I'm a Caterpillar
What on earth am I supposed to do about this?
"Gweeeek."
I began to map out what I should do from here on out.
For reasons completely unknown to me, I had become a caterpillar monster.
Caterpillar monsters were so insignificant that they didn't even have a proper name; they were just collectively referred to as "caterpillars."
Although they supposedly evolved into insectoid monsters once fully grown, their numbers in the wild were said to be extremely rare.
The insectoid monsters that threatened humanity usually came from breeding grounds located deep within the monster territories.
So, where was I right now?
No matter how I looked at it, I wasn't in a breeding ground. I was in the wild.
Seeing the skyscrapers looming in the far distance, this wasn't even monster territory. It was human territory.
Being stuck in the wild of human territory as a useless, insignificant monster was a terrible stroke of misfortune.
I could already envision a future where I wriggled around only to get stepped on and crushed by some wild herb gatherer.
But it was still too early to lose hope.
"Gweeeek."
I had two glimmers of hope.
First, unlike typical caterpillar monsters, which were easily identifiable by their black color, I was white.
Just like a normal, everyday insect caterpillar.
Unlike monster caterpillars, which people crushed on sight, normal insect caterpillars had become rare. If you got caught killing one, you could face a fine of up to fifty million won.
At the very least, I wouldn't be mindlessly squashed by anyone who had a basic respect for the law.
And the second glimmer of hope was this.
Status window.
"Gwek."
It was a bare-bones status window without a single special perk, but even this was a massive source of hope.
Without it, I might still be groveling in despair.
Besides, even if they were useless, I had four skills.
None of them did anything beyond what was written, but hey, it was better than nothing.
What I liked most about this status window was the remaining levels until evolution and the experience bar.
With these, at least I knew exactly how far I was from my goal.
I didn't have to feel frustrated and depressed, wondering how much longer I had to go.
My goal is to evolve into a form that can somehow communicate with humans.
I might be a monster now, but shouldn't I at least try to communicate with humans?
Since I still had my memories of being human, I really didn't want to live as a bug forever.
What kind of humanoid insect monsters were there?
I could recall three types.
First, there was the swarm type, where countless tiny insect monsters gathered to mimic a human shape. That was an immediate pass.
Second were the High Class monsters commonly referred to as the "Knight" types.
They still retained many insectoid features, but they possessed a knight-like silhouette.
Even though I, who wasn't even Low Class yet, would have to climb all the way to High Class, they could speak, making them the most reliable option.
The last option was a fairy.
I had no idea why they were classified as insectoids instead of having their own separate category, but they were officially categorized as such.
And if they were insectoids, it meant I could potentially become one.
The problem was that I didn't know how many times I had to evolve to become a fairy, nor did I know if they could even speak.
Fairies always just flocked together and giggled.
Out of the three paths, this one was the most uncertain and had the least amount of information.
Still, if possible, I wanted to become a fairy.
Even if they were small, they were the monsters that looked the most like humans.
Let's set the goal: find a way to become a fairy, and if that fails, aim for a High Class monster.
My ultimate goal was set.
To achieve this, I had to keep leveling up and evolving.
So, what did I need to do to evolve?
Dragging my caterpillar body, which I was finally getting used to moving, I headed toward the nearest blade of grass.
Then, I opened my mouth wide and bit into it.
Caterpillars gotta eat grass.
If you asked whether this actually raised my level, I would answer yes.
Because it really did.
Eating a single blade of grass increased my experience by 10%.
By my calculations, I only needed to eat twenty-three more to undergo my first evolution.
Assuming I ate without stopping, I could evolve by tomorrow.
That was, of course, assuming I didn't get caught by a bird, a larger insect, or some thoughtless human.
When I leveled up, my fatigue and fullness reset, so I didn't even need to rest.
It seemed leveling up completely restored my body.
Crunch, crunch.
I eagerly munched on all the surrounding grass to evolve as quickly as possible.
Doing this repeatedly is actually making me faster.
They say humans are creatures of adaptation.
As I ate grass in a trance, my level reached 90% of Level 4, and before I knew it, it took me only two minutes to finish off a single blade.
Perhaps the world recognized my greatness, because it granted me a new skill called Digestion, and my Devour skill had risen to Level 3.
