The Hero Turned Into A Potato And The World Fell To Ruin

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.

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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.

Seeing Liu Ji and Yaine sitting side by side, then further scanning the surroundings, the young swordsman asked, "Yaine, where's Osar? Didn't I tell him to watch over you two?"

"I sent him to chop wood," Yaine replied, eyeing the giant bear on the young man's shoulder. "That's quite a haul, Mervant. Need help freezing it?"

"Yeah, give me a sec. I'll skin it first and cut off a paw," said the young swordsman named Mervant. He found an empty patch of grass and tossed the bear to the ground with a loud thud. Then, he swiftly raised his sword and deftly started skinning the dead bear.

Liu Ji gaped at the sight of this.

How heavy is that huge bear? A ton? Maybe two? Holy crap, this brother looks skinny, but he's actually so strong?

Are the people in this world just so exceptional? Or are these few I just met especially powerful?!

Liu Ji suddenly felt fortunate that the trio he encountered seemed to be decent people. He, as a weak and hapless youth, might have been done for if he had stumbled upon some bloodthirsty psychopaths.

Well… But he probably couldn't be that unlucky, right?

Liu Ji, still mentally anchored in his past life, instinctively thought that good people were still the majority in this world.

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Despite the bear's massive size, skinning it appeared relatively easy for Mervant, who could flip the giant carcass effortlessly. His adept skill at this suggested he was no stranger to skinning.

Although the skinned bear carcass looked gruesome, Liu Ji, who had seen rabbits skinned firsthand at his favorite spicy hot pot restaurant, only needed to imagine it as a supersized rabbit to not feel too disturbed.

"This enormous hide could make a fine carpet for our new place, saving us from laying cypress branches as bedding," Mervant said, spreading the entire bear hide across the grassy clearing. "Cleaning and tanning it will be your job, Yaine."

"Mm, that's easy," Yaine responded, gently tapping her staff on the ground. Several small, fluffy, white creatures popped into existence and skittered over to the bear hide. Each one grabbed and lifted a corner, then hopped off toward the river with the whole hide.

Arms crossed and watching the little creatures carry the hide away, Mervant muttered, "Heh, familiars do make things convenient."

"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?