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The Hunted of the Forest

  Nothing happens.

  Mochi continues to run, as more of the blue flames zip through and around her. Yet, they have no effect on her. The bunny almost thinks the flames have a non-damaging effect... until one grazes their right arm, disintegrating it.

  The bunny faints, going limp in Mochi's mouth as she sprints around trees and through dormant bushes. Taking cover behind an old charred stump, she glances back at the monster. It stares directly at Mochi, their head reforming into a more feline form. A cheetah's head?

  Crouching down, it begins running rapidly towards Mochi. Making a split decision, she leaves the bunny behind the stump and jumps out. Luckily, the monster targets her, turning slightly to pursue her.

  Mochi is at a severe disadvantage. At their current speeds, the monster will reach her in just a few seconds. The nearest tree is too far, no other obstacles to use, and no way to fight back. However, Mochi did have one thing; knowledge on wildlife.

  With each stride, the monster gets closer. Until it gets within two leaps from reaching Mochi. Suddenly, she stops completely. If she couldn't outrun them, then she'll outmaneuver them. However, a small tilt, a quick glance, a momentary twitch of a foot. The monster determines Mochi to be going left.

  Cheetahs have an incredible ability. They can turn their body in midair, preemptively making sharp turns. Of course, their direction of movement changes only once they next touch the ground, but this is enough for the monster to direct themself to catch Mochi whether she stays still or go left.

  But Mochi knows that. She turns left. The monster taps the ground, a single leap away. It lunges slightly left. Mochi jumps backwards, to the right. The monster bends, reaching for her. But still in the air, they're unable to prevent themself from overshooting. A small victory for Mochi.

  She doesn't notice the snake tail until it whips into her, knocking her away. She rolls through the snow and dirt, disoriented and staggered. She got too focused on escaping the 'cheetah', that she neglected the other 11 tails of the monster.

  Mochi struggles to stand, leaning against a tree for support. The monster slowly walks towards her, saying something in a language she doesn't understand. It had a mocking tone, but Mochi ignored them. How can she escape...

  Behind the monster, unseen and unheard, a bunny jumps onto the tree stump. It points its remaining left arm to Mochi's right. She takes the chance, jumping right. Directly into an explosion.

  The monster lets out a curse, before sending a blue bolt of flames towards the bunny. However, it had already planned for that, and blew up the stump, launching themself away. Annoyed, the monster dashes into the smoke, chasing after Mochi.

  However, it immediately realizes the problem. The smoke not only blinds them, but the smell makes it impossible to locate the fox's scent. The monster's head morphs again, back into the Belmthene, and it searches for movement using its antennae.

  One signal behind them, likely the bunny. One signal close by moving away, the fox. And another signal, weak, far beyond their detection range? Whatever, they can deal with that later. With a precise pounce and thrust, the monster stabs their claws through the fox's signal.

  "Mom, who's the strongest person you know?"

  "Well, that depends. Strength is relative. The best swordsmen would lose to an archer from across the forest, while impenetrable armor fails to protect one from poison. But if you wish to know who would be most troublesome for me, then it'd have to be Birstim the Lich."

  "Well, how about strongest against the forest beasts? Like that black wolf?"

  "Against them? That's easy. The hunter, Lilaphen. They're not particularly smart, but their skill is deadly in close combat. And since most in this forest lack ranged options, they have no way to win."

  "Oh, I remember that name! That's the one who absorbs others, right? Do you think I can beat them?"

  "No. But they definitely can't kill you either. You lack power, they lack range."

  ...

  ...

  "Mom, I hope you were right."

  The smoke settles down, as the monster curses in an ancient tongue. In their hands is a mutilated squirrel, not a fox. Twice now, they have evaded capture. The monster becomes even more enraged, yet also motivated. It was rare finding something that can evade them for so long. It makes the hunt so much more satisfying when it ends.

  They search the snow for tracks. There's several, but ignoring the large ones and the ones made earlier, there's three that could've been made by the fox. The monster's head morphs into that of a dog, sniffing each track to see which one is most likely the fox's.

  Finding the third one to have the strongest, most recent scent, the monster begins following it. Though, after a while, it notes an odd sense of being watched. Pausing for a moment, they look around. Nothing unusual, just trees and snow.

  And then, in the far distance, they see the fox. The monster's head shifts to a reptilian form, intending on a more stealthy approach. Their skin shifts and folds, colors draining away, until they become nearly invisible. Taking care to minimize sound, the monster pursues the fox.

