As I heard the word magic, I immediately knew what it meant—something everyone in my world longed for.
I asked,
"What kind of magic?"
Elder Belon replied,
"We don't know much about magic... just that it can shoot fire and thunder.
But how magic works... we don't understand."
I frowned slightly.
"So, Elder Belon, it's just magical beasts who can perform magic—or can we learn it too?"
He replied thoughtfully,
"As far as I know... any species can learn magic, if they have the proper knowledge of how it works.
The people who can perform magic are called mages."
I leaned back.
"Mages, huh... Familiar term."
I looked at him seriously.
"Do you know any mages by chance?"
Elder Belon shook his head.
"No... mages are extremely rare.
Only certain species have acquired the knowledge of magic."
I leaned in, voice turning grave.
"Elder Belon... do the orcs have mages?"
Elder Belon quickly reassured me.
"Chief, you don't need to worry.
According to my intel, orcs don't possess mages—or any kind of knowledge of magic."
I nodded, relieved.
"Well... that's good."
Dries stepped forward.
"So what about the Amora?"
I asked,
"Dries... were Amora footprints found near the mine area?"
Dries replied,
"No, Chief. It was quite a distance from the mine."
"So Dries," I continued, "do you think we have any immediate danger from the Amora?"
Dries shook his head,
"Chief, I don't think so.
According to the footprints, Amora is staying deep within the Jeta Mountain Range.
But for now... I think we should stop exploring the range."
I nodded again.
"You're right, Dries.
I don't want any new problems before the orcs attack.
So let's stop all exploration.
I forbid anyone from going to the Jeta Mountain Range.
I'll personally select individuals who are allowed to enter—only to retrieve more Meric."
Dries replied immediately,
"Okay, Chief. I'll spread your order to the whole village."
Elder Belon added
"You don't need to worry—I'll spread the Chief's order as well.
Now Dries, go begin your training."
Dries sighed,
"Okay, Father."
As Elder Belon left, I turned to Dries.
"So... begin your 1,000 push-ups."
He dropped without protest, beginning his set.
I leaned against a wooden pillar, thinking to myself:
Amora, huh? Interesting.
Maybe after this orc problem is solved... I'll check it out myself.
Just then, a voice broke my thoughts.
"Chief, what do I need to do?"
I snapped back to focus—it was Aries, holding that thread-like material in his hand.
"Oh, Aries... You were still here?"
I took the thread from him, examined it, and smiled.
"This is perfect. Now I can finally create a bow."
I handed it back.
"Aries, pass this thread to Elder Bern once he finishes resting."
Aries nodded.
"Yes, Chief."
I studied him for a moment.
"You know, Aries... I think you have quite good eyesight.
You even spotted that ant on the ground earlier."
Aries responded casually,
"Well, since childhood, I've been able to see things from far away."
I pointed to a distant tree in the forest.
"Tell me the color of the bird sitting on that tree."
With my perfect eyesight, I could barely make out the color.
Aries replied instantly,
"Green."
Then after a pause,
"And blue."
I blinked in surprise.
"Blue? But there's only green—"
He interrupted,
"I'm talking about the bird's eye color."
My eyes widened in shock.
"You can see the eye color of that bird... from this distance?"
He nodded.
"Yes."
I placed a hand firmly on his shoulder.
"To think I've found a diamond in the mud..."
He tilted his head,
"What, Chief?"
"Ah, nothing. Go do your task—and then join Dries for push-ups."
As he walked off, I chuckled to myself:
To think I've got a Hawkeye in this world. My luck is unbelievable.
Afterward, I decided to do handstand push-ups while waiting for the warriors to return.
A while later, the four scouts arrived first, dragging a wild boar behind them.
"Chief, we completed our hunt!"
I nodded, impressed.
"Good. Now—go bring me some wood."
They froze.
"But Chief... we're tired."
I squinted at them.
"Are you 80 years old?"
"No, Chief..."
"Then you're not tired.
Bring wood until the rest of the warriors arrive—or I'll use your bones for the fire."
They walked away, their faces the definition of despair.
I resumed my handstand push-ups, feeling the burn.
An hour passed.
The rest of the warriors finally returned—with scratches, dirt-covered faces, and wild animals in tow.
I stood upright and grinned.
"Whoa, look who's here... the proud warriors of Rong Village."
They looked at me with blank, lifeless expressions.
"Go wash your hands.
Then we cook the meat you brought."
One warrior asked hesitantly,
"Chief... what do you mean 'cook the meat'?"
I raised an eyebrow.
"Don't tell me... you don't know what cooking means?"
Their confused expressions confirmed it.
I asked,
"So how do you eat your food?"
Another warrior replied innocently,
"We just cut the meat... and eat it."
I blinked.
"So... you eat it raw?"
"Do you even clean the meat?"
One answered,
"Why do we need to clean it?"
I sighed heavily.
Yeah... I expected this.
"From now on—we clean our meat."
"Why?" they asked, puzzled.
Frustrated, I said,
"I'll tell you why later. For now—just do it."
They cleaned the meat with water.
I then gave another command,
"Start a fire. I want one fire between every two people."
They sat in pairs and began working.
I looked around with a proud smile.
"Now... I will teach you how to cook food.
Once you've learned, you'll teach other villagers. Do you understand?"
"Yes, Chief!" they shouted.
One by one, I taught them how to prepare the meat.
When it was finally cooked, we ate together.
The moment they took their first bites, their expressions transformed—
From tired and broken to the pure joy of someone receiving their salary after months of hard work.
They chewed happily, chatted, laughed.
After we finished, I stood up.
"So? How was it?"
They shouted,
"Yes, Chief!
We never knew meat could taste this good after cooking it!"
"Well then..." I said proudly, "From now on—we cook food and enjoy ourselves."
"Yes, Chief!"
Some of them even began dancing in celebration.
"We'll hunt more!"
"Yes, Chief!"
"You'll follow all my instructions?"
"Yes, Chief!"
"You'll train until you die?"
"Yes, Ch—"
They paused.
All eyes turned toward me.
I was giving them a creepy, wicked smile.
"So... let's have some fun doing training."
Their expressions shifted—
From joyful salarymen...
To poor souls who just realized their salary is going to pay back a mountain of debt.