"Well… I guess you could do better," I deadpanned, staring at what had once been my small wooden tipi.
Now, it looks like an actual small wooden shack, fit with a door and everything. When I first saw it, I thought maybe I'd gone back to the wrong spot and accidentally found someone's home.
Nope - this was all Chippy's doing. Said chipmunk gave me a little salute as he stood in front of it.
"I never devoured one, so I don't know what your skills are," I hummed, looking at the huge chipmunk. He seemed to understand me, as he quickly ran over to the nearest tree.
He opened his mouth, showcasing his big buck teeth, and then moved so quickly his body started to blur. He crawled around the tree, tearing off strips of wood and dropping them on the ground.
Then, he fell back down to the ground, landing on the large pile of raw wood strips. He blurred again, seemingly randomly biting and scratching at different bits.
It didn't make sense to me, but somehow, someway, there was a wooden chair sitting in front of me a few seconds later.
"A type of carpentry skill," I deduced, and Chippy gave a rapid nod.
And so, my days of sleeping on the hard ground were over. Now, I had a wooden shack to call home.
—----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Level Up!
You reached level 10!
You can now become a [Named Beast]!
Oh, damn, did I reach level 10 already?
I idly wiped some blood off my lips, a troll corpse glowing blue below me. I'd been so distracted with grinding stats that I didn't even notice I was approaching level 10.
[Quest Complete!]
Reach Level 10
Rewards:
+100 STR
+100 AGI
+100 END
+100 INT
+100 CHA
+100 LUK
+100 HREG
+100 MREG
Remember your past name.
Right, my past name! I had been so caught up in trying to survive that I hadn't cared much about my lack of name.
Right as that thought passed through my head, a sudden headache shot through my skull. I reached up, grunting as I gripped my head in pain.
The pain started to dull, and suddenly a word appeared in my brain.
That's right, I remember what my name was.
Valon.
My last name didn't appear, but I wasn't concerned about that. I was a 'beast' now, and beasts only needed a first name.
My stomach growled, and I suddenly felt even more hungry than before. I looked forward into the dark forest, my desire to hunt reignited.
Valon. The name of the future beast king.
—----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[Devour] has been used on [Slime] - Level 9.
You have gained:
+250HP (5,950/5,950)
+75 MAXHP (6,025/6,025)
+15 CHA
+15 LUK
+25 XP
+ [Physical Regeneration] Skill!
[Physical Regeneration] - Instantly regenerate any [Physical] damage taken!
I blinked, staring in shock at my new skill. I had recently completed the slime-line evolution quest, so I was able to get a second skill from them.
I had thought that [Physical Morph] was overpowered, but slimes seem to be the gift that just keeps on giving.
I raised my hand, sticking out my finger as I transformed my other hand into a knife. I slashed across the front of my finger, drawing blood.
-5 HP! (6,020/6,025)
Then, before my eyes, a splotch of blue slime poured out of the wound. It covered the small gash, and then shifting into a pale skin color. The slime solidified, recreating the skin on my finger as if I hadn't been injured in the first place.
+3 HP! (6,023/6,025)
Slimes are fucking awesome!
—----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"I'll be back in a few days. Hold down the fort while I'm gone, Chippy," I waved behind me as Chippy gave me a salute. I walked out the wooden door, ready to take on a quest I'd been putting off for a while.
It was time to go find the Great Wolf King.
I had spent nearly a week grinding gremlins, demon birds, trolls, and slimes at this point, so I felt prepared enough to get going.
[Valon]
Level: 12 (12,955/40,000)
MP: 2,700
STR: 275
AGI: 2,890
END: 7,550
INT: 116
CHA: 4,450
LUK: 4,575
HREG: 115
MREG: 115
Skills: [Devour LVL10], [Harden LVL5], [Global Communication LVL1], [Quick Step LVL4], [Material Change LVL12], [Demonic Resistance LVL8], [Light Manipulation LVL5], [Fire Ball LVL5], [Intimidation LVL8], [Physical Regeneration LVL10]
Can you tell that I mainly focused on trolls and slimes?
