NOVEL NEXT Chapter 6
Before I knew it, I had reached Level 7. Just fishing in the Snake Valley kept my levels climbing consistently, so there was really no need to push myself too hard. Occasionally, wild animals would charge at me though.
But hey, they were just a source of protein.
Small snake-like creatures were no longer a challenge for me. If I was careful of the occasional wild dog or eagle, I could definitely call Snake Valley a paradise.
[Predation (F) Lv.7 has reached max proficiency. Predation (F) Lv.7 → Predation (F) Lv.8]
Predation had reached Lv.8. I hadn’t even hit 10 yet, but I had a feeling it was bound to rise to E-rank soon.
I wondered what would happen to the name when Predation became E-rank.
Recently, I was convinced that the system wanted me to take risks.
It’s not certain, but from my progress to Lv.8, I felt that consuming big animals gave way more proficiency than munching on a bunch of little ones.
There was also another suspicion: before evolving, there was a condition to reach Level 10—consume an animal over 3kg. Looking back, that was a ridiculous requirement.
That only made me more stubborn. I swore I would survive safely. I would become stronger step by step without risks.
No more risking my life on rats or chickens!
But… on second thought, it might be tougher than I thought.
It was obvious that the 10th level would come with its own set of requirements. Sure, maybe not, but it’s better than getting my hopes up and feeling disappointed. What if the bitter system imposed a tough condition… No, let’s stop the pointless speculation.
‘Yeah. I can just grow stronger slowly. Slowly.’
As long as I didn’t stop growing, right? While I was cautiously grabbing something that looked like a worm with the tip of my tentacle, I soon realized it was just a fish.
‘My vision improved, and insects became harder to eat.’
I could tolerate frogs or mice, but bugs just grossed me out. If you asked if I had forgotten my tadpole days, I’d have no comeback, but I seriously just didn’t want to eat them. I gulped down a fish the size of a human finger, and my experience points rose slightly.
[You have consumed a Spotted Loach. Satiety and experience points increase.]
‘Spotted loach, huh? Why such a name?’
In the past, I wouldn’t have cared, but unlike a zebra, they definitely had some speckles on them. Was that why they called it that?
‘…….’
I was using my detection skills to avoid giant animals coming down to drink water, and my heat detection levels were skyrocketing.
[Heat Detection (F) Lv.4 has reached max proficiency. Heat Detection (F) Lv.4 → Heat Detection (F) Lv.5]
‘Presence Detection is at 3… Looks like it’ll hit 4 soon, but it’s a bit slow.’
The instant heat detection hit Level 5, I could sense way more targets around.
Were there more animals active? No, it was just that I could now detect heat that was lower than me. Evidence of that was most of the new creatures I sensed were underwater.
‘……!’
I jolted, retracting my tentacle. It wasn’t just those tiny fish like before. They were probably around, but I just hadn’t sensed them before. What used to be a valley now seemed a sufficient size to be called a small lake after countless years of water flow.
There were huge creatures, so large that it’d be a miracle nothing had happened so far. Some looked like they could be in an ‘Internet’s Top 10 Largest Creatures’ video.
[Owner of Snake Valley (Eel) 2m 45cm / 24kg]
Honestly, it looked more like a mythical creature than an eel.
A 2m 45cm eel? That’s bigger than a basketball player! Just the sight of something that looked ready to ascend blew my mind for a second. Then, suddenly, it locked eyes with me.
‘……?’
The eel was definitely looking my way. Why? Could it have sensed me observing it? Is it possible to notice a gaze from beneath the water? Or is it really an eel?
‘No way! There’s no way such a huge eel exists?!’
As I tried to squirm away, the eel suddenly lunged upward. Why was there even an eel here? This was supposed to be a mountain! I quickly tried to shift to ‘Tire Mode,’ but realized I was already too late.
‘……!’
My mind went blank as my limbs trembled, but a brilliant thought struck me, and I transformed into a huge snake.
I could see the eel staring in shock as I transformed into a 4m long snake. It quickly plunged beneath the water and bolted away.
‘Phew…’
[You have obtained Threat (F) Lv.1.]
[The proficiency of Transformation (F) Lv.3 has reached max. Transformation (F) Lv.3 → Transformation (F) Lv.4]
Luckily, I succeeded in bluffing. I even gained a skill from it, but I almost fainted from the shock. Sure, I was 4m long, but honestly, I just looked like an inflated balloon—totally empty inside, with a thin shell ready to pop from just a poke. If someone touched me, I would’ve been outed instantly.
