The seven days of recovery passed unexpectedly quickly for Lohran.
'Reading these ner–...books…sure makes for a good pastime…' he mused, closing the final book after finishing it.
He was now more or less aware of the basic things he needed to know about the world of Edelmundr.
For example—and most importantly—the damned Zoraphs and Zorphlings.
From what he read, Zorphlings were weaker versions of Zoraphs, and a Threat Level 2 Zorphling was what had attacked his current body, forcing him to rest for seven days and read books.
'It was indeed surprising that this red runt's body survived an attack from what would be the equivalent of an overgrown, armored tiger back on Earth…'
Even Lohran wasn't sure he could have managed such a feat, even with his original body.
And that was merely a Zorphling.
'Speaking of the wretches…'
Lohran excitedly jumped down from his bed, stretching for a bit to ensure he felt no more pain.
He then smiled satisfactorily after confirming he was indeed fine.
According to his father, today was his first day of training to become a Dawnchaser, representing the Minor Aristocratic House of Neyvaris like his older brother.
And all of that apparently starts with eating some dark, cursed piece of meat.
'F*cking lovely…'
"Milly, lead me to the dining room."
"Yes, young master Lohran!"
On their way, Lohran noticed some of his family's workers carrying things out the door and frowned at the sight.
"What are they doing?" he asked the pink-haired maid.
"Ah… they are selling items the manor has no use for," Milly responded, then quickly added, "But young master Lohran need not mind such trivial matters! Come, the dining room is this way."
Lohran decided not to overthink things, but this didn't mean he wasn't aware and had no idea what was going on.
He had a guess…
A few minutes later, the two arrived at the dining room, where Lohran's entire family was already waiting for him.
His father, Garwin, was frowning in displeasure at having to wait.
Celina, on the other hand, smiled warmly, happy to finally dine with her second son again.
His elder brother, who resembled him except for his long red hair, also smiled—though a bit forced.
Something else caught Lohran's attention, though—a little runt with a rectangular device in her hands.
Kiora was happily scrolling through online feeds with a smartphone in her hands.
"Wha?" Lohran was momentarily dumbfounded, turning to his father with a slight scowl. "How come she gets to use a digital handscreen?!"
He could have done so much more research and been far less bored if only he had been allowed to use the damned thing for just seven days!
To his surprise, Garwin trembled, and the atmosphere suddenly grew tense.
Even Celina didn't know how to react.
It was the very reason the real Lohran had fled from home, making it a sensitive topic.
Kiora quickly hid the phone, her hands slightly shaking as she turned to her father, who was now glaring at her.
Lohran noticed the weird atmosphere and was about to speak again when suddenly…
"Fine. I shall give you your own digital handscreen. However, you are not allowed to touch it during training. Understood?"
To Celina's surprise, Garwin relented this time, finally giving Lohran what he wanted.
But then, she remembered—she had another son.
Louen was naturally envious. However, he and his father had already talked.
As the eldest, he would do what was right.
He would set an example for Lohran.
"Huh? Isn't that a given? Why would I even touch that thing when I could be doing something better—like training?" Lohran responded, a bit confused and annoyed.
Everyone was momentarily surprised by the second young master's words.
Garwin, however, doubted whether his son truly felt that way or was simply saying something he couldn't back up.
Either way, only time would tell.
As Lord of House Neyvaris, he would closely observe Lohran's training before heading out on another mission to earn more money for the family.
"As long as you follow my rules…" the lord said, closing his eyes as he shook his head.
Lohran sat in the empty chair the next moment, satisfied as he stared at a small piece of meat as dark as charcoal on his plate.
"Oh? Is this the Zorphling meat you were talking about?" he asked.
"Correct," Garwin confirmed, slightly pleased that his son at least showed interest in Dawnchaser matters. "Now, make sure to split this small piece in fo—"
Before the lord could even finish his words, Lohran had already popped the entire piece into his mouth, chewed a few times, and swallowed it without hesitation.
Garwin felt all the hairs on his body stand on end, and everyone in the dining room stared at Lohran in utter horror.
He had barely escaped the clutches of death a few days ago, and now he was courting it again!
Even Garwin didn't know what to do.
If his little troublemaker were still chewing the meat, there might have been a chance—but the runt had already swallowed it whole!
Soon, Lohran's eyes widened momentarily as his flesh trembled and a wave of overwhelming pain crashed over him.
It felt as if his entire body were being battered by hundreds of baseball bats while thousands of ants stung him all at once!
He fell to his knees, gritting his teeth as he fought to endure the agony, sweat pouring down his face as he clenched his fists.
"D-Dear!!" Celina exclaimed in horror as she rushed to Lohran's side.
Unfortunately, she couldn't reach her son—Garwin stopped her, his voice firm as he suddenly ordered, "No one come close! Disrupting his focus would be worse!"
They could only watch and hope Lohran would survive the ordeal without being traumatized by the overwhelming pain.
While he wouldn't die, his career as a Dawnchaser might be over before it even began if he became afraid of eating the dark meat!
There was also a fair chance he would be mentally scarred for life.
Tense minutes passed as Lohran, still struggling to endure, knelt on the ground and clawed at the floor.
Then, after what seemed like an eternity for the family who was watching on the sidelines, Lohran stood and trembled slightly, a satisfied expression on his face as he exclaimed:
"Damn, that was freakin' spicy! Gimme more!"