Chapter 12

Feeling fresh after a nice haircut and shave.

Now that my bangs are gone, my field of vision feels much broader. Adapting is a scary thing!

“Is that guy really him? Didn’t they call him a savage?”

“Just a moment ago, he had long hair and a wild beard.”

“Not bad at all. He looks like he’s around our age!”

I realized just how important appearance is. The number of rude comments from people drastically declined.

It seems like rumors spread quickly in just that short time. I’m glad I managed to get myself groomed.

“Professor, we’re here!”

“Hm? Oh, right. The haircut…”

After returning to the admin building and reporting to Malboro, he stared at my face blankly.

Then he let out a sigh and said something like he couldn’t believe his eyes.

“Unexpectedly unexpected, huh? You look younger than I thought. From the features, you’re from the Eastern Empire, right? Your skin and eye colors… hmm.”

Malboro was looking into my eyes and made a sound of contemplation.

He then turned his gaze to Luna and quietly spoke, glancing at me occasionally.

“Is this a person? You probably know what red eyes mean.”

“I’ll go with ‘yes.'”

“Well… okay. I’ve informed the other professors and the Dean. We’ll decide on your treatment soon.”

“Where will Sivar stay in the meantime?”

The most crucial question popped up. It’s all well and good to come this far, but where am I supposed to live?

By default, United Academy assigns personal dormitories. There are separate buildings for male and female dormitories.

So I definitely can’t stay in Luna’s or Eli’s dormitory. That’s just not happening, even if I stretch things!

“The best way in would be to enter as an Academy Student, but…”

“Sivar can’t speak or read.”

“Sibal?”

I responded, as if asking why he was calling me.

Luna shot me a look saying, “See?”

And Malboro’s expression became even more complicated. Getting into the Academy is practically impossible.

If I knew how to read, I’d have written something. But without that, I have no options.

You might think it’s okay to say I understand the words, but even if I wanted to, I have no connections in this world.

I need to act as much like a wild man as possible to evoke some sympathy. Luna actually did that too.

“Why did you bring someone like this here? Even the Tartar tribe would shake their heads.”

“The situation is a bit…”

“That’s enough. Until your treatment is decided, you’ll probably stay with one of the male professors. I can’t say if he’ll be obedient, though.”

“Don’t worry about that. I’m a good listener.”

“What does it mean to be a good listener if you can’t understand anything?”

At Malboro’s rebuttal, Luna looked at me with a puzzled expression.

I can’t talk, but that doesn’t mean I can’t understand. Luna chimed in.

“He seems to grasp things through gestures. You could say he feels the emotions behind it?”

“Well… I guess living in the wilderness must give some kind of insight. Even monsters can communicate, after all.”

After that, Malboro stood up to get me cleaned up. I heard he was planning to wash me at his dorm.

Since I’ve been bathing in the valley every day, I wasn’t sure if it was even necessary. I’m not that dirty.

Although I’ll comply for the future, it still feels off for him to treat me like I’m filthy.

“Ahhh…”

I thought about that until I stepped into the bathtub filled with warm water.

I let out a pleasant sound, enveloped by the warmth of the hot water covering my entire body.

It felt like I was melting. I couldn’t even imagine using hot water in the forest.

My mind felt fuzzy, and the sharpness of my senses faded. I wanted to just sink in and stay here.

“Is it nice? By the way, those scars are remarkable. Hmm…”

Malboro mumbled as he looked at me. It seemed my scars led him to think deeply.

Come to think of it, he’s quite a nice guy. I recall that he was praised as the “Honey Professor” even in the Soul World.

It’s not that the other professors are bad, but I heard he’s quite generous with rewards.

‘I think there’s an event related to this guy’s son coming up.’

I can’t seem to remember right now. My senses have been dispersed by the warm water.

“Hey! Get out! How long do you plan to stay in there? It’s been over an hour!”

“Sibal (no way).”

“Get out, you brat! Your skin’s gonna fall apart! I have work to do!”

He really was trying hard to pull me out.

Of course, I wasn’t budging since my strength outmatched his.

