Chapter 122

Yuwon and the Mysterious Man.

The two walked side by side along the forest path of the Great Jungle as they continued their conversation.

“From now on, what you need to learn is how to handle the sixth sense.”

“The sixth sense?”

“Yes. The sixth sense. The sixth sense that transcended the five senses. The sixth sense. Anyone could feel it, but not just anyone could handle it.”

“Hmm…”

At Yuwon’s strange reaction, the man continued his explanation.

“Basically, it’s a power separate from mana, which anyone with a decent amount of strength can handle. Within the Great Jungle, those who wield any real strength treat mastering this sixth sense as a basic skill. Of course, I’m the same.”

“I see.”

“You’ve seen and felt it yourself, but merely handling mana alone won’t let you survive against the monsters of the Great Jungle, creatures that surpassed all human standards. Just as humans learned to handle mana, those beings learned to handle the sixth sense.”

“And among such creatures, the ones who climbed to the top of the food chain are…”

“Yes, the snake and the orc you fought last time. Those two are exactly that. If I were to put it simply, from now on, what I want to teach you is the wisdom of beasts.”

Yuwon let out a small laugh and smiled.

“The power of beasts. That sounds quite interesting.”

“You hear it’s the wisdom of those hideous monster creatures and that’s your reaction? For someone who calls himself the Emperor of an empire, you’re far more laid-back than I expected.”

“It’s not that strange to me, learning something from animals.”

The martial world Yuwon had lived in during his previous life. There, there existed martial arts created by mimicking the movements of animals.

“…Did the empire have something like that?”

At the man’s questioning, Yuwon showed a faint, unreadable smile.

“Let’s just say it did.”

At Yuwon’s dry response, the man also lost interest and didn’t pry further, instead returning to his own story.

“…Dry as ever. Fine. Up until now, what I’ve done was merely checking whether you were capable of learning the sixth sense. The test is over, so from today on, we begin proper instruction.”

“Judging by your tone, it seems the test results were quite good.”

“Test? What you had until now wasn’t even a test. Just a warm-up. But fine, I’ll let you call it a test if you want.”

“All right. Then I suppose it’s time we settle how I should address you. What should I call you? That ‘run away’ thing you told me before isn’t a proper name. But I can’t call you ‘you’ or ‘hey’ while learning from you either.”

“Haha. Do I look like someone who cares about such things?”

“No, not really.”

“Right, exactly. I don’t care what you call me. Saving you and teaching you this power—all of it is just because of my whim, so there’s no need for gratitude. Any title is fine. Call me whatever you want.”

“Teacher. That should be enough. It feels strange to give a name to a man who has none.”

Around the same time, in a native tribe village of the Great Jungle.

“Father! What is the meaning of this? Teaching the sixth sense to those fat pigs from the continent?!”

Hearing of the decision made by the chieftain Herran, his son—the man wearing a lion-head hat—came to confront him.

“So you heard. I was just thinking that you were the right person for the task and was planning to entrust it to you.”

“What… How can you decide such a thing on your own without discussing it with me? Even if you’re my father, this is too much.”

“This is not the sort of task a father entrusts to his son. This is a matter of life and death for our tribe. It’s an order. Obey without complaint. Erzan, Child of the Moon Bird.”

Erzan.

A name that, when interpreted, meant Child of the Moon Bird. When Herran called his son by that name instead of ‘son’, the weight of his words changed.

“Father!”

“Hush. Stop complaining. It has been a long time since I made a deal with the guests from the continent, staking both my position as chieftain and my name. You shall assist the guests with utmost sincerity so they are not hindered in awakening the sixth sense.”

Although Herran clearly drew the line, the matter was too serious for Erzan to simply back down.

“Why, Father? I’m not the only one who opposes this. For now, the number of people who know of this decision is small, so nothing has happened yet, but if we push this through, those newcomers from the Cold Wind Wolf Tribe will no doubt try to seize the position of chieftain.”

“Since when has it not been their ambition to take my place? Hardly surprising. You’re not at the age where you should concern yourself with such things. Focus on the task given to you.”

Herran’s tone—which treated the matter as trivial—only fueled Erzan’s anger. Enraged, Erzan ground his teeth.

“Father… It’s not that I don’t understand what you want. But we’ve managed to endure until now. Has there ever been a time when surviving in this jungle was easy? It will continue to be difficult, but I believe we can endure. Going to the land of the pigs… You know very well that we won’t be welcomed there. They will see our bronze skin and treat us like monsters, even try to kill us.”

“No, that’s not it, my son… You don’t know. When I was your age, the Great Jungle was a far better place to live than now. The orcs weren’t as strong as they are today, and the beasts rarely attacked humans unless we invaded their territory first. But look at it now.”

At Herran’s undeniable words, Erzan was rendered speechless.

“…That is…”

“Those shamans and dark mages who treated living people as magical ingredients rose in power and took over fertile lands. The orcs, who used to fight among themselves every day, united into a massive horde under Mukwiam. And what about the snakes? When I was your age, snakes weren’t even considered beasts. Yet now they are no different from the orcs.”

“….”

Just as Erzan’s spirit weakened, Herran pressed his point further.

“Something is wrong. This place is no longer a place where people can live. Meeting those visitors may very well be a chance given by the heavens. This father wants to seize that chance. Will you help me?”

“…Very well. If you insist so strongly, I will try teaching them. But.”

“But?”

