🙡 Chapter 6.2 🙣

The captor

Three hellish mouths opened on the ceiling above me, teeth of wood and stone, their screams reverberating through my body, the air pressure making me descend rapidly hitting my face… not this time! Engaging proper face protecting maneuvers, by curling tentacles like springs going out of my head! I.. have… to… resist! I’m not falling down face-first again!

While fighting against the inexplicable force assaulting my body, a snake's head emerged from under the blanket at the center of what I previously thought to be the scene of the last struggle of some poor creature—oh how wrong I was. It was a den of a MONSTER. Soon the first snake was followed by another… and another… and then a dozen more, covering the head of a bloodthirsty and angry beast, full of contempt and hatred towards all that dares to disturb it’s sleep. It’s eyes were bloodshot and full of bags under them, its mouth stained with red-black blood that also covered the floor. And when it.. Or rather she saw me, she smirked amused, showing a row of sharp teeth, with a prominent, vampire-like fang. I looked helplessly as she picked up multiple mysterious tools (surely used to perform acts of unspeakable violence) from the ground.

At the same time I finally gave up fighting against whatever was pinning me down, and settled for being slowly flattened on the ground, instead of hitting it with momentum—not that I had much of a choice in the matter, as it seems the magical sound attack had a secondary effect of making its targets muscles go limp.

*PLOP*

Less than a minute of acquainting myself with the stone floor later, a sound of human voice broke through the wails of wall-mouths.

> Bind! < my evil captor screamed towards me, and even If I didn’t understand the language, I could guess it’s meaning—a binding spell! A net of darkness came from my own shadow, and tied me up like a nice octo-ham. In a stroke of genius, I tried flexing my muscles and gathering my tentacles up, so that I could try to get out after I relax them later, but the spell was too fast, and I was too inexperienced to do it well enough on the go—but I think I managed to surround one of my tentacles in a way that should let me move it freely if the need arises. Though the holes in the net are small, It might be able to just barely go through one of them...

The perpetrator was not satisfied with just taking my movement away, they decided to also take away my dignity.

*Slap!* > What a cute butt <

*Hissss!* — damn you, wench!

*SLAP* > Easy feisty girl! You need to be taught some rules <

> Silence! <

Finally, the sound wave pressure on me lessened, and the menacing medusa raised me up and looked directly into my eyes. This mocking smile! AGAIN! You are also going into the book of grudges! Ignoring my huma… tentacle rights conventions, I was looked at like trash, then carried like a piece of meat!

> You also stink! I guess I should wash you up a bit < she said something again, this time in colder tone, but her eyes, these sea blue eyes looked at me as if I was but a toy for her horrific amusement.

Panicking was not what I needed at this moment, but it was hard NOT to do that in this particular situation. I tried analysing my opponent, searching for any weakness but I could see no obvious weakness. I could try using my new skill on her eye, hoping for it to kill the target.. But I have no idea if it would. Firstly, I don’t know how much power it has, secondly, while likely I don’t know if being hit in the brain is lethal in a world of status. Finally, what if she has separate brains in those snakes of hers? What if, even if I manage to kill her, the snakes on her head attack me? If I only “hurt” her, she might not immediately end me, giving me another chance of survival… I would love to test it out on some other target first, but if she realises I can use magic, she will surely take proper precautions. No, I need the element of surprise.

The sack of me was carefully put on the table next to the chopping board, mortar, and a series of knives, as my captor needed both of their hands to move a big jar with some kind of plants marinating inside.

Not to give me any funny ideas while their medusa “host” was busy, the blue and red snakes hissed at me threateningly whenever I but looked at the knives, placed so close yet so far away! While the few of them behaved as if they were playing bad cop, worse cop, to put me in my place, most of them seem to look at me with pity and curiosity rather than malice. Based on my observations of the kid from earlier, some of them might also be able to use magic, so I should be careful… Actually where did the kid go? Was I sold for profit to this mad-woman, like some kind of partridge or wild rabbit?!

And I mean it when I say she is mad! Who else would be walking around nearly naked in this kind of room! Only some kind of pantaloons on her bottom! And no, dying to a half naked woman is not how I want to end my life, thank you very much, I prefer dying of old age in my sleep. And I'm not exactly in a state to enjoy the view.

… I looked carefully at her body, searching for an obvious weak spot… and even if at the beginning I was avoiding looking at her figure, now that I look at it a second time, she seems to have a deep scar covering most of her right leg…

… That seems to be the best course of action. Especially since I have to avoid dying at all costs. At least until I get enough points to not go to hell.

As I was hatching my plan, the master of the house finally found what they were looking for. A big cauldron. She put me inside it > Seems big enough < and after confirming I would fit, started pouring water inside.

*Fuck* *Whimper*

Still, I have patiently waited for a good opportunity…

And as I thought, she moved slightly further away from me, and bent forward towards the kettle above the fireplace. As she bent forward to inspect the mysterious concoction, I fired my new spell towards her leg.