Ascension from Dual Professions

Chapter 4: Chapter 4: One-Slash Decapitation

As the metallic scent of deer blood spread, Jon could clearly sense that the great snow fox was getting impatient.

A beast is a beast, after all. There’s a limit to its cunning.

He was now deliberately putting on an unguarded act to deceive it and lower its guard.

”CRACK.”

The saber fell, separating flesh from bone. A deer leg was completely detached. Already-congealing blood slowly oozed from the artery, spreading across the snow like red paint smeared wantonly on a sheet of white paper, a glaring, crimson stain.

An extremely faint rustling sound slowly approached from not too far away.

The beast had made its move.

Jon chuckled inwardly, but his expression remained unchanged. He made another cut, slicing open the deer carcass’s abdominal cavity and releasing an even thicker stench of viscera.

The rustling grew closer, but when it reached a delicate distance, it suddenly vanished.

’It’s coming...’

The young Hunter quietly tightened his grip on his long saber. He slowly bent down, reaching his hand into the deer’s cavity, deliberately exposing his unguarded side to the fox.

With his head lowered, he slowly stirred the deer’s entrails, making a sticky, squishing sound, as if something inside had captured his full attention.

Then, as if by accident, he gave a soft cough, feigning weakness.

”COUGH, COUGH—”

”SWOOSH—”

A faint sound was masked by his coughing, completely unnoticeable.

But Jon could roughly imagine the scene unfolding at his side.

After a long and patient stalk, the great snow fox would unleash all its strength in an instant, transitioning from absolute stillness to explosive motion, leaping from the snow like a cloud flying low to the ground.

Elegant and concise, it was filled with the beauty of natural wildness.

Anyone seeing this sight for the first time would be struck with awe.

Of course, that’s assuming you weren’t its target.

Otherwise, when a canine over 1.5 meters long and weighing more than 40 kilograms slammed into you with all its might, you’d find out what a ”meaty cannonball” feels like!

Jon, of course, had no desire to take that kind of hit.

Already prepared, he rolled on the spot, simultaneously yanking the deer carcass on the ground to use as cover.

In the instant he dodged, a white blur landed right where he had been squatting.

As fate would have it, the great snow fox’s entire snout plunged into the deer’s abdominal cavity.

The beast rooted around a couple of times but couldn’t pull its muzzle out of the fragrant yet foul-smelling viscera.

Perhaps it was still confused: how is it dinner time already?

But Jon couldn’t care less what it was thinking.

The moment he righted himself, he immediately directed his focus to his skill bar.

Frightening Roar!

Following some unknown guidance, the Warrior Apprentice spread his arms, took a deep breath of the freezing, blood-tinged air, and then—

”HAAAA—!!!”

A tremendous roar erupted from his not-so-sturdy chest, causing the snow piled on the surrounding birch branches to fall with a rustle.

Struck by such a roar at point-blank range, the great snow fox froze solid, its struggles ceasing entirely.

”Frightened” status! Movement speed reduced by 20%, damage taken increased by 20%!

It wasn’t over!

Ignoring the sharp pain in his lungs from inhaling so much cold air and the dull, throbbing ache from his not-yet-fully-healed ribs, Jon immediately used his next Skill.

Reset Stance!

A cool spring seemed to well up within his exhausted body, spreading through his limbs in an instant and giving birth to new strength.

’So that’s how this Skill cancels the recovery animation.’

He had this realization, but his hands didn’t pause for a moment.

He raised the Mountain-Cutting Saber over his head, his muscles tightening like a drawn bow.

Desperate Strike!

As the most powerful and highest-rarity Skill he currently possessed, the sensation of using it was completely different from his other Skills.

Beneath his thick fur coat, Jon’s muscles flushed red, and the veins on his neck bulged!

His vision turned blood-red! His muscles swelled and burned!

An indomitable will, born of desperation, was drawn from the very marrow of Jon’s bones, causing him to let out a furious roar!

The resentment from his predecessor’s experiences, the bitterness in his own heart at losing his peaceful life—it all converged into this single strike!

”JUST—DIE!!!!”

A crimson light surged down his arms and into the saber in his hands, and then—

The blade fell, the bloody light forming an arc!

It sliced through flesh and severed the neck bone.

[-547 (Critical Hit! Fatal Strike!)]

The great snow fox was decapitated in a single blow!

At the same time, a pleasant notification popped up.

[Killed a higher-level monster. Gained 300 (150 base Experience Points × 2.0 reward multiplier) combat Experience Points.]

”Ahhh—satisfying!!!”

After delivering that gratifyingly unrestrained blow, Jon felt a wave of relief wash over him, and the frustration coiling in his chest vanished completely!

’Did you really take me for a pushover!?’

’A mere beast, trying to pick on me!? Hmph!’

The young man thought arrogantly, then dropped his Mountain-Cutting Saber and supported his trembling knees with his trembling arms.

Okay, that really was pushing my limits. I need to catch my breath for a second.

Taking advantage of the moment, Jon immediately reviewed his first real battle since arriving in this Otherworld.

Everything had basically gone according to his plan.

After all, the great snow fox was a low-level monster whose attack patterns he had completely memorized. It couldn’t really pull any surprises.

Once its pounce missed, its fate was sealed.

However, there was one thing that did surprise Jon.

The scenario he had envisioned—where it wouldn’t die in one hit and he’d have to land a follow-up blow—didn’t happen. His Desperate Strike had overperformed, killing the great snow fox instantly.

And the reason for it was ”using too much force.”

That last blow was satisfying, yes, but it had also genuinely drained all the strength from his body.

The most direct evidence of this was on his status panel. His Qi Value, which should have been at 17, was now down to just 10.

In other words, Desperate Strike, which should have only consumed 20 points of Qi Value, had instead used 27 points due to his over-exertion, dealing higher damage as a result.

This change also made Jon realize the difference between reality and a game.

”Skills must just be a catalyst, not just rigid data...”

”If I can spend more effort to deal more damage, then I should also be able to spend less effort in exchange for a faster attack speed and more flexibility to adapt...”

”It seems there are still many differences between the game and reality worth studying...”

But he didn’t immerse himself in these thoughts for too long.

This wasn’t the time.

The scent of blood had been spreading for a while, and his fight with the fox had taken about ten minutes. If he delayed any longer, a monster he couldn’t possibly fight might be drawn to the area.

So, after catching his breath and letting some of his energy recover, Jon untied a rope from his person, secured the great snow fox’s head, and hung it from his waist. Then, grabbing the beast’s front and back paws, he slung it over his back like a shawl and headed back the way he came, following his memory.

What’s that? You’re asking why he couldn’t carry the whole fawn back before, but now he can carry the great snow fox?

Is a hundred pounds of bricks the same as a hundred pounds of gold?

You have to understand, although the great snow fox’s head was severed from its body, both parts were perfectly intact without a single hole. If a skilled furrier were to stitch it up, it could be treated as a complete pelt.

A snow fox pelt like this, if sold on the market, would be worth at least 3 Harvia Gold Coins—enough for an ordinary family of five to live comfortably and well-fed for a year!

And for a player in the novice stage, this was a considerable sum of start-up capital, enough to purchase a few pieces of Ordinary equipment and a batch of supplies!

Even though he, Jon, was ostracized by the villagers as a ”Calamity Star” and couldn’t conduct normal trade...

...that wasn’t a problem!

Because he had other ways to ”cash in”!