Alia was watching Kenji with hopeful eyes, like everyone else around them, as a gigantic tentacle came out of the water and grabbed him. Her legs moved on her own, running to Kenji. "Kenji!"

She saw him raise into the air and the tentacle pulled him into the water. Naru grabbed her and Alf, who was running behind Alia, and pulled them back. "We wait."

"What are you doing?" Alia shouted. "We have to save Kenji!"

She couldn't believe the old man; all her might could not move his hand or open it. She screamed, slapped his hand, and bit it, while Alf's cries made Bob sob.

Naru held them tightly, not even noticing the attacks. "He will be back."

"You don't know that!" She was still fighting Naru, who felt nothing. Kenji had to train her. He can't just leave her behind.

"He told me he's stronger than he looks," Naru replied. "I believe him."

"You don't know him! He can't survive that!"

Naru stared at the water, and his eyes filled with fear as the water swirled. Then, with a loud crash, Kenji's body burst from the surface, sending waves crashing against the shore.

***

The tentacle wrapped around Kenji's body and carried him to the bottom of the lake. As soon as he felt the tentacle release him, Kenji opened his eyes. The water was dark, and he could barely see anything.

A tentacle grabbed his left arm and dragged him through the water until his body hit a wall. He tried to swim away, but more tentacles grabbed him.

Kenji reached for his knife, but it was gone. He looked around frantically, but he couldn't see anything. He tried to calm down and think, but thoughts died after seconds of existing.

As he felt the water push against him, knowing another tentacle was coming, he threw his legs against the wall, pushed himself off it, and used his momentum to swim away from the tentacles.

The water pushed him upward, and Kenji began swimming toward the surface. He reached the top of the water, only to be dragged back under by more tentacles.

Kenji put his fist into his other hand. Bright flames erupted from his fist, and as he smashed it into the tentacle holding him, it exploded into pieces, freeing him and catapulting him through the water.

He swam toward the surface again and finally reached it, gasping for air. The tentacles came after him, but he was already on the shore.

He looked back and saw the tentacles moving below the water's surface. "Damn, these things are fast."

Kenji took off his wet clothes and dried himself with white flames. Alia and Alf wanted to run towards him, but Naru was still clasping them.

"Let us go!" Alia shouted. "He needs help!"

Naru shook his head. "Too dangerous. He will come."

Kenji quickly put his clothes back on and ran to them. "What's going on?" he asked. "Why are they so scared?"

"They are worried about you," Naru replied.

"Worried?"

"Yes, they're worried you won't survive," Naru said.

Kenji laughed. "That's silly. I never died before. Why should I now?"

"You got grabbed by a kraken!" Alf exclaimed.

Kenji grinned. "Yeah, so?"

Naru looked at Kenji with an amused expression. "You don't seem too concerned."

Kenji shrugged. "I guess I'm just not the type of person to freak out."

Kenji's heart calmed, his body slowly stopped shaking, and holding up his smile became easier again.

"You can't die!" Alia screamed, with tears in her eyes. "You have to train me!"

"I understood you the first time," Kenji's hand brushed against her cheek, wiping away the tears. "You don't have to repeat that."

"Do you even know how to fight?" Naru asked.

Kenji nodded. "Did I survive or not?"

Naru let the kids go, and Alf threw himself at Kenji, who caught him with one hand. "I thought you were dead!"

Kenji patted his head. "I'm not so easy to kill. I'll be fine."

He let Alf down and turned to Naru. "Okay, how I'm going to help you?"

"Can you kill the kraken?" Naru asked.

Kenji nodded. "Yeah, probably."

"Probably?" Alia asked incredulously.

"I don't know for sure," Kenji said. "And not now."

"Then when? One year? Ten? Fifty?" Naru asked.

"Probably one or two weeks," Kenji said. "I need a phoenix egg."

"A what?" Alia asked.

Kenji explained, "It's a monster that burns like the sun and heals people, but it's very rare and hard to find."

"I have seen nothing like that around here," Naru said.

"I'm not surprised," Kenji replied. "They're in the mountains and there are very little of them."

"How are you going to get one?" Alia asked.

Kenji grinned. "We are going to steal it."

Alf lifted Bob into the air. "Adventure!"

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.

"Sorry, Alf, not you," Kenji said. "I need a strong man to protect Bob."

Alf frowned, but then he nodded.

