'It hurts.'
Nox thought to himself. He had been in plenty of fights throughout his life. Bleeding from an injury was something he experienced often. His opponent trying to kill him, though, wasn't something he had faced yet.
Sure. Nox had gotten beaten up for stealing, but it wasn't as if any of the thugs wanted to take his life for it. The birthrate was only just stabilizing, and killing someone could have serious repercussions.
He was able to land a critical blow because of its carelessness and the help of a relic, but that was no longer the case. The torch was out of reach. Not to mention, the beast was now wary of him, and its enhanced bloodlust wasn't something to scoff at.
Turning his attention on his enemy, he suddenly had an idea.
Using the same concentration method that created a connection in his heart, he focused on the creature.
+
[Name: Disturbed Beholder]
[Rank: Voiceless]
[Curse: Devourer of Light]
[Description: Once a seer of the great Noxus empire, the corruption had reduced it to a simple abomination. What once was foresight praised by the people had turned into a large beastial eye, capable of devouring light from nearby areas.]
+
Voiceless.
Out of the known ranks for otherworld creatures, it was the lowest.
Categorized by their inability to speak and simple physical augments, only a select few had an actual Curse.
A Curse was the corrupted equivalent of a Divinity and was possessed by the Otherworldly creatures to combat the growing number of Otherworlders.
'Devourer of Light… that would explain the disappearance of stars earlier. Judging by its weak body, it wasn't a fighter. It probably attacks from darkness after removing the sense of sight from its prey.'
Knowing this, Nox felt more confident. The creature was one of the few voiceless creatures with an ability, but he had figured it out.
The stars stopped disappearing after he made eye contact with the monster.
'It can't use the ability as long as I can see it.'
Ripping off a jagged branch from the nearby tree, he prepared for the final confrontation.
The two stared at each other as Nox felt his heart pounding for the first time. He should be afraid... yet he wasn't. He felt a presence guide his movements, as if.. he's done this before.
After what seemed like an eternity, the beholder made the first move.
Once again propelling itself forward, the serrated claws aimed to grab Nox. At the same time, the beast swung its vicious foot at an arc below him. The monster was capable of learning.
If Nox had dodged in the same pattern as he did during the first confrontation, he would've gotten hit.
However…
Using the branch, he swung it into the beast as the claws wrapped around the stick instead of Nox. Then he stepped back, avoiding the attack as it sliced a tree cleanly in half.
Perhaps not expecting the change in movement, the creature briefly paused.
That split second of hesitation was exactly what Nox was looking for.
Using the branch as leverage, he mustered up all his strength to lift the beholder into the air… and then slam it back into the ground.
Letting out a cry, the monster was momentarily stunned. Its weak limbs weren't strong enough to support its bulky body.
Not wanting to give it a chance to recover, Nox grabbed a rock and launched himself on top of the fallen beast, repeatedly bashing it in the eye.
Black blood stained the grass as the creature desperately tried to push him off. But the injuries were too much. The clawed limbs helplessly swung around as its eye eventually turned cloudy.
+
[You have slain a Voiceless Creature: Disturbed Beholder]
[A strange being watches over you...]
[You have received a relic: Nixxy's Regret]
+
Flopping over on the ground, he kicked the corpse over as he collapsed to catch his breath.
The fight was exhilarating, but one wrong move and it could've ended in a completely different manner.
'Now…'
It was time to check out the spoils of the fight.
First, Nox focused on the relic that he had gotten out of nowhere. Without an alternate source of light, the beholder likely would've killed him.
+
[Relic Name: Last Light]
[Rank: Ordinary]
[Description: Abandoned by humanity, the orphan boy lived his life in suffering. Miraculously, the gods felt pity. They bestowed him a chance for ascension. All eyes on him, he became humanity's last light.]
+
'That was weird.'
Him? Humanity's last light? No thanks. The torch was a good light source though…
Nox then summoned the relic that he just obtained.
+
[Relic Name: Nixxy's Regret]
[Rank: Glorious]
[Description: The last blue-hued duck of her kind, Nix wandered the universe, searching for any trace of her civilization. After a millennia, she lost hope. A genius of her kind, corrupted by the fear of loneliness, she was slowly ripped apart from the inside. Her feathers dispersed across otherworlds, one landing on the corpse of a fallen seer. Carrying the regret of a lifetime, the user of the feather would be blessed by the goddess. In exchange for corruption, they gain power unattainable by the lifeforms of the current era.]
+
Nox was shocked.
A glorious artifact was something sought after by even the strongest otherworlders. To get one from a mere voiceless monster in a First Challenge was unheard of.
Suddenly, he froze. Something was coming. The space around him rippled as he felt something examine him, something greater.
[A constellation gazes at the relic with interest.]
[Constellation: Duck of Yonder reveals itself.]
[You have been offered a trade.]
Constellations were the masters of their specific world. Each possessed mind-boggling amounts of power. On rare occasions, Otherworlders who performed well in a challenge would be offered contracts to work for them.
The royal families of the current world were all based on a specific constellation, giving them power and undisputed status over the ordinary people.
Now, such a constellation appeared within the first hour of a mere First Challenge, offering him a trade.
Not having much of a choice, Nox concentrated on his heart once more.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
[Constellation: Duck from Yonder proposes a trade.]
[You Receive: Nothing]
[They Receive: Nixxy's Regret]
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
'What…?'