"Damn it, don't run away, my experience points!" Aaron shouted as he chased after the retreating sea creatures, trying to provoke them.

A few minutes later.

Aaron returned to the shore with a dark expression on his face. He had failed to catch them.

He realized that his arrows needed an upgrade. Maybe the Old Chief could help, perhaps there was a way to forge bone arrows from monster remains.

As for close-range combat, Aaron grew thoughtful. He drew the bone knife from his waist and channeled knight energy into it. Then, he stabbed it into the crab's corpse.

To his surprise, the blade pierced the crab's shell like paper.

He pulled the knife out, stunned by its effectiveness. If he had fought in close quarters earlier, he could have killed the crab in a single strike.

Aaron opened his stats panel, eyes scanning the familiar interface.

Aaron Warwick

Map (Level 3) (0/100)

Mage (Level 11) (0/1000)

Knight (Level 21) (0/10,000)

HP: 560/560

MP: 200/200

STR: 36+20= 56

DEX: 35+20= 55

CON: 36+20= 56

INT: 10+10= 20

Skills:

- Plant Breathing Technique (lv.5) (0/5000)

- Basic Sword Mastery (lv.2) (3/200)

- Basic Archer Mastery (lv.7) (0/700)

- Cooking (lv.2) (10/100)

- Loot (lv. 4) (0/4000)

- Wizard Visualization Method (lv.5) (0/5000)

Spell:

- Light (tier 0) (max)

- Heal (tier 0) (max)

- Rapid Growth (tier 0) (max)

Experience Points: 200

Aaron checked his stats panel and noticed that his Basic Sword Mastery needed improvement. Only by increasing it could he truly excel in close combat.

With 200 experience points left, he didn't hesitate. He upgraded Basic Sword Mastery to Level 3.

A stream of information surged into his mind, repeating the basic techniques again and again. When he came to his senses, he found that wielding the bone knife had become noticeably easier. He could now fight three opponents of equal strength with confidence.

But he wasn't satisfied. He wanted to push further.

A plan began to form he would hunt monsters in the Savannah Mountain Range.

It would serve two purposes:

- Clear out low-level monsters.

- Earn experience points to further level up his sword mastery.

Without delay, Aaron picked up the crab corpse and headed toward his secret garden, not far from the beach.

The garden was modest, surrounded by a wooden fence wall enclosing 20 square meters. A small well, a bucket, and a tent had been set up. To enter, one had to climb or jump over the wall.

Inside the tent, Aaron took out a cooking pot and used firewood to boil water. With his bone knife, he cleaned the crab and placed it into the pot.

While waiting, he plucked a few green chilies, two onions, a small piece of ginger, and several cloves of garlic.

He washed and chopped them all, then snacked on a few oranges while the crab cooked.

Once the crab turned a rich orange color, he removed it, cleaned the pot, and reheated it. He poured in oil extracted from animal fat, added the chopped ingredients, and stirred them gently. Then he poured in orange juice, letting it simmer. Finally, he added the crab and salt, cooking it for a few more minutes.

Meanwhile, Kelly had come looking for Lord Aaron at the shore, only to find it empty.

Puzzled, she frowned. He had said he'd be fishing.

Then it struck her, Aaron had built a secret garden somewhere near the beach.

She scanned the area, muttering to herself, "Now where is that secret garden?"

Spotting smoke rising about 500 meters away, her eyes lit up and she rushed toward it.

A few minutes later, standing outside the wooden wall,

she called out loudly, "Lord Aaron, I have matters to report!"

Aaron, who had just taken the pot down and was about to eat, froze at her voice.

He replied, "Kelly, is it something important?"

Kelly answered excitedly, "Lord Aaron, I've advanced to the mid-tier late Knight Apprentice realm! Not just me, other knight apprentice guards have broken through too!"

Aaron responded with a loud, calm tone, "Okay, I got it. Return and continue your work."

He didn't invite her to eat, after all, it was a Level 7 crab, and eating it might cause indigestion for someone unprepared.

Kelly's excitement deflated instantly. She kicked the wooden wall in frustration and stormed off, cursing him for being so unromantic.

Aaron, meanwhile, had his eyes glued to the food. He couldn't help but shed a tear of joy.

"Finally… after coming to this world, I can taste something familiar again."

He scooped a small amount of gravy and tasted it. The flavor was rich, the sweet and sour orange blended perfectly with the spices.

He feasted alone, savoring every bite.

A few minutes later, he patted his stomach, feeling both his mind and hunger fully satisfied.

Aaron jumped over the wooden wall and made his way back to the village.

Upon arrival, he noticed that Rumba and his guards were missing. He immediately opened the map and located them, just east of the village. They were protecting the villagers, and some guards were also helping to chop trees.

Aaron reached the site and scanned the map again. He spotted a few red dots about 700 meters away, all Level 1 snakes.

He dismissed them. Two guards would be more than enough to handle that threat.

He then checked other areas and found a wild bear, located 4,600 meters from their current position.

Again, he chose to ignore it. The Knight Apprentice guards had already advanced, the weakest at Level 5, the strongest at Level 8. Leaving two guards behind would be sufficient.

The rest could accompany him to carry monster corpses.

Aaron turned to Rumba and said firmly, "Rumba, leave two of your strongest guards to protect the people here. Then follow me. Today, we're going to hunt monsters."

Rumba immediately stood up and gave his orders.

"Numba, Mumba, you two stay here and guard the area.

If anything happens that you can't handle, call the Village Chief for help."

Numba and Mumba nodded in acknowledgment, their expressions firm.

Seeing this, Aaron turned and began leading the rest of the group toward the Savannah Mountain Range.

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