Two minutes later, Ethan's reason returned with a vengeance. He knew for certain that a simple fly wouldn't be much help against the many dangers lurking in the depths of this world. Now, the arms race Ethan had to pursue was to evolve as many animals as possible and with that… wait.
"System, you mentioned at the beginning that any ability my evolved animals obtained, I would also obtain, right?" Ethan remembered something vital the System had told him earlier. Anxious for power that went beyond the decorative, he wanted to secure it immediately.
[CORRECT, HOST. HOWEVER, I MUST STATE THAT A RULE SIMILAR TO THE ANIMALS APPLIES: IF THE HOST WISHES TO OBTAIN THE ABILITY OF ONE OF HIS EVOLVED PETS, HE MUST PAY FOR IT.]
Ethan's mood fluctuated. Doing the math quickly—between Thud's evolution and the purchase of the other animals—the figure had already climbed to nearly ninety thousand dollars. It was clear his current funds wouldn't last long at this rate. Now, with the news that he also had to pay to acquire those abilities himself, making money quickly became a matter of extreme urgency.
"System, how much would it cost to obtain Thud's ability?"
[HOST, FIRSTLY: YOU CAN ONLY OBTAIN THE ABILITIES OF YOUR PETS, NOT THEIR EVOLUTIONS OR SPECIALTIES. IN THIS CASE, YOU WILL OBTAIN THE CARBON STEEL APPENDAGES. FOLLOWING A PATTERN SIMILAR TO THUD'S, YOUR FINGERNAILS WILL GAIN THE ABILITY TO EXTEND UP TO FOUR CENTIMETERS. LIKE THUD'S APPENDAGES, YOUR NAILS WILL CHANGE FROM KERATIN TO CARBON STEEL WHILE RETAINING THE APPEARANCE OF NORMAL NAILS. THE PRICE IS $25,000.]
Ethan couldn't help but sigh. The ability reminded him of the claws of Sabertooth, Wolverine's brother, who enjoyed a similar trait. "System, is there anything else I should know about obtaining the ability?"
[YOU MUST KNOW THAT THESE EVOLUTIONS WITHIN YOUR OWN BODY WILL UTILIZE ENERGY FROM YOUR OWN ORGANISM: GLUCOSE, FATTY ACIDS, AMINO ACIDS, MITOCHONDRIA, METABOLISM, AND MOST IMPORTANTLY, ATP. SHOULD YOU LACK THE NECESSARY ENERGY FOR THE EVOLUTION, IT WILL HALT, AND YOU WILL BE UNABLE TO ACQUIRE IT.]
'Energy is neither created nor destroyed, only transformed,' Ethan thought, recalling the famous principle. It made sense; even with a System, his body was undergoing a massive change, and the materials for that change had to come from somewhere. "System, is there another method that doesn't involve using my own morphological energy?"
[FOR THAT, YOU MUST SIMPLY PAY MORE.]
"...."
Ethan closed his eyes and wondered why a System would even need money, but since he wanted his first ability without taking any biological risks, he decided to finalize the payment. "Do it."
[DOES THE HOST AGREE TO OBTAIN THUD'S ABILITY: CARBON STEEL APPENDAGES, FOR THE VALUE OF $42,000?]
"Just do it."
Immediately, Ethan felt a slight tingling in his hands, along with a cramping sensation in his fingers. However, the feeling vanished quickly, leaving only the memory behind.
[HOST EVOLUTION SUCCESSFUL.]
As the System's notification sounded, a strange instinct bloomed within Ethan. More than that, it was the sensation that his body had new motor functions. Humans don't "learn" how to move their limbs; it's part of the package called human evolution. That's what happened here—the System didn't just evolve Ethan's body; it hardwired it into his brain. Nervous connectors were created, linking to his central nervous system as if these changes had always been there.
Ethan thought of his new appendages—or claws, to be precise. With a single thought, his ten fingernails grew rapidly, extending to a length of four centimeters.
"Ha..." An ecstatic sigh escaped him as he looked at his claws. They hadn't grown curved, but straight, like ten surgical blades ready for use.
Looking up, he saw the chain Thud hadn't been able to cut entirely. Unable to resist the impulse, he took a swipe at it.
Clang!
The severed links fell onto the kitchen table with a metallic ring, bouncing before hitting the floor. He didn't stop there; he ran his hand over the concrete countertop and watched as his claws sank into the material with ease, as if it were tissue paper.
"Very good. Excellent, actually." Ethan flexed his fingers and observed his claws closely. Though they looked like normal nails, an almost imperceptible metallic glint reflected when the light hit them.
He also discovered that his claws didn't cut him. It was strange, but whenever he touched them with his fingers or ran the claw-nails over his skin, they acted like normal nails. He could scratch himself if he applied too much force, of course, but they didn't slice him with the terrifying ease they sliced through everything else. That was a definite plus.
However, once the excitement passed, the critical point arrived: he needed cash, fast. So far, he had spent nearly 150,000 dollars on evolutions that weren't even that high-tier yet. Once the other animals arrived, the expenses would skyrocket.
So, while he wanted to keep experimenting with his retractable claws, he gradually set aside his joy and focused on business. A car is useless without fuel. Ethan's hand might be strong, but without the "fuel" to make it shine, he was just wasting the System's potential. For now, the fastest way to get money was through the underworld.
Whether as an assassin, a bounty hunter, or a private investigator, there were many ways to keep the cash flowing, though some jobs paid better than others. With that in mind, Ethan returned to the bar and re-entered the bunker. He wasn't alone; Thud followed closely, his soft hum echoing in the small space.
He approached the monitors and contacted a known associate.
"Ethan, it's been a long time. I'm deeply sorry about what happened to your parents." A woman soon appeared on the screen, having accepted Ethan's video call.
"Thanks, Veronica. I have a job for you." Veronica was an underworld hacker specializing in cybersecurity, firewalls, data theft—everything involving the virtual world, she knew how to control.
"Straight to the point, as always."
"I need you to create an identity for me in the underworld. No cross-referenced addresses, everything clean. Also, I want a virtual bank card. No prints, clean and untraceable."
Veronica asked no questions and didn't hesitate. For her, as long as the pay was good, she worked happily. In less than thirty minutes, she called back.
"Done. I sent you the URL for the identity along with the password; you can change it after logging in. As for the virtual card, it only works for transfers. You won't be able to withdraw cash directly with it; you'll have to move it to a bank account. But you know me—no one will know the origin of those transactions, so you can breathe easy."
Hearing Veronica's words, Ethan smiled. "Efficient as always, Vero. I've sent the payment; it should reach you shortly." Without another word, he hung up.
He now had the keys to enter the kingdom, and with luck, to conquer it.