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CHAPTER 3

Kavrala tried to sleep while leaning against a crystal on the cold, hard floor of the cave. She had pushed her magic channels too far, using any more magic could cause permanent damage. And her only way to get out of this monster-infested forest was Vulren, who couldn’t use magic and whose skill level was merely at 8. She still couldn’t believe a boy this weak could roam the depths of the forest. What’s more, he was only 12 years old. Kavrala watched Vulren as he slept peacefully for a while and couldn't help but wonder, How can he sleep so soundly in a place like this? She barely got any rest during the night due to the unsettling noises coming from the depths of the cave. As the sun began to rise, Vulren got up from where he lay, still as a statue, and went to wake Kavrala. However, she opened her red, sleepless eyes as soon as she saw him moving and said in a tired voice, "Good morning." Vulren smirked sarcastically. "You look like you had a great night’s sleep." Then, in a more serious tone, he continued, "Before we head back to the village, let me tell you a few things. First, don’t mention me to anyone. Tell them you distracted or scared off the hyenas with your magic and escaped. You’ve probably figured it out by now, but I’m not supposed to be here." Kavrala nodded to show she understood. “But how did you manage to leave the village? And judging by your knowledge of the forest, you’ve been here before. How haven’t you been caught?” Walking toward the cave entrance, Vulren simply replied, “The perks of being weak.” Kavrala stood up and followed him. Since her magical energy hadn’t fully recovered, she wasn’t drawing too much attention, but Vulren still chose to move through the calmest parts of the forest. After a few hours of walking, Vulren stopped and turned to Kavrala. Pointing behind him with his thumb, he said, "Keep walking straight from here, and you’ll reach the village walls." Expressionless, Kavrala asked, "What about you?". "I’ll use another entrance," Vulren replied before heading toward the weak spot in the fence he always used. After walking for a while, he arrived at the fence, checked his surroundings, and jumped over. His leg, still aching from the hyena bite, didn’t hinder his movement thanks to Kavrala’s healing magic. He was, however, utterly exhausted. Crossing the fields, he finally reached his home and threw himself onto his bed. The past day had been so overwhelming it completely drained him. After resting for a while, he sat up and caught sight of the calendar on the wall. Tomorrow was the big day when the restaurant would open. Looking at the calendar, he thought, Wait a second… Realization struck him like a lightning bolt. He hadn’t marked the calendar because he was in the forest yesterday, which meant the calendar was a day behind. When Vulren realized what this meant, his eyes widened, and he jumped out of bed. Hastily washing his face and changing his clothes, he rushed to meet his father outside the restaurant. They were supposed to meet at noon and the sun was almost at its peak. Vulren had never felt such fear—not even when facing the hyenas. He bolted out the door and ran toward the village. The further he went, the fewer fields and gardens there were, and the more houses appeared. Entering the street where the restaurant was, he spotted his father waiting with a few friends. Not only had his father covered the restaurant’s expenses, but he’d also brought customers. Vulren’s father, Vulmon, was a clever man. He knew his son’s weakness wasn’t his fault, yet when Vulren was born, he had such high expectations of him. When those expectations weren’t met, Vulmon grew resentful toward his son for reasons even he couldn’t explain. Though he was aware of the injustice he had shown Vulren, he still couldn’t forgive him. Lately, however, he’d noticed how hard his son was working. To make up for the unfairness, Vulmon wanted to help his son as much as he could. But no matter what he did, the guilt in his heart never faded. Unaware of his father’s conflicting emotions, Vulren felt grateful for the support his father had shown. Out of breath, he ran to his father and said, “I’m so sorry for being late, Dad.” His father replied, "It’s fine, Vulren. We just got here, anyway." Turning around to his companions, Vulmon added, "These are my colleagues. They’ve come to try your cooking. We’ll be your first customers." Smiling, Vulren retrieved the restaurant key he kept hidden in his drawer and unlocked the door. While the guests waited at the counter, Vulren donned his apron near the kitchen entrance and approached them with a small notebook and pen. Politely, he said, "May I take your orders, please?" As they browsed the menu on the wall, Vulren’s