"You said you're not afraid of death, huh. How about we test that?" Grid suddenly spoke in an angry and sarcastic tone.
Alex reflexively raised his head up and all he could see was Grid approaching him, but now, something strange was happening with his body as he could see him walking while a crimson aura was flickering around him in the form of sharp jagged lines.
Alex never saw something like that, but he immediately knew he was in big trouble.
Grid then opened his mouth and smirked sarcastically.
"Tell me, Alex Carlwhoever, are you really not afraid of death because that also means you are not afraid of me!"
Grid wasn't shouting, but his voice was clearly full of rage.
'!'
Alex wasn't allowed to respond as the intense force assaulted him again.
BANG!
Alex was sent violently crashing into another village hut, destroying its thin walls.
Alex was coughing in quick successions. He now bled profusely as cuts and bruises appeared all over his body. Yet, Alex was thrown to another wall again in the same intensity.
He was lucky most of the huts were made of soft wood. If not, any normal human would have died already.
Grid continued walking to Alex. His voice seemed to get angrier by each second.
"There seems to be some truth to your words, but this is just pain coupled with your body under shock. Let's continue the test."
BANG!
Another crash.
BANG!
Another crash.
Six small village huts had already been damaged. Because of this, Alex was seen barely hanging to his life, now covered in dirt, blood, and wounds.
'What, what is happening right now?!' Alex thought in panic.
He was sweating hard. His consciousness was barely hanging on as he suffered the impacts with his bare body.
'Why?!'
With his half-opened eyes, Alex spotted Grid's face and saw him smirking at the whole situation but at the same time seemed to be so full of rage. Alex's eyes were wide open. He found himself thinking how someone so pretty could have such a horrible personality.
"Ugh!" he grimaced in pain as he continued coughing in pain.
"We are not yet done. It's time to get to the good part. Try not to die. No, that came out wrong. Try to die."
The cold voice resounded in Alex's ears once again.
Then, the sound of air being ripped apart was heard! Then the air around Alex went heavy in an instant as if all the oxygen was sucked out into a vacuum. Then, the monstrous force assaulted him again. This time, from above, which mercilessly pushed him down groveling with his knees.
"AAARGGGH!"
Alex screamed in pain. This pain was in another level than earlier. It felt like he would become mincemeat if it continued.
"AAARRRGG!!!"
Before he reached his limit, the air around him then suddenly returned to normal. But the effects remained. It felt like his muscles were now torn apart. Each breath was a struggle.
"You hanged there pretty well." Grid said as if he enjoyed the situation.
Alex's nerves continued trembling. He felt the weakest in his entire life. He could not even get up nor summon any power. But for some reason, his eyes seemed to be the most alive they had ever been.
"Why are you looking at me like that? Did you not want to die?" Grid spoke again with the same smirk on his face staring at Alex who was glaring at him with half-opened eyes.
Alex was completely furious. He wanted to deliver one good punch. No, he wanted to beat him up until he was satisfied.
But Alex felt like he understood why Grid did just that. It was cruel and while it didn't even last for 30 seconds, it felt like an hour. He never wanted to experience something like that again, but at the same time, a part of him always wasn't mad at all.
Maybe because he had given up on himself a long time ago, making him feel empty and undeserving. But deep down, he wanted to keep going and live a better life. He just won't admit it.
'…'
Alex chuckled weakly.
He learned something important and it was only possible because the cruel monster before him made him realize it.
"Did I not want to die, huh," he repeated weakly beneath his breath, "I thought so too, but it doesn't seem to be the case all along."
Then he felt his consciousness fade.
But before he passed out completely, the world around him felt like the most colorful and vibrant they had ever been.
Alex had forgotten for a moment, but he was proud of his endurance and willpower, which was why no matter how depressed he was, he never even thought of committing suicide.
As long as he was still breathing, he will live. This was one of his most important life principles. He was not a weak person nor was he a coward.
Even in the face of a possible death, he would never be afraid because death will come at him anyway and he will most likely be unable to stop it.
Thus, what good is there from fearing it? It will only make him weak. So if there will ever come a time that he does heave his last breath, it would be when he did all he could to prevent it. This foolish belief he had was only strengthened when he lost everyone he loved.
When he remembered this, Alex began to smile and started to laugh, realizing how foolish he had been.
--
You have survived.
You have gained Title: Miracle Worker.
You have gained Title: Persistent Creature.
You have gained 500 experience points.
You have gained 100 experience points.
You have gained 100 experience points.
You have leveled up.
You have received 5 free stat points.
You have unlocked a skill.