Chapter 7: Devouring the Wild Boar Orphnoch

"You bastard! Whatever you are, you're no match for me!"

Gritting his teeth, he raised his tusk weapon and fiercely charged forward, intending to fight Raven head-on.

Even if the other guy was a monster, he was an Orphnoch too!

They were all Kaijin; who was afraid of whom?

Raven calmly watched the charging Wild Boar Orphnoch, then placed his hand on the handle grip of the Driver and drew it out.

A sword-like weapon, slick with black blood, appeared.

[Violent Break]

This weapon was created by hardening the Amazon cells inside the body.

In the original series, Jin Takayama never used this ability, and Haruka Mizusawa only used it in critical moments, becoming weak afterward.

This was because it severely tested one's regenerative ability.

Jin's self-healing was much weaker than Haruka's, so he hardly ever used this weapon, relying mostly on his fists.

But Raven was different. His regenerative ability was the absolute ceiling among all Amazons, as he was the sole successful artificial Amazon Origin.

The lysogenic cells in his body outnumbered those of Jin and Haruka combined.

Therefore, he didn't care about this consumption; it was painless and negligible.

He could replenish the energy by simply eating an egg or two.

Raven lifted the long blade with one hand and unleashed a violent horizontal slash directly at the Wild Boar Orphnoch.

Tch!

In an instant.

The Wild Boar Orphnoch, which possessed high defensive capabilities, was effortlessly sliced clean in half at the waist.

"No... impossible."

With his body split in two, the Wild Boar Orphnoch instantly lost the ability to resist. His life force rapidly faded.

He hadn't even had time to process what was happening before he fell...

Ding!

[Congratulations to the Host for completing the first hunt. You may now devour him.]

"Huh?" Raven was taken aback by the System's voice.

He still had to devour this Orphnoch?

What kind of joke was this? He wasn't doing something so disgusting.

[The Host does not need to worry. To devour any Kaijin, you do not need to use your mouth personally. The System will automatically decompose their corpse into energy for you to absorb.]

"So that's how it works. Why didn't you say so earlier?"

Raven finally relaxed. Before the body could crumble into sand, it was converted into energy and absorbed by him from a distance.

"Hoo... Huh? I don't feel any different."

Raven patted his stomach in his Rider form and couldn't help but ask.

[That is because the Host is currently wearing the Driver. The transformation limits most of your core power, which is why you can't feel the change.]

"Is that so? Does that mean I'll feel the increase in strength even in my normal state once I de-transform?" Raven asked.

[Yes. As long as the Host continues to hunt, your base strength in the normal state will increase, even without activating your Amazon cells.]

In his untransformed state, Raven's strength and speed, while superior to a normal human's, were limited.

He could only unleash his true Amazon power by activating his Amazon cells and transforming into an Amazon Origin or a Rider.

Now, by absorbing the Orphnoch's power, he could gain strength improvements without activating his Amazon cells, and he also gained the Orphnoch's genes.

This meant that in the future, fighting monsters in his human form might not be impossible.

Raven's interest was immediately piqued.

He deactivated his transformation and contentedly left the abandoned factory.

On the way, Raven suddenly remembered something.

He asked, "System, I just completed the quest. Where is the reward?"

He remembered the rewards were a café and legal identity documentation. How would he receive them?

[The Host need not worry. It has already been arranged. Please go to this address.]

The System provided Raven with an address.

"Oda Café..."

Raven looked at the name, then hailed a taxi according to the address provided.

The café was located in a relatively secluded part of Tokyo.

Upon arriving at the storefront, he saw a sign hanging on the door that read: Temporarily Closed.

Raven pushed the door open without overthinking it.

The first impression upon entering was a strong sense of nostalgia. The tables, chairs, and overall decor were predominantly wooden.

After a brief glance around, Raven spotted a middle-aged man wearing an apron wiping down a table.

He appeared to be the owner.

"Sorry, we're closed today."

Noticing someone had come in, the cafe owner turned around and apologized.

"I'm not here for coffee. You must be the owner, Mr. Oda? I'm Raven."

Raven reported his name as per the System's arrangement.

"Oh, Mr. Raven! You're here to take over the café, then," the owner said with a smile, looking at Raven.

After all, the other party had bought his café for a price well above market value.

And he had arranged for a third party to sign the contract on his behalf, paying the full amount in one go.

"Everything in the shop is in working order. Here are the keys," Manager Oda handed Raven a set of keys that were resting on the bar.

The café was a detached, two-story building. The first floor, a large space, was for the business.

The second floor was the living quarters, with several rooms and a backyard that could be used for parking.

"I've cleaned up all the things upstairs. You can move in today," Manager Oda continued.

He was now completely relaxed. After selling the café he had run for years, he planned to return to his rural hometown for an early retirement.

"Thank you for your hard work, Manager Oda."

Raven returned the smile.

He was inwardly surprised at the System's capability. It could actually influence and modify reality.

Regardless, he had truly gained a foothold in this world and secured a place to live.

When he wasn't busy, he could brew coffee and leisurely enjoy life.

After formally completing the handover procedures with the old manager and familiarizing himself with the stocking process, Raven moved into the café that very evening.

He decided to officially open for business the following day.

At the same time, Raven changed the name on the sign outside the door from Oda Café to Amazon Café.