Nymera had also realized that her opponent lacked combat experience, but her situation was far worse than Altaïr's.
What little Bowgun Ammo she had left was nearly gone, and only a few of the most basic Normal Ammo 1 magazines remained.
This type of Ammo is small and weak; apart from being compact and easy to carry, it has no other advantages. It is essentially the Gunners' final backup Ammo.
Even using it as sparingly as possible, this last bit of backup Ammo was almost spent. To a Gunner, that meant the end of the fight.
If she were Hunting alone, she would have long since chosen to withdraw temporarily and return to camp to resupply, but the situation unfolding before her would not allow it.
The fight on Altaïr's side was still stable, but if she left and the Estrellian Subspecies she had been tying down turned to flank Altaïr, the tide of battle would reverse in an instant.
Counting on Kagetsu to hold off an Estrellian Subspecies was also unrealistic; that kid got chased around frantically when a few Star Butterflies mobbed her. In a direct frontal fight, she probably wasn't even as capable as Hibiki.
Still, it had to be said that her ability to command her Kinsect to inject extract into allies was immensely useful. If that glittering golden Kinsect hadn't injected her with monster essence to enhance her mobility, a Gunner who was completely out of Ammo might not have been able to keep tying down her opponent this long.
Seizing the moment when Hibiki bellowed furiously and drew the Subspecies's attention, Nymera released her Wirebug, leaping through the air into the opponent's blind spot.
She raised her Bowgun, aimed for a split second, and pulled the trigger.
With a soft bang, the Normal Ammo, whose power was nothing to hope for, shot out, aimed at the Estrellian Subspecies's eye socket. If she wanted to deal effective damage to a Large Monster with Normal Ammo, she could only target these vital areas.
The Estrellian Subspecies, however, was not a stationary target. It shifted its body slightly, and the shot veered off course, striking it on the orbital bone.
Apart from leaving a negligible mark on the shell near its eye socket, the shot had no effect whatsoever.
The only thing to be thankful for was that this kind of attack threatening such a vital area successfully diverted the Estrellian Subspecies's attention. It turned around with an enraged cry.
Seeing this, Nymera immediately released her Wirebug again. The Wirebug anchored her to the ground like a wedge, and pulled by Ironsilk, she executed a Fanning Maneuver, circling behind the Estrellian Subspecies once more.
Her chosen tactic was similar to Altaïr's: constantly circling into the blind spots of her target, making it difficult for the opponent to lock onto her and attack.
But every time Altaïr circled behind his foe, he could get at least two or three seconds of attack window to deal effective damage. She, with her Ammo exhausted, could only circle endlessly with the Estrellian Subspecies and then hope that Hibiki, gripping his double-bladed chain sickle in his mouth, could seize the chance to inflict some damage.
This was the first time since she had officially become a Hunter that she had experienced such a frustrating fight.
On the other side, Altaïr's massive cleaving Spirit Helm Breaker shattered the head armor, leaving a ghastly wound on top of his opponent's head where the skull was faintly visible.
The Estrellian Subspecies wailed and staggered backwards. Sajji, who had been lying in ambush nearby and waiting patiently for an opening, seized the moment and fired a One-shot Binder, locking down one of the Estrellian Subspecies's hind legs. Pulled by the tether, the already staggering Estrellian Subspecies finally crashed to the ground.
"Beautiful!" Altaïr activated Demon Mode again and charged straight to the Monster's head.
His platinum-white blade became a blur of afterimages as Crimson Blade Slash and Spirit Blade Slash cycled in alternation, rapidly rebuilding the Spirit Gauge drained by the Spirit Helm Breaker.
Under the relentless barrage of slashes, the Estrellian Subspecies's head was quickly reduced to a bloody mess.
Glancing over at his companion's situation, Altaïr immediately recognized Nymera's predicament. He angled his Long Sword into a charging stance and shouted, "Try to lure it away!"
Nymera caught on at once.
The fight on Altaïr's side was progressing smoothly. If she could draw her current opponent away for a while, he might be able to finish off his target in one go.
When the time came, whether she shook her pursuer in the mountain forest or led it back to gang up on it with Altaïr, either would be a way to break the deadlock.
With that thought, she gave a sharp whistle, calling her Palamute partner to her side, and swung herself onto its back.
At the same time, she pulled out the Paintball magazine she had thought she wouldn't need, quickly loaded it, and fired two shots right in the Estrellian Subspecies's face.
The pungent paintberry juice splattered across its face. Already ferocious by nature and now blazing with fury, the Estrellian Subspecies let out a wild roar and lunged at her.
