The beast tried to kick back at me, but it was a sloppy maneuver, and I easily dodged the blow and locked my jaws right on the joint where I wanted. It groaned a guttural scream of pain and horror as I began working my teeth down to the bone.

  As expected, the back leg was much harder to break, but with its front leg toppling it off balance, it didn’t seem able to counterattack in any meaningful way.

  Eventually, it opted for rolling to its side and shaking me off. I played it safe and let go, running back to regroup myself and then reassess the situation. That’s when I heard a familiar, welcome voice inside my head accompanying a blue screen.

  [New active skill obtained: Crippling Bite]

  [Strength increased!]

  [Dexterity increased!]

  Ooooh—HELL YES!

  I quickly flicked the screen away with my eyes. As much as I wanted to celebrate, now wasn’t the time, and I needed to focus on finishing my prey.

  It now faced me, feelers whipping at the ground, and standing on shaky legs. Those feelers were the real problem to ending this. Though I doubted I’d have the strength to break such a thick neck, its throat was still the most critical target. If I could sink my jaws deep enough there, even this thick-skinned brute would go down.

  I still had flaming strips of pain across my body from the last time those feelers grabbed onto me. I did not want to experience that again, and if it managed to subdue me firmly enough, it was still fully capable of stomping me to death with its good front leg.

  I watched the feelers whip across the ground like angry snakes, then they suddenly became more focused. The creature turned towards me and, though crippled, managed to lunge forward, the feelers coming right at me!

  I turned to make my retreat, but they still managed to lash my backside with a hot sting of pain. Luckily, it didn’t grab on, and the sting fueled my retreating leap. I quickly dug my paws into the dirt and began making a circle around the charging brute. Its movements were sloppy, but it clearly had a lot of fight left in it.

  Seeing an opening, I chose to finish what I started on its back leg.

  I turned sharply, heading right for it. It tried to spin around, but its movement was too hindered, and I was soon leaping at the already bloodied joint.

  I used {Crippling Bite}.

  My jaw clenched down with a powerful snap that I didn’t know I was capable of. I instantly tore down to the bone, and with a powerful twist of my neck, I felt the vibration of the resulting snap course through my body.

  The beast wailed in agony, instantly dropping to its side as the lower half of its back leg dangled at the joint. The powerful hoof at the end was now completely useless. Frankly, all its hooves were as good as blunt swords at this point without the ability to rear up and slam down.

  It rolled and thrashed as I made another retreat. I’ve successfully crippled the beast, but the problem still remained. How do I finish it off? As long as those feelers were whipping around, I could not risk attacking its neck.

  Biting the feelers, maybe?

  No. I dismissed that plan after less than a second of consideration. If it could strip the skin off of me, just imagine what it might do to the inside of my mouth.

  Then as it rolled to its other side with another agonized groan, I realized its other weak point.

  Its hide seemed thick, but its belly looked quite soft.

  Wasting no time, I charged for the obvious target, and my teeth were soon sinking into the soft flesh.

  I felt very bad that I could not finish this in a more humane way, but I had my own life to think about. I needed to get back to my den on the slimmest possibility I’d be able to see my family again. If I needed to rescue them, then I needed to be stronger. In this world there was only one way to become stronger, and I had to do it, no matter what it took!

  This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

  It twisted its head forward, and its feeler lashed my side, forcing me to back off. I ran around to its other flank, gave it another bite, then retreated before the counterattack.

  Hit and run, hit and run—just like Iris would do to Luke—that would be my strategy.

  I hit its back with another bite. The beast bellowed, swinging its head blindly as the feelers swept arcs towards me. I released my jaws and pivoted out of the way before they could connect. Again it seemed confused, and so I ran around and took another attack at its stomach.

  Again, it tried to thrash and shake me away while trying to swat me with the feelers, but its movements were becoming weaker and slower. It was losing its strength and its will to fight. I knew this would be over soon.

  Though this hit-and-run strategy was also taking a toll on my own stamina. If I were to check, I’m sure it would be quite low by now. I needed to put an end to this.

