It is perfectly normal for a monster to choose to flee and relocate during a battle with a hunter. After all, for most monsters, fighting to the death isn't worth it; they won't hesitate for a second when it's time to run.
Hunters also decide based on the situation whether to give chase immediately or prioritize recovering their own state before making a move.
Once Altaïr confirmed the direction of the Nerscylla's retreat, he immediately broke into a full sprint. He wasn't just giving chase; he was moving to intercept!
Under normal circumstances, a monster moving from one area to another doesn't significantly shift the tactical landscape, aside from having to consider the terrain.
But the current situation was clearly not "normal." The Nerscylla was fleeing toward the Cave Spider Nest. Inside, the light was dim, the terrain was complex and choked with spider silk, and movement was difficult. Worst of all was the presence of that massive swarm of Nerscylla Hatchlings that seemed impossible to thin out no matter how many were killed.
He wouldn't worry about just a swarm of hatchlings, and he could handle a single adult Nerscylla if he was careful.
However, if the two forces combined, forcing him to contend with the adult at full strength while hatchlings constantly lunged at him, it would be far too dangerous.
Therefore, no matter what, he had to intercept the Nerscylla before it could retreat into its den!
Activating Demon Mode, Altaïr sprinted wildly, cutting diagonally across the Nerscylla's flight path. He managed to throw himself in front of it just before it could duck into the cave.
"This is looking a bit bad," Altaïr muttered to himself as he faced down the rapidly lunging Nerscylla.
He couldn't allow the prey to hide in the cave. This tactical prerequisite essentially pinned him down at the cave entrance, drastically reducing his mobility and flexibility, which put him at a severe disadvantage.
It was a pity Isis wasn't here. If she were, she could have simply blocked the nest entrance, and the Nerscylla would have been left with nothing but a bloody head and broken spirit.
Just as the thought crossed his mind, a familiar scent wafted into his nostrils. It wasn't "Isis's scent," of course, but the smell of a Paintball.
The appearance of this scent caused Altaïr's expression to turn grim.
At the beginning of the operation, Sajji had lured away another Nerscylla to cover his movements and had marked it with a Paintball.
He wasn't particularly worried about Sajji's safety; as a Felyne, he could avoid almost any danger by simply burrowing underground if he was outmatched.
What he worried about was the Nerscylla giving up its pursuit of Sajji and returning midway.
After these past two years of tempering, Sajji had become an excellent Palico, but he wasn't the type who specialized in frontal combat like Clawdia; he was a quintessential Assist Cat.
There was no issue with him drawing a monster away and finding ways to stall for time, but if the monster was determined to leave, it was very difficult for him to stop it.
Sure enough, accompanying the scent of the Paintball came Sajji's tense, shrill cry.
The Felyne burst out from the woods, screaming, "Sorry, I couldn't stop it, meow!"
Two seconds after Sajji appeared, the Nerscylla marked by the Paintball also smashed through a thicket of shrubs, charging rapidly toward their position.
The Gypceros hide on its body was also tattered, clearly the result of Sajji's hard work, but beyond that, no other conspicuous scars could be seen on its frame.
As an Assist Cat, it was difficult for Sajji to inflict effective damage on a large monster of a 4★ threat level.
"Skreeee!"
The Nerscylla marked by the Paintball let out a series of shrieks toward its heavily injured counterpart, its cry even carrying a hint of human-like concern.
Altaïr understood now.
It was highly likely that the piercing, prolonged shriek the Nerscylla had let out after that earlier Spirit Helm Breaker had drawn its mate from afar.
With the opponents increasing from one to two, the hunting difficulty hadn't just doubled — it had become far more complex.
Attempting to continue guarding the cave entrance to prevent the injured Nerscylla from escaping was clearly unrealistic; of course, now that its mate had appeared, the creature might not necessarily keep trying to flee anyway.
If it firmly chose to continue its escape, that would actually be good news for him. He would only need to focus on dealing with the Nerscylla marked by the Paintball. Who was afraid of whom?
But if both of these Nerscylla retreated into the cave nest...
Then he would abandon the hunt, return to the village to stand guard, and wait for Guild reinforcements!
"Watch out, meow!" Even as Altaïr made his decision, a warning came from his hunting partner.
A strand of spider silk shot out, a sudden attack from the painted Nerscylla.
Seeing the silk about to land on him, Altaïr reacted instantly. He swung his Long Sword in a reverse fade slash, using the momentum to take a large leap backward and narrowly avoid the binding silk.
