The forest was eerily quiet. There was no wind, no rustling sound of the leaves; the only sound Alan could hear was his heart. His heart thudded in his ears, loud, drowning out everything else.
His breath was shallow, but his heart that was roaring in his chest made it hard for him to stay focused. He was on the verge of losing consciousness, and he was nervous, hands shaking, because he was going to face the strongest dreadmind of the night.
The reason he is in this state is because this is the first time he saw a slyth. He had only seen slyths in the dreadmind guide of Awakener hall; never in his life had he imagined that he was going face a slyth which is a higher rank than him. He didn't get any chance to rest, and his system didn't give him any opportunity for preparation. Even after training daily, this was too much for him, and the stress of battle killing him internally made it hard for him to stay awake.
"Focus, don't panic." Alan clenched the hilt of his sword, the steel slick with sweat, and forced his breath to steady." I don't want to be weak anymore."
With one hand on his bow and the other gripping the sword, he scanned the shadows ahead. The deeper part of the forest was filled with dense trees, blocking out the light of the pale moon, but with his eternal gaze it wasn't hard for him to see clearly, but it was a failure, he couldn't find the slyth.
"Anna, did you make any mistake? Why can't I find the slyth?"Alan asked but didn't let his guard down as he continued his search for slyth.
[No, I didn't make any mistake; also you clearly felt its presence]
Alan couldn't deny her word; she was right– he felt its presence, and that's why he was on guard from the start.
"so why can't I-
A low hiss broke the stillness, sending shivers up Alan's spine. He spun around, sword raised, but there was nothing — just the emptiness of the dark forest.
The ground beneath him trembled, and a crack started forming between his legs. From the crack, he saw a glimpse of something sharp, and he quickly leaped from there. If he had been late for a second, his legs would have been gone.
Alan's heart raced as he crouched behind the thick trunk of a tree. He saw a long glistening head appear from the crack, and as it rose higher, he saw it clearly, its head in a triangle shape, scales shone like dark polished stones, glowing red eyes which staring at him intensely, forked tongue flicked in and out, the slyth's tail was last thing to emerge, it was as thick as of its body, but ended in sharp, head reached full twenty feet in the air, the whole creature seemed to be made of shadows, and when it moved, the ground trembled beneath his feet.
It didn't wait for a second and plunged toward him with its mouth open, its speed faster than anything Alan had faced. Instinctively, he side-rolled from there, and the trunk he was using as a hiding place churned into pieces.
"Fuck, what is this speed with its size? Easy for it to cover the distance," Alan knelt on one knee holding his sword flat against the soil before him," Tch! I wanted to defeat it without buffs, but it looks like I have to rely on it. Even after my agility increased, the difference is too big between us."
The slyth again lunged forward, this time faster than before. With his mastery over skills increased, Alan could see its movement clearly, but the problem was his body- he couldn't react the way his mind thought. Its massive head shot toward him, mouth gaping wide, revealing its sharp teeths.
Alan dropped to the ground, rolling away just in time. The Slyth's jaw snapped shut a sickening crack, missing him by a hair.
With his heart racing, Alan scrambled to his feet. He could feel the ground shaking beneath him as the Slyth's massive body moved, its eyes glowing bright red as it turned toward him- the Slyth was now more serious than before.
Alan's hand went instinctively to the quiver at his side. The bow. He needed to get some distance between him and the Slyth. In one fluid motion, Alan pulled his bow from his back, nocked an arrow, and drew the string taut. The Slyth's tongue flicked out as it approached. He aimed for the glowing red eyes.
The Slyth hissed in surprise, its head jerking back as the arrow struck it in the eye. For a split second, Alan saw the creature's body freeze as though stunned by the pain.
" Wow! I'm a prodigy in archery," Alan murmured. Using this chance, he used the tempest step as he ran from there- his legs leaving some golden hue- and in an instant reached its head. His speed matched the slyth's as he activated the ember strike; his sword glowed in bright purple.
Alan tried to slice its head, but when the sword touched the neck of the slyth, it made a loud, metallic sound, like clashing steel.
"Tch! Why it's skin is too hard?" Alan muttered in frustration.
Sensing his chance turned into a failure, Alan jumped back from there to create distance again, but the Slyth's struck his chest. Alan's breath was knocked from his lungs, and he flew backward, landing hard against a tree; for a moment everything spun around him.
There was no time to recover before he realized Slyth already started coiling around him, wrapping around him with incredible speed.
Alan struggled as it tightened —squeezing the air from his lungs— its scales pierced his body spreading venom throughout him. A burning sensation coursed through him; his vision blurred, his limbs grew heavier by the second, and he gasped for breath. If he didn't do something fast, he was going to die.
Warning!
Warning!
Warning!
Excessive venom coursing through the user's body
Warning!
Health dropped to 15%
Buff activated
"Counter Flow"
A/n-Sorry, there were no chapters because I was dealing with some issues and couldn't write any. But thanks to those who read the novel in the meantime. Also, thanks for the PS and the golden ticket. Starting tomorrow, I'll be uploading daily after the reset. Ciao!