The Lord Who Levels Up by Devouring - LLD Chapter 105: Journey to the Capital (1) (Part 2)

In other words, as creatures adapted to the changing seasons, genetic variation accumulated, increasing biodiversity—

Far from the campsite, deep within a dense forest—

The light of the setting sun was blocked by the shadows of the trees.
Tangled branches obscured my view.

I lit the path ahead with a Luminous Stone,
and cleared away the twisted branches using Dragon’s Claw [A] as I pushed forward.

“It should be around here… Ah, there it is.”

In the distance, I spotted a large cave.
A deep, pitch-black cave.
Not a single glimmer of light reached inside—it looked like a massive beast with its mouth wide open.

If my hunch was right, this cave would be the ideal habitat for the creature I was after.
I put away the Luminous Stone into my Inventory and stepped into the cave.

The world plunged into darkness.

If I could use Aura or Mana Force, I’d have better visibility.
But neither applied to me.
I relied solely on the sensation at my fingertips as I advanced into the depths of the cave.

‘This should be far enough.’

From my inventory, I pulled out the bait I’d purchased earlier from Frecce and set it down.
Now it was a matter of patience.

‘It’s been a while since I did a proper stakeout.’

Drawing on memories from my Special Task Force days, I hid myself in the shadows.

How much time had passed?

Serapia waited endlessly for Adrian to return.
But no matter how much time passed, Adrian didn’t come back.

Each time a soldier finished their meal and left the table,
Serapia’s shoulders sank a little lower.

Each time a maid began clearing the dishes,
her head drooped a bit more.

“Lady Serapia …”

One of the maids, watching her sympathetically, cautiously approached.
The maid held a tray of warm, appetizing food—but—

“I’m not that hungry. Maybe it’s because I had a snack earlier…”

…For some reason, Serapia had no appetite at all.

More time passed.

So much time, in fact, that I lost all sense of it in the utter darkness.

And then—suddenly.

‘It’s here.’

My perception—now nearly on par with Extra Sensory Perception—detected something.
In this pitch-black space, I couldn’t see its form.

But when I activated Predatory Instincts [S],
a flood of information about the creature appeared before my eyes.

====

Name: Cave Fisher
Classification: Monsteria – Gastropoda – Slugmoidae – Snail Family
Sex: Hermaphrodite (Male)
Age: 6 years
Trait: Slime Cell [B-]

Name: Cave Fisher.
The creature I had been looking for.
Literally, it means “fisher living in a cave.”
But it wasn’t a real fisherman.

As the classification suggested, it was a mutated monster from the snail family.
Still, a snail is a snail.
The Cave Fisher was slow.

It inhabited pitch-black caves or underground areas like this one,
ambushing prey that came seeking shelter from rain or a place to rest.

Because its hunting method resembled that of a fisherman, it was dubbed Cave Fisher.
Its defining ability: Slime Cell [B-].

◆ Slime Cell [B-]

: When activated, the player expends [10 Kcal/sec] to coat their cells with a chemically enhanced slime.
This slime layer reduces physical friction, expanding joint mobility by [+8,380%], increases pressure resistance by [+1,350%], and accelerates damaged cell division to enhance recovery ability by [+15%].

This skill can be toggled [On/Off].

Slime—that classic trait of snails.
But the Cave Fisher had evolved it.

Its slime wasn’t sticky.
It was smooth, moist, and odorless.

It worked extremely well as a base for recovery potions,
and was especially potent for skin care.
When applied to armor, it vastly improved water resistance and durability.

‘There’s a reason the Emperor tried to round them all up.’

He had raised Cave Fishers in the imperial research lab underground,
then coated his troops’ armor with their slime and utterly crushed the allied forces.

…In any case.

I could directly coat this evolved slime onto my cells and increase my joint mobility.

Joint mobility refers to the range in which muscles can exert force through movement.
In other words, this would allow me to optimize my physical performance under any situation or environment.

The downside was the high caloric cost.
But I could overcome that with Regeneration [B+] synergy.
The +15% recovery meant that Regeneration [B+] required 15% fewer calories to function.

◆ Using the derived skill, Find Weakness [U]!

The moment I used Find Weakness [U],
the Cave Fisher’s vulnerabilities became immediately apparent.

At the same time, one of its… more unique features stood out:
It had two reproductive organs.

The Cave Fisher was a hermaphrodite.
Each individual could act as both male and female.

But before mating, the two would fight to determine roles.
The winner became the male.
The loser, female.

“Pretty wild, right?”

…That’s what Iliana had taught me.

So, if it was labeled as male, that meant it was a strong individual.
And a six-year-old male meant this guy had a six-year undefeated streak.

CRACK!

◆ You have defeated Cave Fisher!
◆ Gained 150 combat EXP!

To me, it was nothing more than a high-quality gene source.

Time flew by, and before I knew it, a week had passed.
The journey to the capital was already more than halfway over.

‘Today as well…’

As expected, Adrian was nowhere to be seen.

During mealtimes, break times, even in the briefest moments of rest—
Adrian was always absent.

It had already been a full week.

‘I haven’t seen brother’s face even once…’

Somehow, it was even harder to see him now than back in the County.
Rather than growing closer, she felt she was drifting even farther away from him.

It was a journey to the capital that turned out nothing like she’d hoped.
Serapia sat alone in the carriage, completely silent.

“…Haa.”

A sigh escaped her lips without warning,
and her gaze fell to her lap.

At that moment—
a shadow crept down over her head.

But how could a shadow fall inside the carriage?
As she slowly lifted her gaze in caution—

“Kyah—mph…!”

Before Serapia could scream, something caught in her throat.

Translatin_Otaku

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