"Grrrrr!"
The witch beast's guttural growl, a low, resonant reverberated through the loot house, its crimson eyes burning like hellfire, fixated on Subaru.
"SCREEEESH!
"HSSSSSSSS!"
And adding water to hot oil a, cacophony of monstrous snarls, hisses, and screeches echoed from beyond the walls, the ceiling, every conceivable surface under constant assault by unseen claws.
Scratch, scratch, scratch – the relentless scraping of talons on wood set Subaru's teeth on edge.
"Damn it! Damn it! DAMN IT ALL!" Subaru's inner voice raged, a tempest of frustration and fear. It wasn't just fear that gripped him; it was an all-consuming fury. He was sick of this. Sick of the endless parade of horrors, the constant barrage of malicious surprises the world seemed determined to throw at him.
"Are those...Witchbeasts?!" the old man rom gasped, his voice trembling with disbelief. "What are Witchbeasts doing here, in the Capital?!" While holding his huge club.
Subaru bit back the urge to demand an explanation on what is even a witchbeast is. He already felt like an outsider, an ignoramus stumbling through a world he didn't understand...whish he is. No, He couldn't afford to appear any more clueless...a wound to his pride.
"What did you do now, Felt, huh?!" he snarled instead, rounding on the blonde girl. Felt mirrored rom's defensive stance, club at the ready, while she got daggers gleaming menacingly in the dim light.
"W-What?" she stammered, her usual bravado faltering.
"Did you piss off some local zookeeper or what?!" Subaru pressed, his voice dripping with sarcasm. He knew it was irrational, but he couldn't help but lash out. He needed someone, something to blame for this fresh hell.
"BOY, LOOK OUT!" Old Man Rom's voice was a raw, desperate scream that tore through the suffocating tension. Subaru's blood ran cold. He didn't need an explanation; the sheer terror in Rom's voice was enough.
you idiot!
Instinct took over. He threw himself backward, a desperate lunge fueled by pure adrenaline. The world seemed to slow down, the sickening snap of jaws closing mere inches from his face echoing in his ears. He felt the rush of displaced air, the fetid stench of the beast's breath washing over him.
"That was so close!"
Death had missed him by a hair's breadth.
This thing is no joke. The thought hammered through Subaru's mind, But the witchbeast wasn't finished.
"GRAAAAAAA!"
Enraged by its near miss, it lunged again, a whirlwind of fur and claws. Razor-sharp talons, like daggers forged in hell, slashed through the air where Subaru had been standing just a moment before.
"Wha!"
But something was different. Subaru moved with an almost unnatural agility, his body reacting before his mind could even process the threat. He twisted, ducked, weaved – each movement fluid, precise, almost effortless. He was faster, stronger, more attuned to his surroundings than he'd ever been.
So that's what leveling up feels like... The realization hit him like a bolt of lightning. Convenient, indeed. But there was no time to dwell on it.
"Grrrr..."
The witchbeast, frustrated by its repeated failures, growled and retreated, its crimson eyes burning with renewed fury.
"Alright..."
Subaru mirrored its movements, every sense on high alert. he backed off.
"Here, boy."
Subaru flinched, the unexpected touch of a hand on his shoulder sending a jolt of surprise through his body. He turned, his gaze meeting the old man's weathered face.
"Those moves...impressive," Rom grunted, thrusting a sword towards him. The cold steel felt normal too normal in Subaru's hands... somehow "But fancy footwork won't save you now. If we want to live to see another sunrise, we fight."
"Yup" Felt, her small frame radiating nervous energy, nodded in agreement. "He's right. We have to try." Her voice, though laced with fear, held a surprising note of determination.
Subaru stared at the sword, its polished surface reflecting his frowning face.
What's this it?
Subaru's heart pounded in his chest, a foreign sensation washing over him. Was this what it felt like to be depended on, to be seen as something more than a helpless bystander?.
Subaru smiled slightly.
"I'll take it," Subaru replied, his voice gaining a newfound calm. "But I doubt I'll need it much."
Rom chuckled, a deep rumble that echoed through the tense atmosphere. "Suit yourself, boy, but I don't think you have a choice."
A defiant grin spread across Subaru's face. "wrong. I actually do have a choice."
With Felt and Rom at his sides, Subaru turned back to face the witchbeast. His grip tightened on the sword, the cold steel a reassuring weight in his hand.
The fear was still there, gnawing at the edges of his courage, but it was overshadowed by a burning anger. He would fight this time hard. He had to. For Satella to see a new day.
