Chapter 10 - The Insanity In This World

"Speech"

'Thoughts'

["Speech Through Technology"]

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…

As sweat made its way down my body, with me only having my boxers on, I smiled. It turned midnight not too long ago, and I finally felt fully prepared.

Bringing up my arm, I clenched my fist in the exact same pose Gon did when he used everything.

I had been training for around 15 hours. I continuously trained in everything I could and in every way I could.

I smelled of sweat, though. Nothing a quick shower couldn't fix, and once I was done that shower, I put on some underwear and sweatpants.

I felt pride at leaving my chest out and had no plans of not appreciating my hard work in my own home.

Picking up my phone, I realized I had a couple of messages sent to me. I looked over them, not really giving them any attention.

However, I caught a hint of something in the last picture that caused me to refocus just before putting my phone down.

Looking at the photo, a picture of the front of my house that had lights on. Everything was normal in the photo.

Everything was normal besides THE DARK CREATURE HIDING IN THE DARKNESS OF THE BACKGROUND!

'What the fuck is that?' I thought as I tried zooming in on the photo. In the background was a face, yet it wasn't normal.

It was the hint of a face, but definitely not a human one. Quickly, I went through all the previous pictures with intense attention to detail.

And in every picture, I saw hints of it—black clawed hands showing in the background, a dark, sharp, definitely not human foot hidden behind the corner of a store.

A long tail, the tip of it just barely outside an alleyway. Whatever this creature was, I had missed it completely.

Was it one of those creatures that got closer and closer and then hit you with a one-shot kill? Like that deformed bird creature that played music that I had heard about once?

I needed to get out of the house. I searched for a good outfit to carry knives with and came to a realization.

I had such a change in figure and so quickly that the skinnier pants couldn't fit me without looking somewhat ridiculous.

Putting on some gray baggy cargo pants in order to have more pockets to carry different-sized knives, I grabbed a white undershirt and a black shirt.

Making sure to put on my hoodie and grab my phone, I bolted downstairs and collected five different-sized knives that could fit me comfortably.

Putting on my shoes, I opened my front door, stepped outside, closed it behind me, and locked it.

As I was walking away, I looked over the pictures over and over again to make sure. My walk sped up slowly as I looked over the pictures.

I was right. I had to be. This creature I was seeing in the background wasn't just my imagination. That's how people in horror movies always die, thinking it's just their imagination and that they should ignore it.

I had come so far; I wasn't going to die to some shitty horror trope that could have been prevented.

From the doppelgängers, that little girl, that creature in the alley. I couldn't allow myself to be ended by something that might have an instant kill ability.

As I walked, my thoughts became more and more muddled with questions. I felt like I was going insane trying to put together how this creature might kill me and attack me.

So much so that I—Something's off!

I had stepped to the side and turned around so quickly that I barely had time to register that I had dodged a knife that was aimed at the back of my head.

Pulling my fist back, I gave the being that tried that shit the most devious gut check in the world.

"ERRGHH!" The being crumpled to the ground as he barely was able to register a sound.

Stepping on the hand holding the knife, I pulled my fist back while it was trying to hold its stomach. It couldn't breathe. This might have been it, my chance to—

"What the fuck?" I paused in my actions to double-check the thing that attacked me. "You're... a normal person?"

"What the fuck is a normal person doing trying to attack me?" I said as I watched him trying to regain his breath.

As he was trying to breathe, he raised his free hand up in a "wait" gesture as he coughed twice.

I watched him take a deep breath and let go of the knife he had. I picked it up before he had any chance he might take to grab it.

"Damn, dude, I didn't realize you were a part of the supernatural." The guy, a semi-dark-skinned man, said. "You were on your phone, looking like you weren't paying attention. I thought it would be an easy lick."

'An easy lick?' I thought in absolute confusion. I was appalled.

"The fuck is wrong with you?" I said as I pointed the knife at him.

"Look, I'm sorry!" He raised both his hands in a surrender gesture. "I was just trying to get power, and you seemed like the easiest target currently on the street. I already said if I knew you were a part of the supernatural, I wouldn't have tried it."

"Get power? And how were you going to do that?" I nearly shouted at him, a snarling expression growing on my face.

"Originally, I was going to shoot up a kindergarten, as that's one of the easiest licks you can get, but when I saw you here, I just thought you'd do fine." The dark-skinned man said as he scratched the back of his head as if what he said was normal.

I was in absolute shock. Do what to a kindergarten? What just came from his mouth was the most shit I think I've seen come out of someone's mouth ever.

"A kindergarten? That's your easiest lick?" I said, horrified at the thought of what he said.

Instead of looking at me in guilt or shame, he just smiled as if he were embarrassed.

"Well, I got this friend that goes to nursing homes and kills the old people in there, so I just thought, why not be like him but the opposite?"

As soon as I heard him say that, I grabbed him by the collar, pulled him up with one hand, and held the knife to his neck.

"You're coming with me; I want to hear everything you've got to say," I said as I began pushing him backward while holding the knife to him.

"Okay, chill, chill!"

…

Around ten minutes later, I had him in my living room with my hoodie covering his face. I wasn't a fucking dumbass, and so I put my hoodie around his head to block his eyesight, spun him around multiple times, and then walked him toward my house while he was blind.

He said he didn't have any powers, and from the way we walked, he should have no idea where I lived.

"Can I take the hoodie off now?" He said as he sat there peacefully.

"Take it off and you die." That was my response.

"I'll now ask you a series of questions, answer them correctly and without mishaps, and you live. Answer them no matter how they sound." As I said, I saw him nod. This was my plan to get information off of him; if I said I knew nothing about the supernatural, then I would out myself.

By using the limited information he gave me and pretending to be someone strong, I could gather information from him.

"First question: how do you get power?"

"Uhh, are any of these trick questions?" He asked, somewhat confused.

"None of them are; answer the question," I said in an instant response.

"Well, I'm still new to this, but basically, we summon this 'Outer God' called The One Who Chases All-Sight. I can't say his name out loud, but I can say it wrongly for you. His name is 'Azagdesz.'" The second the man finished his sentence, I froze.

I remember what the original Dante said. His name was Dante Azaogdesz. They sounded strikingly similar, and I am pretty sure that Outer God is the same one from the last name. After all, he said it wrongly.

"But we've got to kill something and sacrifice it to him to get power." The blindfolded man said as he calmly sat on my couch. "Then he gives us the power we want, but I was told if I asked for too much, then I would explode."

The fuck?

…

(A/N: I was late by a few minutes, and now I have to double upload. Late by 5 (give or take) minutes.)