  Initially, the fox seems to remain clueless, continuing to run ahead. the monster circles around at a faster stride, intending to end up in front of the fox and let it run into them. Yet, as the monster circles around, the fox stops and looks directly towards them.

  The monster hesitates. Did they get heard? Carefully, and with absolutely no sound, the monster crawls along to a different angle. Yet, the entire time, the fox watches them. Somehow, the fox could see through the monster's invisibility.

  Having no further point in stealth, the monster charges for the fox. Yet this time, the fox doesn't run. Instead, it sits down, staring directly at the monster.

  The monster suspects a trick. Of course, it wouldn't be an attack, as the fox would've used something by now. Rather, it likely had a plan to escape. The monster's head shifts into a goat, halting just a few steps away from the fox. Their tails flare out and surround the fox, ready to catch it should it run closer.

  Taking a deep breath, the monster breathes out bright orange flames, engulfing the fox and the surroundings. It only persists for three seconds, before the monster runs out of flames. And of course, the fox sits unscathed.

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  At the very least, the monster confirms the fox's immunity to magical attacks and skills. Their secondary plan for the breath was also successful; removing anything and everything behind the fox, providing no place to hide.

  The monster lunges forward, confident that the fox has no way out. And they were right, the fox themself didn't have any way out.

  The fox's shadow sends an edge piercing through the fox, out their head, and directly into the open claws of the monster. It crashes with great force, knocking the monster back and shattering harmlessly through the fox.

  "Well, I didn't expect you to be brave enough to interfere. Oh well, I'm fine with taking you as well." The monster gives a sinister smile, as from the fox's shadow a black wolf melts out. The prime wolf gives a piercing stare, as it attempts yet another analysis of the monster.

  The monster's head morphs to a more draconic form, as their skin hardens and calcifies, and claws ignite. It charges ahead, and is met by swinging shadows. With a single punch, the shadows shatter away, forcing the prime wolf to grow more. The monster takes another leap forward, crashing through a makeshift wall of shadows.

  It's only after seeing the other side that the monster realize the two's plans. The fox has already ran off, the lack of snow making tracking where they went difficult. This was only a distraction.

  Mochi compiled everything she's seen so far as she runs from the fight. Whatever this monster is, it either doesn't have any innate skills, or can't utilize them for some reason. Otherwise, why would it only use the skills of the monster it has the head of.

  It started with a bee-like head, which she didn't recognize. Next was a cheetah, and with its super speed. Then a greater chameleon, with lesser invisibility. And finally, the fire-breathing goat head of a chimera.

  Assuming its tails are directly connected to at least one head, there's still at least 8 more, and that's without the possibility of heads without tails. Luckily, she knows enough to make an educated guess as to what some of the remaining heads may be; bull, scorpion, drake, shark, and centipede. The remaining tails are too ambiguous, but are likely for a furry mammal, bird, and reptile.

  Hoping she's right, Mochi runs to her den. There is a momentary temptation to hide, but she quickly brushes it away. For the shadow wolf's sake, she'll do everything she can to help. And luckily, she has a few useful tools.

  She grabs two mana gems, small yet dense ones. Then she makes her way to the home of the bunnies, the briar patch. She faintly smells something burnt, a good sign. Letting out a casual yip, she receives an immediate response from her recent friend, the boom bunny, as they stomp their feet angrily.

  Ignoring the aggression, Mochi places down the two mana gems on the edge of the briar patch. This immediately draws the attention of the bunny, though it doesn't remove their suspicion. Reluctantly, they emerge out of the briar patch and pick up a mana gem. It's the perfect size to consume, specifically chosen for the bunny.

  Just as the boom bunny was finally letting down their guard, Mochi grabs them and the mana gems, and begins running. And it was towards where that monster was. The bunny curses Mochi as she locates an ideal position. Close enough to be accurate, far enough to avoid detection.

  The plan is risky. She doesn't even know if it will work. After all, she was only a scholar of nature. And now, she is just a fox.

  "The probability of a mana gem forming is only one percent per year that a creature lives. It forms by the liver, and has no real impact while inside, neither positive nor negative."

  "But would it not provide additional mana for skills?"

  "Unfortunately, no. Its passive output and the energy cost of your body dealing with it cancels each other out. And of course, further output requires the gem to be broken, quite difficult when it's by your liver."

  "What can it be used for?"

  "I'm getting there, be patient-"

  "Question, is mana gem formation related to mana crystal formation?"

  "Yes, both are the crystallization of an accumulation of mana within the body. Gems are simply refined and 'focused' by the liver, while mana crystals can form wherever."

  "Oh cool, my cousin-"

  "Shush, let teach speak."