heart raced. One of his father’s friends ordered lamb stew, and the others quickly followed with their requests. The last customer said, “Impressive menu, kid. Let’s see if you can cook as well as you write.” Vulren jotted down all the orders, took the necessary ingredients from the fridge, and began cooking. He diced vegetables, seasoned meat, and prepared dishes with great precision and speed. Soon, he served the meals to the guests chatting at the counter. The customers seemed impressed. Carrying their plates, cutlery, and meals to their tables, they were watched intently by a nervous Vulren. After taking the first bite, one of Vulmon’s friends exclaimed, “Your son’s a culinary genius, Vulmon!” Hearing this, Vulren’s anxiety melted away, replaced by pride. Encouraged, Vulmon himself tasted the food. It was incredible—despite learning from Nuala, this dish tasted unique, almost magical. Smiling to himself, Vulmon thought, Maybe this is Vulren’s magic. When the customers finished their meals and approached the counter to pay, they showered Vulren with praise. It was the first time in his life he had received so many compliments. For the first time, Vulmon seemed proud of him. As everyone paid and left, Vulmon stepped forward last, placing a silver coin on the counter. “Do you have change, Vulren?” he asked. Panicking, Vulren realized he didn’t. “I’m sorry, sir. We’re out of change right now, but don’t worry, it’s on the house,” he replied nervously. His father smiled and said, "Oh, there is nothing we can do then, keep the rest." before turning to join his friends waiting outside. Vulren was touched by this unexpected gesture, but the day wasn’t over yet. He returned to the counter and waited for more customers. However, none arrived for the rest of the day. Despite the lack of business, Vulren was content. He had finally started to repair his relationship with his father . At sunset, he locked up the restaurant and headed home. Thinking about the recent days’ events, he realized he had already arrived at his house. He wasn’t hungry, having eaten at the restaurant, so he changed into more comfortable clothes and reached for his notebook in the bookshelf, only to realize it wasn’t there. It dawned on him that the notebook had been in the bag he lost in the forest. All his effort and work were gone. Devastated, he threw himself onto his bed, he didn't even wanted to think, he stared at the ceiling until he fell asleep. He woke to the sound of a neighbor’s rooster crowing and looked out the window. The sun was just rising, and dark clouds were gathering. He wanted to reach the restaurant before the rain started, so Vulren got dressed and left the house. As he walked toward the restaurant, he was trying to come up with a new training method. Simple physical training was starting to feel far too easy. In his mind, he listed the areas he needed to improve on one by one. First, he wanted to enhance his ability to sense magic. Since the ability to sense magic wasn’t proportional to magical strength, this was something he could work on without much difficulty. Being more aware of what was happening around him would definitely be a useful skill. Next, he needed to work on his reflexes. His fight with Nightfoot had shown him just how slow he was. Additionally, since he had to get close to his enemies to bite them, he only had two options: either dodge attacks or willingly take the hits. Since the second option was currently out of the question, he had no choice but to improve his reflexes. His stamina, on the other hand, was already at an excellent level thanks to years of running and climbing in the forest. When he arrived in front of the restaurant, he put these thoughts aside and decided to head to the library later to do some research. Entering the restaurant, he put on his apron and sat on a stool beside the counter, waiting for customers. Of course, he wasn’t just sitting idly. Enhancing his ability to sense magic required meditation and focus, so Vulren concentrated on examining the magical sources around him. After mastering awareness of a small area, he would try to extend his senses further, but fully mastering even a tiny space was a monumental task. Soon, he noticed a magical presence approaching the restaurant entrance. A bald, middle-aged man walked in, and Vulren stood up, moving behind the counter to greet him. The man looked surprised as he glanced at the menu, then turned to Vulren and said, "You cook all of this yourself, young man?". "Yes, sir. If you have a special request, I’ll do my best to accommodate it," Vulren replied. The man gave his order, still looking astonished, and Vulren quickly got to work. After preparing the dish, he placed it on the counter, and the man took it to one of the tables to eat. When the man