The air crackled with tension, the silence broken only by the rasping breaths and scratching –screeching of the monster's, The battle was about to begin.
However.
"Die...Dark Beam!" Subaru chanted, A black beam, unnaturally swift and precise, erupted from his extended finger, a dark power born of mana. It struck the grotesque Witchbeast with the force of a cannon blast, its impact echoing through the tense atmosphere.
"Gheek!"
The monster's head, a gruesome display of fangs and malice, simply vanished. Obliterated. Not a trace remained, only a wisp of smoke curling from the severed neck stump. The headless behemoth crumpled to the ground, its brief reign of terror abruptly ended.
Felt and Rom, frozen in a tableau of disbelief, stared at the scene unfolding before them. Their eyes, wide with shock and a hint of burgeoning fear, darted between the smoking remains of the Witchbeast and Subaru.
"Boy..." Rom began, his gruff voice tinged with awe, "you really don't need that sword, huh?"
"Quiet!" Subaru snapped. "It's not over yet!"
"I can see that"
Rom, his gaze drawn to the chaos erupting beyond the doorway, understood. A horde of monstrous creatures – hellish hounds with eyes burning like embers, grotesque serpents with scales as dark as night, and swarms of bats with leathery wings – clawed and snarled, their bloodlust palpable even from a distance.
Subaru, his heart pounding against his ribs like a war drum, felt a wave of concern wash over him.
They are trapped, cornered like a rats in a cage, with only his dark beam and improved stats and whatever way rom and felt can contribute in this fight...which is not alot.
...
"Urusia," Subaru muttered, his voice barely above a whisper, "Any ideas how we get out of this mess?" He eyed the monstrous figures lurking just outside the loot house, their grotesque forms barely visible in the dim light.
"Fighting them is suicide, sir," Urusia's voice echoed in his mind, cool and detached. "Even with your dark beam, you won't be able to kill them all. They'll overwhelm you in the end."
Damn it, she was right. Subaru clenched his fists, frustration building.
"If I die here…does my 'abilitie' cooldown refresh?"
"No. The cooldown continues."
Of course it did. Just his luck. Dying meant facing that gut-wrenching pain again, and another encounter with Elsa, that terrifying woman with no chance of winning.
"But it's not hopeless. I have an idea, you Act as the mag cover for the two while they fight the monster's away"
"Will that work?" Subaru sounded doubtful.
"Yes "
...
The screech of claws on wood tore through the tense silence that followed Subaru's final word to Urusia. His blood ran cold. No time to lose, the Witchbeasts were already upon them!
"Rom! Felt!" Subaru barked, his voice tight with urgency, "Hold them off! I'll give you cover!"
He didn't wait for a reply, vaulting over the table in a single bound. Mana surged through him, his fingertips glowing an ominous purple.
"NOW!"
Rom, the old warhorse, didn't hesitate. With a roar that shook the very foundations of the building, he charged, his trusty club, held high.
"Not what i had in mind but...Don't let me down, lad!" he bellowed, his voice a mix of confidence and a gruff trust.
Felt, a blur of motion, was right behind him, rusty daggers glinting in the dim light.
The door was already broken, so the pack of the witchbeast surged inwards without a problem, eyes burning with a feral hunger.
"ORA!" Rom swung his wooden bat with all his might, connecting with a sickening crunch. One of the hounds exploded in a shower of gore.
But they were relentless. Another lunged, fangs bared, aiming for Rom's exposed side.
"Dark Beam!"
A jet of pure darkness erupted from Subaru's hand, vaporizing the beast in an instant. The air filled with the stench of burnt flesh and fur.
"Hyaaah!"
With a burst of wind propelled by her divine blessing, felt gracefully leaped into the fray, her rusty daggers flashing against the snarling maws of three demonic hounds. Each strike, a whisper of deadly intent, carved wounds across their hides – not fatal, but enough to distract and slow the beasts, buying precious time for...
"Dark Beam!"
Felt's eyes widened. "Wha–?!" In a heartbeat, she harnessed her blessing, propelling herself away from the hounds just as three beams of pure darkness engulfed them. The demonic doogs forms dissolved into a gruesome mist, leaving a lingering stench of blood in the air.
"Whoa, Oni-chan!" Felt exclaimed, landing nimbly beside Subaru. "That's some seriously cool magic!"
A faint blush crept onto Subaru's cheeks as he gave a slight nod. "Yeah, I think so too."
"SCREEEESH"
"Ora!"
