Oni (2)

Word count: 1,555

<— >

To Fujiro, it felt like the entire world froze, the carkling and any sound drowned out around him. His musceles tensed, his posture more straight. his heart picking up the space as he stared at the screen. 'Why?! Why now?! I just fucking got here!'

He knew he was unlucky, always have been. But this takes it a whole another level.

He didn't know how demons looked like. Were they big? small? Humanoid? Animalistic? And the most dreaded thought, were they invinsible?

If that was the case then he was royally screwed. He should get out before-

Before he could formulate a plan, he managed to carch a dark figure sneaking up on him from the tree line. Before he could even blink the figure suddenly dived straight at him.

A shrill, squeaky scream that he would vehemently deny for as long as he existed erupted. Fujino tried to backpedal but his leg hit the log he was sitting one causing him to stumple and fall.

He watched the demon fly over him and tumbling across him. Unknowingly, this fall would be the thing that saved his life.

He jumped to his feet, his heart racing like a drum in his chest, and he could feel a slight tremor in his body. "Holy shit!" Fujino shuddered at the thought of what might have happened if that demon had landed on him.

The demon growled on the ground, its limbs thrashing about like a wild beast, and it flipped on all its arms. Drool dripped from its gaping mouth.

Even in the moonlight, it's features were clear as day. It had sickly pale skin, a gaunt body, an acorn-shaped horn on its forehead, and deep red eyes.

"Observe"

[ —> Malnourished Demon

Name: N/A

Level: 6

Health: ?

Stamina: ?]

Fujino swore under his breath, feeling the sting of his low level. He couldn't help but wonder which deity he had angered to end up in this situation.

Suddenly, the demon snarled and lunged at him, moving on all fours like something straight out of a horror film.

Fujino instinctively ducked to evade the attack, just as he had done before, but the demon caught him off guard by diving for his midsection instead of aiming for his head.

[-2HP]

Fujino gasped as the air was knocked from his lungs. Before he could react, the demon began to claw at him wildly.

[-3HP]

[-2HP]

[-4HP]

[-2HP]

[-3HP]

[-6HP]

[-5Hp]

Each cut felt like a knife slicing through his skin, sending waves of pain coursing through him. Fujino couldn't help but wonder if this was what it felt like to be mauled.

"GET OF ME YOU FUCKING FREAK!"

Clearly, he was not enjoying the experience.

Fujino grabbed the demon's hands and pushed with all his strength. To his frustration, the demon proved to be much stronger than he appeared.

Realizing he was losing the battle, he decided to headbutt the demon right on the nose. A satisfying crunch echoed in the air as he managed to throw the demon aside.

Fujino quickly stood up, teeth clenching in pain, the wounds felt like there were on fire.

[Health: 63/90 (+45/sec)]

[Minor Bleeding: -0.15 Health.

Time limit: 30sec]

Once again, the demon was thrashing about wildly, but Fujino ignored it.

He was furious.

For three days, he had been dealing with frustration. From being thrown into a strange world, coping with an irritating "assistant," to now fighting for his life—all in just three days.

Any sane person in his position—if they hadn't already perished—would have run away and sought help.

Common sense and survival instinct would tell anyone to do whatever it takes to stay alive.

But all of this had pushed him over the edge, and he was seeing red.

The demon halted its tantrum and crouched on all fours, eyeing the human with a predatory hunger. Fujino met that gaze with venom.

Alright," he said calmly, removing his shirt and tossing it aside. "I don't know how you managed it, but you've somehow pissed me more than they did," he spread his legs, extended his left arm, and pulled his right hand to his hip.

"Time to end this. Let's dance, monkey," he taunted, wiggling his fingers with a grin.

The demon responded with a screech and charged at him on all fours. Fujino felt his muscles tighten, the veins in his face and arms standing out.

'…NOW!'

Just as the demon prepared to leap for the third time, Fujino began to twist his body. He knew the demon was much quicker, so he had to initiate his move first.

A wave of satisfaction washed over him as his foot connected with the demon's jaw in a high kick, sending it crashing to the left in a heap.

