Aeon closed his eyes and took a deep breath.
"Illuminate."
Screeee!
Behind Aeon, three balls of lightning flickered into existence. At first, they appeared unstable, but after a few moments, they began to settle. Then, they started producing a low whirring sound. The underground cave was immediately filled with bright light.
After the spell's manifestation, Aeon slowly opened his eyes.
Alright, let's do this.
Aeon moved forward, the balls of light hovering behind him closely, following his every step. After circling around the familiar boulder, he finally got a glimpse of the beast's lair.
As Aeon walked, he repeatedly reminded himself about his objective. Go in, get some food, then get out. He told himself to focus. However, the moment he stepped into the lair, he was struck dumb.
….
The room was filled with color.
Not because the walls were painted. But because thousands of gemstones embedded on the walls reflected the light he was producing. Aeon's jaw dropped and he was filled with awe. He surveyed the roof as well and found out that there were more there too.
The cave was actually extremely rich. If he could harvest all of it, it would bring him a fortune!
He didn't even notice that he was now grinning. He finally confirmed that falling from Mt. Eirene was a blessing instead of a curse.
Mesmerized, Aeon's steps slowed down. He basked in the beauty of the surroundings.
Diamonds, rubies, emeralds, sapphires, and... what are those?
He realized that he couldn't even tell what kind of gemstones the others were aside from the familiar ones that everybody knew. Probably, some of them were magical items too!
Krshh.
Aeon snapped back to reality when he heard something squirm deep inside the cave. Then he started hearing a low growl.
Naturally, it was the colossal beast.
At that moment, Aeon felt curious.
How does the beast look?
Well, he was about to find out soon because it didn't appear like the beast was too far.
Aeon peeled his eyes away from the beautiful gems. Then, he caressed the surface of the lightning ball closest to his right shoulder. It zapped his fingertips, though it didn't really seem like he was hurt.
The reality behind Aeon's gesture was actually very shallow. He just wanted to feel the existence of his spell to calm himself down. It was the reason why he was able to enter the lair calmly in the first place.
Aeon moved.
The sound of his rapid footsteps echoed throughout the cave. Aeon's eyes quickly scanned the surroundings trying to find the colossal beast. He didn't need to interact with it. He just needed to deter it. But, it was still important to stay as far as he could. After all, he needed to prepare for any unexpected events.
After two minutes, Aeon finally got a visual on the colossal beast. It was cooped up on the ceiling of the cave with its wings covering its entire body. Of course, it was hiding from the bright light.
Its wings were nothing special. They just looked like those of a bat. Aeon felt that it was unfortunate that he couldn't see the monster he was so scared of. Nevertheless, Aeon was happy. The creature was behaving as it should.
Aeon smiled and ran even faster. He moved past the beast without even looking back. Nothing unexpected happened.
It seemed like there wouldn't be any battle today.
….
It didn't take long before he finally saw the patch of green plants once again.
With the help of the light, Aeon found out that what he was looking at five days ago were different types of grass, vines, and shrubs intertwining with each other. The huge strawberry wasn't the only fruit around too. There was also something that looked like an orange grape and another one that looked like… a rock?
But, Aeon didn't have enough time to think too much about what types of fruits grew there. He should just take anything that he could.
Tak!
Tak Tak!
Aeon hurriedly pulled the fruits closest to the edge without any regard to what he was taking. After taking the fifth one, he realized that they were all strawberries. Moreover, he couldn't carry more. Aeon was about to turn back when he suddenly stopped himself.
Looking at the fruits without any variety, Aeon felt like puking. The fact is, he had grown sick of the strawberry's taste already. For the past five days, it was the only thing he ate. He knew that he didn't have the luxury to be picky but…
Aeon threw three fruits away, went deeper into the vegetation, and started plucking some of the orange grape and the rock fruit.
Thankfully, those fruits were only half the size of the strawberries, so he was able to carry seven more of them.
Alright! This should be enough for a few weeks.
Aeon started running back. But, after a few steps...
Huh? Shouldn't I be outside the vegetation by now?
Aeon turned around to scan the surroundings, but all he could see was plants, plants, and more plants!
He was lost! He couldn't find his way out!
Fuck!
Aeon realized that the plants were blocking the bright light that he was producing.
The colossal beast! It was probably left undeterred by now.
He felt like something was pushing on his chest making it harder for him to breathe. He was starting to panic! How could he be so careless? Aeon blamed himself for being too stupid. He was too distracted by the fruits and got carried away.
He was about to start pulling his hair in frustration when he suddenly remembered something…
The smell of the monster's shit!
Aeon cringed at the fact that he felt joy while thinking about poop. Unfortunately, it was his only hope at that point. And so, Aeon took a deep breath.
The aroma of the plants entered Aeon's nostrils. The smell of the damp ground. The smell of the dust floating in the air. And finally, the smell of the beast's...droppings.
