The Hunter and the Prey (2)

I dashed through the forest, arriving about 100 meters away from the shadow panther. It was laying there, licking its paws and grooming itself. I hid behind a tree, trying to determine the best approach to engage it.

Bit by bit I etched closer until I closed half the distance. I then realized I was missing something crucial in my plan.

The bare minimum any hunter needed in a hunt was a weapon, whether it's a bow or a sword, it would be a 100 percent more effective then using bare-fists. What I needed against the panther was something with long reach, anything shorter would be ineffective as it would easily dodge with its high agility.

Making up my mind, I created a spearhead made of stone and attached it to a wooden base, after that I reinforced the two together with vines, creating a makeshift spear. I was not sure whether the stone spearhead will leave even a scratch on the B-ranked beast hide, so I proceeded to heat up the stone. With enough heat, I am sure it'll burn through that thick skin. Heating up stone was not an easy task to do, normal orange flames can barely heat it up, I needed something hotter.

One thing us dragons were proud of, was our proficiency over fire, we were unmatched in the mastery and power of our flames. There are different grades for each stage of fire. From the weakest to strongest: Orange, Blue, Green, Purple, White, Gold.

Gold is the signature color of dragon fire. The flames were so intense that wherever it was unleashed, destruction would always follow. Ash and destruction were all that remained in the mist of the golden dragonic flames.

Now in my weakened state, I could only produce blue flames, which is my favorite color. After heating up the spear to a glowing tip, I picked up a rock and readied myself.

Throwing the rock 30 meters in front of the shadow panther, it immediately jerked up its head and stared suspiciously towards the sound. With its head now distracted and turned away from me, i took a throwing stance and aimed for the back of its skull. Throwing the spear with all my might, i used electricity to give my arm a boost of speed, increasing the power of my throw.

But things doesn't always go according to plan, sensing the approaching spear by intuition, the panther bolted from its spot and jumped into a nearby shadow, but not before he was hit by my spear. While I did not hit my intended target, I did manage to pierce one of its hind leg. But when it disappeared into the shadows, it left my spear behind. Looks like its body dematerializes when it goes into the shadows.

I followed the trail of blood and gave chase, it was now moving at a much slower pace. But whenever I tried to throw the spear at it, it kept dodging and weaving through the shadows. After 5 minutes, I grew slightly irritated. With a snap of my fingers, I summoned a fireball and threw it to the top of the forest. As it rose, it became bigger and bigger, until it shone like a miniature blue sun. The overbearing brightness from the sun bathed the forest in blue light and cleared away all shadows from the forest. 'Cruel Su-' I almost shouted, but some unknown forced stopped me.

With nowhere to hide, the panther stopped running and changed its target to me. Pouncing towards me, it opened its mouth wide trying to bite my head off.

Throwing away the spear which has now cooled down, I tackled the panther head on. Its forward momentum pushing me back a few steps. I grabbed its mouth with both hands stopping it from tearing at my face, its paws were beating at my chest, even though it didn't injure me, it still tore up my clothes. I was a little angry because I have to return to the village with a shirt that's ripped to shreds. It was then that I decided I need to get better clothes not for protection but so that I won't return half naked every time I return from my hunts.

Using the anger to fuel my strength, I gripped its mouth harder, ripping its face in half all the way down to its throat. Reaching down its throat, I dug around and located the monster core. It was the size of my fist and was glowing purple. I ate it and felt a warm stream of energy flowing through me, it was not much but I could feel my magicules increasing a little. I judged that anything lower than B-ranked cores was not worth it

'It looks like time to hunt for stronger prey.'

I looked at how mangled the corpse was, wondering how much the guild was willing pay me. Putting the body into my spatial ring, I made my way back to the village.