I woke to the sound of the fire dying, embers glowing faintly in the predawn darkness. My body felt different—stronger, heavier in a good way. The evolution had settled in overnight, and when I stretched, power rippled through muscles that hadn't existed yesterday.
The cave was safe enough. Small, defensible, with the entrance I'd scraped wider to fit my new size after evolving. I could stay here, keep hunting slimes and rabbits in the area, keep leveling up slowly.
But something nagged at me.
Those eggs. The ones I'd left behind when I ran from the bear. Seven or eight of them, just sitting there in that cave, unprotected. They'd been... what? My siblings? Something like that, anyway. We'd all started in the same place, all been part of the same clutch.
And I'd left them.
The guilt was small—barely there, really. I'd been level one with ten HP. Running had been the smart choice. The only choice. Staying would have meant dying alongside them, and that wouldn't have helped anyone.
But I still felt it. That tiny knot in my chest that wouldn't quite go away.
I needed to go back. Not to save them—it was way too late for that. But I needed to know. Needed to see what had happened. Maybe it was stupid, maybe it was sentimental, but I couldn't just pretend they'd never existed.
Besides, if the bear had moved on, that cave was way better than this little alcove. Bigger. Deeper. More defensible once you got past the entrance.
"Okay," I said to the dying embers. "Going back. Just to check."
The journey back took longer than I expected. Everything looked different in the morning light, and I'd been running on pure adrenaline yesterday. But eventually I found the path, following it up the mountain slope until the cave entrance came into view.
I stopped at the threshold, every instinct screaming caution.
The smell hit me first. Rot and copper and something acrid that burned my nostrils. I stepped inside slowly, letting my eyes adjust to the dim interior.
The eggs were destroyed.
Shells lay scattered across the stone floor, but these weren't like mine had been—broken from the inside by something hatching. These were crushed. Smashed. Dark stains spread across the stone around them, and I didn't need to look closer to know what that meant.
None of them had made it.
I stood there, staring at the carnage. They'd been my siblings. Sort of. We'd all been in here together, all started in the same place. And while I'd been drinking from a lake and killing rabbits, they'd been...
"There was nothing you could have done."
I said it out loud, but the words felt hollow. Maybe if I'd been stronger. Maybe if I'd stayed and fought instead of running.
But I'd been level one with ten HP. The bear would have killed me in a single hit. Running had been the only option.
Knowing that didn't make the guilt go away.
I turned to leave and froze.
Tracks. Fresh tracks, pressed into the dirt near the entrance. Massive paw prints, each one as big as my head, with claw marks gouged deep into the stone. They led out of the cave and back in again, overlapping in places.
The bear had been here recently. Multiple times.
This wasn't just a random hunt. The bear was patrolling. Claiming territory. This wasn't some dumb monster wandering around looking for food—it was smart enough to establish a den, to return to it, to defend it.
That made it more dangerous. Way more dangerous.
A sound echoed from deeper in the cave—the main chamber I hadn't explored, where the ceiling disappeared into darkness. Shuffling. Movement. Something large settling into position.
I backed toward the entrance slowly, careful not to make a sound. My heart hammered against my ribs. I was stronger now, sure. D+ rank with doubled stats. But that bear was still C- rank, still had higher strength and defense, still had 275 HP to my 100.
I made it outside and kept moving, not stopping until I was well away from the cave entrance. Only then did I let myself breathe.
"Okay," I muttered. "Okay. New plan. Don't go back there. Ever."
I was about to head deeper into the forest when I heard voices.
Human voices.
I ducked behind a boulder instinctively, peering around the edge. Three figures emerged from the tree line below, moving up the mountain path with practiced ease. They wore leather armor studded with metal plates, weapons hanging from their belts. The one in front carried a sword that glinted in the morning light. The other two had bows slung across their backs.
Adventurers. Had to be.
They were talking to each other, but the words made no sense. It wasn't English, wasn't any language I recognized. Just sounds strung together in patterns that my brain couldn't parse. Complete gibberish.
"Skill Acquired: Language Translation Level 1"
The system notification appeared in the corner of my vision. I pulled it up.
Language Translation Level 1: Provides enhanced ability to interpret tone, emotion, and intent in foreign languages. Full comprehension requires higher skill levels.
The skill activated immediately, and while I still couldn't understand a single word they were saying, something shifted in how I processed them. The lead adventurer's tone was confident, almost cocky. The way he gestured up toward the cave—sharp, decisive movements. The woman with the bow sounded cautious, her voice lower, more measured. The third one—a younger guy, maybe—seemed excited, his words coming faster, higher pitched.
They were hunting. That much was clear from their postures, the way they moved, the way the leader kept pointing up the mountain path.
Toward the bear.
I should leave. This wasn't my problem. Let them deal with the bear, or let the bear deal with them. Either way, I'd be safer somewhere else.
But I stayed, watching. Curious despite myself.
How strong were they? If they could take down that bear, that would tell me something about where I stood in this world's power scale. I focused on the lead adventurer, trying to pull up his status screen the way I did with monsters.
A partial screen flickered into existence.
HP: 85/85
Mana: 40/40
Just health and mana. No stats, no skills, no level. Better than nothing, but frustratingly incomplete.
I tried concentrating harder, willing the system to show me more. Come on, there has to be more information. Skills, stats, something—
"Divine Messenger Level Up! Level 1 → Level 2"
The notification appeared. I pulled up the skill description.
Divine Messenger Level 2: Allows user to inquire about status screen functions and view complete status information of observed targets including skills. Enhanced information access.
Complete status information. I looked back at the lead adventurer and focused again.
This time, more appeared.
HP: 85/85
Mana: 40/40
Strength: 22
Defense: 18
Agility: 15
Magic: 8
Skills: Sword Mastery Lv 3, Power Strike Lv 2, Danger Sense Lv 1
There it was. His full status. He was strong—way stronger than I'd been as a baby dragon. But compared to my current stats? I had him beat in everything. Strength, defense, agility, even magic.
I quickly checked the other two.
The woman with the bow:
HP: 70/70
Mana: 35/35
Strength: 14
Defense: 12
Agility: 24
Magic: 10
Skills: Archery Lv 4, Quick Shot Lv 2, Track Lv 2
And the younger guy:
HP: 60/60
Mana: 45/45
Strength: 10
Defense: 10
Agility: 16
Magic: 12
Skills: Archery Lv 2, Stealth Lv 1, Herb Knowledge Lv 3
They were strong. All of them had multiple skills, leveled skills. These weren't beginners.
They reached the cave entrance and paused. The leader gestured at the massive paw prints in the dirt, then drew his sword. The sound of steel leaving its sheath made the woman reach for an arrow, nocking it smoothly. The younger one pulled his bow as well, though his hands shook slightly.
Aria crouched by the tracks, running her fingers along the edge of one print. "Something's wrong here."
"What do you mean?" Zegan kept his sword ready, eyes scanning the cave entrance.
"Two types of tracks." She pointed. "These are definitely the demon bear—look at the size, the claw marks. But these..." She gestured to another set, smaller, with four distinct impressions and drag marks from what looked like a tail. "I can't tell what made these. They're fresh though. Within the last few hours."
Bato took a step back. "Maybe we should—"
A roar erupted from somewhere in the forest behind them. Deep, guttural, full of rage.
All three of them spun around.
The demon bear burst through the tree line, spikes gleaming in the morning light, horns stained dark. It had been hunting. And now it had found them in front of its den.