Last night, Evan's family moved into the newly rented house and bought some additional furniture as well as other necessities.
As a result, the 7 gold coins he had quickly dwindled away. Adding to that was the 6 gold coins of debt waiting for him, so Evan had to return to hunting in the forest.
Today, as usual, Evan wandered around the forest's edge in search of prey.
In a place like this, there were no monsters living in large groups. This was why the forest's edge was considered a paradise for beginners—because even though novice adventurers didn't have much strength, their safety was relatively assured here.
However, the scattered monsters were also a problem for those who were capable. The difficulty for adventurers wasn't just about how to defeat a monster, but also how to find it. After all, monsters in the forest wouldn't just walk up to you to be slaughtered, and most of them—especially the weaker ones—would flee the moment they sensed danger.
Evan had been wandering for more than five hours now, but he had only managed to catch a single fanged mole.
This monster was also a level-one creature, but its price was slightly higher than a horned rabbit. While its meat caused stomach aches and thus wasn't bought by the guild, its fangs and claws were worth a decent price—about 30 silver coins in total.
Because of this, Evan had already earned enough money even though he hadn't managed to hunt anything else today. So this time, he spent more time scouting the terrain and searching for various monsters' habitats.
After about half an hour more of walking, the sun was already high in the sky. Evan lit a fire using the common flint used in this country, preparing to warm up the leftover black hog meat from yesterday.
While waiting for the meat to cook, he glanced over at the fanged mole he had yet to skin. Taking advantage of the time, he began separating its fangs and claws, intending to throw away the rest. But when he looked again at the mole's meat, he felt reluctant to discard it.
In the end, he diced it into small cubes, seasoned it, and began cooking. Although the monster guide warned that eating this creature's meat would cause stomach aches and diarrhea, Evan decided to try a little of it.
It wasn't because he distrusted the guild's information, but because he was different. Since he didn't need to train to grow stronger and could inherit certain characteristics from the monsters he ate, Evan decided to take the gamble this time.
During this period, thanks to the meat of rabbits and hogs he had eaten, his agility, hearing, and skin durability had already improved. Thinking of this, Evan grew more determined.
Even if he ended up with a stomach ache, what if he still managed to inherit the fanged mole's traits? He believed that this monster's characteristics—such as its powerful claws and stone-crushing fangs—were worth the risk.
The meat was finally cooked and ready to eat. Evan ate the mole's meat without hesitation, though the taste wasn't particularly pleasant. The texture was tough and dry, making it hard to swallow.
"No wonder the guild doesn't buy it. It's not only poisonous but also tastes terrible," Evan muttered as he forced down another bite of the roasted meat.
More than twenty minutes later, Evan, who was still eating, felt that warm sensation again. This time, he felt more changes in his fingers and front teeth.
He tried feeling his fingers with his other hand, but there didn't seem to be any obvious changes. Still, he sensed that his finger bones—and even his nails—had become slightly stronger.
Ignoring the minor change, Evan threw away the rest of the mole meat and went back to eating the black hog. He felt the benefits from the fanged mole weren't worth the effort of swallowing such awful meat.
"I don't think I'm really affected by the poison, or maybe it's too weak to give me a stomachache." Evan muttered
After eating, Evan continued his journey to explore more of the forest's edge. Thanks to the durability he had gained from eating black hog meat, he didn't have to worry about getting scratched by the forest's thorns—though his clothes still suffered a few tears.
Evan roamed until late afternoon before stopping. Today, he had caught only a horned rabbit, an acorn squirrel, and a pebble frog.
The acorn squirrel looked much like an ordinary squirrel, but it was slightly larger, with smooth dark-brown fur resembling tree bark. This monster was considered one of the weakest among level-one creatures, but its speed was unmatched.
Evan didn't capture this squirrel in a fight—it had been trying to steal seasoning from his bag while he rested. Acorn squirrels were well-known for their love of strong-smelling food.
It had sneaked into his bag unnoticed, but it underestimated Evan's hearing. Just as it tried to take the spice bottle out, it was struck by Evan's shield attack and killed instantly.
The pebble frog, on the other hand, had skin as hard as stone. Evan killed it after several strikes. Although its skin was tough, it was slow and had short jumping distance, making it relatively easy to finish off.
With these three catches, Evan returned home without stopping by the guild. He didn't plan to sell today's haul—instead, he intended to eat them himself. After all, the abilities of the acorn squirrel and pebble frog—high speed and tough skin—might provide him with a good power boost.
After dinner with his mother and sister, Evan sat on the sofa, waiting for that familiar warm sensation again. Ten minutes later, warmth spread through his body, and he felt his physical strength increase slightly. But the most noticeable changes were in his hands and legs.
When the effect faded, Evan felt his skin—it was still human skin, not stone. Aside from that, his hands and legs felt stronger, and his body lighter, as though he could leap a great distance. There was no doubt this was the effect of the acorn squirrel's agility.
Feeling his steadily growing strength, Evan looked forward even more to the future and the various abilities that would appear.