Chapter 3: Rock Devourer

Chapter 3: Chapter 3: Rock Devourer

Under the green canopy of the banyan tree, a never-before-seen miraculous event unfolded.

​Today, no one could see it, except the flying birds and swaying roots. But there will be a day when this moment will be recorded in the annals of history as the time the Ultimate Creature was born.

​Krono’r, a young boy of seven years old, put the small pebble inside his mouth.

​Since it was small, it went into his stomach without too much trouble.

​For ordinary people, this was an incomprehensible thing to do. Only an insane person would swallow a stone pebble like that. After all, stones cannot be digested, and they can cause a severe health crisis in the stomach if not taken out within 72 hours.

​The instant it dropped into the acidic atmosphere inside his stomach, Krono’r felt a coldness settling within.

​He was nervous, too. What if the passive ability didn’t work? What if it stayed there forever?

​Wouldn’t he die then?

​But all his worries were proven unnecessary.

​Soon, a gentle warmth spread through his intestines.

​And then, suddenly, all of the coldness melted away into a pure and energetic feeling.

​[ Ding! ]

​[ Absolute Digestion Is In Effect ]

​[ Strength (STR) +0.5 ]

​As soon as the notification flashed, Krono exhaled a long breath of relief.

​"Phew... It worked! Thanks to Mother Nature!"

​He then began to feel the changes in his muscle strength. It was very subtle, but there was definitely a change.

​But the question was: why didn’t normal human food give him any stats?

​Could it be that it lacked the concentrated nutrition needed to provide instantaneous growth?

​Yes, that had to be it.

​Even though it didn’t seem entirely logical, a pebble might actually contain far more dense minerals and energy than ordinary human food.

​Why else would it give him +0.5 Strength?

​Setting that thought aside, he quickly scooped up several more pebbles.

​Since he could grow stronger just by eating rocks, why should he waste any time?

​[ Strength +0.5 ]

[ Strength +0.4 ]

[ Strength +0.4 ]

[ Strength +0.3 ]

...

​Soon, a new problem emerged.

​After consuming ten pebbles, they stopped giving him strength stats altogether. They were still digested and improved his hunger level, but their effects had been dulled. Or perhaps the improvement had become too minuscule to trigger a system notification, just like human food.

​Still, the sudden surge in power made him extremely pleased.

​[ Name: Krono’r De Volcan ]

[ Age: 7 (39) ]

[ Race: Human (Base) ]

[ Title: None ]

[ HP (Health): 35 / 35 ]

[ Miasma (Mana): 10 / 10 ]

[ Satiation (Hunger): 45% (Somewhat Manageable) ]

[ Strength (STR): 3 ➔ 6.5 (Skyrocketing) ]

[ Agility (AGI): 4 ]

[ Vitality (VIT): 3 ]

[ Intelligence (INT): 22 ]

[ Willpower (WIL): 18 ]

--

​Krono’s strength had doubled in just a few minutes.

​Realizing this, a gleeful smile spread across his face.

​To test his power practically, he decided to lift a wooden log placed by their barn.

​In his estimation, it weighed about 70 pounds (32 kg), far too heavy for normal child.

​In the past, he would never dared to lift it up.

​But this time, it was different.

After a little initial difficulty, he lifted it easily.

​"Whoa! This is awesome! At this rate, I will become a superman."

​While saying that, he even did some push-ups with it.

​Just then, this scene was witnessed by another figure.

​"Amazing!" the figure said with an amazed voice.

​Thud!

Krono’r hastily dropped the log on the ground, then looked at the figure.

​To his relief, it was Gwen, a ten-year-old girl.

​Despite their age difference, they had started to get along very well.

​"Kronor, you were amazing just now. How did you lift the log with those small arms?" she asked after stepping closer.

​Kronor took a step back from the girl, then thought of a reply that wouldn’t be deemed too suspicious.

Soon, an answer came to his lips.

​"Heh heh... I’ve been secretly doing push-ups every morning before the sun comes up, Gwen. Brother Cedric says a Dragon Hunter has to start training early!"

​Hearing his excuse, her eyes shone with genuine admiration.

"Oh, so you want to become a Dragon Hunter? That’s very noble of you, Kronor. Not many people have the courage to even dream of a path like that."

Kronor shrugged childishly,

​"Yeah, no. I’m not that noble. I will just do whatever I must to become stronger. In this world, only the strong are respected."

​Gwen let out a bitter and self-deprecating smile.

"Even so, it’s impressive to have that kind of drive. Then look at me... a good-for-nothing girl with no exceptional talent and no real dreams. I’m just a lost traveler on an aimless road. I’m just waiting for the day some ugly noble comes along to tear away my dignity and strip me of my worth. I’m useless. In this era, all common women share the exact same fate. We have no path of our own to walk."

​"That’s not true," Kronor said, his voice surprisingly firm for a seven-year-old.

​Gwen blinked, surprised by the sudden serious tone.

"What isn’t?"

​"The idea that you have no path to walk on. Have you never heard of Demon Hunter Setsuna?"

​Gwen slowly shook her head, "No... who is that?"

​"I read about her in the history records. She wasn’t born a noble. She wasn’t blessed with some divine, heaven-defying talent either. She was just a common village girl, just like you. But when the world tried to tell her she was useless, she refused to listen. She picked up a sword, fought through absolute hell, and eventually became one of the greatest Demon Hunters in human history."

He extended on hand toward her as an encouraging gesture.

​"She carved her own path with her own two hands. Being born a commoner or a woman doesn’t mean your fate is sealed, Gwen. It just means you have to fight a little harder to forge your own destiny. Setsuna did it. Why couldn’t you?"

The words coming from a 7 years old shouldn’t have that worth, and yet Gwen’s eyes teared up.

She accepted the helping hand, the image printing in her mind forever.

"Thank you for your kind encouragement, little Kronor. I don’t know if I can become someone like Setsuna, but I will definitely try."