Darkness. It was dark again, but this time it wasn't cold like before. Instead, it was warm—comfortably warm. I could feel my surroundings, though they felt stuffy. I tried to focus more, feeling my senses stretch across the dark space. It felt strange, but I could sense everything within a few hundred meters.
Magic Sense acquired.
An AI-like voice echoed in my head. Was this the "favor" that guy mentioned? Ignoring it for now, I concentrated on the area around me, sensing multiple life energies. Where was I?
Focusing harder, I tried to see.
Night Vision acquired.
Another notification? Was this some kind of skill? Now I could see more clearly in the dark. The life energies I sensed... they were—
"What the hell!?"
Why was I surrounded by apes? And there were at least twenty of them here, all sound asleep.
"Where did that guy send me?"
Wait, if I was here, didn't that mean... I was an ape too? I was a damn ape! Why was I reborn as an ape of all things? Was I a monster?
"Did that guy screw up!?"
Maybe he did. That carefree tone of his was suspicious, especially that last thing he said before I disappeared.
"Why a monster, of all things?"
I could feel fur on my body, silky and red in color.
"Why would he do this to me!?"
I felt like a mess. I thought maybe I'd be reborn as a human.
"I should try something."
Looking around, the apes were still sound asleep.
"Status."
The gift he gave me seemed to be the same evolution system I'd designed for the game I worked on in my previous life.
---
Name: Kain
Species: Red Ape
Age: 20
Rank: 1 (1.02%)
Skills: Magic Sense, Night Vision
Inherent Skills: Strengthen, Harden
This status screen... it looked just like what I designed. If this was his gift, I was grateful because I knew how to use it. But why did he reincarnate me as a monster—and a red ape, of all things? This was one of the low-level monsters from War World, notorious for attacking any human or humanoid it saw. They lived in packs, constantly fighting to determine the strongest leader, and the females only went for the strongest ape. And here I was, stuck as an ape in the first rank of evolution. In other words, I was fodder. Even with the evolution system, survival in this brutal pack would be challenging, and I didn't want to be hostile to other species either.
"What a mess."
With a sigh, I closed my status window. I had no idea what the future held, but one thing was clear—I needed to leave this tribe as soon as possible. I'd need to evolve to at least Rank 3 if I wanted to get out of here.
---
This tribe was awful. It had been two days since my rebirth, and I already knew I had to escape as soon as possible. The things I'd seen... survival of the fittest was in full effect here, with apes expected to fend for themselves. In just two days, I'd witnessed three apes die in these so-called duels to determine the strongest.
"You look tired, young ape."
A voice sounded behind me. It was an old red ape, at least three meters tall, with bulging muscles. I was around two meters myself, decently muscular.
"Ah, sir old ape."
I knew how to speak the ape language, having acquired it after trying to talk to one of them two days ago.
Monster Language acquired.
The skill allowed me to communicate with all monsters.
"No need to bow. It's time to go hunt."
Ah, I'd almost forgotten. When a red ape turned 20, it was required to go on a solo hunt to prove itself. This was my turn.
"Grab a weapon and prepare."
The apes were fairly intelligent as monsters go; they used weapons to hunt.
"Go there."
The old ape pointed toward a forest with dense trees.
"Don't come back until you catch something."
If I failed to bring back prey, I'd be expelled from the pack. But that was my plan. I wanted to get kicked out and go somewhere else.
"Yes, sir."
Leaping toward the forest, I felt the wind rush past me. The only redeeming qualities of this ape tribe were their strength and agility. Even the low-ranked ones like me had superhuman capabilities, which was why red apes were classified as top low-level monsters between ranks 1 and 10.
"I just need to hide and make them think I died during the hunt."
The forest was dangerous for low-ranked creatures like me, so I'd have to be cautious and avoid any monsters of higher rank while hiding. I leaped through the trees, searching for a suitable hiding spot, until I spotted a small cave on the side of a mountain.
Magic Sense.
I extended my senses and found no life forms nearby. This cave was perfect. After hiding here for two days, the apes would likely assume I died and forget about me.