I spent 150 points of mana creating the bond, but it had not even formed halfway. Although the Shadowcat had lost consciousness, it was still fighting me with all its strength.
There was no need to waste any more mana, so I gave up, but I had learned something new: I needed 300 mana to bond with an adult Shadowcat or dominate it. I slowly opened my eyes and let out a deep sigh. Although I tried to comfort myself, this was a waste of time and energy.
When I stopped trying to establish the connection, the Shadowcat began to wake up. I sighed deeply again and began stroking its head. The Shadowcat, on the other hand, struggled to break free of the roots as soon as it regained consciousness.
"I would really like to let you go, but you've caught my scent. Even if you ran away when I released you, your kind are really good at tracking. I believe you would find some way to track me down and hunt me. So I don't want what comes next to become a headache. Sorry, but your life ends today."
As I spoke, I drove my dagger into its throat. It struggled once more, then breathed its last and died.
I canceled the Inretio (Entangle) spell, took out my skinning kit, and deftly skinned the Shadowcat. As I skinned the big cat, I remembered the first rabbit I had skinned a year ago. Back then, I had mangled it so badly that it had been torn to pieces.
While they were skinning the Shadowcat, a whimper suddenly rang out. When I looked toward the sound, I discovered that it came from a small den among the rocks.
As I approached the little den, the whimpering inside sounded like a puppy's. I carefully peered into the cave, where there was a cub. I was too big to get inside, and the cub was too far in for me to reach.
"Berus, go in and bring the little one out. Don't hurt him."
"Master, is that necessary? It smells like wolves in there."
I glared at him and shouted angrily.
"Of course it smells like wolves. It's a damn wolf den!"
I had spoiled Berus a little too much because it could still count as a puppy, but I ought to start being stricter with him. Muttering something, he squeezed inside and brought out the wolf cub. It was a gray female wolf cub. I thought I would not be able to find the animal I wanted. Should I bond with an ordinary wolf?
Shadowcats could also be found south of the Wall: in the Mountains of the Moon in the Vale, the mountains around the Riverlands, and the Red Mountains of Dorne. But those places were all far from where I lived, and this was the closest place where I could find Shadowcats.
Let's not be hasty. I can raise this one first, and if I can't find what I want, I'll bond with her. But where am I supposed to find a Shadowcat cub? I handed the little wolf to Berus and told him to take good care of it. Then I continued skinning the Shadowcat. As I did, a new idea struck me like lightning.
"Of course, Aermir, you're an idiot."
Why would Shadowcats bring their cubs along while hunting? They would only take them along once they had grown, to teach them how to hunt. The cubs would be in their dens, and Shadowcats built their dens high up, where access was restricted. I turned my gaze up the mountain. That was where their dens were.
Climbing the mountain with the cub in my arms was hard work, so I made a makeshift basket out of rope, a blanket, and branches, and put the cub inside. That way, I could carry it on my back. While climbing, I used Promodynes (Find Animal) whenever its cooldown ended to find any of the three animals I was looking for.
As I climbed the mountain, the weather grew colder and colder. Before climbing onto the fur coat, I had already begun to feel cold, and the stamina buff had been enough to keep me warm. But now I began tiring more quickly and felt the biting chill. The temperature had to be minus thirty degrees or lower now. I could feel the cold in my bones.
I wandered the slopes of this icy mountain for two days without finding anything. If not for the Training Space, Erebus and Bo would have frozen stiff long ago, so we left their raven kin at the foot of the mountain. The Training Space was what allowed me to climb without fear, but now even my mana was beginning to feel insufficient to maintain it. I began seriously considering whether I should turn back. If Authentication had not worked like a natural compass, I would have lost my way on this mountain long ago.
"Promodynes (Find Animal), Shadowcat."
Just as I was giving up, that beautiful light began to appear.
"Good, good, wonderful!"
At last, I found two, about three kilometers away, but the problem was that they were higher up the mountain. Since I would be approaching animals with a keen sense of smell, I had to use Inanis Motu (Pass Without Trace). But first, I would scout with Bo. It would be a little difficult for her in this weather, but she could do it.
As I slowly made my way up the mountain, I could feel through our connection that Bo was struggling to fly because of the strong wind. She bobbed up and down in the air, flying with difficulty.
-Bo, if it's too hard, come back. We can look for another cave some other day.-
-No, Dad, I can do it. I'm almost there. Look, I can see them.-
I hoped at least one of them was a cub, and that Bo's vision would become clearer so we could see them.
A cub and a female cat. The cub would climb onto its mother's back, and the mother would swat it with her tail, knocking it into the snow. Each time, the cub would climb back onto its mother's back. It was a cute sight, but at that moment, I did not care about any of that. Even if this was the most heartwarming scene in the world, all I could think about now was that this cub was mine.
Bo had perched in a tree, trying to shelter from the biting wind, while we were about two kilometers away from them and slowly drawing closer. If possible, I did not want to kill the female cat. After all, this cub was going to become a member of my family, so I did not want to kill its mother.
On the way up, I had thought of a plan. The mother needed to hunt, so she had built her den somewhere difficult to reach. While she was away, I would catch the cub.
So, as I approached them, I began using the Formotegon (Mold Earth) spell to build an underground hiding place for all of us. It took me about three hours to finish. Once everyone was inside, I closed the entrance, leaving only a few small holes to let air in. This way, we could hide from the female cat and have some protection from the cold.