Unknown Beast 2

I walked through a dense forest filled with trees as tall as a six-story house and leaves that blocked the sunlight and plunged the entire forest into darkness, making it even more frightening. Only the chirping of birds and small animals saved this place from the nickname 'Dark Forest'.

The Cotton... it's either his magic or the speed he developed in the meadows not far from here. If it's magic, no big problem, but if it's speed... I don't even know if I can kill him. Only this forest gives me a chance to kill it, because as a beast it has some heightened instincts. - I walked slowly through the green bushes with some green berries growing on them.

The villagers aren't dead, he probably just can't get near the village because of the Dryad, or he's just a 'vegetarian'.

"I don't feel anything...it's annoying." - my face became irritated and my eyes twitched, for my mana sense didn't detect much but some beasts and magical herbs.

The magical herbs themselves, sort of ingredients for making potions and pills with special effects. They were mutated by mana and given certain properties depending on the location. For example, here - herbs with healing effects, etc.

Magic herbs take about 1-2 centuries to mature, so most people just don't know about them, and those who do know about them and can make them crave every kind of herb. But unfortunately for me, they're absolutely useless because I'm not interested in alchemy, but you can take them to sell to healers like Asclepius later. Hehe~ I make money, I make business.

"I think Mistress Dryad wouldn't mind if I picked some herbs." - I looked around at a large, inconspicuous bush two or three meters high.

"The strongest aura comes from there." - I pulled out a pouch the size of my head and, using a cutting technique, cut off the best parts and placed them in the pouch so that everything was very compact.

When the pouch was completely filled, I placed it on the ground and created a golem that absorbed the pouch into itself. This golem was a kind of armored truck that would deliver the cargo to its destination in one piece. With the shape of a small man, but made of stone, and instead of a chest, a large cavity in which the pouch rested, it became the most effective means of transportation.

"Take this to Atalanta." - I gave the order, and the golem set off in the direction of Atalanta at a fairly decent speed. How did he know? Just a talisman. I made for her in the form of a bracelet. The bracelet can be a beacon of sorts, but instead of a light, it will be a mana signature. It is a double-edged item that can also attract enemies, but with a stronger sense of mana. Also, a little feature called "Information Bridge" that can transmit information over a line of mana, subtle enough that even mythological creatures will not be able to detect it, I think. And just like that, the golem went straight to Atalanta.

'After all, I am an incredible genius...' - Remembering to praise myself to satisfy my ego, I began to wander through the forest again, picking herbs and sending them to Atalanta, but without the pouches.

'She's still watching me, isn't she? Well, there's nothing to hide.' - My eyes turned directly to one of the trees, making my movements as natural as possible.

I crouched down and placed my hand on the ground and closed my eyes, calming my breathing and beginning to concentrate.

Mana territory.

A special spell that allows you to distribute a certain amount of mana over an area to gain a wider field of vision. But there's a plus and a minus. If the area becomes larger than a certain amount of mana, the entire mana layer is reduced to a critical point where I can only feel the presence and understand what it is. An equal exchange where I give up a small amount of mana by exchanging the angle of view in the form of high quality video for pixels. By high quality video I meant just that. I could get color, surface, shape and composition information and model the 3D shape.

The only downside is that any interaction with my mana, such as absorption, erasure, or disconnection, would cause me to lose a clear image or presence. This is really dangerous, but can be fixed by improving my mana control to an insane level. Unfortunately, I haven't reached that level yet, but I'm pretty close.

Lo and behold, I catch a presence running through the forest at a very, very high speed.

"I found it. It's well adapted to this forest, but the good news is that its speed is reduced, which is a definite advantage." - I muttered and looked to my right, feeling the creature move quickly and deftly.

I snapped my fingers into the pistol position. Gathering the fiery mana and spinning it frantically, I fired... but alas, there were no epic sounds other than molten wood.

***

The bullet flew at near sonic speed, piercing or even melting any obstacle in its path before finally hitting its target.

It was supposed to.

But the beast was able to dodge, looking furiously in the direction of the shot, knowing it was quite dangerous.

It had the appearance of a modern cheetah, but much larger, and its fur was an unusually white color, unlike that of its counterpart from the future. His eyes were unusually blue, expressing great irritation and anger.

His front paws flexed and his eyes focused on a specific target. His hind paws tensed and in an instant, the cheetah disappeared from its place.

*Crack*

*Swoosh*

A small crater was left in the ground, and the wind was blowing nearby, a testament to its superior speed.

This cheetah made its way through the forest as if just strolling, constantly avoiding obstacles by using various trees and branches.

***

'Didn't hit it...plus it's coming very fast. Looks like we won't be able to avoid melee combat, as ranged attacks are useless against it.' - I interrupted my thoughts and took a fighting stance, preparing to fight this beast.

'Behind! '

I quickly turned my entire body back and with my left hand, I grabbed the raised left paw of the beast with its sharp claws and tried to push it to the left while my right hand went straight to its stomach, intending to use the penetration technique.

I felt the force lifting its left paw, which I released, and saw it trying to "stand up" in the air, knowing full well that I was about to receive a hard blow to my right arm.

The force of the beast simply couldn't move my body, only tilting it slightly, which was definitely not enough to give it a chance.

Quickly pulling my arm back, my left hand flew straight back into its belly.