~Skill Details~
Precision Shot: When performing a ranged attack, accuracy is improved. When performing a ranged attack, projectile speed and accuracy are improved.
Poison Hand: When under the 〖Poison〗 status, can inflict the same type of 〖Poison〗 as oneself on a target upon making a direct attack.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
After the battle with the Hydra, I obtained two 〖Skills〗.
One is 〖Precision Shot〗. It seems to be an upgraded version of 〖Sniping〗, and it’s easy to use without any particular quirks.
The other is 〖Poison Hand〗.
This one is, how should I say it, a 〖Skill〗 with limited uses.
Most Demon Beasts that use 〖Poison〗 attacks have resistance to 〖Poison〗, and against those that don’t, I need to voluntarily inflict 〖Poison〗 on myself.
It might be useful against humans, but… I don’t want to fight humans in the first place.
It’s a 〖Skill〗 that’s likely to end up in storage, just like 〖Swimming〗 and 〖Transportation〗.
“(Hmm, should I try eating it soon?)”
I muttered while checking my own 〖Life〗.
My gaze was fixed on the Hydra’s corpse. Several minutes had passed since I defeated it, but I hadn’t touched it yet. That’s because I had been focusing on 〖Self-Regeneration〗 until now.
Even though the Hydra was dead, the 〖Poison〗 I had ingested remained, continuing to chip away at my 〖Life〗.
I had been carefully recovering to match the amount of decrease caused by it.
While I was doing that, the 〖Poison〗 thinned out, and the decrease in 〖Life〗 became more gradual, so I decided to eat the Hydra.
Now, even if it worsens a little, I probably won’t die instantly from the 〖Poison〗.
“(Let’s dig in!)”
I moved through the muddy ground with the power of 〖Zone Control: Poison Swamp〗 and reached the Hydra.
I attached my body to the rather grotesque cross-section of the severed neck.
Then, I activated 〖Decomposition Fluid〗. With a squishing sound, I dissolved and absorbed the 〖Feral Beast’s〗 flesh.
“(Guh!?)”
A shock ran through my entire body. The stimulation to my taste buds made me tremble all over.
The first time I’ve ever eaten 〖Feral Beast〗 meat. Its taste was something I had never experienced before, even in my human life.
“Slurp, slurp, slurp!”
I dissolved the Hydra in a frenzy.
With each piece of meat and drop of blood I absorbed, dense 〖Mana〗 flowed in, and the flavor exploded like fireworks.
“(…I, I got carried away and ate too much…)”
When I came to my senses, I had devoured a whole neck’s worth of meat.
However, there are still four more necks left on the Hydra, as well as its body. I’ll think about the rest while I eat.
“(The poison is strong… but for some reason, I’m fine.)”
What I realized when I calmed down was my suspicion about not being poisoned.
It’s hard to believe that the poison components evaporated after death. The blood dripping from the wound instantly rots the plants on the ground.
Hmm, what’s going on?
I shouldn’t have any 〖Skills〗 that could do that, but…
“(Ah, could it be this… ?)”
I reviewed my 〖Status〗, and what caught my eye was, just like before, 〖Antibody〗.
It’s a useful 〖Skill〗 that’s still giving me 〖Poison〗 resistance, but what I should focus on is its other effect.
The ability of 〖Gluttony〗, the predecessor of 〖Antibody〗, ‘resistance to status ailments through eating’.
I think this is what’s preventing me from being poisoned.
“(Could it be that if I had absorbed the blood poison with 〖Decomposition Fluid〗, it would have been reduced?)”
I suddenly remembered the scene where I used 〖Tear Off〗.
No, my 〖Resist〗 has also increased with my 〖Level〗 up, so I can’t compare it directly, but maybe I could have avoided being poisoned back then too.
I reflected on my poor understanding of my 〖Skills〗, and next, I turned my attention to my 〖Level〗.
I had finally exceeded 〖Level 100〗, and 〖Evolution〗 was now possible.
According to Ergo, with this 〖Evolution〗, I can become a 〖Feral Beast〗 like the Forest Turtle.
It’s the moment I’ve been longing for, but… I also had some concerns.
“(I, I hope there aren’t about a hundred of them this time… ?)”
That’s the number of Evolution Paths.
Last time, it increased from five to twenty, so it might explode again this time.
If that happens, I won’t be able to keep track of them all.
…Well, there’s no point in worrying about it.
Evolution Paths, come on!
~Evolution Paths~
Unclouded Jewel Strike, Beast Rank: Feral Beast
Manifestation of Inevitable Punishment, Beast Rank: Feral Beast
Azure Light Piercing the Dark Night, Beast Rank: Feral Beast
Tombstone of War’s Admonition, Beast Rank: Feral Beast
War-Inducing Weapon Creation, Beast Rank: Feral Beast
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…Huh? There are quite a few… It’s kind of anticlimactic.
