What kind of bullshit was this? Here he was at one of his defining moments and some random demon came out of nowhere to ruin all of that for him. Could he not even have a single moment to bask in his glory? Why did he have to deal with another strong opponent right after that one?
Was this all because he proved to be much more of a challenge to the Usurper of these lands? If so, then he would have to say that he expected for a giant swarm of monsters to rush in at any moment simply to screw him over even more. Right here and now, he really did not want to fight this thing as he wasn’t exactly at his best status. However, should the event come to that, he would certainly have no choice but to fight.
He had a chance though. The fact that this demon was capable of speaking with him meant that he’d be able to possibly talk this out and avoid getting into a fight. That being said, he wasn’t confident, but he really had no choice.
His instincts were flaring up at him. He knew this demon in front of him would be an extremely difficult battle, one that would for certain be life or death. There was no way around it, right here and now he needed to be diplomatic.
Except he didn’t feel like begging for his life or any of that crap. Right here, he wanted nothing more than to go back to his shelter and take a rest before going onwards to the tower.
“Must we fight right here and now?” He snapped back, taking several steps backwards as he did so, “I am exhausted and not in the mood for such a thing. Perhaps you could go search around for another prey to hunt, no?”
“Impossible. This giant bug monster was the one that had been given to me as information. Without it, this entire journey was an absolute waste. I must get something out of this wasteful trip.”
“What, like fighting a tired warrior who simply desires a good night's rest and a hot meal?”
“If that was the case, you would look far more exhausted than you are now. You look like you simply had a brisk walk down the forest.”
“Is this some sort of elaborate joke that I am failing to recognize?” The Udwi spat, still moving backwards all while keeping an eye on the demon who had yet to move from its position. “Because there’s no humor in that statement as far as I can tell.”
“The fact you can attempt to find a single iota of amusement in this situation tells me more than enough.” The demon said as it started walking towards him. “You are far more than capable of standing on your own two feet and fighting. Yet you choose to be a coward and try to run away from a worthy fight. I might have to ask what is wrong with you.”
“What is wrong with me? Perhaps that I am truly tired and–”
Whatever else the Udwi was planning to say died on his tongue. The demon rushed forward and at that moment he called upon the spirits for assistance. With that, they accepted and proceeded to call the winds all around him to boost his speed.
Even then, it was barely enough to avoid the incoming slash from the demon. He could see how the curved sword cut where he was merely a second away. It wasn’t satisfied as it halted and proceeded to swing once more at him, only for its blade to get stopped by the hilt of his spear.
He had to grit his teeth as he found himself losing the battle of strength. This power and speed, what the hell did this demon eat?!
He roared as he proceeded to shove the demon back, before jumping back. Right here and now, he knew for a fact that this battle would end in a mutual defeat. He wasn’t confident he could win this and he certainly was sure he wouldn’t walk away without major injury.
Thus, he chose the only option available to him. He turned tail and ran.
“Wha-” The Udwi could hear the surprised shock from the demon as he proceeded to dash through the forest, away from the clearing and towards his shelter, “You damned coward! You call yourself a warrior?! Come back here!”
He could only scowl at that, before shaking his head. Insults meant nothing in the grand scheme of things and he especially didn’t feel like getting involved even more with this demon. No, if he was going to fight, he’d need to get a new shield and a ranged weapon to even come close. He’d–
The spirits screamed at him to move. Without even questioning their decision, he proceeded to do as they said and dove for the ground. Thank the spirits, as the next moment an arrow went flying through the air and slammed right into the tree in front of him. That projectile went right through the trunk and out the other end, before finally stopping after going through another tree.
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The Udwi balked at the sight, before scrambling back up and moving even more. Nope, screw the shelter, there was no way he was going to lead this demon to his place, he needed to lose this thing right here and now.
Arrows started to come towards him as he kept running. Each time, the spirits warned him of the incoming attack and he was able to dodge them just before they could kill him. However, he was feeling the strain as the spirit's voice got weaker and weaker and his own body started to feel the stress and pain of constantly running.
This could not continue. He didn’t understand how the demon kept on tracking him, but he had to shake them off. But how?
Wait. Prey. This demon was focused on one thing at this time: getting a worthy battle. Could this mean?
