Almia wiped away her tears with the back of her hand."Now I'm worried about my mom," Almia whispered.A sudden silence filled the air after Almia stopped telling her story. Zorka's eyes stared at the crackling bonfire, consuming the firewood. A few tiny sparks floated briefly and then disappeared.The silence made Almia uneasy. She changed the topic to lighten the mood."By the way, Zorka. I'm curious about you. Why would a kid like you enter the dangerous Dzara forest? Especially alone."Hearing that, Zorka just chuckled while rubbing his nose."Well, that..." Zorka took a moment to think about what to say to Almia. He didn't want to reveal the secret that he came there to train with his contracted dragon."I'm learning specialized poison treatment. My teacher asked me to search for various toxins and venoms, whether from animals or plants," Zorka explained."So, you're a future healer?" Almia's eyes sparkled hearing Zorka's explanation."Hmm, you could say that, hehe.""So, did you
Zorka grills wild boar meat on a heated flat stone over embers. As the sun peeks through, the savory scent fills the air, waking up Almia. Her empty stomach catches a whiff of the tempting grilled meat."Smells so good." Almia sits by the natural stone grill in front of the campfire.Zorka places a big piece of well-cooked grilled meat on a leaf. "Here, give it a try!"Almia happily takes a bite. But as she eats, she suddenly gets thoughtful."Do you want to go home soon?”Almia looked at Zorka after he just asked her. "Y-yes, of course.""Well then, finish your breakfast. I'll take you out of this forest," Zorka replied."You better hurry up with that. Your time for training is wasted just to deal with one human," Azurks reminded telepathically.After breakfast, Zorka got ready to escort Almia. Azurks curled up on Zorka's shoulder, unnoticed by Almia. They both walked following Zorka's memory from his first visit to the forest.A while later, they reached the edge of the forest."We'
Zorka's body collapses in front of the cave entrance. His breath is labored, and he's incredibly tired. His entire body aches, from head to toe.*Splash.*A small body lies sprawled, soaking wet. Zorka flinches as cold water bites into his bones."What's this?" Zorka shouts in anger, waking up."That's nothing compared to what's coming; your training isn't over!" says Azurks, who has magically drenched Zorka's body."Oh, come on, Azurks! I just finished the training, haven't had a chance to rest or have dinner!" Zorka protests."Quit complaining!" Azurks scolds.Suddenly, Zorka's body is enveloped in a bluish light. In the blink of an eye, he disappears from the cave entrance and reappears near a cliff."Aaaargh, you foolish dragon! Why did you move me to a place like this!" Zorka yells hysterically.His body hangs on the side of the cliff, clutching onto rocks and tree roots.Azurks appears flying near Zorka, still in the form of a cat-sized dragon."Climb this cliff. You must endure
Ants' eggs glowed with a radiant light. Subsequently, the three skins of the ant eggs broke open. Unlike regular ants that require multiple growth stages to become adults, giant ant eggs produced three ants that were already perfect in their growth and had wings.The newly born ant queens emitted a greenish light from their bodies, signifying recognition from their ant subjects."Wow, this is going to be chaotic," remarked Azurks.Zorka turned towards Azurks, not understanding. "What's going on?""Three queens were born perfectly. It's going to cause a split and could result in wars between colonies," explained Azurks."How do you know?""I've lived for thousands of years. As an unlimited-level beastmaster, my experiences in this world are incredibly diverse. These ants are an example. The presence of three queens will disrupt the balance of the ant kingdom.
In the morning, Zorka blinked several times, surprised to find himself inside a cave. Remembering that he was soaking in the spring pond the night before, the comforting feeling from the soak made him sleepy.His hunger vanished after drinking water from the pond. He wasn't sure when Azurks moved him, but one thing for sure, he felt refreshed and his body felt fuller now. That spring water was truly magical!Zorka left the cave after putting on the clothes he had with him. The clothes he wore last night were nowhere to be seen. Maybe Azurks left them on the cliff. Besides, his clothes were torn from yesterday's training.Azurks wasn't in the cave, but there were some grilled meats ready. The meat he set aside yesterday, preserved with ice magic, had been grilled by Azurks."Azurks, where are you?" Zorka asked through telepathy."In the forest. I'm making runes to train your magic
Zorka shared his experience in Rune earlier. He suddenly plunged into his subconscious and realized a surprising fact beyond reason."So, in other words, I actually come from this world. But my soul got split in two because of some magic. What puzzles me is why, in my old world, could I be born earlier and wait to return as an adult soul?”Azurks drew a conclusion after analyzing Zorka's story. The magic aimed at Demista was thwarted by Zorka's power when he was still in the womb. The magic's effect ended up splitting his soul, and one part was thrown into another world with a different time setting. In Zorka's alternate world, time passes faster compared to our world."So, the universe has different dimensions and parallel worlds with different dimensions and times. Your half-soul might have been thrown into a dimension where time moves faster than in this world.""But, how can my soul here di
The rustling wind accompanies the pounding heartbeat in Zorka's chest, sensing the tension. An ominous atmosphere looms near the lair of the sword-fanged hyenas. No sounds of chirping birds or buzzing insects can be heard.Zorka occasionally scans the surroundings, just in case a hyena is watching, ready to ambush without giving a chance to evade.Zorka moves slowly towards the lair of the sword-fanged hyenas. Sounds of rustling, growling, and snapping can be heard around. From a few meters behind the trees, Zorka witnesses several sword-fanged hyenas feasting on the carcass of a thorn-backed buffalo.Not far from the group of hyenas, there's a larger sword-fanged hyena, resembling a lion with a mane around its neck. It has an oval-shaped crystal on its forehead, representing its core strength, sitting and overseeing its subordinates devouring their prey. This hyena is their leader.Its sharp yellow
Azurks waits by Zorka, who's still out. He taps the stone ball with the hyena leader inside. Then, he looks at the boy knocked out on the ground.Azurks fixed up Zorka's wounds. He didn't give him energy to recharge, just healed him. It's early, and Zorka's considered a newbie. His tiredness is more about shaky nerves from fighting that hyena boss, not really drained energy.An hour passed, and finally, Zorka woke up. Feeling dizzy, he found himself in the middle of the forest with a big stone ball in front of him. Slowly, he remembered the events when Azurks ordered him to go to the sword-fanged hyena's lair, and he fought directly with its leader.He was surprised to see his wounds healed, leaving only tears in his clothes from the hyena leader's claws during the fight."You were too careless, Zorka," remarked Azurks upon realizing Zorka was awake."I was too tense. Couldn't th