"Haa... Haa...!"
But the labyrinth had different plans—it wouldn't grant him the luxury of relief.
"Garrr! Garrr!"
He had barely escaped one nightmare when another took its place.
"Grr! Grr! Grr!"
Three pitch-black, red-eyed creatures stood in front of him, their predatory eyes locked onto him, saliva dripping from their slightly parted maws.
Gulp!
Kai gulped hard, his body shuddered, gasping at the sight before him.
'Fuck! One wasn't enough? Now there are three?' He cursed in his mind.
Life flashed before his eyes as he mentally braced himself for the inevitable. The creatures continued to stare, drooling hungrily.
But no matter how much he tried to steel himself; he was still human—with the primary instincts of fear and survival.
As the first beast launched itself at him, he instinctively dove to his right, rolling on the ground before crouching.
But the creature wasn't happy with its prey running around.
Grr!
It growled and slashed its claw at him. To Kai's surprise, he could see the attack clearly, as if his senses had sharpened.
He sidestepped, dodging it.
This only enraged the creature further. It lashed out in rapid succession, its claws slicing through the air.
But Kai kept moving—sidestepping, crouching, jumping—barely avoiding each strike.
Then, as he dodged another slash, he felt cold stone wall pressed against his back.
'Oh, no!'
Meanwhile, the other two creatures had grown tired of being mere spectators. They wanted to join in and have their fun with their slippery prey.
One of them lunged at him, baring its fangs.
Kai ducked down just in time, narrowly avoiding the snapping jaws.
The creature crashed into the wall, while Kai rolled to the other side.
But before he could regain his footing—
The third one attacked.
Kai reacted instinctively, performing a side flip—jumping, planting his hands on the ground, rolling over, and landing back on his feet.
Seizing the opportunity, he dashed forward, hoping to put some distance between himself and the three monsters.
But his attempt was futile.
Barely three seconds had passed when a creature slashed at him from behind.
His instincts kicked in, and he dove to the side. The sharp claws tore through his tunic, narrowly missing his flesh.
Another creature lunged for his head. He crouched—only to realize too late, that the last one had been waiting for this exact moment.
It rushed in from the side, with its maw wide open.
But Kai was quicker. In a split second, he leaped, planting his hand on the creature's head using it as a springboard before landing on its back.
Grr!
The beast snarled, thrashing wildly in an attempt to shake off the little pest clinging to it.
But Kai held on tight, gripping its fur with all his strength.
Seeing Kai remain still, the second creature leaped at him.
But he had been waiting for this. At the last second, he jumped off, letting the airborne beast sink its fangs into the one he had been sitting on.
With a furious snarl, the two creatures turned on each other, snapping and clawing.
For a brief moment, Kai thought he had gained an advantage—until the hairs on the back of his neck stood to no end.
A pitch-black tail lashed out, striking him with brutal force.
The impact sent him flying. He crashed into the stone wall with a sickening thud before collapsing onto the ground.
Thud!
"Argh!" He groaned in pain, forcing himself to his feet.
His vision blurred from the pain, but as soon as he looked up, his heart dropped.
His relief was short-lived.
The two creatures had stopped fighting. Now, all three of them were advancing toward him, their crimson-red eyes glowing menacingly as they relished every second of his fear.
Kai's heart pounded faster. His breath came in ragged gasps as he instinctively skidded backward—only to feel the cold, stone wall pressing against his back.
But to his surprise, unlike his right hand, there was nothing solid behind his left.
As if nothing existed there.
Slowly, he turned his gaze to the side. His eyes widened in shock as he spotted a small crack in the wall—just wide enough for him to squeeze through.
Without a second thought, he quickly slid inside, leaving the creatures behind.
Grr! Grr! Grr!
Seeing their prey escape, the creatures roared in fury and lunged at the crack, desperate to follow him inside.
But too bad—it was far too small for them.
Watching them struggle, Kai let out a sigh of relief.
"Phew... That was a close one."
He took a few deep breaths, trying to calm his racing heart.
Dragging his battered body forward, Kai limped through the dimly lit corridor. The walls shimmered with the same faint blue hue, reflected from the gemstones embedded in the stone walls.
Relief washed over him.
But just as he took a few more steps—
He stopped.
His legs gave out and dropped onto his butt.
His eyes widened in pure disbelief—his gaze locked onto the sight before him.
"Are you fucking kidding me?" he muttered under his breath.
His heartbeat skyrocketed again; beads of sweat formed on his forehead.
Sitting right in front of him was a familiar sight—a pitch-black creature with crimson-red eyes.
But this one was different.
Unlike the others, which had been around five to six feet long, this one was at least ten feet tall. Its massive claws stretched nearly nine inches.
It had been sleeping peacefully.
But now—
The beast's crimson eyes snapped open, locking onto Kai.
As if it was staring straight at his soul.
Kai flinched.
A chill ran down his spine. His entire body shuddered as he instinctively began skidding backward.
'Just my luck. First, I barely escaped one monster—only to run into three. Then, I somehow slipped past them… and now this?!'
The creature opened its massive maw.
Grrr!
An otherworldly, eerie growl echoed through the corridor. Its sheer presence weighing down on him like an invisible force.
Kai froze, paralyzed by fear. Lost all his hope on completing the trial this time for real, and prepared for his doom.