Chapter 02: A Decision Driven by Instinct—Unchanged by 'Pride'
He didn't overcomplicate things in his mind; he had already weighed every possible outcome.
*"If I take this gold, it's a vast amount. The loss will certainly be noticed, and they will hunt for it. Especially if I use it to buy my freedom… it would be blindingly obvious that I was the one who took it. But how can I let a fortune like this go to waste? I can't… even if it belongs to a ruling family like the Sharmans. A chance like this will never come again."*
He refused to abandon the wealth. Though it wasn't his, greed had taken root, even as he understood the lethal consequences of being discovered.
A secondary solution sparked in his mind.
*"I'll stick to the plan I set for tonight. I'll take my freedom, but as for the fortune—I'll take it all and hide it well."*
He wouldn't let it go. There were four heavy money bags nestled in the back of the carriage. He released his **Spiritual Field**, enveloping the bags. His field was misty, like swirling dust, emitting a faint warmth.
Leeward pressed his hand against the air of the field, and the burlap sacks hovered slightly off the ground. This was the true essence of **Spiritual Field control**.
He could carry anything, provided it didn't exceed double his own weight. Naturally, as his rank increased, so would this strength.
Leeward himself weighed no more than 90 kg, while the combined weight of the bags was approximately 150 kg—well within his limit.
He jumped down from the carriage quickly, the bags floating steadily behind him. He stepped out of the pool of blood, his nose twitching from the sharp, coppery stench that choked the air. He slipped off his wooden sandals, clutching them in his hand, and began to sprint across the dirt paths. He hadn't forgotten his sheep; the goal was to return to them as fast as possible.
*"I must reach the hill to the north quickly. I'll stash the bags there until the time is right to use them."*
He ran with the precision of an arrow, covering three meters every second.
After a period of maintaining this grueling pace, Leeward reached a high crest. He stood there, looking toward a mountain that claimed the sky for itself—a lonely, grey peak piercing the heavens.
*"Finally. After half a **Node**, I've arrived. Dusk has already fallen; I have no more time to waste."*
(A **Node** was a full hour, used as a standard measure of time).
His chest rose and fell rapidly as he panted from exhaustion, a cold mist escaping his mouth with every breath. He gave himself no time to rest, stepping toward the mountain.
The terrain was a jagged landscape of massive boulders and treacherous paths, resembling a rocky canyon. The mountain before him was no higher than 120 meters, but its needle-like structure made it appear dauntingly tall.
The frozen ground numbed his feet until he reached a massive boulder.
*"This spot is perfect."*
He set the bags down, allowing himself a moment of relief. He had consumed a quarter of his field's spiritual energy, and the strain was starting to show.
*"How do I shift this without breaking it? Because… what?"*
As he searched for a way to move the boulder, a scratching sound echoed from his side.
He snapped his head toward the noise. Surrounded by towering rocks, finding the source was no easy task.
*"I'm certain I heard something right next to me."*
Anxiety flared, but he forced himself to stay calm. If it were a powerful beast, it would have struck already; Leeward wasn't a warrior strong enough to make a high-rank monster hesitate.
*"Just what I didn't want… a beast appearing now. I don't have time to deal with you."*
He shoved his hands directly under the boulder, reinforcing his grip. He heaved with all his might, letting out a muffled roar of exertion.
A searing pain shot through his arm muscles and back.
*"Move!"*
His face turned a deep crimson, his veins bulging until he felt the massive rock slowly begin to lift, dust and soil crumbling beneath it.
But in that exact moment, a small beast—resembling a dog covered in thick brown fur—slipped through the shadows. This was a **Stone Cat**.
It was still a cub, not yet fully grown. Adult Stone Cats could reach the size of horses, but this one was far smaller.
It lunged with silent, lightning-fast steps that Leeward never heard. It sank its teeth into the back of his leg with a sharp, sickening crunch.
