Hunter’s Vengeance: The Rise of the Predator

   "Hmmm, now that's life..."

   In the middle of a large pool of blood, with a diameter of almost 10 meters, situated in a crater she had formed with her fist, Kara gazed at the starry sky while floating on her back, trying to decipher their arrangement for hints about her future, much like charlatans reading palms during festive days when the small town she grew up in was filled with people strolling around in their finest to impress those they knew.

   'So many stars. There are far more than I thought a year ago,' Kara pondered, admiring the sky with her eyes, which were far superior to the eyes of any human being due to the ritual she had taken part in, sharpening her senses to a level comparable to that of the most powerful beasts.

   Kara had heard many theories about what stars represented. Some said they were the souls of the departed, others believed their arrangement held secrets of the past and the future, while some claimed stars were spirits of light, subservient to the god Sun.

   Kara never took these stories seriously. From a young age, during her early hunting days, she learned that sometimes even what you see with your own eyes can be a lie. So, how could she consider true something for which there was no evidence in reality? Even if the God of the Sun himself were to come and personally explain the situation, she wouldn't regard it as absolute truth. Much less would she believe the words of senile old men who spent their evenings with bellies full of alcohol.

   However, gazing at the vast number of stars adorning the night sky, Kara couldn't entirely dismiss the possibility that clues about the future might be found in their arrangement.

   'In an infinity of forms created by stars, it's not impossible to find a pattern that could describe one's future. But that's only possible if you know what to look for. It's amusing.... When I look back at how I got here, I wonder if I really had the choice to decide. Is it true that each person holds their future in their hands? Ultimately, I don't think it matters. The outcome will be the same in the end...'

   Deciding to conclude her period of relaxation, Kara stood up, and as her body began to glow along with the entire surface of the pool, the blood transformed into black energy that was immediately absorbed by Kara.

   'I think I've rested enough. For a week after devouring the serpent's powers, I've grown accustomed to my new abilities and analyzed all the information I have about Sky Tiger. Additionally, moments of tranquility, like this blood bath, have helped me relax a bit after everything I've been through. It's been a tough journey, but now I can finally see the end. Yes, now I am ready. I will confront the Sky Tiger, and after defeating him, I will become the most powerful being in this forest. And then, I will be recognized by the world as the supreme predator. Yes. This is my future. Even if it's not destined to be, I will ensure with my own power that this will be the outcome...'

   .....................................................

   "Bang!"

   "Roarrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr!"

   'How dare you? How can an ant defy the heavens?'

   These were probably the thoughts of the giant tiger as Kara attacked him without any hesitation, giving him no warning. But after the surprise passed and he observed the ant in front of him more carefully, the tiger realized that things were not as simple as they seemed. The tiny creature in front of him hadn't lost her mind, nor did she want to commit suicide. She had come to challenge him to a fight; she wanted to take his place as the ruler of the forest. Although the creature in front of him didn't appear to be much of a threat, the tiger's centuries of experience told him that he was facing a real danger, much greater than the red serpent that had bothered him in recent years. A danger much greater than any opponent he had ever faced. He couldn't treat this fight lightly, as his opponent wouldn't miss any opportunity to take his life. He could see it clearly in the small eyes of the creature in front of him, where green, red, and black were in a constant struggle for supremacy.

   "Roarrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr!"

   After the tiger's second roar, a two-kilometer area around him was engulfed in the fury of the heavens, powerful winds sweeping everything in their path, and violent lightning attempting to turn the entire area into ashes.

   'It seems he won't insult me and will take this fight seriously from the beginning. Very well. I wouldn't want it any other way. Only when you defeat the strongest at their peak can you truly claim to be at the top of the food chain and that no one can threaten your supremacy,' Kara thought while, like a rebellious lightning that refused to bow to the majesty of the heavens, she continued to attack the giant tiger with strikes capable of splitting the clouds in two.

   "Bang! Boom! Bang!"

