Arthur kept moving forward, while the remaining giant wolves advanced in a fan-like formation around him.
As they closed the distance, they spread out quickly—most of them clustering around Arthur's tail. Clearly, they'd realized that if they didn't lock down that deadly tail, trying to kill this foe would be way too costly.
At a signal from the alpha, the pack surged in. They ignored Arthur's more vulnerable head and torso, focusing their attacks on his tail. Meanwhile, the alpha himself lunged at Arthur's face with razor-sharp claws, forcing him to keep his guard high.
But Arthur was anything but a docile little lamb. Relying on his Stone Skin skill, which jacked up his defense, he merely turned his head to protect his eyes and let the alpha's claws rake across his forehead. In that same moment, though, he seized the chance to get in close and latched his teeth onto the alpha's ear.
Meanwhile, the other ten or so giant wolves were tearing at Arthur's tail, ripping off chunk after chunk of flesh until it was a bloody mess.
Yet Arthur didn't care. Geckos can regrow their tails so long as they have enough nutrients.
The wolves had no clue he'd done this on purpose; with his current Agility, his tail strikes would have sent them flying before they ever laid a fang on him—if he hadn't wanted them to.
Arthur's real goal was to kill the alpha. Once the alpha fell, the rest would scatter like leaves in the wind.
He'd been watching this pack for a while. A tribe's leader typically evolved unique skills, and inside its skull there was often a crystal core.
He'd discovered that by accident: a few days ago, he'd run into a group of field mice and made them his dinner. To his surprise, when he devoured their leader(alpha), a glossy crystal marble tumbled out of the mouse's skull. Jam-packed with energy, it dissolved the moment Arthur swallowed it, instantly boosting his stats—his evolution points even went up by two. And that was just a mouse alpha.
Sensing the possibilities, Arthur found another small herd-based species—a group of rabbits—and stealthily picked off their alpha. Its crystal core turned out to be miles better than the mouse's, giving him eight evolution points in a single go. Combined, those boosts had helped him reach his current size so quickly.
The wolf alpha obviously had no idea Arthur was eying the crystal core in its head. As Arthur tested its strength, it was clear this alpha just couldn't match him. With a decisive snap, he sank his jaws deep into the alpha's neck.
The furious alpha howled in pain while Arthur bit through its artery, gulping down hot blood.
The alpha's dying wails drove the other wolves into a frenzy; they went wild chewing at Arthur's body and tail. But his rocky hide was too tough—only the tail, left as deliberate bait, suffered real damage. The pack grew all the more enraged at that discovery, yet could do nothing about it.
With the alpha's movements fading, Arthur whipped his tail side to side, flinging several of the wolves clear off him. Their howling echoed through the forest. But with their leader gone, the second wave of attacks fizzled out. They all tucked their tails and ran.
Relieved yet thrilled, Arthur pried open the alpha's jaws, splitting its skull with both claws and scooping out the contents with his paw. At last, he pulled out a crystal sphere as large as an adult human fist.
"Just as I hoped—higher up on the food chain, bigger crystal core."
Ecstatic, Arthur wiped the sphere off on the nearest bit of fur and swallowed it whole.
Instantly, a pure surge of energy knit his wounds back together, using up only about five percent of the core's total power. The rest infused his body. He grew bigger by the second, until he matched the size of a full-grown bull—twice as large as before!
Giddy, Arthur flexed his hulking body, then glanced at the wolf and moose corpses lying around. Without hesitation, he spat fireballs to roast the fresh kill and devoured them piece by piece. Now that his body was so much larger, it only took him half an hour to devour all the wolves and the dead moose.
Finally satisfied, he patted his belly, which was still hard at work digesting, and sighed contentedly:
"I used to dream about a bottomless stomach—turns out I got my wish. If I could've competed in those eating contests with this metabolism, I'd be world champion in a heartbeat!"
Once every last scrap of meat was digested, Arthur pulled up his panel, and the updated stats nearly made him laugh out loud. His attributes had soared, and to his delight, his evolution points had jumped by a whopping 40.
[Mutant Gecko · SSS]
[Strength: 97 → 112]
[Agility: 33 → 48]
[Defense: 24 → 30]
[Mana: 0 → 4]
[Evolution Points: 96/100]
[Status: Hungry (0/100)]
[Description: Now you finally have some measure of self-defense. You can easily feast on 50% of this forest's creatures.]
96 evolution points—so close to maxing it out. If he wasn't mistaken, once that counter hit 100, he'd step into an entirely new stage. At that point, what in this forest could possibly threaten him?
After fighting so hard, he was finally on the cusp of genuine power. Overjoyed, Arthur did a little spin in place, then trudged away. But his excitement didn't last long. No sooner had he left the clearing than a suffocating pressure wafted toward him from ahead.
He caught the metallic tang of blood on the wind—thick with killing intent.
Arthur froze, peering into the gloom. Emerging from the forest's shadows came a bulky teal wolf, its body scarred but still about the size of a full-grown lion. Each step exuded calm, deadly confidence.
All of Arthur's senses screamed danger, putting him on instant alert. He sniffed a familiar scent in the air…
It smelled like the alpha he'd just eaten.
The newcomer let loose a low growl. Arthur crouched, watching it warily.
Awooo—
The wolf wasted no time. Launching itself forward with startling speed, it pinned Arthur's chest before he could dodge. The beast's jaws gaped wide, ready to tear open his exposed throat.