"Dark beam"
But there was no time for extended praise. More Witchbeasts swarmed the loot house – serpentine creatures slithering along the walls, grotesque bats swooping from the high ceilings. Rom, ever vigilant, swung his bat with ferocious strength, crushing those who dared to venture too close.
And Subaru, with his unique ability surging, unleashed a barrage of drak beams, eradicating the remaining threats with ruthless efficiency.
"Hiissss!"
A horde of serpentine Witchbeasts, unnoticed amidst the chaos of fighting, slithered towards Rom, their fangs glinting ominously in the dim light. The hulking man, preoccupied with swatting away bats, remained blissfully unaware of the impending danger.
But Felt, with her sharp eyes and even sharper reflexes, spotted the creeping threat.
"Oh no you don't!" she snarled, a fierce determination burning in her eyes.
"Hyaaaa!"
With a burst of wind, she propelled herself forward, her rusty daggers a blur of motion. In the blink of an eye, the snakes' heads were severed from their writhing bodies, their venomous fangs rendered harmless.
"Haha! Easy as pie!" Felt cackled, a triumphant grin spreading across her face. She then rejoined the fray, her daggers dancing alongside Rom's bat and Subaru's dark magic.
The air crackled with energy as Subaru for the hundredth time chanted,
"Dark Beam!"
A stray bat, evading both Rom and Felt, swooped towards him with malicious intent. But before it could even come close, it was vaporized by Subaru's ability, leaving behind a faint wisp of smoke.
"This going better than expected"
Despite the overwhelming odds, a sense of hope bloomed in Subaru's chest. The monsters were falling faster than expected, a testament to their combined strength and teamwork. For the first time since his nightmares began, a spark ignited within him – a spark of hope that he wouldn't have to die again.
"That's it, guys!" he shouted, his voice filled with newfound confidence. "Keep this up, and we win!"
Rom and Felt, though visibly exhausted, nodded in agreement.
They were all tired, their bodies pushed to their limits. But the desire to survive, to see the dawn of a new day, fueled their attacks.
However.
"Kyaaaaaaa!"
"Hk!"
The blood ran cold in Subaru's veins. That scream – it was familiar, a sound that resonated with the darkest corners of his soul. Satella... It had to be her.
His focus shattered, the battle before him fading into a meaningless blur. Nothing else mattered. He had to find her.
"HELP ME PLEASE SOMONE!"
The scream tore through him again, closer this time A desperate urgency gripped him. He had to move, now.
"Boy, what are you doing!?" Rom's voice, laced with concern, barely registered.
"Oni-chan!?" Felt's cry was a distant echo.
Subaru didn't care. He pushed past them, a whirlwind of desperation, with his sword he charged.
"Grrrrr..."
A guttural growl ripped through the air. A hulking witchbeast dog lunged from the shadows, its fangs bared in a gruesome snarl.
"Get out of my way!" Subaru roared, his voice raw with fear and fury. With a desperate swing of his sword, he cleaved through the beast, sending its lifeless body crashing to the ground.
Now out of the loot house, his heart pounding in his chest. But the sight that greeted him stole his breath away.
He was surrounded.
"I have no time for this!"
Hounds, their eyes glowing with malevolent hunger, circled him. snakes slithered, their forked tongues tasting the air. Bats swooped from the darkened sky, their leathery wings beating a rhythm of death.
He was alone. Outnumbered. And facing certain death.
But Subaru Natsuki did not know the meaning of despair.
He had died before, countless times. He had stared into the abyss and laughed in its face. He would not falter now. Not when Satella needed him now! more than ever.
"Alright, come at me!" Subaru roared.
"Grrrrr!"
A pack of witchbeasts hounds, five shadowy figures with eyes like burning coals, answered his challenge with savage snarls. They lunged, their fangs bared in a grotesque display of bloodlust.
"Die!"
Subaru charged, his sword held high. He met the first beast head-on, plunging his blade deep into its neck.
"Graaaa!"
A guttural growl erupted from the creature's throat, cut short as its lifeblood spilled onto the earth.
But the pack was relentless.
"Grrr!"
A second hound, seizing the opening, leaped at Subaru's exposed flank.
"Hk!"
Its fangs sank into his shoulder, a searing pain that sent shockwaves through his body. Subaru cried out in pain.
"Not now!"
Then He gritted his teeth, refusing to succumb to the agony.he had it worst than this ; With a desperate flurry of blows, he cut down three more hounds, But the beast on his shoulder remained, its jaws clamped tight, its hot breath searing his skin.
