Chapter 3: Saber's Attack

Vote with: Power Stone

A strong splash occurred. A powerful surge of water drenched the surroundings. Yuren was standing by a stream of the river, connected to a larger river—divided by an old and gigantic tree at the entrance, its bark wrinkled but seemingly still healthy. It had many roots, though few branches.

That part of the river was filled with flowing water from the waterfall. Not far from him, his fishing rod was tangled. It was not professional; it was made from bamboo sticks—tied with nylon as his grandfather had taught him. It was just a simple fishing rod, in fact, and he had made it himself back then. That fishing rod was propped against a sprouting root, its tip firmly stuck in the wet soil—a little scoop more and it would be mud.

Until now, Yuren had been bathing for several minutes, but not a single fish had approached the bait he had set. "Hmm, none yet," Yuren sighed deeply.

Because that part of the river was somewhat deep, even though it wasn't very wide, he was almost swimming. He was flailing as if he would sink. The waves he created slapped against his mouth and nose, as if the water was eager to splash over him. He tried to repeat the action of standing, stepping, and crawling on a large rock buried in the ground. He jumped, and he was sure he had been doing this repeatedly for a while now.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the river, it was larger and wider. The main river where more water flowed from that big and very high waterfall. There were many rocks, and the crashing sound was so strong that it seemed like clouds of white droplets were landing below.

Not far from those raging currents, the lower part of the river swirled—beside the bank lined with long and grassy plants, both old and new. Undeniably, that strong splash was a large fish.

After a moment, a figure emerged above the bubbling foam. The old man, Hernicle, Yuren's mischievous grandfather. In his hand raised in the air, he firmly held a large fish with his big hand. Despite the size of that fish, which weighed almost ten kilos or more, it seemed just right for his hand to grip its tail—in a proper hold. It was still wriggling, but clearly, there was no sign of struggle or shaking in the old man's arm. He shouted after lifting it even higher than his head. He laughed and grinned. "Haha," he said.

Yuren heard that voice from above, so he turned around, knowing it was his grandfather. A deep smile immediately appeared in his eyes when he saw the fish his grandfather had caught—it was indeed so big that it might be larger than what he had caught the previous day. It was more than enough for him to eat, but not for his grandfather, who was a big and hearty eater. "Wow," Yuren also shouted in joy.

However, he couldn't imagine how his grandfather had caught that without using any fishing rod. "It's huge," he said. He immediately ran to the bank of the larger river to greet his grandfather and see that fish up close. Instead of wading into the river, he just waited for his grandfather to cross over since that was where the old man had caught it.

"Grandpa, that's so big," Yuren exclaimed, which was evident in his eyes. He said, "Grandpa, how did you catch such a big fish?" he wondered. "I also want to catch one like that."

The old man did not swim to cross but simply walked through the water, which did not rise above his shoulders. Not even the rushing current of water seemed to bother him. The giant fish was lifted effortlessly, even as it struggled unnaturally beneath his hand—everything seemed inconsequential.

"Wait, you didn't use a fishing rod, how did you catch something that big, almost as big as me?" Yuren replied, pausing to think.

"How?" the old man grinned in the midst of battling the current. "That's what you will do next," the old man said.

"Am I going to do that too? You mean I will catch something like that in that river?" Yuren pointed to the river where his grandfather had caught the fish.

"Yes." Upon hearing his grandfather's agreement, he stepped back, feeling a chill run down his spine. "Why, don't you want to catch something that big?" the old man asked.

He placed the fish on the flat ground—it was still flopping around, seemingly desperate to escape. It looked exhausted, as if it were running out of breath from the size of the gaping mouth of its gills.

"I want to, but can I just use my fishing rod that I made to catch it?" Yuren replied, as if he didn't like what his grandfather was implying.

"No, don't use that, it will just take longer," his grandfather said. "You will catch fish using just your hands; in other words, you will grab it. And when you catch it, you get extra points," he explained.

"Extra points?" Yuren shouted, surprised. "What do you mean by extra points?" Yuren asked.

"If in school there are extra points for exams, in our training, there are too," the old man explained, raising his finger.

"Please don't tell me this is also part of my training. Aren't we just here to swim and catch something to eat?" Yuren wondered.

"Who said that? As far as I know, I didn't say anything like that," the old man replied seriously.

