Chapter 17 – Escaping the Boss
Amidst the maze-like corridors of an old, haunted asylum, two treacherous thieves played a deadly game of cat and mouse.
"Ah, shit!" Lucan muttered as he sprinted through the walls, the creature's terrifying screams echoing behind him. Somehow, its rage seemed to make it even faster.
"Why is she so pissed off?" he wondered aloud.
I'd be furious too if some guy showed up every night trying to crush my head...
Lucan was completely lost, unsure how to find his way back to the exit even if the door mysteriously reappeared. Every turn he made, he searched for a pattern or a clue to guide him.
The monster was right behind him, sometimes running on the ceiling or walls. Lucan was sure he had broken a bone; his entire body ached.
Then, to his horror, a scream came from ahead of him, and the monster appeared in front of him.
"How the hell did you get here, damn it?" he exclaimed.
He glanced at a wall and saw a hole.
"Hahaha," he laughed and started running again.
Fair enough, I can go through walls too.
Racing through the place, he flung himself through a barred door and instantly recognized it.
"Thanks for closing it, Clyde, you bought me some time."
Running through the corridors, he occasionally saw the cursed journal lying in various places as he made turns.
"Try to possess someone else, you bastard," he said, kicking the journal away.
Maybe I shouldn't have done that.
As he continued to flee, he found a hallway with different architecture. There were benches along the corridor and stained glass windows depicting various images. The first window showed an angel with a staff, resembling a woman. The second depicted a man and a woman facing a giant serpent. The third showed a tree with the silhouette of a man entwined in its roots. The fourth window displayed a figure that looked like a giant black octopus with white eyes, facing someone with a flaming sword...
'Boom!' The glass windows began to shatter, forcing Lucan to cover his face for protection. A sharp pain hit his head, nearly causing him to stop. He felt his face grow warm and saw blood dripping from his nose.
"What the hell is happening to me?"
A loud buzzing filled his ears, making it difficult to stay focused. He forced himself to keep running and saw a wooden door at the end of the corridor.
The monster's scream echoed behind him.
Standing in front of the small wooden door, Lucan turned to face the monster charging at him. Summoning his hammer, he gripped it tightly with both hands.
"Come on! Bring it! Let's settle this once and for all!"
The monster, driven by rage, rushed even faster. Lucan gripped his hammer harder and, just as the creature was about to reach him, he threw himself backward through the door.
I don't fight fair.
As he fell, almost laughing at his escape, the door suddenly exploded, and the monster crashed into him, sending them both flying.
Thrown backward and wounded, Lucan struggled to get up, but his injuries held him down.
"Damn it! Why didn't that bastard stop when he saw I had disappeared through the door?"
He doesn't fight fair either…
Throwing himself to the side, he lacked the strength to get up. A piece of wood was protruding through his abdomen.
"I guess today is finally the day I die…"
Glancing at the monster writhing and trying to stand, Lucan summoned every bit of strength to get to his feet.
"And just when I had found my ride home…" he lamented, recalling Alice's invitation.
Spitting blood, he realized he was in that creepy chapel.
"The exit!"
Looking around, he found no door.
So even the door here is gone…
In the middle of the room, a pentagram with a black notebook lay at its center.
"If you're mad about the kick, it wasn't personal…"
Staring at the notebook, Lucan assessed his situation. He was badly wounded and had no strength to escape. He knew he couldn't outrun the monster, and his right leg throbbed with pain.
"Good thing I have the cloak; otherwise, I'd be completely broken," he muttered, spitting more blood. Conjuring his hammer, he focused on the monster.
Running at the creature struggling to rise, Lucan used all his strength and slammed the hammer into its head.
"Ahhhhhhh!" The writhing monster stopped moving.
"What? Did I… did I do it?"
[You have defeated the first form of the Exceptional Snapper Wendigo]
A mix of joy and confusion washed over Lucan.
[The monster is undergoing a mutation]
[The monster has reached its second form: Advanced Mutated Snapper Wendigo]
"You've got to be kidding me!"
I'm dead! There's no way to defeat an Epic monster! It takes an entire squad to take down something like this.
Backing away from the Wendigo, he saw the creature writhe and scream. It suddenly began to vomit a black liquid, and three pupil-less eyes grew from its face. Its body started to expand, tentacles of blood sprouting from it. Its hands morphed into claws, and a single wing of flesh grew from its back. Now standing, the monster was about three meters tall and still growing. Black saliva dripped from its mouth, and its gaze fixed on Lucan.
I think he's taking this personally…
Facing the figure before him, Lucan remembered reading online that some monsters could have a second form. This only happened with very powerful monsters, making them highly dangerous and unpredictable. The second form completely altered the creature's battle patterns and power, changing its rhythm. Facing the second form of a deranged monster alone was almost suicidal. No one could predict which monsters could mutate into a second form; they were rare among their species.
Holding his hammer, Lucan didn't feel very confident. He glanced at the shattered door behind him and began backing toward it. He could try phasing through a wall, but his power wasn't infinite. He needed to conserve his strength to escape and evade the monster in the corridors. If he phased into a wall and stayed there, he wasn't sure how long he could maintain his intangibility.
"Screw it,"
Lucan began limping toward the door.
"I need to try to phase through the damn floor!"
With each step, he stomped harder. The monster started moving slowly toward him. Its tail, now about four meters long, bristled with spikes.
Suddenly, the Wendigo's tentacles shot forward, thrusting like a jackhammer.
Lucan fell backward into the corridor and staggered away, running.
The monster hit the wall, and the sound of its impact echoed throughout the corridor. Lucan, trying to run while limping, found himself in a state of desperation.
The monster passed through the door, swinging its arms like giant scissors. Lucan dodged by rolling to the sides. Each time the monster struck, Lucan rolled to avoid the blows. The monster raised its arm and slammed it down; Lucan rolled underneath it.
"Who the hell said rolling on the ground during a monster fight was a good idea? The damn floor is full of glass and rocks!" he cursed.
Having passed under the monster, Lucan found himself back in the chapel room. He looked around, trying to come up with an idea. All he saw were scattered wooden pews, chains, and candles.
He barely took a step when he felt a blade pierce his back. The monster had slashed him with its claws from behind. An immense pain surged through Lucan as he was thrown across the room. His vision started to blur and darken; he cursed his greed for having returned to this place.
His strength drained away, and he just lay there, facing the monster, trying to breathe without choking on his own blood. The image of someone flashed in his mind, and he ignored the vision.
Feeling the warmth of his blood pooling beneath him, Lucan realized he was dying.
So this is what dying feels like?
Suddenly, there was a tremor, and the entire place began to contort and crack. The ground shook violently.
"What the hell!" he spat blood.
Lucan thought he was hallucinating, but he noticed even the monster was struggling to stay on its feet. Sitting up with difficulty, he realized his mistake.
Beneath him was the notebook. Lucan had fallen on top of the cursed relic and, without knowing it, had offered his blood.