Surgit woke up outside the academy. The lantern by his side emitted a bright blue light while it hummed, like a gas lantern. The creature he just fought was called a spider, but it didn't look like one, not even remotely. It looked like a giant rat with tiny feet. Everything beyond the forbidden forest looked strangely deformed.
The snake summoning shadows were the first, followed by the fly-like creatures. He received help from his alter-self, the monster that threatened to take over. But the monster declared he was done helping unless the hunter asked for it. Surgit was determined to never ask for his assistance. He could do just fine by himself. All he needed was to gather enough echoes and transform them into his own strength.
He wondered whether or not he should go back to that lake and fight the spider. All he had to do was avoid those annoying meteors. 'Rom isn't that hard to deal with,' he thought, still standing near the lantern. 'I've gathered enough material to open a new chalice dungeon. Maybe I should go there, get stronger then come back and make short work of the spider.'
The deformed fly creatures were pacing around the academy, emitting little to no sound as they walked about. Surgit observed them from a distance. In a split second he had made his decision. He walked down toward the observatory then disposed of the patrolling fly. He opened the metallic gate leading directly inside the building before. He didn't have to fight all the monsters on his way anymore, but he decided to do so anyway.
'Good practice,' he thought as he walked toward the pair that hid behind a large tree. If he was to dispose of all the spiders that surrounded Rom, he needed to be quick and effective. He waited for the first fly-like creature to emerge from behind the tree before he showed himself. He wanted them both to see him and attack.
His plan worked, and both creatures ran toward him. He avoided the first one and dodged the second's swing. He didn't want to kill them, not yet anyway. In order to grow, he needed a much better plan. He kept dodging the monsters and backing away. He was now near the entrance to the observatory. To his right, a brain-sucker lurked near a tree. To his left, there was a strange, gigantic insect. Above the insect, two other fly creatures awaited in ambush.
He got their attention, all of them, and dragged them below the Lunarium. He was surrounded by five fly-creatures, a cosmic insect and a brain-sucker. It was time to put his plan in motion. The flies were fast and could surprise him from above. The brain sucker used some kind of magic to bind his opponent. And the cosmic insect could hurl meteors at him. It was a perfect simulation for the fight against Rom.
Two flies came at him at once. Surgit impaled the first one with his sword and punched the other one as soon as it took flight, hurling it at the brain-sucker. He turned around to deal with another fly but a bright orange light attracted his attention. He looked up too late. The meteor was too close for him to dodge and he took it head on.
He woke up near the dream lantern and repeated the same thing.
He needed to activate all his senses. He needed to anticipate the monsters' attacks without the need to observe them. It was easier said than done. Every time he slew two beasts, the third would get him. He attempted to get rid of the cosmic insect but the brain sucker immobilized him just in time for the meteor to obliterate him.
Attempt number twenty… Frustration started building up…
'I refuse to keep losing to big monsters. This is the only way to move forward…' he kept telling himself over and over. The monster inside chuckled every time the hunter died. The monster inside didn't show up to help, but it made sure to taunt his alter-self. Surgit tried hard to ignore the taunts and hisses (laughter he assumed), and focused on the fight ahead of him.
He was used to each monster's attack pattern by now. What irritated him was his inability to fight them all at once without taking a hit. One hit meant losing his momentum, which inevitably ended in disaster. He learned how to dodge the flying attacks just in time to counter and slash. He learned that ducking under the energy sent by the brain-sucker meant he could avoid it. He also learned that the cosmic beast had a weakness, its head. He only had to shoot it to interrupt the meteor summoning.
Thirtieth attempt…
Surgit managed to kill all the flies and interrupted the cosmic insect's meteor. But the brain-sucker surprised him with a back stab. He was determined to take care of them all without taking a single hit. He didn't want to use a single blood vial to heal. This time, after thirty deaths, he had a clear idea on what to do.
'Clear your mind Surgit,' he kept repeating. 'Don't overthink, don't swing too hard. Be quick, decisive and deadly.'