Yuren just scratched his neck.

The old man moved a little.

What Yuren thought was a lifeless fish turned out to be wrong. When he tried to touch it, it suddenly flopped. Yuren stepped back in shock.

"It's still alive," he said, and then looked at his grandfather's position. His eyes widened in surprise when he saw the thing his grandfather had thrown downstream. It was his fishing rod that had been tossed.

He was left speechless at that moment, his arm still frozen in what felt like a halted time. "W-Why?" was the only word he uttered. He swallowed his disappointment, feeling helpless.

The old man sighed, resting both hands on his knees. "Now, grandson, what are you waiting for? Start now," a hint of a smile played on his face as he said this.

Yuren seemed to sulk again after the incident. "Hey, are you listening?" his appearance unchanged. "Where are you going?" Hernicle sighed lightly, approaching his grandson who was about to leave. His arms were limp.

He grabbed him by the body, lifting him like luggage and then placed him on the riverbank.

Suddenly, Yuren got angry, kicking his grandfather, but the old man didn't flinch, shake, or react at all.

"What are you aiming for?" the old man said with a grin. Yuren suddenly turned away after attempting to kick his grandfather's egg, thinking he had gotten back at him. "Did I not mention to you that your grandfather's egg is harder than steel?"

Yuren returned, about to charge again, repeating what he had done as if it were serious. He kept kicking the old man's egg, but it seemed to have no effect at all. But he wasn't done yet; he kicked it all around his body.

After the final kick to the egg, he finally stopped. He said, "Grandpa, does it hurt?" He exchanged glances with his grandfather, but in his state, he looked more serious.

The surroundings fell silent.

For a moment, Yuren's grumpy face seemed to gradually take on the shape of pain, as if his foot had been struck by a heavy hammer. He jumped, holding onto both of his knees—stretching and sitting down, he touched the sides of his foot.

He pulled his two feet out of the water and splashed, small colorful fish immediately gathered around his feet.

"Thank you for the cold water," he said with a sigh.

After that, his gaze suddenly stopped in one direction, up ahead, not far from him. He spotted a large fish swimming in the flowing water. In his mind, it was an opportunity, so he quickly became alert.

He positioned himself correctly, and finally, he managed to do it. In an instant, it brought back his smile. However, in the end, he was still unlucky. The large fish escaped after wriggling out of his hands. He thought he had succeeded, but he hadn't. His face returned to disappointment until he slapped the water. In the end, his grandfather just laughed at him. He was also forced to dive.

After many minutes, he finally managed to catch a fish, larger than the previous one but smaller than what his grandfather had caught. Even so, it was enough to bring back his smile. He shouted with joy, raising both hands with the fish, holding it tightly so it wouldn't escape.

The old man congratulated him on his success—raising his right arm and shouting.

Meanwhile, a quiet movement occurred, landing on the separate large stones embedded in the river path with a strong current. A large paw, not a human paw but the paw of some creature. That brown color, which resembled a cat's paw, could be compared to the paw of a lion, tiger, or jaguar; it was hard to determine what kind of animal it was.

"Bring it here before it gets away," his grandfather shouted.

"Wait," he gritted his teeth, suddenly holding his breath. "It's so strong," he struggled to say that.

The fish was wriggling too hard for his still-weak arms. He tightened his grip with all his strength. He shouted, the strong current of the water was pulling him, and if he didn't act quickly, he would be swept into the lake or the sea.

However, it wasn't easy for him to carry it then. If he carried it facing forward, it would make him stumble under its weight. Moreover, where he was standing, his feet were barely touching the bottom. He didn't last long in the forward position; he turned around and flipped. Now, he was floating while only his feet were kicking. He pulled the fish backward, almost submerging his entire face in the water.

Finally, he managed to haul the huge fish, which was actually only slightly smaller than him. He placed the fish next to the one his grandfather had caught. Yuren wasn't done yet; he still had the strength to catch another one.

"Wait, I'll catch one more, just a moment, Grandpa," Yuren said. "I can do it."

"I thought you were afraid of deep water," the old man shouted. "Just hurry up and catch it; it's getting dark," he said last.

He dove in without hesitation. His jump was like that of a professional diver.

"That kid," the old man whispered to himself with a smile. "I should clean this fish for dinner," he turned and began to walk toward the part where the water flowed stronger.

