Despite my shaking hands, I gripped the sword tight. My gaze was firm, locked onto the gigantic eye that was staring at me. Before, when I was killed by this thing, I wasn't this intimidated by it.
However, now that my senses were heightened, the octopus before me looked no different than a personification of death.
'I can't imagine my attacks working against it at all!'
Each of the tentacles that were covering the walls and ceiling was filled with eyes, all staring straight at me. It was an eerie experience, knowing that there was nothing I could do about it.
"...!"
Without warning, two tentacles moved. From the left and right, simultaneously! Although I managed to see them move, the next instant, they were already a few meters away from my body.
'What speed!'
As I was surprised by how quickly the tentacles moved, I tried to dodge them by jumping forward. Just as I managed to get out of the way, the two tentacles crossed each other, as if bullet trains collided, and released a powerful shockwave upon impact.
"Ugh!"
I, who was just a few centimeters away from the two colliding tentacles, was sent rolling for quite a distance before smashing my back against a pillar. Although the hit did stop me from rolling further, it also caused quite a bit of damage to my back.
Fortunately, my spine wasn't damaged, and I could still move freely. However, the giant octopus didn't give me time to catch my breath.
Two more tentacles rushed forward, going to where I was. As I was prone, I couldn't dodge in time. However, just getting hit didn't sit well with me, so I propped my sword forward, letting the tip point toward the incoming tentacle.
The pillar was destroyed as if it were made out of paper before the tentacle landed directly on my body.
*Thud*
I expected to get sent flying by the impact but noticed that the attack stopped as soon as I reached me. I looked down, and my sword was pierced into the tentacle. A clear white liquid started to drip from the wound, notifying me that the attack had worked on it.
"Shit..."
However, as I followed the tentacle with my gaze, I noticed that it landed on my stomach... and continued further through my back. I was skewered by a soft-looking tentacle!
Before I could even start to move, the tentacle suddenly waved, along with my body, and slammed hard against the ceiling.
*CRACK!* *CRUNCH!* *CRACK!*
As I got embedded into the ceiling, I felt like my body turned into a cracker. It would be a miracle if even one bone remained in one piece after that impact.
My tongue was dominated by the taste of iron, while my vision was turning darker by the second. Pain, the only thing that's notifying me that I'm still alive, was felt literally all over my body.
"Guha!"
I vomited blood and some solid matter. What those bits were, I didn't even want to know. As if not having enough with slamming me once, the tentacle moved once more, this time slamming me against the ground.
I could feel my body hitting the ground, pressing down on it hard, followed by all parts of my body getting smushed like a watermelon. If there's a disadvantage to being high-level, it's that the pain lingered far longer as my brain's processing speed got faster.
And then, an instant later, my vision went black... I died.
Then, a short moment after that, I opened my eyes once more. My vision was blurry, and my senses were out of whack. The world spun within my view as the lingering pain assaulted my senses.
"AAAAARGH!"
I twisted my body, a delayed reaction to the damage I suffered. Everything hurts! My head hurts, like it's being cracked open. My eyes hurt like they're burning! My ears hurt, ringing nonstop as if I had tinnitus.
My arms hurt, my chest hurt, my face hurt, my knees hurt, my elbows hurt, my stomach hurt, my thigh hurt, and my groin hurt!!! Too much pain hit my nerves at once that my brain tried to save me, turning off everything at once.
...
When I woke up, I still felt bad and disoriented. The world was still spinning, but this time, it wasn't to the point that I couldn't even tell what was up or down. My throat was parched, and honestly, it hurt. To add to that, I felt lethargic, but my stomach was rumbling like a growling tiger.
I forced myself to rise from the bed, using the wall to support myself as I headed toward the kitchen. There, I carefully got half a cup of water and drank it slowly. The cold liquid quickly soothed my throat and slowly sent my senses into order.
"Puhah! Phew..."
I wiped the few drops left on my lips before turning to the digital clock hanging on the wall. It was showing that it was already noon.
"So twelve hours of sleep..." I muttered, my voice still cracking a little. "But this level of hunger..."
I started to doubt my sense of time, so I went to get my phone, which was left charging by the bedside table. When I reached it, I checked the time, and it matched the one that the clock was showing. It was noon... but not on the 30th, but on the 31st of December.
"What the fuck...?"
Unable to believe it, I tried to boot my PC and check the time. However, even there, the clock was showing that it was already the 31st. "I slept through December 30?!"
Thinking of how brutal my last death was—enough that I don't want to recall it ever again—I guess the mental trauma and fatigue caused me to go into a long sleep. Still, 36 hours? That's too much!
Although it's not too late yet, starting the usual preparation now is still a loss compared to the previous loop. After all, Selen would only have 12 hours to make more weapons!
"... Right, Garuda!"
As I recalled Selen, Garuda's face crossed my mind. However, for some reason, the emotions that I harbored for her weren't making me act as desperately as before.
"...?"
Doubt started to bud in my heart, which slowly turned to confusion. I decided to take a step back and analyze my current feelings.
"Garuda is..."
She's a beautiful woman with a straightforward (harsh) personality. Although I shared a passionate night with her, it was nothing but that. Why did I become so desperate after her death?
To double-check, I tried analyzing my feelings for Selen too. I recall feeling attracted to her during the last loop, but now I can say that she's beautiful in her own right, but not to the point that I'd fall for her easily.
After thinking for a while, I couldn't find a proper reason for my actions during the latter part of the last loop. Only one possibility popped into my mind.
"Was I charmed or something...?"