He wanted to scream and cry out in terror, but his throat locked up like he was having an asthma attack. His mouth opened, but no sound escaped. His eyes, wide with fear, darted around like those of a cornered animal.
"Why me? Why now? I am not the protagonist!" He yelled out inside.
He tore himself out of the dense foliage, branches scraping at his face and clothes. He shot out into an open field, every muscle screaming in pain. Glancing back, he half-expected a snarling jaw to clamp down on him any second.
He swung the barrel around and started shooting, even for a faint comfort of protection under his gun.
BANG BANG BANG!
He shot at anything that moved—a shadow, a flicker of leaves, even his own imagination.
BANG BANG BANG!
Each shot echoed through the still night, momentarily silencing the eerie echoes in the distance. The sound comforted him, even as his arms began to ache from the gun's weight and recoil.
"Who needs aim when you've got infinite ammo?" Lin Feng muttered, half-hysterical. "Shoot first, regret...never?"
But his body didn't care about his bravado. Unlimited ammo didn't mean unlimited stamina, and it certainly didn't mean pain immunity. His lungs burned, his legs wobbled, and his vision blurred. Finally, his body gave up before his will did, and he collapsed under a tree.
Leaning against the rough bark, Lin Feng gulped for air. Every shadow seemed to shift and creep toward him. His wide eyes scanned the darkness, paranoia creeping in.
"You think I'm scared of you, huh?" he panted, raising his gun toward the nearest shadow.
BANG BANG!
The recoil nearly knocked the gun from his grip, but it didn't matter. The "monster" turned out to be a branch swaying in the wind.
"Fa...faak...you!" he yelled at the branch, his voice cracking. "You look spooky, you get shot. That's the rule! I have unlimited!"
His hand trembled from the gun's recoil, and his ears rang from the constant firing. Still, he refused to lower his weapon. Complaining is a luxury when your life's on the line.
GROWL
Lin Feng froze. The sound came from somewhere ahead, deep and menacing. His pulse spiked, pounding so hard he thought it might burst.
"Don't... don't you dare come closer!" he yelled, his voice shaking. He pointed the gun toward the sound, hands trembling so badly that the barrel wavered.
BANG BANG!
The shots echoed again, and still, nothing happened. The growl didn't retreat.
"DON'T YOU DARE!" Lin Feng's voice cracked as panic overtook him. "I'm warning you! I've got a cheat code, okay? Unlimited ammo! Infinite bullets! And I'm not afraid to waste all of them testing it out!"
His breaths were quick, short, full of panic as he wildly aimed the gun at every shadow in the dark. His nerves were on edge when two red, glowing eyes suddenly flared up in the distance, glowing like flames.
"YOU!" Lin Feng shouted, voice trembling as he pointed the gun.
A third, smaller glow appeared far below the eyes, and Lin Feng immediately recognized it—the faint red glimmer of the blood bead. The dim light showed the beast as it stepped into the moonlight.
The beast stood taller than any man Lin Feng had ever seen. Its wolf-like body was twisted with thick, unnatural muscle. Its sharp claws shone in the light, and its dark, matted gray fur seemed to swallow the light. In its jaws, it held a mangled body, it was Scarface, he was dead. In its clawed hand, it carried the woman—unhurt, but limp and unconscious.
Lin Feng's mind raced. "What the hell?! If you've got dinner already, why are you still chasing me?" His voice cracked again as he cried out at the injustice, half a sob and half a plea.
The beast's glowing eyes locked onto him, and for a moment, it froze. Slowly, it stepped toward Lin Feng, its movements deliberate, almost calm.
Lin Feng's breath caught as he raised his gun, his finger tight on the trigger. "Stay back! I'm warning you! I'll shoot! I'll—"
But the beast didn't lunge. It didn't growl. It simply stared at him, taking another slow step closer.
Lin Feng's hands trembled harder. His mind screamed for him to fire, but something about the beast's movements made him hesitate.
It tilted its massive head slightly, the blood bead catching the moonlight as it seemed to... bow?
Lin Feng blinked, sweat dripping down his face. "Wait... what are you doing? Don't play with me! I'll shoot, I swear!" Lin Feng's voice cracked as he raised the barrel of his gun, his legs still tired but ready for one last desperate escape.
The beast sat back on its haunches, its glowing eyes fixed on him, waiting.
The beast didn't move forward. Instead, it stopped, its massive frame towering under the moonlight. Then, to Lin Feng's utter confusion, it gently placed the unconscious woman on the ground.
"What the hell?" Lin Feng's voice sliping, barely above a whisper. "What is it doing?"
His grip on the gun tightened as his mind ran in circles. His heart pumped so loudly he was sure the beast could hear it.
The creature stepped closer, slow and careful, its fiery red eyes avoiding Lin Feng's gaze. It lowered its head and let the scarred body of Scarface slide from its jaws onto the ground.
Lin Feng blinked, his finger twitching on the trigger.
"What... what does that mean?" he whispered, his voice shaky.
The beast gave a low growl—not threatening, but more like it was annoyed. Then, to Lin Feng's shock, it gently pushed Scarface's body toward him with its nose.
Lin Feng's mouth fell open.
"Huh? Is it... giving him to me?" He stared, frozen. Fear mixed with confusion in his mind.
The beast sat down, its glowing eyes stealing a faint gaze toward Lin Feng for a moment, then quickly looked away, almost like it didn't want to scare him more.
And then it wagged its tail.