After a bit of digestion, I took back to the air, scoping out my surroundings. I also double checked my system with a bit of pride at how far I had come.

  

  

  Level: 6

  Attributes: [Amalgamation (1)][Bound Soul][Chimaeric Core (4)][Time Loop]

  Skills: [Bio Sonar][Flight (Major)][Hyper Vision][Mighty Leap][Venomous Bite]

  I was now a proper predator, though not one that was without its own potential predators. That burroworm would have gobbled me up, for one, but even among the animals I was familiar with, other large birds of prey would happily feast on my bones.

  Still, I now had the ability to hunt down quite a lot of small game. It would be low experience, a similar problem to what I had dealt with before reaching Level 6, but I could gain a lot of new profiles this way.

  Back when I was a grasshopper first escaping my cage, I had started on the profile, and I intended to finish that one off. If I were a cute bunny, I felt like I could comfortably live with Timothy. The memory of sleeping tucked into his neck as a rat was a nice one, but the boy deserved a more cuddly companion than a rodent.

  Besides that, it would be interesting to get the rest of the profile. I had no desire to be that thing, but I was curious about its skill. I also found myself curious about the stone the hunter had pulled out of it. The more I thought about it, the more I started comparing it to my own [Chimaeric Core]. Was that the burroworm’s core? It did sort of look like the cores I saw the wizard shoving into the amalgamated animals he had been experimenting on, although a different color.

  With [Hyper Vision], I got a good look at the region. I found a small town near the border of the forest, and flew over it. The town bustled with all sorts of people, and I found myself kind of curious, but the dangers were too high.

  If I ate a person… could I transform into a ?

  It was a bit of a nasty thought. I couldn’t fathom eating a human. Also, my Loadout forced me to have a tail. Sure, I could probably keep it as a rat tail and tuck it into my clothes—or maybe cut it off entirely, when I had hands available to do such a thing—but I didn’t really feel human anymore.

  The feedback loop of eating, growing, and empowering myself was a bit addictive. I was doing it, primarily, to defeat the wizard, stop the time explosion, and save Timothy.

  But after that… would I stop?

  No, probably not.

  It might just be part of my nature, as a .

  It was a problem for a future time. I had a long way to go before I could kill that wizard. As I was, I doubted I could even penetrate his magic shield.

  [Flight (Major)] was a substantial upgrade over its previous tier. I could fly higher and faster, and soar farther and for longer. Of course, my dive was leagues above what it had been before. So long as I was after smaller and weaker game, my prey never stood a chance.

  After a couple of days of luxurious hunting and eating, I closed on the rabbit profile.

  

   profile 100% complete. Added to [Amalgamation]’s Loadout options.

  The profile had a skill called [Sudden Dash] which was kind of like a grounded version of [Mighty Leap]. Rather than suddenly hurling myself upwards, it would suddenly hurl me forwards. It could be good for combat, I supposed, but I was acquiring more skills than skill points to unlock them with, even accounting for the tiered skills that could upgrade naturally.

  That gap would presumably only widen as it was taking more and more to level up. The higher my level was, the higher I had to aim with my targets if I wanted to level up at a consistent rate, which meant I was increasingly grinding more slowly against weaker and smaller targets, which correlated to higher profile acquisition, assuming I didn’t just constantly choose the exact same targets to eat.

  I was soaring through the skies debating this when I spotted some movement between the trees. I swooped down to look closer, and spotted a familiar figure.

  Tracking him from above, I watched as he sneaked through the forest looking for a target with his bow and arrow. By midday, with little luck, he had settled down to eat some rations, and I swooped down nearby, perching on a branch. I gave him a small screech of greeting.

  “Is that you, pretty bird? Well I’ll be. You here for some more jerky?” he asked, ripping off a piece and tossing it my way.

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  I mean, I won’t say no to free food.

  

   profile 0.001% complete.

  Hey, it’s not horse this time. You must have picked a better supplier.

  A thought occurred to me. The man seemed to like me, and he seemed willing to share food with me. He was also able to hunt larger game with his bow and arrow, things which I would struggle to kill, even with my new falcon body.

  If he let me tag along, over time I could probably acquire a larger profile. Something I could properly fight with, now that I had 10kg of mass storage available.

  It would take an unknown amount of time, but most certainly a very long time, to leapfrog my way up from a sub-1kg creature to a 10kg creature, in terms of successful combat and profile acquisition. But, like the burroworm, maybe I could use this hunter to do some of the dirty work for me.

  The man was watching me, with a half-smile on his face, so I hopped a bit closer.

  “You want more?” he asked, tossing me another strip of jerky.

  After eating it, because why not, I hopped a bit closer.

  The hunter seemed to want me to, since he kept feeding me. The question was, would he catch me and hold me against my will for some reason, or was he just an animal lover who wanted to make friends?

  The former was a problem, but when I died, I’d just escape by way of [Time Loop], so it wasn’t an insurmountable problem. The latter was a great chance.