On top of that, one of the effects of the Devour skill—absorbing the skills of the consumed target—activated, granting me a skill called Photosynthesis.
I hadn't even known grass could have skills.
It feels like just yesterday I was chewing on a single leaf for an hour because I didn't know how to use my mouth...
I had really grown a lot.
I could easily move this cylindrical body that I once thought would be impossible to control.
Spending all day eating grass had definitely paid off.
I munched on the grass even harder, anticipating my imminent first evolution.
Just one more, and I would evolve.
I really hoped my first evolution would turn me into a fairy.
But that was probably asking for too much, right...?
Praying that I was the luckiest caterpillar in the world, I began to crawl toward the last remaining blade of grass nearby.
That was, until a massive shadow loomed over me.
Caw!
The overwhelming cry of a predator echoed from behind, sending a shiver down my entire body.
It was just the sound of a crow, a bird I had always disliked, but why did it feel so utterly terrifying now?
Damn it. I only needed one more bite...!
I had grown quite a bit from eating all that grass, but I was still only the size of a thumb.
How was I supposed to survive this desperate situation?
I racked my tiny caterpillar brain, but no good ideas came to mind.
Even though it was just a young fledgling crow, it was still far larger than me.
It couldn't swallow me whole, but it was big enough to snap me in half with its beak and eat me in two bites.
Think...! What do I have that can keep me alive?!
Out of all my skills, the only useful one was Strong Bite.
Toxic Blood was useless since I couldn't exactly spit blood at it.
In the end, my only option was to bite the fledgling crow myself.
I can do this.
The fledgling crow hadn't attacked yet. It was just tilting its head, warily observing me.
As if it hadn't fully recognized me as food yet.
I had to seize this moment and bite it.
If I didn't strike first while it was off guard, I stood absolutely no chance.
Now...!
I lunged forward at a speed that surprised even myself and bit down hard on the crow's neck.
No matter how much I looked like a harmless caterpillar, I was still a monster with sharp teeth.
The tiny teeth inside my mouth dug deep into the soft flesh beneath the fledgling's feathers.
Squawk?!
Screaming in pain, the fledgling crow thrashed wildly to shake me off.
But I clamped my jaws even tighter, determined not to let go.
My biting force was strong enough to be registered as a skill.
I wasn't going to be shaken off that easily.
Huh...?
The problem was that I had overestimated the fledgling crow's durability.
Before I knew it, I was flying through the air.
My mouth was filled with a chunk of the crow's flesh.
The flesh I had been biting had torn right off.
Oh, shit. What now?!
I hadn't thought past the biting part.
In my panic, I had just bitten first and planned to think later.
While I was frozen in panic, the furious fledgling crow lunged and pecked at me with its beak.
It hurts!!
Even though it was young, its sharp beak easily pierced my soft body, leaving a deep wound.
I had to fight back somehow, but the crow was pinning me down with its talons, leaving me completely helpless.
I could only take hit after hit, bleeding profusely.
At this rate, I would either bleed to death or get eaten by this fledgling.
Bleeding...?
Just as I was about to give up and close my eyes, the skill Toxic Blood flashed through my mind.
The description had said my blood was poisonous.
Right now, the fledgling crow must have swallowed a lot of my blood.
The poison had to be spreading through its body.
If I can just hold out, I win...!
With a clear path to victory in sight, I squeezed my eyes shut.
Not to give up, but to keep myself from losing consciousness and endure for as long as I remained alive.
It was a race against time: would the poison spread through the fledgling's small body first, or would I bleed out and die first?
I even had a skill called Endure.
So, I figured the odds were slightly in my favor.
I just had to hold on.
Squaaawk...!
How much time had passed since I resolved to endure?
Just as I felt the strength draining from my body, the fledgling crow let out a desperate, final cry. I opened my eyes to see it trembling violently, convulsing all over.
The poison had fully run its course. It was dying.
I was in a wretched state myself, but the victory was mine.
How dare a mere fledgling crow try to beat a former human...
"Gweeeek..."
Level Up!
You can now evolve!
But first, let me rest a bit...
The status window kept flashing notifications in front of my eyes, but I ignored them and closed my eyes.
My body was fully restored thanks to the level up, but my mind was utterly exhausted. I just needed to sleep for a bit.