finished his meal, he paid and remarked, "I’m impressed that you can cook like this despite barely being able to use magic." with a mocking smirk on his face. Vulren wondered how magic and cooking were connected. Then, with a sly grin, he responded, "We don’t need magic for everything, sir. For example, you can blind someone without using a blinding spell if you lean a little lower." He gestured with his eyes toward the man’s bald head and the sunlight streaming in through the window. For a moment, the man stood there confused, and then his smile faded. Without saying a word, he left. Vulren knew the man probably wouldn’t return, but holding back his sharp tongue had always been a struggle. He sat back on his stool, resuming his observation of his surroundings. For hours, no one came in. Toward noon, he sensed another presence approaching the restaurant. The door opened, and an elderly woman entered—his grumpy neighbor, Mrs. Malonne. Surprised to see her, Vulren maintained his composure and greeted her. “Hello, Mrs. Malonne. How can I help you today?”. "I meant to visit your restaurant yesterday, but I totally forgot." she said as she approached the counter and examined the menu. Pointing to an item, she added, "I’ll have this one, dear.". “Coming right up,” Vulren said as he got to work. In no time, he prepared the dish perfectly and placed it on the counter. Mrs. Malonne didn’t bother sitting at a table; she ate standing by the counter, muttering with a full mouth, “As always, your food is delicious.” Vulren often tested new recipes on her, so she was familiar with his cooking. After finishing her meal, Mrs. Malonne spoke again while Vulren cleaned the plate. "A few hours ago, I saw a sweet girl hanging around your house." Vulren dropped the plate into the sink and rushed to the counter. "What did she look like? How old was she? What color was her hair? Long or short?" he asked hurriedly. “She looked to be about your age and had long, beautiful golden hair. Calm down, son; you’re only 12,” she replied. Vulren ignored her joke and started thinking. What was that foolish girl doing there? He had told her to pretend he didn’t exist. Did she have to show up the very next day? His thoughts were interrupted by Mrs. Malonne’s voice. "I told her you weren’t home. She asked where you were, and I mentioned your restaurant. She thanked me and left. But judging by your reaction, she hasn’t shown up here, has she?" The last thing Vulren wanted was to get involved with Kavrala. He had finally managed to isolate himself from the village and avoid attracting attention. Any connection with the village chief’s popular daughter could ruin his peaceful life. The rest of the day passed in tense anticipation as Vulren kept an eye out. A few customers came by, but there was still no sign of Kavrala. As evening approached and he was about to close the restaurant, he felt a strong magical presence outside. His worst fear had come true, Kavrala was here. The door opened, and she walked in, approaching the counter with a blank expression. Vulren sighed and asked, “What do you want?” "Nothing. I just wanted to check on your injuries," she replied. "I know that’s not the only reason you’re here. And yes, my injuries are fine. You’re quite skilled in healing magic," Vulren answered. Kavrala averted her gaze, looking around the restaurant. After glancing at the menu, she spoke again. “Actually, I wanted to ask if you could teach me about the forest. The teachers at school aren’t very good at it. And it seems like you know the forest like the back of your hand!” Without a moment’s hesitation, Vulren said, "No way." Kavrala, without changing the blank expression on her face, continued speaking: "I think this deal could be quite beneficial for you as well, Vulren. Since you can’t use magic, I imagine you have trouble exploring certain parts of the forest. As for me, I struggle with the deeper parts of the forest because I don’t know my way around. This way, we both benefit." What she said made sense to Vulren to some extent, but despite Kavrala’s immense magical power, her lack of training and experience kept her from utilizing her full potential. She couldn’t control her magic well enough to deal with the monsters she might attract in the forest. What she needed was experience. Moreover, Kavrala was the only child of the village chief and the likely heir. Building a good relationship with her could be very advantageous in the future. Even though he didn’t like the idea, his curiosity about the unexplored parts of the forest was eating away at him. Finally giving in to his curiosity, he said, "If you agree to do everything I say, then fine." Kavrala smiled and asked, "So, when do we start?" Vulren, not trusting her to fully comply with his conditions, replied, "We’ll start