  Might as well risk it.

  I hopped close enough to be within his reach. Slowly, as to not startle me, he reached out a gloved finger.

  And stroked my neck.

  As usually, I was a bit weak to kind contact. The way he rubbed my feathers felt nice, and I leaned in subconsciously.

  “There, there, pretty bird,” he cooed. “That’s a nice bird.”

  Muahahaha, I laughed, completely ignoring my own weakness. My plan has worked perfectly.

  The hunter walked into town, with me perched on his arm guard. It was good that he was an archer who still wore one, since even gripping lightly, my talons were digging into the leather of his gear. He would be better served by a proper falconry sleeve as opposed to a bowyer’s bracer if he didn’t want me to ruin this.

  Accompanied by the hunter, I was able to get a good look at the town and townspeople.

  My memories were muddled, but I got the distinct impression that this civilization was a bit more basic than the one my soul had come from. The buildings largely seemed small, though the roads were clean and the people seemed happy. Small stalls lined the streets as people bought and sold wares. Nothing seemed overly luxurious, but the people didn’t seem too hard-put by living here.

  The hunter led us through the streets, but surprisingly wasn’t stopping for or stopped by any of the people we passed, even those that seemed interested in the fact that he was escorting such a fine bird as myself. That’s odd, since he seems like a friendly guy overall.

  Our destination was a larger, two-story building. I tried to read the signage, but I didn’t recognize the lettering. I got the impression I should know how to read, so I was a bit annoyed that I couldn’t.

  Inside the larger building, it seemed like some kind of business. There was signage and a counter with several people working, and there was also an attached eatery or some sort, and a stairwell that led upstairs. My escort breezed by the people eating, and I craned my neck to check out the food that smelled so good. The hunter’s jerky aside, I predominantly ate raw corpses, and the smell of cooked food was incredibly enticing.

  “Check it out, Hilda!” the hunter said after striding up to the counter, raising his arm, and my along with it.

  The receptionist looked up. She was a pretty young woman, and she clearly recognized the hunter, as she flashed him a smile. I wondered if he was trying to court her or if they were just friends.

  “What have you got there, Willis?”

  Ah. The hunter’s name is Willis. Good to know.

  “You won’t believe it. I met this little guy in the woods a few days ago, and he found me again today. Took some food and then just jumped right on my arm.”

  “That’s… pretty unusual, isn’t it?”

  “A bit, yeah.”

  “Handsome bird, that.”

  “Yup. And he’s shockingly tame,” Willis said. “Smart, too. Check this out. Hey, pretty bird, shake,” he said, offering me his finger.

  I reached out with one of my talons and shook his finger. Yes, yes, I’m a genius.

  “You think he’s an escaped pet? A falconer’s lost bird?” Hilda asked, frowning slightly.

  “Maybe, but…” Willis made a face. “I’m hoping he’s not.”

  “Ah. [Blessing of the Falcon]?”

  “I mean, it’d be nice. It would be a serious boon to my class.”

  Hilda glanced at me, then back at Willis.

  “Well, is it on your profile?”

  “Ah,” Willis said, flushing slightly. “No.”

  “There you have it.”

  Sorry, Willis. I’m not an actual falcon and I have no idea how to bless you. Would if I could.

  Willis sighed. “Should I try and find the owner?”

  The woman shrugged. “I haven’t heard of any lost birds, so it’s not likely a guild member’s. Could be some wealthy merchant’s pet, or maybe even a noble. There might be a good reward.”

  Guild member, she said. So is this some kind of hunter’s guild? Or maybe something more general than that. A mercenary or adventuring guild?

  Willis frowned. “Maybe. Well, if you hear anyone asking about one, let me know, yeah?”

  “Sure thing. You gonna pick up a jess for him?”

  “Nah. He’s free to go if he pleases. On the off chance he is wild, and I leash him, there’s no chance I get the [Blessing]. But if he leaves and comes back…”

  “Here’s hoping.”

  The two chat a bit more, after which Willis headed up the stairs and down a hall full of doors. The guild seemed to have some kind of room and board upstairs. He opened one up with a key he pulled out of a vest pocket, revealing a small but comfortable looking accommodation.

  I guess he’s not a resident. Just passing through, like me.

  Willis opened the window and lowered his arm to the sill. I hopped over, and looked back up at him.

  “Here’s the deal. You’re free to come and go as you please. I’m not going to tether you; I know what that’s like,” he said, shaking his head. “In return…” he paused, and shook his head, laughing to himself. “Making deals with birds. I’m an idiot.”

  He dropped onto the bed, laying back and folding the pillow in half under his head. His eyes seemed to glaze a bit, like he was concentrating on the air in front of his face. After a moment, I realized he was probably looking at his system.

  Probably checking again to see about that blessing he mentioned. Oh well.

  After a while, he sighed, and rolled over. Pretty soon he was conked out.

  I glanced out the window. Maybe I’ll do a bit of exploration while he naps.