129 Evolving! Part 4

Transferred. Returning home.

Testing the fruit acquired immediately.

Evolution?

Later.

Now, dedicating full focus to savoring this spider's first taste of sweetness!

Taste enhancement: maximum output!

Also enhancing olfaction.

First, examining carefully with the eyes.

Then, identification.

『Dried Cricta Fruit』

『Cricta: Plant widespread across the Kasanagala Continent. Flowers periodically, bears fruit. Fruit is sweet. Slight MP recovery effect.』

Huh.

This fruit isn't just a snack.

It restores MP.

If I'd kept it as a healing item, I might have done something wrong.

But I did heal a near-fatal injury, so I suppose I can accept this much in return.

The price is being paid properly, so it's fine, it's fine.

Take a deep breath.

Soo, haa.

Very well!

Bon appétit!

Sweet.

Ah, sweet.

It is sweet.

The fruit tastes neither sweet nor pleasant, compared to the ones eaten in a previous life.

There is no freshness, as it is dried out.

But sweet.

Sweetness, tasted for the first time since becoming a spider.

It is sweet.

Tastes good.

I am happy.

Savor it slowly.

Savor it slowly, bit by bit.

To the very end.

phew.

Thank you for the meal.

Sweets, properly made, are in a class of their own.

One cannot simply say something is delicious without thinking about it.

Even if it is delicious, eating it should not leave one with a complicated feeling.

Now then.

The afterglow lingered. Progression, perhaps.

This time, unlike when evolution occurred at the mid-tier level, preparations were complete.

Safety is secured. Food is available.

No issues.

The only concern might be that Taboo is approaching its cap this evolution cycle.

Taboo, huh.

I think something will happen if it caps—though even Sage’s power cannot determine the specifics.

What will occur remains unknown.

Well, having come this far, avoidance is no longer possible. There is nothing to do but accept whatever unfolds.

Pray it isn’t instant death. Or irreversible penalties.

Hmm.

Fear is fear, but I doubt it’ll turn out to be something utterly monstrous.

After all, past mysterious skills like Pride ultimately had no drawbacks.

Perhaps this time it’ll just become stronger without any penalty.

Even if that’s unlikely, I can’t imagine that mischievous D would impose a fatal penalty upon capping Taboo outright.

Given his nature, he would undoubtedly choose to observe it while keeping it alive.

Hmm?

Perhaps something worse than death awaits.

...Try not to think about it.

There's no use thinking about it.

Taboo is a gamble—win or lose the moment it's activated.

There is no other way.

Three candidates for evolution remain.

Greater Talatect is evolving back into the original Talatect lineage.

The one from the lower levels.

That may be strong, but I have no intention of undergoing this evolution.

The body grows larger, after all.

One condition for evolving into Arachne is being a small or medium-sized spider-type monster. If it becomes something as large as a Greater Tarantula, evolution into Arachne becomes impossible.

In that case, proceed without the Greater Talatect.

Two remain.

Edé Saine and Ortkadinaat.

Edé Saine: Evolution Condition: Zoa Ere Lvl 20: Description: A small, spider-like monster, regarded as a symbol of death and feared accordingly. Possesses high combat capability and stealth.

Ortkadinaat: Evolution Condition: Spider-type monster with above-average stats, magic-based skills: Description: A spider-type monster proficient in magic. High intelligence; capable of deploying traps and other tactical maneuvers.

Ortkadinaat is magic-oriented. Edé Saine is the superior evolution path of Zoa Ere.

Still, Ortkadinaat isn’t particularly significant.

Unlocked through the combination of the peak magic ability and the Star Magic skill, but in reality, it’s a suboptimal evolution.

Even if it’s intelligent—by monster standards, that is.

It’s been using traps since birth.

And Ortkadinaat’s evolution path ends here.

That’s the extent of it.

The evolutionary tree suggests it’s not particularly high-ranked among monsters—lacks appeal.

In contrast, Edesaine is problematic.

Though final evolution remains, judging from the tree, it stands one step below Mother’s rank.

