"Mom! Brother's awake!" Thos shook Pim's shoulders hard.
Pim, now in her fifties, had stayed up the whole night watching over her son. Exhaustion weighed down her body, but the moment she saw her child awaken, she threw her arms around Nawa, forgetting her weariness.
"My son… you're safe!" Pim cried, tears streaming endlessly down her face as if they would never run dry.
"I'm fine, Mom. Don't worry,"
Nawa reassured her gently. But deep down, he knew something was wrong. Even in the Himmapan Forest, when he fought terrifying monsters day and night, he had never felt so weak. Yet here he was—after barely half a day of work—collapsing unconscious.
"I'll get you some food," Pim said, hurrying into the kitchen.
She returned with a plate of rice topped with a golden omelet. It was a simple dish, nothing special, but Nawa devoured it hungrily.
To his surprise, tears rolled down his cheeks as he ate. Seeing him recover a little, Pim left for work. Once she was gone, Nawa turned to his younger brother.
"Thos, I'm feeling better. Let me help you with work today."
"Are you sure? You should rest. It's nothing serious, I can handle it. I already gathered a lot yesterday—today it's just a little more," Thos replied with a smile.
Nawa felt proud of his younger brother, who had grown into a dependable young man. Still, he insisted on going along. Together, they pushed a cart piled with recyclables.
Thos stopped at houses to ask for scraps or rummaged through roadside bins. Though he wore a cheerful face, Nawa could sense his brother's hidden feelings.
As they worked, girls around Thos's age passed by. They whispered and giggled while sneaking glances at Nawa. Somehow, even from afar, he could hear their words.
"He's really handsome," one girl said.
"What? Don't tell me you'd date a garbage picker. That'd be so embarrassing," another scoffed.
The words stung—not quite bullying, but unpleasant enough.
Nawa wasn't sure if Thos had heard, but his brother's slight expression shift betrayed that he had. Still, Thos forced a smile and joked,
"Guess those girls like you, bro."
Nawa smiled back, patting his brother's shoulder.
"Thos, I'm back now. From today on, I'll take responsibility for our family. You won't have to—"
Thud!
Before he could finish, Nawa's body went limp. His vision spun, and darkness swallowed him whole.
When he awoke again, he was back at home.
"You're awake… Brother, I think you should see a doctor," Thos said worriedly.
"I'll be fine. Don't tell Mom," Nawa insisted.
But inside, he knew the truth—something was terribly wrong. And if he didn't fix it, not only would he fail to protect his family, but he might become a burden to them.
That thought was unbearable.
Nawa told Thos he had errands to run and left alone, forbidding his brother to follow. Thos reluctantly let him go. He headed to a nearby river, known for its strong currents where many had drowned.
Sitting under a tree by the bank, he closed his eyes, the sound of rushing water helping him focus.Drawing upon the meditation technique he'd learned from Alfor, he began absorbing natural energy.
He could still feel the flow of nature's power, but when it entered his body, it spilled out immediately—like water poured into a glass already full.
"What does this mean?" Nawa frowned in confusion.
He had only felt this before when his energy was completely full, unable to absorb more. But if that was the case, why was his body so weak?
He sat there all day, but no answers came.
That evening, as he returned home, Pim had just arrived with food.
"Thos, I brought leftover soup from the restaurant. Warm it up for your brother."
For poor families, nothing went to waste. Even scraps that others discarded were precious. Pim had taken the leftover bone broth home to feed her son.
Nawa, though not hungry, drank the soup. Suddenly, his eyes widened.
"Thos! Where's the soup pot?"
"In the kitchen, on the stove," Thos replied, bewildered.
Nawa rushed in, scooping the broth eagerly. Ladle after ladle, he gulped it down, ignoring the scalding heat. Still unsatisfied, he lifted the large pot itself and drank it dry. Pim and Thos watched in shock.
"What is this soup, Mom?" Nawa asked breathlessly.
"It's made from mammoth bones—scraps from The Oneness restaurant. They were going to throw it away, so I brought it back," Pim explained.
