Chapter 202: Mutated Crimson Horn Bear The minotaur’s club strikes carried enough force to shatter stone, but the coordination between Noah and Leo allowed them to avoid the most dangerous attacks while landing their own strikes consistently. Minutes passed in intense combat that pushed all three fighters to their limits. The mana and health enhancements prevented fatigue while accelerating recovery from minor injuries, allowing Noah and Leo to maintain peak performance throughout the extended engagement. Noah’s wind manipulation created air currents that disrupted the minotaur’s balance at crucial moments. The strikes accumulated damage despite the creature’s high defences. Leo’s combination of size manipulation and skills allowed him to nearly match the minotaur’s physical capabilities with the enhancements Noah provided. The turning point came when Noah managed to land a perfect strike against the minotaur’s weapon arm, his blade severing tendons that controlled the creature’s grip strength. The massive club tumbled and fell to the floor from the minotaur’s weakened fingers, transforming the minotaur from an armed opponent to a creature relying solely on natural weapons. Leo seized the advantage immediately, his [Savage Rift Claw] technique finding the minotaur’s throat in a strike that would have been impossible while dodging the club’s devastating reach. Energy scars spread across the creature’s neck as Leo’s skill dealt continuous damage that prevented natural healing and caused more damage. The minotaur’s struggles grew weaker as blood loss and accumulated injuries finally overwhelmed it. With a final, defiant bellow that echoed across the hunting grounds, the massive creature collapsed onto the rocky terrain. Thud! The powerful minotaur had fallen, with both Noah and Leo standing above its corpse, with some heavy breaths. Noah sighed in relief. The fight had been anything but easy, pushing them over their limits. Thank god I’ve always kept some emergency supplies with me. This could have gone terribly wrong. That minotaur was truly something else. The system notification appeared in Noah’s vision. [You have killed the adept-rank beast, Mutated Crimson Horn Minotaur] Despite the classification showing adept-rank, Noah knew from the creature’s power and the intensity of their battle that it wasn’t just a standard adept-rank opponent. The system had probably classified it as adept because it hadn’t achieved true master rank. Pseudo-master was a combat assessment rather than an official rank classification after all. "That was intense," Noah said, checking Leo for injuries. Noah noticed a few scratches and bruises on the young lion, but it was healing at a visible rate due to the bread’s lasting effects. Noah concluded that they would both need an extra loaf to heal back to good condition. So, he took two loaves out and ate alongside his companion. This time, the duo didn’t hasten. They wanted to relax and enjoy a small meal after such a tiresome battle. "That was much more challenging than those bears, but we make a good team, Father." Noah laughed before ruffling Leo’s golden mane. "Damn right, we do!" After relaxing for about 5 minutes, Noah stood up and walked towards the minotaur. He wanted to store the large beast in his storage ring. He wanted to ask Lola or anyone with knowledge about the issue. With a thought, the large minotaur body was stored inside his storage ring. Noah glanced back toward where he had first spotted the injured minotaur that had originally attracted their attention, but the creature was nowhere to be seen among the scattered boulders. That lucky minotaur managed to escape during the chaos when this mutated one decided to switch targets and pick a fight with us instead. The wounded creature had used the mutant’s distraction to flee deeper into the cave system, seeking safety while the more aggressive mutant engaged the intruders who had disturbed its territory. "Well, I’d say our first adept-rank hunting expedition was a complete success," Noah muttered. Leo nodded eagerly. "Yes, Father. That was an intense fight, but your food really helped. It was an amazing experience, I can’t wait to do it again!" Looking at Leo’s tail that swayed eagerly, Noah’s mouth couldn’t help but twitch. They had almost died had they not used the items, yet Leo was saying he wanted to try it again. It was a good experience though...The adrenaline, my heartbeats... Noah and Leo returned to the city and entered the shop, their successful hunting expedition leaving both feeling accomplished and energised despite the challenging battle they’d just survived. It had been about two hours since Noah had left for their minotaur encounter, giving the auto-makers sufficient time to replenish his inventory partially. His shelves weren’t completely empty anymore—several loaves of bread, bottles of iced tea and other premium items had accumulated during their absence, creating modest stock levels that would satisfy a few customers but weren’t anywhere near maximum capacity. Noah didn’t bother opening the shop for immediate sales. The money gained from a few random transactions wouldn’t significantly change any of his current plans, and it seemed more efficient to wait until Lola’s night shift, when she could handle the customer service. There are no waste concerns either. By the time Lola’s shift begins in a few hours, the stocks won’t be at full capacity, so no production will be wasted. With that practical consideration settled, Noah decided to focus on addressing a growing imbalance in his attribute development that had started bothering him again. He had just fixed it a few days ago, but after reaching the apprentice rank, it had once again started. Body tempering. My vitality is lagging behind again. His current vitality of thirty points represented exactly half of his strength, intelligence, and agility scores. It wasn’t catastrophically unbalanced, but the disparity created a vulnerability that could prove fatal against opponents who specialised in sustained damage. I need to bring vitality closer to my other attributes before the gap widens again. Based on his previous training experience, advancing skills from level 6 to level 10 would require approximately four hours per level under normal circumstances. However, using his healing bread strategically for recovery between intensive sessions could reduce that timeframe to roughly three hours per advancement for the body tempering skill.