A Mongou. This was too tempting to pass up, and besides, it was one of the few creatures I could actually take down on my own.
Mongous were mana beasts, or at least they became mana beasts once they reached the second stage of their metamorphosis, because they went through four distinct stages of transformation in total.
The first was called the origin level, where they possessed no mana at all and weren't considered mana beasts yet, essentially just an infant phase where they were vulnerable enough to be killed by almost anything. Once they hit the second stage though, they developed a mana core and got classified as a Tier One evolved beast.
In this world there were two types of mana beasts, mutated and evolved. Mutated beasts were far more common in this region, creatures that were originally incapable of wielding mana but gained the ability through some unknown phenomenon. Evolved beasts were a different matter entirely, born with the inherent ability to wield mana, which made them considerably more dangerous than their mutated counterparts.
Mongous fell into the evolved category, and even though they didn't exhibit any mana control in their early stages, the ability was already inside them, dormant and waiting. Judging by how this one was grazing casually on grass, it was definitely still at the origin level, and there was no mana core visible on its head either, which confirmed it, since Mongous had external mana cores that made it easy to identify where they were in their development.
I moved carefully, keeping my steps light and making sure not to alert it to my presence, because the plan was simple and I just needed to catch it off guard.
Just a little closer.
Creak.
I looked down too late and saw the twig under my foot, and when I looked back up its small beady eyes were already locked onto mine.
"Fuck."
It bolted, faster than anything I'd seen in my life, and I immediately took off after it.
"YOU'RE NOT GETTING AWAY!"
The Mongou cut through the dense trees and thick underbrush like it wasn't even there, while I stumbled over roots and branches and pushed my body well past what it wanted to do, my lungs burning and my legs protesting every stride, but I didn't stop because I needed this.
"NOOOO!" I shouted as I watched it dart toward a rabbit hole tucked beneath a tree root, and in desperation I grabbed a stone off the ground and threw it as hard as I possibly could.
Thwack.
Squeeeeeee.
The stone connected and the Mongou staggered and went down, and I lurched forward gasping and grabbed it by the leg before it could recover. It thrashed hard, refusing to give up.
"Just die already!"
I pulled together whatever strength I had left and swung it hard against the trunk of the nearest tree.
Squeeeeeee.
One last cry, and then it went still.
I stood there catching my breath for a moment, then grabbed it by the leg and slung it over my shoulder, because now came the harder part, which was finding somewhere safe enough to cook and eat without drawing attention. The guards patrolling the area had eyes everywhere, and smoke from a fire would give me away faster than anything else.
A blind spot would work, I decided.
I started collecting twigs and fallen branches, and by the time I had enough the sun had already dropped low on the horizon. I found a secluded spot behind a thick wall of foliage and set up camp there, then sat back and looked down at the boar-like creature in front of me.
"Let's eat."