Nawa broke into a smile. Finally, he understood. Even if he didn't know why his strength had faded, he had discovered what could restore it—monster flesh from The Oneness.
The next morning, he asked his mother to take him to her restaurant job. Though surprised he wasn't seeking work in his own field, Pim was just happy her son wanted to do something.
Thanks to his good looks, the manager hired him as a waiter. But Nawa preferred the kitchen—where monster ingredients were handled. He knew now that these scraps could restore his power.
But monster meat was too valuable. Every part was used in cooking, leaving almost nothing behind—except customer leftovers thrown into the trash.
Nawa stared at the garbage bin, conflicted. He couldn't stoop to digging out scraps… this was Earth, not the Himmapan Forest. People would see him as disgusting, insane.
"Still… better than lying in bed, being a burden," he told himself, and leaned closer to the bin.
Then he saw it. Something moving inside. At first he thought it was worms—but it was too fast, glowing faintly white.
A tiny white snake, no larger than an earthworm, with shimmering scales. It held a piece of meat far larger than its body and swallowed it whole in an instant. Nawa was struck with a sense of déjà vu.
Before he could think further, the snake darted out—straight into his shirt.
Crash!
Startled, Nawa stumbled back, knocking pots and pans everywhere.
"Snake! Snake!" he shouted, patting his body frantically. He was about to strip off his shirt when his mother rushed in, alarmed.
"Mom, stay back! There's a snake!" he warned. But instead, Pim ran toward him even faster.
Her aging body wasn't as steady as before. In her panic, she tripped—and was about to fall into a massive boiling cauldron of broth.
Time seemed to slow.
Nawa's senses sharpened, just like in the Himmapan Forest. He reached out—and suddenly, Pim's body froze mid-air. Gravity no longer pulled her down.
Back when he experimented with light-speed travel, his psychic power had awakened: telekinesis. But he knew it wasn't truly
"moving objects with his mind."
Rather, it was manipulating the space-time field around them.
He altered the flow of space around his mother, lifting her upright as though invisible hands held her.
Both mother and son were stunned.
"My power… it's back," Nawa whispered to himself, heart pounding.
Nawa walked into the employees' bathroom and locked the door after making sure no one was around. He stretched out his hand and whispered in his mind: Come out.
Almost instantly, a small white serpent emerged from his chest. It floated gently down into his palm before slithering gracefully through the air, emanating a faint white aura. Its gaze never left him.
Nawa tried to communicate with it, but the serpent made no sound. And yet, it obeyed his every thought as though it were a part of his own body. If he willed it to move somewhere, it did. If he imagined it striking, it struck.
"Could it be the same snake from that time?"
Nawa thought back to the moment he was about to die before the dimensional gate, when a serpent from the sealed naga orb beneath the lake rushed into his body.
"Or… is this a Monster Soul?"
His mind recalled the days he spent with Wizard Alfor in the Himmapan Forest. Among the tomes Alfor had collected, one spoke of Monster Souls.
According to that book, when a monster dies under certain conditions—emotional turbulence, environmental factors—its essence may crystallize into a tangible core known as a Monster Soul.
Humans could use these souls in battle: summoning them for aid, or merging with them to gain power. But merging was risky—if the Monster Soul perished, the human host would die as well.
Later, methods were developed to seal Monster Souls into vessels and summon them temporarily. This consumed great energy but spared the host's life.
The texts also spoke of an even riskier method: devouring the soul itself. Doing so could grant the eater the monster's powers and abilities, but if the soul's energy clashed with the eater's, death was almost certain.
Piecing it all together, Nawa realized: this white serpent was the essence sealed within the naga orb. Somehow, as he returned through the dimensional gate, it had fused with him.
What puzzled him, however, was why his body had weakened afterward—the tomes said nothing of such a side effect.
"If only Grandpa Alfor were here… he'd know what to do," Nawa muttered with a sigh.
But he quickly steadied himself.
"No matter. My power has returned, even if only a little. If I can consume more monster flesh, I'll grow strong again."
His eyes shone with determination. The path was clear: he must become a Player.
