*Chapter 15: A Battle for Survival*
After a monstrous, echoing laugh from the beast, the horrific creature began to crawl menacingly towards them, using its countless limbs. The three were in a state of panic and fear.
Charlotte was overwhelmed with fear and desperation, her emotions was all over the place, while Astaria was paralyzed by terror, her eyes filled with tears as she lay on the ground, rolling and shouting about her impending doom and how she's gonna die.
In the midst of this chaos, Kagami became surprisingly calm. Realizing the dire situation they were in, he saw how his party members were, and then quickly sprang into action, snatching Astaria's wooden staff and Charlotte's short sword. With a makeshift staff in one hand and a short sword in the other, he launched himself at the monstrous abomination with determination.
"Double sword Technique; Endless Cutting!" Kagami yelled as he swiftly attacked the creature. He gathered power from his legs and knees, channeling it towards his upper body and limbs, attempting to strike the monster down. But despite his valiant effort and his flashy moves, he was abruptly swatted away like a bothersome insect by one of the creature's massive hands, crashing into the wall.
"Sigh, I guess shouting random attack names doesn't make me any stronger," Kagami muttered as he hung in the hole he'd created in the wall. He observed his damaged hand and noticed that Astaria's staff was already broken.
The beast turned its attention to Kagami and started to approach him. It seemed uninterested in the terrified onlookers, Astaria and Charlotte, who stood frozen, unable to help.
Kagami tried another attack, "Alright let's see, One-hand Technique; Endless Pain!" as he leaped toward the monster. However, he was once again easily repelled by one of the monster's massive arms, creating another hole in the wall where he became lodged.
Astaria and Charlotte watched, helpless, as Kagami continued to be thrown around left and right like a bug by the relentless beast. Charlotte found the situation a bit weird. "Why is he still alive?" She couldn't comprehend how Kagami was withstanding such a brutal assault. Astaria hypothesized that it might be a divine blessing from the gods, which gave her hope that Kagami was stalling for time.
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"Concerned" for Kagami, Astaria asked, "Kagami, are you okay?"
Kagami, still stuck in the wall, answered sarcastically, "Yes, don't worry about me. And don't mind me."
Seeing Kagami's valiant efforts to buy them time, Astaria became "emotional", thinking that he was giving them a chance to escape. Which in fact Kagami wasn't thinking about that at all, he just wanted to die on his own terms and the monster didn't seem to be in a hurry to eat him, so that's that.
Astaria asked Charlotte if she could borrow some of her powers to try to open the door and locate "Him", realizing that Astaria is nothing but a coward but in the same time, this might be their only means of escape. Charlotte reluctantly agreed, recognizing that their survival depended on it. (The walls couldn't be penetrated and it started to heal the second you destroy a part of it, And the monster in front of them is way above their league.)
While she was at it she told Astaria that Kagami was being sarcastic and didn't mean what he said, To which Astaria just played dumb and pure and started rumbling about how they shouldn't let Kagami's sacrifice go in vain and how they should trust him.
Meanwhile, Kagami's situation worsened. He was battered, bruised, and bleeding. Despite his best efforts, he could only sever some of the monster's limbs. The creature's rapid regeneration, coupled with the sheer number of limbs, made it impossible to reach the creature's vital point.
Kagami pondered, "If I get closer, I risk being caught by this bastard, but I don't have any long-range attacks... It seems like a losing game." Despite his fatigue, Kagami continued to lead the beast away from the others, dodging its attacks while cutting off the limbs it used to strike him. At this point, Kagami started believing their only hope was; if Astaria could manage to open the exit door.
The monstrous entity spoke unexpectedly, surprising Kagami. [You, you're a strange one.]
"Huh? You can talk?" Kagami replied in confusion.
[Of course I can. Are you and idiot? I spoke to you earlier. Were you not paying attention?... I am an avid reader, you know?] the creature responded with a hint of disappointment.
Kagami defended himself, saying, "I was in an adrenaline rush. Can you blame me?"
[Why weren't you afraid? Do you even have a soul?] the creature inquired, its multi-faceted voices echoing ominously through the cavern.
Kagami expression changed as he seized the opportunity to strike. He lunged towards the monster's "heart", determined to put an end to the threat and escape. However, the battle was far from over as he failed and barely dodged the creature's limbs before finally ending up behind him.
"No time for chit-chat. I want to get out of here," Kagami said with a serious and yet nervous smirk on his face. Resolute in his resolve to survive and escape from this place.
The relentless struggle between Kagami and the monstrous beast continued, as Kagami managed to piss off the monster for the first time.
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Thank you for reading!!!