"Tch… damn."
Staring at the screen where his character was carted back to camp by a Felyne, Logan slumped, setting down his controller in defeat. He remained silent for a long while, blankly gazing at the screen.
It was like his brain had suddenly short-circuited.
Then—smack!—he slammed his palm down on the table. The resulting HP-1 collision-like impact echoed through the room. From afar, he looked like a giant red shrimp, seething with heat.
"No way! That missed too?!"
Nope. I need to calm down.
Logan let out a long breath and twisted his stiff neck. Just as he was about to get up and fetch his water cup—
A massive shadow fell over him.
Amid the explosive sounds of windows and walls being smashed apart, only one thought remained in his mind:
"So you can get lucky at home?"
...
In the Ancient Forest of the New World, deep within a hidden tree hollow, a cluster of glowmoss glimmered faintly.
Around the glowmoss, several forest geckos lay still on the damp, moss-covered bark, silently waiting for insects to be lured in by the soft light. Their eyes shifted slightly—like seasoned hunters lying in ambush.
Unbeknownst to them, danger was creeping steadily closer.
Beneath a veil of darkness, a figure was sneaking toward them. Once in position, it crouched down slightly, powerful legs coiled in preparation. Its wings folded tightly, adjusting its balance.
Then—with the scraping sound of claws against earth—it sprang forward in a flash, jaws wide open.
Before the forest geckos could react, one was clamped firmly between its teeth. The predator shook its head violently, thrashing back and forth until the creature in its mouth went completely limp.
The black figure then pinned the gecko's lower half with its claw and began tearing into it eagerly beneath the dim light of the glowmoss.
Gradually, its full form came into view.
It was a juvenile Rathalos.
The red carapace on its back was only just beginning to show budding spikes. Its oversized head was still disproportionate to its small body, and the proud wings of a Rathalos—at this stage—looked like a pair of featherless chicken wings stuck to its sides, utterly incapable of flight.
By all appearances, this was a hatchling barely old enough to leave the nest—one that should still be fed by its parents.
And yet, this hatchling had just successfully hunted on its own, even if the prey was merely a harmless forest gecko.
Having finished its 'hunt', it cleaned the last traces of meat from the bones, swallowed the sweet, metallic blood lingering in its mouth, and—still unsatisfied—glanced once more at the glowmoss.
Seeing no signs of the geckos regrouping, it finally gave up and turned back toward the shadows.
The hollow wasn't small—but that was only relative to its current size as a hatchling.
Wobbling toward another damp patch of earth, it chomped down half of a poison mushroom it had saved earlier, swallowing it whole. On the way back, it also snapped up a passing bitterbug with a crunch, then settled down beside the stream of shadowy water that trickled through the hollow.
It had been several days since he arrived in this world, but Logan still couldn't figure it out. Why had he—a Rathalos—not been born in a Rathalos nest, nor in a Kulu-Ya-Ku's stash, but here? In a tree hollow that practically screamed 'newbie safehouse'?
This place had everything: a water source, a steady supply of easy-to-catch food—just enough to keep a newly-hatched Rathalos alive. Add in the vines and grass covering the entrance, and it was well hidden and narrow—well, relatively narrow. At least large monsters over ten meters long couldn't squeeze in.
A place like this, combined with being the only one here… it was hard not to wonder if this was all some kind of 'fated arrangement'.
But pondering that now was pointless.
After just a few days of explosive growth, his current size had made the hollow's food supply completely inadequate for daily needs.
Take today, for example. A forest gecko and a giant mushroom had barely managed to ease his hunger. Back when he first hatched, that amount would've been more than enough to fill him.
So… does this mean the newbie tutorial is over?
Irritated, he slammed his newly sprouted barbed tail against the ground. After venting a little, he slowly closed his eyes.
Gradually, a peculiar warmth rose from deep within the earth and was absorbed into his body. This warmth slowly and thoroughly strengthened him from within.
To Logan, it felt like the unique life energy of this world.
It was precisely this mysterious, almost divine energy that had given rise to the rich and vibrant ecosystem of this world.
