beast.
During my initial years of service, I was assigned to lead a scout team to investigate a mysterious village whose residents were accused of being practitioners of the ‘Demonic Arts’.
It took us several days of travel through the cursed forests to find the settlement. What we found was a society of humans who had built a life cut of from the rest of the world. Their tools and homes were made of mud and stone like the ones used by ancient humans. Beast and Human skulls were skewered onto the top of poles that dotted the whole place.
We thought we were undetected, but the village had been preparing for our arrival for a long time. There were traps all over the place and we soon found ourselves facing over two dozen warriors. Their bodies were covered from head to toe with war paint. Feathers and bone piercings decorated their bodies.
I recollected that they had warriors who didn’t use a weapon or armor cores like the rest of the people of Cormund. Instead, they each had a beast core fused to their bodies. Some had a core either embedded in the middle of their forehead, center of their chest, or at the back of one of their hands.
There were at least several dozen of them whose skin resembled crocodilian hides or snakeskin. A few had completely inhuman heads that belonged to a beast instead of a human.
The fusion with the cores gave them inhuman strength, speed, and stamina. One of them alone was strong enough to take on three of my subordinates with his bare hands. I was so shocked by their skills I believed their power to being Demonic in origin.
Several of my men were killed by the Demonic Practitioners and I ended up losing my mind from the loss of a close comrade under my charge. In my rage, I fought their best warrior and managed to chop away his left arm with my ax.
The Demonic practitioners halted the fight and acknowledged my victory. The elders begged me to spare the life of the one I wounded, they offered to let my men retrieve our fallen and provided us with compensation with bags of gold.
I agreed, only because I was exhausted and the remainder of my men would not be able to fight all of them. It would be a slaughter and we all knew it.
The eldest member of the village gifted me the Ancient Beast Core. This core’s value was almost priceless since Ancient Beast Cores were hardly ever found since the beasts went extinct. The Emperor of the Children of Cormund was said to have a vault containing countless Ancient Beast Cores.
It is said that no core smith including the highest-ranked ones could process these cores as the primal energy in them is beyond taming. Thus they were useless to the world at large even to the Emperor himself.
But upon closer inspection, I realized all the adult members of the Demonic Practioner village had fused their bodies with the Ancient Beast Cores. This boggled my mind and nearly made me question my understanding of the world.
They informed me that the first humans who arrived in Cormund did not possess weapons strong enough to subdue the Beasts responsible for the Chaotic Age. They struggled for a long time until they discovered the method of fusing their bodies with the Ancient Beast Cores. This gave the first wave of humanity the strength to conquer the lands of Cormund.
But later the next generation invented the art of Core smithing and gained the natural ability to use core weapons that the first generation could not use due to their bodies originating from a different world.
Over the centuries the first wave of Humanity died out of old age and along with them went the popular practice of Ancient Beast Fusion. The successor generations felt the method turned humans into Werebeasts. There were also cases of Ancient Beast Core warriors going mad as the primal energy destroyed their minds resulting in them going on a rampage.
It eventually led to a ban on the practice of Ancient Beast Fusion and the extermination of those who had undergone the fusion. This village was the home of the last descendants of those who survived the purge.
After listening to their story, I and the rest of my men swore to keep their existence a secret and report that we didn’t find anything odd. In return, they promised to help any of us or our loved ones if they ever need to find a new home.
Could I make the boy undergo Ancient Beast Core Fusion? Maybe even find him a permanent home in that village? Do I have the right to force him into it?
I spend the next few hours contemplating if that is the right course of action. In the end, I decided that I will let the boy decide when he becomes a man at twenty.
Till then I will push the brat to his limits with survival skills and make him proficient in weapons in case he chooses not to follow the fusion path.
To be continued…