He got the monsters' attention again and dragged them along under the Lunarium. It was now or never. He had to be strict with himself. He didn't have a master to teach him the right way. He couldn't go home and call it a day either. There was no home to go to. There were only monsters, silence, and blood, too much blood.
The monsters surrounded the hunter, circling around him. That was a first. It seemed as though they grew tired of ganging up on him. They waited for him to make the first move. But he stood in place, unmoving. His eyes were trained on the creatures in front of him. His ears were pricked for any movement behind him. One hand tightly clutched a sword while the other held his pistol.
A fly ran at him while another jumped from behind. He saw the brain-sucker lift his arm in the distance. He heard that eerie metallic sound that announced the meteor summoning.
He jumped back just in time to avoid the fly that jumped at him and shot, quite blindly, his pistol at the cosmic insect. He ducked to avoid the spell then thrust his sword to the side. It connected. The blade was strategically placed, between the fly's enormous cage of a head and its tiny neck. He had realized that it was their weak spot.
The first fly fell down, motionless. Surgit reached for the hammer that was strapped to his back and brought it down on the fly that had jumped at him. Using the momentum of the downward attack, Surgit executed a front flip and hurled his sword at the brain-sucker. Their weakness was thrust attack. The weapon got in from the chest and through the back, like a hot knife through butter.
The other flies were now close to the hunter who shot the first one to his right, interrupting its dash. He seized the monster by its enormous head and pushed it at the others then jumped backwards. A meteor was summoned and crashed. Surgit was well away from the explosion by the time the projectile hit the ground. He retrieved his sword from the brain-sucker's corpse and awaited the flies that survived the meteor blast.
Two of them remained. They were running at him when he heard another humming in the distance, announcing another meteor attack. Surgit shot the cosmic insect in the head. Before the summoning, Surgit learned, a rift in the cosmos opens up by the beast's head. One well-placed shot was enough to kill the beast. But he only had a few seconds to do so. He urged himself not to think, go with the flow, his muscles would do the rest.
Indeed, his arms rose to the appropriate level. He was in the right range, he knew it, he felt it. The bullet was released and his right arm swung at the first fly to reach him. The monster fell to its knees and Surgit thrust his sword down its gullet. The cosmic insect had disappeared. That was a good sign. His shot was well-placed. The second fly tried to swing but Surgit was faster. He shot his pistol and the beast was brought to its knees.
A visceral attack and he was done, no hits, no hustle. He'd executed his plan without overthinking it. He was ready.
'Not bad,' his alter-self whispered. 'I would've killed them in two seconds though.'
'If you're not willing to help,' Surgit replied. 'I suggest you go to sleep. Leave me alone.'
'I can't leave you alone,' his beastly-self replied. 'I am you. There's nowhere for me to go to.'
'Then observe in silence. Your remarks distract me.'
'A warrior doesn't let himself get distracted by his own demons,' the beast mused.
'When did you become so benevolent?' Surgit sneered. 'Why advise the person that wants to banish you?'
'The more you die, the better it is for me,' the beast said.
'There you go again,' Surgit scoffed, 'advising me not to die.'
'No,' the beast retorted. 'I'm just distracting you.' Its voice was now that of mockery, of ultimate victory.
'What are you-'
Surgit had forgotten about the fly creature near the auxiliary entrance to the observatory. The commotion had attracted its attention and it found its way toward the hunter. Surgit felt the creature's antennae dig deep inside his brain. He heard the beast's rough, hoarse laughter. He heard screams and other people's jeers. He heard them banish him from their city. He heard them insult him and saw them throwing rocks at him.
Then he opened his eyes, he was in front of the observatory. The fly had just let go of him. He felt his blood boiling and his mind thinking of every terrible thing he'd ever experienced at once. He couldn't take it anymore. He had to scream, get it out of his system.
The beast kept laughing, taunting, sneering.
Surgit screamed and felt his blood rush out of him. He fell down and darkness ensued.