Yuren swam and swam, chasing fish in the shallow and deep parts of the river, near and far from that waterfall until he reached the end. Beside him was a large black flat stone that looked like two layers stacked in front of him. Underneath it hid the fish he was targeting. He reached for it as much as he could, but it wasn't easy; the hole it had burrowed into was too deep.

"Come out, fishy," he said, pounding with both arms. "Don't hide in there, I'll catch you anyway," he was confident even though in reality he was struggling. He felt inside the hole and peeked, repeating the process over and over.

Meanwhile, the water was too murky; it was impossible for his sharp eyes to still see that fish. But he didn't easily give up; he just kept going.

Yuren truly had a long patience, that was undeniable.

However, the splashes from that waterfall were close to him. He could feel the droplets splattering on his face.

In the thread-like shape of the water, calm, clear, and fine. Something was visible, indeterminate but could be seen if looked at properly. It was quiet, and the only sound was the falling water.

Yuren had grown tired, so he climbed onto that stone to rest for a moment. He lay down while his feet played on the turbulent water.

"Ahh," he sighed lightly and then closed his eyes. He said, "that would have been an extra dish... what a waste," he said lightly as if feeling lazy, regretting. "Doesn't he know he was created to be my meal?" he added, seemingly not joking. "What will Grandpa say to me? He'll surely laugh at me again," he sighed again.

In the quiet bank of the current, something was lurking but there was no sound at all. Something was slowly emerging, surfacing—colliding with that water. Then followed a silent growl.

An animal's head, large, looking fierce. Yuren was unaware that it was already behind him—only when he heard its growl did he realize. He turned to look behind but remained turned away, and only then did he quickly stand and face it. He clearly saw that there was some creature behind him. Its head was enormous, with sharp fangs, and it looked extremely angry or very hungry.

Fear and dread quickly engulfed Yuren.

In just a second, the creature attacked him. He screamed loudly, covering his face.

However, Yuren thought it was the end for him. A figure was in front of him, none other than his Grandpa.

A gigantic creature had bitten his large and muscular arm. Its two fangs sank into his flesh, blood gushed out.

The last thing Yuren saw was his grandfather, bloodied. His arm was embedded in the creature's chest, extending all the way to its back. The old man killed that creature without a second thought.

"Gr-Grandpa," Yuren whispered. Fear flickered in his innocent eyes.

The old man let go.

Blood splattered on Yuren's left cheek, he felt it, so his eyes momentarily opened. Yuren clearly saw the blood, his grandfather's arm was wrapped, but what was strange was his hand. Yuren's eyes widened even more as he sat down, noticing that there seemed to be something unusual about it.

The old man's white arm seemed to have grown larger and harder. There are lines of spider-like veins on his arm that are unusual, extending to the tips of his thick fingers—showing through as if there were worms inside his skin. His nails were extremely long and sharp, sharper than anything known, even though they were covered in thick blood.

Eventually, the creature collapsed, gasping for its last breath. If his grandfather hadn't noticed it, his grandson's body would probably be his dinner by now.

The old man stretched and stood up straight. At the same time, the shape of his arm returned to normal, his sharp nails retracted, and his worm-like veins slowly disappeared. And then, he quickly turned around, facing the stunned grandchild with a seemingly worried expression.

He said, "Grandson, a-are you okay," with a worried expression.

Yuren was momentarily silent, as if someone was about to feed him with a spoon.

"Didn't I remind you to always be careful in any situation?" Like that, it's dangerous. "Don't you know what kind of animal that is?" His grandfather was already bribing him with negligence. "You went away and then you weren't even vigilant." "What if I weren't here... then he would have had dinner by now," said the old man, looking serious.

"Y-Your hand, Grandpa," he said, seemingly weak.

"What... because there's a lot of blood?", he suddenly replied. "It's just need a bit wash," he glanced at his arm. "Don't think about it", he said softly, smiling faintly.

"The...the," Yuren couldn't continue—he momentarily shook his head and blinked. And suddenly..., he shouted loudly. He immediately stood up, his trembling finger pointing at that mangled creature. "W-What kind of a-a-animal is that?" he said. "You killed him." "Why did you kill him, Grandpa?" her voice slightly raised.

