The first match seemed tied.
But Aiven knew he was no match for the mountain cat in terms of speed, strength, or endurance.
Even if it was just a cub, it was a ferocious one, and the gap in levels was hard to bridge with skill alone.
The quick exchanges left Gleam, who was keeping his bow drawn, dizzy. Though sweat dripped down his brow, he dared not shoot for fear of hitting Aiven locked with the mountain cat.
Aiven was now facing Gleam, signaling with his eyes to stay calm. He decided to take a more aggressive approach while at his physical peak, for dragging this out further would be unpredictable.
"Ha—!"
Aiven took the offensive, using the Sail Up technique this time.
He held the sword with both hands, its tip uplifted, his muscles taut like a sailboat ready to launch at sea, an opening stance from the White Sail Swordsmanship best suited for attack.
Leaning forward, his breathing subtly changed, and suddenly, with a burst of dead leaves and sand underfoot, his body accelerated from stillness into motion.
"Thrust!"
The force behind this thrust was astonishing, as if it could pierce through a wall.
The mountain cat, seeing Aiven charging like a reckless boar, showed a disdainful, human-like glance. The high-speed advance made directional change difficult, suitable for large, slow targets, but the predictable trajectory couldn't even touch its tail.
Indeed.
As the blade neared, the mountain cat jumped high, deftly dodging Aiven's blade, and its white, gleaming fangs lunged straight for Aiven's nape.
Even a beast could sense Aiven's tactic was flawed. How could Aiven, trained in orthodox knightly ways from a young age, not know?
The moment the mountain cat took to the air, Aiven lowered his body and pushed off the ground to the side, his body nearly parallel to the earth as he shouted:
"Shoot!"
Arrows whistled through the air.
Aiven knew ordinary arrows likely posed little threat to the ferocious mountain cat, but all he needed was this opportunity.
As the mountain cat twisted midair to avoid the shafts, Aiven used the momentum to twist and swing his sword, the longsword turning like a sail in the wind, carving a bright arc that brushed the mountain cat's hind leg.
A flash of blood appeared.
Aiven, who'd landed heavily on his back, seized the fleeting chance as the cat passed to deliver a hard kick to its soft belly.
"Awoo—!!"
Throughout the practice of White Sail Swordsmanship, Leo's teachings consistently emphasized: "Balance! Balance! Balance!"
It was precisely this long-term training, turning balance into an instinct, that allowed Aiven to deliver a precise strike even without proper stance, increasing their survival odds by thirty percent.
Yes, only thirty percent!
Despite the successful hit, Aiven was certain the mountain cat's feline agility meant the wound wasn't severe, leaving survival from its clutches still uncertain.
However, as Aiven sprang up, ready to press his advantage, he saw only a stumbling silhouette flicker and vanish into the dense treetops.
Briefly stunned, Aiven couldn't understand why the cat, not gravely injured, would suddenly flee.
Given his knowledge of ferocious beasts, such smooth cuts would heal overnight at most, merely a minor wound.
It was precisely this extraordinary physique that made Aiven never dare take the mountain cat head-on. While not massive, its strength easily overwhelmed Aiven, a mere Apprentice Knight.
For this situation, Gleam seemed unsurprised. Approaching with his longbow, he explained:
"Wild predators never fight to the death with enemies equally matched. An even battle increases the risk of injury, which means declining hunting ability. Scarcity of food leads to a cascade of consequences, ultimately weakening even the strongest predator to death."
The mountain cat likely deemed our two hundred pounds of flesh not worth injury. In this forest, it's not short of food, so it simply retreated."
Aiven nodded slightly in acceptance.
"Let's go, if another adult ferocious mountain cat returns for revenge, we won't stand a chance."
Watching Gleam, who had vowed revenge for his companion, now so skittish, Aiven didn't mention that ordinary predators have territorial awareness, even more so for ferocious beasts. The odds of more mountain cats in this forest were slim.
However, this wasn't a place to linger. After gathering their things, they quickly left with the hunting dog, Jim.
Luckily, no mishaps occurred on their journey back.
Under the moonlight quietly spilling across the ground, the two emerged from the forest, a bit haggard. Even familiar woods were no comfort during a night journey.
Safely returned home.
