Free Web NovelChapter 53: _Survive... Or Die
’Aura... please run stats,’ Ambrose’s mental voice managed to stay calm even though his body shivered.
He inched back a few steps, feeling the shed caving in on him as the beast prowled in slowly. Its eyes gleamed with a predatory light, scouring the place before locking on him.
[Running dungeon beast analysis...]
[Classification: A-Rank amphibious monster.]
[Main abilities: Water manipulation, claw attacks—]
’For Christ’s sake, do I have any chances of surviving?’ Even asking that felt dumb.
Still, Aura answered. [Odds of Host surviving: 1/1000.]
One out of a thousand?!
Ambrose’s heart pounded, his grip subconsciously tightening around the stealth Potion bottle. Maybe he should take it now. But then what use would it be when the creature could already see him?
This wasn’t supposed to happen. Not one bit!
’And I don’t have any weapons.’ he recalled, lips quivering with something similar to a smile. But not quite.
Just then, he remembered something.
His D-Rank fire ability!
"I haven’t had the chance to test it," he raised a hand, all while not tearing his eyes from the beast.
For some reason, it hadn’t attacked him yet. It appeared like it was assessing him. Like it was uncertain what exactly he was and wanted to be careful.
Ambrose noticed the confusion in the thing’s eyes and tilted his head. This might be his shot.
’How do I activate the fire ability?’
[Simple. All the host has to do is think about the element of fire and channel his aether energy into that thought.]
[However, do note that one basic fireball attack can burn up 200 EP.]
Two hundred EP.
Last he checked he only had one thousand two hundred. Not to mention he still had to save his aether energy if he wanted to be able to guide Devon if the need arose.
Unfortunately, he didn’t have much time to think. The beast roared, its long arms spread out as if it had finally decided the Guide before him was a threat worth eliminating.
Driven by adrenaline, Ambrose waved a hand forward. The beast barely took two steps forward when a blazing ball of blue flames shot toward it.
BOOM!
The explosion wasn’t massive, but it was loud enough to stun the beast. It ducked its head, hissing aggressively as its eyes narrowed into murderous slits.
’The Guild master said to target that weak spot on its neck.’ Ambrose thought to himself as he popped the potion bottle open. ’I only have a thousand energy points now. If I want a chance to survive, I need to make my next attacks work.’
Easier said than done when he only had the power of a D-Rank Esper. Compared to an A-Rank monster he was still nothing more than an annoying ant.
When the beast’s eyes pinned him again, he had already downed the potion in one gulp, ignoring the slight bitterness. Instantly, he vanished from the monster’s view, his scent masked as well.
The beast still lunged forward, claws spread out.
"Argh." Ambrose side-stepped hard to his left but still got slashed across his right arm.
The force of the hit flung him backwards, making him crash onto a small table with a flower vase he hadn’t even noticed when he got here. He groaned, clutching his arm in pain as the stealth cloak faded briefly.
[Time used up from stealth Potion: 5 seconds.]
’All that happened in five seconds?’ he gnashed his teeth, trying hard to hold back tears when the pain in his arm grew unbearable.
Meanwhile, the beast swung its head to him, growling like it was irritated by his petty tricks. It attempted another attack when Ambrose vanished from its vision again.
The Guide rolled desperately, kicking off the floor. His gaze turned to the door.
It was his chance to escape!
DING!
[EMERGENCY MISSION UNLOCKED!]
The ring of the system’s notification in his head made his heart drop.
[OBJECTIVE: Host has to survive an encounter with the A-Rank dungeon beast for five more minutes.]
[REWARD: +5 strength boost and +500 EP.]
[Mission can’t be avoided.]
"You’ve got to be fuc—"
The beast moved in a blur, heading straight for where his voice came from. With his heart in his throat, Ambrose fell backwards, narrowly avoiding its claws by a hair. Now the creature blocked the doorway, sniffing around with a menacing pose.
Survive five minutes? It’s barely been a few seconds and he’s almost died several times!
It seemed like the creature relied on its hearing now that Ambrose was invisible. So it followed the sound of his fall on the wooden floor.
CRASH!
The beast ripped through the floor Ambrose lay on a millisecond ago, the latter escaping with another roll. Wood splinters exploded outward, some hitting him. He forced himself to his feet, clutching his arm again when the sting came back.
’One in one thousand chances.’ Images of his last moments as Benji Foster flowed through his mind just then. ’Which means against all odds I still have a shot.’
With a snarl, the beast began madly slashing around, eager to find him. He dodged, bent over and jumped backwards, each slash only barely missing him.
’... I’m not dying again.’ His teeth gritted through the pain as he managed to get to the towering beasts’ backs. ’Not in this world. Not in any other fucking world!’
The stealth cloak flickered off again as his focus tunnelled on the monster’s weak spot. A small space where its gills were.
To his surprise, the spot already seemed scarred. It probably fought with Espers before escaping to this shed.
Bingo!
Ambrose’s fists ignited with blue flames at the same moment that the monster looked over its shoulder. But the Guide was already upon it, leaping to meet the neck of a beast twice his size.
The flames blazed hotter, but his fire resistance made it nothing but cool air to him. He punched at the weak spot with both hands, screaming with a mix of rage and pain when the movement ripped at his arm injury.
KCHAK!
His flaming fists tore into the beast’s gills, dark blue blood splattering out and painting his face. The beast cried in pain, thrashing a hand sideways under the same breath.
It’s arm slammed straight onto Ambrose’s stomach, making blood gurgle out of his mouth. He flew through the shed like a rag doll, his eyes blurring as he crashed into the wall.
The moment he plopped to the ground, the system flashed a screen with a glaring red alert.
[WARNING: Host’s HP at 300. Blood loss is reaching critical levels.]
He lay on his back, hands on his chest as he struggled to take in air. His ribs had caved in. Lungs felt like they’d tanked the hit.
Even his back ached, so much that he feared his spine might have been affected.
Using the stealth skill now was futile. His agonised rasps for breath would easily alert the beast.
Could this really be it?
Devon’s warning about how dangerous it would be to come here echoed in his head. Fuck, he should’ve listened. But then he couldn’t. Not when this trashy system kept throwing him in life-or-death situations.
He winced, spinning his neck to the creature. It was still in pain, one hand on its neck and the other on the ground. Soon, its head turned to him, nothing but pure bloodlust in its eyes.
It straightened, its shadow looming over Ambrose. He could literally already hear funeral bells at the back of his head. And Orion’s cries as people dragged him away to be tested in a lab.
Just when the beast was about to attack—
—A terrifying pressure descended in the shed. Darkness crept into the place like death’s hand, making the beast stiffen and Ambrose frown.
Time seemingly slowed. A familiar ringing hit his ears, alongside a chill across his body that he knew all too well.
His Death Sense!
Both he and the beast angled their heads to the doorway. And what Ambrose saw was beyond anything he had previously imagined.