The crazy amount of END and Max HP from the trolls, along with leveling up the two overpowered skills from the slimes, was too good to pass up on.
I might've gone overboard a bit, but hey, there's no such thing as being too strong!
Though, having this much END and only being level 12 made me wonder about how strong I really was. Rena had been level 10, and her END was clearly nowhere close to what mine was at now.
Were my stats inflated only compared to monsters? Or was I just special?
When I eventually ran into other humanoid beings, like devils or humans, would they also have insanely high stats, or was I one of a kind?
I wasn't sure if I just seemed strong compared to a bunch of tutorial mobs, or if I truly was strong.
I exited my new home, turning in the direction that I had originally come from when leaving the dire wolves's section of the forest, and took off. My legs blurred as I sprinted through the forest, quickly reaching the dire wolf territory.
I spotted a few on the outskirts, not paying them any mind as I blasted past them. They didn't even have time to acknowledge I was there before I was sprinting past them, my body a mere blur.
However, as I continued deeper into the forest, I couldn't keep just ignoring them. I went deeper than I had been when I first appeared in this world, and the stray one or two dire wolves turned into groups.
So, I activated the second skill I had acquired from hunting trolls - [Intimidation]. It essentially did exactly what you would expect - it intimidated whatever monsters I was near.
The effectiveness varied depending on how strong the monster was, as some trolls I had tested it on ended up pretty much giving up in fear and not fighting back, while others had barely even acknowledged it.
As I continued through the forest, the wolves around me stared, but none dared to approach me.
Finally, I came upon a large clearing. It was bigger than anything I had seen so far in the forest, expanding tens of feet in each direction.
At the center was a huge group of dire wolves.
[Dire Wolf] - Level 8
[Dire Wolf] - Level 7
[Dire Wolf] - Level 5
[Dire Wolf] - Level 7
[Dire Wolf] - Level 4
[Dire Wolf] - Level 2
[Dire Wolf] - Level 5
[Dire Wolf] - Level 8
[Dire Wolf] - Level 9
[Dire Wolf] - Level 7
[Dire Wolf] - Level 5
[Dire Wolf] - Level 2
[Ratra] [Dire Wolf Pack Leader] - Level 14
However, one stood out from the rest.
[Raeren] [Dire Wolf General] - Level 27
It stood out in the fact that it looked different from the others in more than one way. Whereas Rena, and the wolf pack leader in front of me, Ratra, looked bigger, furrier, and all around more beastly than the normal dire wolves, this one was the opposite.
Raeren looked almost human-like. He stood on two legs, his body still covered in thick blue fur, but his muscles looked more human-like. He had noticeable biceps, abs, quads, etc.
His face looked a bit more wolf-like, and he had long snout and sharp teeth. Overall, it looked like someone had put a dire wolf's head on a very, very, hairy man's body.
[Quest Alert!]
Defeat the Four Dire Wolf Generals
Rewards:
The next step to taking down the Great Wolf King
+100 STR
+100 END
+100 AGI
[Harden] will be evolved!
Failure:
Eventual Death.
Alright, looks like I'm taking this guy down. He seemed to have the same idea, as all the wolves in the clearing turned to look at me.
"Finally here, challenger?" Raeran said, the wolf towering nearly eight feet in the air as he walked toward me. He looked kinda scary - as in, not intimidating, but like something out of a horror film.
He had long arms, long legs, and an all-around long body. I figured he was probably built for speed.
"If you want to reach his highness, you'll have to get through us, challenger!" Ratra said, his voice high pitched and squirrely, "You must be a real fool to be this deep in the Great Wolf King's territory!"
"I'm not really in the mood for small talk, sorry," I hummed, tensing my legs. I burst forward, and the dire wolves were clearly not prepared for my immense speed.
My hand shifted into the shape of a blade, and before the group of wolves even knew what hit them, two of the dire wolves were bleeding out on the floor.
Two down, 12 more to go.
"Y-You bastard!" Ratra howled, the large wolf leaping at me. I didn't move, as this would be a good time to get a gauge of his strength.
I had only seen one named beast before, Rena, and I had handled her easily when I was only level one at time. Ratra was four levels higher than she had been, so let's see how much of a difference a few levels make.