as soon as you get permission to enter the forest without a supervisor. Until then, work on your magic. I won’t be able to handle the monsters you’ll attract." Kavrala looked slightly disheartened but said, "I’ve almost sorted out the permission issue. When I told them I drove off that blood hyenas, they allowed me to join the hunts. They said if I perform well during the hunts, I’ll be allowed to go on solo trips for training." She averted her gaze and added quietly, "As for magic training... the instructors are terrible. I do everything they say, but I still feel like I can’t reach the power lying dormant inside me." Vulren turned back to the sink and resumed washing the dishes. While cleaning the plates, he spoke again, "That was to be expected. Those old geezers couldn’t even dream of reaching your potential. Since their own powers are so weak, they never needed to use them efficiently." He glanced at Kavrala, who was still avoiding his gaze, her face slightly redden. She looked like she wants to ask something. In the other hand the idea of the village’s weakest person, someone who couldn’t even use magic, dismissing the magical instructors as "weak old geezers" struck Kavrala as both strange and a bit funny. Vulren sighed again and said, "I’ll give you a few books. Read them and practice the training exercises until you get permission for solo trips into the forest. If there’s anything you don’t understand, I’m here." Kavrala seemed genuinely pleased. She turned to Vulren and thanked him before shifting her focus back to the menu. Pointing at it with her finger, she said, "I didn’t know you could cook. When the old lady near your house told me you ran a restaurant, I was shocked. Can I have the second dish from the top?" Without saying a word, Vulren went to prepare the necessary ingredients. The order was mixed noodles with beef. He thinly sliced the meat and cooked it in a pan with some oil, spices, and sauce. And while he boiled the noodles in a pot of water, chopped some vegetables, and added them along with the spices, sauce, and beef to the bowl of noodles. After mixing everything well, he placed the bowl on the counter. Kavrala, having never cooked before thanks to the chef at her house, was taken aback by how amazing the food smelled. She took the bowl from the counter and sat at a table. Taking her first bite, she realized the meal was incredibly delicious. Even the chef’s dishes at her home paled in comparison to this "simple" dish. Seeing the obvious satisfaction on Kavrala’s face, Vulren couldn’t help but smile faintly. While she ate, Vulren was preparing a massive steak for himself. After finishing his cooking, he sat across from Kavrala with his plate. When Kavrala saw the enormous steak in front of him, her eyes widened. "Are you really going to eat all of that?" she asked. The steak was easily over a kilogram. After all the physical training he had done, Vulren’s muscle mass had increased significantly, along with his appetite. He could eat enough for three people in one sitting. Without responding, Vulren cut off a large piece of steak with his knife and, opening his mouth unnaturally wide, ate it in one bite. His jaw was pretty small at first but since he started to stretch his jaw after the trainings , his mouth significantly grew larger. She watched him as his teeth—gleaming blue-white like steel—cut through the meat. They were razor-sharp. Kavrala was slightly unnerved by the sight. Rather than a noble and elegant Myrill, Vulren resembled the blood hyenas of the forest more. After finishing her meal, Kavrala thanked him and pulled out a coin pouch. Vulren swallowed his bite of steak and said, "You don’t need to pay. Consider it a thank-you for healing me." Kavrala frowned and firmly replied, "No." She looked kin of scary so Vulren didn’t push the matter further. After finishing his steak in just a few bites, he took Kavrala’s bowl and his plate to the sink and started washing them. Kavrala stayed seated at the table until he was done. Once they stepped outside and locked the door, Kavrala asked, "Where are you going now? There are still a few hours until sunset." If Vulren said he was heading back into the forest, she might insist on joining him, using his injury as an excuse. To avoid this risk, he replied, "I’m going to do some training near my house.". "Don’t push yourself too hard," Kavrala said, waving goodbye as she headed toward her home. Vulren, meanwhile, walked toward the forest, wondering why Kavrala was acting so strangely. Before moving into his new home, Vulren had heard things about Kavrala from his sister, Leena. His sister attended the same magic academy as Kavrala, and because both were considered exceptionally talented, they frequently crossed paths and Leena admired her deeply. But his