SPIRIT SOUL

Kyle strolled through the Sadorla forest's outskirts with slow and guarded steps, looking around in vigilance.

A few hours had already passed since he had found the most suitable beast to hunt, but he had yet to attack because he was waiting for the perfect opening to kill it in a single attempt.

The beast he wanted to hunt was at the initial rank of the Spiral Fortification stage, telling Kyle that its physical strength was the lowest possible, which was great!

What it lacked in strength, it more than made up for in intelligence as its mind worked faster than that of other beasts, which was exactly what worried Kyle.

If he wanted to surprise attack the Sra Moose that was in front of him, Kyle had to pay attention to the moose's antlers and ensure that it wouldn't outwit him!

He knew that his current physical strength was lower than that of the Sra moose's, but its defensive capabilities seemed to be weak. Its hide wasn't that tough either, which Kyle simply assumed after he saw that it had lightly scratched its back by brushing past a thorny bush.

It was only a faint scratch, but other beasts at the Fortification stage wouldn't have received a scratch simply by brushing past a thorny bush.

Thus, Kyle had found the perfect target for his hunt- a two-meter tall Sra Moose that had enough hide, meat, and an ordinary soul, ticking all the boxes Kyle had in mind during his search for a suitable beast to hunt.

Taking a deep breath, Kyle told himself to continue waiting for the perfect timing. He was beginning to get impatient but reminded himself that he just needed one moment during which the moose would lower its guard completely, making it highly vulnerable.

The moose was currently rubbing its large antlers against a large tree trunk in front of it.

As he squinted his eyes to get a clear look Kyle was able to see a glimpse of its tightly shut eyes and his body began to move instinctively.

Wielding the heavy boar tusk sword with both hands, Kyle neglected the fact that it was a weapon to be wielded in a single hand as he rushed out of the bush he had been hiding in all this time.

At that moment, the Sra moose heard the noises of his footsteps, startling it. In an instant, the shocked and unguarded moose hastily turned its head around.

Unfortunately, this proved to be a fatal mistake for the moose whose antlers got stuck in the trunk it had been rubbing against before.

This quarter of a second it required to free itself was efficiently utilized by Kyle who had been less than 20 meters away from the moose.

Given the second at which the moose had just noticed him and the fact that his physique had improved quite a lot, the extra quarter of a second before the Sra moose was able to move, worked in his favor.

While the Sra moose turned around, Kyle decreased the distance between them to less than five meters while entering a proper defensive stance.

,m With his current pace, he had a major advantage against the moose that had been unable to free itself in order to charge at him.

As such, he used his pace in order to increase the impact of his sword with which he meant to execute a vertical slash.

Kyle's movements were still crude and unrefined and he was not pleased with how he handled his sword.

Acutely aware of how he lacked both prowess and finesse, he could only remind himself that this was everything he was capable of right now and work hard to improve later!

And just as expected, the Sra moose lowered its head in order to lift it rapidly, using the velocity and antlers to deflect the incoming slash of the boar tusk sword.

He had predicted the moose to do the same but its weight and entire size would have given it more than enough choices to defend and even counter-attack more efficiently.

Nevertheless, it had lost the opportunity and was trapped in place. Kyle's eyes turned cold, knowing that he had to be merciless right now.

When the moose's antlers and his boar tusk sword collided, Kyle let go of it, knowing that clinging to his weapon would break his frail bones.

As such, Kyle knew from the beginning that he could not rely on his short-sword to kill the Sra moose.

Improvising on the spot, he used the moment at which the Sra moose lifted its head to deflect his vertical slash.

The moment the Sra Moose's head was raised, Kyle unsheathed the small boar tusk dagger he had stored in his small backpack.

He had kept it handy so as to quickly grab it, if necessary!

As such, by curling his fingers around the dagger's hilt, Kyle received the opportunity he had been waiting for.

Pouncing on the opportunity, Kyle thrust the boar tusk dagger out, channeling all his strength into one simple attack that targeted the moose's neck.

To be on the safer side, Kyle had come up with multiple plans if he were to fail right now, but when thick, warm blood spurted out of the severe injury he had inflicted, his worry dispersed in an instant.

He had expected the moose's hide to be thin but didn't think that the dagger would pierce through it without any resistance, just like a hot knife would slice through butter.

Yet, instead of exclaiming in joy, or allowing himself to be distracted, Kyle twisted the dagger inside the injury, pushing the tusk farther into the body as blood flowed down in rivulets before he tore it out.

The Sra moose bellowed in agony before it twisted its neck to head in Kyle's direction.

He saw the antlers that had dangerously sharp edges nearing him at a rapid speed.

Kyle hadn't expected this move, but instead of stiffening in fear, his body reacted instinctively as he pushed himself backward.

The antlers missed him by a hair's breadth and Kyle could only feel a faint gust of wind brushing past his naked body.

This caused goosebumps to sprang up all over his body.

After that, his body stiffened for a quarter of a second, while his mind tried to comprehend what would happen next.

Despite devising a plan to evade the moose's next attack, Kyle perceived that its movements had become more sluggish.

A huge fountain of blood continued to gush out of the deep gash Kyle had inflicted.

It made him realize that twisting the boar tusk dagger inside the wound despite being dangerously close to the moose had been worth the risk.

This was the moment when the Sra moose realized that its end was drawing near. However, it didn't want to die without taking down the bipedal being by all means possible!

Unfortunately, its first, and last attack had failed miserably, and the Sra moose's energy depleted at a rapid pace, preventing it from initiating a second attack.

A faint bellow was the last sound that escaped the moose's mouth before it collapsed on the ground. As Kyle watched hopefully, the last traces of life dispersed from its eyes that slowly turned dim.

However, instead of moving, Kyle stayed alert and continued staring at the moose.

He had told himself to never lower his guard until a beast's soul would detach from its former physical body soon after death.

This happened only a few seconds later after Kyle witnessed the Sra moose's death.

As such, he quickly reached out with his hand to grasp the soul the moment it had detached itself from the body and began to ascend into the air.

Once his fingers closed around it, the soul struggled in vain for a short moment, only to realize that Kyle's grasp was firm.

Not even a second later, he pressed the soul into his body where it dispersed into numerous particles, providing nutritions to the Emerald fox.

'Why does it feel like my Spirit Soul is as picky as I am….I didn't want to eat fruits anymore and the Emerald fox refused being fed by my Nurture ability…'