Within The Oneness, monster meat was abundant. Not only could it make him stronger, it could also earn him vast wealth.
But most importantly—The Oneness might hold the cure for his father's illness, an affliction that had originated from that very world.
For Nawa, becoming a Player meant killing two birds with one stone: power, wealth, and a chance to save his father.
Yet reality struck hard. To become a Player, the entry test alone cost 500,000 baht. There was no guarantee of success. At present, Nawa barely had 50,000—if that.
He resolved to work tirelessly, saving every coin, while secretly feeding his white serpent—now named White Snake—with scraps from the restaurant's garbage.
Strangely, whenever White Snake ate, Nawa felt his own strength grow as if the nourishment passed to him.
The next morning, the restaurant bustled more than usual. A shipment of elder-class monster meat had arrived.
Such meat was rare and costly, for elder-class beasts were extremely powerful. Slaying one required at least a B-rank Player, or a team of five C-rankers, and even then, success was uncertain.
Only three guilds in Thailand could reliably hunt them: Blue Dragon, Earth Tiger, and The Future.
Nawa carried plates of white tiger steak in butter and braised Bigfoot meat with herbal broth toward the VIP room.
His eyes glittered—not just at the aroma, but at the thought that consuming even a morsel of this flesh could grant him a dramatic boost in strength.
Inside, a distinguished couple awaited. The man was a core member of the Blue Dragon Guild and a candidate for Thailand's next A-rank Player—the eleventh in the nation. His companion was none other than Porn, Nawa's former girlfriend.
Memories surged—she had left him in their final year of university, the gulf in status between them too wide. The heartbreak had nearly destroyed him.
Yet now, seeing her again, he felt neither anger nor hatred. Time, and perhaps the mermaid Rain of the Himmapan Forest, had healed his heart. Still, the encounter left him uneasy.
Who would ever wish to serve food to their ex and her new lover?
"Quickly, Nawa. Serve the guests," the manager snapped, unwittingly exposing his name.
Porn froze, staring at him with conflicted eyes. "Nawa… is that you?"
He forced a polite smile. "Yes. It's me."
The man beside her, Noppadol, raised a brow. "An acquaintance of yours?"
"A friend from university," Porn replied awkwardly. Noppadol's frown deepened—he'd rarely seen her this unsettled.
Nawa set down the dishes and turned to leave, but Noppadol halted him.
"Why rush off? Join us, little brother."
"It's working hours, sir. Please enjoy your meal," Nawa replied courteously, though his gaze lingered on the elder-class meat.
"Don't worry. The manager won't mind," Noppadol said with a smirk.
Indeed, the manager quickly fawned:
"Of course not, sir! If Mr. Noppadol wishes, we'd close the entire restaurant!"
Nawa clenched his jaw. He hated being demeaned. But then Porn spoke, her voice soft and familiar:
"Nawa… it's been five years. Eat with us."
The tenderness in her tone stunned him. What did she mean by this? Still, he sat down—and devoured the dishes ravenously. Nothing else mattered. Every bite was power, strength, hope for his family.
Porn finally asked, "But Nawa… didn't you die in that plane crash?"
He chewed, swallowed, and replied casually, "I survived. Lost in the forest for five years. Memory loss. Only just made it home."
Noppadol sneered. "From the same university as Porn, and yet you end up serving food? Pathetic."
"I only recently started working again," Nawa said between bites, ignoring the insult.
Porn's eyes softened. "If you need help, just ask."
"Thanks. This meal alone helps plenty," he replied truthfully—his body already humming with newfound strength.
Porn's eyes glistened.
"Why do you always reject my kindness? Am I just a stranger to you?"
Before Nawa could answer, Noppadol scoffed. "Pathetic. Begging women for money now?"
"I'm not begging. I'm being honest. Excuse me—and thank you for the food." Nawa rose to leave.
"Wait!"Porn called out. "What do you need the money for?"
He hesitated, then said, "I'm going to The Oneness."
"Are you really going to become a Player? You know how dangerous that is…"
The more Porn showed her concern for Nawa, the more it seemed to fuel Noppadon's growing resentment toward him.
