Kain's blood-slicked hands moved with methodical precision as Kain guided Lyra's scrap metal knife along the armored hog's underbelly. The blade—little more than sharpened scrap metal—was barely adequate for the task, but his hunter's knowledge compensated for the tool's deficiencies.

  "You have to cut beneath the armor plates," he instructed, demonstrating the technique with practiced efficiency. "There's a membrane connecting them—see how it gives way easier than trying to force through the plating?"

  It's strange helping someone again. I spent so many years surrounded by the best of the best that it feels good to teach someone new things.

  The hog's internal anatomy was familiar yet alien; the Integration had restructured its physiology in subtle ways that only someone with Kain's experience would notice. Patches of muscle tissue glowed with faint blue luminescence, and its blood had an unusual viscosity that suggested enhanced oxygen-carrying capacity.

  Hogs were unknown to Kain as they had gone extinct along with millions of other species in the years that followed the Integration; despite their unique adaptations, the System only benefitted those that were willing to evolve beyond their original standing.

  "Is this... safe to eat?" Lyra asked, her voice betraying a mixture of disgust and desperate hunger.

  Kain nodded, separating the creature's heart—twice the size it should have been—and setting it aside. "More than safe. System—enhanced creatures provide substantial benefits when consumed."

  [Harvesting Successful: Armored Hog (Level 4) - Obtained: Enhanced Meat (5)]

  The System sang to Kain through his spiritual sense; he had dismissed this notification in his previous life with the System many times, and it no longer showed up. It was nostalgic for Kain to see this again, but he dismissed it once again.

  "You sound like you've done this before," Lyra observed, watching as he methodically divided the meat into portions. "Recently, I mean."

  "I've hunted and eaten a few creatures over the past days," Kain replied, the half-truth flowing naturally. "Animals provide experience and levels when consumed, but there's a significant difference between raw and cooked meat."

  Lyra's eyebrows rose. "Like a game bonus? Cooked food gives better stats?"

  "Something like that," Kain answered, mentally filing away another unfamiliar reference. "Raw meat provides minimal benefits. Properly cooked, it can significantly accelerate attribute growth and provide decent healing."

  What he didn't mention was that his knowledge came from decades of living in a system-governed world—from countless hunts beyond colony walls where every resource had to be maximized for survival. The cooking techniques he'd learned from veteran S-Rank Hunters who understood that even small advantages could mean the difference between returning home or becoming another name on the memorial wall.

  "So how do we cook it?" Lyra asked, looking around the clearing for materials. "Build a fire?"

  Kain stared at his right hand, which had mostly recovered from the strain of his earlier attack. The Lightning Dao pulsed beneath his skin, suggesting possibilities beyond just the Lightning Dash technique.

  This skill changed from [Lightning Dash] to [Lethal Voltage]. I have good reason to believe, based on my own past evolutions and adaptations of skills, that there's more that's changed here. Maybe if I consciously channel my Dao into a different part of my body I can isolate the lightning...

  "We might not need to," he murmured, more to himself than to her.

  He concentrated, channeling a small portion of energy into his palm. If Lightning Dash could be modified for lethality, perhaps the same principles could be applied in a more controlled fashion. The Dao responded eagerly, electricity gathering around his hand in a tight, controlled aura of blue-white energy.

  "Stand back," he warned Lyra, who took several hasty steps backward.

  Kain placed his electrified hand against a slab of hog meat. With careful precision, he adjusted the energy flow, watching as the electricity seared the flesh without charring it. The meat sizzled and contracted, cooking from the inside out as the controlled current passed through it.

  Very interesting.

  "That's... that's incredible," Lyra whispered, the scent of perfectly cooked meat drawing her closer despite her initial caution.

  Kain felt a surge of satisfaction—not just at the successful application of his ability, but at the realization that he no longer needed the metal rod as a conduit. His body itself could serve as both weapon and tool.

  Kain felt a small amount of energy leaving his body as this happened, but he knew this would recharge shortly.

  A sharp pain lanced through his arm, reminding him that his pathways were still strained from overexertion. He maintained his neutral expression, unwilling to display weakness, but internally acknowledged that he needed to address the damage soon. Sustained pathway strain could lead to temporary ability lockout—a potentially fatal condition in this environment.

  Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation.

  "Here," he said, offering Lyra the first piece of cooked meat. "Eat. You'll feel the difference almost immediately."

  She accepted it gratefully, tearing into the protein with the desperation of someone who'd been surviving on foraged berries and hope. Her eyes widened as she swallowed the first bite.

  "It's... tingling," she said between bites. "Like I can feel it working."

  Kain nodded, preparing more meat for himself. Each cut was strategic, prioritizing the most nutrient-dense portions. "The system enhances everything—even food. The stronger the creature, the greater the benefit."

  As they ate in silence, Lyra's color improved noticeably. The small wound on her leg had already begun to close—another benefit of system-enhanced consumption that Kain had anticipated but hadn't mentioned.

