Chapter 3 - Serendipitous Encounter

King Raimund raised his head from the support of his palm as the minister's words fell in his ears.

"According to the witness, the figure in black is probably an elf. The agility and nimbleness the figure displayed are on par with a High-Elf.

And..."

The king's interest piqued at once when he heard the term 'High-Elf' and asked, "And...?"

"The person disappeared after obtaining the Beast Cores of the slain Mountain Bulls."

The king's brows twitched instantly, "That's it?"

In response, Augustus nodded.

According to the statement provided by the squad leader, the person displayed such strength that the beasts withdrew voluntarily. Until the Mountain Bulls disappeared, the figure remained stationary and guarded the carriage.

As soon as the beasts vanished from the line of sight, the person rushed to the corpse of the three beasts and retrieved the Beast Cores before disappearing into the forest.

"Augustus, what are your thoughts?"

Raimund probed after hearing the detailed account. He has enough headache of continuous attacks of beasts knocking at the front door of his kingdom.

"My king, the convoy had a certified appraiser. He is a dwarf and he was able to take a quick peek at the person amidst the battle.

As per his report, the race of the person is human and his name is a one-word, Adam."

Augustus emphasized the term 'One-word' and brought the king's attention to it.

"So he's either an orphan or a wanderer.

What about his interface?"

The minister could only shake his head as he replied, "It seems that that person hasn't been registered with any country."

Raimund frowned at once, "Someone who hasn't registered with any country? Are you sure?"

"Yes, my king. The appraiser notified that he didn't have any affiliation, which means he isn't registered, yet."

The king went into contemplation after hearing the words and quickly gave his verdict, "Find that man before anyone does. Gain his loyalty and his strength for the kingdom. We must have him on our side before the next attack occurs."

The king snapped his finger again the soundproof barrier was removed. Augustus took at his cue to depart and he immediately vanished from the king's sight.

"If he's strong without the Art of Ascension, then what heights will he touch if he had had one?"

Uttering to himself, King Raimund thought as he stood from his throne and walked to his royal chamber. The night had fallen and his eyes were heavy with fatigue.

****

Meanwhile, a figure could be seen dashing through the Southern Forest. The gentle steps that came in contact with trees and the ground produced a dull noise as the figure travelled forward.

"Stop, you little swine."

A Porcupine Hog could be seen moving with utmost agility through the forest. As it randomly changed direction every now and then, there was fear in its eyes.

Buhi!

A cry left its throat as a wooden spike punctured its back and proceeded to the front. The little beast was pinned down on the ground and was bleeding to death.

The blade of the axe reflected the moonlight for a fraction a second before chopping the head of the beast.

Puchik~

With a silent thud, the Porcupine Hog's head fell severed. The blood oozed out of the torso and made a puddle of thick redness.

Effortlessly, the beast was upturned and its underbelly was exposed. The axe gently moved horizontally and an incision appeared on the tender flesh.

Without hesitation, Adam, the wandering migrant who got transmigrated to a parallel world under the mercy of supreme deities, tore off the flesh and tendons to reach the heart of the deceased beast.

'Hmm... it's surprisingly smaller.'

Upon extracting the Beast Core of the Porcupine Hog, he reviewed it under the illumination of the moon. Its size was smaller than an adult's thumb yet Adam felt delighted for his harvest.

Without loitering around, the earthling disappeared from the spot like a wind. Soon after his presence vanished, beasts emerged to feed on the carcass.

***

Adam's life is no stranger to you. He was given a second chance of life by his father, the mad scientist, whom he had to choke to death under beast instincts.

And when Fate pulled a lifetime prank on him, it was then the supreme deities watching over the worlds felt sympathy for his condition. The second chance in life was something he never asked for and it became the sole reason for the barrage of tribulation that rained down on him.

Ever since Adam came into this peculiar world, he had been on his own. In a world where almost all beasts are strictly hostile to mainstream civilized races, he was counted as one among them by his unluck.

But it was then he realised that he isn't normal anymore.

When a Horned Snake punctured through his chest, it was then he realised that he's devoid of the sensation of pain. No matter how many times he is tortured or thrown around like a rubber ball, his pain receptors have ceased to function since his arrival to the new world.

However, what changed the course of his life happened an unknown amount of time ago.

