SWNOVELXO Chapter 90 - Tiger Hunting (4)
Chapter 90: Tiger Hunting (4)
As soon as Yuri said “Fifty,” the wildness in the Black Sword Corps soldier’s eyes faded.
Simultaneously, the fierce attack that had been charging at him stopped as if it had never happened.
Yuri clicked his tongue.
‘No matter how many times I see it, it’s still fascinating.’
The Black Sword Corps soldiers’ combat instincts, or rather their aggressiveness, seemed to surpass their rationality.
But, without fail, once the set number of fifty attacks was reached, all of that aggressiveness vanished as if it had been washed away, and they regained their rationality.
The implication was simple.
‘Their obsessive thoughts about completing their mission are strong enough to suppress their combat instincts and aggressiveness.’
The Black Sword Corps soldiers’ compulsive thoughts that they must complete their mission—he could only wonder what kind of training they had undergone to become like that.
Swish-
The Black Sword Corps soldier sheathed his sword.
Then, he took out a piece of brown leather from his pocket and tossed it to Yuri.
It was the bear hide, each worth 500,000 points.
“I had fun.”
Leaving only those words behind, the Black Sword Corps soldier walked away leisurely.
He walked with a slight limp, as if the pain had finally caught up with him.
Yuri fiddled with the bear hide as he watched the soldier leave.
“With this, it’s nine.”
Since leaving the Hell Training Camp, Yuri and his friends had spent the last three days hunting bears every day.
They hunted bears during the day and ran around the forest all night to avoid the tigers.
It was a grueling routine, but it allowed them to gather valuable information.
The Black Sword Corps soldiers playing the role of bears were limited to a 3rd rank, and the number of attacks they could make was restricted to fifty.
Once fifty attacks were exceeded, the Black Sword Corps soldiers admitted defeat and handed over their hide.
There was only one hide per bear.
Of course, these were just the extra details, and through bear hunting, Yuri had been able to gather crucial information for tiger hunting.
‘I think I’ve gathered about all the important information.’
As Yuri pondered this, staring at the spot where the bear had disappeared,
“Good job!”
“I’m hungry!”
Arin and Poppy approached Yuri.
Yuri handed the bear hide to Arin.
“Here, your share.”
“Thanks!”
An excited Arin quickly grabbed the hide and stuffed it into her pocket.
Then, with her eyes sparkling, she chirped excitedly.
“Is that all the bears? So it’s over now? Is that right?”
They had identified a total of nine bears in the forest.
And just moments ago, by capturing the ninth bear, they had successfully eradicated all the bears from the forest.
In other words, Yuri and his friends now possessed a total of nine bear hides.
But what was more significant was something else entirely.
It meant that all preparations were now complete.
In response to Arin’s sparkling gaze, Yuri nodded.
“Yeah, it’s done.”
What had they been tirelessly hunting bears for over the past few days without proper rest?
To gather information.
To hone their teamwork and gain experience.
All of this was to prepare for the tiger hunt.
And with the capture of the last bear, all their preparations were complete.
Thus, Yuri declared resolutely.
“Tonight, we… will hunt the tiger.”
When night fell in the Forest of Animals, the state of the 50th batch members fell into a few categories.
The first type hid in fear, praying for the night to pass—those of the faith.
The second type desperately fled from the beasts, like criminals on the run.
And lastly, those who had given up on everything, resigning themselves to their fate.
Among them, the resigned ones didn’t waste their energy fighting the beasts and instead surrendered willingly, enduring eight hours of Hell Training.
‘If you give up, your body might be a little tired, but your mind is at peace, isn’t it?’
Perhaps this was a very wise choice.
Every night, about 80% of the 50th batch was dragged into Hell Training.
As a result, most had given up on collecting hides.
Even if they somehow managed to collect hides, they would lose everything when they were dragged into Hell, so it was hard to stay motivated.
Of course, there were some who diligently collected hides, hiding them safely in advance.
But their numbers were not large.
Think about it.
Would anyone have the energy left to collect hides after being put through Hell Training all night?
With their stamina barely hanging on by a thread, everything felt like a chore.
Given the situation, as time passed, what increased among the 50th batch wasn’t the number of hides, but rather the military discipline forged through nightly training.
And also, their fear of the Black Sword Corps instructors and seniors.
Time passed, and on the sixth day,
Night fell once again in the Forest of Animals.
And as the gates to Hell opened, the forest buzzed with activity.