  As Kain consumed the first few bites of lightning-cooked hog meat, a peculiar sensation spread through his body. What began as a warm tingle in his core expanded outward through his limbs, intensifying until his entire frame thrummed with energy. The meat's enhanced properties—activated by his precise application of Lightning Dao—were being metabolized with extraordinary efficiency, accelerating the accumulation of experience he'd been gradually building.

  The forest around him seemed to momentarily blur as his perception shifted, his senses sharpening to accommodate a sudden surge of power.

  [Level Up! You have reached Level 4]

  The notification appeared with understated simplicity that belied the profound transformation occurring within him. Kain paused mid-chew, eyes half-closed as he mentally directed his awareness inward, tracking the changes as they cascaded through his system.

  His strained lightning pathways regenerated at an accelerated rate, the damaged neural connections healing as the level-up energy suffused his body. The persistent ache in his right arm diminished, though a phantom echo of the pain remained—a warning against future overexertion rather than an active injury.

  Kain summoned his status screen with a practiced mental command:

  Name: Kain

  Level: 4

  Title(s): [Heart of the Storm] (???)

  Class: Elemental Hunter (F-Rank)

  Subclass: Stormstrider

  Affinity: Lightning (Minor)

  Skills: [Lethal Voltage] (I)

  The interface revealed nothing unexpected—no new skills or ability upgrades accompanied this particular advancement. Kain wasn't surprised. Early levels often provided little beyond the fundamental enhancement of existing capabilities, a pattern he recognized from his previous life's progression.

  "Something happening?" Lyra asked, noticing his momentary stillness.

  Kain returned to awareness of his surroundings, masking the depth of his experience with casual nonchalance. "Just leveled up," he answered, taking another bite of the meat.

  "That fast?" Her eyes widened. "Just from eating?"

  He nodded, deliberately understating the significance. "System-enhanced food provides experience. The stronger the creature, the greater the benefit."

  Lyra stared at him with barely contained frustration. "Meanwhile, I'm still stuck at level one with a Blade Dao that does absolutely nothing." She held up her makeshift knife, examining its crude edge with disdain. "What am I doing wrong? You seem to know everything about this system stuff."

  The question hung in the air between them, loaded with implications. Kain chewed slowly, buying time to consider his response. Her eager desperation was palpable—the hunger for knowledge as sharp as any physical need.

  Her weapon is the problem, he realized immediately. In his previous life, he'd witnessed dozens of Blade Dao users struggle with similar limitations. The Blade path demanded harmony between wielder and weapon—a resonance that couldn't be achieved with improvised tools. Her current knife was holding her back like an anchor, preventing her Dao from properly awakening.

  "It might be your knife," he suggested, adopting a tone of speculative consideration rather than certain knowledge. "I met a Blade Dao user the other day. They said they typically need weapons that can serve as proper conduits for their energy."

  Her eyes lit up. "You think so? Like I need a special knife or something? I can't believe someone has already figured this stuff out."

  Kain shrugged, maintaining his facade of casual assumption. "Makes sense, doesn't it? My Lightning responds to my intentions directly. But your Dao is externalized through a tool—and that tool looks like scrap metal at best."

  Lyra examined her crude weapon with new understanding. "So I need a better knife. Where would I even find something like that out here?"

  "The right blade would be an extension of yourself," Kain continued, knowing with absolute certainty what she needed but presenting it as educated guesswork. "Something that resonates with your specific Dao signature. Once you have that, your levels will likely come easier, and the blade itself might adapt and evolve alongside you."

  This was fundamental Blade Dao theory—knowledge drilled into every hunter at the citadel. The weapon-user bond was symbiotic, each growth in the wielder triggering corresponding evolution in their blade.

  Kain had read about the earliest Blade masters and how they had carried ordinary steel that gradually transformed into legendary weapons through years of shared development.

  "How do you know all this?" Lyra asked, suspicion creeping into her voice. "You're talking like you've been living with this system for years, not days."

  Kain met her gaze steadily. "I observe. I adapt. And I've always had an affinity for understanding systems and patterns." He gestured to the cooked meat. "Finish eating. We don't want to stay in one place for too long."

  Lyra hesitated, clearly unsatisfied with his evasion, but hunger won out. She took another bite, chewing thoughtfully. "What about monster cores? The system mentioned something about those when I killed a snake yesterday. Could that help my weapon?"

  So she knows about cores already, Kain noted.

  The system disseminated certain fundamental knowledge broadly—likely to accelerate the selection process for Tournament candidates.

  "Cores contain concentrated energy," he confirmed. "Some can be absorbed directly for experience, others have specialized properties that can enhance equipment." He carefully modulated his response to sound like recent discovery rather than well-established knowledge. "The armored hog might have one worth extracting."

  "Would you show me how?" The eagerness in Lyra's voice was unmistakable. "I need every advantage I can get if I'm going to survive this."

  Kain nodded, reaching for the remains of the hog. "The core should be near the heart—a crystallized formation that feels different from the surrounding tissue."

  As he began demonstrating the extraction technique, Kain calculated the benefits and risks of this temporary alliance. Teaching her increased her value as a temporary companion but also accelerated her development as a potential competitor. The Tournament would eventually force choices—alliances would fracture, and partnerships would dissolve.