The scent! It's there! I could follow it!
Aeon's legs started moving on their own, following the vile odor. His hands were full, so he couldn't cut any of the plants that blocked his way. He could only dive into them. Aeon's steps were gradually getting slower and slower because the plants that got stuck on his pants were starting to grow in number.
Thankfully, it didn't hinder him enough.
He was still able to get out of the vegetation.
Breathing in the cursed air, Aeon still forced himself to smile. Being trapped inside the maze of plants was giving him anxiety. What if the beast swept down on him because the light was not bright enough to blind it? At least, now, he could finally relax.
Aeon began to walk. He repeatedly kicked his legs to remove the plants that loosely wrapped around them. He was only able to take a few steps before he heard some cracking noises from the ceiling. There were no other beasts inside that room of the cave. So, obviously. It was the giant lizard with wings. Knowing that his light was now in full force and that he was once again the boss of the cave, Aeon yelled, "Just stay put you oversized lizard."
Not bothering to lift his head up, Aeon continued what he was doing. He reminded himself that he should run as soon as possible.
In the background, Aeon could still hear the commotion that the beast was making. In front of him, he could see a bunch of falling rocks. The beast was near. Unfortunately for it, it couldn't do anything. He was about to continue ignoring it when he suddenly heard something odd. Something he wasn't expecting.
Flap! Flap!
The wind around the area was starting to stir.
Flap Flap Flap!
Aeon's movements started to turn sluggish. Then, he looked behind him while squinting.
Humm...
The lights were still there. All three of them. So…
Aeon lifted his head up.
How was the beast able to spread its wings?
When Aeon was finally looking at the ceiling, he saw that the gigantic lizard... or was it really appropriate to call it that? It didn't matter! The "thing" was looking straight at him, giving him the chills. It didn't look like any sort of creature that Aeon knew of. And he knew a lot!
Unlike before, its eyes were no longer red.
What the fuck?! Did it adjust to the light already? Impossible!
With one forceful kick, Aeon finally released himself from the bind. Then, he rushed forward. Unsurprisingly, the beast started crawling through the ceiling. It was chasing Aeon! Then, it let go and started flying.
An exact replay of what happened five days ago. Except, this time, the monster wasn't blinded anymore.
Fuck! Fuck! Fuck!
Aeon was still racking his brains over the impossibility of the scenario. It wasn't possible for the creature to adjust in such a short amount of time! Aeon had only been inside the room for less than 10 minutes! For something that lived in the dark for probably hundreds of years, it just didn't make sense.
Whoosh!
Aeon advanced with great speed. Without any swords in hand, Aeon executed a shooting star. However, it wasn't as strong as usual and didn't reach too far. It didn't feel right without his weapons. Also, after using his technique, two fruits fell from his grasp making him curse inwardly.
The ground shook, followed immediately by an explosive sound!
BOOOOM!
Aeon stumbled but immediately regained his footing. Looking behind, he saw that the area was now covered by a dust cloud. He searched the air but found no signs of the beast.
Did it crash?
Aeon tilted his head sideways. He was about to laugh when a head suddenly popped out from the wall of dust.
Eek!
Once more, Aeon felt disgusted by the beast's appearance. It looked like a lizard and an alligator combined, but more monstrous. Moreover, its body was extremely contorted. It had bones sticking out of places where they shouldn't. It didn't follow the bone structure of the animals Aeon's commonly knew of.
Silently, Aeon hoped that it wouldn't catch up.
But, at the same time, he knew it was wishful thinking.
How could a colossal beast not overtake him? Especially now that it was no longer deterred by light.
I guess this is it.
Aeon's steps subconsciously slowed down in resignation. He watched as the beast moved forward with large even steps. He was about to sigh in lament when he noticed that the beast was looking side to side, its scaly ears perking from time to time as if it were trying to detect some sound coming from different directions. When its eyes finally locked onto Aeon, it started to blink rapidly as if it were... as if it were trying to shake off some uneasiness.
Then, the colossal beast suddenly looked away.
At that moment, Aeon was enlightened.
The beast had not fully adjusted just yet. It was only enduring the pain! However, it was almost done.
Aeon's heart suddenly started racing.
If he allowed it to adjust completely, he would be doomed.
Thud thu-thud thud…
The fruits in Aeon's hands fell to the ground.
It was only natural.
Because Aeon was already reaching for his swords.
Then, he advanced.
….
He knew what he needed to do.
Well, he had to do it sooner or later anyway. He just came a bit less prepared this time.
His stay in the cave was already over. Now, it really was a kill or be killed situation. However, Aeon wasn't as scared as he was earlier. He knew that the beast was still handicapped.
He just needed to win before the handicap was lifted.
How hard could that be?
Aeon thought to himself.
….