I felt like I dodged a bullet there. But heck, since I got a skill out of it, I should count my blessings. Just as I was laughing to myself about it, I suddenly felt a shock from behind.
‘What was that?’
My transformed form popped like a balloon!
Weak and crumpling down, I looked back and saw a raccoon, looking at me with confusion as if to say, ‘Why are you so tough?’ It chewed on me a few times and then its face changed to, ‘Why are you still alive?’
[Raccoon 44cm / 2.1kg]
Faced with a raccoon was less scary than the eel, so I was surprisingly calm. I checked it with observation and figured it was probably just a juvenile, not fully grown.
‘This could work!’
I noticed its teeth were underdeveloped, so it couldn’t chew me well. While it concentrated on chewing, I stealthily wrapped my tentacle around its foot. The raccoon started to panic and tried to escape. I ensnared it like a net, but the raccoon displayed impressive agility even with its foot tied up.
Reflexes like the wildlife I’d seen on YouTube. But still, my hardened tentacle wouldn’t loosen easily. Plus, its futile attacks didn’t matter thanks to damage reduction and weak regeneration.
‘E-rank skill… this is actually pretty good.’
Thinking back, it made sense. Skills were bound to appear in stories.
Maybe even an adult raccoon wouldn’t have been a problem for me!
It might sound cocky, but hey, I did grow stronger after evolving. The young raccoon eventually suffocated from exhaustion, its stamina completely drained.
[You have consumed a raccoon. Experience and satiety have increased.]
[Experience has reached max. Lv.7 → Lv.8]
[Satiety has reached max. Due to the Predation (F) Lv.8 skill, it is converted to experience.]
[Experience has maxed out. Lv.8 → Lv.9]
[The proficiency of Predation (F) Lv.8 has reached max. Predation (F) Lv.8 → Predation (F) Lv.9]
Being over 2kg in food, my experience skyrocketed, jumping levels twice! Looking back, the largest thing I’d eaten was a 3kg slime, but by then, I already maxed out on experience and got nothing from it. I couldn’t help but feel a twinge of regret.
‘What if I just focus on slimes from now on?’
A slime eating another slime kinda feels like a dark hero vibe, doesn’t it? I’ll call it… hot. slime only… no wait, eating only slimes sounds like a great idea!
***
“Oh, Woo Taek. Did you call?”
[Yes, Team Leader. I texted that I would leave early since you weren’t answering.]
“Ah, that? Got it. Everyone else is gone too, right? Are you at home now?”
[Yes, everyone has left. It’s 5:40 PM.]
“Leaving early? Should I dock my pay for your 20 minutes?”
[Team Leader, technically, we’re supposed to be here until 5…]
“I know, kid! That was obviously a joke. So where’s the Worg?”
[I couldn’t find it.]
“Is that so? Guess there’s nothing we can do. What do you think, Woo Taek? Do you think we should keep going?”
[I couldn’t find it, but… Euna discovered something strange.]
“Euna? What did she find? Was it that interesting slime from last time?”
[No. It was a giant footprint. Euna and I thought it might be a bear’s, but Jung Woo said it looks like a wolf’s.]
In Korea, do wolves even exist? No way. Maybe the environment’s changed, but a species that’s been extinct for decades suddenly pops up in Jirisan? Not happening.
“So…”
[Yes. I’m not sure, but Jung Woo reasoned that it has five toes and four claws, so it must be a wolf. I’m planning to contact an expert tomorrow for confirmation.]
“Tomorrow? It’s the weekend. Do you think those guys will work?”
[I get your point, but with hunter requests, do you think they won’t check on a single footprint just because it’s the weekend?]
“Fine, just let me know what you find out. So it’s not just nonsense after all?”
[We’ll confirm for sure tomorrow. And about the team…]
“Oh? What’s up with the team? Did something happen?”
[It’s not a big issue, but they’ve been catching slimes like crazy. Thanks to them, it looks like the slime population in Jirisan is nearly extinct.]
“What? But even without them, the animals would eat the slimes anyway. They could have just left them alone.”
[But they’re monsters, after all.]
“Right. If they disappear, that’s a good thing. Fine, I should have time on Monday to head up with you.”
[Understood.]
“With my busy schedule and the Vice Team Leader, you’re the only one who seems to get sidelined.”