In the next few days, besides the unshakable swordsmanship training, Aiven also took time to process the collected herbs into finished potions and handed them over to Sangji.
Thanks to the efficiency of the herb gathering this time, the "White Stone Potion Shop" has ample supplies, and Aiven can enjoy almost a month of free time, allowing him to thoroughly understand this world and plan a clear development route for the future.
In between, Gleam specifically came to find Aiven once, informing him that after several days of searching, the City Guard still found nothing in the forest. It's speculated that the Ferocious Mountain Cat has already left the area, so Aiven need not worry and can continue entering the mountains in the future.
After gifting Gleam a few bottles of healing potion to thank him for the information, Aiven's life returned to tranquility.
And now, Aiven was...
sitting idly behind the counter of the potion shop, staring with vacant eyes at the constant flow of people outside the window.
"Sigh... where are the promised leisurely days?!"
His chin rested on the counter, looking as lazy as a salted fish couldn't be any saltier.
Aiven also knew he couldn't blame Sangji.
These days are the spawning period for a rare fish species, the red-bellied sturgeon, and Sangji was called by his father to help on the fishing boat. If lucky, the catch during this migration period could equal a few months' income, a temptation few fishermen can resist.
No choice, with Sangji away, Aiven had to fill in. The good news is that during the fishing season, sales of "Live Fish Potion" have increased significantly, and the potion shop is also earning quite a bit.
In the evening, after seeing off the last customer, Aiven sat behind the counter checking today's accounts, deciding to treat himself to a signature cheese steak at "Old York's Tavern" nearby once the accounts were done.
"Beep, physical fitness detection system activated!"
The sudden electronic prompt in his ear invigorated Aiven. Only now did he realize, after continuously interacting with various kinds of people these days, the Data Visualization system has already collected the physical data of humans in this world!
"Display!"
Name: Aiven Galliot
Attributes: Constitution 0.6 (1)
Strength 0.58 (1)
Agility 0.62 (1)
Intelligence 0.8 (1)
Skills: White Sail Swordsmanship (Beginner, includes complementary Breathing Technique, Swordsmanship, Magic Potion) Archery (Beginner) Grammar (Mastery) Nautical Knowledge (Beginner) Pharmacy (Beginner)
Aiven noticed that this kind of annotation was different from the bodily fitness assessments in his past life, guessing it has undergone some magical modification, with a certain game data sense.
Constitution includes body strength, stamina, recovery; Strength is based on Constitution, representing the whole body's explosiveness and output; Agility is also based on physical fitness, including mobility and reaction ability; Intelligence is more or less like the past life, including memory, observation, imagination, thinking, judgment, reasoning, and other diverse assessments.
The specific values are based on Aiven's senses and cognition, like he couldn't just glance at someone and know their specific data, there must be some interaction.
Outside his understanding and cognition isn't possible either, like a swordsmanship he's never heard of, not to mention the Mastery level, even the name couldn't be displayed.
Simply put, this function may provide Aiven with some convenience, but it's not an omnipotent detector connected to an unknown database.
Moreover, the "Data Visualization" further states: No cross-comparison between the annotated attributes.
Theoretically, the upper limit that ordinary humans in this world can achieve through innate talent and acquired effort is 1. So this does not mean the value 1 is the normal fitness for adult humans; for most ordinary adult males, having around 0.4 can already be considered very healthy.
Though limited by age, the body fitness is still in a rapid growth phase, but generally surpassing the body data of adults still satisfied Aiven.
Especially with the Intelligence Attribute as high as 0.8, it naturally gave him a sense of intellectual superiority.
"Right, I fought with that big cat before, its physical data should have been collected as well. List the body data of the Ferocious Mountain Cat!"
Name: Ferocious Mountain Cat
Attributes: Constitution 1.3 (1)
Strength 1.1 (1)
Agility 1.4 (1)
Skills: Hunting Techniques (Mastery)
Looking at the Ferocious Mountain Cat's data, cold sweat broke out on Aiven's back again, secretly thanking his good luck.
The big mountain cat truly had Extraordinary Attributes; even though its body is just an ordinary animal mountain cat, the ferocious transformation gave it such vicious data, one could say it's already comprehensively surpassed the human limits except for Intelligence.
Ordinary people would absolutely not escape unscathed upon encounter!