Evolutionary trees indicate approximate rank based on placement of a monster’s name.

From that placement, Edesaine is one stage prior to the species believed to be Mother’s kind—specifically, one of the two dominant forms alongside the Queen Taretect.

It is Edesaine.

Rank among monsters far surpasses other evolutionary candidates.

Therefore, selection is clearly Edesaine.

Without the Sage’s evolutionary tree, uncertainty might have arisen.

Sage truly is unparalleled.

Incidentally, Arachne undergoes special evolution—unrelated to the standard evolutionary tree.

The evolution conditions are: maintaining Pride, being a small or medium-sized monster, and reaching level 50 or higher.

That’s incredibly demanding.

Even aiming for that seriously makes me question my own judgment.

[Individual Zoa Erel evolves into Edesaine]

Evolution initiation confirmed.

Evolution completed.

Species changed to Edesaine.

All base stats increased.

Skill proficiency evolution bonus acquired.

Proficiency reached threshold. Skill 'HP Rapid Recovery LV1' upgraded to 'HP Rapid Recovery LV2'.

Proficiency reached threshold. Skill 'Mana Infusion LV4' upgraded to 'Mana Infusion LV5'.

Proficiency reached threshold. Skill 'Destruction Amplification LV4' upgraded to 'Destruction Amplification LV5'.

Proficiency reached threshold. Skill 'Slash Amplification LV5' upgraded to 'Slash Amplification LV6'.

Proficiency reached threshold. Skill 'Poison Amplification LV9' upgraded to 'Poison Amplification LV10'.

Condition met. Skill 'Poison Amplification LV10' branched into Skill 'Status Effect Amplification LV1'.

'Poison Amplification LV10' integrated into 'Status Effect Amplification LV1'.

Proficiency reached threshold. Skill 'Status Effect Amplification LV1' upgraded to 'Status Effect Amplification LV7'.

Proficiency reached threshold. Skill 'Qi Combat Technique LV6' upgraded to 'Qi Combat Technique LV7'.

Proficiency reached threshold. Skill 'Qi Infusion LV3' upgraded to 'Qi Infusion LV4'.

Proficiency reached threshold. Skill 'Universal Thread LV3' upgraded to 'Universal Thread LV4'.

Proficiency reached threshold. Skill 'Dark Magic LV7' upgraded to 'Dark Magic LV8'.

Proficiency reached threshold. Skill 'Dimension Magic LV1' upgraded to 'Dimension Magic LV2'.

Proficiency reached threshold. Skill 'Break Resistance LV3' upgraded to 'Break Resistance LV4'.

Proficiency reached threshold. Skill 'Impact Resistance LV3' upgraded to 'Impact Resistance LV4'.

Proficiency reached threshold. Skill 'Slash Resistance LV3' upgraded to 'Slash Resistance LV4'.

Proficiency reached threshold. Skill 'Petrification Resistance LV3' upgraded to 'Petrification Resistance LV4'.

Proficiency reached threshold. Skill 'Acid Resistance LV4' upgraded to 'Acid Resistance LV5'.

Proficiency reached threshold. Skill 'Pain Reduction LV3' upgraded to 'Pain Reduction LV4'.

Proficiency reached threshold. Skill 'Fate LV1' upgraded to 'Fate LV2'.

Proficiency reached threshold. Skill 'Phantom Step LV4' upgraded to 'Phantom Step LV5'.

Proficiency reached threshold. Skill 'Durability LV4' upgraded to 'Durability LV5'.

Proficiency reached threshold. Skill 'Taboo LV9' upgraded to 'Taboo LV10'.

Acquired Skill 'Corrosion Resistance LV1' through evolution.

Skill 'Corrosion Resistance LV1' integrated into 'Corrosion Resistance LV4'.

Skill 'Corrosion Resistance LV4' has reached threshold. Skill 'Corrosion Resistance LV4' upgraded to 'Corrosion Resistance LV5'.

Acquired Skill 'Taboo LV1' through evolution.

Received Skill Points.

Condition met. Activating Taboo effect. Installing.

Installation complete.