“I can’t promise much, so don’t expect too much. I will only do what I can. And if it still doesn’t work, then nothing can be done about it. There is no way those fat pigs from the continent, who grew up believing mana is everything, will ever be able to sense the sixth sense.”

“Good, that will do. Thank you, my son.”

“…It’s fine.”

“Hoo… I boasted loudly, but I ended up with a troublesome task.”

Leaving Herran’s dwelling, Erzan let out a deep sigh. His gaze drifted toward the wooden house standing alone in the distant center of the village. It was the lodging of the guests, Terrien and Hastings.

‘The sixth sense isn’t something you awaken in a day or two… Even our tribe’s children barely grasp its outline after several years, so those pigs from the continent? Impossible. I’ll just pretend to teach them and then step away.’

Of course, Erzan’s arrogant thoughts shattered completely two days later during the first lesson.

“Hmm… Is this how I’m supposed to do it?”

“…?”

“…What!”

A southern-born illegitimate son.

Terrien Calmodet.

As if proving both his origins and his genius, Terrien sensed the sixth sense almost immediately.

While Hastings—the genius who even impressed Marcellus—was still struggling, Terrien alone achieved results.

Around the same time, somewhere on the opposite side of the great mountain range that cut through the center of the Great Jungle. Yuwon and Teacher stood side by side.

“You’ve always had sharp intuition, so it seems you’ve already grasped the general idea of the sixth sense. I suppose it’s time to begin proper training.”

“I see.”

“You don’t look particularly pleased. All right, this is your first goal. Survive in the Great Jungle for one week without using mana. You may use any other power you possess. Though aside from mana, you don’t have much, so you’ll suffer terribly.”

“…?”

Yuwon wondered if that was really all, waiting for the rest. But the next thing Teacher said was different.

“Did you understand?”

‘Huh?’

“That’s it?”

“That’s it? Did you just say ‘that’s it’? You must think the Great Jungle is easy just because nothing happened while you were with me. Do you really think you can survive in the jungle with nothing but a human body and no mana?”

“It’s not impossible.”

“I can’t tell if you are fearless or simply swollen with confidence. Well, it’s better than clinging to my pants begging to be saved. Good. Then it starts now. For the next week, I will leave your side and won’t interfere no matter where you go or what happens. Even if you’re in danger, I won’t help. Survive with your own strength.”

“A week is too long. Isn’t there a way to shorten it?”

“Hah, hahaha! A week is long? I knew it. Without mana, how could anyone last a week? Fine, I’ll be generous. Five days. Survive five days and I’ll count it as a pass.”

Yuwon smiled faintly at Teacher’s statement.

“Five days? That’s not what I meant.”

“What?”

A declaration of confidence. Yuwon continued, a calm smile lingering on his lips.

“In five days—or even within a week—I don’t mean to just pass time. I’m asking what specific goal I must achieve within five days to count this trial as cleared.”

“Hah… hahaha! Yes, that’s the spirit.”

Finding it amusing, Teacher burst into hearty laughter. Then he presented new conditions, accepting Yuwon’s suggestion.

“Fine! Then try it. One hundred beasts. If you kill more than a hundred beasts within five days without using mana, I’ll stop the trial right there and consider it a pass.”

He accepted Yuwon’s proposal thinking it would crush his arrogance. Yuwon smiled in satisfaction.

“Good, now we’re talking.”

“Then it begins now. Kill one hundred beasts within five days, or survive one week. Are you ready? Self-proclaimed emperor.”

“Before we start, let me add one more condition.”

“Hm?”

“That ‘self-proclaimed’ part—remove it. You seem confident in the difficulty of your test. If I pass within five days, that much should be acceptable, shouldn’t it?”

“Kuk, kukuku! Very well. You bring life back into my dull days. I accept. Begin!”

The moment Teacher shouted “begin,” the aura that shielded Yuwon from the senses of the jungle’s creatures was instantly stripped away.

Just as on the day Yuwon first set foot in the Great Jungle, he was once again thrown into the heart of it.

And as if waiting for this moment, the fierce aura dormant in Yuwon surged out naturally, instantly entering the range of the beasts’ sixth sense. Countless monsters of the jungle would begin pursuing him again.

‘Now then… what will you do, self-proclaimed emperor?’

As if answering Teacher’s expectations, Yuwon controlled his sixth sense with a blank expression.

Srrr—

The moment he began controlling it, the ferocious aura that had been streaming endlessly from his body vanished without a trace.

Shocked, Teacher widened his eyes.

‘No, he has already mastered it to this extent…!’

But his surprise wasn’t over yet. Yuwon wordlessly smiled at Teacher’s bewildered face.

‘H-he’s smiling?’

A bold, confident smile spread across Yuwon’s lips—one that could only belong to a Conqueror King, neither benevolent ruler nor tyrant.

And as if he had never hidden it, Yuwon released every ounce of aura he possessed.

Kwaaaa—!

Centered around him, a terrifying torrent of aura burst forth like a raging waterfall.

‘This brat! What is he thinking…!’

Then Yuwon whispered in the language of snakes.

“Come. I will become your king.”

At Yuwon’s call, the snakes—who had been waiting endlessly for that very signal—slithered across the ground and swam through the river toward him.

Some followed Yuwon; others followed the River Serpent.

This was what Yuwon aimed for.

The snakes, one of the major powers of the Great Jungle, split into two factions—one following Yuwon and one following the River Serpent.

Flash—

And at that signal, the River Serpent—momentarily asleep—opened its eyes.

Its long, slit, bright yellow eyes fixed on Yuwon’s overwhelming aura.

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