Kenji turned to Naru. "Will you look after him?"

Naru nodded. "Of course, I'll take care of him like he's my son."

"Great," Kenji said. "I'm going to hunt enough food for you and then go with Alia."

Naru grabbed Kenji's shoulder. "I have to repay you for your kindness."

Kenji shook his head. "You don't have to."

Naru insisted. "I do. Take my sword."

"No, thanks," Kenji said. "It's not my style."

"This is a legendary sword made with a dragon's bone and forged in a volcano's lava," Naru said. "It will help you."

"Why do you have this?" Kenji yelled, looking at it. "What the..."

"It was a gift from a king," Naru explained.

Alia and Alf watched them talk with awe, even Bob joined them in.

"You were buddies with a king?"

"Well, he owed me a favor," Naru said with a grin.

"How much of this story is true?" Kenji asked. "Is it even made with dragon bones?"

"I never lie," Naru said. "I can tell you everything."

"Maybe later," Kenji said. "I'm curious how you will make up this story."

Naru laughed. "It's a long story."

"I'm sure it is," Kenji said. "Thanks, but I prefer my knife."

"Is that a legendary monster hunter weapon?"

"Legendary?" Alf interrupted them. "Like a magic knife?"

Kenji forced a smile while biting his lower lip. "Well... no."

"That's a normal knife?" Naru asked.

"Well, it's at least made of silver."

"You didn't get a monster hunter weapon? Are you just calling yourself monster hunter?"

"I had one, but traded it for this knife. I always wanted a proper chef knife."

"You traded a legendary weapon for a simple kitchen knife?" Alia asked. "Why?"

"Because it's a chef's knife!" Kenji yelled. "It's my most important possession in the world!"

"Think about the worth of these two, you idiot," Alia said. "Why did you trade a legendary weapon for this?"

Kenji shook his head. "I always wanted one."

Alf put his hand on Kenji's leg. "It's okay, I'm not good with number either."

"Thanks, buddy."

"So, what kind of magic does this knife have?" Alia asked. "Does it cut well? Is it sharp? What about the handle? It looks uncomfortable."

"Well," Kenji said and began walking. "Let's go hunting, Alia."

"Hey, don't avoid the question," Alia said as she followed him.

***

Kenji and Alia walked into the woods, and Alf and Bob waved goodbye to them.

"You know, Alia, animals and monsters aren't too different," Kenji said. "They have certain patterns of behavior and movement. Once you learn how to predict their movements, it's easy to hunt them."

"Why are you telling me this?" Alia asked.

"You want to be a monster hunter? If you can't hunt an animal, you can't hunt a monster."

"You're teaching me?"

Kenji nodded. "I don't know if I'm a good teacher, but I'll try."

"Thank you."

"Let's try to hunt some deer," Kenji said as he continued walking.

Alia followed him and asked, "How will we track them?"

Kenji stopped and pointed at a footprint in the ground. "Each creature leaves behind unique marks that can track them."

"Really?" Alia asked with wide eyes. "How did you notice that?"

"I've been hunting for years," Kenji explained. "Once you spend enough time in the forest, you learn to recognize different tracks."

"What tracks are these?"

"They look like a deer's hoofprints," Kenji said. "Pretty big ones, too. Must be a male."

"Wow," Alia said. "I never would have noticed that."

"There are a lot of things you don't notice," Kenji said. "The trick is to pay attention to your surroundings and stay alert."

Alia nodded, and they continued tracking the deer.

Kenji showed her different tracks and how to follow them. They were moving through the forest, trying to find the deer.

Kenji put his hand in front of Alia, stopping her from walking, and when she tried to speak, he put his finger to his mouth; Alia nodded. Then he pointed forward and Alia saw a large male deer standing a few yards ahead.

She grabbed her knife and got ready to attack the deer.

Kenji shook his head.

"You want to kill it from here?" Alia whispered.

"You can't sneak up on a deer," Kenji said. "And you're not fast enough to catch it."

"Then how will I kill it?" Alia asked.

"You won't," Kenji replied. "Watch me."

He grabbed his knife, held it on the blade, and threw it with a speed that was too fast for Alia's eyes; the knife buried itself in the deer's heart, and it collapsed on the ground, dead.

"Wow," Alia said. "That was amazing."

