The next day, Leo's training routine changed.
Instead of going after squirrel's, Ben wanted him to track and hunt mountain lions, which needed a whole new dimension of hunting mastery.
In the area around Mount Faulkner, mountain lions ranged from anywhere between level 100 and level 130, proving to be formidable beasts to hunt, especially for a level50 Leo, but according to Ben Leo was more than ready to take on the challenge.
For now, the mountain lions stayed clear of Ben and Leo only because Ben intimidated them on the first day of their arrival, warning them to not mess with the humans, but in general, they were the dominant species in these parts of the woods being the apex predators of the mountain.
However, once Leo were to launch an attack, there was a possibility of the mountain lions stalking the two for revenge, making their future days more challenging.
Since Leo himself had no experience in tracking beasts, early in the morning, just as the first rays of sun began filtering through the thick canopy of the forest, Ben led Leo to the clearing where he had spotted the mountain lions before.
"The key to tracking a beast, or an assassination target, especially one that's stronger than you, is understanding its behavior," Ben started, his eyes surveying the surroundings with a keen sharpness as he searched for any clues to pick up on.
"Mountain lions are territorial, which means they patrol their domain regularly.
This is a general behavior of the beasts, just like a general behavior of humans can be considered going to their place of work or worship daily.
We'll use this to our advantage." Ben said, as he started to survey the nearby surroundings, pointing out important clues to Leo.
Ben demonstrated how to identify the signs of a mountain lion's passage: marks on the trees where the beast sharpened its claws, tufts of fur caught in the brush, and, most importantly, tracks on the ground. "These are fresh," he noted, pointing to a set of paw prints that led deeper into the woods. "It passed through here not long ago."
Leo looked at the prints and did not really understand the difference between how to recognise a fresh paw print from an older one as he asked Ben the difference.
"How did you determine these are fresh?" Leo asked, as Ben pointed at the outline of the print and explained " Look at the shape, the shape looks sharp, the edges are clear, if we come back an hour later, you will still see the pawprint but the fingers of the paws won't be as sharp.
Come back a day later and the print won't look as sharp or deep, that's what we call old print.
Finally, come a day later and it will be 80% masked, something that won't even catch your eyes if you don't look carefully for it"
As they followed the trail, Ben emphasized the importance of silence and awareness. "In these woods, a hunter must become part of the forest itself. Your movements must be as light as the breeze, and your senses as sharp as the predator you're tracking."
Leo struggled at first, his footsteps too heavy, causing birds to take flight in alarm. But under Ben's patient guidance, he began to move with more grace, his steps becoming quieter, his jumps from tree branch to tree branch more agile.
" You have to identify where to step and where not to step, just like reflex training.
If you step too heavily on a tree branch it will bend and the leaves will make loud noises which will alert your prey.
Be quick on your feet and only step on places where the trunk is strong" Ben instructed as he guided Leo on how to create sensory awareness while moving.
They kept tracking the paw prints for a few more minutes until suddenly, Ben held up a hand, signaling for Leo to stop.
Ahead, through a thick patch of ferns, the outline of a mountain lion could be seen, its coat blending perfectly with the dappled sunlight filtering through the trees.
[ Mountain Lion - ( Level 102 ) ( Injured ) ]
Leo came across a mountain lion which was licking it's paw from apparently having injured it.
Judging by the severity of its injury it seemed to be a beast who would be limping for a few more weeks at least, making it an easy prey to take down.
"This is it, Leo. Remember, the hunt is not just about the kill.
One on one, if you were in front of it, it would leap onto you and bite your neck off, but we assassins don't fight fair.
Never have, never will.
We will be sneaky, attack from angles it never sees coming, and never reveal our true position until necessary," Ben whispered, a glint of excitement in his eyes.
Leo nodded, feeling the weight of the moment. It was the first time he could use the dagger throwing skills that he learnt for real and he could already see his weapon hitting his target.
*Swoop*
Gripping eight daggers at once, Leo glanced at the mountain lion ahead hiding in the bush with the gleam of a predator in his eyes.
His body was concealed behind the tree trunk, however he still had enough area to maneuver and take a shot.
*SWOOOSH*
*SWOOOSH*
Instead of aiming for a singular spot, Leo chose to go for a more scattered shot as the mountain lion, licking it's wounds was momentarily caught unaware.
Leo watched in slow motion, how it jumped up at the last possible second, it's reflexes kicking in after sensing the attack, however, 6 of the 8 daggers still found their mark, getting buried into its tough skin at various spots.
-100
-100
-500 CRITICAL HIT!
-200
-160
-450 CRITICAL HIT!
Leo dealt a massive 1510 point damage in one strike, reducing the beasts HP to an orange, with one of its eyes being injured by his dagger throw.
*RAWRRRRRRRR*
The mountain lion roared loudly, as Ben standing beside Leo chuckled as he already foresaw what was to come.
Leo, still fully focused on the hunt, jumped onto the tree branch beside the one he just shot from and threw eight more daggers at his prey.
This time around, only one of the daggers slightly managed to scratch the beast, as it seemed to have sensed Leo's presence and began hissing and approaching him with a limp.
-60.
It was bleeding all over its body, many daggers still remained impaled into its skin, yet it charged ferociously towards Leo.
*SWOOSH*
.
.
.
.
*SWOOSH*
This time, Leo only threw two daggers, both at full strength as he took his time to throw the two, as while the mountain lion managed to dodge the first throw, once it has committed to moving in one direction, Leo threw the second, giving it no room to escape.
-450 critical hit!
The dagger went straight into it's temple, impaling the beast and forcing it to stumble to the ground as it's HP dropped to a critical red.
[ System Notification - Your prey, the mountain lion has suffered brain damage and is permanently immobilized ]
A system notification informed Leo that his opponent was immobilized, as Leo rushed to kill it, feeling excited for having taken down such a magnificent beast.
Unfortunately, he made a rookie error, as Ben could already see him getting into a world of trouble soon.