Thick smoke shot up. The smell of gunpowder and burnt hair mixed together. It smelled strange, making Ender frown.
He could not see through the smoke, so he could not tell where the giant tiger was.
"Roar~!!!"
An angry roar came from the smoke. Ender focused hard, but his body stayed relaxed.
Tight muscles make you slow. This can get you killed in a fight.
He held his long blade down, with the tip touching the ground.
The giant tiger was still hiding in the smoke, but Ender could feel it, and knew he was there.
A strong wind blew through the trees and slowly cleared the smoke.
Just then, a huge shape rushed out of the smoke. It was the giant tiger.
The tiger Ender saw did not look great. Big patches of its fur were burned. The burnt fur stuck to its skin, and you could still see small sparks.
Its big body was covered in wounds. Many iron nails were stuck in its skin.
Its worst injury was one of its eyes. Nails stuck out all around it. Dark red blood flowed from the eye hole.
When Ender saw the tiger's injuries, he smiled. This wound might not kill it, but its fighting power was down by at least 90 percent. His trap worked very well.
It was true. Humans are the most dangerous creatures in nature.
The giant tiger ran at Ender, making a whistling sound. It reached him in just a few steps.
Ender was not even as tall as the giant tiger's front leg.
But for some reason, Ender's heart beat faster. He felt excited facing such a big enemy.
Before the tiger could attack, Ender kicked the ground hard. Dead leaves flew. He ran to the tiger and swung his long blade at its front paw.
Puchi.
Blood flew. A cut opened on the tiger's paw. Dragon Slayer was a great weapon. It easily cut through the tiger's thick skin and deep into the muscle.
The tiger roared in pain. The explosion had made it slow, and it still felt dizzy.
Just as the tiger tried to fight back, Ender jumped to the side. He was now on the tiger's left, where it could not see him.
Two huge paws scratched at the air. The claws shined like metal. If Ender got hit, he would be badly hurt. Lucky for him, the tiger missed.
Ender used this chance to move in. He held the blade with both hands and cut the paw again.
He had to attack the paw. The tiger was very tall, maybe four meters. It was too hard to hit important spots like its throat or head.
With those claws in the way, Ender did not dare to aim for the tiger's main body.
But that was okay. He still had hours left for the side mission. Ender had time, but the tiger did not.
They only fought for a short time, but the ground was already soaked with blood. Soon, the tiger would fall from losing too much blood. Then, Ender could kill it easily.
The tiger knew this too. Its one eye stared at Ender with hate, but it started to think about running away.
Animals are like that. When things get bad, most will run, unless they have babies to protect.
Wanting to live and avoid pain is normal for humans and animals. Plus, this tiger was very smart.
The tiger breathed hard. Its claws dug into the dirt. It was ready to run.
Ender would not let the tiger escape after all this. He spent a lot of time setting the trap.
Just as the tiger thought about running, Ender's Dragon Slayer cut it again and again, leaving more bloody wounds.
The tiger's health bar was at 8%. It was going to die.
In Reincarnation Paradise, creatures don't get stronger when their health is low. When health drops below 10%, they just get very weak.
The tiger was not stronger. It could not even run right. Its attacks were wild. It only wanted to escape.
The tiger tried to run the sixth time but Ender stabbed his blade into its back leg. He held the handle with both hands and pulled hard.
The sound of the blade cutting muscle was clear. Ender held the handle and felt the blade shake as it cut the muscle.
The tiger cried out and a deep cut opened on its back leg. Before blood filled it, Ender saw a torn tendon.
The tendon was cut, so the tiger would not be able to run anymore. It was going to die today.
Maybe the tiger knew this too as it stopped trying to run. It faced Ender and kept roaring at him.
Ender stood in front of the tiger. His bare chest was covered in tiger blood.
The slippery, warm blood made Ender feel fierce. He looked very dangerous.
Ender stood before the house-sized beast and smiled. It was a very gentle smile.
The 'Ruler of Mt. Colubo' had ruled Mt. Colubo for years. It had never been afraid of anything.
But now, the giant beast was afraid of Ender. This smiling human might kill it.
"Roar~!"
A roar of anger and fear spread across Mt. Colubo.
Ender ran quickly toward the tiger, changing direction as he moved.
The tiger lowered its body. It looked ready to fight to the death.
A paw swiped at Ender's face, bringing a bad smell. It was fast. The tiger had hidden its speed until now. It was trying to land one last killing blow.
If that paw hit him, Ender would have to run away, even if he survived.
It looked like Ender was winning, but he was not. The tiger was much stronger. Even after a dozen cuts, the tiger's health bar only dropped by 1%. This 1% also included the blood it was losing.
But if the tiger hit him just once, the fight might be over.
The deadly paw was right in front of him. Ender kept moving forward, right toward it.
Just before the paw hit him, Ender dropped to his knees, lowered his body, and leaned all the way back.
The paw, smelling strongly of blood, passed right over Ender's nose.
The wind from it blew his hair.
Ender slid on his knees through the leaves. He just barely dodged the paw.
He pushed off the ground with one hand and jumped up. He was now right under the tiger's head. The tiger's weak throat was open.
Ender did not wait. He slashed it with his blade.
A lot of blood sprayed out and Ender got covered in it.
While Ender and the tiger were fighting, a small boy was hiding in the bushes nearby.
"So, so strong."
The bushes moved and a child's head peeked out. He was wearing a straw hat that had a few green leaves on top.
Guess who the kid is. Hehe, you probably already know.
(End of Chapter)