Chapter 2: Absolute Digestion

Chapter 2: Chapter 2: Absolute Digestion

[Warning! Hunger Level has dropped to 31%!]

[Warning! Hunger Level has dropped to 30%!]

[Warning! Hunger Level has dropped to 29%!]

"What the hell is all this?"

Krono’r jolted awake to the blaring warnings echoing inside his mind.

For several seconds, he lay there in confusion, wondering where the incessant noise was coming from.

Then his attention shifted toward the corner of his vision.

A translucent display hovered there.

That was when he understood.

"Ultimate Devourer System?" Krono’r muttered. "What is that? And what exactly does it do?"

He had never heard of anything like this before.

The system responded in its emotionless, robotic voice.

[The Ultimate Devourer System is an archaic construct designed specifically to transform the Host into the Ultimate Creature, capable of devouring anything.]

Kronor’s eyebrows rose.

"An Ultimate Creature that can devour anything?"

He paused.

"That sounds pretty damn sinister. Can I reject it somehow?"

[Affirmative. The Host may reject the system by sacrificing his life.]

Krono’r fell silent.

"So I have to die to get rid of it?"

There was no response.

He rubbed his forehead.

"This is ridiculous..."

Apparently, fate had no intention of giving him a peaceful second life. ℴ

"Fine. Since I don’t have much of a choice, how does this ’System’ actually work?"

[Please review your status screen to obtain complete information.]

"Status screen? Where is that?"

The moment he finished speaking, a translucent window materialized before his eyes.

[ULTIMATE DEVOURER SYSTEM: STATUS]

Name: Krono’r De Volcan

Age: 7 (39)

Race: Human (Base)

Title: None

HP (Health): 35 / 35

Miasma (Mana): 10 / 10

Satiation (Hunger): ⚠️ 25%

[Critical: Host must feed immediately.]

Strength (STR): 3

[Pitiful. Host possesses the physical strength of a child.]

Agility (AGI): 4

[Sluggish. Host is easily outmaneuvered.]

Vitality (VIT): 3

[Fragile. A single severe blow could be fatal.]

Intelligence (INT): 22

[Anomaly Detected. Host possesses the cognitive capacity of an adult.]

Willpower (WIL): 18

[Anomaly Detected. Host exhibits high resistance to mental trauma.]

[INNATE TRAITS]

Adult Soul (Passive): Grants immunity to low-tier mind control and fear effects. +10 INT and WIL.

Photographic Comprehension (Passive): Reduces the time required to read and retain information by 80%.

[SYSTEM SKILLS]

★ DEVOUR

STAGE 1: Absolute Digestion (Passive)

The Host can digest all forms of physical matter and extract their properties, including stat points, skill fragments, Miasma, and Origin Energy.

Cost: 0 Miasma

Cooldown: None

Kronor stared at the screen for several moments.

He slowly read through the information again, making sure he hadn’t misunderstood anything.

Eventually, he grasped the basic concept.

In essence, Absolute Digestion allowed him to digest virtually anything that entered his stomach.

Mud.

Iron.

Silver.

Gold.

Even corpses.

Anything he consumed could potentially provide him with some of its properties, whether that meant stat points, skill fragments, Miasma, or other forms of energy.

Kronor’s eyes gradually widened.

"This is..."

A ridiculous cheat.

He could grow stronger simply by eating.

But he wasn’t foolish enough to believe that such an absurd ability came without drawbacks.

There had to be a catch.

Everything in this world had a price.

He needed to discover the system’s hidden limitations before relying on it too heavily.

The hunger level was already one major concern.

He had been feeling increasingly hungry ever since the system appeared, and he had no idea what would happen if that percentage reached zero.

Starvation?

Loss of consciousness?

Death?

He didn’t know.

There was another problem he couldn’t ignore.

His supposed "demonic nature."

If his father or the Church discovered the existence of the system, Krono’r had absolutely no confidence that they would leave him alone.

His father was a priest.

The Church was even more fanatical.

He would have to conceal the system and its abilities as carefully as possible.

Everything needed to be done discreetly.

"Fuck... fuck..."

Krono’r clutched his stomach.

"This hunger is killing me. I need to eat something right now."

He immediately jumped out of bed and hurried toward the kitchen.

There, Lady Katherine was busy preparing breakfast.

A pot of fish soup simmered over the stove, mixed with vegetables and various herbs.

It smelled decent.

Not exactly a delicacy, but good enough.

"Mother, is there anything to eat?"

Krono’r held his stomach as he asked the question, instinctively behaving like the starving 7 year-old he appeared to be.

Katherine’s expression immediately softened.

"My poor baby. Are you that hungry?"

She quickly prepared a bowl of steamed rice and some leftover vegetables from the previous night.

"I’m not finished cooking yet, son. But since you’re hungry, take these. They should at least fill your tummy."

"Thank you, Mother."

Kronor didn’t have the luxury of being picky.

He immediately grabbed the rice with his hands and began stuffing it into his mouth.

Surprisingly, it tasted far better than he remembered.

Perhaps hunger truly was the greatest seasoning in existence.

Unfortunately, after finishing the entire bowl, Krono’r discovered a problem.

He was still hungry.

Not merely a little hungry.

His appetite had barely diminished at all.

He quickly checked the system.

[Satiation: 30%]

Krono’r’s expression changed.

"Only thirty percent?"

He had eaten an entire bowl of rice and vegetables, yet his hunger had increased by merely five percent.

That was nowhere near enough.

Normal human food was barely making a dent in the Devourer System’s insatiable hunger.

"What’s wrong, my baby? Are you still not full?"

Katherine noticed the worry etched across his face.

Krono’r quickly shook his head.

"No, Mother. I’m full."

He forced a small smile.

"I’m just worried about what I said to Father last night. I’m wondering if my words hurt him."

He couldn’t let her worry about his abnormal appetite.So he quickly changed the subject.

Katherine sighed softly.

"I heard what happened."

Her voice was gentle.

"And I’m happy that you’ve found something you want to pursue."

She placed a hand on his head.

"The path of a Dragon Hunter is dangerous. Whenever I imagine my little baby facing monsters and risking his life, my heart aches."

She paused before smiling warmly.

"But I also know that an eagle cannot soar while trapped inside a cage."

Krono’r’s eyes trembled slightly.

"I believe your father will eventually understand as well. So don’t worry too much. For now, focus on the path ahead of you."

Those words sank deep into Krono’r’s heart.

He would remember them for the rest of his life.

After saying goodbye to his mother, he stepped outside.

Warm sunlight bathed the village.

A massive banyan tree stood beside their modest home, its enormous branches spreading across the sky.

It had stood there for decades, providing shade beneath the scorching sun and shelter from the fierce western storms.

Generations had grown up beneath its branches.

But today, that ancient tree was about to witness something extraordinary.

Kronor crouched down and picked up a small pebble from the ground.

He turned it over in his palm.

It looked completely ordinary. Just a worthless piece of stone.

Yet if the system was telling the truth, even something as insignificant as this could become nourishment.

A faint smile appeared on Kronor’s face.

"Let’s see what you can really do."

He closed his fingers around the pebble.

It was time to test Absolute Digestion.