James lunged forward the moment he saw the rabbit.
The sudden movement alerted the cottontail . Instead of freezing, it turned around and dashed toward the cave entrance.
The rabbit moved fast.
James pushed harder with his hind legs and tried to cut it off before it could escape.
But he had clearly underestimated the speed of a rabbit.
In a blink, the small animal shot forward and jumped more than ten meters. It slipped through the cave entrance and disappeared outside.
Hunger made James forget caution.
He rushed out of the cave and chased after it.
Outside, the forest was completely dark.
But the darkness didn't slow him down.
Cats have excellent night vision. Their eyes can detect even faint light, allowing them to move easily in low-light environments.
If light shines on a cat's eyes at night, they reflect a bright green glow.
The rabbit sprinted across the grass.
James chased closely behind it.
After a few seconds, he noticed something surprising.
He was just as fast as the rabbit.
In fact, the distance between them was shrinking.
I might actually catch it.
Five meters.
Three meters.
Two meters.
Soon the rabbit was less than one meter ahead of him.
Just as he was about to catch it—
The rabbit suddenly turned sharply.
James reacted and tried to turn the same way.
The moment he changed direction, his body lost balance.
His paws slipped.
Thud.
He rolled across the grass and slid to a stop.
Fortunately the ground was soft, so he wasn't hurt.
When he got back to his feet, the rabbit was already gone.
The forest had gone quiet again.
James stood there for a moment.
He had fallen while chasing prey.
That was embarrassing.
Still, something bothered him more than the failure itself.
Why did I lose balance like that?
The problem hadn't happened while running straight.
It happened the moment he tried to turn quickly.
James decided to test it.
He ran forward again.
Then he turned gently.
No problem.
Next he tried turning sharply.
His body wobbled again and he nearly fell.
He repeated the test several more times.
After a while, the answer became clear.
James turned his head and looked behind him.
At his tail or rather at the tiny tail behind him.
It was extremely short.
Almost the length of a human finger.
"That's the problem," he thought.
For most cats, the tail works like a balancing rod.
When they run at high speed, the tail helps control direction and maintain stability.
Animals like cheetahs, Siberian tigers, and lions all have long tails that swing behind them while running.
James looked at his own tail again.
It barely moved.
No wonder I lost balance.
Without a long tail, sudden turns during a chase become difficult.
This could seriously affect hunting.
Some cats like lynxes also have short tails, but they rely mostly on ambush attacks.
They jump on small animals like rabbits and rodents rather than chasing prey over long distances.
Balance during a high-speed chase isn't as important for them.
But saber-toothed tigers hunted much larger animals.
Antelope.
Bison.
Wild horses.
Even camels.
Those hunts required chasing, grappling, and controlling prey.
Balance mattered.
Maybe I can improve with practice, James thought.
But he knew that wouldn't solve the real problem.
The real issue was the tail itself.
Then another idea appeared in his mind.
The system.
If natural evolution couldn't fix the problem, maybe genetic evolution could.
James immediately opened the system interface.
[Status Panel]
Host: James
Species: Smilodon (Male)
Age: 4 Months
Strength: 18 (+)
Agility: 16 (+)
Endurance: 14 (+)
Gene Points: 5
Fused Genes: None
Five gene points left for use it's not much.
But it was just a start.
He opened the gene database and began searching through the available sequences.
After a moment, something caught his attention.
Clouded leopard genes.
The clouded leopard has a tail almost as long as its body. Its tail vertebrae are strong and flexible, allowing it to maintain perfect balance while climbing and moving.
Exactly what he needed.
But when he checked the cost— 300 gene points.
James stared at the number.
Then he nodded slightly.
Alright.
That's my New goal.
Save 300 gene points then give himself a proper tail.
With that decision made, he began walking back toward the cave.
He had failed to catch the rabbit, so he returned empty-handed.
When he was halfway there, a familiar sound echoed through the forest.
"Rrrr—"
Mom.
James immediately recognized the call and ran toward the cave.
When he arrived, Mom was pacing near the entrance, clearly searching for him.
The moment she saw him return, she walked over quickly.
"Rrr—"
She licked his face with her rough tongue and sniffed him carefully from head to tail.
It was a full inspection.
James stood there quietly and let her finish.
After confirming he wasn't injured, she relaxed and led him back into the cave.
Inside, Zack and Zoe had clearly been waiting.
The moment they saw him return, both cubs ran over.
They circled around him eagerly.
Their eyes were full of expectation.
Zack looked up at him like asking.
Big brother, where's the rabbit?
Zoe looked just as curious.
James paused.
Then he calmly turned away.
"…No idea what you're talking about."
He walked over to Mom and began drinking milk as if nothing had happened.
Zack and Zoe stared at him in confusion.
Their big brother had clearly gone hunting.
Yet somehow he had returned empty-handed while acting completely normal.