Alex was excited, anticipating an answer from Mira, almost too impatient to wait and go inspect the beast corpse itself.
"Mutant class."
However Mira had to be the bearer of bad news. She let out a sigh, her shoulders slumping as the excitement drained from her.
Unfortunately, the beast was only a Mutant class leopard, rather than a Variant class.
Both Mira and Alex's faces sank in disappointment, as they had just spent the last few hours searching and stalking this thing, only for it to turn out to be a waste of time.
"All that effort... for nothing." Mira muttered, wiping her blade clean of the beast's blood before sheathing it.
Alex walked over, giving the fallen beast a quick glance.
He understood the frustration — he himself was just as frustrated, but it wasn't the end of the world.
"It's not a total waste. We've learned that these beasts are quite lazy, sleeping out in the open after eating a snack, not to mention we've learned more about how they hunt now, so we can track them down easier. Plus, even if it was a Variant class beast, we wouldn't be done yet."
Mira crossed her arms and shot Alex a sceptical look. "You always try to make things sound better than they are."
Alex shrugged, a slight smile on his face.
"It's called optimism!"
Mira chuckled, but her frustration still lingered.
"Well, let's hope the next one is actually worth the effort. I'm not sure how many more of these false alarms I can take."
Alex could tell that Mira was a little disheartened at the moment, so he decided to try and divert some of the negativity to himself to ease Mira's own mind.
"How do you think I feel, I have to kill a B+ rank Variant class beast! Where the hell are we gonna find one of those!"
"..."
***
They made sure to leave it in an open area, where any passing predator would easily see it.
The scent of blood was already thick in the air, and Alex made sure to slice the leopard up a bit to let even more blood flow out.
The scent was carried by the faint breeze that swept through the trees.
"We'll set up a perimeter here," Alex said, scanning the surrounding area.
"We need to find a place to hide while we wait."
They moved quickly, finding a pair of sturdy trees with enough cover to keep them concealed.
Mira climbed onto the branches of one and perched her back and feet up against the main trunk.
This position would allow her to springboard off the tree and pounce extraordinarily fast at any beast that showed up in the clearing.
Meanwhile, Alex took a more passive stance but made sure to keep Virtue's Edge at the ready and his senses on full alert at any time.
Time stretched thin as Alex and Mira waited in their respective positions, the jungle becoming eerily silent around them.
The scent of blood continued to waft through the air, even filling up both of their noses now.
Their plan of letting the wind carry the smell was clearly working.
If even they could smell it like it was right in front of them, then the beasts would be able to smell it just as clearly from much farther away with their superior smell.
Mira shifted lightly on her branch, her eyes scanning the tree line.
"How long do you think it'll take for something to show up?"
She whispered to Alex, her voice barely audible.
"Patience," Alex murmured back, eyes still fixed on the clearing.
"Predators are cautious, especially if they sense something stronger nearby. They won't just rush in."
Mira considered Alex's words, and while they did sound trustworthy, there was just one thing she had to ask.