  Luckily, the end was clearly in sight. After another probing attack to its back flank, a single feeler weakly slapped down just as I leapt away again.

  The beast’s chest rose and fell with heavy breaths. Its head now laid back, it seemed its last attempt to stop me may have spent the last of its failing strength.

  I kept my eyes on its throat, realizing with how weak its movements were, even if the feelers were to grab me at this point, it would not be too dangerous.

  I approached slowly with a prowl, and it didn’t even seem to try to stop me as it left its neck exposed.

  I’m sorry that you must die like this, I thought. I know everything wants to live, but it is true for me as well. I want to live, and that means killing you.

  The beast let out a low, trembling groan, its milky eyes flickering with the dim mushroom light. Its feelers twitched weakly, brushing the ground in slow, aimless circles—no longer hunting, no longer even resisting, just… dying.

  I crept closer, belly low, every muscle taut. My fangs dripped, ready. My heart hammered, but not with fear—this time it was anticipation.

  I’ll carry your strength, I whispered in my mind. It felt odd to think those words. Did I believe them? Maybe. Maybe not. But something in me wanted to honor this kill, to take it seriously.

  I lunged.

  My jaws clamped around its throat, teeth punching through the thick hide and sliding into the hot river of its veins. The beast gave a last strangled groan as I ripped and shook, pulling free chunks of flesh. Blood burst over my tongue, flooding my mouth with iron and heat.

  It convulsed, once, twice—then fell still.

  Prey Eliminated – Level 11 Felsnare Grazer!

  Experience gained!

  You have leveled up!

  You are now level 8!

  +2 Vigor

  +2 Strength

  +3 Dexterity

  +4 Attunement

  +6 Sense

  I sat back on my haunches, panting, muzzle dripping crimson. I took a moment to appreciate my victory. My sides burned, but I was alive, and as with everything I’ve killed, I would walk away even stronger.

  The carcass lay before me, torn open, steaming in the cool night. I moved forward to take my prize.

  I buried my muzzle into the wound I’d made in its throat first, tearing strips of meat from the soft tissue. Warm, thick blood coated my fur, soaking my chest. I swallowed mouthful after mouthful, shivering at the richness of it compared to the thin scraps of Leaf Crawler meat.

  Its belly came next. I chewed through layers of muscle, ripping chunks free. Fat coated my tongue, chewy but satisfying. I continued digging deeper into its internals, finding new tastes from its organs. Every bite of warm meat that slid down my throat was satisfying.

  By the time I pulled back, my muzzle was dripping, my belly heavy but strong. I licked my lips, my ears flicking at the forest around me. I felt different. More than just full—empowered.

  Tonight, I had slain something stronger, bigger, and older. Tonight, I proved I wasn’t prey.

  Feeling satisfied, I eventually left my kill behind. There was still much meat left, but I couldn’t eat it all. It would be a good meal for whatever scavenger came by next.

  Considering the mushrooms on a nearby tree; I checked my vitals, seeing that I was almost at full health—likely thanks to the meal I consumed healing me part of the way—but I was not at 100%.

  Though I was not looking forward to the chalky taste after such a wonderful meal, I knew I should take every advantage available to me. So I plucked a nice big one from the bark and chewed, letting it dissolve in my mouth. Instantly, the stinging pain of my wounds disappeared.

  Lastly, I would need to find shelter. Something like a cave was unlikely, so I instead searched the undergrowth for a thick spot where I would at least have some protection from feeling exposed. Plus, I was close enough to my kill that a Pulse Sense would detect any other predators that came around, which would likely be attracted to the free meal long before attempting to scour the undergrowth for prey.

  As I curled up, feeling cold without the warm bodies of my brothers and sisters surrounding me, I was at least given one more reward for all I’ve been through tonight.

  [Achievement! One With the Night!]

  The darkness tested you, and you proved you belong among its hunters.

  Bonus development awarded!

  [You have reached 100% development and have advanced to stage 3!]

  All prerequisites of an evolution path have been met!

  Select a Path from the evolution tab if you wish to evolve!

  Enjoying the story?