A Wild Man Has Entered the Academy

In olden times, there was a saying: “Even a village dog can recite poetry after three years at a Confucian school.” 

It aligns with the saying that investing 10,000 hours in a task makes one an expert. 

Even if it happens unintentionally, it doesn’t matter. In an era when people are busy making a living, many have unintentionally become experts.

It’s not much different from wild animals living away from civilization. By focusing solely on survival, they end up becoming skilled in their own ways. 

I wonder if it’s right for someone like me, who used to starve like that wolf. Just now, there was an ambush, I managed to kill a big snake with a single strike. 

 ‘But what’s the point?” 

Bang!

Taking refuge and returning to the cave, I dropped the bear on the ground. Its massive size alone made the ground tremble when it fell. 

Following that, I entered the cave to quickly check something. As soon as I went inside, I felt a refreshing and cool sensation. The cave was originally empty, but over time, it has been somewhat decorated. 

The skulls of the animals I hunted so far were fixed to the walls, and the floor was covered with thick hides. Countless marks were drawn on one side of the wall, indicating how much time had passed here. 

At some point, I gave up on escaping and stopped marking. Rough calculations suggest it has been over three years. 

“Sigh.”

My heart became melancholic, but there is no time for that. I need to confirm if someone has invaded. In the past, I fell asleep, ignorant and tired, only to be attacked by venomous insects. 

I truly thought I was a goner back then. Fortunately, even when I closed my eyes and focused, I didn’t sense any presence. 

Not just monsters and beasts, even insects refrained from approaching. Whoever would manage to breach this must be someone intelligent. Those damn parasite-like popori. 

‘They’ve been quiet lately, huh?’

After adapting perfectly to the wilderness, whenever I got bored, I intruded into that bastard’s territory. I will never forget when he took a dump on my face.

As a result, we became each other’s greatest rivals and enemies. But as much as I grew, that guy also grew.

After confirming that there were no traces of Porori’s intrusion, I went out of the cave again.

No, to be exact, I tried to go out. Until I saw the painting deep inside the cave.

“··· ···”

Although it’s a dark cave, I could see it clearly with my excellent eyesight. The walls deep inside were covered with ‘paintings’.

They were nothing more than childlike drawings since I only had bones and stones as tools. However, I knew what they meant.

Drawings depicting the future of this world in case I managed to escape. I drew them to never forget.

The protagonist attending the academy and facing various hardships, fighting fiercely against demons that were once formidable enemies in the past.

I didn’t draw an ending. Endings change at every turning point, so I didn’t feel the need to draw one.

Still, if I had to choose, a happy ending would be better, wouldn’t it? Just look at my current state.

Seeing the ending was a damn joke, I will have to live here for the rest of my life.

“Phew.”

I sighed in frustration. I really wanted to escape from this place if I could.

However, it didn’t go as I wished. In this forest, if you lose your way once, it becomes a lifetime of being lost in a maze. The memories you have would become entangled, making even a compass useless. Unless you have a special tool, you will always get lost.

‘But why hasn’t anyone come during all this time?’

The academy strongly warned not to enter, but it’s human nature to want to do something even more when you’re told not to. In reality, there have been frequent cases of students entering and barely escaping or disappearing completely.

Of course, no one has ever come into the area where I reside.

‘Let’s just figure it out on my own.’

I absentmindedly stroked my beard that grew down to my chest and stepped outside. It was a Viking-like beard, but no one would see it, so it didn’t matter. The luxuriantly grown hair, like a beard, was just an added bonus.

Then, to dismantle it, I pushed the bear with all my strength. When its belly was exposed, I could feel how massive it was.

‘It’s been a while since I had bear meat.’

I muttered quietly and extended the index finger of my left hand onto the bear’s belly.

Slash!

Then, a red energy, like blood, surged from the tip of my finger.

A crimson energy that instilled a sense of foreboding just by looking at it. It’s the ‘magical power’ that I have been able to use for some time now.

In the world of fantasy, there always exists a latent power called “magic” that determines the scale of one’s strength depending on how well it is utilized. 

Normally, one can only acquire mastery of magic power through rigorous training. However, I somehow managed to learn it by chance.

Perhaps it was triggered by my instinct to survive after overcoming numerous life-threatening situations. Even I didn’t know how. 

‘Who was the person that used red magic? I can’t even remember.’

Now, I can’t recall the details. There’s nothing useful about it either. I extended the finger from which red magic power emanated and pressed it against the chest of the bear. Then I deeply pierced into the thick hide.

Swooosh…

The leather was so easily cut in that state. This is why I didn’t need tools. It would have been more convenient to use magic power than rough bones or stones.

After all, magic power was what remained. Even if I use it all day, as long as I eat well, it quickly replenishes.

