Towering almost 8 feet, pale reddish-brown skin complexion, the head of a bull with two curved horns, protruding muscles, crude clothing fashioned out of beast skin and wielding barbaric weapons...these features were automatically compiled in Adam's head within a second and he muttered, "A minotaur."
Unlike a person who would be brimming in fright when facing a fictional barbarous being, Adam's face reflected a faint smile. Not that he found the beast amusing, but the descriptions from Earth, a planet where these beasts never existed in the first place, was so accurate.
The mantel in the minotaur's left arm was swung horizontally towards the naked man as the beast reached a sufficient range. The abnormally long forelimbs coupled with the long handle of the hammer was effective in dealing massive damage from a distance alone.
But, the beast made a terrible mistake. It underestimated its prey!
A quick backstep let the mantel drift a few inches before his face. As soon as the hammer missed the target, the axe had already risen into the air.
A series of evasions with nimble stride and Adam found himself toying with the predator.
On the other hand.
The minotaur that was confident in satiating its hunger with any beast available in the vicinity found itself dancing to the tunes of its prey. The bloodshot eyes were infuriated beyond compare and the beast charged at Adam discarding its weapons.
"Wrong move."
After dealing with elephants and lions alike, Adam was accustomed to the pros and cons of a being with respect to its size. An elephant has a long reach but is vulnerable in close quarters whereas brawling with a lion was suicide.
When rage clouded the beast's last sliver of rationality, the minotaur leapt onto Adam to crush him under its large body. But the upgraded physique had already slipped out of the trajectory. At the moment, Adam had sidestepped to his left and his clenched left fist was homing in on the beast's face.
Thud!
Due to the lack of analytical capabilities, both parties suffered an injury. While the minotaur noticed the entire world wobbling around him, Adam's fist had received a backlash from colliding with the wild bipedal's tough skin.
Twirling with a lack of balance, the minotaur soon steadied its body as it picked up the hammer in its hands. Finding the beast equipping with a weapon, Adam's agility proved life-saving as he dashed to the blood-stained axe. As soon as he leapt from the spot, the mantel had created a dent where he stood a second ago.
Subsequently, an unofficial deathmatch was unveiled in the midst of the forest. The hammer-wielding minotaur with its large build and superior strength was wreaking havoc while shattering the surrounding trees into pieces. Meanwhile, the opponent, a naked human, was swinging an oversized axe at the beast with all of his might, only to be deflected by the beast.
But that doesn't mean the minotaur was safe.
"A few more to go..." Grinding his teeth as his bones creaked in pain, Adam didn't hesitate before dashing forward to deal damage. The flesh wounds and red streaks of blood appearing on the minotaur's skin was his doing, yet it was far adequate from bringing the beast down.
***
Meanwhile, the eldest prince's rival party had arrived to set up a base.
"The second prince is here?!"
Crushing the winecup in his hand, the eldest prince bellowed before storming out of the tent. The elders along with the squadron general who informed the royal offspring of this news followed suit.
Two smaller flying ships with few cannons on the underside of the vessels were levitating in the air while a couple of mechanical knights along with a convoy full of adventurers had arrived at the base. One of the vessels quickly descended rising a cloud of dust and a figure emerged from it.
"Hello, my brother. How have you been?"
The teen resembling a 22-years-old walked out of the ship with a delightful smile. But veiled under that expression was a race to victory.
"Salazar, why are you here? Don't you know that this is my base?!"
The eldest prince roared at his younger brother and the latter cleared his throat to respond, "Yes, I know that this is your spot. But do you know that we are not the only one competing to get their hands on the heritage of the sages?"
"That..." Cat got the eldest prince's tongue. He couldn't refute his brother's words. In fact, the presence of other kingdoms in the vicinity was the first thing the eldest prince probed when he set up the base.
"Brother, I don't mean to pry into your operation. It's just that you have a larger troop than me while I have a group of advisors with me. Together, we can reach the interiors of the Prime Celestial preserve and claim the heritage. If we are to create friction among us, the other parties would exploit it to the core."
Prince Salazar's words made sense. Though the eldest prince commanded the largest personal troop in the country of Jehudah, he was not necessarily the victor in most encounters with other countries.
"...alright."
With a stiff nod, the eldest prince turned around and walked to his tent. Though his face smiled, the hands clasped behind his back indicated that he was still conflicted about allowing Salazar to take a seat beside him.
Because the second prince was a brainiac!
***
As the newly arrived army had settled and assimilated with the existing force, it was already afternoon.
And the deathmatch in amidst the forest has come to a draw!
"Huff...huff...huff..."
As if Adam had a shower, he was drenched in sweat. Though his reconstructed body was significantly stronger and durable than his previous self, the energy that needed to empower his actions was also astronomical.
After the hour-long brawl, the minotaur and Adam had dropped their weapons. Not that they intend to fistfight, but neither of them had any ounce of strength left in their bodies to continue.
The bipedal beast depleted almost all of his vitality by swinging his mantel. If any one of his swings had collided with Adam, the result would have been evident.
But Adam was agile, thanks to his new body. The reconfigured bones and muscle tendons allowed his body to exert unnatural pressure on his skeleton, thus pulling off swift and explosive movements. He unconsciously ended up running on fumes after an hour.
"Why the hell are you a tough nut to crack?"
Adam couldn't help but be in awe upon witnessing this beast's abnormal resilience. Clearly, the beast had burned more energy than him while constantly swinging the oversized war-hammer.
Leaning onto a tree, the shade cast by the flora gave him shelter to rest. His chest visibly expanding and contracting at a quick pace indicated his increased oxygen intake.
Similarly, the minotaur was kneeling on his knees with its fists supporting the torso from kissing the ground. Drowsiness had enveloped the predator which had never been depleted to this extent.
And while the battle was in a stalemate, Adam was horror-stricken when a savage shriek resonated in the air.
Ba-dump!
For a split second, Adam's heart skipped a beat when his eyes caught the sight of a being drifting in the air swiftly. All he could see was the vast wingspan of the beast and a terrifying tail.
"Grr..."
The dull growl of the minotaur could be heard and Adam lowered his sight to see the opponent struggling to move away from the open space. It was as if the beast was being chased for its life. Adam found the situation incomprehensible but he had a sliver of doubt in his heart when his eyes rose to the sky.
Shaa...shaa...shaa...shaa...
If one were to count the number of figures that drifted past them within a minute, it would be a few dozens. With each flashing image, Adam was able to get an overall picture of the beast and his eyes unrestrainedly displayed terror.
'The hell is that?!'
His aghast expression was shaken by a series of wingbeats and Adam quickly crawled to the behind of the tree. A few seconds later, a whole new beast descended on the ground.
With a loud thud, Adam realised that the beast had landed. The horror-filled rustling of the grass followed by the agonising cry of the minotaur rose into the air. Before the cry for help could dissipate into the void, the sound of bones breaking and shattering under pressure fell in his ears.