“The wolves are coming.”
“Run!”
Those who hadn’t given up on the hide-collecting quest, belonging to the runaway type, were dashing through the forest, trying to avoid being dragged to Hell Training.
“…Shall we go?”
“I’m… ready.”
Those who had given up on everything were casually preparing to head to Hell.
But all of them had one common characteristic.
They were all staying in the outer areas of the Forest of Animals, in the rabbit and deer zones.
The reason was simple.
The wolf zone.
Except for a few, most of the 50th batch members didn’t even have the skill level to reach the 1st rank, so they couldn’t dare to enter the wolf zone.
In the Forest of Animals, wolves ranked in the middle hierarchy but were the most numerous predators.
Every night, these wolves pushed down into the deer and rabbit zones.
Chasing after the 50th batch members who had been staying in those zones during the day.
Because of this, the safest places during the day turned into the most active hunting grounds at night.
Some tried to move deeper into the wolf zone at night, realizing this, but avoiding the numerous wolves wasn’t easy.
No, even if they made it through, they’d only end up getting caught by a bear and dragged into Hell.
Given these circumstances, the wolf zone acted as a kind of boundary line in the Forest of Animals.
A boundary line that prevented the weak and mediocre from crossing.
Yuri hadn’t dealt with the wolves for precisely that reason.
And now, inside that boundary, in the bear’s territory, the three of them were welcoming the night.
Groan-
Yuri stretched briefly.
Around noon, after successfully dealing with all the bears, Yuri and his friends had rested in that spot.
With all the bears taken care of, the bear zone had become the safest place in the Forest of Animals.
For the first time in a long while, Yuri, who had been able to rest peacefully for several hours, glanced back.
“How are you all feeling?”
At Yuri’s question, Arin smiled brightly, and Poppy blew out a big breath, nodding his head.
“Great!”
“I’m hungry!”
Perhaps because they had finally gotten some proper rest after so long, everyone’s faces looked much better.
Seeing this, Yuri also checked his own condition.
‘Nice.’
The fatigue had dissipated, and his moderately relaxed muscles felt refreshed.
Moreover, the slight tension nestled in a corner of his chest helped him maintain a cold, rational mind.
Feeling the firm grip of the sword hilt in his hand, Yuri unleashed the Magic Flow.
Tstststst-
The strands of the Magic Flow spread out thinly, stretching in all directions.
It was much thinner than when he had first created it to locate the special sale shop.
Perhaps because of this, its range had also doubled.
The Magic Flow’s web extended a full 40 meters.
Despite being thinner and longer than before, it was even more stable.
This was the growth he had achieved over the past few nights, busy moving around in the Forest of Animals.
At the very end of the sensitive Magic Flow web, a faint disturbance was detected.
A chilling flow that stirred the air.
Also, an arrogant and ferocious aura.
It was the aura emanating from the Leopard-Patterned Woman.
Apparently, she still had no intention of hiding her aura, as the flow she emitted traveled along the Magic Flow.
Suppressing the goosebumps that rose on his skin, Yuri looked at Arin and Poppy.
After hunting bears together with them over the past few days, Yuri had become confident.
Perhaps there was no one among his peers who matched his rhythm as well as these two.
But he couldn’t help but worry.
‘Can I take these two with me to hunt the tiger?’
Calling it a tiger strategy was one thing, but in reality, Yuri’s plan wasn’t anything grand.
In fact, it was so simple it was almost absurd.
The plan was to fight with all their might, hanging on desperately, and survive ten exchanges.
…That was Yuri’s plan.
It was a very simple yet the best strategy.
It was also the easiest and the hardest approach.
The only way to tackle the tiger was this one.
Therefore, what Yuri had focused on the most in the past few days was the number of exchanges in combat.
As a result, Yuri confirmed that the number of exchanges was definitely counted individually.
Just as he and Arin had suspected, there were no issues with exchanges not being counted due to failing to meet certain conditions.
However, while verifying this, they discovered another annoying rule.
It was what could be called the resetting of combat exchanges.
What did this mean?
Suppose Yuri had engaged in ten exchanges with a bear, leaving forty remaining.
But if the bear’s attention suddenly shifted to Arin, and they had more than five exchanges, all the exchanges Yuri had with the bear would be reset.
Afterward, even if Yuri targeted the bear again, he would have to start over and count fifty exchanges.
‘The threshold for a beast’s attention shift seems to be about 10% of the attack limit.’
