I Am the Weakest Cat, but If I Keep Evolving, Can I Become the Strongest? - Episode 36: Great Acceleration Evolution

Episode 36: Great Acceleration Evolution

▽ Episode 36: Great Acceleration Evolution 

I adapted. 

I spent a full week on observation. I was able to grasp a general idea of the “food chain” and “environment”.

That said, I haven’t adapted to everything. 

This area has a lot of traffic. 

It’s better to assume that there will always be unknown monsters, unknown behaviors, and unknown skills. I have [Wonder Time], which is perfect for checking things out. 

For escaping, I also have [Quick Escape] and [Home Gate]… quite a variety. 

I can handle both close and long range, and I have poison as a tricky tactic too. 

More than anything, thanks to my Unique Skill, I can grow better than others. And I even possess an item called the Crown of the Undead King. From what I’ve seen, no other monsters have equipment. 

Well, I can win. 

Efficient hunting would be too conspicuous, so that’s not possible though. 

A few monsters a day—I hunt them down for sure. 

Other than that, I hide as much as I can. Thanks to a recent application of [Earth Magic], it’s easy to make a temporary shelter. 

In my case, I can also use [Search] to check outside the mimicry hut—that’s a huge plus. 

This is my adaptation. 

Using harmless—or neutralized—wood and earth, I build a hut. I hide in it… and when a defenseless monster approaches, I take it out in one blow. 

With this, I was safely earning experience points. 

▽ 

I’ve reached level 30. 

It took half a year to get here. The difference in stats between level 1 and level 30 is massive. Truly a world of difference. 

The difference in Rank is bigger than the difference in level. 

Still, level difference certainly relates to a monster’s class. 

Well, like I said before, a level 30 from Rank IV and a level 1 from Rank V—Rank V is certainly stronger. 

“Nyao.” 

The max level for the Rank V species Flash Cat is 50. 

Lately, gaining experience has gotten slower. If I don’t hunt more aggressively, it might take years to keep leveling. 

That’s probably the limit for average monsters. 

But I’ve been waiting eagerly for this moment. 

The time when my level rises and my specs go up… 

Name: [Unset]  Gender: [Male] 

Species: [Flash Cat]  Level: [30 (50)] 

Unique Skill: [Choice Link (The Future to be Determined)] 

Species Skill: [Battle Fur], [Scratching], [Physical Enhancement・Medium],  

[Lightning Magic・Intermediate],  [Lightning Enhancement・Small], [Flash Claws],

[Light Magic・Intermediate]

Inherited Skill: [Charm], [Instinct Detection], [Quick Escape], [Invite Fortune],

[Survival Growth・Slight], [Fire Magic・Beginner], [Water Magic・Beginner], 

[Wind Magic・Beginner], [Earth Magic・Beginner], [White Magic・Beginner], 

[Spatial Magic・Intermediate], [Magic Talent・Small], 

[Wonder Time (A Laugh Without a Cat)], [Battle Fur], 

[Lightning Magic・Intermediate]

Abilities: [Poison Bite VIII], [Great Acceleration X], [Thunder Claw Slash IX], 

[Terror Howl VIII], [Endure III]

Accessory Equipment: [Crown of the Undead King]

This is the result of six months of work. 

Not as much change as I thought. But that doesn’t mean I’ve been fighting safely. You can probably tell just by looking at the skill list. 

[Endure] has reached level III. 

That means [Endure] activated multiple times. In other words, I took near-fatal damage while still having over 50% health. 

Now that it’s grown, it activates at 30% HP. 

The Rank V zone is terrifying. 

Sometimes, monsters with obvious Unique Skills show up. Other times, monsters with unbelievable skills appear, or ones that see through my mimicry hut and attack, or they shoot ridiculous magic from long range… it’s been awful. 

[Endure] was originally a candidate for replacement. But now it’s become a must-have skill I can’t let go. 

Speaking of which, [Great Acceleration] finally hit its cap. 

Even now, the evolution choices for the skill are floating in my field of vision. [Great Acceleration] is the evolved form of the [Acceleration] skill. 

It temporarily triples your speed. 

But the physical strain is high. Honestly, it’s scary to evolve it. I already feel a pretty heavy burden using it now. 

Even so, not evolving it is not an option. 

Because it’s *super* annoying. The evolution option keeps showing up in my vision. Even though I rely on [Search] for battle, a distraction is still a distraction. 

Let’s carefully consider the evolution options: 

1. 1. [Super Acceleration] 

 Temporarily increases speed 4x. Slight cooldown. 

2. 2. [Chain Acceleration] 

 Temporarily increases speed 2x. No cooldown. 

3. 3. [Godspeed Authority] 

 Temporarily increases speed 10x. Cooldown: 5 hours. After activation, self gets a slowness debuff. 

4. 4. [Lightning Body Speed]

 Temporarily turns into lightning and dashes through. Deals damage. Cooldown: 3 minutes. 

5. 5. [Flash Step] 

Move to any location within a 50-meter radius. Cooldown time applies. 

……This one’s probably number 1. 

The others have too many drawbacks. If I didn’t have [Wonder Time], I think [Lightning Body Speed] or [Flash Step] would’ve been good too. 

But for now, being able to use [Great Acceleration] at any timing is really helpful. 

The fact that it has a short cooldown is the most attractive part. I also think the effect is more than good enough. 

By the way, [Chain Acceleration] seems like it causes too much fatigue, and [Godspeed Authority] is super strong but way too extreme. 

I’ll stick with the pure upgrade path I’ve used so far — [Super Acceleration]. 

I immediately test fire [Super Acceleration]. 

The flesh on my cheeks gets pulled back from the speed. The speed is unbelievable. Now that I think of it, I was attacked a few times by monsters that probably used this. 