Kenji retrieved the knife and smiled. "Thanks. Now let's skin this thing and get the meat."

"That's disgusting," Alia said.

"This is how you survive," Kenji said.

"You're really weird," Alia said.

Kenji nodded. "Probably."

He started cutting the deer, and Alia helped him with constant complaining. They finally finished skinning and carving the deer, and Kenji put the meat into his backpack.

"Did you notice the precision and speed of the knife?" Kenji asked.

"I'm not impressed by a knife."

Kenji laughed. "It's not about the knife."

"Then what is it?"

"It's about the way I use it," Kenji said. "I throw it with precision and speed, but it's not because of the knife."

"What is it because of?"

"My training," Kenji said. "And magic."

"Magic?"

"Yeah, you put your mana in various places and expect different results," Kenji said.

"How does that work?"

"You try it," Kenji said.

"Try it?"

"Yes," Kenji said. "First, focus on your heart and try to feel it pump."

Alia closed her eyes and concentrated. "I can feel it."

"Good," Kenji said. "Now try to make it pump toward your right hand."

Alia nodded, and after a few seconds, she could feel a tingling sensation growing from her chest towards her shoulder, but it disappeared. "I lost it!"

"Keep trying," Kenji said.

Alia closed her eyes again and focused on her heart. She felt the tingling sensation grow stronger and stronger. Her chest felt like it was on fire; she could feel the blood pumping through her veins and the power coursing through her body.

Kenji watched her with a smile on his face.

"I got it!" Alia shouted as she opened her eyes.

"Good," Kenji said. "Now grab the knife and try to pump into it."

Alia did as she was told, and after a few moments, the knife began glowing with a faint green light; the light quickly became strong, and the knife shot out of her hand into a tree.

"I did it!" Alia exclaimed. "I did it!"

"Well," Kenji said. "That wasn't the goal. Control it, not make it explode."

Alia frowned and tried to retrieve her knife, but it was stuck in the tree.

"This is a great opportunity."

"To humiliate me?" Alie asked.

"Mana strengthens your body and makes it quicker," Kenji said.

"Mana?"

"It's the power of your soul. All living beings have it. It's what you felt inside of you."

Alia nodded. "Okay."

"Try to strengthen your body enough to take the knife out."

"How do I do that?" Alia asked.

"Try to imagine your heart pumping blood throughout your body, and try to make it go faster."

"That sounds difficult," Alia said.

Kenji shook his head. "It is, but you can do it."

Alia closed her eyes and imagined her heart pumping blood. She could feel her heart beating faster and faster, and the heat in her chest spread throughout her body; her entire body tingled with energy.

After a few minutes, she opened her eyes and said, "I think I've done it. Oh, no!" It all went away as she spoke.

"Don't talk. This requires a lot of concentration."

Alia closed her eyes and tried again, but she couldn't get it to work.

"Try again."

"I can't do it."

"Try pumping it only in one arm."

"I'll try," Alia said. She closed her eyes and focused on her left arm. When she felt ready, she grabbed the knife — every movement felt like an opportunity to lose the momentum — and pulled it out with a swift motion.

Kenji clapped. "Great job."

"I did it!" Alia exclaimed.

"Yes, you did," Kenji said with a smile. "Now it's time for your first test."

"Test?"

"Yes, hunt a deer on your own," Kenji said. "Don't forget to use mana."

"On my own?" Alia asked. "Isn't this too soon?"

"Nope," Kenji said. "Now go, don't worry about it."

"How am I going to find one?"

"It's easy, you just need to walk around and pay attention to your surroundings," Kenji said. "I showed you how to track marks."

"It's not that easy," Alia complained. "I'm not as good as you are."

"I know," Kenji said. "But you have to try. And if you need help, just shout, I will be watching."

Alia rolled her eyes and walked away from Kenji until she found new tracks. They looked like the ones she saw before, but there were are different ones too.

Alia followed the tracks for what felt like hours until she found blood on her path. Maybe the deer got hurt, she thought. But she heard something different, it sounded like someone or something was eating.

She walked around the trees until she spotted the source of the sound. It was a deer, but it was dead.

Alia's heart beat faster. This is her chance. She pulled her knife and approached the deer slowly. When she reached it, she saw a wolf eating its flesh.

The wolf turned towards her and growled, showing its sharp teeth. It was much bigger than any wolf she saw before and its eyes glowed red.