Chapter 5 : Encounter

Luen was intelligent.

He could easily understand the field of magic that others found difficult and had the mind to apply formulas effortlessly.

But that didn’t mean he was wise.

No, to be precise, Luen overlooked certain things because he had never experienced real combat.

Why was it forbidden to enter the Night Forest?

Why was he told to avoid the beasts?

Having never faced them, he thought too lightly of the warnings.

Beasts had far superior hearing and smell compared to humans.

Luen, knowing this, planned to minimize his footsteps and carefully make his way out of the forest.

However, those who truly understood beasts would immediately recognize how flawed his thinking was from the very foundation.

Beasts’ senses of hearing and smell were incomparably better than those of humans.

Even the faintest sound of stepping on a small twig, the scent of sweat trickling from Luen’s body, and even his breathing—

The moment he stepped into the forest, the beasts had already heard him.

They had already smelled him.

That was the nature of the Night Forest.

A place where, the moment a human entered unprepared, they were destined to be discovered by the beasts.

And so—

Grrrrroooaaarrrrr!!

Luen facing a beast was inevitable.

His face turned deathly pale as he stared at the creature before him.

‘Grizzly Bear…!’

It was a beast that even Luen knew well.

A monstrous creature that resembled a bear, possessing the raw strength to tear a human apart with its bare hands.

Despite his panic at the sudden appearance of the Grizzly Bear, Luen forced himself to think calmly.

‘How to deal with a Grizzly Bear.’

The Grizzly Bear hunted in the forests near the territory and, when winter came, would raid nearby villages in search of food.

It wasn’t an uncommon beast, so methods to counter it were well-documented.

Its thick, tough hide protected it, making ordinary physical attacks ineffective.

To deal any real damage, one needed at least a knight’s aura-enhanced strikes.

Otherwise, one had to aim for weak spots unprotected by its hide, such as the eyes or nose.

Thus, wind-based or earth-based magic was ineffective against a Grizzly Bear.

Of course, if the physical force of such magic was strong enough to penetrate the hide, it might work—but that would require at least 4th-circle magic.

However, there was an easier way.

‘Fire.’

All beasts shared a common weakness—fire.

So, using fire-based magic would be the best choice…

“Ha.”

Luen let out a hollow laugh and closed his eyes for a brief moment before opening them again.

Every possible solution revolved around dealing with the Grizzly Bear using magic.

And of course, who would have thought otherwise?

After all, who could have imagined that the only heir of the renowned Kalbrandt family had a mana sensitivity close to zero?

Not even Luen himself had known.

As the Grizzly Bear bared its fangs menacingly in front of him, Luen absentmindedly ran a hand through his bangs.

From the start, he had no means of fighting.

Luen, who couldn’t wield a sword or use magic—who was practically no different from an ordinary perso

—

The only thing he could do against the Grizzly Bear was run.

But—

“Shit.”

But Luen did not run.

Cursing under his breath, he let out a long sigh.

“How long am I supposed to keep running?”

When his parents died, Luen had done nothing.

When his fiancée tried to leave him, Luen had done nothing.

Even when he realized who was responsible for his parents’ deaths and the downfall of his family, Luen had done nothing.

When Calcento seized his household and slaughtered all his vassals, Luen had done nothing.

He had only run away.

It was because he was weak.

Not because he couldn’t use magic, but because his heart was weak.

Luen clenched his fists and glared at the Grizzly Bear, bloodshot eyes burning with resolve.

Even though his body trembled from fear, his will no longer wavered.

“Flames, burn the enemy before me—Fireball!”

Luen stretched out his hand, tracing a magic circle in the air as he chanted.

He wasn’t completely incapable of using magic.

Even though his mana sensitivity was abysmally low, he wasn’t entirely incapable of sensing it.

Compared to others, his mana was minuscule—but he could still use magic.

As for the knowledge required to wield magic—

The incantations, the construction of magic circles, the flow of mana—

He knew it all.

Fwoosh…

Yes, he could “use” magic.