"Don't feel sorry, that's just the beginning." Next time, learn to defend yourself to survive. "And if you let despair take over, that might just lead you to your death," the old man spoke seriously, getting straight to the point. "Do you understand what I'm saying?" his tone thickened slightly, a firm admonition to his grandchild who was surely dear to him. "I'm not always going to be here, remember that," he reminded his grandchild. "In this world, mercy is rarely shown; proper choices and responsible decisions are what truly matter," the elder turned away from where he was standing and continued speaking.

"Not every situation is given such a term," said the elder. "Always keep that in mind," he looked at his grandchild with a serious expression. "What I did, one day you'll do it too."

"What," she immediately retorted. "I can't do that, I really can't do that," Yuren quickly replied in a somewhat raised tone. "Don't compare me to you, grandpa grrrh," he groaned. "I never thought you would do that."

"That's all you know," the old man replied with a smile before returning to his usual self. "You still have much to learn and understand in the place you are stepping on now, so prepare yourself for the upcoming challenges," the old man said seriously, as seen in the shape of his eyes. "Not all the time will you be safe, and there will come a time when you will have to take a life just to save your own."

The two stared at each other, and the surroundings fell silent.

Yuren laughed for a second.

"Go ahead, just laugh," he took a deep breath. "You thought the coming days would be easy."

Yuren couldn't help but say, "A-Are you serious, Grandpa?"

The old man just continued to smile. "Do I look like I'm joking?" he said, annoyed, and slapped the questioning Yuren. "Let's go, it's getting dark," he said, stretching, and started carrying the animal he had killed.

"Wait, Grandpa, what are we going to do with that?" Yuren asked.

"What else, we'll eat it," the old man said.

"What," Yuren shouted upon hearing that. "Eat it? Are you serious, grandpa? That looks like it eats people." "Disgusting," he said, looking like he was about to vomit.

"No, it didn't eat a person, you don't have to worry," he said.

"That's a fully grown animal, Grandpa, and how can we be sure it hasn't eaten a person if we haven't seen it?" "He would have eaten me, it's not impossible that he has already eaten something like us, it's scary," Yuren replied, shivering. "What if I'm right?" he shuddered again, his tongue hanging out. "I'll just go fishing, it's much tastier," Yuren leaned back into the water.

"You don't know how delicious this meat is," the old man started to drool. "You'll get to taste it later, grandchild, you'll crave it once you do," the old man burst into laughter, with the body on his shoulder, which was actually almost bigger and heavier than himself.

"You laugh so much, Grandpa, you look like a monkey," -his Grandpa laughed even harder. "You're so cool, Grandpa, how did you manage to lift that?" Yuren wondered.

The old man didn't answer on the first step; instead, he just laughed at him again.

Yuren's mouth had no choice but to close, he was desperate as he blew bubbles on the surface of the water. He sank.

*******

"I told you, didn't I? Now you believe me," said the old man, holding the meat skewered on a stick.

"It really is delicious," his eyes seemed to light up. "And not just delicious, it's incredibly delicious, grandpa," Yuren replied, his charming smile playing on his lips again.

"Savor how delicious this meat is, grandchild." "It's like you're eating Chicken Tinola," his grandfather burst into laughter again.

Yuren was sitting on an old piece of wood, and the old man on a large chunk of stone.

In front of them was a large piece of meat skewered and resting on two supports with two hands—along with a fish being cooked.

Underneath is a large blazing fire fed by big pieces of dry branches.

Beside the old man was a remaining piece of meat, including the head that had been cut off. They probably only took about ten kilos from the large chunk of meat, and the giant fish caught by the old man is there too.

Surely, the grilled one is Yuren's.

"Grandpa, that's a lot, I don't think the two of us can finish it," he said cheerfully while in the middle of chewing, thoroughly gnawing on the meat skewered on a small stick.

"You're right, grandchild," the old man smiled, agreeing with his grandchild's statement. "That's why we're bringing some home for your sister and your aunts, at least they can taste how delicious it is," he said.

Yuren nodded. "They're sure to get full with all that," Yuren laughed, followed by his grandfather.

"Just keep eating, grandchild, there's plenty more."

Yuren politely replied with "yes."

The grandfather and grandson continued to eat in the midst of the darkness as seven o'clock in the evening approached.