  "...as I was saying, mana gems are very dense in mana, but it's refinement makes it quite stable and difficult to utilize. That's why you usually have to break them to release the mana for use. You may have seen some of the alchemists do that.

  However, there is a way to utilize mana gems without breaking them. By consuming one whole, you can fuel your body's growth, accelerating leveling and providing a small boost. It's enough to bring most of you up by a level or two! However, there is a secondary effect; the next skill or spell you use is amplified."

  "Wait, is the accelerating leveling temporary or permanent?"

  "Temporary, based on several factors. Just know that it's more effective when your level is lower."

  "That means teach doesn't know!"

  "It's a complicated field of study. I wouldn't recommend it."

  "Of course you tried it, mister everything."

  "Of course you didn't, miss nature Lue."

  "That's enough. Please stay on topic. Now where was I..."

  Nikola rolls out of the way of yet another wild swing of the monster's claws. The tree behind him shatters, smoldering. He swipes with his own claws, shadows following behind, but it fails to even scratch the hard metallic scales.

  A kick from the monster knocks him away. He falls into his own shadow and back out behind the monster, only to have an armored elbow crash into his nose. Recoiling from the pain, he fails to avoid a swinging tail as it knocks him back again.

  "Third time. That's the third time I could've killed you already. You're not worth hunting. So don't make me change my mind."

  The monster mocks Nikola, turning and walking away. This wasn't the first time the fight ended. Earlier, the monster landed a hard punch to his chest, knocking him down. Yet instead of finishing him, the monster simply tried to leave.

  If it was the prime wolf, then he would've swallowed his pride and stayed down, thankful for the mercy. But the monster said something, something that forced Nikola to stand up again.

  "I can't wait to catch that fox~"

  He attacked again. And was knocked down again. And was sparred again. But it was too soon. Mochi hasn't had enough time to run. And so he got back up. Again and again.

  "What is it about that fox that makes you so determined? Oh, who am I kidding. I'm already thirsting for them as well."

  The monster turns around, hand grabbing Nikola just as he attempts another pounce. It drags him down, crashing against the ground. And this time, they don't let go. The monster lifts Nikola up again, annoyed and yet smiling.

  "I gave you the chance to live. You made your choice. Now here's a new one; what kind of death do you want? A long and painful one, or painless?"

  Before he could even give a response, a sharp electric pain sears from the monster's grip through Nikola. It lasts only for a moment, but an echo of pain persists.

  "That was just an example. So, what's your choice?"

  "...take as long as you want"

  He'll buy Mochi every second he could. After all, she saved his life, and so it's only fitting to return the favor.

  The monster shrugs, indifferent to Nikola's decision. In the end, 'assimilate' functions the same whether or not the target is alive. They activate the skill, and begin draining Nikola's mana.

  The prime wolf is rendered helpless, as pain surges through. First through the skin, then into their muscles, then deep into their bones. His mana drains, but the skill needs more. And so it seeks out his soul, looking to tear it apart and absorb it.

  But for a split moment, something interrupts the process. The invisible tendrils of assimilate notice a bit of mana they haven't taken yet. A minuscule amount, but it was enough to delay reaching for the prime wolf's soul. The tendrils seek out the drop of mana.

  Except, it wasn't a single point of mana. The tendrils follow as the small piece of mana courses through a vein-like system, spreading throughout the wolf's fur. It wraps around, back and forth, interwoven between every strand of fur.

  Of course, eventually the tendrils figure out this web of mana. But it took a minute. During which Nikola enjoyed a respite from the pain. Though he was still held immobile, and exhausted, he had a cleared head. And a clearer sight of the sky. The clouded, dull sky. With two white crows.

  Laurel and Poppy, the direct descendants of Wisteria. They fly together, watching the monster Lilaphen from a safe distance. The crows' original plan for them was to leave them alone, as long as they didn't get too close to Wisteria or the Oclid tree. But with Lilaphen targeting the fox, things got complicated.

  They cannot kill Lilaphen, they lack the power. Or rather, it'd take too long, and Lilaphen is too fast. Additionally, it'd cause collateral damage, which Wisteria doesn't like.

  And so, they circle above, indecisive and unable to stop the fight between the prime wolf and Lilaphen. However, with the prime wolf caught in their grasp, the two agree that they have to do something now. It may cause great harm to the prime wolf as well, but that's a minimal amount of collateral.

  And then they spot something. And then Nikola smells something. And then the monster, the hunter, Lilaphen, hears something step through the snow right below them.

  There runs a small fox, holding a mana gem.

  "Material Detonation; mana gem"

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