Chapter 12: Despair (2): [You died.]

"Haa..."

The same blue, dim light stung my eyes as I opened them. My mind was still foggy.

The first thing I did after gaining control of my body was to make sure I was still intact.

My body was still connected.

I didn't see any wounds.

But...

I still felt pain. I felt the sharp, gruesome pain of my body being cut cleanly and my organs falling out.

I was in too much shock, unable to scream, as if my throat was clogged by something very hot.

What... happened?

It was just a blurry memory.

All I could remember were those red, sharp eyes of the human... and the blade he was holding.

What... What happened to the others?!

I quickly turned around, scanning my surroundings, but all I could see was green blood splattered all around.

Green... Green... Green...

I had never seen so much green.

I had never seen so much blood.

So... much blood.

"Haa..."

Where was everyone?

What happened to them?

Why can't I see anyone?

My body shuddered a little. What had happened here?

Hiss

It was at that subtle second that I noticed something bizarre. A figure was slithering across the ground, its movements strangely fluid yet grotesque. At first, it looked almost comical, like a goblin trying to mimic a snake, until the reality of the scene struck me. As it moved, I could hear the sickening crunch of bones crushing under the strain, and blood gushed endlessly from its twisted form.

Before I could react further, a sharp pain coursed through my body. From my stomach, two fangs erupted as something dragged me across, slithering around.

It didn't give me a second. The creature started rolling on the ground, twisting my body. My organs were mashed up with each other, and the blood from my wounds didn't stop flowing.

It hurt. It didn't just hurt, it burned as if I was on fire from the inside. My mashed organs soon started melting into each other.

It was nothing like what I had ever felt before.

I could no longer even focus as the world around me spun.

I couldn't get a hold of myself, and it seemed as though the damned thing thought this wasn't enough torture. My body was suddenly lifted from the ground, straight to the roof of the cave.

And before I could even realize—my body was slammed onto it.

Plop

『You have died.』 As I tried to crawl away, the serpent struck from behind, its fangs sinking deep and everything went black.

『You have died.』 The world spun, a sharp pain pierced my heart, and darkness claimed me before I could even gasp.

『You have died.』 I barely stood up before a crushing weight slammed down on me, my vision fading to nothing with the sound of my own bones breaking.

『You have died.』 I sensed a slight rustle too late—the serpent's tail whipped through the air, and then all was silent and dark.

『You have died.』 Attempting to dodge, I stumbled; the last thing I felt was the serpent's cold breath before its jaws closed around me.

I...

Don't know what's happening...

『You have died』

Anymore...

"..."

Light again...

『You have died.』

Once more... light...

『You have died.』

Light—

『You have died.』

『You have—』

I had died more times than I could count.

At first, I was confused about how I was dying...

It was painful, brutal, and... as if the humans were playing with me. To torture me.

And I was right.

The humans were torturing me, but not directly...

They had unleashed a beast.

A monster.

A... serpent!

I didn't notice it earlier, but the dead bodies of Hikoro, Gaka, and the rest whose organs I had eaten, were missing.

Only pools of blood remained.

The serpent had swallowed them.

In one of the deaths, I happened to get swallowed too, and there, I ate a small chunk of Ottopo's flesh.

Thanks to the Devour skill, I could see the memories of the dead.

The humans...

They talked among themselves and then, the man who had killed us in one strike, brought out a pouch.

From the pouch came out a large beast... not too large, comparable to my size.

It was a serpent.

And now, it was feasting on us.

There's darkness around me.

I've died yet again.

But this time, I have an idea of what the beast is doing.

It's there but at the same time not there. Stucky calls it 'Stealth'.

It's there but just not visible to the eyes.

It took me almost ten deaths to figure this out. I kept respawning and looking left and right to spot it, but then I would just get killed...

So, it was invisible.

Now how do I counter it?

It took me a while to think about it.

I didn't have any skill that could find the monster. Make it visible again...

I didn't have any items that could do that.

Stucky couldn't do it. He wouldn't listen to me.

He'd just... not reply at all. Stucky is Stucky after all, he is just stuck in darkness, just like me.

So basically, I was destined to die again and again. I had nothing... no—

Nothing? Really?

After the 45th death, a thought crossed my mind.

Can I...?

I called out to Stucky.

"Stucky, show my profile."

I did that in this darkness.

Stucky heard me.

He showed me my profile... my strength and agility had increased.

But my gaze only fell on one Stat...

『Perception: 3』

I gave Stucky just one command, "After each death, add 1 Stat point to perception until I say not to do it."

『Command Accepted.』

Stucky was out of his stucky-ness.

I was back into the light. My perception had increased by one point.

Nothing...

I could sense nothing.

Darkness...

Light...

Nothing...

『You died.』

Light again, and this time, I sensed...

No, it wasn't the monster but its movements.

I could briefly see the blood trail marks, the vibrations... but that was all.

I couldn't sense anything else.

I died.

One more point and I could feel its breath as it approached me.

This time I did something.

I tried jumping away...

『You died.』

『Perception: 8』 ↑1

I could sense it now.

Where it was moving to, when it was approaching.

I could sense everything...

But that was not enough.

I couldn't tell its speed, its shape... its size...

So, I stood still and let it kill me.

...

『Perception: 12』 ↑1

『Stat Point(s): 6』 ↓1

The serpent was long, almost as long as three goblins lying end to end.

It had eyes and a long tongue that flicked out now and then. Its body was stained with blood—goblin blood and perhaps its own?

It seemed wounded, likely by humans.

It had fangs, two big fangs the size of my entire upper arm. Every time it moved, it slithered from side to side, but when it attacked, it would coil up…

I can sense it…

I can feel it…

I'm the one in control!

Now it is my turn to hunt!

Get ready, now I will-

『You died.』

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