Emil started searching around the mountain range for Scorching Serpents.

He was perspiring as he went, a result of the heat within the air causes by the volcanos and the abundant fire mana.

Scorching Serpents were solitary beasts and were found all over the mountains.

But they were good at camouflaging themselves, especially since this was their natural habitat.

That, coupled with their small size and the fact that they moved alone made it difficult for Emil to spot them.

A sign of spotting one would be a snake hole, their usual residence.

Another sign would be snake trails left in the dirt.

The Scorching Serpents were weighty despite being small, leaving tracks of themselves as they slithered their way around.

At the same time though, Emil couldn't be careless and move around freely with just this bit of information.

He was attentive with each of his steps and always scanned his surroundings.

He was, after all, within the Magical Beasts' habitat. A sneak attack was more likely to happen than not.

He'd heard a king Scorching Serpent resided in this mountain, a Unique Magical Beast truly living up to the title serpent.

But he didn't need to worry about it. The king lived in the inner areas, where the fire mana was much denser.

something came into Emil's view at this moment.

'found you!'

he found a Scorching Serpent after hours of searching, in the flesh.

It was not yet aware of Emil's presence, so he, taking advantage of the opportunity, opted for a sneak attack.

What would his best course of action be right now?

Emil thought, reaching only one conclusion.

The Scorching Serpents were resistant to Fire Element, their thick red scales provided them protection.

Not to mention, his chances of landing a Fireball on the creature in close quarters were close to none.

That left him with physical attacks.

But the beast was too small and agile for that matter. If it dodged his attacks he'd be in much trouble.

That only left him with one option, a sneak attack, a sure hit at that.

Making his decision, Emil slowly closed in on the snake as he summoned Emeralds Reflection.

*Swoosh*

He jumped out of the bushes, brandishing his sword at the creature.

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*Hiissss*

The snake dodged as it hissed. The sound of the sword cutting through air alerted it, ruining Emil's sneak attack.

'Zammit.'

Emil cursed while retreating, barely dodging the snake's toxic flame.

The air around them started contaminating with toxin, but he was prepared for this occasion and already had his mouth covered with a mask.

The mask didn't negate the toxic air, it only bought him more time.

He had to finish this quickly.

*Swish*

Emil brandished his sword at the enemy again, with the snake turning its body and dodging.

Emil didn't stop though and kept assaulting it with full force.

The Serpent couldn't use its flame attack too many times, it needed time to recharge and cost a a lot of mana.

His best chance at killing it was now.

*Swish*Swoosh*

Emil kept swinging Emerald Reflection but all it did was either hit air or the ground.

The snake was too agile for him.

*Hisss*

The creature started hissing again, indicating that its flame attack was ready.

Emil, hearing this sound, jumped back in a quick succession.

The snake breathed out flames again, only for it to hit nothing.

However, the toxin in the air became more concentrated, making it difficult for him to breath.

It wasn't all bad news though.

Emil attacked again, this time noticing something different.

'it's slowed down!'

The toxic flame's mana and energy consumption was too high. The Scorching Serpent was worn out after using it twice.

Emil didn't let this opportunity slip and poured every bit of his strength into attacking.

The toxic air made it hard for him to breath, but it was alright.

Just a little more and he'd get it.

The snake found it more difficult to keep up with Emil's attacks until finally, Emerald Reflection's tıp brushed against its body and wounded it.

He cheered internally as he went in to deal the finishing blow, this was when the sound came again.

*Hiissss*

'Damn!'

Emil cursed again.

He was barely breathing as it was. If the toxic air got even stronger he was sure to pass out.

He had two options now.

Fall back and let the snake attack, giving up on the hunt in the process.

Or kill it before it got the chance to attack again.

The former option was the more logical one. The snake was agile, already putting half a dozen meters of distance between them.

Emil would have to catch up to it and kill it, but he wasn't fast enough.

Making his mind, he took a deep breath, toxic air filling his lungs.

His eyes became focused as his body tensed up.

Gripping Emerald Reflections, he raised it and threw it at the snake like a spear.

*Slash*

The sword travelled through the air and cut the snake's body in two clean halves.

Emil, not washing a single second, rushed towards the body and retrieved it along with his sword before exiting the area.

After making it to a safe spot, he collapsed on the ground and removed his mask before taking deep breaths of clean, uncontaminated air.

"Gotcha."

A radiant smile was plastered on his face despite his sorry state.

This was his first successful hunt, without getting injured, or even a scratch.

It made him excited.

He could hunt too.

Despite his lacking talent and strength, despite all the adversaries, he could still hunt and come out victorious.

It filled him with a sense of pride, overcoming a great opponent.

After reveling in his momentary sense of satisfaction, he gathered himself and began looking for more Scorching Serpents.

One down, three more to go.

***

Emil was able to hunt one more Scorching Serpent before sunset.

Staying in the Monster Forest at dark wasn't an idea he entertained, specially considering his physical condition.

He decided to head back to school and finish the hunt tomorrow.

Emil tracked his way back where he came from, and made it to the clustered woods where he was chased by the Earth Bear.

Without stopping this time, he rushed through the woods whilst keeping an eye for any creature that could pop out.

*Boom*

As he was running, he heard a loud sound not too faraway.

"That's the direction of the Earth Bear's cave..."

More likely than not, it was fighting another creature right now, based on the sounds alone.

Emil couldn't care less what it was.

What he cared for was getting the hell out of here before any more trouble found its way to him.

After twenty minutes of running, he made it out of the woods and traced his way back to the river, before eventually reaching the academy.

His first course of action was getting something to eat, while his second one was going back to his lodgings and catching some sleep.

He had a long day ahead tomorrow.