Boom!
A resounding explosion echoed through the air as the fifteen-foot-tall, gorilla-like creature slammed its massive palm down. The human figure it targeted barely dodged the blow, the rock behind him crumbling to dust under the immense force.
"Damn it!" Alastor swore, frustration lacing his voice. This was his umpteenth failed attempt at harming the beast.
For the past five minutes, he had been engaged in a deadly dance with the creature, each move more desperate than the last. But his attacks were proving futile. The gorilla-like creature possessed an incredibly thick hide, barely registering Alastor's blows.
'System, allocate six stat points to strength,' Alastor commanded mentally, using the creature's momentary pause to put some distance between them. Thankfully, the beast was all brawn and no speed, allowing Alastor to easily stay out of its reach.
-----
[6 stat points successfully allocated to strength, current strength points: 20, remaining stat points: 5]
-----
Ignoring the system's notification, Alastor focused solely on his opponent.
The gorilla-like creature was no fool. It recognized its inability to catch the nimble Alastor. Still, its burning gaze never left Alastor, radiating a primal desire to tear him limb from limb.
'Let's try this again,' Alastor thought, a renewed sense of confidence surging through him as the strength boost settled into his muscles.
Taking a deep breath, he planted his foot firmly on the ground. With a burst of speed, Alastor shot forward like a bullet aimed directly at his target.
Enraged, the gorilla-like creature slammed its fist into the earth. The ground erupted violently, jagged spikes of rock shooting up towards Alastor. However, Alastor had anticipated this move.
[Flow Acceleration] he mentally commanded, activating the skill.
Without breaking his stride, he weaved effortlessly through the deadly obstacle course. Now, however, the creature stood directly in front of him, its arm cocked back ready to deliver a crushing blow.
'Too slow,' Alastor mused, effortlessly dodging the attack and slipping behind the beast.
Maintaining his momentum, Alastor used the ground to launch himself upwards. With a powerful leap, he soared high into the air, reaching a vantage point above the creature.
Without hesitation, Alastor flickered his dagger, aiming for the back of the creature's neck. Putting all his strength behind the blow, he plunged the blade forward. But instead of the satisfying thud of metal piercing flesh, he was met with an obstacle.
Clang!
The dagger struck the creature's hide, which seemed as hard as steel and textured like ancient tree bark. The impact vibrated up Alastor's arm, leaving it numb.
'Damn it, still not enough!' Alastor cursed inwardly, leaping back just in time to avoid the creature's retaliatory swipe. One that would have surely ripped him in half.
He retreated at full speed, putting as much distance between himself and the enraged creature as possible.
The beast, frustrated by Alastor's constant dodging and inability to inflict real damage, roared its fury. It maintained its menacing stare, unwavering in its desire to crush the irritating human.
"Damn it, even 20 strength points aren't enough to break through that hide," Alastor grumbled, weighing his options.
He could abandon the hunt for this creature and seek out weaker prey. It was the practical choice.
The other option was to dump more stat points into strength, but that felt reckless. He had already allocated seven precious points to strength tonight. There were other attributes that needed attention – his defense, for instance. While his speed usually kept him out of harm's way, he knew that wouldn't always be the case.
Just as he was about to accept defeat and move on, something in his peripheral vision caught his eye. Strange markings, glowing faintly, had appeared all over the gorilla creature's body.
"What the...? Wait a minute, is that…?" Alastor's voice trailed off as he tried to make sense of the sudden change in his vision.
He remembered a passive skill in his system interface called [Anatomy Knowledge], which supposedly increased critical hit chance. Could this be it? Alastor stared intently at the gorilla creature, carefully tracking the movement of the neon lines that had appeared on its body.
There weren't many, maybe a dozen or so. Some flickered and shifted erratically, following the creature's movements, while others remained stationary.
Alastor mentally kicked himself as he studied the patterns further. He had been going about this all wrong.
Because of his speed, most of his fights ended swiftly. One, maybe two strikes were usually all it took. He had become accustomed to waiting for the perfect opening, aiming for a quick and decisive critical hit.
This tactic had served him well, allowing him to fully utilize his stealth and speed. But it had also made him cocky, dulling his tactical mind. He had tried to use the same approach against this heavily-armored opponent, foolishly aiming for critical points that were reinforced and practically impenetrable. No wonder his attacks were having so little effect!
As he analyzed the glowing lines, Alastor realized that most of the creature's weak points were located around its joints: the shoulders, the back of the knees, tendons, ligaments. He had been so focused on landing a single, fight-ending blow that he had completely forgotten about the merits of a slow, strategic takedown – crippling his opponent before delivering the final strike.
"Pride comes before the fall," Alastor muttered to himself, a newfound humility settling over him as he prepared to face the gorilla creature once more.
The fight was a slog compared to his previous encounters. But this time, Alastor fought with patience and precision, targeting the creature's weaknesses and slowly wearing it down. Finally, after a grueling battle, he emerged victorious.
A notification flashed on his system interface, confirming his thirty third kill for the upgrade mission. Alastor took a moment to catch his breath and consider his next move.
The fight had taken ten minutes. He had twenty-four minutes left before he was automatically transported back.
This area was unlikely to yield any more worthwhile prey. He had cleared out most of the two-star beasts, and the remaining ones were mostly one-star creatures.
He decided to use the remaining time to focus on blood refinement. But first, he told the system to activate an alarm a few minutes before his time ran out – just in case he lost count of time again.
As for his safety during the meditation, Alastor was not overly concerned. The gorilla creature had been the apex predator in this area. Its death meant that his current location was now a prime piece of real estate, unlikely to be contested by other predators.
Time flew by. Soon it was time to go back, the familiar pull of his room began to tug at him.
He took a moment to appreciate the tranquility of the planet Vrym, hoping to return soon. Then, with a final, lingering look, he allowed himself to be pulled back to his own reality.
-----
QUEST: APEX PREDATOR COMPLETED!!!
[Analyzing Performance for reward....]
Reward:
+2 Exp pills
-----