Chapter 21

When we reach 100 Power Stones, there will be a bonus chapter!

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My respiration accelerated as I stared at the three enormous ants encircling me. The exoskeleton covering them gave off a faint glow underneath the fluorescent moss attached to the walls.

I knew that I ought to confront and kill them, but that was more easily said than done. One false move and I'd be on the ground before I realized it.

The first killer ant, the nearest one, sprang at me with surprising speed. Those gaping mandibles produced a crunching sound as they snapped shut in front of my nose.

I rolled to the side, narrowly avoiding the attack, and with a deft flick of my wrist, brought my chain sword down on its hind leg. This time I targeted not its armored exoskeleton, but the joint that connected it to its body.

Clang. The blade crackled and, on this occasion, penetrated directly into the weak spot. The monstet let out a shriek as it toppled sideways. Although there was no way this attack would kill it, its paw hung uselessly.

I longed to raise my fist skyward and celebrate loudly, perhaps even dance on its guts if possible, but time was not my friend.

The other two wouldn't give me a break. I sensed the air shift to my left just before the second ant's pincer hit me in the flank. Forcefully. It didn't cut me. There was no blood, no visible wounds, but the impact was like an iron sledgehammer that left me reeling.

A beep in my head:

[-100 HP]

[600 HP / 700 HP]

"Fuck..."

With my eyes wide open, I snarled through my teeth. 100 HP in a single attack! I couldn't afford many more hits like that.

Another assault came from behind. I spun on my heels. Sadly, my mind outpaced my body, which failed to follow instructions. The third ant rammed me from behind and threw me forward like a rag doll.

[-135 HP]

[465 HP / 700 HP]

Agony surged through me like lightning, but it wasn't the kind that makes you scream or cry. It's complicated to explain. Imagine if someone could reach into your soul and squeeze it, leaving you breathless and hollow inside. That's what it felt like.

My body, if I may call it that, didn't bleed or bruise like others'. It was more akin to a vessel. An avatar designed to hold a soul. Indeed, it was a character's body. A form that functioned like a video game. The blows didn't lacerate my flesh, but made my soul tremble.

In combat, I always lived with the sensation that something within me was breaking, that each strike was draining me a little more.

[-130]

[335 HP / 700 HP]

Such formidable attack power, draining my HP every moment, left me with no margin for error. One more misstep and my HP would vanish before I could rectify it.

'Ugh.. So painful!'

The pain from each blow accumulated. The pain pierced my soul like sharp, hot blades.

A person with a fragile psyche would have succumbed to madness by now, their mind would have shattered by now, or they would have died by now.

But one thing is more important than another.

And for me, my pain was not as important as my objective.

With these thoughts, I fortified my resolve. I adjusted my grip on the sword's hilt and lunged at the second ant that had struck me earlier.

The exoskeleton mirrored my form like a tarnished looking glass. I had to be fast. Lightning-fast. I feinted to the right, and when the ant attempted to follow, I twisted my body until my bones creaked and hurled the chainsword's blade at its neck joint.

―Clink! At the last instant, the ant accelerated, and my attack went wide. The metallic sound reverberated through my arm, and then, in the blink of an eye, I transitioned from standing to soaring through the air.

The force of its charge hit me squarely. I felt its exoskeleton sweep over me, crushing my chest and launching me skyward like a discarded toy. Everything blurred, and when my back finally met the ground, a searing pain coursed through my soul.

[-30 HP]

[305 HP/700 HP]

Dizziness overwhelmed me. The HUD flashed orange in my peripheral vision. The color indicated that less than half my life remained. But there was no time to process this. As I attempted to get up, my toes scarcely found traction on the ground. It was slick, coated with some viscous substance.

"This..."

The maws of these ants secreted sticky fluids that sometimes served as a trap. And this time, it functioned flawlessly.

Just then, my gaze fixated on something moving behind me: the third ant.

The ground shook beneath its spindly, zipper-like legs. I lacked the time to roll over or stand before it reached me. And it didn't seize me. Instead, it trampled me. With a thud, my body was flattened against the ground, and suddenly its immense weight down upon me.

My eyes widened, and the first thing I beheld was the creature's underbelly. It was like gazing at a wall of gleaming red chitin, with a coarse, moist texture in places, as if it were perspiring. The legs lay on either side of my body, completely encircling me.

―Kirikkkk!

A piercing shriek pierced my ears. It was a sound more strident than anything I had ever encountered.

And then I watched it raise one of its front paws.

It elevated it languidly, as if taking its time to enjoy what was coming. From my angle, all I could see was that paw, aimed directly at my head. The blade at its tip was as big as my arm, maybe bigger, and ominously reflected the light off its edge. The air around me grew cold, and all I could hear was the thunderous pounding of my own heart.

The wind whistled as the paw descended at breakneck speed. The air was cleaved clean. I felt the wind strike my face and knew that if I didn't act in this instant, if I didn't react, it would be the end.

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