Without a single bit of hesitation, he redirected his movement. He called, no, ordered the spirits to give him every single last bit of power they had to boost his speed even more than now. They resisted for a split second. At least, until another arrow came through. At that point, they obliged and gave him the boost he truly needed to keep going.
And what a boost it was. With that, he moved so fast that the world became nothing more than a blur. He rushed as fast as his legs could go, running towards the one place he knew would provide a fight for this battle-crazed demon. A place that would have enough to hopefully satisfy the bloodlust of his pursuer and finally leave him alone.
Another arrow came, but he was moving so fast that the projectiles were no longer an issue. Within seconds he found the place he was looking for: the lake that he had spotted the first time he was looking for a water source. Thankfully, those giant herds still remained.
The moment he burst out of the forest, every single last one of those creatures turned and looked at him. Every single one of them looked deadly and downright hostile as they growled and showed their giant fangs and teeth, ready to rip and tear him to pieces.
Perfect. This was exactly what he needed.
Thus, he kept moving. He swerved in and out amongst the horde, squeezing through any space available to continue to create more space between him and the pursuer. He moved so fast that the creatures that were trying to attack him were too slow to even reach him at this point.
These beasts were all confused as he simply went by them. That confusion led to aggression once more as they moved to chase after him, intent on taking him down for daring to make them look like fools. However, they didn’t even get the chance to move three steps forward before a single arrow ripped through five of the beasts near the lake.
That got all of them to halt and turn around to where the projectile had come from. Standing there on the edge of the forest was that demon with its bow in its hand. All of those creatures stared, before snarling and howling. Then, they rushed forward towards the demon, intent on ripping it apart for slaughtering their kind.
That demon didn’t run. It didn’t have a single bit of regret as it began to uproar with glee, sheathing its bow and pulling out the spear. The first beast that came within striking distance found a hole in its head, courtesy of the spear ripping through them completely.
At that point, the Udwi was finally out of energy. He staggered and fell onto the ground, rolling forward and finally coming to a stop. He groaned as he struggled to get back up, instantly feeling pain all over from the sheer pain of forcing his body to go far past its limits. However, that was a necessity to get some distance and to distract the demon long enough to make his getaway.
With that done, he began to limp away and head back into the forest to go to his shelter to rest up. Granted, he was still hungry, but there was that one creature he had buried. That was edible and certainly more than enough to fill his stomach.
He walked forward for a good while, before turning around to see how much damage the demon had sustained. What he saw made his jaw drop in sheer shock and horror.
That damned demon hadn’t even gotten a scratch. Rather, that thing was taking on the giant horde without even looking exhausted or tired as its spear rushed forward so fast that it was nothing more than a blur. The monsters weren’t smart enough nor powerful to overcome the barrage. Even their attempts to flank proved to be for naught as the demon merely redirected the spear to strike to the side and behind. Nothing seemed to be able to overcome such a force of nature.
There was one thing the Udwi noticed. He didn’t know whether he was hallucinating or was mistaken, but for a moment, he could have sworn the demon crossed eyes with him. He shook his head and moved on to the forest, moving to the shelter as fast as he could move with his exhaustion.
Thankfully, the trip didn’t take too long. He found himself back at camp, with the first thing he did was check to see if the animal he had captured alive was still there. He had to admit, it was quite nice that the creature was still living, though in constant pain from being buried alive.
Well. He had the meal set up. He had his water. Now, he got the chance to have his victory feast. He wished he had some spices to use though, as the meat wasn’t exactly all that appetizing. Still, beggars could not be choosers, and it was still good enough to fill his stomach.
With all that done, he went ahead and tucked himself in his shelter and closed his eyes. He could feel his exhaustion finally catch up to him and more and more, the cloud of sleep began to take him. He allowed himself to finally rest peacefully, without any of those screams or shouts pumping into his head.
At least, that was what he thought. He did get the chance to rest, but not for long as he was awoken by something jabbing him in the stomach. He couldn’t help but groan as his eyes fluttered open, annoyed by the rude awakening. He blinked a few times to try to get the grogginess out of his body, only for every single last bit of exhaustion to disappear upon realizing who was poking him.
It was the demon. That monster had somehow found him despite everything and was now looking directly at him. The Udwi could feel himself pale as he stared right into those lifeless eyes that had the slight tinge of anger behind them.
“Good morning, coward.”