神级狩魔人

Chapter 4: First Day for the Newbie

That night, Roy begged Moore and Susie to let him work as the butcher’s apprentice. The couple refused at first, but they couldn’t keep it up as Roy didn’t stop, so they agreed.

The couple had been by Roy’s side since the day he was born, and they thought it was bizarre that Roy’s demeanor had completely changed after waking up. He used to be a quiet, timid child, but then he became talkative and expressive. 

However, the concern shown by Roy toward them wasn’t fake, so the innocent couple didn’t suspect anything. Instead, they felt relieved about their son’s change. They thought that the accident matured him and made him grow up. 

When the next day came, the Kaer villagers were surprised to see a frail Roy following the butcher around. 

“Did Moore’s kid turn insane after almost getting crushed? He’s as weak as a girl. He can’t butcher anything.” 

“Oh, what do you know, you bumpkin? The boy had a brush with death. Of course he’s going to change, but I bet he won’t last the week. Not everyone can be a butcher, and it’s a lucrative job. Why’d Fletcher want to share with him?” 

The villagers gossiped about him, but Roy ignored their nasty comments. All he wanted to do was work with Fletcher, but after a day, he found out that a butcher’s job was different from what he’d had in mind. 

After the bigger livestock were sent to the butcher’s place, Fletcher would feed the cows and goats some yellow powder that would paralyze them to prevent them from struggling as they were killed. 

Fletcher told him the powder was an anesthetic the village’s herbalist gave him. After killing the livestock came the hardest part: cutting up the meat perfectly. If they wanted to keep the muscle intact after cutting it, the butcher had to have a thorough understanding of the anatomy of cows, goats, and pigs. 

Fletcher wasn’t talented enough to draw the anatomy of the livestock. All he could do was teach Roy through action. 

When Roy saw Fletcher calmly skin the cow, disembowel it, and filet the meat, he started to puke. The stench of the cow’s insides filled the air, becoming a miasma of everything that was foul in the world. Everywhere he looked, Roy could only see a crimson hue, the cow’s blood splattering everywhere. 

His stomach churned, and he retched again. The kill wasn’t much, but the disassembling of the livestock was a great test of his will. 

The butcher chortled. “I knew something was off when you killed that cow so easily yesterday. Now you know how gory this line of work is. Told you it’s dirty and exhausting. Why else do you think everyone else stays away from being a butcher? Well, everyone except you, Roy. Of course, you ain’t going to get my business this easily. See if you can keep up until the end.” 

When Roy recovered from his retching, his head felt fuzzy, and his legs were starting to turn to jelly. But the butcher didn’t give him time to rest. 

“Come here and take the knife. I’ll teach you how to make a perfect cut. Let’s start with strength control. Start here, and cut upward.” 

“I said up! The fuck are you cutting?! Dammit! Put your back into it!”