It’s a bit disappointing that there are so few options, but… let’s take a look at the details of each one for now.
~Evolution Path~
Unclouded Jewel Strike, Beast Rank: Feral Beast
・An environmental species of Jewel Slime that has single-mindedly refined its body and skills.
・The lapis lazuli blade that has transformed from its own body will never chip or warp, and will cut down everything without discrimination.
・Within its 〖Zone Control〗, everything is reduced to martial arts and weapons.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
O-okay… The tone of the description suddenly changed.
It used to be more business-like before.
What’s with the species name being ‘Strike’?
Isn’t that a word used for weapons?
The other descriptions are also a bit… quite difficult to understand.
Well, based on what I can understand, I think this one is an evolved form of Weapon Slime.
It’s the type that transforms its own body into a weapon and fights with 〖Weapon Skills〗.
It seems genuinely strong, and the effect of its 〖Zone Control〗 also suits my fighting style, so it’s quite promising.
Let’s look at the next one.
~Evolution Path~
Manifestation of Inevitable Punishment, Beast Rank: Feral Beast
・An environmental species of Jewel Slime that has punished countless evils.
・A wicked blade for beheading, a silver bullet for a wicked shot, and an iron hammer of justice for a wicked hand.
・Within its 〖Zone Control〗, those who are guilty shall be burned by their own karma.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
…Have I been judging evil that much…?
Well, if I think about it seriously, this probably came up because I’ve been using 〖Cross Counter〗 a lot.
I don’t know the criteria for ‘those who are guilty’ for the 〖Zone Control〗, but if murder is considered a crime without question, it would be quite effective against Demon Beasts.
…If killing a member of my own species is considered a crime, I might end up being burned myself…
…Let’s move on to the next one.
~Evolution Path~
Azure Light Piercing the Dark Night, Beast Rank: Feral Beast
・An environmental species of Jewel Slime that has flown through the sky countless times, dazzling even the starlight.
・One must not be captivated by the blue star. The moment one forgets to flee, the light of the heavens will pierce the earth.
・Within its 〖Zone Control〗, those who kick the ground are bound to the earth, and those who ride the wind are loved by the heavens.
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Another one that’s hard to understand has come up.
I wish they would explain the effects of the 〖Zone Control〗 a bit more specifically.
But I guess the 〖Zone Control〗 works in a way that’s advantageous to that species.
If that’s the case, then the 〖Zone Control〗 of this species, which seems to be good at aerial movement, would probably be something like a decrease in the movement speed of creatures on the ground and an increase in the movement speed of creatures in the air?
Well, if my flying ability increases, my tactics will also expand, so this is also one of the candidates.
Now, what’s next?
~Evolution Path~
Tombstone of War’s Admonition, Beast Rank: Feral Beast
・An environmental species of Jewel Slime that has pitied the humans who never tire of fighting and has sealed countless weapons.
・It suppresses all malice and all violence, and only allows solutions through dialogue.
・Within its 〖Zone Control〗, it is impossible to hold a sword, spear, or even a fist.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Hmm, is this the orthodox evolution of Jewel Armory Slime?
There are also some confusing elements added, like pity and dialogue.
I guess this Evolution Path appeared because I only stored weapons without killing humans.
The dialogue part might be related to 〖Telepathy〗 and 〖Understanding Intentions〗.
Honestly, this is the species that seems the least suitable for me among those that have appeared so far.
To be honest, I’m quite belligerent towards Demon Beasts.
So, the next one is the last candidate. Let’s see…
~Evolution Path~
War-Inducing Weapon Creation, Beast Rank: Feral Beast
・A Jewel Slime environmental variant that mocks the humans who never tire of fighting, scattering countless weapons.
・It transforms all materials, all resources into weapons, permitting only solutions by force.
・Within its 〖Zone Control〗, it does not hesitate to use even pens, firewood, and pebbles to strike down its foes.
～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～
That’s a complete turnaround from the last one, a species with a terrible reputation…
I’ve never mocked humanity, you know?
Still, it’s strange.
This species’ selling point seems to be its weapon creation ability, but I’ve never created a weapon… or wait, could it be that?
Is it being counted as creation because of what I imitated with 〖Replicant Form〗?
…The truth is shrouded in darkness, but what’s important is the ability.
If I can make weapons myself, my freedom will increase in the future.
Hmm, this time’s Evolution Paths are all so close in merit, it’s hard to decide.
After agonizing and agonizing, the species I chose was──.