Boom!
The Ice Spike Vesemir dodged shattered against the hard slate.
A gale mixed with Ice Crystals and dust blew the Witcher Master's loose hair wildly behind him.
With Vesemir's skill, there was no need for him to deceive the Drowners King's vision as Ailin had.
This kind of large, clumsy magic seemed designed specifically for sieges, or for hunting massive, slow-moving monsters.
Such a sluggish attack could never evade the Witcher Master's senses.
Easily dodging the Ice Spike, Vesemir took advantage of the Drowners King's post-casting stiffness and rushed forward in just a few strides.
He spun and slashed.
In that lightning-fast instant, silver flashed.
The blue magical shield flickered twice before instantly shattering.
Having grasped the Drowners King's casting rhythm, Vesemir swiftly slashed twice more.
The skin over the Drowners King's heel tendons was cut open.
Witcher Hunt Progress: 53%
"Graaah!"
With a thunderous roar, the magical shield formed again.
"Still not quite enough."
Vesemir felt some regret.
Though he trusted his apprentice, the Witcher Master was naturally unwilling to simply stand by and wait.
Unfortunately, although he had caught the gap in the Drowners King's casting, he still could not inflict significant damage.
Whoosh!
An enraged webbed claw swept toward the Witcher Master's head.
Vesemir swiftly ducked and raised his sword.
Screech—
A piercing scraping sound rang out as the blue shield flickered between light and dark.
The silver sword was knocked off course by the claw, but Vesemir paid it no mind and used the force to spin.
Slash!
The silver blade flashed once more across the Drowners King's sharp claw.
Crack!
With a soft sound, the Drowners King's shield shattered again.
Witcher Hunt Progress: 62%
Ailin felt strangely. His mind had invaded the monster's aura, yet his thoughts seemed to have merged with Vesemir's.
The Drowners King's left foot was kicking over. He should sidestep, turn, swing his sword...
Ailin thought so.
As though following his commands, Vesemir also sidestepped, turned, and swung his sword...
Once again, he perfectly shattered the blue shield.
Witcher Hunt Progress: 75%
Ailin felt that the Witcher Master was his hand, and his sword was an extension of his attack range.
This was neither the Witcher Apprentice's illusion nor a matter of there being only one place to attack or evade. It seemed to be a special effect of the Witcher Hunt skill.
The Witcher Master trusted him, so some part of his aura had blended with the spiritual power Ailin had permeated into him.
Through the Witcher Hunt state, Ailin could guide Vesemir toward the optimal method of attack.
So this was the proper way to use Witcher Hunt?
The Witcher Apprentice thought.
Judging by the look of it, Vesemir did not seem to have noticed anything unusual either.
The Witcher Master had indeed noticed nothing unusual.
He simply felt that he was in exceptionally good form today.
He barely needed to think. He could evade the monster's attacks as he pleased, and a glance was enough to find the next best position to strike.
Just like now.
He sidestepped the monster's kicking right foot, spun, and rapidly slashed at the shield four times.
In the past, while evading, he could have managed at most two slashes.
"Could my strength have improved after going so long without hunting a worthy prey?"
Vesemir felt both exhilarated and puzzled.
Other than in life-or-death situations, witchers could mostly only rely on age and the growth of their Mutated Organs to strengthen themselves.
Such progress was very slow.
Yet what Vesemir felt now was an improvement that was nearly a meteoric rise.
Had he encountered this monster before today, Vesemir definitely would not have handled it so easily.
Quickly retreating two steps to dodge the monster's right foot, the Witcher Master expertly spun and slashed.
Crack!
What shattered was not the magical shield.
Vesemir stared in surprise at the broken silver blade.
After all, it was only a training sword. It could not withstand such intense combat.
With his weapon broken, Vesemir swiftly made a gesture toward the Drowners King.
Alde Sign.
The powerful shockwave left the monster's opportunistic claw grasping at nothing.
The Witcher Master swiftly retreated, about to ask Ailin to lend him a sword.
But then he saw a familiar figure rush out beside him.
It was Ailin.
At that moment, the Witcher Apprentice ignored Vesemir's surprise.
After entering the Witcher Hunt state, Ailin could barely feel any emotional fluctuations. There was only the purest calculation of gains and losses.
Since his own thoughts had already merged into Vesemir's movements, how could Ailin have failed to notice the condition of the Witcher Master's silver sword?
Or rather, because Ailin had noticed everything, Vesemir, wholly focused on the battle, had overlooked the state of his weapon.
The most important piece of information to a warrior.
The reason Ailin had not warned him was simply that there was no need.
After all.
Witcher Hunt Progress: 100%
After entering Execution Mode, Ailin realized he had been wrong.
The upgraded Witcher Hunt did not merely extend the duration of the Witcher Hunt state.
In Ailin's field of vision, a trail of red-highlighted footprints led straight to the Drowners King's nape.
Some of those footprints even floated in midair, at heights impossible for him to reach from his current position.
But in the Witcher Hunt state, Ailin felt no fear, and naturally, he did not hesitate.
"Ailin?"
The Witcher Apprentice did not answer. He focused completely on stepping along the red footprints.
He took a step to the left, and the Drowners King's enormous right foot kicked over, only for the Witcher Apprentice to evade it perfectly.
He leaped to the right and landed directly on the Drowners King's withdrawing foot.
Advancing along the monster's right leg, Ailin walked as though on level ground.
Step by step, he followed the red prints forward. The Witcher Apprentice dodged every attack the Drowners King launched at him.
Though he did not move quickly, in the blink of an eye, Ailin stood at the end.
The red prints he had stepped on vanished, and a familiar red line appeared before him.
The moment the red line appeared, time itself seemed to freeze, and everything before him became a motionless painting.
He saw the fear in the Drowners King's massive pupils, the disbelief on Vesemir's face, and the drifting dust in the air...
A red line appeared amid that floating dust.
Following that familiar instinct, Ailin gripped Elsa tightly and slashed along the line.
And so,
Dreamlike silver light flashed.
Dust, blue light, flesh, and bone were severed one after another.
Splat!
Bright red blood sprayed from the severed wound.
An indescribably sweet fragrance rushed toward him with it.
"The Drowners King's blood actually smells sweet."
Having just withdrawn from the Witcher Hunt state, the Witcher Apprentice found himself inexplicably fixated on that point.
Then his vision went black, and he began to fall.
Apparently, having 150 points of stamina instantly drained was not a pleasant experience.
Thud.
Ailin's limp body was caught by a somewhat hard arm.
At the same time, a mechanical voice sounded by his ear.
Ding. Monster "Drowners King" subjugated! Reward settlement:...
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