"Hah. Do you really think becoming a Player is that easy?" Noppadon sneered.
"People like you rush into The Oneness hoping to strike it rich, and in the end, you just throw your life away. I've seen plenty of that kind—it's boring.
Even if you're lucky enough to survive, you'll end up as nothing more than a laborer Player."
Noppadon wasn't speaking out of goodwill. He was simply taking the opportunity to belittle Nawa.Even so, what he said wasn't entirely wrong.
Entering The Oneness without proper preparation was no different from suicide.That was precisely why institutions dedicated to training Players had been established all over the world.
Inside these academies, students were taught everything a Player needed to know—climate conditions, social structures, and political dynamics within The Oneness, as well as techniques for hunting various types of monsters.
But above all else, the most important thing they gained there was skills.
An ordinary human uses only about 10% of their brain's capacity, out of millions of brain cells.However, if someone could exceed 12.5%, they would begin to manifest psychic powers, such as:
Mind Control — the ability to manipulate the minds of others
Bio Control — the ability to control the cells within one's own body
Pyrokinesis — the ability to control fire
This was the fundamental difference between Players and ordinary people.
Not only that—once Players consumed monster meat, their basic physical stats and even their psychic abilities grew stronger.
Over the past five years, the world had become intensely focused on these psychic powers. Ancient texts were combined with modern science, refining these abilities into something far more advanced—what came to be known as skills.
There were countless skills in existence. But learning them was nothing like simply strengthening the body by eating monster meat.
To acquire a skill, a Player first had to find one compatible with their psychic affinity, then study and train relentlessly.
How long it took—and how effective it became—depended entirely on the individual's talent and effort. Player academies existed precisely to guide Players through this process of learning and mastering skills.
That was why those trained at academies were far stronger than ordinary people.With superior foundations, they also advanced far more quickly. Most high-rank Players were academy graduates.
Though the tuition costs were astronomical, the rewards more than justified the expense.
"Nawa… I'm begging you. Please don't go in there. If you do, you might die."Porn said this with reddened eyes, tears pooling at their edges.
Inside The Oneness, she had seen countless people die—falling like autumn leaves.Especially those who had never undergone formal training.
Nawa said nothing. He simply shook his head in refusal.
Porn immediately ran out of the room. If Nawa hadn't blinked at that moment, he might have seen her tears fall.
He was just about to chase after her—when suddenly, Noppadon's body blocked his path, appearing with astonishing speed.
"Honestly, I didn't want to say this," Noppadon said coldly.
"But you really should know your place. The fact that someone like Porn was willing to lower herself to befriend you already makes you incredibly lucky. Don't get carried away with your delusions."
With Porn gone, Noppadon no longer bothered maintaining his gentlemanly façade. He spoke bluntly, without restraint.
"What are you talking about?" Nawa asked calmly.
There wasn't the slightest hint of fear in his demeanor—even though the man before him was a high-rank Player.
That alone was enough to enrage Noppadon.
He shoved Nawa lightly in the chest.But with his superhuman strength—and with Nawa having only recently regained a fraction of his power—Nawa was sent flying dozens of feet away.
Boom!
Nawa's body slammed into the wall with a thunderous crash.
Even so, the gaze he fixed on Noppadon held no fear at all. Nawa had once faced beings as powerful as gods themselves. Compared to that, even a high-rank Player couldn't intimidate him.
Yet none of that changed the truth of his current situation.
He was weak.
"Hah. Even now, you still don't realize how pathetic you are.""Fine. If you're so eager to die, I'll be happy to oblige."
Annoyed by the way Nawa stared at him, Noppadon's hand began to glow with a green light.
Nawa sensed the danger—but there was nothing he could do.
With a sharp flick of his hand, Noppadon sent something hurtling straight toward Nawa at terrifying speed.
Bang!
The card embedded itself halfway into the concrete floor beside Nawa's head, the force as deadly as a shotgun blast.
"If you're so eager to die, go to the address on that card. Tell them Noppadol sent you."
With a cruel laugh, he strode out, leaving Nawa standing amidst the wreckage, eyes burning with determination.