Chapter 6: The First Evolution
[Level has increased!]
I chewed the ant in my mouth while looking at the message.
It looked a bit different from the others, and it gave a lot of experience points.
After dealing with the ant that ambushed me from behind, I looked at the ants that had shrunk back.
Was the ant I just ate their leader or something?
Their movements had become strange.
Before, they seemed to be controlled, but now they looked like they had lost that control.
Some fled, while others blindly charged forward.
It was a good situation for us. The forces were dispersed, and they attacked as if they had no intelligence. I could see them getting tangled up with each other, causing chaos.
The spider fought remarkably well.
After shooting webs to immobilize them, it danced on top of the web, slaughtering the ants.
I could hear the sound of experience points rising even from here.
Teaming up with that spider was definitely the right decision.
I didn’t slack off either.
While quickly dealing with the small fry, I marked the stronger ones that occasionally appeared.
[Acacia Fire Ant LV6]
Level 6.
It was the second strongest after the one I dealt with earlier.
Its size was larger than the one before. It was about twice the size of an ordinary ant.
I steadied myself and charged towards it.
Pababak.
The ants around it began to scatter all at once.
It was a movement I hadn’t seen before.
That one could command some of these ants.
Judging by the number of ants moving, it seemed like it was a squad leader.
Taking down this one first was the right answer.
Bwoong.
I swung my tail.
Puh-uhk!
The fire ant flew backwards without resistance.
Unlike the others, it didn’t die from one hit.
But this should render it combat ineffective.
I leapt again to finish it off.
And at that moment, the scattered ants swarmed me all at once.
They used their heads quite well, but it didn’t work on me.
I spun my body, grinding the ants that jumped at me.
If they were like that one who didn’t die from one hit, I might have had trouble, but mere ants like these couldn’t stop me.
Crunch!
I felt a sharp pain.
The large fire ant bit my leg.
Hiss.
It hurt more than I thought.
I crushed its life with a downward swing of my tail.
【Green Gecko LV7】
HP: 22/27
MP: 10/12
I could endure this much.
I turned my head towards my next target.
And at that moment, I felt something strange.
My body wouldn’t move as I wanted.
[Status Effect: Paralysis]
Paralysis? Did it have such a skill because its level was high?
It barely grazed me. Yet, I got paralyzed.
The effect wouldn’t last long.
But in this chaotic battle, even a brief moment could be fatal.
The ants swarmed me as if they had been waiting.
Crunch!
Snap!
I felt my HP dropping rapidly.
But I didn’t give up.
The spider had noticed my situation.
Pshoo!
White threads rained down.
[Acquired 「Paralysis Resistance LV1」.]
Perfect timing to get a new skill.
It wasn’t immunity, but resistance was good enough.
I could move my body now.
I used my claws to slaughter the nearest ant that wasn’t caught in the web.
It wasn’t easy. I got bitten on my right leg in the process.
Crunch!
I bit off the head of the ant biting my leg with my large mouth.
Its head dropped off with a snap.
I chewed it in my mouth.
Even though they were caught in the web, they didn’t lose their fighting spirit.
Despite being enemies, their determination was impressive.
Even now, some ants tried to jump at my back.
[Level has increased!]
But what they aimed for was my afterimage.
I quickly shed my skin and subdued all the incoming ants.
“Gegg.”
They must feel wronged. I was almost dead, but now I was full of life again.
【Green Gecko LV8】
HP: 29/29
MP: 14/14
If you’re upset, you should’ve been born a gecko lizard too.
‘Sprint!’
I ran through the demoralized ants at tremendous speed.
The sound effect should be something like bam bam.
Sprint had leveled up a lot, now it was level 5.
Even the wind pressure could knock down the ants now.
Thud thud.
Ants flew through the air.
I leaped at the airborne ants, launching relentless attacks.
Snap snap.
The ants split into head, thorax, and abdomen, falling to the ground.
There were still many left.
But the performance I showed made even those mindlessly charging ants hesitate.
A lizard that was about to die suddenly revived, sending ants flying into the air. And those ants were perfectly divided into three parts as they hit the ground.
If I were an ant, I would have run away.
I licked the ant remains stuck to my mouth with my tongue.
To replenish nutrition and to demoralize the enemy.
There were still many left.
But now, the outcome was almost certain.
What remained was a massacre.
The double experience event was starting.
*
【Green Gecko LV9】
HP: 21/31
MP: 5/15
It was all over now.
Nephila and I made eye contact.
That scary face looked quite reassuring.
“Ggek.”
It slightly bowed its head, seemingly having similar thoughts.
“Kieeng.”
It twisted its front legs.
What did that mean?
It felt like something that would hurt if I knew.
I dealt with the fallen ant corpses.
Most of the enemies had fallen to the ground and died, but the number of bodies left on this branch wasn’t small either. I opened my mouth wide and chewed on the ants.
The slightly tangy taste was impressive.
[Level of 「Acid Resistance LV3」 has increased.]
Would eating poisonous ones increase poison resistance?
I should experiment if I get the chance later.
I glanced at the spider while eating the ants.
Luckily, it didn’t seem interested in the dead ants.
It was stroking something round in a corner of the nest.
Did it lay eggs?
…Did spider eggs look like that?
They looked somewhat fascinating.
I focused my eyes.
【Mid-level Core】
….
A core?
The kind that appears in martial arts novels?
The kind that mystical creatures have?
A perfect spherical shape.
It was the appearance of a core I knew.
What kind of world is this?
Dinosaurs exist, and spiders have cores.
Is this some kind of martial arts novel with dinosaurs?
I looked at the spider with such idle thoughts.