"You're strong," Fujino said, lowering his leg. "But you fight like an animal." He turned to face the demon.

Realizing its strategy was failing, the demon began to zig-zag toward him.

Fujino clicked his tongue in irritation but maintained his grin as he watched the creature dance around, trying to catch him off guard.

The demon darted to his left, rising up and aiming its claws at his neck. Anticipating the move, Fujino crossed his arms in defense. The claws sank deep into his arms.

[-10HP]

"Ugh," He moaned, a sound he would deny ever making in his life. He quickly turned, seized the embedded arm, yanked it out, and tossed the demon off his shoulder.

Without missing a beat, he used the arm for leverage, flipping the demon onto its belly. He then grabbed the other arm and stomped down on the demon's head to keep it pinned.

"Hnghhhh," He grunted, using all his strength to push the arms upward. The demon thrashed violently, but he remained resolute. Soon, the arms snapped at the elbows, and the demon howled in agony.

"Not so tough now, are you?!" Fujino's grin turned predatory.

He was definitely relishing this moment.

With a twist and a pull, the arms came off with a sickening sound of flesh tearing apart.

He shoved the demon back on it's back and straddled it. Throwing blow after blow to it's face. The demon, messing it's arms, could do nothing but drool and growl and watch as it's face got more and more disfigured.

With the use of Inventory, a big rock was held up high. The demon could nothing but watch it get closer and closer then smash it's head like a watermelon.

Fujino rolled off the demon. his heart still drumming and gasping for air. That fight took everything he had to win.

'I… did it. I took down my first demon… I won' He smiled, this one more genuin than before.

He then winced in pain. The adrenaline wearing off made it hit him at full force.

[Health: 71/90 (+0.6/sec)]

[Stamina: 21/50 (+0.25/sec)]

'At least i'm healing. Thank kami for regenration' it would be anti-climactic if he would die from infection.

'Wait, I didn't get any XP…' he turned around and was horrified to see the demon regenerating, bones slowly growing out of its stubs.

'Shit! They can regenerate!' He jumped up in a panic. This battle was too close for comfort and he didn't want to take any chances.

Frantically searching for something to permanently kill the demon, he locked eyes with the gentle orange glow of his campfire.

'Fire! Yes, that's it!' He rushed toward the campfire, gathering the sticks around it and bundling them together. He lit them on fire.

Approaching the demon, which was close to regenerating its arms, he pinned it to the ground and lit it on fire.

The fire spread quickly, eager to consume everything in its path. The demon began to wail, thrashing and shaking violently as it stood up on its legs and ran.

For two minutes straight, Fujiro watched with amusement until the fire consumed it entirely.

[500 XP earned.]

[Quest Completed!

—> Oni

Yōkais are mystical beings with powers beyond human comprehension. One particular Yōkai —a demon— has taken an interest in you.

Main Objective: Completed

Bonus Objective: Completed

Reward: 750 XP - 2 AGI (✓)

Bonus Reward: 1000 XP - 1 STR - 1 DUR (✓)

Name: Fujino Yuki

Level: 5 (682/900)

Race: ?

Health: 90/90 (+0.6/sec)

Stamina: 70/70 (+0.45/sec)

STR: 14

DUR: 8

END: 9

AGI: 7

INT: 5

CHA: 3

Attributes Points(AP): 6]

Fujino let out a whistle. Three levels in a single night! Maybe this was all worth it, he mused to himself.

He returned to his campfire and plopped down beside it. Lying back, he gazed at the moon as it gradually descended, making way for the arrival of a new day.

Fatigue began to seep into his body, gently coaxing him into its warm embrace. Before he knew it, he drifted off to sleep.

<— >

Taisho-era secrets!

Fujino really misses his lighter collection from home. For five years, he dedicated himself to finding unique and rare lighters whenever possible, often splurging a bit to add to his collection.

<— >

Hope ya guys like the fight scene. The next arc\vol is where we see him hunting down demons and getting stronger. Stay tuned.

Also if wondering. Both END and AGI directly increase Health and Stamina respectively.

The regeneration calculation is: END\150 and AGI\150