The beast began to grind its jaws, attempting to paralyze Leeward's movement, but its effort was futile.
Leeward was under immense pressure. He screamed from the sudden, agonizing bite. It was a shock, even though he had expected an attack at any second.
Yet, he did not drop the boulder. Letting go was not an option he would take. Instead, he shoved forward, advancing despite the pain, while the Stone Cat remained latched onto his leg, refusing to surrender its prey.
After pushing himself to the limit, he shifted the boulder four paces—enough for his purpose. He heaved it onto the ground and released his grip, his muscles trembling from the strain.
He turned his head toward the **Stone Cat** cub still gnawing on his leg with its immature fangs. Surprisingly, he felt no anger toward the beast.
*"It's still just a cub. Cubs don't wander alone; the mother must be nearby. Engaging a full-grown Stone Cat would be a disaster for me right now..."*
He let it be, refusing to harm it.
Instead, he pried its jaws open, detaching it from his leg, and placed it between a cluster of rocks that formed a natural, small fortress.
*"This is your place now... try getting out of that."*
He silently hoped the cub wouldn't start howling for its mother.
Leeward immediately returned to the task at hand. He dug a deep hole where the boulder had originally sat. With his physical strength, the work didn't take long. The pit was deeper than his own height; when he stepped inside, it swallowed him completely. Standing at 175 cm—an average height—he found himself two meters beneath the surface.
He climbed out, retrieved the sacks of fortune, and buried them all, packing the soil back down. As he worked, he noticed the small Stone Cat was no longer nearby, which brought him a sense of relief.
*"Perhaps it just left or returned to its mother."*
He sealed the pit and, with a final burst of raw strength, hoisted the boulder back into its original position. He memorized the landmark perfectly before descending the northern hill, returning toward his flock with rapid strides.
Along the way, he spotted the Stone Cat cub again. It was playing with small spiders on the ground, trying to kill and eat them. In this cruel world, even the young had to learn survival from birth. It displayed its raw instinct, crushing the insects under its paws. Leeward watched for a moment.
*True instinct.*
Every being is born with an instinct—even humans. Attempting to suppress or change it only leads to a loss of identity.
*"I am satisfied with who I am. I don't need to change the way I think."*
This realization deepened his trust in the pride he was born with. It was his ultimate truth as a human: **the absolute refusal of slavery.**
His gaze grew calmer, but a sudden, foul stench disrupted the air—a scent of rot and waste. Leeward frowned.
*"The smell of a corpse..."*
Turning his head to the left, he saw the carcass of a full-grown Stone Cat lying on the ground. It appeared to have died of a disease. Leeward deduced the truth instantly:
*"That's the mother."*
This explained why the cub, though still at an age where it should be dependent, had already begun showing its hunting instincts.
He approached the body and knelt beside it. There were no visible wounds or signs of struggle, but the grey moonlight reflected off its fur—light that pierced through the massive, titan-like clouds of the freezing night. Its skin was entirely purple. He pried its eyes open only to find them rotten and violet.
*"Poisoned. She must have eaten a venomous insect."*
It was the only logical explanation. He didn't overthink it.
He released his **Spiritual Field**, shaping a blade-like aura in his hand. He plunged it into the beast's chest, thrusting his hand inside. The corpse was cold, the blood coagulated, as he reached for the heart. He tore through the organ with ruthless precision until his fingers brushed against the **Spiritual Foundation Stone**.
He pulled it out into the open air to inspect it.
*"It's still intact. The poison didn't reach it. Good... it seems I was lucky tonight."*
A small sense of satisfaction filled his heart.
A **Spiritual Foundation Stone** exists in every living being—even humans—located directly within the heart. It is the core of blood power:
**The Stenma.**
He tilted his head back, staring at the stone held between his fingers. It looked like a grey ruby. He looked toward the cub, contemplating whether he should take its Spiritual Stone as well. These were essential resources for spiritual refinement, and letting them go to waste was never a wise decision...
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