And at that moment, I felt a sharp pain in my eyes.
A sudden flood of information.
[Acacia Fire Ant General LV8]
[Acacia Fire Ant Soldier LV7]
[Acacia Fire Ant Soldier LV5]
[Acacia Fire Ant Soldier LV5]
Time slowed down.
I could see their movements very slowly.
The ants hidden among the leaves simultaneously attacked the spider.
It was almost out of stamina. Even that spider would be in danger if ambushed by those high-level ants. Moreover, it was even more vulnerable while carrying a core.
‘Sprint.’
It was too late to deal with the ants.
There was only one thing I could do.
Push the spider away.
“Hieoong?”
I threw myself and pushed the spider away.
Thanks to that, the ants’ attack hit the wrong spot.
The misplaced attack landed on me.
Crunch!
It hurt like hell.
[Status Effect: Paralysis]
My body wouldn’t move.
[Level of 「Paralysis Resistance LV1」 has increased!]
It wasn’t a moment to be happy.
Crunch.
The ants were persistent.
They tore my flesh with their mandibles and injected formic acid inside.
“Geeeek!”
[Status Effect: Poisoned]
What a pain.
These damned ants.
“Kieeek!”
The spider, having assessed the situation, quickly ran over and dealt with the surrounding ants.
【Green Gecko LV9】
HP: 14/31
MP: 3/14
[Paralyzed] [Poisoned]
Even then, the ants didn’t stop attacking.
They kept chewing on my hide and pouring formic acid into the wounds.
Hiss.
I let out a rough breath.
This is dangerous.
There was only one way to escape this situation.
Level up and shed.
With ants of this level, I could level up just by eating them.
Nephila Jurassica stepped on the ant that was biting me.
Crunch!
The tough exoskeleton of the ant general shattered. Was it angry at being ambushed? Nephila persistently attacked it.
Yes.
Good job, spider.
That way, I can eat it comfortably.
While cheering on the spider’s relentless attack, I started to feel my body’s sensation returning. The paralysis was wearing off.
I made eye contact with the fallen ant general.
It wasn’t dead yet. If I rushed in and finished it off, I could definitely level up.
And at that moment, it spread its wings.
Did ants have wings?
That’s a complete scam.
Wait, if it’s spreading its wings now….
Buzz.
It disappeared in an instant.
My plan was ruined.
The biggest chunk of experience had fled.
I had to level up with the remaining corpses.
I immediately ran over and stuffed the already dead ants into my mouth.
They didn’t taste good. But I couldn’t care about that now.
【Green Gecko LV9】
HP: 6/31
MP: 3/14
[Poisoned]
[HP is insufficient!]
I know that.
The HP was dropping faster than
I thought.
I ate all the ants, but the level didn’t go up.
Nephila Jurassica was nowhere to be seen now.
What glory was I aiming for by helping that spider?
…If I knew this would happen, I would have just stolen the core and left.
I was going to die as a lizard like this.
My vision blurred.
*
I felt drowsy.
It felt like I was dreaming.
Yes, this must be the life flashing before my eyes just before death.
I closed my eyes quietly.
…Wait, I can close my eyes?
I’m a lizard, aren’t I?
I opened my closed eyes wide.
What I saw was a completely white space and a familiar message window.
[Level has increased!]
【Green Gecko LV10(+)】
HP: 33/33
MP: 15/15
My level had increased.
What’s going on?
And what does that symbol next to the level mean?
[You have reached the maximum level.]
Maximum level?
Yes. I’m not stupid; I understand that much.
What was important was what that maximum level meant.
Was it my maximum level or the Green Gecko’s maximum level?
If it’s the former, it means I’ve reached my growth limit.
[An aura of mysticism envelops your body.]
But if it’s the latter, it means I can grow further.
[Evolution is possible!]
Evolution.
What a wonderful word.
[Do you want to evolve?]
Yes!
__________________________
【Green Gecko】 can evolve into:
1. 【Bearded Dragon】
2. 【Pygmy Chameleon】
3. 【Armadillo Lizard】
__________________________
I carefully considered each option.
No additional explanation appeared no matter how hard I stared.
I had to decide based on my knowledge or intuition.
First option, Bearded Dragon.
I hoped no lizard would be foolish enough to be tempted by the cool word “dragon” attached to it.
There’s no way a gecko lizard could evolve into a dragon.
The Bearded Dragon is just an ordinary lizard.
Skipping the first option, I looked at the second choice.
Pygmy Chameleon.
It’s a chameleon, right.
Yes, the reptile that changes its body color to camouflage.
I liked the ability itself. I could hang on a tree and comfortably wait for prey. But I didn’t like the adjective attached to it.
Pygmy Chameleon is the smallest chameleon in the world, isn’t it?
I didn’t want to become smaller than I am now.
The ability itself was decent, but it was out.
Armadillo Lizard.
I wasn’t familiar with this species. But the name alone gave a rough idea of its characteristics.
Armadillo, and armor.
A name that had to be tough.
If I had to choose one of the three, I would definitely choose the Armadillo Lizard.
…It’s a bit disappointing, but you can’t expect to be satisfied on the first try.
[「Sprint」 acquisition confirmed.]
Just before I made the choice, a new message arrived.
[Special evolution conditions met!]
Special evolution?
If such a thing exists, show it first.
__________________________
【Green Gecko】 can evolve into:
1. 【Bearded Dragon】
2. 【Pygmy Chameleon】
3. 【Armadillo Lizard】
4. 【Green Basilisk】 (「Sprint LV7」)
__________________________
Basilisk?
The basilisk I know?
The one that shoots petrifying rays from its eyes?
Is it okay to evolve into something like that?