The fierce black lion, now only five meters away, had closed the distance with speed.
However, when I focused on the beast with my Golden Eye, hardly anything was revealed to me.
It wasn't yet close enough for me to see any of the visions deviate from its original path, heading towards me.
Wait for it...
Only three meters away, I finally saw the visions change.
Almost all of them showed me a similar strike: a clawed swing aimed towards my face.
It swung, and I dodged underneath the blow, feeling the air from the strike whoosh past me. If it had connected, it would have easily taken my head off.
The beast's momentum sent it flying past me as it missed, then it turned on its feet efficiently to pounce again.
I focused my Golden Eye and saw the beast aim for the same strike again.
It's awfully one-dimensional, I realized.
I dodged again, repeating the same
maneuver, and the beast flew past again.
Though this time, it did not turn and strike. It seemed frustrated and let out a defeating roar.
The sound forced me to cover my ears, and the black lion used the opportunity to strike.
Smart, the beast knows how to adapt to situations.
I couldn't remove my hands from my ears to defend, as the roar lingered and continued to make my head ring.
Still, I used the Golden Eye, and this time, my eyes began to hurt.
Still, I saw.
The beast aimed low this time, for my legs, hoping to catch me off guard.
As it did, I jumped a height that shouldn't have been possible, leaping at least a meter from the ground and letting the beast pass under me. I landed aggressively, not used to such heights.
The body of a god is truly incredible!
The sounds of the roar had faded away, so I removed my hands from my ears. It was time for me to go on the offensive.
The beast charged, and this time, I charged with it. The Golden Eye showed me a variety of strikes this time, some aimed high and others aimed low or at my midsection.
It was hard for me to predict which one to focus on if I wished to dodge, so I decided to strike instead.
Regardless of where the beast aimed, I decided that I would land first.
I put my weight onto my front foot and swung a powerful punch towards the large beast's face. It connected with speed and force unknown to me, sending the beast tumbling backward through the snow.
It lay on the floor for a moment, blood spilling from a cut on its face.
There was no time to waste; I had to strike before it recovered.
I dashed forward with speed as the beast tried to raise itself, but before it could, I followed through with a kick that landed in the same place the previous strike had.
The beast's head snapped back, and I heard a cracking noise as its thick neck remained bent in an awkward position.
I prepared to follow through with another attack, but as I looked at the black lion lying in the snow, I realized it wouldn't be getting back up.
"It's dead," I said aloud, in disbelief. "Not only that, but the battle felt relatively easy."
As I spoke, the beast began to steam for a few moments before slowly evaporating into the air and vanishing.
So their bodies do not remain on Arnos after being defeated.
I turned around and continued my journey through the plains with newfound confidence.
I knew that it was only the beast of a demigod's domain, but I was still proud of myself. Back on Earth, I would have never been able to achieve such a feat.
---
My sprint through the unchanging field was uneventful for the rest of the hour. I only spotted one more of the black lions, though this one seemed to ignore me and continued through the fields.
I thought about chasing and hunting it to save Lasandra the trouble and earn myself fighting experience, but I didn't want to use the Golden Eye anymore.
I had no idea if there was some sort of cooldown needed after too many uses. I had to save my energy for the demigod.
Finally, a change in the scenery was in sight. In the distance, I saw a large frozen lake, and at the center of the lake was a small wooden fishing hut.
I stopped at the edge of the lake and sensed for presences, though none were nearby.
Is the demigod inside there? If only Lasandra were here to tell me. She did mention that she had sensed them before, but who knows what can change in an hour?
The run had hardly taken its toll on me. I only felt slightly fatigued, but nowhere near enough to stop me from fighting.
Then, after building up my confidence, I stepped onto the frozen lake.
My steps were slow and careful, not only because I didn't want to be heard by the demigod, but also because I didn't want to break the ice beneath me, even though it seemed thick.
After a while, I arrived at the small hut. It was so small that I wouldn't have been able to lie down inside.
As I stood outside the door preparing to enter, I heard a sound come from inside.
Somebody was in there.