I couldn’t react and took a fatal hit to the gut. 

If [Endure] hadn’t been there at that time, I probably would’ve died. 

If I can move like that monster, this skill is definitely strong. But after using it, my heart pounds loudly. 

The cooldown is a few seconds. 

If I spam it, I’ll collapse from fatigue. I’ll cap it at three consecutive uses, just to be safe. Well, if I push myself, I could probably do a few more. 

I’d like to find a way to supplement my stamina somehow. 

Maybe I need to get out of the forest and interact with people. I’m starting to think this world might be equipment-based. 

For example, if I had six items on the level of Crown of the Undying King, I’m confident I could overwhelm that Parasite. If I can, I want to prioritize getting better gear. 

Though, in the forest, that’s probably hard. 

“Nyan.” 

Alright. 

It’s about time to end this cowardly hunting. I want to fight actively, level up…… and aim for Rank VI. 

I listen carefully. 

I can sense something strange from the Rank V area that was full of toxic creatures.…… Something is rampaging. And I definitely know what that “something” is. 

It’s the opponent I have to kill. 

The enemy is growing at a speed I can’t even compare to. It was already stronger than me to begin with. This is no time to stagnate.

▽

I found a group of monsters I call “Armor Ogres”.

If a regular Ogre is a buff demon, the Armor Ogre is a rock-hard demon. Their black-glimmering muscles are practically jet-black armor. 

They’re kind of cool. 

Even their faces aren’t ugly — they’re clean-cut musclemen. 

Apparently, they’re born holding weapons. 

All of them have magnificent halberds in their hands. Not a dirty joke. I mean, their night halberds are also out in the open and quite… well, intense. 

It’s kind of frustrating. 

Mine is cat-sized. Naturally. 

『Hmph!』

The Armor Ogres all spot me at once. 

In the wild, even small ones like me are seen as threats. I’m not gonna call it unfair that they come at me in a group. 

There are five enemies. 

Normally I’d leave them be and just watch them walk off. 

But I’m different starting today. 

“NYAN!” 

I let out [Terror Howl]. 

There’s no Rank difference, and the skill level isn’t very high. It didn’t do much. But it made them flinch just a bit. 

Immediately after, I used [Super Acceleration]. 

The speed was barely under my control. My muscles screamed. I ignored it and instantly got behind the group of Armor Ogres. 

I activated an active skill. 

I activated [Thunder Claw Slash]. I aimed for the Achilles area of an Armor Ogre. It felt really tough. I barely managed to gouge it. 

If it had been a different monster, I probably could’ve sliced the leg clean off. 

But as expected of the Armor Ogre. 

Still, even though it was a graze, the part I gouged was a tendon in the leg.

One of them that took the hit can no longer move. And it’s paralyzed. I judge that it’s no longer of use and approach the next enemy. 

I use [Super Acceleration] in succession. 

I injure one with [Poison Bite], and paralyze another with [Thunder Bolt]. 

I retreat. 

In an instant, I create about ten meters of distance. I catch my breath. 

Just in case, I also use [Natural Healing] to enhance my natural recovery. It’s times like these I’m glad I got it, since it’s somewhat useful. 

One of them is suffering from poison. 

But its stamina seems high too. And if I leave it alone, it’ll probably take a few minutes to die. I’ll leave that one be. 

One immobile target. 

One that will eventually die. 

Then one that’s slightly damaged, and two unharmed. 

They’re still the ones with the advantage, I guess. 

On my side, even a grazing hit will trigger [Endure]. If I activate [Battle Fur], things would be different. But the stamina cost is high, so I’m holding off. 

『Hmnn!』 

An Armor Ogre comes charging at me. 

It raises its large halberd. Clumsy movement. If things go normally, I won’t get hit by that. 

But— 

[Instinct Detection] tells me some kind of skill is being activated. 

I instantly react and activate [Wonder Time]. It seems the Armor Ogre used some kind of skill that sends out a slash. 

A wide-area axe strike sweeps out. 

If I’d dodged normally, I would’ve taken it. It was a range attack wide enough that I couldn’t have escaped. Right after, another Armor Ogre behind throws an axe. 

That too is some unknown skill attack. 

But I’m still in [Wonder Time] mode, so it passes through me. 

To the enemy who stopped in surprise, I land a [Poison Bite] via [Dimension Strike]. 

The Armor Ogre winces in pain. 

Now then. 

At this point, the two Armor Ogres who were still unharmed begin to flee. The three who sensed death try to block me to let their allies escape. 

It’s the kind of effort I want to applaud. 

But I’m a cat, so I can’t. 

Even they are desperately trying to live in their own way. I am a killer. That said, they were the ones who came attacking in the first place. 

I deactivate [Wonder Time]. 

My semi-transparent body gains color again. They probably realize the invincibility is gone. Foaming at the mouth, they raise their halberds with desperate expressions. 

To let their allies escape. 

Wonderful spirit. Dedication. 

But I ignored them. I dodged the halberds with my base agility and chased after the two who were running away. 

Enemies with high strength stats also have strong stepping power. 

They have decent speed in retreat… but they’re too straightforward. I activate [Another Point] and [Thunder Trap] at the same time. 

I place a [Lightning Attribute] trap exactly where the enemy would step. 

The Armor Ogre steps into the trap. 

Immediately, electricity surges through their entire bodies. Since it requires the enemy to step on a magic circle, the effect of [Thunder Trap] is intense. 

It doesn’t kill. 

But it still paralyzes them enough that Armor Ogre-class enemies can’t move. The effect lasts just 5 seconds. But in battle with me, I think 5 seconds is fatally long. 

I bite into the two. 

Of course, my fangs are coated with a strong poison. Satisfied, I nod and leave the battlefield. The experience points come in.