Squelch… Squelch… Squelch…

Thanks to my practiced skill, it didn’t take long to dismantle the bear. From today, I’ve decided to use this hide as a rug on the floor.

I discarded everything except for the heart, lungs, and liver. Since I don’t know what’s inside, there’s no need to eat it.

The reason for eating these things is simple. Based on my experience of eating them all so far, these three are excellent for magical power recovery. It’s a fact I realized firsthand, without being an expert or anything.

“Ahh.”

Crunch!

And they must be eaten raw to have an effect. I took a big bite of the bear’s heart. Before eating it, I removed all the blood, so I didn’t have to worry about blood splattering on my face. Even if blood  did splatter on my face, I can just go to the river and wash it off. 

Swish-swish-swish-

The chewy taste of the heart was exceptional. Eating like this reminded me of the first time I ate a heart. The recovery of my left arm was taking longer than expected, and relying solely on insects to satisfy hunger has reached its limit. 

Ultimately, I had no choice but to sustain myself with animal carcasses like a primitive person. The part I ate back then was the heart.

I barely managed to suppress the urge to vomit. I wasn’t concerned about parasites or anything. 

Damn it. 

Just before dying, I would even put parasites and such in my mouth. If I had worried about things like that, I would have died long ago.

“Gag.”

Due to my size, even just eating the internal organs makes me feel full. I don’t need to drink water separately because there is plenty of liquid in them. After roughly finishing eating everything, I dismantled the parts worth eating. The weather was somewhat humid, and with the temperature rising, I needed to dry them.

That means I need to smoke it. I knew it, so I prepared everything in advance. 

Worried that other animals might smell it and come? 

Don’t worry. Most monsters and animals around here knew that this is my territory. As soon as someone intrudes, I’ll retaliate immediately. Then it will become an excellent source of protein. 

Snap! 

I flicked my finger on the dry firewood. Thanks to the small spark, the fire caught on the firewood. There’s no need to go through all the trouble of starting a fire anymore. Just flicking my finger will do the trick. 

Of course, it’s not an easy task. It’s the result of relentless efforts to start a fire one way or another. 

Crackle- crackle- 

The thickly sliced meat was sizzling and cooking in the smoke. It will probably take more than an hour. In the meantime, with nothing else to do, I raised my head to assess my status after a long time.

[???] 

• Strength: 143 
• Agility: 140 
• Stamina: 147 
• Magic Power: 145 
• Luck: 102 
• Faith: 0

[Possessed Traits] 

• Wild Instinct(???) 
• Frenzy (Ex) 
• Perseverance (SS+) 
• King of Steel (SS) 
• Poison Resistance (SS) 
• Digestion (S+) 
• Dexterity (A) 

[Possessed Skills] 

• Throwing (Ex) 
• Ambush (Ex) 

[Possessed Abilities] 

• Crimson Magic (Ex) 
• Regeneration (SSS)

As time passed, my stats have increased significantly. In the Soul World, a stat of 140 is considered high. 

If you invest enough time, you can reach 120 easily, and with enough exploration, 130 is achievable. However, from 140 onwards, it’s like entering hell, and a stat of 150 is only seen in the top-tier experts. 

Finally, it’s better to give up cleanly at 160. It’s excessive to pursue beyond 150.

Also, you might question whether the difference with my initial stats of 10 were a result of extreme power inflation, but that’s not the case. If you thoroughly understand the strategies, you can easily reach 120 at the Academy. I just got stronger because I managed to survive.

If you choose a different background, you start at 50 in most cases. Since I had nothing and was bare-handed, I started with 10.

‘Bare-handed, really?’

Thankfully, they gave me a ragged robe. If I didn’t even have that, I would have shed tears.

Anyway, as you can see from my stats, one of my physical stats was abnormally high. It kept increasing as I survived day by day.

Let’s not dwell on the fact that my faith stat is at 0. Every day, I cursed and blasphemed against God while praying.

No wonder my faith hit rock bottom. It’s surprising that it didn’t go into negatives.

‘It’s the traits rather than physical abilities that matter…’

I still didn’t know the effect of the first attribute I acquired, [Wild Instinct].

Although there’s a separate trait that enhances my senses, [Wild Instinct] seems different.

Sometimes I get a sense of unease, but as long as I avoid it, I won’t get hurt at least.

The rest of the attributes are things I gained while surviving. Most of them are excellent attributes, but [Frenzy] bothers me.

‘I’m losing my sanity…’

Trait possessed by higher-level monsters, [Frenzy].

As the name suggests, it’s a trait where one completely loses their sanity and goes on a rampage when certain conditions are met. In my case, it happens when my health is almost depleted, which means when I’m pushed into a crisis due to hunting or being ambushed.

Usually, people would calmly find a way to escape such a situation, but I didn’t have that ability. I immediately lose my sanity and start smashing everything around me. After the frenzy subsides and I regain my senses, the surroundings are left in ruins. It’s an added bonus that my health and mana would be almost depleted.

