When Arthur read the System screen, he felt a bit confused.
Unable to hide his curiosity, he asked, 'What are Evolution Points, and what are they for?'
[After collecting a certain amount of XP, you obtain Evolution Points. You can distribute them among your basic Attributes, which will increase your strength, speed, and more…]
'I see.' He nodded in understanding.
'At this rate, I'll be able to raise my Attributes as I wish, and I won't have many weaknesses.'
This thought filled him with satisfaction. Having such a feature would allow him to control how he develops in the future.
He smiled and stared at the single Evolution Point he possessed, treating it as if it were an extremely precious treasure.
However, he wasn't thinking of saving it for later—he urgently needed to boost his Attributes as quickly as possible so he wouldn't end up like that poor squirrel.
Regaining his seriousness, he said firmly, 'Add the Evolution Point to Strength.'
The System responded without delay, and after a few seconds, the blue screen appeared before him.
[Distributed]
He examined his body and muttered strangely,
"Just that?"
'I don't feel any difference. Tsk, it seems one Evolution Point isn't a big deal.'
Even though this slightly annoyed him, he didn't feel disappointed. More accurately, he was optimistic about the future.
From what he observed, the amount of XP needed to obtain an Evolution Point wasn't very large. The same applied to the XP required to reach the next Rank.
Yawn!
Due to his full stomach and improved mood, Arthur felt lazy and sluggish, and the desire to sleep overwhelmed him.
But he couldn't return to his den immediately; first, he had to clean up his crime scene. It was obvious that the smell of blood would attract some predators.
Using his human intelligence, he stored the remaining squirrel carcass in the "Dimensional Storage."
He covered the blood the body left with dirt, then cut a few bushes with his claws to conceal the entrance to his den.
When he finished, he stared at the entrance, which was no longer obvious, and thought with relief.
"This is better. Now I can get some rest. This day has been full of unexpected events."
Tiredly, he entered his simple home, stretched out his body, and lay down. Within a short time, he fell into a deep sleep.
Roar!
After a few minutes, and without any warning, a deafening roar sounded from somewhere nearby.
Arthur's body reacted automatically to the loud noise. He opened his eyes, jumping back into a defensive stance.
"What happened?" His heart pounded wildly. He tried to calm himself, but he couldn't; all his senses were warning him of something extremely dangerous outside—something he couldn't handle. The sound alone made every part of his body tremble.
With fear-filled eyes and a rigid body, he watched the entrance of his den, praying with all his heart that whatever was on the other side wouldn't find him.
Tremor!
The beast let out a growl, similar to the sound of grinding metal, then walked away. With every step it took, the ground shook. Fortunately, it didn't notice him—or perhaps he simply wasn't prey that interested it.
Arthur held his breath, concealing his presence as much as possible until he was certain the beast was far away.
Then, he exhaled, his face pale, and muttered in shock.
"What was that? No, I don't want to know. Whatever it was, it's something I can't deal with."
It took him a long time to regain his calm, but he was no longer able to sleep. He remained awake, thinking about what had happened until exhaustion finally overcame him, and he drifted off without realizing it.
…
The following morning, Arthur slowly opened his eyes with a grim expression.
The first thing that greeted him was the familiar System screen.
[You have digested your food, you gained 1 bonus XP]
Normally, he would feel great joy seeing this, but due to what happened last night, he wasn't in the right mood.
That brief, terrifying experience he went through made him rethink everything.
His enthusiasm and optimism vanished, and all that remained were anxiety and fear.
He looked at the cave entrance covered with shrubs and sighed with a heavy heart.
"I want to go home." He barely had the courage to go out into the forest again, the mere thought of possibly encountering that dangerous beast nearly gave him a heart attack.
'Tsk, who knows how many strong monsters are out there? Maybe the monster I heard isn't even the strongest.'
"There's no point in thinking about this."
A miserable smile appeared on his face, and he tried to encourage himself.
"I won't die without a fight. I'm going out into that cursed forest, and I'll hunt anything I see.
Also, I need to pee—my bladder is about to burst."
A hint of resolve returned to his eyes. Without further hesitation, he stood up and slowly moved toward the cave exit, as he wasn't in a position that allowed him to rush.
With extreme caution, he peered outside through the small gaps between the shrubs and carefully scanned the area, which looked slightly different from the previous night.
A long trail of broken and bent trees stretched across the ground, clearly caused by that strange beast.
"Everything looks fine."
Once Arthur confirmed that the area was safe, he quickly stepped out and headed to the nearest tree to empty his bladder.
After finishing, he carefully checked his surroundings again and began seriously thinking about his next move.
Naturally, his goal was clear: hunting, gaining XP, and advancing to the next Rank.
However, this wasn't easy and required careful planning. He didn't intend to let luck or his instincts lead the way like other beasts, because deep down, he was an intelligent human.
It only took him a few minutes to determine his priorities and outline a simple plan to follow over the next few days.
The first thing he would do was explore and familiarize himself with the area. He also wanted to find a stable water source to drink from.
Additionally, he needed to prepare a few backup hiding spots, identify dangerous spots, and determine the types of monsters present in the region.
In short, he needed a comprehensive understanding of the place's nature and to prepare precautionary measures to protect his life. If he could, he would even set up a few traps.