Nuan positioned herself deep in the bushes, directly behind the massive back of the moose.

From the opposite direction, Kael had successfully closed the distance, crouching in the brush right beside the giant’s thick neck.

Kael’s hunting logistics were brutally simple: one explosive launch, make sure the very first bite locks onto the throat, and when the moose inevitably thrashes wildly, hold on with everything he has to end the game as soon as possible before the monster can turn the tables on them.

Nuan peered through the leaves. The bull moose was still casually munching on the aquatic grass near the lake, completely oblivious. Across the clearing, Kael was a statue of pure, lethal concentration.

[ 00:06:42 ]

The seconds ticked by on her system screen. Neither of them moved a single muscle. Their breathing was slow, shallow, and perfectly controlled.

Nuan gripped her wooden spear tighter, her injured ankle starting to feel incredibly heavy and throbbing from holding the exact same crouched position for so long.

Come on, give us a window, she thought, sweat rolling down her temple.

Just then, the perfect window opened. The moose shifted, moving its head toward the lake—not its entire body, just its massive head, preparing to lower its snout into the water for a drink.

That tiny split-second gap of distraction was their only chance.

If it gets any closer to the water, Kael is dead meat, Nuan’s survival brain calculated instantly. In deep water, a moose will easily lift its front legs right off the ground to violently shake loose or crush an attacker.

Kael wouldn’t be able to fight back while swimming, and that monster would just trample him to death or impale him with those forty-pound antlers.

Kael didn’t hesitate. In the blink of an eye, he launched his massive silver body out of the brush.

The bushes rustled violently as his powerful paws hammered against the wet shoreline.

Pshk! Pshk! Pshk!

Nuan’s breath completely stopped. She rose slightly, holding her spear high, still masked by her Silent Walk ability but ready to spring into action.

The moose barely had time to turn its head toward the sudden, explosive noise before Kael closed the remaining meters in a flash.

His giant wolf jaws slammed shut with bone-crushing force around the thick muscle of the moose’s neck. His razor-sharp fangs punched clean through the tough hide and deep into the flesh, locking into a vice grip.

The sheer kinetic force of his impact nearly lifted the 1,500-pound beast right off its front feet!

But the victory spark didn’t hit Nuan’s eyes yet. She knew animal behavior too well.

The triumph lasted less than a single second.

The colossal bull moose exploded upward with primeval fury.

Kael’s entire body was ripped off the ground as the massive animal reared back on its hind legs. With a savage twist of its upper body, the moose slammed Kael violently down into the hard earth.

WHAM!

The mud flew everywhere. The moose twisted its head violently, trying to impale the silver wolf directly against the sharp prongs of its heavy antlers, while Kael desperately thrashed, his jaws locked in a life-or-death struggle to keep his grip!

Before Kael could even recover from the impact, the colossal bull moose charged again, its massive frame moving with terrifying speed.

Kael’s predator instincts saved his life; he barely managed to roll aside as a massive hoof crashed into the earth exactly where his head had been a millisecond before.

The sheer force of the strike sent mud and shattered stones flying into the air, the ground visibly trembling beneath the animal’s weight.

Refusing to back down, Kael scrambled wildly to his feet and lunged straight for the moose’s flank.

His fangs sank deep into the thick, dense muscle, but instead of slowing the beast down, the bull twisted violently. It dragged Kael’s heavy silver body several meters through the thick mud, sharp stones tearing at his belly while jagged roots scraped ruthlessly against his legs.

But Kael refused to let go.

With a furious, deafening bellow of agony and rage, the moose threw its entire 1,500-pound body sideways.

The violent momentum ripped Kael free from its flank and hurled him through the air, crashing him hard into a rotting, fallen log.

CRACK!

The thick wood splintered violently beneath the heavy impact.

Blinding pain shot straight through Kael’s shoulder. His left foreleg buckled into the mud the absolute moment he tried to put any weight on it.

The realization hit him immediately. He was severely injured.

And the bull moose sensed it too.

The beast’s nostrils flared, steam pouring into the cool morning air as it aggressively pawed at the bloody ground, lowering its massive antlers weighing dozens of pounds before launching forward once more for a lethal trampling.

Kael forced his trembling body to stand.

Damn it! He should retreat right now! Nuan’s mind screamed in absolute panic from the brush. What the fuck, does he have a literal death wish?!

Instead of retreating, Kael’s stubborn alpha pride took over, and he charged straight back at the oncoming monster.

The distance between the two predators vanished in seconds. At the absolute last moment, Kael leaped violently toward the animal’s neck, but his injured shoulder completely ruined his vertical angle.

His jaws snapped shut on empty air.

He missed.

The massive palmate antlers caught him full-force across the ribs. Kael felt his entire body leave the ground as the world spun wildly out of control.

CRASH!

He slammed hard against a thick tree trunk and slid heavily into the wet mud below.

For several agonizing seconds, Kael lay there, unable to breathe, his lungs completely gasping for air. A short distance away, the bull moose stood panting heavily, thick steam pouring from its nostrils as blood ran down its shredded neck hide.

It was wounded, heavily exhausted, and completely, thoroughly furious—ready to make its final, lethal strike to finish the wolf.

Moose hunt turns brutal now.