(3rd-Person Narrator: Rufus)

But instead of being eaten, the creature pulled him up by a foot. As the new day began, it dawned onto Rufus that this creature was a humanoid. It stood a good 1.7m meters tall, coated in a thick grime and tattered clothing. Two stumps at its sides revealed it to be armless. But their legs emitted power- a power much stronger than Rufus had right now. Its face was covered with age and wrinkles, and its mouth rotted black. It had no teeth but had soul-sucking crimson eyes. And it could speak. Its first gravelly words were quite curious.

(???) "Boy, why are you here?"

Rufus was struck dumb in shock. This European-looking cripple had an Aura that seemed poisonous, yet at the same time purifying.

(Rufus) "I... I wanted to be stronger."

He replied, in fear of being hurt if he did not tell the truth. Rather than cruel words, an even weirder outcome occurred. It laughed at him.

(???) "Ohohohoho. As expected of the young. Power is everything in this world. Let me help you. Become my apprentice."

Rufus could not believe his luck. He was saved again and again. Only time could stand in the way of his growth. One day, he would find his family and live with them in peace.

(Rufus) "Yes, Sir!"

(???) "Good... And call me 'Parable'. None of this 'sir' shit. It makes me want to puke. Instead of that crap, remember me as your life's lesson."

And so, Rufus spent the next years of his life in hell. Parable brought him to the dangerous depths of the Badlands and have him face off with Goblins, Ogres, and Trolls as warmups. His real fights would be with the monstrous animals like the Stony Serpent made of rock and spat paralyzing poison. Each time he won, their meat was cooked and eaten, further increasing the energy stores inside of him and providing nutrients beneficial to his growth.

The varying poisonous corpses? Good for adding to his immunity. The stinky and disgusting flesh? This improved his perspective on meals, making him not picky in eating food. The hard, metallic skin? It was specialized training that strengthened his teeth and his stomach. This was ideal to have a strong foundation to build the exterior upon.

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5 years of this made him a 1.8m tall killing machine. Although he could not control his energies consciously, they passively formed themselves and empowered his actions when necessary. If one could measure his power, it would be an unbelievable peak 8th Rank, with 6th Sphere 11th Circle 2nd Stage Mana, 10th Tier 13th Level 3rd Stage Ki, and 7th Pillar 5th Base 1st Stage Chi.

Parable was incredible, despite how he led Rufus through many dangers, but he also strengthened him greatly. He always made sure his apprentice was safe and saved Rufus whenever he could not win. But there seemed to be a limit to Rufus' growth, as his body began once again absorbing his power into a bottomless pit inside himself.

Parable could not help him with this and decided to end his tutoring. Rufus once longed to return to Doki Doki Village as a stupid and weak child but chose to stay with his Master. And now that his training was finished, it was time to return home before truly beginning his journey to find his family.

Rufus thanked Parable greatly for his teachings and left. It was not known to him that his Master profited off a lot from his student. His student did the dirty work. Rather than killing dangerous beast after dangerous beast, he could bath in the light of Circa and empower his cores. He could also gather many important strengthening ingredients and make several treasure tools. His power was even greater than Rufus but still was much less than the one who defeated him...

On another sunny, spring day, Rufus returned to the location of Doki Doki Village, after cleaning himself thoroughly in the nearby Placid Pond. He walked to its entrance, which dramatically changed from when he last saw it.

The settlement was now surrounded by a large Palisade that consisted of the Badlands' logs spiked into the ground and was caked in wet mud to prevent fires. A heavy wooden gate served as the 6m by 6m entrance. Platforms surrounded the interior walls and allowed guards to be stationed as ever-watching sentinels.

Rufus spoke to the Gatekeepers and managed to enter. However, his clothing made him easily stick out. There weren't many people who could kill a Boulder Bull, much less skin its ridiculously tough skin and make clothes out of it. This man seemed dangerous, but not aggressive so they couldn't charge him with any misdemeanor. An extra eye kept watch over his actions to ensure that it stayed that way.

Inside the circular walls, there were around 100 relatively evenly spaced and 2 storey houses for the regular villagers and their families. These buildings were behind the Barracks and Guardhouses, but a bit away from the Town Square. Apparently, the village grew while Rufus was away.

Surrounding Town Square was merchants looking to sell their goods: blacksmiths, general stores, food stalls, and various others. In the center, there was a stage that seemed to be for announcements. That is, unless for what was currently occurring, with a crowd gathered to watch a play. On the side away from the gates, there was a large town hall. Everything seemed to change from before.

The farming fields were left on the far edges, with the enclosing walls. But he could not find the Doki Doki Village's original homes, nor the Village Chief's house. Rufus was highly distressed and uncomfortable that nothing was recognizable. He immediately searched for his adoptive family.