"You damned mutt!" Subaru snarled, his voice thick with rage and pain. He wrenched his gaze towards the creature, his eyes burning with a cold fire. With his sword hand, he reached out and pressed a single finger against the hound's head.
"Dark Beam!"
The words echoed like a death knell A surge of dark energy erupted from his fingertip, engulfing the hound's head in a blinding flash. The creature's skull shattered, its body collapsing into a lifeless heap.
Subaru stood amidst the carnage as monster's surrounded him from every side, his body battered, his face splattered with the blood of the hounds. He panted, the adrenaline fading, leaving him with the throbbing ache of his wound, But he had survived. He had overcome.And he would continue to fight, no matter the cost.
"SCREEEESH!
"HSSSSSSSS!"
"GRRRRRR!"
Perhaps sensing weakness in Subaru's wounded form, or perhaps enraged by his earlier defiance, the horde of Witchbeasts surged forward as one. Thirty, maybe more – he couldn't be sure. All Subaru knew was that every single one of these creatures stood between him and Satella. He couldn't let them follow him; that would only put her in greater danger.
"Dark Beam!" He unleashed the ability in a desperate torrent, darkness exploding outwards in a chaotic rays. While aslo slashing and parrying, his sword a blur of silver against the encroaching snakes.
But the sheer number of the Witchbeasts was overwhelming.
"Guhhh!"
A searing pain tore through his leg, sending him stumbling. He looked down to see a demonic hound latched onto his calf, its fangs buried deep in his flesh.
"Guh!" he gasped, the coppery tang of blood flooding his mouth. He tried to channel his ability, to kill the creature, but it was too late.
"Guh..No!"
Another agonizing bite, this time on his sword arm. His grip faltered, the weapon nearly slipping from his grasp.Then another, and another, and another.Five hounds, their eyes burning with insatiable hunger, dragged him forcefully to the ground.
"Get away from me!" Subaru roared, his voice choked with fear and pain. He thrashed against their relentless assault, but it was like struggling against iron chains.
"Ahhhhhhh!"
Their fangs tore at his flesh, each bite a promise of agonizing death.
The world spun, a kaleidoscope of pain and terror. He could feel his consciousness slipping, the abyss beckoning. Just as he thought it can't get any worst, a new wave of witchbeasts descended – grotesque bats with leathery wings and venomous snakes with flickering tongues.
However .
"Hold on, kid!"a gruff voice boomed.
Suddenly, a massive wooden club slammed into the ground, crushing the approaching snakes with a sickening thud.
"Stay away from him!"
Then, a whisper of wind, a flash of blond and silver. Felt. Her daggers danced, a blur of rust and silver death, severing the bats' wings and deflecting the serpents' strikes. He clung to their words, He wouldn't die here. Not now.
"Kid stay with us!"
Rom's club fell like a divine judgment, pulverizing the hounds that held Subaru captive. Felt, a whirlwind of deadly grace, darted between the remaining beasts, her daggers flashing like lightning. In a matter of seconds, the hounds that had been tearing at Subaru were reduced to lifeless husks.
"Are you okay, kid?" Rom's voice boomed, his concern evident.
"Oni-chan!" Felt cried, her eyes wide with worry.
Under their watchful gazes, Subaru pushed himself up, his body wracked with pain. But then, a dark energy like smoke, erupted from within him, swirling around his wounds like a malevolent shroud.
The bleeding stopped, the torn flesh knitting itself back together at an impossible speed. As quickly as it appeared, the darkness vanished, leaving Subaru whole and unscathed.
"Yes, I think I'm fine now," he said, a shaky smile gracing his lips. He rose to his feet, testing his newfound strength.The pain was gone, replaced by a strange tingling sensation.
"Whatever you are, kid, you're starting to scare me now," Rom muttered, his eyes wide with disbelief. Witnessing such rapid regeneration was unnerving, even for an old seasoned man like him.
Subaru understood their apprehension, but there was no time or a reason to explain."Buy me some time," he urged, pointing towards the remaining witchbeasts – a handful of bats, snakes, and hounds around ten of them "I need to save someone."
"Buy you time? I can do that," Rom declared, a confident smirk spreading across his aging face."Don't worry, kid. I'll take care of this."
"Leave it to us, Oni-chan! Go!" Felt added, her voice filled with determination.
With their reassurances echoing in his ears, Subaru turned and sprinted towards the source of the screams, his heart pounding with renewed purpose.
"Satella!" he whispered, his voice carried on the wind."I will definitely save you this time!"