Today we went out hunting.
The hunt's spoils were Horn rabbits, Night vipers and Armored tanukis.
It's a little regrettable that we weren't able to hunt any Seven-Colored bats though. I felt that I was close to learning an ability from eating them, but it can't be helped. Such things happen.
Ah, by the way, even though we encountered various creatures, they all seemed to be a lot stronger than us, so we avoided them and hunted what we were used to.
Oh well, we're steadily raising our Levels, so we'll be able to hunt them eventually. Ah, since hunting is finished for today, I will explain what are Levels. Levels, simply speaking, are the representation of an individual's strength in an easy-to-understand manner.
Although I do not understand its principles, when you squint, a number will faintly appear floating in your field of vision. The maximum level that can be reached is "100", and this number can't be exceeded. Incidentally, right now my level is "86" which seems to be fairly high for a goblin.
I think it might have risen so much quickly because I've been killing and eating higher-ranked creatures like Night vipers without receiving a single injury.
Also, although it might be inconsequential, Gobukichi-kun's level is "78" and Gobumi-chan's level is "55". We're getting stronger at a good pace.
Nevertheless, even a Level "100" goblin is still a small fry compared to other species, so right now our Levels don't really matter much.
However, in this world, there exists other more interesting phenomenons than Levels.
According to Gobujii, when reaching Level "100", growth stops there. However, those individuals with potential to grow even further do not stop there, but can instead grow stronger by going through an [ EvolutionRank Up ].
In short, individuals who have a high growth potential can evolve into a stronger race further increasing the individual's power. If you assume that I will keep growing even after reaching Level "100", then generally I'd first evolve into a [ HobgoblinIntermediate Demon/Oni ] from a goblin, then into an [ OgreGreat Demon/Oni ].
This is the general route.
Be that as it may, there exists other routes than to evolve into an ogre. Furthermore, what race you evolve into will depend upon your actions.
For example, those who are ogres, drink the blood of a living prey, possess a certain level of intelligence, strength, and above all, a strong sense of pride, turn into [ Vampire ]s.
Those who are ogre, prefer to use heavyweight weapons like axes and large swords, and have an unusually high strength and resilience turn into [ Minotaurs ]'.
Those who are hobgoblins, willing to eat rotten corpses' flesh and bodily fluids, become [ Ghouls ] and finally start to eat even souls.
Those who are hobgoblins, excel in handling weapons such as swords and spears and possess intelligence and skills closest to a human, become completely different creatures known as [ Half-Lords ], a part of the [ Lord ] species which has many variations, a possible Half-lord route is a [ Half-Blood Lord ].
According to this system, by Leveling Up, I'll probably end up becoming something from the [ DemonOni ] race.[1]
This law of the evolution of species is, to put it bluntly, very strange. However, since it actually happens, I can't deny it, and for me who's living in the forest which is a world of survival of the fittest, it's quite useful.
Well, Gobujii says that usually [ EvolutionRank Up ] doesn't happen early. Because I wanted to see how far I could go, I didn't have a problem with that and decided to treat it as a challenge. Anyways, if for example, I were to become an ogre, I wonder what sort of evolution path I'll have after that.
I don't think I will turn into a vampire, because I don't really have a very high pride.
Probably not a minotaur, since I prefer light thrusting class weapons more than heavier weapons.
I really don't want to turn into a ghoul.
Well, according to Gobujii ghouls are undead, just like vampires, and it seems there exists several different undead-class evolution routes, for example, the spell casting [ LichUndead King ], [ DullahanHeadless Knight ], etc. If you want to become an undead-type monster, it is easier to turn into a ghoul, lich or a dullahan than a vampire, however, losing the flesh of your body is a definite weakness.
The evolution route that seemed best suited to me from his explanation seemed to be the lord species route, which specializes in using various types of weapons.
Oh well, I still have a long way to go and it's not happening anytime soon.
Since I was tired from thinking about all of this and the night had already fallen, I went to sleep.