novelzi Chapter 9: Eat Fresh
Chapter 9: Eat Fresh
Chapter 9: Eat Fresh
Liu Ji felt very strange.
His family wasn't well-off, so like most people, Liu Ji had attended public schools all his life, never went to cram school or had private tutoring that cost thousands per course. The last time someone taught him one-on-one, meticulously guiding him through each word, was probably back in kindergarten.
Now, after god knows how many years as a potato, Liu Ji once again felt like he was a child learning to speak.
And the one teaching him word by word was seemingly a young girl that hadn't reached adulthood.
Stranger still, while he was learning, his right hand was tied to a pole planted firmly into the ground, with his index finger pointed at the sky.
There was no doubt this measure was to prevent Liu Ji from unleashing magic at his own head again.
While it felt like he was being treated like a child, Liu Ji also felt... somewhat excited?
After all, it was magic that he was learning!
It felt very much like the first time he visited an internet cafe with friends; pushing open those glass doors was like opening a portal to a whole new world.
Were it not for that mishap resulting in him eating a faceful of fire, Liu Ji would probably have been stoked all day just from seeing fire shoot out of his fingertip.
Unfortunately, since then, Yaine had only taught him isolated syllables instead of complete incantations. Despite his finger being pointed skyward, there wasn't any reaction.
However, Liu Ji wasn't anxious. In his opinion, it felt perfectly normal to start from the basics.
As he continued learning, Liu Ji gradually discovered that the language of incantations was fascinating. If he could repeatedly pronounce the words, he would naturally start understanding the meaning behind them. And the more he recited, the greater his understanding.
Once he realized this, he understood why Yaine was teaching him the language of incantations. Perhaps she was trying to establish communication with him this way.
It still felt odd, though, that she would teach magic just to talk to a complete stranger like him. Perhaps she had other considerations, but with the language barrier, Liu Ji couldn't even ask if he was curious.
While learning, a sudden sound of rustling leaves came from the nearby woods.
Both Liu Ji and Yaine looked in the direction of the sound and saw the young swordsman returning, with what seemed like a black bear the size of an elephant on his shoulder.
"Why, want one? Provide materials for two, and I'll give you one," Yaine offered.
"No thanks, just thinking about gathering those materials makes my head go numb," replied Mervant. With a single stroke of his sword, he severed a large bear paw, then shook off the blood from his knife. "I'm fine with my blade."
"Mm, it suits you well, so step to the side, please?" Yaine gestured with her staff.
Mervant sheathed his blade and obediently stepped back with the bear paw in his hand.
Liu Ji, still tied to the post, continued his incantation practice while curiously observing them.
After Mervant stepped back, Yaine raised her staff. Complex incantations flowed from her lips as an invisible energy swirled around her, causing her hair and robes to flutter.
Liu Ji shivered; it had felt like summer just moments ago, but suddenly, it seemed as if winter had arrived.
"Won't such a sudden change make someone catch a cold..." he muttered to himself, huddling up.
However, the coldness vanished as quickly as it had come. Yaine, having put down her staff, adjusted her robe and sat back down next to Liu Ji.
Meanwhile, the giant bear carcass in the distance now sported a thin layer of frost, and even the grass around it was dotted with ice crystals, clearly indicating that the temperature of the entire bear had dropped below freezing in an instant.
"Whoa, that's some rapid freezing," Liu Ji exclaimed.
He had just been wondering if it would be a waste if they couldn't finish eating such a large bear and it spoiled.
...Now, he wondered if they would share the food with him?
He glanced at Mervant, who was holding the bear paw, and noticed the latter was also looking at him. Then, Mervant smiled, sliced off a piece of bloody meat from the paw, walked over and handed it over to Liu Ji, and watched expectantly.
Liu Ji looked at the raw bear flesh in his hand and then back at Mervant, completely baffled.
What does this mean? Do you people of this world really eat this fresh?