Apparently, it wasn't much at all. Ratra's teeth slammed into my arm, trying desperately to bring through my skin and tear my limb off. Instead, I didn't even feel it with my insane END.
I looked down, locking eyes with Ratra as the wolf's pupils widened in fear. His attack was useless, and now he was right next to me with no room to dodge.
My blade hand swung down, and a splat of blood flew into my face as he slumped over.
"Ratra! Get him, you mutts! He's only one man!" Raeren screamed, pointing his near-humanoid finger at me.
Ah, the old 'there's only one of him! He beat us all!' cliche. They're dire wolves - they've probably never seen a movie or read a book, so I'll let it slide.
I blitzed forward, my body moving in a blur as the wolve's eyes couldn't even keep up. My hand lashed out, cutting through wolf after wolf until only a pile of bodies lay at my feet.
"Hah! If you want something done, then you have to do it yourself!" Raeren yelled, tensing as he readied himself to fight me.
Are all dire wolves this cliche?
I didn't have more time to think about that, as Raeren sprinted toward me. To his credit, he was pretty fast. Faster than even the gremlins and demon birds I had hunted.
But, not fast enough.
Raeren swung his huge paw-hand at me, his claws trying to rake across my bare chest. My shirt had long ago become nothing but a shredded mess, leaving my muscular chest as an appealing target for monsters.
I simply quick stepped to the side, my knife hand shifting back into a fist as I slammed it into Raeren's face. He was stunned by the impact, stumbling backward.
That was all the time I needed, as I stepped toward him, my fist slamming into his gut. This time, Raeren was thrown onto his back, the strength of my punches too much for him to withstand.
Honestly, I expected more. Was I too overpowered? Did I hunt a bit too much?
In just two strike, the highest-level monster I had seen so far was lying on his back, his breathing heavy as he glared up at me.
I had spoken too soon, as Raeren wasn't down for the count yet. He shoved himself back onto his feet, lunging forward and… receiving a punch to the face. The wolf-man hybrid fell to the ground again, clutching at his head in agony.
"You… you will regret this! The Great Wolf King will not let you get away!" Raeren shouted, glaring up at me. I merely shrugged, my hand shifting into a knife as I slashed across his chest, ignoring his howl of pain.
I didn't really know what to say - I was used to killing mindless beasts. Hunting trolls and slimes didn't require me to have a quippy one-liner to say after I beat them.
I'll have to think of some badass lines for when I meet the actual boss - the Great Wolf King. For now, I ignored Raeren.
I leaned down, my hands lashing out and grabbing his arms to ensure he didn't try to fight back anymore. Then, I slammed my foot into his bloody chest, pinning him to the ground. My stomach growled, and I began my feast.
[Devour] has been used on [Raeren] [Dire Wolf General] - Level 27
You have gained:
+500HP (9,870/9,870)
+55 MAX HP (9,925/9,925)
+70 STR
+90 END
+105 AGI
+15 INT
+250 XP
+ 50 [Harden] Skill XP!
+ 10 [Devour] Skill XP!
+ 25 [Global Communication] skill XP!
+ [General's Command] Skill!
[General's Command] - You have the makings of a strong general! The higher level this skill is, the more inspired your subordinates will be by your words!
I hummed appreciatively at the new skill. I would eventually have to expand my subordinates to more than just Chippy, so this would be helpful with my more combat-oriented soldiers.
[Quest Update!]
Defeat the Four Dire Wolf Generals
[1 / 4]
Rewards:
The next step to taking down the Great Wolf King
+100 STR
+100 END
+100 AGI
[Harden] will be evolved!
Failure:
Eventual Death.
One down, three to go.
I turned back to the downed bodies of the other dire wolves, a hunger forming in my stomach.
For now, I'll feast. Then, it's time to find the next wolf general.
—----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
AN: Thank you for reading! I hope you enjoyed this chapter!
If you would like to support me, you can at Patreon.com/Koyon ! I'll be posting early chapters there for this story soon, and there are already chapters ahead of time for most of my other stories on there!