“Ugh. Ugh. What kind of strength do you have? The eye color too, what are you? They said you easily hunted a Monkey, and it’s true?”

Malboro showed a reaction of disbelief as he realized my strength was beyond imagination.

Regardless, I enjoyed my bath for a while. The haircut and the bath made me feel unexpectedly refreshed.

I wanted to stay here longer, but I couldn’t. With Malboro’s continuous nagging, I pouted and stepped out of the bathtub.

“Geez, why does our kid listen less than usual?”

“Sibal (what?)”

“Listen up, you brat. You said you understood the words?”

While scrubbing my head, Malboro kept grumbling. He must be busy as a professor, but he really is quite nice.

At least I don’t want to be rude to someone as kind as Malboro. If he had a troublesome personality, that’d be different.

Scrub scrub scrub-

Malboro vigorously washed my hair. Maybe because he has a son, his touch was gentle yet firm.

Then I noticed the soap lying on the floor. Is this the source of the pleasant smell?

As I picked up the soap and brought it to my nose, Malboro spoke up hurriedly from behind.

“Hey now, that’s not for eating. Put that down. In the Hwan Empire, it’s called… what was it? Zizi, Ziji?”

Does he think of me as someone without sense?

I can’t blame him. I placed the soap back down at his gesture.

“Are you hungry? You mentioned you lived in the wild, so I’d assume you like meat.”

“Sibal (yes).”

“You do? Later, you can go with Luna. I’m out of money.”

Where does he think I got the money from? A commoner student without money or a professor without money?

He seems to have been making a joke, chuckling to himself. I have a feeling he’ll treat me to a meal soon.

Indeed, he’s a good person. If an event related to his son emerges in the future, I’ll definitely rush over.

“Here you go. These clothes. Wear this. No, you’re putting it on backward. That’s not how you wear it.”

After getting nice and clean from the bath, I started changing into the clothes Malboro had prepared.

Having only worn rags until now, wearing actual clothes felt a bit strange.

Wearing it backward was the least of my problems; I couldn’t even figure out where the holes were. Most of all, it felt suffocating.

As I frowned in discomfort and struggled, Malboro burst out laughing.

“You need to wear clothes to be human. Endure the suffocation.”

“Sibal (it’s suffocating).”

“Endure it, huh? Should I reward you with snacks every time you put them on?”

I didn’t need that. I’ve just gotten used to not wearing clothes for so long, but I still have some common sense.

After some hassle, I managed to wear a white T-shirt and brown pants. And slippers, for what it’s worth.

Thanks to that, I could somewhat shed the savage persona, but it wouldn’t be long before it would show again. I’m still more accustomed to the wild.

Whoosh!

For instance, I kicked the slipper far away. It was fun to do it again after so long.

“This kid’s already learning this? That won’t do, though. Good thing he’s being well-behaved.”

Learning? Who’s learning? I did this when I was bored in the past.

It turned out I might actually be a person, so I decided to play responsibly. Malboro seemed to have given up on me.

So, all dressed up, I returned to the administrative building. As soon as I got back, familiar faces came into view.

“L-Luna. Could that person really be Sivar?”

“Yup. Believe it or not, it’s true.”

“Why is he so handsome?”

“You shouldn’t ask me that.”

It was Eli and Porori standing next to her. Eli looked shocked at my face.

In the meantime, Porori wore a pouty face; I heard they went to get rabies shots.

Not that it’s funny or anything, but really, rabies shots? There’s something amusing yet sad about it.

“Sibal (does it hurt)?”

I asked if it hurts.

“Kiing (screw you).”

Such a response came back. This little rodent is just being finicky even when I’m concerned.

“Is that the guy? The survivor they brought from the Chaos Forest?”

Just then, an unfamiliar voice reached my ears. When I turned my head, I saw a face I didn’t recognize.

With neatly grown blue hair and asymmetrically cut bangs. Ice-blue eyes, as cold as if they held frost.

Overall, a chilly beauty observed me with an indifferent expression. Her pale skin stood out, almost like mine.

“Those eyes… they’re red. Could it be a monster disguised as a human?”

