Forced Learning

The dunirrs return back to their jobs on the next day. This time, their productivity is higher than yesterday.

Maybe because Adrian promises to teach them magic. He did however give them a brief explanation of how mana can be detected.

Some of them try it in their free time. Unfortunately, the success rate is only about 0.1 per cent. Only eight manage to feel mana out of 18,000 people.

The road was already completed thanks to Adrian. Due to that, his level increased by four, reaching level seven. Now, the focus is on building residences for all of them. Adrian preferred making them stone for houses but thought it was too much work.

Moreover, using wood has its own benefits as well. Wood had a lot of applications even in the modern world. Dunirrs can hone their wood workmanship by working.

"By the way, chief. You still haven't gone through the chiefization process yet." Moja suddenly asked.

"I'm sorry...What? Chiefization? What the heck is that?" Adrian was totally confused. This is his first time hearing such a word.

Moja sighed. He looks at Adrian with a frown, like Adrian is some idiot. "Seriously chief, you're joking, right? How do you choose a leader in your tribe?"

"It's through democracy." Adrian gives a short reply, ignoring Moja's ridiculous expression. However, his heart is somewhat getting hotter due to anger.

"Democracy?" Moja asked.

"Yeah, you wouldn't understand even if I explained it to you. You're an idiot after all." Adrian returns the jab back to Moja.

Haja stepped in between them after sensing an increase in temperature around them. "Calm down, both of you. I'm sorry, chief. Moja can be too blunt with his words. He doesn't mean to hurt your feelings."

"Haja, explain to me what the chiefization process is."

After clearing his throat, Haja begins his explanation. "The chiefization process is a process where a new chief has to go hunting for a special beast in the wilderness. This process was a tradition for dunirrs to evaluate the capability of the newly selected chief when dealing with enemies in the forest. Dunirrs like us are always in constant threat of humans. We can't risk our safety by putting it in the hand of an incompetent leader."

"I see but...Isn't I already proving myself by leading you guys in killing that bird? Can't we count that?" Adrian asked.

"Oh, no, no, no, no!" Moja shook his head. From the look on his face, he still held a grudge. "That is a result of teamwork and the bird is not a special beast, just a normal one."

"What is a special beast, anyway?" This is the first time Adrian has heard that term.

Moja acts as if he was shocked. "Ehh! You don't even know that?!"

"If you don't want to tell me, then shut up. And stop giggling!" Adrian is at his limit with this pettiness. One day, Moja might end up at the bottom of the Zheqas River.

"Come on, chief. I'm just teasing you. Don't be too sullen. A special beast is an animal with a special appearance, strength and ability contrary to their normal counterpart. This type of monster is an absolute delicacy." Moja explains with drool leaking from his mouth.

Aries who has been listening to their conversation all the time interrupts after sensing that Adrian still doesn't get the point.

[He's talking about a magical beast]

'Ahh! I see.' He inwardly exclaimed. But then, he remembered the most important thing.

Aside from the nimbleness he developed for the past couple of years, he doesn't know how to fight with a weapon.

"When will this chiefization process be held?"

"Five days after we nominate the new chief. Exactly tomorrow," said Haja.

This is quite a predicament for Adrian. He doesn't want to live in shame among them after being ousted from the chief position in just a few days.

To solve this problem, he turns to his reliable companion.

'Aries, can you do something about it?'

Her voice resounds in his brain.

[Yeah, I figure out you would need my help. I can help you ingrain the battle technique in your brain, bone, nerve system and muscles but I can guarantee you, it won't be a pleasant experience. I'll not be surprised if you can't bear it and end up traumatized. Simply put, it is forced learning].

'Great! Now inject it in my brain' Adrian said impatiently.

[Calm down! You'll die if I force all types of weapon mastery in your brain. There are a lot of cold weapons that exist out there. Dagger, sword, scythe, machete, pike, halberd, spear, lance, trident, bident, club, mace, nunchaku, brass knuckle, bow, crossbow, slingshot...]

Adrian patiently waited until Aries listed everything. He doesn't dare to interrupt her since he needs her help.

'I want to choose a sword.' He said.

[What a typical choice but I suggest you choose a dagger instead]

He had a feeling that Aries is rolling her eyes right now. However, he is curious about her suggestion. 'May I know why?'

[Since you always go camping in the forest back on Earth, you had experience in handling knives although it was subpar at best. Still, your body already had memories of using it. A dagger in many ways is similar to a knife. It will take me less time to ingrain all techniques in your brain. Less time means less harm to your body. If I want to add one more, ingraining it consumes mana and your mana reserve is a bit low for anything too complex]

'Well, that sounds reasonable to me.' Adrian takes a glance at his mana.

[Mana: 725/6400]

'Do I need to fill the mana up to full before going through the process?' He asks.

[Yes. Please fill up your mana reservoir just to be safe. It cost 6,000 mana for the whole process]

'What happens in case I don't have enough mana?' He curiously wants to know the effect.

[Well...The knowledge you gain is incomplete because I'll forcefully stop it]

Adrian sighs in relief, 'That is nice to hear. At least, nothing gruesome about it.'

Ever since he arrived here, everything has been bloody and tragic.

[Err...Your body will be damaged a bit from such action. And it keeps building up if you repeatedly do it to the point where you are no longer able to use mana for the rest of your life]

'Urghh, another harsh consequence' Adrian cast a bleak look. In the end, he put it aside. 'As long as I don't do it, I won't experience it. Aries, let's not waste our time and begin the forced learning process.'

[Find somewhere secluded. You don't want dunirrs to see you screaming in pain]

Adrian agreed with her, 'Yeah, it's not good for my image.'

He shifted his attention to Haja and Moja, "Please excuse me, both of you. I'm going to make a preparation for tomorrow."

Adrian promptly leaves Adrianopolis and sneakily walks toward his secret spot. After making sure no one was nearby, he sat down and started to absorb mana.

Half an hour passed, he finally filled up his mana. He steeled his heart and called for Aries.

'Aries, begin the process'

[Forced learning begins in 3...2...1]

From a cross-legged position, his body immediately fell forward, kissing the ground. His body trembles violently. Every inch of his body feels a sharpening pain, not a part was exempt. The worst part is his brain. It was undescribable by words. Tears flowing out voluntarily.

He can't mutter even a single word from his mouth. Along the process, he only managed to keep it open to let the air in and out. Constantly gasping like fish out from water.

Adrian lost his sense of time. It feels like eternity for him. Staying conscious for another second seems to be a tall request for him. It slowly fading away.

Before fainting, his ears barely heard the notification.

[Ding! You've gained a skill called [Dagger Mastery]]