Given that the bear had a limit of fifty attacks, 10% was five.
In a real battle with a bear, Yuri’s exchanges were reset when Poppy had six exchanges with the bear.
And for the wolf, it happened on the 21st exchange, just over 10% of its 200-attack limit.
Thus, it was almost certain that the tiger would also be subject to the 10% rule.
But this raised another problem…
‘The tiger’s attack limit is ten… which means 10% is just one.’
In other words, Arin and Poppy could each intervene only once.
If they exceeded a total of two exchanges, all the exchanges Yuri had accumulated would be reset.
So Yuri had told Poppy and Arin:
“I’m not asking much of you.”
Just twice.
“Just give me two opportunities.”
If they did that…
‘I’ll take care of the rest.’
There was no need for amateurs who would be swept away by a single gesture from the tiger.
What he needed were capable allies who matched his rhythm.
That was why Yuri needed Poppy and Arin.
“Let’s go.”
Thud.
With a heavy step, Yuri moved forward, followed by Arin and Poppy.
The three of them advanced toward the center of the Forest of Animals.
To the place where the tiger awaited.
Between two trees.
A hammock hung about ten meters above the ground.
The Leopard-Patterned Woman stretched her limbs lazily as she yawned in the hammock.
“Haaaam!”
After yawning, the boredom returned.
She gazed up at the night sky where the full moon had risen and muttered quietly.
“Ah… how boring.”
The hunts repeated every night.
Hundreds of people must have been dragged to hell by her hands.
But it was hardly something that gave the Leopard-Patterned Woman any thrill.
‘I’m not actually killing them, just tossing them into the training camp.’
She was hunting every night, but there was no excitement in it.
What fun was there in dealing with those who crumbled like rotten wood with just a light touch?
Her thoughts drifted back to a few days ago.
‘The first day was pretty fun though…’
A cadet from the 50th batch had managed to withstand four exchanges against her.
When she played with him, she had thought that perhaps the 50th batch would be interesting, that this mission wouldn’t be boring.
But that was a huge mistake.
It turned out that the black-haired boy she encountered on the first day was simply an oddity.
Moreover, she had learned that this black-haired boy had walked a full fifteen steps during the Hundred Steps Ceremony.
‘Why did such an interesting event have to happen while I was out on an external mission?’
It was a bit regrettable that she hadn’t been able to witness the black-haired boy walking the fifteen steps herself.
“Well… it is what it is. Ugh!”
The Leopard-Patterned Woman spun her body and dropped down from the hammock.
It was a dizzying situation, falling from such a height.
If an ordinary person fell from that height, they’d be badly injured or dead.
But the Leopard-Patterned Woman landed lightly on the ground.
Tap.
She stepped gently on the ground and started walking.
“Ha… the tiger works diligently again today.”
It wasn’t fun, but it was her mission, so she set out to hunt once more.
She had procrastinated a bit, making her late, but that was no big deal.
Just as she was about to take a few more steps to start her shift, she suddenly froze.
“Huh?”
At first, she thought she had seen wrong.
‘…A person?’
Far off in the distance, several meters away.
Between the trees dimly lit by the moonlight, a shadow was slowly approaching her.
And that shadow clearly belonged to a person.
‘A person?’
That’s why the Leopard-Patterned Woman was puzzled.
In the past few days, no one had come near her.
Not even the other Black Sword Corps members ventured into this area.
Given the circumstances, how could she not be surprised?
‘Who is it?’
No way… is it the commander coming to find me because I’m late?
…The Leopard-Patterned Woman shuddered at the thought.
But when she saw the figure within range, she blinked in slight surprise.
Then, as he finally reached her, the Leopard-Patterned Woman broke into a broad smile.
“You!”
Yuri smiled back at the grinning Leopard-Patterned Woman.
“I’m here for a rematch, tiger lady.”
Schwing-
Yuri drew his sword with a satisfying sound.
“Ten exchanges again, right?”
“Of course!”
Before the cheerful reply even ended, Yuri’s entire body shimmered like a mirage.
The next moment, Yuri, who had disappeared, reappeared directly in front of the Leopard-Patterned Woman.
Swish-
Grit-
Yuri gritted his teeth and swung his sword.
Whoosh-
“Hahaha!”
The Leopard-Patterned Woman laughed joyfully as she threw her fist forward.
Thus began the fierce battle of ten exchanges as sword and gauntlet clashed.