She spoke bluntly, showing no fear. However, there was no malice in her demeanor.

Thanks to that, I realized what the red eyes imply. It’s a characteristic of monsters with the Berserk ability.

While I sometimes see monsters with red eyes, when their Berserk ability activates, their pupils glow, making them look even more terrifying.

As I was processing that, someone other than Malboro spoke up scolding her.

“Isn’t that too obvious? He said he understands some words, you know.”

She resembled an elegant East Asian beauty despite being closer to me in appearance. She had black mid-length hair and dark eyes.

Lastly, the beauty had a spot under her left eye, exuding a distinct charm. Her unique fashion strongly indicated Hwan Empire origins.

The Hwan Empire is known for being an area inspired by Eastern fantasy, akin to martial arts but not identical.

Also, it’s known as a nature-friendly and mystical country that boasts various abilities, like striking with lightning or changing winds.

“I just said what I saw. Since he mentioned he lived in the wild, having Berserk isn’t surprising.”

“Sarah, that’s the problem. Can’t you express it a bit more euphemistically?”

“I find that funny. You all beat around the bush over there in the Hwan Empire.”

Even in such a situation, their bickering shows a friendly yet distant relationship. Both of them seem to be notable characters.

The chilly beauty is named Sarah, and the more traditional Eastern beauty is known as Yeonhwa.

I don’t know her full name. At this moment, I can’t even remember my own name!

‘But I’m sure there’s one more person… right?’

My memory is fuzzy. One of the professors who played a significant role in the Soul World.

Just as I blinked and stared at the arguing Sarah and Yeonhwa, I felt a hand on my shoulder.

I didn’t sense any presence at all.

Unlike the wilderness, I seemed relaxed in the noise of civilization I’ve already reached.

Startled, I turned around and automatically reacted according to my ‘instinct’ honed in the wild.

-Graaah!

I let out a beast-like roar and quickly turned my back. At the same time, I swung my hand like a claw towards the intruder.

The person behind me seemed equally startled, quickly withdrawing their hand. But my hand caught on their clothes first.

It appeared they were about to flee, but with my hand caught on their attire, I yanked them towards me without hesitation.

Boom!

“Ahhhh!”

Within a second, the person who had come close to me tumbled to the ground. Their clothes ripped with a whoosh!

Having subdued them, all that was left was a follow-up attack. With my wild instincts still fresh, they often outweighed my rational thoughts.

If it continued, I would have stomped them to finish it off. However, there were ‘people’ around me.

“Catch him! Don’t let him get away!”

“What power…!”

“Let go of him quickly!”

The professors promptly restrained me by grabbing my arms and waist in that brief moment. They managed to react swiftly despite the danger.

Even they struggled to manage my strength, and I could feel that.

But this was enough. The person who had fallen was rescued by Luna’s pull, getting them out of harm.

Bang!

With the professors’ desperate attempts to hold me back, I finally stomped down with force. The ground shook a bit from the impact.

Despite being in a shaky position, spider-web-like cracks formed on the ground. If I had struck properly, it might have been fatal.

Just when reason was about to return, my foot came down, and I couldn’t retract it. It was a consequence of my overwhelming instincts.

“Grrrr…

“Are you… are you okay?”

“Um… um. I’m fine. But…”

I glared daggers at the person who had approached me from behind, growling like a beast.

They either had their eyes closed or barely opened, with grayish-silver hair.

The man, exuding an air of ‘I’m suspicious,’ pointed at me with trembling fingers.

“W-w-what was that? That beast-like sound…?”

“··· ···”

As I looked at the person who approached me from behind, I immediately relaxed my guard.

I let go of all the tension that had built up inside. Despite that, the professors still held onto me. They looked extremely tense.

‘What’s going on? How did this guy sneak up on me?’

He clearly gave off a dubious vibe.

“Uh… at least he’s a person.”

“His eyes are red like a monster, right? The student saw that just moments ago.”

“Wasn’t it the professor who approached me without a sound?”

“He was just trying to greet you…”

Despite his exterior, he’s recognized among the Soul World users as a ‘puppet’ or ‘saint.’