Chapter 258 - Standing Against Beasts

Jack stood at the remaining platform, thinking about what to do next.

No matter how hard he tried, though, nothing happened. Jack was more or less doomed, and the soon arrival of the worm-like creature would ensure it. He had no choice but to stay here and fight.

That said, Jack prepared for the worst. He thought about all the plausible outcomes he could think of, mentally ensuring he was ready to face it. Because, soon enough, the creature would come to collect its prey.

And, in mere moments, the ground beneath Jack's feet rumbled once more. He lowered himself by squatting, paying attention to where the creature might pop up.

It didn't take long for Jack to get his answer.

The creature, in its sheer disgusting appearance, showed up just in front of where Jack was facing. It was angry, or at least, as angry as a worm-like creature that lived in the tundra could possibly be.

Nonetheless, Jack would have to find a way to get through this thing and survive. The odds of which were not in his favor. Not even in the slightest. But, even so, he had to give an honest shot. Whether things would work out or not, it was entirely up to Jack.

Without a second thought, Jack pulled out the rest of his enchanted stones, the ones that would explode. He threw them at the creature, exploding upon impact. Jack held out hope, thinking that the mass explosion would be enough to take it down.

But, that wasn't quite the case.

The creature looked down on Jack, even more pissed than before. Jack swallowed a mouthful of dry air, unsure of the overwhelming pressure he felt. Now that his preemptive strike didn't work, Jack had no idea what else he could do.

Its thick shell was a tough nut to crack. Jack couldn't bypass it even with a load of explosives. Other than that, what other possible methods were there?

While Jack wanted some time to think for himself, the creature wouldn't allow him the luxury. It swiped at Jack, using its head to sweep in a horizontal movement.

'Shit!'

Jack tried to get out of the way as best he could. But, even with his best efforts, he wasn't so lucky in his attempt. While the attack hadn't swept Jack away, it still caused him to barrel towards a nearby pile of snow.

He took a hit. And, even though the snow softened his landing, Jack wasn't in the best shape. Cracks formed on his icy chest, causing Jack to realize how dire the situation truly was. He wouldn't be able to sustain another hit, much less another second in this fight.

But he wasn't out just yet. As he got up and steadied himself, the hit had accidentally jogged something in Jack's memory. It caused him to smile, albeit connivingly.

The plan formed in Jack's head as he ran towards the creature at full speed. A part of him didn't want to do something as idiotic as this, but, at this point, Jack had no other choice.

However, at about the halfway point of where he stood and the creature, Jack stopped. He stood still, taunting the creature to charge at him once more. It was a risky move, Jack noted, knowing entirely well that if this one thing went wrong, he'd die.

It was still better to die fighting than doing nothing at all.

With that mentality, Jack didn't dare look back now. The creature saw the opportunity and took the bait. It opted to swallow Jack whole, mouth open as it charged directly at the human who had caused the creature so much trouble.

The creature flattened the snow as it made its way towards Jack. Jack, on the other hand, didn't move from where he was standing and pulled out another stone. It was different from the others he had used before, such that he didn't make it himself.

Nevertheless, Jack waited.

As the worm got closer to him, Jack felt as though he was going straight into a lion's mouth. But it didn't scare him. Even with his heart pounding, Jack remained still. He wouldn't move until it was the perfect time to strike.

But, it never came.

The creature's trajectory suddenly changed with a strange impact to its side, causing it to miss Jack entirely. Jack didn't know what had just happened as the worm-like creature staggered in a daze. The impact had caused the creature to lose track of its senses as it cried a wallowing, shrill scream.

'What the hell was that?!' Jack looked to where the attack had come from, with eyes widened in outright surprise. Because, whatever it was, it was far from anything good.

From a distance, Jack saw a figure floating in mid-air. He had an immense aura to him, one that Jack felt from where he was standing. Even if he couldn't really see the guy's face, Jack was sure that this was no ordinary person. Or, maybe, he wasn't even a person at all.

After taking one not-so-good look on the man, Jack turned to the worm. As soon as his eyes made contact with the creature, Jack couldn't look away in the slightest.

It was far from what Jack thought to be possible.

The creature's exoskeleton broke. Or, rather, by the look of things, pierced. Jack didn't know what had pierced the creature and left a gaping hole to the side of its body. But, he knew damn well who did it. To leave a wound of that size on a body like that, Jack soon became aware of his situation.

Jack stared at the creature's open wound for a few more moments, completely awestruck. His thoughts were scattered. While he couldn't really put into words what he was looking at, he had his work cut out for him, especially considering the ominous aura behind him got stronger.

As Jack nervously swallowed another mouthful of dry saliva, he couldn't easily turn around. The pressure he felt behind him was overwhelming, suffocating even. And, the worst part about it was that it was only coming closer.

"Mmm..."

Whoever the guy, he was breathing behind Jack's neck. A part of him wanted to get the hell out here, but he couldn't so much as move. Jack was none other than frozen in fear.

There was no way out for him now. He wasn't even aware of having a powerful being such as the guy behind him in the area. Maybe because of some divine coincidence that he showed up here. And, he had shown up where Jack was specifically standing no less.

"You don't belong here."

The man behind Jack said in a deep, scary-sounding voice. Whether it was meant to be a threat or not, Jack didn't know. Regardless, though, Jack had to do something about it.

"Yeah, I don't," Jack answered respectfully.

"Leave," replied the man.

"I'm not able to."

"That stone with teleportation magic in your hand. Use it."

"The environment in this dimension would not allow me to do so."

"The magic disbarring anyone from entry and exit here is no longer active," the man said, his tone unchanging. "I don't suppose you have noticed this change, mortal?"

"I haven't," Jack answered, flinching before he did. For some reason, he couldn't help but feel guilty, even though he didn't really notice the change. He might as well be screaming at this point because of how much he was freaking out.

"Hmm...," the man let out a low hum as he approached Jack even further, causing the latter to tighten up.

At this point, Jack was in significantly more danger than before. Even the threatening, much larger worm-like creature didn't give off the same pressure. And, from where Jack was standing, he could feel daggers staring at his back.

"Turn around and come with me."

The man ordered Jack with a sense of force in the tone of his voice. Jack, naturally, didn't like where this was going. He couldn't understand who this person was, but he knew it would be better to follow and not do anything that would get him killed.

That said, the man walked along a familiar path, creating a path floating in mid-air made entirely out of ice. He didn't stop and look back at Jack at all as if knowing Jack wouldn't go anywhere or run away. To which, Jack quite reluctantly followed.

As the two of them walked along the dangerous, floating ice path, Jack felt perplexed.

While the absurd series of events that have happened to him was strange, Jack couldn't help but wish that this was all over. He couldn't take another second to be here.

Considering he was right behind a powerful yet strange figure, Jack had about enough of all this. He thought that his entire encounter with the worm creature would be the last before he could finally leave.

But that was far from the case.