Ti passed quickly. Before Jas realized it, more than two months had already gone by.
An autumn rain arrived and quietly announced the beginning of the new season. After the rain, the mountains and forests were covered in shades of fading gold as leaves slowly changed color.
Inside the cave, Jas looked out toward the forest and let out a quiet sigh.
"So the seasons here are actually very clear."
Before coming to this world, he had imagined the Ice Age as endless frozen land stretching for thousands of miles. The reality in front of him was very different. At least in the southern region of the Rocky Mountains where they lived, the four seasons still existed and changed just like they did in the modern world.
By the end of the Pleistocene era, the global climate had already begun to shift. Between fifteen thousand and ten thousand years ago, global temperatures increased by nearly six degrees Celsius. That warming caused the glaciers covering large parts of North Arica during the last glacial period to begin lting.
Massive ice sheets that once covered Alaska and the northwestern regions of the continent gradually retreated. As the ice lted, a land corridor ford along the Pacific coast. That corridor later allowed ancient humans to travel deeper into North Arica.
However, the warming climate was not good news from Jas' perspective.
Because it ant the Pleistocene era was approaching its end.
Soon, one of the most famous extinction events in Earth's history would occur — the Quaternary gafauna extinction.
Many large animals weighing more than forty kilograms disappeared during that period. In North Arica alone, dozens of species of large mammals vanished from the planet, including the saber-toothed tiger.
Scientists in the future would debate the cause for decades. So believed climate change was responsible, while others blad human hunting, disease outbreaks, or even teor impacts. No single explanation was universally accepted.
Regardless of the cause, the result was certain.
Many giants of the Ice Age disappeared forever.
That ant Jas was living during the final chapter of his own species' history.
He paused for a mont before shaking his head.
"Thinking about that now is pointless. We're still alive."
For the mont, survival mattered far more than distant history. Eating, growing stronger, and continuing forward step by step were the only things that truly mattered.
Autumn continued to deepen, and the air inside the mountains gradually beca colder.
The arrival of autumn also ant that winter was approaching. For animals living in the wilderness, this was the final opportunity to gather energy before the harsh season arrived.
Herbivores ate constantly to build fat reserves. Smaller animals gathered food and strengthened their shelters.
Predators also beca more active.
Mom and Dad were no exception. Besides their regular hunting trips, they now had another important responsibility.
They needed to teach their cubs how to hunt.
The three cubs were now six months old, and their milk period had already ended. That ant it was finally ti to begin learning real survival skills.
In the wild, young saber-toothed tigers usually remained with their parents until they were two or three years old. After that point they would be forced to leave and survive alone.
If they failed to master hunting before then, hunger would quickly beco their greatest enemy.
Over the past two months, all three cubs had grown noticeably.
Jas had changed the most.
His shoulder height had reached nearly half a ter, his body length had grown to around 1.2 ters, and his weight was approaching eighty kilograms. Compared with when he first arrived in this world, his body size had more than doubled.
The muscles beneath his thick fur were becoming increasingly visible as his body matured. Daily exercise and steady als played an important role in that growth, but the improvents from his attribute points also made a significant difference.
Strength, aggression, and endurance were essential qualities for a predator like the saber-toothed tiger, and his body was slowly developing all of them.
Zack and Zoe watched their older brother with obvious envy. They shared the sa parents, yet Jas had grown noticeably larger than both of them.
If this were a human family, soone might have started questioning the neighbor.
Mom and Dad, however, seed very satisfied with his developnt. For predators, larger bodies usually ant greater survival chances.
Later that evening, the red sun slowly disappeared behind the mountains.
Jas opened the system panel as he usually did.
---
[Status Panel]
Host: Jas
Species: Smilodon (Male)
Age: 6 Months
Strength: 23 ( )
Agility: 19 ( )
Endurance: 17 ( )
Gene Points: 44
Fused Genes: None
---
During the past two months, he had earned more than fifty gene points. Most of them were used to increase his attributes, while the remaining points were saved for future gene upgrades.
Just then, a deep call echoed through the forest.
"Rrr—"
Mom and Dad were preparing to hunt.
However, sothing was different this ti. Instead of leaving the cubs inside the cave, they brought all three of them along.
Jas followed behind them, feeling both nervous and excited.
The earlier failure with the rabbit was still fresh in his mory. That experience had already taught him an important lesson. Hunting was not simply about speed or strength. Hunting required skill, training, and experience, and those were things he still needed to develop.
As they moved through the forest, Jas carefully watched every movent his parents made. Tracking prey was not random. They frequently stopped to inspect the ground, examining footprints, fur, droppings, and scent marks left by passing animals. Each clue provided information about the creatures that had recently moved through the area.
Experienced predators could read these signs almost like a map.
Jas paid close attention to everything they did.
Zack, however, behaved very differently. The mont they left the cave, he started running around the forest like an excited dog.
Jas glanced at him and shook his head.
Just then Dad suddenly stopped.
His body lowered slightly as he focused on the ground.
He had found sothing.
Jas quickly moved closer and looked down.
The soft soil ahead was covered with hoof prints, and they appeared fresh.
Mom and Dad imdiately began following the trail.
About ten minutes later, they discovered the animals that had left those tracks.
A herd of rare-horned moose was grazing peacefully in the forest ahead.
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