Tai didn't know which to choose. So, he went with the most convenient choice.

"I'll join the Neutral Village."

"Good, good," Tenma chuckled. He poured the ingredients in his pot and after a few stirs, the most delicious scent pervaded the kitchen.

...

After the best lunch known to thumblings, Tenma beckoned Tai to the living room. There, he opened the sack by his worktable.

Tenma took out a dazzling blue flower the size of his palm, placing it into a small bowl. After that, he grabbed a sealed glass bottle from the sack and popped it open. A viscous orange liquid was poured onto the flower, melting it. However, the strong orange was instantly consumed by the gentle blue.

"The Neutral Village's goal is to improve yourself however you desire. Never forget that."

Tenma dipped his two fingers into the thick liquid, then raised them in front of Tai. Two wet lines stained his right cheek as a faint, yet addictingly sweet scent accompanied it.

"Don't touch it kid, or you'll have a smudged face for life," Tenma walked off, presumably to wash his hands. His voice echoed from the hallway, "Since you're well, training starts today."

...

After a long ride on Angela, they descended from unto a nearby tree branch. Tai stretched after the long ride and took in his surroundings.

The buzz of wildlife permeated his surroundings, promising much danger. Trees sporting much thinner branches intertwined with their neighbors, creating a complex three-dimensional maze. One misstep, and he would fall to his death.

"We call these web trees. I don't believe I have to explain why," Tenma chuckled to himself as he strolled on the thin yet sturdy branch.

Tai's muscles tightened as he strained to keep balance. The branches all around rose and fell and danced with each other, birthing a complex maze. Tenma walked on the thin pathways as if it was flat ground. He was relaxed and calm.

Whenever they passed anything of interest, he rambled on about its uses and its role in the ecosystem. Tai wobbled and trembled as he trailed behind Tenma, who was kind enough not to walk quickly.

All of a sudden, he stepped off the narrow path, landing on a lower branch.

Tai followed in tow, refusing to be outdone. He jumped, landed on the lower branch, and fell. He clung for dear life as he wrapped his sweaty arms around the unreasonably thin branch.

"Holding up there, kid?" Tai could hear the challenge in his voice.

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"Of course," he forced out. Tai climbed onto the branch one foot after the other.

Before he was able to catch his breath, Tenma strode off. He trudged behind as he forced himself to listen to Tenma, who had been speaking for two hours non stop.

Nevertheless, Tenma's spiel helped him to gain a clearer understanding of his surroundings. What first seemed like a wild mess of danger, turned into a unique kingdom Tai never knew existed. In this kingdom, survival was everything.

"Over there is the yellow-backed tree frog. Its sticky tongue is extremely fast. Defeating it is a symbol of high reaction speed and skill within the villages. If you want to place in the top 20 two months later, you must be able to hold your own with it."

The tree frog in question was hidden far away, amidst a few leaves. It took Tai a couple of seconds to spot it. If it were a battle, he'd be defeated in no time.

Tenma continued to spot animals where if not for him, Tai would never have seen them. They hid in plain sight.

"Well, kid, we haven't covered much ground, and the sun's about to set. Let's speed things up." Tenma's walk sped into a light jog, instantly widening the distance between them.

Beads of sweat stained Tai's face as he matched Tenma's pace, then he fell. Again. And again. Then one more time. This routine continued till the sun slowly disappeared.

...

Tai heaved and wheezed, his body aching in places he didn't know he could feel pain. He thought he at least had some experience from traversing the forest alone. Seemed he was wrong.

Tenma looked as fresh as he did before he left the house.

"From now on kid, I'll give you classes every morning till noon. After that, I don't care what you do with your time." With that, Tenma took in the evening sun as he stretched in ways Tai never saw anyone did before. Naturally, Tai copied him.

"You're doing it wrong. Your foot should be here," Tenma's voice caught Tai by surprise. He had not exactly been gentle on him. Tai adjusted his right foot to match Tenma's with renewed excitement.

After that, Tai took a long, hard-earned nap.

He woke up to the dull eerie glow of the fire in his room. He peered through the window and saw the consuming darkness of the forest below. Morning was not anytime soon. So, Tai decided he would sneak into the library again.

He snuck past Tenma's bedroom—which was next to his, and dashed across the corridor. His usual haphazard steps were now purposeful and sure, due to the torturous training of Tenma's.

After passing 50 rooms, he reached the last one. He pushed open the large, heavy door, only to see Tenma sitting on the sole chair within the library.

Tai's heart lurched, but he strode in, a casual smile plastered on his face. He made enough noise anyways. He approached Tenma and leaned on the table. The table was now clear of all the messy papers he had seen before, and only the old book remained before Tenma.

"Hey, how you doing?" That was horrible.

Tenma gave him a sidelong glance. "You've been here before?"

Tai's heart was in his throat, "Of course no—" Tenma's eyes narrowed.

"Yes..." Tai turned away from his threatening eyes, looking around as if the unending rows of books were extremely intriguing.

"I leave you for a few hours..." he sighed, then closed the book before him. "Since you're here, start reading those books I picked out for you. Every week, I want a summary of what you read."

Beneath the table, Tai saw a stack of books neatly placed in a pile. Seeing he had nothing else to do, and couldn't snoop around, he sat on the ground and grabbed a book at the top of the stack.

...Thumblings could do that?

If what he read was true, he could move up to five times the speed of a wolf and lift 10 times their weight on average.

Based on what he saw, Thumblings were definitely weaker than that. One mushroom had to be carried by two grown Thumblings on their shoulders. He couldn't help but doubt it. It was then, Tai caught a knowing glance from Tenma. Maybe he shouldn't.

Tai memorized the strengths and weaknesses of his race and how they would fare against other creatures till morning came.

"Get up, kid. Training time."

In no more than forty-five minutes, they returned to the webbed trees.