   With fists that tear through flesh and kicks that shatter bones, and utilizing her maximum speed, which made her nearly invisible to the naked eye, even to a beast as formidable as the giant tiger, Kara continued her relentless assault, paying no heed to the harsh environment that was long unsuitable for life.

   Seeing that his opponent showed no signs of fatigue and was unaffected by his magical attacks, and his physical strikes couldn't find their mark as Kara was too small and too fast to be reached by his claws, the tiger had no other choice but to focus on his magic core, creating cracks on it as he tried to increase the intensity of his magical attacks.

   Until now, Kara didn't pay much attention to the location of beasts' magic cores, as her skill Blood Hunger would devour the entire beast after defeating it, transforming it into black energy along with all its flesh and blood. During the fight, it made no sense to search for its magical core to destroy it since it was usually placed in the most protected area of the beast, and it was easier to kill it by destroying its skull or breaking its neck. However, as Kara reached the conclusion that she couldn't defeat the tiger quickly due to his rapid regeneration, capable of repairing broken bones and regenerating his eyes in just a few minutes, and seeing the blue light shining through the tiger's fur on his chest, Kara decided to change her strategy, which until now consisted of hitting the tiger until she broke all his bones, and focused her attention on the place where she felt waves of magical energy, aiming to destroy his magic core.

   "Roarrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr!"

   With a powerful roar, the tiger intensified his attacks, the lightning around him creating deep cracks of tens of meters in the earth's crust, and their light transforming the center of the battle into a small sun.

   'Damn it. I can hardly see anything now. This way, I can't get close to him. But I don't think he can keep this up forever. As long as his attacks don't hit me directly, I can still endure. Let's see who has the stronger will...'

   Reducing her speed to goad the tiger into attacking even more fiercely and avoiding his strikes at the last moment, Kara waited for the opportune moment to strike, the moment when the tiger would suffer adverse reactions due to excessive mana consumption. And after nearly half an hour of defying death countless times, that moment came when another crack appeared on the tiger's mana core, and his attacks significantly weakened.

   'Now's the time!'

   "Boom!!!"

   With a speed that broke the sound barrier, splitting the surrounding storm in two, Kara appeared almost instantly in front of the tiger and delivered a powerful blow, using all her available strength, shattering the tiger's chest bones while simultaneously breaking his magic core in two.

   "Roarrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr......"

   Seeing the tiger collapse to the ground, desperately trying to get back on its feet, Kara hesitated for a moment to finish the job. She didn't want such a creature to die crawling. The tiger deserved to die standing, with its pride intact. Kara could sense that this was the tiger's desire, and perhaps deep down in her soul, she knew that she would want to leave this world in the same way.

   "You were a worthy opponent. If it were up to me, this wouldn't be the end, as I've always had a weakness for cats. But I have no choice. This forest isn't big enough for both of us."

   After telling the tiger, who managed to get up, the first words he had ever heard from a human, Kara appeared almost instantaneously beneath the giant head of the tiger and, with a powerful strike, shattered its neck, creating a stream of blood. Activating her skill Blood Hunger, Kara began to devour all the energy from the tiger's body, whose soul had already departed this world.

   ...........................................

   Two months have passed since Kara became the most powerful being in The Great Moonshadow Forest, but unfortunately, she received no sign that the ritual had ended, finding herself in a situation similar to the beasts that had no class or access to information about their skills.

   "I'm already the most powerful. What more do I need to do? Why isn't it enough?" Kara pondered, gazing at the stars while eating a piece of raw boar meat.

   Unfortunately for Kara, there was no one around to answer these questions...she had no choice but to continue being the ruler of this territory where magic embodied violence, and only the mad or the reckless would dare to venture.

   ..................................

   [Edge of The Great Moonshadow Forest]

   "Hey, Ralph, how far are we going to go? Don't you think we've gone far enough? We haven't even tested the fresh goods, if you know what I mean...."

   "We can't risk staying out in the open. Jacob saw a patrol of knights in the town. They were probably sent from the capital to investigate the caravan attacks.... Why are you shaking like that? Don't tell me you're afraid of entering a forest. Do you really think it's cursed? Heh, those are just stories...."