relationship as siblings had worsened since Leena began attending the academy. In the past, Leena hadn’t cared about Vulren’s lack of magical power, but the school had ingrained in its students the belief that power was everything. As a result, she, like their parents, had started feeling ashamed of him. Vulren missed the times when his sister would eagerly listen to his stories about the creatures he encountered in the forest. Years ago, she had told him she no longer believed his "lies," and since then, he had stopped sharing his adventures. Their bond had only deteriorated further, leaving Vulren frustrated but he couldn't do anything about it anyway. According to Leena, Kavrala was a cold and aloof person who only spoke to others when necessary and avoided forming close connections. These thoughts occupied Vulren's mind as he neared his house. Unlocking the door with his key, he entered, grabbed the spare bag he kept in his wardrobe for emergencies, and left again, locking the door behind him. After a brisk walk, he reached the village walls. He checked his surroundings to ensure no one was nearby, then leapt over the wall with ease. Silently, he began rushing towards the spot where he had last left his bag, the place where he had fought the Nightfoot. With only a few hours until sunset, he knew he had to move quickly. Risking shortcuts, he made it to the location in a short time. Scanning for magical sources, he sensed nothing beyond a few birds perched on a tree. Relieved, he began searching the area. Time was running out as the sun neared the horizon. When he finally found his bag, it was in shreds. Quickly, he opened it to check its contents. All the food was gone, and broken eggs had spilled onto some books—library books he had borrowed. The old librarian would be furious, but Vulren was simply grateful to have found the books at all. Finally, when he located his notebook, he felt a weight lift off his shoulders. Though it was slightly damaged, it was intact. He transferred the notebook and books into the spare bag and left the area swiftly. Once he passed through the dangerous parts of the forest, his thoughts turned to how he could best utilize Kavrala's power. His own weaknesses and limitations were clear to him, but there were also things he could do that Kavrala could not. Together, they might be able to achieve what neither could alone. This partnership could bring him closer to his dream of creating a detailed guide of the forest. As he approached the village walls, Vulren suddenly sensed two magic sources nearby. He quickly climbed a dense, leafy tree to observe his surroundings. From their armor, it was clear the two individuals were village guards. They were patrolling with lanterns powered by light crystals, a rare sight in this area. The guard with a mustache turned to his companion with a beard and spoke, "This new patrol route is ridiculous, mate. Monsters never come near this area. Wouldn’t it make more sense to guard where they’re more likely to appear?". The other guard, keeping his gaze ahead, replied, "Orders are orders, buddy. Heard there was a massive pack of blood hyenas spotted in the forest recently. Apparently, they even attacked a hunting party from the magic academy. One of the instructors is still missing, and the others barely made it out alive. They say even the chief’s famous daughter almost died!" The guard with a mustache swept his lantern around and said, "Yeah, that blood hyena pack is worrying, but I still don’t think they’d come here." From his hiding spot, Vulren watched the guards move away. Once they were out of sight, he waited a little longer to ensure the area was safe before climbing down and approaching the wall. With a powerful leap, he cleared the wall easily. Checking his surroundings, he quietly walked through the fields back to his home. After taking a deep breath, he went to his room to inspect the damage to the books and notebook. Aside from a few books, most were in decent condition. Grabbing his quill, Vulren opened his notebook and began recording his recent observations about the forest. After changing his clothes, he lay down and drifted into sleep.

Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

A week passed quickly, marked by his usual routine. Vulren hadn’t heard anything from Kavrala, but he didn’t particularly care. What mattered was that his customer base was steadily growing. However, running the restaurant consumed most of his time, leaving little room for training. So he decided to open the restaurant at noon, as most customers came for lunch or dinner anyway. Waking up before dawn as usual, Vulren changed clothes and headed to the kitchen to prepare breakfast. After finishing his enormous meal, he grabbed his bag and set out once again toward the forest.