For the first time since I entered this world, I could eat whatever I wanted without any restrictions.
I was swimming among meats, spiced chicken, fried rice, and...
"Hey Karman, wake up!" Tono woke me up.
"What are you doing disturbing someone having a beautiful dream?"
"What beautiful dream? Just look!"
With my soul not yet fully united with my body, I struggled to open my eyes.
"WHAAAAAAATTT???"
The sun was already very high. I was probably going to be late for class.
"Tono! Where are my clothes? Help me get my clothes ready. I'm late---"
"Class is over," Tono said flatly.
"Oh nooo... What do I do now?"
"I bring good news."
"What good news?"
"You're summoned by Instructor Adi to his room."
"Nooooooo.... I don't want to clean the storage room again!!!!"
It seems I was really tired after hunting last night. I never thought I would be summoned again just for a trivial matter that I shouldn't have to do.
Gruuukk...
Ugh, and my stomach is starting to get hungry again and I've run out of all the points I got with Tono yesterday.
Along the way to Instructor Adi's room, I became the center of attention.
"Look, he's the one who caused a commotion during the entrance exam. Do you think he cheated?"
"I saw him carrying so many beast cores yesterday. It's impossible for a new disciple like him to get that many in one day."
"I also heard he eats like a pig. So much."
And..... many more were whispering. They were speculating about the reason why I was summoned to Instructor Adi's room.
"Excuse me," I said while opening Instructor Adi's door.
His room was so full of pictures of mythical creatures. Dragons, phoenixes, and animals whose names I didn't know.
"Sit down," said Instructor Adi while feeding a three-headed snake.
"O-okay."
"So, do you know what you did wrong?"
"I-I'm sorry, I was tired so..."
Suddenly, Instructor Adi released pressure with his qi, making it difficult for me to move. I felt like a mouse in front of a venomous snake.
"Who are you really?"
"What do you mean..."
Instantly, he lowered the qi pressure.
"I understand now. If you show even a hint of hostility, I will blow your head off."
Then Instructor Adi took out an animal hide.
"Take a look," said Instructor Adi, taking out a dagger.
Slash! Slash!
He slashed the hide. But the hide didn't budge at all.
"Do you know what that means?"
"T-that hide is hard?"
"Not just hard. This hide is also coated with qi. You need to use greater qi to penetrate it."
I was still wondering why he was showing me this.
"How did you get so many cores?"
"I just did this, that, like this, and like this," I answered, explaining how we hunted beasts in Kidang Alas.
"Impossible. Did Elder Hartono help you?"
"Not at all," I answered firmly. "C-can I show you how I did it?"
"Do it."
I took the stance I usually use.
Bham!
The room shook and the hide brought by Instructor Adi had a hole in it.
"How was that, Instruc—" I said, cut off because I was surprised by Instructor Adi's reaction.
Instructor Adi was frozen, looking at what I had done. "You can't use qi?"
"Y-yes."
"Hm.... I've gathered all the information. You may go."
I left Instructor Adi's room and was greeted by dozens of students gathered in front of it.
"Huh? Weren't you beaten up by Professor Adi?" said one of the students in the crowd.
"What do you mean?" I replied.
"That sound earlier?"
"Mind your own business, you idiot! Move! I want to go hunting," I answered irritably.
Meanwhile, inside Instructor Adi's room.
"I never expected this. So it all makes sense now. Before his punch hit the beast hide, the qi protecting this hide dispersed. Similar to what the White Tiger and other mystical animals do. I must find out this child's origins," said Instructor Adi while examining the beast hide.
"Karman! What is this?!!!"
"Enough, I'm trying a new method," I said while leading a horde of beasts. "Pull the trigger! Now!!!" I continued.
"Are you trying to get yourself killed?!!!"
"Hurry!!!!"
I was thrown into the air. I bit my lip, enduring my broken ribs from being thrown by the beast trap.
I tried to mimic the movements from the book given by Elder Hartono. But...
Bruk!
My body hit the ground again. I couldn't feel the energy flow like usual at all.
"Karman!!!!!"
"Don't come closer, Tono! Run!!"
"B-but..."
"Get help now!!!!"
Bruk! Bruk! Bruk!
Stomps, claws, kicks from the horde of beasts completely overwhelmed me. My leg was broken, I crawled as best I could to escape the beast horde.
Bruk!
My shoulder was stomped on. My spine broke. My body kept regenerating, faster and faster.
I didn't know how I would end up when I lost consciousness in the middle of the beast horde.
My vision began to blur, accompanied by increasingly torturous hunger.
Darkness. I was back in the void, but this time I wasn't chained. I was sure my body must have gone berserk outside.
As usual, the mysterious man was back in front of me. But.... he didn't look at me this time. His gaze was fixed on a distant direction. And.... from the void, I could see my body just staring blankly. Not going berserk at all.
The beasts continued to attack my body. And my body kept regenerating. My body grew thinner from constant regeneration.
Perhaps this was the end of my life. Suddenly...
ROOOOOOAAAARRRRRR
An ear-piercing roar that even penetrated the void. All the beasts fell silent. Followed by a flash of light from the mountain peak, descending towards me as fast as lightning.
A second later. All those beasts were shattered to pieces. Creating a rain of blood. And at the end of it all. Stood a white-colored tiger.
"White Tiger?"
Is this the creature Tono meant? The ruler of this realm? But instead of being intimidating, it was actually.... crying?...
Tears fell from the forest ruler's eyes. And the man inside the void who always looked cheerful was also crying....
The White Tiger approached and licked my entire severely injured body. With a gaze full of longing and worry. So did the mysterious man in the void. Then the White Tiger left.
My consciousness returned. All my wounds healed and my body returned to normal. But that strange feeling of longing remained. Who really is the original owner of this body?