Hibiki nimbly leapt backward to evade, and under Nymera's command, lured the Estrellian Subspecies away into the mountain forest.
On the other side of the battlefield, Altaïr felt a slight easing of tension.
The difference between focusing entirely on the enemy before him and constantly needing to divert part of his attention to guard against another opponent was night and day in terms of stress.
If this Estrellian Subspecies in front of him had nothing else to reveal, then the fight should be entering the suppression and finishing phase.
Though he hoped for this in his heart, Altaïr dared not relax his mind in the slightest.
He had a nagging feeling that, as creatures the Guild had long dreaded, these Estrellian Subspecies would not be dealt with so easily.
He had to find every way to intensify his onslaught, to hack it to death in a flurry of blades before it could display more of its abilities, or at the very least inflict a crippling wound decisive enough to seal victory!
"Kagetsu! Attack extract!" Altaïr shouted in a spare moment, after a Charged Spirit Roundslash continued into a spirit blade combo to build his Spirit Gauge.
Kagetsu, who was busy tangling with a few Star Butterflies, muttered under her breath, "I'm not even sure which part of these Estrellian Subspecies yields extract that boosts attack power, okay?
Generally, you get what you poke. This one likes to bite, so maybe the head? Fine, let's give it a shot."
She spun her Insect Glaive and launched a blob of pheromone at the head of the downed, struggling Estrellian Subspecies.
The golden Kinsect that had been circling around her, helping her deal with the Star Butterflies, shot out, landed on the gaping wound on the Estrellian Subspecies's head, and sucked vigorously several times.
It then landed on Altaïr and plunged its soft, needle-like proboscis through a gap in his armor, injecting the freshly extracted monster essence.
Altaïr felt as if a ball of fire had been injected into his body. His heartbeat quickened noticeably, his muscles twitched and bulged as they swelled, nearly splitting his form-fitting under-armor apart.
"That's it!"
He growled lowly, further tightening the pace of his assault. The Long Sword, famed for its swiftness and ferocity, was being swung by him with a feeling of brute, heavy force. Truly feeling the threat of death, the Estrellian Subspecies endured the Hunter's fierce assault, twisting its head to bite. Altaïr immediately used a Foresight Slash to evade the attack, then countered with a Foresight Slash.
As his Spirit levels climbed continuously, Altaïr once more readied his Long Sword, facing the rising Estrellian Subspecies and entering a charging stance.
The Estrellian Subspecies was naturally not about to be polite; it opened its bloody maw and bit down. Had that bite connected, it would have taken the Hunter's head clean off.
Yet Altaïr maintained his charging stance, slowly adjusting his attack angle with no intention whatsoever of dodging.
To press the offensive harder, he had to take some risks. Fortunately, he knew his partner could seize this critical moment.
"Meow!"
A Flash Pod landed perfectly before the Estrellian Subspecies's eyes. The blinding burst of intense light stung it into rearing back, its center of gravity thrown into chaos.
Now!
Locking his gaze onto the Estrellian Subspecies's wounded hind leg, Altaïr decisively launched his attack. In a flash of blade-light, a Charged Spirit Roundslash swept forward, carving a new wound into the Estrellian Subspecies's hind leg while his Spirit Gauge once again condensed to its peak.
His motion unbroken, riding the inertia, he spun back around and slashed again.
Spirit Roundslash!
In scarcely two seconds, two consecutive heavy slashes landed on the Estrellian Subspecies's already-injured hind leg. Combined with the Flash Pod's stunning and blinding effects, its sense of balance was severely disrupted. The Estrellian Subspecies looked on the verge of toppling once more.
If it fell this time, it would likely lose its chance to stand again completely.
At this critical moment, the Estrellian Subspecies let out a sudden, explosive roar, as if it had broken through a bottleneck, thrown some kind of switch.
"Grooaarrrrr...!"
In the midst of that frenzied roar, a glow of energy glimmered faintly across the Estrellian Subspecies's chest. Sheet after sheet of dark purple, membrane-like material extended out from the gaps in its body armor, dyeing its pale form the dark purple of the abyss.
Those were the wings of the Star Butterflies living symbiotically with it!
With a loud bang of "Shoo!", a pair of purple-black wings, several meters long and resembling butterfly wings in shape, unfurled from behind its shoulder blades. Those wings beat fiercely, steadying the teetering Estrellian Subspecies's body.
Its eyes, which had been shut tight from the intense light, now opened wide. Those uncanny draconic pupils, swirling with purple alien energy, struck terror into the heart.
(Translated by yourtl.app)