[No, I’m alright.]
“Okay, sorry for calling late. Don’t forget to send me those footprint photos. Talk later.”
[Yeah. Have a good weekend.]
With that, the call ended. The team leader pondered for a while looking at his phone before dialing another number.
“Yes, Clan Leader? This is Jin Ha.”
***
This is strange. Really strange. For some reason, slimes seemed to have vanished. What other perfect prey could compare? Was it possible the system was setting a trap to put me in danger?
No matter how I thought about it, I only had the system to suspect. What if it was using some special skill to lure away monsters? I couldn’t help but chuckle at such a ludicrous thought.
‘Still, seriously, where could they have all gone?’
There are things you can’t force. Although I was bummed out about missing out on tasty, nutritious slimes, I couldn’t just summon them back. Even if it wasn’t slimes, there were plenty of animals to munch on now. After catching that juvenile raccoon, I realized I was strong. I felt a firm sense of confidence.
Of course, I couldn’t take on that eel-like monster just yet.
But still, I felt I could handle most small creatures now. People might laugh for gloating just because I caught a single raccoon, but considering almost dying to a mouse a few days ago, I’d say that’s substantial growth. Eventually, I will catch that eel too.
After all, a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. If I just take my time and grow at a steady pace, I’ll be fine.
[You have many skill points remaining.]
A message from the system nudged me along. Since evolving, I hadn’t used any skill points. If you know your strengths and weaknesses, you’ll win every battle. So I decided to check the skills I already had before acquiring more.
[Owned Skills]
Predation (F) Lv.9, Tentacle (F) Lv.6, Heat Detection (F) Lv.5, Weak Regeneration (E) Lv.4, Weak Stealth (F) Lv.7, Observation (F) Lv.5, Presence Detection (F) Lv.4, Weak Hearing (F) Lv.4, Weak Intuition (F) Lv.2, Weak Vision (F) Lv.3, Damage Reduction (E) Lv.1, Transformation (F) Lv.4, Threat (F) Lv.1
[Remaining Skill Points: 9]
Tentacle reached level 6, and I could see my skills gradually improving. Thanks to relying on detection more than vision, Weak Vision only went up to level 1. But my Stealth grew the most. In this Snake Valley, or rather, in the wild, stealth was essential. Given how much I used it, it climbed the ranks just below Predation.
The only downside was that none of the E-rank skills leveled up. Maybe it was because I hadn’t faced many dangerous moments.
‘I’ve got 9 skill points left.’
Honestly, I was progressing through levels faster than I expected, so after evolving, I hadn’t been too hung up on skill points. It wasn’t a huge inconvenience, but leaving 9 unused felt uncomfortable.
[Available Skills List]
1. Tentacle (F)
…
190. Damage Reduction (E)
191. Weak Regeneration (E)
‘Looks like I can now learn E-rank skills?’
The list of potential skills to acquire, each could dictate the direction of my future growth. The fact that I could now get E-rank skills alongside the F-rank ones was promising. I checked for any attack-type skills, but aside from Weak Hardening, there seemed to be no offensive E-rank skills.
‘I’m in a bit of a dilemma.’
What should I do to grow stronger? How can I achieve stable growth?
Having a stash of skill points means I can use them immediately when needed, but that means I wouldn’t be building up skill proficiency over time.
‘What was it like in the novels?’
Of course, skills existed in those stories too, but they lacked levels or ranks. Most importantly, they didn’t gain skills like me. They manifested through actions or events, like when I obtained Tentacle and Transformation. The protagonist wasn’t exempt, and since they couldn’t choose their skills, that wouldn’t be very helpful.
[It is recommended you acquire Digestion (F) Lv.1.]
A sudden message from the system caught my attention. Digestion? Wasn’t there such a skill? I found ‘Digestion’ listed as number 171 while browsing through the skills. What was the system’s intent in suggesting I acquire it? It was just aiding with digestion, right? Maybe it helps with producing more stomach acid? Though, slimes obviously wouldn’t have stomach acid.
Why on earth would it want me to gain the Digestion skill?
[You have acquired Digestion (F) Lv.1.]
Yet, drawn by an unknown force, I learned the Digestion skill. It wasn’t my choice; it just happened. Looking back, it was similar to when I evolved…
‘Ah, seriously. That Intuition skill, you cheeky little thing.’
Just when I thought it was quiet, you come back again?