I Am the Weakest Cat, but If I Keep Evolving, Can I Become the Strongest? - Episode 28: The Demon That Absorbs

Episode 28: The Demon That Absorbs

▽ Episode 28: The Demon That Absorbs

Second day of the bone fracture. 

I was being attacked by something incomprehensible. 

It was a monster that reminded me of the Chimera Mantis I saw in the beginning. 

It devours surrounding monsters and adds their body parts to itself—a real monster. 

Now I understand. 

This thing’s Rank—Ⅳ or Ⅴ won’t work. If things go badly, it might even be Rank Ⅶ or Ⅷ. 

It doesn’t possess any intimidation-type skills, so I can respond rationally somehow. 

But I understood clearly that I can’t win. It’s not a quick enemy, so combat is possible. 

However, I can’t expect to deal any damage. 

Even with [Thunder Cannon], I’m not sure I could even scratch it. 

For now, I’ll call this Chimera Mantis—*The Absorption Demon*. 

A being formed by fusing countless monsters. 

From its body, tons of white threads were squirming out. 

It might be based on some kind of parasite. 

The various parts and mouths of the monsters twisted with a “slurp”. 

Drool was spilling out like a waterfall. 

『Uu, uu, uaa』 

“…Nyan.” 

Something was fired at me. 

I barely avoided it using [Short Warp]. 

The “something” that hit blew away the tree behind me. 

White tentacles reached out. 

It intends to absorb me. I shivered. 

I tried using [Lightning Magic].  But I couldn’t even shift the tentacle’s path by a millimeter. 

Impossible. 

Panicking, almost in tears, I activated [Home Gate]. 

Just in case this happened. 

I had registered [Home Gate] at a different location. 

The place I was in now wasn’t the same as the registered [Home Gate] spot. 

At the very least, I had secured a method for emergency escape. 

Still, the enemy might have a sense of smell. 

Dragging my front leg, I ran far, far away. 

On the way, I was attacked by monsters who looked down on me as weakened prey. 

I counterattacked and killed them with magic. 

Physical combat was hard, but originally I had always fought in this area using magic and poison. 

Now, I could easily overwhelm these enemies with magic. 

But my MP was running low. 

After using [Home Gate], my MP had dropped below half. 

I want to conserve it. 

However, conserving MP means close-range combat, which makes it difficult. 

I kept killing any monsters that blocked my path. 

Eventually— 

I reached a corner of the Rank III zone. 

Using the arm that wasn’t broken, I started cutting trees. 

What I made was a small tent out of wood. 

Then, I covered it up using [Earth Magic]. 

I pictured a fallen log lying on its side. 

I put dirt over the wood and left just a small air hole…… 

An emergency shelter. 

It didn’t look like a house. 

From a distance, it would just look like a tiny hill. 

The soil appeared unnaturally raised. 

Still, I didn’t think low-Ranked monsters would be able to tell the difference. 

…Although the smell of bl00d might give it away. 

Just in case, I used [Wind Magic] to scatter the air. 

Using a skill, I entered the small shelter. 

It was cold. 

As for food, I had previously cooked some meat and stored it along with plants in my [Dimension Pouch]. 

I also had meat from the monsters I killed on the way. 

Well, it’s still just a pouch-sized storage, so I didn’t have a lot. 

That said, I’m a kitty. 

I don’t need much food. 

Apparently, food in the [Dimension Pouch] doesn’t change condition. It’s good for storage. 

I curled up in the narrow, dark space. 

Cold and in pain. 

I felt lonely. My body was starting to shake. 

Not just from the cold—my body was clearly weakening. 

Cold, and yet burning. 

I was running a fever. 

My immunity had dropped because of the fracture. 

The dizziness wouldn’t stop. 

I had fought, moved, and fled with a broken leg. 

I wanted to sleep. 

But I couldn’t bring myself to fall asleep. 

Just a little while ago, my life had been targeted by something unbelievably powerful. 

The thought crossed my mind—I wish I could just be free of this. 

I couldn’t find any merit in continuing to live in this much pain. 

Even so, I had been given life by my mother. 

That mother cat loved me. 

She gave me life. 

I didn’t want to throw that away. 

So I held my breath. 

…I need to sleep. 

I closed my eyes. 

▽ 

It was a very harsh two weeks. 

I continuously used [Natural Healing]. 

A magic that increases natural healing ability. 

Without it, full recovery would’ve taken even more time. 

Now, I can move somehow. 

When I move my leg, there’s still a feeling of discomfort. 

But once I evolve, that should be taken care of. 

It seems that functional loss doesn’t recover, but physical damage does. 

*Squish*—my paw pads press against the ground. 

It hurts a little. 

But it’s not a serious pain. 

This level of pain is something I should get used to instead. 

In wild life, getting hit is natural. 

Up until now, things have gone way too smoothly. 

Still, that Undead Dragon…..… 

I had deployed my [Battle Fur]. 

Even so, getting a bone fractured in one hit was unexpected. 

Even though we’re both in Rank Ⅳ zone. 

Of course, War Thunder Cat is a monster with low durability. 

Even if its endurance is low, it’s still based on Rank Ⅳ standards. And I believe it’s tougher than most Rank Ⅲ monsters. 

“…Nyaon.” 

Looks like I need to wait for Rank Ⅴ. 

There’s a difference like boss character and small fry between me and the Undead Dragon. 

Even so, I’ve made a general battle chart. 

First strike with [Generator] and [Thunder Cannon]. 

When it roars, I avoid it with [Wonder Time], then hit it with another [Thunder Cannon]. 

The enemy will probably come close, so I’ll use [Scratching]. 

This will push the battle forward all at once. 

That said, if my next evolution doesn’t have [Scratching], I’ll need to change the chart. 

First, let’s raise my level. 

I’ll have [Instinct Detection]-san wait a little bit. 

If my combat sense were a bit better, I think I could beat the Undead Dragon even in my current state. 

But with my current sense, it’s difficult.