Episode 6: The First Monster ○
Two weeks had passed since the subjugation of the Iguana.
Last time, my level increased twice in one week, but this time, it only increased once in two weeks. It’s painful how skills and levels are gradually becoming harder to raise. In these two weeks, there hasn’t even been a sign of any creatures that I could level up on. Just how remote is this place? Or is there some reason why creatures can’t come near?
However, I can’t leave this spot, so there’s no way for me to confirm. If my level stops increasing like this, what will become of me? I don’t know how long a Poisonous Grass’s lifespan is, but since there’s no sign of me growing into a tree, it probably isn’t very long. If I don’t evolve soon, I might die of old age.
While I was being driven by such anxiety and raising my skills, I detected a creature with a different presence than before.
Species: Acid Worm
Name: None
Rank: E
Level: 23
HP: 56/56
MP: 25/28
Attack Power: 43
Defense Power: 41
Magic Attack Power: 25
Magic Defense Power: 22
Agility: 38
Skills:
Strong Acid Lv8
Sticky Thread Lv8
(This one is completely different from the animals I’ve encountered so far. Not just the stats, but the presence is completely different. Is this what they call a Monster?)
It has “Worm” in its name, but it doesn’t resemble an earthworm at all. First of all, its size. It’s about 1 meter long and 30cm in diameter. Since it’s just a detection, I don’t know the finer details, but it seems to have a large mouth at the tip of its body. From its jagged silhouette, it’s definitely a carnivore. Its stats are also much higher than the Rabito or Iguana, so I have a feeling it preys on them.
Furthermore, what I have to be careful about are the skills it possesses. If I get hit with something like “Strong Acid,” I, who can’t move, would be melted in an instant.
Normally, the best course of action would be to quietly let it pass.
However, I don’t know when my own lifespan will run out. Now that I can’t level up with Photosynthesis, this is also a perfect chance to level up. Fortunately, my mana is almost full. If I can manage to fight it well, I might be able to evolve in one go.
While the Acid Worm was crawling out of the ground, I began to think about how I could somehow defeat this monster I was seeing for the first time.
(Alright, let’s go with this plan.)
Even if I call it a plan, it’s not that complicated. After all, my only means of attack is “Poison Edge,” so all I can think about is “how to attack without revealing my location.” This time, I’ll try to use “Light” effectively to guide the opponent’s attacks.
First, I slammed a “Poison Edge” into the back of the Acid Worm, which was searching for prey. It left a not-so-shallow wound on the Acid Worm’s back. Unfortunately, it didn’t seem to be poisoned. Until now, everything had been poisoned with a single hit, but I guess that’s what you’d expect from a monster.
The Acid Worm turned around sharply at the sudden attack from behind.
“Kieeeeee!”
The Acid Worm let out a scream that made my body tremble and spat something from its mouth. That was probably the skill “Strong Acid.” The lump of acid spat out from the Acid Worm’s mouth flew towards a small ball of light that I had created beforehand. It passed through the intangible ball of light and hit the weeds behind it.
Immediately, the weeds began to melt with a hissing sound. This must be the effect of the skill “Strong Acid.” It’s quite a vicious skill. I breathed a sigh of relief that I had set up a dummy ball of light. Of course, I don’t have a chest, so it’s just a mental thing.
I created two more “Poison Edges” and shot them at the Acid Worm, which was on guard. One of them hit its neck, and the other hit the wound on its back, deepening it further.
“Gyaaaaaa!”
The Acid Worm writhed in obvious pain. It seems that the one that hit the wound was a critical hit. It took away almost half of its HP in one blow. I see. The defense power of the stats isn’t uniform. There are weak points and hard spots. The wound on its back this time must have been a weak point.
Furthermore, it seems that this attack has poisoned the Acid Worm. I could just watch it die, but since I still have mana to spare, should I give it one more hit?
Zash!
The last “Poison Edge” I released reached the wound on its back as if it had been aimed, and the Acid Worm was torn in two.
(Alright! I managed to survive against a monster!)
Even though I’m a Poisonous Grass, I managed to win against a monster. The fact that this was a plant habitat was also one of the reasons for my victory. If I use magic, I can attack unilaterally without being noticed. It’s been proven that if I act carefully, I can manage against monsters.
While I was basking in the afterglow of victory, I opened my status with anticipation and saw that my level had risen to 20, and the word “Evolvable” was displayed next to it. Alright, I can evolve again! After confirming the safety of my surroundings, I immediately displayed the evolution options…
□ Please select an evolution path
・Sleeping Grass
・Paralysis Grass
・Confusion Grass
・Poison Grass
Just by looking at the names, I can tell what their abilities are, but I’ll check them with Appraisal just in case.
Sleeping Grass… A relatively rare grass. Contains components with a sleep effect.
Paralysis Grass… A relatively rare grass. Contains components with a paralysis effect.
Confusion Grass… A relatively rare grass. Contains components with a confusion effect.
Poison Grass… A relatively rare grass. Contains components with a strong poison effect.
Yeah, I kind of had a feeling.
So. It seems I can choose from four evolution paths this time. They all seem to have useful effects, but I’ve learned firsthand that poison is very useful for a grass to survive.
(I’ll master the path of the poison user!)
With that in mind, although paralysis is tempting, I decided to choose Poison Grass.
(I’ll go with Poison Grass!)
As I thought in my head, my body was immediately enveloped in light… or so it felt.
And when the light subsided, I checked my status.
Species: Poison Grass
Name: None
Rank: G
Level: 1
HP: 20/20
MP: 46/46
Attack Power: 14
Defense Power: 22
Magic Attack Power: 48
Magic Defense Power: 48
Agility: 0
Skills:
Special Evolution
Language Comprehension
Chant Annulment
Item Box Lv7
Appraisal Lv6
Thought Acceleration Lv6
Life Detection Lv7
Magic Detection Lv6
Hostile Detection Lv6
Auto HP Recovery Lv3
Mana Auto-Recovery Lv6
Light Magic Lv7
Water Magic Lv8
Space-Time Magic Lv3
Gravity Magic Lv3
Photosynthesis Lv7
Poison Generation Lv5 New!
Titles:
Reincarnator
Skill Collector
Evolver
Giant Killer
(Alright, it seems I’ve successfully evolved!)
Just like last time, all my skills have increased by 1 due to the evolution. It’s a subtle but welcome effect, even for skills I still can’t use.
Also, “Poison Generation” has changed to “Poison Generation.” It seems I can now create more powerful poison than before. This should increase my chances of survival again.
And so, having returned to level 1 due to evolution, I, without getting tired of it, began to level up again with Photosynthesis.