Luen bit down hard on his lower lip as he watched a tiny flicker of flame emerge from his hand.

Could this even be called magic?

Wasn’t this just… a cheap trick that children played with?

Grrr…

The Grizzly Bear swatted away the small flame effortlessly, its savage eyes locking onto Luen once more.

But this time, Luen did not cower.

He simply stared blankly at his own hand.

“Why… Why… WHY?!”

Why—

Why was he born with no talent?

Why couldn’t he be like his father?

The boy screamed in frustration.

If he had even slightly above-average talent—not even extraordinary—

If he had inherited just a fraction of his mother’s brilliant mind or his father’s innate abilities—

If he had received the full support of House Kalbrandt—

Then he could have risen above anyone.

Of course, eventually, he would have hit the limits of his talent and faced despair.

But if only he had some potential, things wouldn’t have gone so horribly wrong.

And so, Luen resented the heavens.

Even though this tragedy had been caused by human malice,

The only thing he could blame was the sky itself.

‘…I should just die.’

After a long, anguished cry, Luen let out a deep breath and lowered his head.

Live to take revenge?

Did he even have the power to?

He didn’t expect to be as gifted as his father, Hamel Phil Kalbrandt.

He didn’t even need to surpass Calcento, who had always lagged behind his father.

But as someone without even an ounce of magical talent, how was he supposed to build strength from nothing and overthrow Calcento?

Realistically speaking, it was impossible.

Luen let his body go limp, slumping to the ground as he stared vacantly at the dirt beneath him.

Thud. Thud. Thud!

The sound of heavy footsteps grew closer.

The Grizzly Bear was approaching.

Yet Luen remained seated.

He did not move.

Because he had already given up.

At the same time, Luen thought that nothing mattered anymore.

What was the point of living?

What was the point of struggling to survive?

“Shit.”

All he could do was spit out curses.

The Grizzly Bear, now mere steps away, blocked the faint moonlight as it slowly raised its massive hand.

Its grip was powerful enough to tear apart a grown man.

With a single swipe, Luen would be ripped to shreds.

Yet, he did not move.

‘If only I had power.’

Then he wouldn’t have to die so helplessly like this.

And at that moment—

[Shall we help you?]

[Shall we help? Shall we help?]

A whisper, like birds chirping, brushed against his ears.

The voices sounded like those of children.

“What…?”

Luen blinked blankly at the sudden voices, and in response, they giggled excitedly before continuing.

[He can hear us! Amazing!]

[It’s been so, so long! A human who can hear us! Let’s help him!]

[Help him! Help him! Help him!]

It wasn’t just one voice.

There were many, chattering all at once.

Under normal circumstances, the noise would have been irritating.

But strangely enough, Luen found their voices… comforting.

“GRRAAAHHH!!”

Sensing that something was amiss, the Grizzly Bear let out a long, guttural roar and swung its massive paw.

But—

Its attack never reached Luen.

[Human! Our friend! Anyone who attacks a friend is a bad kid!]

[Bad! Bad! Bad!]

The voices grew distant for a moment.

And at the same time, something caught the Grizzly Bear’s arm.

Even in the darkness of the forest, Luen could see it clearly.

It was—

“Tree roots…?”

Thick tree roots.

They had coiled around the Grizzly Bear’s arm, binding it tightly.

No—not just its arm.

Its legs, its torso, even its neck—

The roots had completely restrained the beast.

No matter how much the Grizzly Bear thrashed, the roots did not break.

[Bad kid, disappear!]

[Disappear! Disappear!]

RUMBLE!

Suddenly, the ground beneath the Grizzly Bear began to shift.

The earth trembled, splitting open with a deep, resounding growl.

The ground itself seemed… alive.

As if it had opened its mouth—ready to swallow the beast whole.

CRACK!

The Grizzly Bear plummeted into the abyss below.

And then—

The ground sealed itself shut.

As if nothing had ever happened.

“What the hell…?”

Luen could only stare, stunned, at the sight before him.