The strand of silk that hit the ground pulled taut.
Having witnessed this move more than once, Altaïr knew what the Nerscylla intended to do. He immediately turned and bounded away, sliding back a significant distance.
He used a Foresight Slash to evade the painted Nerscylla's ferocious pounce.
However, his peril was not yet over. The heavily injured Nerscylla nearby lunged with perfect coordination, raising its two pointed claws and slamming them down at the hunter one after the other.
Relying on his extraordinary coordination, Altaïr, having just completed the sliding retreat, forcibly twisted his body to face the other way, turning his retaliatory Foresight Slash toward the wounded Nerscylla ninety degrees to his side.
Clang!
The blade collided with the descending claw. Altaïr's waist and legs twisted and locked; with a low grunt of effort, he parried the claw on one side of the heavily injured Nerscylla.
But he was powerless to deal with the other claw following close behind, and had to roll across the ground somewhat clumsily to dodge the falling strike.
As if they had planned it together, both Nerscylla simultaneously opened the chelicerae on either side of their mouthparts. Amidst a scalp-tingling "clack-clack" sound, two pairs of chelicerae dripping with purple-black venom extended, sealing off all of Altaïr's possible escape routes.
Just as he was cornered, a Flash Pod landed between the two Nerscylla, erupting in a blinding burst.
This was timely support from Sajji!
The exploding glare caught both Nerscylla dead-on. The one hit by the Paintball stumbled, its body swaying as it was stunned in place, the impending scissor-snap of its chelicerae interrupted.
However, the heavily injured Nerscylla had encountered Flash Pod attacks multiple times during its previous battle with the hunter. While it couldn't be said to have fully adapted, it had become largely accustomed to the intense light.
As a result, only its vision was affected; it wasn't truly stunned, and its assault pressed on.
Expanding to a full length of four or five meters, its two chelicerae splayed wide at an angle of over ninety degrees. Like a pair of shears intended to snap the hunter's waist in two, they lunged viciously at Altaïr.
Leaping to his feet, Altaïr had no time to praise Sajji for the timely support. He sheathed his blade with lightning speed, preparing for an Iai technique.
Long Sword users typically use two types of Iai slashes.
One is the Iai Slash, commonly known as the small Iai. It involves a forward strike the instant the blade is drawn; while its power is relatively low, it is extremely fast and flexible.
The other is the Iai Spirit Slash, commonly known as the great Iai. At the moment of the draw, the hunter lunges forward with a wide-range swing. It bears some similarity to the Spirit Roundslash and possesses devastating power.
When the Nerscylla had previously leapt onto the trees to swing down for a pounce, the great Iai was the technique he had employed.
Now, however, he had neither the space nor the time for such a move. Almost the instant the blade clicked into the scabbard, he flashed the steel back out to counter the incoming venomous chelicerae.
The first strike of the draw carried sufficient force to successfully knock aside the left chelicera.
However, the second strike that followed was slightly weaker, only managing to barely brace against the right chelicera. The fangs, dripping with potent venom, pierced through his armor and carved a wound into his right shoulder.
It felt as though boiling oil had been splashed over him. A bone-deep, searing pain flared in Altaïr's shoulder, but the burning vanished an instant later, replaced by a chilling numbness.
This was a dire sign.
The hemolytic toxins were rapidly invading his system. His breathing grew heavy, his mouth filled with a metallic tang of blood, and a warm trickle began to drip from his nose as his vision started to blur with slight afterimages.
The intensity of the toxin exceeded his expectations. If not treated immediately, it wouldn't be long before he lost the ability to move and collapsed.
"Meow!"
Sajji let out a startled cry and tried to rush over to support him.
His footsteps slightly unsteady, Altaïr pivoted to dodge a follow-up swipe from the Nerscylla's claws. Even as he retreated at full speed, he flipped up his visor, pulled a piece of Herbal Medicine from his belt, and threw it into his mouth to chew and swallow.
Though he carried cheaper Antidotes, now was not the time to be frugal!
After quickly downing the medicine, Altaïr called out to Sajji, who was still trying to run toward him, giving a new command: "Go to the cave entrance! Set a trap!"
Sajji skidded to a halt.
In the sky thick with dark clouds, the faint roll of thunder echoed. Sajji instinctively looked up at the weather.
"Understood, meow!"
The Felyne pulled out a Shock Trap and raced on all fours toward the Spider Cave.
(Translated by yourtl.app)