Chapter 16 - 15

'Arrrghh… That… hurt…'

My whole body was in pain. Though, I guess feeling pain was a heck of a lot better than dying from that fall. Well, it was actually thanks to that bee that I was still alive because that bee managed to kill a lot of momentum by desperately flapping its wings. And since I was also riding on the back of the bee during the fall, that bee's body also served as a cushion for my body during the impact. Although because of that, the bee was now in tatters.

I honestly didn't know if it was for better or for worse, but despite receiving most of the impact, the bee was still alive. And as of now, all it could do was squirm like a worm because the bee lost not only its wings but also all of its limbs. It was truly in a pitiful state.

Of course, it was not as if I was any better. The worst of my injuries was probably on my back. It was that same injury that the bee from before has given me. Fortunately, it had already stopped bleeding, and it also didn't hit my spinal cord. Though, it was still nasty since it seemed like the damage had reached the joint connecting my body to my back leg. Seriously, it looked like I won't even be able to use this leg to walk. And as if just to make it a lot worse, my front right leg was also broken. Although it was not to the same extent as my back leg since I could probably still use it to support my weight when walking.

After checking my overall condition, I looked around the area I was in. Unfortunately, the range of my vision in this place seemed more limited than ever before because there was not a single light in this place. The only possible reason I could think why I was still able to see was because of my Night Vision skill. Well, it wasn't to the point that it could hinder my movements so it wasn't that bad.

When I finally made sure that there were no enemies nearby, I tried standing up and then moved towards the dying bee. 'Damn it… I'm in this situation once again…' No matter how I looked at it, this situation was a repeat of what had happened after I fought that snake. But this time, I didn't win and survive a battle and was instead a part of the collateral damage. Fortunately, it would be possible for me to recover a little if I ate this dying bee. I know it was cruel even for me especially since it was thanks to this bee that I was still alive, but it was survival of the fittest man. That was how this world works. Besides, it was already half dead. Even if I let it be, it would die eventually. So, the best thing that I could do for the bee was to end its misery and give meaning to its death.

With that justification in mind, I bit the dying bee's head and rip it apart from its body. Because of that, the bee died instantly. And right just after the bee died, a notification popped up in my vision…

[Level up]

[Individual (Unnamed) can now evolve]

[Would you like to begin the evolution now?]

[Yes/No]

'Oh, nice!'

I didn't expect it, but it looked like killing the bee was the last push I needed to reach level twenty. It was actually really nice timing. And if my guess was right, all my current injuries would disappear once I finished the evolution process. In short, it might just be possible to use the evolution process as a way to instantly recover from injuries. And the proof of that was in my memories living as the young wolf.

In that memory, I recalled that one of the Dire Wolf I know lost a single eye during one of their hunts. But after he evolved into a Great wolf, even that missing eye came back like it was a miracle. So, based on that, I deduced that maybe the evolution process could also remove any injuries that a monster had sustained before the evolution. If that was the case, then I only needed to evolve to heal all these injuries. The only problem with that was…

'I'm also pretty sure that to complete the evolution, one needed enough nutrition to sustain the process. In short, I needed food.'

It was actually a problem I noticed after evolving once. That time, I felt so hungry when I woke up despite eating my fill before I slept. And that could only mean that the evolution process has consumed all of the nutrition I have stocked up before I sleep. Of course, it was not as if I didn't have any food on hand. After all, I have this dead bee here, and it could serve as my food. The problem was, I doubt this much would be enough.

And with all of that reasoning in mind, I ultimately decided to temporarily postpone my evolution. 'Guess, for now, I'll search for a place to rest.' And so, I started dragging the dead bee along while surveying the area.

The first thing I noticed was that the walls of the cliff were riddled with cave-like holes. For now, I couldn't see any monsters around. But I wasn't about to let my guard down. Especially since I was injured and couldn't properly put up a fight. Carefully, I moved towards the nearest hole while dragging the bee as silent as possible. And right just when I was near it, I heard two hostile growls coming inside that hole.

When I heard that, I immediately let go of the bee and hastily hide behind a nearby rock. After a few seconds, I saw two monster dogs run out of the cave while fighting each other. Instinctively, I used Assess on the two monsters and the details it displayed as [Hellhound].

Curious as to why those two monsters of the same race were fighting, I observed their behavior as they fought. Of course, since I carry the memories of my time as a wolf, I knew that the monster of the same species as me would sometimes fight for supremacy. Because of that, I thought that maybe those two monsters (who were technically related to my species), may have been fighting over territorial control or a higher position in a pack. Unfortunately, that hypothesis was so far off from the truth.

As I silently watched those two monsters fight, I noticed that the two monsters seemed too feral even by a monster's standard. It was as if those two were out of their minds. And that suspicion was confirmed when one of the monsters managed to bite the other one on the ear. Of course, since those two were in the middle of the deathmatch, doing that was only normal. But when one of them tore the other one's ear and ate it, that was when I realized the reason why they were fighting.

'Holy crap!! Those two are trying to eat each other!!'

That was right, those two monsters were not fighting over a territorial dispute or for a higher pack position, but instead, they were trying to eat each other.

Honestly, those monster's behavior shocked me. Because even combining my two memories, I was sure that dogs or wolves didn't showcase any kind of behavior related to cannibalism. In fact, in both worlds, I thought that my current species was supposed to live in packs.

'Wow, this world really knows how to bend the rules.'

While I was wallowing in my shock, the two Hellhounds continued to fight. And that fight was not only intense, it was also incredibly bloody. Because not only were those two trying to eat each other, they were also tearing each other's flesh apart and then swallowing it afterward. In essence, they were like two berserkers trying to eat each other alive.

The two Hellhounds kept at it until they were all bloodied up. And by the time one of the two became weak, their blood had already stained the whole area they were fighting in. Personally, I thought that the winner was already decided with that. But contrary to my expectation, it seemed like the spectacle wasn't over yet.

Upon witnessing that, I instinctively froze and desperately hid my presence. I was so desperate in fact that I even stopped breathing in hopes that the monster wouldn't notice me. But all of that wasn't just simply because of the scene I saw. It was also because of the form of the monster I was gazing at right now.

Munching on the two Hellhounds in front of me was a three-headed dog. That three-headed dog was about two-story-tall and had thick purple fur. Surrounding its body was a dark purple aura that was fluctuating violently every time it moved. When I raised my head to get a look at its head, I saw three pairs of pure red eyes. And lurking in those eyes was a deep-seething madness that sent shivers down my spine.

Fortunately, it seemed like that monster hadn't noticed my presence because it turned around right after it was done eating the two Hellhounds. Normally, that thing should be able to smell the blood on my wounds. But probably because of all the blood scattered around by the two Hellhounds, the smell of my blood was masked and the monster was tricked into thinking that it was the smell of that same blood smeared on the ground.

When I saw that, I sighed in relief. And when the monster was far enough, I noticed a notification saying that I acquired a new skill. But for now, I didn't pay it any attention and I instead used Hunt and Assess on the Three-headed monster. And with that, I learned the race of that monster…

[Cerberus], that was what the monster was called.