At that time, Adam was cautiously walking through a deluge of vegetation which goes by the name 'Outer Prime Celestial Preserve'. These were the most exterior parts of the dreadfully infamous region on the continent.

[Let's sink into the situation, shall we?]

.....

After walking around cautiously, Adam couldn't find something to eat. Though he has near to no hunger after crashlanding in the new world, he would feel a drain of vitality if he hasn't consumed anything for a while.

Grumble.

The gluttonous pouch sounded its discontent in lack of maintenance.

Raising his head, he could see trees as tall as skyscrapers standing majestic and proud. These trees standing tall like coconut trees had no branches. At the tip of the trunk, there were a few branches spread out like a network with tender leaves.

It was then his shuttling eyes caught the sight of a peculiar fruit at an altitude. It was bright red and resembled a larger and plumper strawberry.

"What is that...thing?"

Adam unconsciously voiced his doubt and thus decided to climb the tree. But a peculiar noise fell in his ears and Adam instinctively turned around.

Ssss~

A slithering limbless figure larger than his thigh fell in his observation. It was twice his length and full of scales. It didn't take any longer for Adam to deduce that it was a snake, but the aberrant characteristics caught his attention.

"Since when did snakes had horns and blades on their body?"

Unbeknownst to Adam, it was a Blade Python. It had a special set of blades embedded inside the array of scales and these lethal sharp thingies can be erect at its command. This beast uses these erect blades to scrape off the flesh of the prey so that it can savour the taste of blood as it devours the food.

And the beast was extremely territorial.

While Adam lost in thoughts, the python launched itself towards him. In a daze, he failed to react and the twin shanks protruding from its forehead pierced Adam's abdomen.

'Wha...?'

To be honest, he was stunned by the agility the beast had possessed. When his bewilderment wore off, he found himself pinned to the tree behind him.

At once, his hands moved. The open fist sliced the air like a blade as his fingers penetrated the Blade Python's eyes.

The wild instinct lying dormant in his brain awakened and Adam was enraged beyond comparison. His arms sliced through the skin covered by scales and successfully injured the beast to a larger extent.

Meanwhile, the tiny blades had thoroughly scraped and peeled off his skin.

Quickly pulling the snake's lethal pair of daggers out of his tummy, Adam dropkicked its head before fleeing over a couple of metres away. With the caution of potential counterstrikes, his body was ready to dodge any incoming attacks.

But...

"Is it playing dead?"

Adam couldn't help but question himself as he saw the beast slumping on the ground. It twitched a couple of times and that was all. Then, its body went stiff and motionless.

'Playing tricks, huh?'

Adam didn't know that his hands passed through the spine of the beast and had severed its neural network. Adding to the damage he did to its brain while gouging its eyes out, the Blade Python was nothing less than a corpse.

And as he neared the beast with utmost vigilance, the snake breathed last.

Gulp!

Adam's eyes skimmed over the body of the beast and its tender flesh hiding beneath the scales caught his attention. A sensation similar to hunger took over him and he couldn't help but swallow the saliva filling his mouth.

Immediately, his limbs moved and his fingers tore off a strip of bloodless flesh from the beast's body. Without a moment's hesitation, it disappeared inside his mouth.

'Exquisite!'

One word popped up in his mind and it reflected his overall assessment of the snake beast's meat. Rather than dwelling on the deliciousness of the piece of meat disappearing down his throat, his finger probed into the innards of the flesh.

It was then something caught his perception.

'So this snake eats stones too?'

The resurrected, transmigrated, ignorant earthling was completely unaware of the existence of Beast Cores when he saw the crude crystal as big as his fist, lying at the throat of the Blade Python corpse. Fortunately, his reason couldn't dismiss this crystalline rock as a slightly better-looking pebble.

After severing the tendons that held the Beast Core in place, Adam pulled out the crystal and realised that it wasn't something that was consumed, but rather it was something it was born with!

*sniff sniff*

The lack of a particular scent, except for the smell of blood, mystified the existence of the crystal. Adam tried licking it and scrapping its surface with his fingernail. But he was unable to deduce anything due to its unclouded, translucid and glass-like appearance.

'Can I eat it?'

The wild imagination posed a query and Adam's teeth pressed against the stone. Before he could react, a piece was broken from it and found its way to the stomach in an instant!