I reached the maximum level through excessive fighting in the past. Luckily, ever since I gained the “Perseverance” trait, it helped me control my frenzy.

‘If I go into a frenzy, that means there was no other way.’

I diverted my attention from [Frenzy] and looked at other traits.

[King of Steel] was similar to [Adamantine Body] but different. While [Adamantine Body] makes the body more durable, [King of Steel] also grants a faster recovery speed.

[Poison Resistance] is self-explanatory, as it enhances resistance to toxins, and [Digestion] allows me to convert the food I eat into energy.

Lastly, there’s [Dexterity]. Since I’ve been living in the forest, most of the work I do is done with my hands. It’s a trait I naturally acquired.

‘Skills can’t be helped.’

The most important thing is skills, but I only have two. In this forest, where there’s nothing but stone axes and spears, there aren’t proper weapons available.

Even that doesn’t mean anything because I made it by hand. All of them are specialized for “hunting” only. 

There are many sensitive beasts who could sense danger, so I gained the [Ambush] by suppressing my presence. I acquired the [Throwing] to kill those who I failed to ambush and tried to escape. 

Surviving with just these two was not a problem. There are also many cases where I fought bare-handed, just like I had cut leather with magic earlier.

‘The [Red magic] was at its maximum as soon as I obtained it.’

It has been like that since the first time I awakened my magic. By the way, the magic of ordinary people is blue, while that of witches and demons varies depending on their rank. 

I have never heard of magic being red. Again, except for the significant parts, I hardly remember anything. Fortunately, I haven’t forgotten the important things thanks to the story I depicted in pictures. If I don’t leave this place, everything will be useless, though. 

‘I’m glad there’s [Regeneration].’

[Regeneration] is exactly what it sounds like: the ability to heal injured parts at a fast speed. Even if I succeed in hunting, it’s meaningless if I suffer serious injuries. 

There was a time when I fought Porori and ended up with my arms and legs completely shattered. If I hadn’t gained regeneration back then, I would have died or become disabled. 

Perhaps some people here might have questions. They might wonder if [Regeneration] should be considered an ability rather than a trait, and what the difference between abilities and traits is.

If I were to give a simple analogy, it would be between “passive” and “active.” Traits are used automatically, but abilities need to be controlled by me willingly.

‘It would be really great if I could control the effects of [Frenzy].’ 

That’s why I treat [Frenzy] as a double-edged sword. It’s good, but it’s also too dangerous.

I don’t know how much more I can gain in the future, but I think I’ve reached my limit here. In order to grow further, I have only two options: hunting down Porori or leaving this place. I’m making an effort, but neither of them is easy.

‘Was it the same in the game?’

As the mascot of the Soul World, there must have been something more. Otherwise, it wouldn’t make sense. While fighting that guy, I also grew. However, recently, it’s been quiet.

Except for the hibernation period, that guy used to come to my cave and leave his droppings. But he’s been silent, so I wondered what was going on.

‘If that’s the case, I would have sensed it first.’

If a new predator appeared, my [Wild Instinct] would have detected it. But recently, it’s been quiet.

While thinking about Porori, I didn’t forget about the smoked meat.

Whether it’s Porori or whatever, meat is more important for now. It was gradually getting cooked.

Just as the smoked bear meat was becoming crispy and I was about to take a bite…

Flutter!

I heard the sound of birds soaring energetically in the distance. Although it was quite far away, I detected it with my exceptional hearing.

It’s rare for birds familiar with the forest to show such a reaction. Usually, something has to “stimulate” them.

‘Did a monster come out?’

[Roooaaar!!]

As soon as that thought crossed my mind, a thunderous roar echoed throughout the entire forest. The echo was strong enough to indicate a substantial size.

I dropped the piece of bear meat I was about to bite into and put it down on the ground. This forest is home to not only beasts but also monsters.

Actually, classifying creatures as beasts or monsters is meaningless. At least in this forest.

Still, if left alone, it would become troublesome, so it’s better to deal with it roughly.

Judging by the deep, roaring voice, it’s probably not a young individual but a fully grown one.

[Screeeeam!!]

Look at that. One hell of a set of vocal cords······

“······Huh?”

I blinked and turned my gaze towards the direction where the sound came from.

That’s not a sound a monster makes. That’s not a roar; it was a scream.

There’s absolutely no sense of wildness in it, a pure 100% scream.

And it was a scream made by a human.

‘What’s going on?’

Driven by urgency, I got up from my spot, still gripping the bloodied battle axe.

A scream that has blown a small spark into my fading hope.

‘Is it for real?’

With a mix of anticipation and suspicion, I made my way through the forest.

AUTHOR’S NOTE: Damn = Groot

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