For months and years back on Earth, Rick had suffered a very rare disease that had made him wonder why he had even been born so different and so unlucky.
But now that he had found himself in a healthy body that could move and walk around as freely as he wished, Rick couldn't help but feel more motivated than ever to live his new life exactly the way he wanted.
Unlike before, he could breathe deeply without any effort.
He could also feel his fingers, his toes, and every part of himself without pain.
And to be honest, Just that alone was more than enough to make him want to try living his life to the fullest in this new world.
'Alright, let's not think too much about the whole cursed elf thing for now.' Rick cautioned himself as he slowly lifted his gaze back to the screen, and this time toward the Clan Building section.
Seeing this, his eyes widened at what the system had listed in front of him under that section.
'Woah, seriously. Does the system expect me to build my own clan?'
'Or is it telling me to rule over this one?'
'Nah, I doubt that.'
'But I think the reason why this section is here is quite clear.'
'The system sees me as a direct heir to the current Chieftess, so maybe it wants me to change how the tribe sees me?'
'Well, since I'm currently having zero life skills, I wonder what kind of life skills and combat skills I'll end up having in the future.'
'Who knows, maybe they'll be cool enough to impress the ladies of this tribe, and before I know it, I'll have beautiful elves sandwiching me between their boobs.'
'Ohh, I can already picture it. Three or four beauties, barely clothed, snuggled up in my cave, feeding me fruits while I squeeze their soft, delicate buns.'
'Hehehe~ things are certainly about to get interesting from now on.' Rick smiled to himself before a sudden chill of wind entered the cave.
His body shivered instantly as the cold bit against his bare skin.
Gwen noticed this and placed more wood into the fire, but the cold still pushed through, seeping in from the cave entrance with a low, steady whistle that made the fire flicker.
"It's still cold in here." Gwen uttered softly as she stared at Rick.
"Do you think we should um....." Gwen paused mid sentence as she wondered if Rick would even agree to what she was about to suggest.
"What?" Rick asked.
"Do you want to share mom's pelt together?"
Rick paused and looked toward the far corner of the cave where two thick pelts sat folded and stacked on top of each other.
He glanced back at Gwen and nodded in response.
Gwen smiled and swiftly grabbed the pelt before bringing it over.
Seeing it up close, Rick's eyes widened in surprise.
Initially, he had assumed it was two or more pelts folded and placed over each other, but it had actually been the pelt of a single animal.
The thing was enormous.
It was actually wide enough for two people to wrap themselves in it comfortably with room to spare, and it was thick enough that just draping it over his shoulders made the cold retreat almost immediately.
Just how big was the creature before it got killed?
Meanwhile, Gwen had already scooted over beside Rick.
Now the two of them were cuddled close together under the huge pelt, which partially smelled like the fur of an animal mixed with the faint intoxicating scent of what Rick assumed to be that of his mother.
Indicating that she must have used it for a good amount of time.
Meanwhile, Gwen and Rick were now facing each other as the sound of fire crackling on wood echoed softly throughout the cave.
Rick slowly looked down at the thick fur wrapped around them both and he noticed that the fur was a deep red in colour, unlike any animal hide he had ever heard of or seen back in his previous world.
So not only was this beast enormous, but its fur was naturally red as well.
Meanwhile, Gwen noticed where his gaze had settled and she smiled knowingly before saying softly. "It's the fur of a matured crimson bear."
"A crimson bear?"
"Yes. I haven't seen one myself yet, but I heard it's a really big beast with huge and sharp fangs. Normally, it would take about five to ten experienced hunters to bring down a beast this size, but can you guess how many it took to bring down this particular one?" Gwen asked with a small tilt of her head.
"Um... fifteen?"
Gwen giggled cutely and shook her head. "Nope. Just one elf took it down on her own."
"What? R-really?"
"Yep. And it was none other than mother herself. I heard she had charged straight at the beast on her own when everyone else had trembled at the sight of it."
"Woah. So she wasn't afraid?"
"Nope."
"That's amazing."
"I know right. Mom is really cool, isn't she?"
Rick smiled and nodded, and this made Gwen genuinely happy because she was enjoying how naturally the two of them were talking with each other.
She had never been this close to the previous Rick, so she couldn't help but relish this new feeling of having someone to talk to in the cave, other than just her mother.
"Rick?" Gwen called out softly.
"Mm?"
"Mother mustn't know I took her pelt without asking, okay? Can you keep it as our little secret?"
Normally, if Gwen wanted to use anything that belonged to their mother, she would always seek permission from the Chieftess first. But since the Chieftess wasn't around right now, Gwen couldn't shake the feeling that she had done something she shouldn't have, and Rick understood this completely.
So he nodded in understanding and Gwen let out a quiet breath of relief.
Of course, the Chieftess would never truly be upset about something as small as this, because what Gwen hadn't told Rick was that his mother actually owned two pelts.
One belonging to the crimson bear, and the other from a Sabertooth.