At today's efficiency, if I could catch some Stone Beetles every day, I'd probably be able to level up after a few days.
"But I can't rely on Brownie's help every time..." I murmured to myself.
If Brownie hadn't warned me today, I'd probably have been bitten to death by that snake. Although we'd agreed to cooperate, I couldn't always depend on others.
I needed to become stronger.
With that thought, I suddenly remembered my skills.
"Leap and Bite..." I stared at these two skills on the panel.
I recalled the feeling when escaping, those jumps between branches—they did seem more powerful than ordinary jumps.
Could that be Leap?
"Is it a bodily instinct? Only used passively when encountering danger? Or can these skills be actively used?"
I decided to give it a try.
I walked to the tree hollow entrance and looked at a branch about two meters below.
For an ordinary jump, that distance would be a bit of a stretch.
"Leap!" I silently chanted in my mind, then pushed off hard.
The next instant, I felt a surge of power suddenly flow through my leg muscles, and my entire body shot out like a spring!
"Whoa—!"
I easily crossed that distance and landed steadily on the target branch.
"Success!" I excitedly looked at my hind legs.
That jump just now was clearly more powerful than usual, and more precise too.
"So skills can be actively used..."
I tried several more times, gradually figuring out the characteristics of the "Leap" skill.
It wasn't simply a power boost, but rather, at the moment of jumping, it put my body into an optimized state—the muscle exertion, body angle, tail balance, all reaching their peak.
And after using it, there was a slight sense of fatigue, indicating this skill had a cost.
"Can't use it carelessly..." I made a mental note.
After practicing Leap a dozen times, I felt somewhat tired and stopped to rest.
"Next is Bite..."
I looked at a piece of bark on the trunk where there were some protruding parts that should be fairly hard.
I walked over and took a bite.
"Crack—"
I bit off a small piece of bark, but that was about it.
I tried again, this time silently chanting "Bite" the moment I bit down.
"CRUNCH—!"
This time the bite force was significantly stronger! The bark showed a deep mark, wood chips flying.
I could even feel that in that instant, my teeth had become sharper, and the bite angle was more perfect.
"I see..."
Bite was like Leap—a skill that brought the body to its optimal state at the moment of use.
However, unlike Leap, Bite seemed to consume less energy.
I practiced several more times, confirming this point.
"If I use Bite against Stone Beetles, I should be able to finish them in one bite..." I thought of those beetles' hard shells.
Just as I was practicing enthusiastically, a commotion suddenly came from the distance.
"Squeak squeak squeak—!"
"Squeak—!"
Those were magic beast cries, and they sounded very panicked.
I alertly stopped moving, hid behind the leaves, and carefully looked toward the source of the sound.
Through the gaps in the leaves, I saw two Tree Sprite Mice frantically fleeing through the branches.
No, three—one was noticeably smaller, probably a young one.
And behind them, a black feline magic beast was giving chase.
[Shadow Cat]
[Level 8/50]
[A nocturnal feline magic beast, can briefly merge its body into shadows, excels at ambushing]
My heart seized up.
Level 8!
That Shadow Cat's speed was astonishing, leaping through the branches even more agilely than the squirrels. The two adult Tree Sprite Mice desperately protected the young one, but they clearly weren't a match for the Shadow Cat.
"Squeak squeak!" One of the Tree Sprite Mice suddenly turned and charged at the Shadow Cat.
"Squeak—!" The other Tree Sprite Mouse let out a mournful cry but continued fleeing with the young one.
The Tree Sprite Mouse charging at the Shadow Cat wanted to draw its attention, buying time for its companions to escape.
But the Shadow Cat just casually swiped with one claw—
"Squeak—!"
The Tree Sprite Mouse let out a piercing scream, fell from the branch, and hit the ground hard, motionless.
The Shadow Cat didn't even look at it, continuing to chase the other two.
I gripped the branch tightly, my palms sweating.
Too strong.
That Shadow Cat's power was completely beyond what we small magic beasts could resist.
Just then, the Tree Sprite Mouse carrying the young one suddenly lost its footing and nearly fell from the branch. It barely steadied itself, but its speed noticeably slowed.
The Shadow Cat was getting closer and closer to them.
It's over...
Watching this scene, a feeling of helplessness welled up inside me.
I couldn't do anything.
With my current strength, rushing out would just be throwing my life away.
But...
I looked at that young Tree Sprite Mouse, clinging tightly to the adult's back, making frightened cries.
Damn it!
I gritted my teeth, pulled a fruit from my Cheek Pouch Space, and threw it with all my strength toward the Shadow Cat.
"Smack—"
The fruit hit a branch near the Shadow Cat with a sound.
The Shadow Cat's movements paused for a moment as it turned to look in my direction.
Those eyes glowing with an eerie light stared straight at me across a distance of more than ten meters.
My body froze.
Did I just do something stupid?
But in that brief pause, the Tree Sprite Mouse carrying the young one had already fled far away, disappearing into the dense canopy.
The Shadow Cat looked at me, then at the prey that had already escaped, and ultimately gave up the chase.
It leisurely walked to the fallen Tree Sprite Mouse, picked up the corpse in its mouth, and vanished into the shadows.
I collapsed onto the branch, my whole body trembling.
Just then, if the Shadow Cat had chosen to chase me instead...
"I definitely wouldn't have escaped..."
After quite a while, I finally recovered.
I looked toward where the Tree Sprite Mouse had disappeared, hoping it and the young one would survive.
"This forest..." I took a deep breath. "Really is dangerous everywhere."
I had to become stronger.
If I couldn't even protect myself, forget about helping other magic beasts.
I returned to the tree hollow and continued practicing my skills.
Though very tired, I still used Leap and Bite over and over, trying to become more proficient.
After practicing for about an hour, I noticed an interesting phenomenon.
When I used the same skill repeatedly, later uses were smoother than earlier ones, and the consumption decreased slightly too.
"Is it because proficiency increased?"
I thought of games I'd played before—many games had skill proficiency systems.
"If I practice more, maybe I can make the skills stronger..."
With that thought, I practiced even more earnestly.
The sun gradually slanted westward, and the sky began to darken.
I stopped practicing and pulled out a fruit from my Cheek Pouch Space to eat.
[Gained 1 Experience]
[Experience: 29/100]
"Today's harvest wasn't bad..." I looked at the panel.
At least I'd learned how to use my skills, which should help me gather food better and escape danger.
Most importantly, I realized my current strength was still far from enough.
"Must level up quickly!"
I curled up in the tree hollow, watching the darkening sky outside.
The forest at night was even more dangerous, with various nocturnal magic beasts coming out to move around.
I had to stay in the hollow and wait until tomorrow morning to go out.
"Tomorrow I'll continue looking for Brownie..." I thought. "With its help keeping watch, things will be much safer."
Thinking about this, drowsiness gradually came over me.