However, even Logan himself wasn't sure if he was an exception. Like the legendary Elder Dragons, he could perceive and actively absorb the life energy flowing along the planet's leylines.
Yet just beyond his field of vision, tiny silver particles glowing with an icy blue light appeared out of thin air. They drifted silently toward him, drawn in along with the life energy being absorbed into his body—and Logan remained completely unaware.
Time passed slowly.
When Logan felt himself reach some sort of limit, he finally opened his eyes once more.
"Sigh… To think that even after ceasing to be human, my body still has limits. Doesn't that mean giving up being human was for nothing?"
He muttered to himself.
With a thought, a simple interface—visible only to him—appeared before his eyes.
[Name: Logan
Species: Flying Wyvern — Rathalos
Trait: Random Selection in Progress (99%)]
It was a bare-bones interface, but as someone who had spent years lurking on online forums, Logan knew this thing might just be one of his key tools for surviving in this world.
The other advantage, naturally, was his body—the body of a Rathalos, a high-tier predator proudly known as the King of the Skies.
In his previous life, Rathalos often served as little more than stepping stones for other monsters in video games, constantly being knocked down a tier. But in this real world, Rathalos were undeniably apex predators, towering at the top of the ecological food chain—true elite hunters!
"Almost there… just a little longer."
Suppressing the excitement rising in his chest, Logan closed the interface and walked back toward the glowmoss.
The food in the tree hollow was about to become insufficient. Venturing out would soon become inevitable.
And whatever skill or trait he drew next could very well improve his chances of survival out there.
With another forest gecko down the hatch, the progress bar in the Traits section finally reached 100%. After a dizzying flash of garbled text, the trait draw was complete.
[Trait: Acceleration (Speed increases as combat duration extends)]
"???"
Wait, is this the Acceleration I think it is?
This description feels oddly familiar—wasn't this like something from a famous game in my previous life? Except instead of triggering every turn, it scales with the duration of battle. And there's now a second trait draw as well… so it's a compound trait? Could there be a third? A fourth?
The thought sent a shiver down Logan's spine.
If his guess was right, then his future wouldn't just be about survival anymore. He might be able to reach a whole new level—one that transcends this world's ecosystem entirely. A level known only as the Forbidden Tier!
...
By the brook, a few Shepherd Hare were grazing on the grass while warily scanning their surroundings. Even as they fed, the slightest rustle would make them abandon everything and flee for their lives.
There was no helping it. As a bottom-tier species in the ecosystem, quick escapes were their only survival tactic—regardless of whether the danger was real or not.
At that very moment, hidden in the underbrush, Logan was staring at the Shepherd Hare with drool dripping from his mouth, cautiously inching closer.
There was no helping it. He was a male Rathalos that still couldn't fly. Unlike the female Rathian, who had strong legs, his overly long toes forced him to walk by bending his joints, making land travel awkward. The closer he could get, the higher his chances of catching prey.
Soon enough, Logan stepped forward—and at once, the grazing Shepherd Hare perked up their ears and looked around alertly.
Logan knew he couldn't wait any longer. Like an arrow released from a drawn bow, he sprang from the grass with wings outstretched.
The already wary Shepherd Hare scattered in all directions. Logan locked onto his chosen target and chased it down without hesitation.
With the help of the Acceleration trait, Logan's speed rapidly increased. In no time, he caught the Shepherd Hare in his jaws, though his momentum caused him to tumble forward and skid across the ground before coming to a stop.
The Shepherd Hare struggled violently, kicking with strength that far surpassed that of a Forest Gecko. But with Logan refusing to let go, its struggles soon ceased.
Seeing that the prey had gone still, Logan paid no mind to the dirt clinging to its fur. He tore into it on the spot with big, ravenous bites.
Unlike the cold, tough flesh of a Forest Gecko, the Shepherd Hare's warm, tender meat was much more to Logan's taste. Soft, sticky, with just a faint gamey tang—it was absolutely irresistible!
The sensation drove him to swallow even faster, and he even let out a sound of contentment.