Lua heard the young man continue to speak unintelligible words, and then footsteps that seemed to move opposite to his direction. Lua silently sighed in relief, and moved to return outside.
Crunch!
Lua accidentally stepped on a loose gathering of gravel, making a very obvious crunching noise. He panicked as he heard the footsteps outside abruptly stop.
He immediately became very worried for his own safety, and started attempting to find someplace that he could hide in. He could make a break for the door, but it was likely the worst option to pick right now. After all, it was both rather far, and opening it would make a very audible sound if he wanted to have haste.
Seeing a rather appetizing stack of boxes, Lua rushed to hide under them. In a matter of moments, both silently, and quickly, he had managed to hide behind them.
He heard the footsteps from outside get closer, increasingly getting more and more anxious. He knew he had been heard.
Whatever monster has this extreme ability to hear? I only mildly stepped on the gravel.. Lua actively questioned how the other party had even heard him.
Creak! The door opened slowly, giving Lua the time to stop his breathing. He had long since put out the candle, but he realized too late that the slight smell lingered. He worried that whatever beast could hear him also had incredible ability to smell.
Lua waited without patience, breathing in small amounts every now and then, until someone finally entered the room.
In the pitch-black darkness, it was hard to tell who the person was. But just from their body shape, Lua instantly understood their identity!
It was none other than the Priest he had spoken with earlier!
However, now his body shape had changed slightly. He had small protrusions coming out from his head, although Lua couldn't exactly tell what they were. He had also grown slightly taller.
Demon.. Lua instantly recalled the monster he had frequently heard from ancient myths. He had long thought that they had either gone extinct or never existed in the first place, but he had thought wrong!
Who knew one actively was a priest in a church?
The demon sniffed around in the air, and Lua immediately began to sweat. If even he could recognize that the candle had a soft smell, there was no way this demon wouldn't be able to.
The demon continued to smell around, slowly approaching Lua. Suddenly, he heard a low chuckle coming from the demon.
"It is you, boy.. There is no point in hiding!"
The demon slashed wildly at the crates, only to find nothing.
Lua had long since moved to another crate, leaving the candle behind!
The demon tsked, continuing to smell around. Lua's next biggest worry was the demon's ability to smell him directly. His sweating continued, which Lua knew was very bad for him. It could easily attract the demon to him.
He steadied himself, calming his heartbeat down. After a few moments of repeated meditation, he finally felt his anxiety die down.
Yet, it flared up again as he saw the demon was looking directly in his direction. Lua already knew that the demon could smell him from his ability to recognise Lua, but Lua had assumed that it wasn't that accurate judging from his inability to locate him instantly.
"Found you." The demon growled, dashing to Lua, not even giving him the chance to escape. Lua saw the massive claws that he had failed to spot before, a critical mistake in his planning. The demon tore through the crates as if they were paper, exposing Lua to him.
Lua couldn't see in the dark as well as the demon. He knew he had little chance of escaping it, as demons were infamous for their night-vision in ancient tales. Lua's life suddenly flashed before his eyes.
He needed to buy some more time. Lua knew Arc had long since sensed his distress, and should be on his way to him. He could feel it.
Ducking under the fierce claws of the demon, Lua swiftly moved out of the way. The demon turned around, not giving Lua a breather as it swept its claws again. One of them struck Lua on the shoulder, creating a gash that tore through his golden trenchcoat.
You bastard, that was my birthday gift! Lua felt mildly annoyed that he had his beloved trenchcoat damaged, yet he couldn't dwell on it. He knew he needed to live, above all else.
Lua was only equipped with a knife, a laughable weapon compared to what the demon could accomplish.
He must be nearly Grade 10 with his monstrous strength.. I stand no chance! Lua knew he could do nothing but wait patiently. After all, even having Arc was a symbol of Grade 9. Perhaps he could scare him off with Arc by his side.
He dashed to the door, trying to make a desperate escape. Lua was doubtful that this would work, but he had no choice but to try it anyway. Running to the door, he felt something grab his ankle.
"Sorry, that is not allowed." He heard the monster growl from behind.
Slam! Lua was thrown into the wall, causing blood to gush out from his mouth. He could feel many of his ribs being broken from the impact.
The demon chuckled, approaching Lua, as if he wanted to savour his meal. This was a treat special to demons, they enjoyed playing with their victims. Lua felt a taste of iron as he knew the blood in his mouth was relatively serious.
Iron.. if only I was able to control the iron in my blood.. Lua regretted not focusing more on his evolution. He didn't know if he could even gain that ability, but he still regretted it.
Suddenly, the door to the Cathedral storage room opened, revealing none other than Arc, and bringing a load of sunshine with him. The sunshine flowed the room, giving Lua the ability to finally see.
The demon had charred black skin, perfect for hunting in the dark. Two horns protruded from its head, giving it an ugly appearance. It had its priest robes thoroughly ripped, only covering the bottom half of its body.
It had fangs that showed even if his jaw was shut tight.
Lua smiled, finally seeing an opportunity to escape. He looked at Arc, who had the time-grenade in his hands. He threw it at the demon, who was still some distance away from both of them.
"What is this? A clo-"
BOOM! The grenade exploded, throwing the monster into another wall. It had one of its arms blown off, and blood leaked as if it was water from a tap. Lua got down from the wall, seeing this as his opportunity to leave.
Lua groaned as he began to sprint in great pain to the door. He knew he had little time before the demon recovered to a point of continuing his chase. Arc also rushed to him, helping his soul-friend by taking one of his arms around his neck. Lua continued to bleed profusely.
Lua's conciousness was fading in and out. It felt like he could pass out at any moment.
Crash! Lua heard something fall to the ground, and he instantly knew that the demon had gotten free of his situation. They had run out of time.
Lua sped up his pace, but with the blood flowing out of him, it wasn't enough. The demon caught up to them in no time, and grabbed Lua by the ankle.
"You son of a.." the Demon panted, clearly in rough shape. "I'll kill you!"
The monster roared, but it was suddenly cut short. Lua suddenly felt the grip on his ankle free up, letting him continue his escape. Arc instinctively looked back while covering Lua, and was shocked.
Some point in time, five people had appeared behind them.