Today's monster clearing warrants a momentary glance-over; lots of ranbi died and I continued maintaining my ample flow of mana and concentration. More important than isekai rabbit slaying, however, is that I've learned to control this new body considerably well over the last few hours. Mental fatigue may be harsh, but no one can be more on-task than a sun-loving plant with nothing but fields all around him. One moment might be oriented on keeping an eye on my ranbi pair, yet the next was back in scaling the stairs down to my dungeon room or patrolling the lines.

Cooler than mastering movement, though, is the accidental discovery and acquisition of a new Ability. And it all happened because I tried lifting one of the barbed-vine defenses' most recent victims.

Defense Engineer Acquired due to actions. Personal-type

Defenses can always be rebuilt or replaced, but the best walls never truly fell.

All Dungeon-created traps gain an additional 1% defense per enemy slain, up to an extra 20%.

Resetting a trap will set this bonus to 0%, while Repairing reduces it by 0.5%.

All this time, I'd been letting traps run themselves down until they broke. It now made sense why the traps had a section that said "Repair/Reset" if there was a functional difference. Repairing them meant taking a more active interest in their status, whereas Resets were best for more passive defensive measures. Based on my current successes, I could gain 0.5% via repairing these traps. It's definitely not ideal for me no matter how much mana I'm producing.

However... raising one at a time isn't that far-fetched, right? With both Bomber and Ivy focusing on leveling up, I could easily bait the ranbi attacks toward a single part of the siege line. It didn't say I couldn't move it either; in an emergency, I could simply convert into my formless state and just lift it up and relocate it to safety.

A bushman can't turn down experimentation. Leveling up and evolving couldn't just be on a personal level, but instead needs to also encompass my strategies.

So I spent a few more hours of the long Brogdar day putting that plan into motion. Between all of Bomber's brutal kicks and Ivy's holds, it was easy enough to not just get them kills but to let a few ranbi tripover dead on the wire. My experiment focused on getting it up to 5% — praise Compost for mess-cleaning — before I ultimately put the wire to the new test.

At an additional 5% defense rate, it finally withstood an extra ranbi. It didn't reset when I repaired it (as I quickly tested it) so it looks like I gain two ranbi at a five-percent increase.

That's pretty good, man.

But more importantly, Bomber's level went up again before the sun had fallen. The night-time lull meant both of the bunnies retired in their respecting cuddle zones whilst leaving me to my nutritional breakdown duty. Janitorial work didn't take too long since I was actively doing it during the day, however, so at last I finally interacted with the windows and worked my way into Bomber's status.

And I clicked Evolve. Or mentally winked at it? Urgh. This will never get easier to explain how I access these menus.

I selected [Evolve].

[Evolve]

Select your summon's evolution! Giant Ranbi Ranbli Kid Alpha / Beta Ranbi A larger ranbi; considered fat by some, this creature of the Grey Man is actually a ranbi with much larger fur and a sturdier body. Infamously known for the softest fur in Kave. Although not much larger than a ranbi, the Ranbli are an evolutionary leap for the Grey Man species. They stand upright and gain more human-like proportions. Identical to Ranbi only in looks, the Alpha and Beta are two sides of the same coin. Unlike normal ranbi, they can communicate and organize other ranbi into territorial groups. Recommended Class Focus: Damage & Tanking Recommended Class Focus: Mobility & Damage Recommended Class Focus: Leadership & Magic-user [Cancel] | [Confirm]

Okay, so, ranbi can learn magic. And come in giant varieties. And... stand upright? It sounded a lot like some of the anime bunnies and mascots I'd seen in manga in my prior life. Brogdar definitely didn't have much creativity apart from giving me the short-end of a random-generator.

My dashed hopes aside, Evolution for anything that isn't me seems to be something I can control. That's a good benefit that should at least grant me some ability to acquire some form of social life. Based on Bomber's role so far, it was obvious that the Ranbli Kid was the best route... but the Alpha option might also be helpful. If he was able to control the wild ranbi, that'd greatly allow me to condense my resources.

The Giant Ranbi was nice but definitely not an option for either. Both Ivy and Bomber needed mobility and both could benefit from magic.

I selected Ranbli Kid after a bit and waited; almost instantaneously, Bomber's body coated with an intense grey sheen, coiling and hugging at his furry body. True to the description on the window, his legs grew longer and his rabbit-like structure shaped more top-heavy. Like a long-legged kid without proper feet. It didn't look very fast...

Congratulations!

Bomber has evolved from Ranbi to Ranbli Kid. + Role evolved into [Class]; unlock [Class] & [Class Change] options.

+ 5 HP

+ 5 SP

+ 4 STR

+ 4 DEX

+ 2 LUCK

Wow, that was... extremely beneficial. Compared to my evolution, at least. I have to admit that it's pretty refreshing to know that Bomber looks like he'll evolve out to be pretty capable. I might also send Ivy down the same route just because the two have been with me for a while with a stat-spread like that.

And because she might give me something nice to look at out of all the gore and grass.

But given the lengthy night, it's pretty much a simple question now: do I keep grinding and focusing on evolving? Worry about trying to unlock more trap types to organize my defenses? Sleep and laze about while the long days continue?

Yes. I mean... all of that. Isekai heroes have tackled tough situations like this but the most profitable ones were the patient ones!

So, for now, I'll persevere and continue my mass ranbi culling!

... But first, let's go ahead and summon a third ranbi. I think organizing a third shouldn't put me into an unmanaged state at my current growth rate, but there hasn't been a new quest. So until a new quest appears or I suddenly stumble on something important outside of the massive expanse of front-yard I have, it'll make a nice side-task.

Of course, there's only one problem.

[Summon]

Error://max_summons_reached

User's capacity is currently at its maximum of 2 Summon(s)! Cancelling Summon attempt!

Whenever I activate the ability, it reminds me that I've not increased my summon slots yet. I initially increased it by completing a quest but without one I had no idea how. At least, not one that didn't involve de-summoning either Ivy or Bomber. Neither of them is worth risking losing in my book; they have isekai plot armor protection and only a moron would risk death-flagging them by dismissing their summons. They might be merely rabbits — well, a rabbit and a kid-like rabbit — but they were the only company I've had since arriving in this unusual world.

So... to start with... I have a plan. One that can only work while the duo are sleeping and the ranbi attacks aren't always flooding in. A window of only a short night that a plant-like body like mine has no issue handling since I absorb so much energy during the day!

Exploration night.

But first, addressing how I get back: bones. Tonight whilst patrolling the area and making my decision, I noticed the oldest bodies just aren't here. All the flesh at the very least isn't, yet there were bones scattered about. One of the larger ribs found use as my weapon but all the others skewer and help provide foundational balance for the corpses to make a meat tower.

Now, a meat totem isn't exactly nice... but with my vine-like arms I could make it about ten feet tall. With my stature, I didn't have a very wide radius to explore with. Anyone, however, wouldn't look a gift opportunity like this in the mouth.

So I prepared not just one but three flesh pillars. Eventually, I'll settle on a proper name but for right now, it's not as important. After the first time, I was able to make at least two within an hour so I've chipped two hours of my time pool off.

With my ranbi rib in hand and a few glances to make sure they didn't just fall over, it's time to go. Wading into the grass even when you're basically grass doesn't make it any less uneasy.

Please, please let there not be any nocturnal monsters in the Great Plains.