Chapter 14: Delicious Defeat

Nervousness is swamping through my fibers like flood; the menacing darkness spilling out of this man suffocates me. It doesn’t matter how many questions I ask myself, because no answer will come to me. Just like the Growlers from before, he’s just another monster I need to eliminate. Yeah, there’s no need to doubt. There’s no need to hesitate.

I have no experience fighting like this; I can only trust my instincts and my unnatural strength and speed.

Crossing the Firebrands in front of me, I slowly circle around him while inching closer and closer… then as I see the image of his back, I put force on my legs and lunge!

Before I reach this mysterious man, I swing my right sword to cut him in half. The darkness surrounding him solidifies in the form of a giant arm and blocks the attack, even absorbing the scorching flames that gathered on my sword swing. So it’s useless. But the current me can flail these swords like they're sticks; the other sword comes down to attack his flank. Just when I thought I could inflict some sort of reaction, the shadow arm breaks into two and shields his body.

Still no? Not sure why he’s not attacking, but I have to kick my engines up a notch. I swing twice, stab twice, and finishes with a double slash. Yet his troublesome defenses move a lot faster than I do. Before my swings could even reach a spot, they’re already there to intercept. Dammit! I don’t care. Since this is all I have, I have to hit him somehow. Left, right, up, down — I release a flurry of deadly slashes.

[Twin Swords Mastery Learned]

[Twin Swords Quicken Learned]

As I was disjointed by my newly obtained skills, the darkness moves in and tries to swallow me whole. I jolt back in response, tumbling backward, and when I land, I feel pain.

He got me; I’m not sure when, but he did. The pain in my leg shoots up a notch, taking a toll on my ability to stand. Poison?! He doesn’t give me time to collect my thoughts. He gestures his right arm forward, and the shadow changes its form into several sharp spikes.

I can’t stay here; I’ll die if I do! As I jump away, two shadow spikes lances through my left leg, three on my upper arm, and another on my shoulder. The spikes entangles around my leg like a vine, then it spins me around once before smashing me against a wall.

[Enchant Deadly Poison Learned]

[Poison Resistance Learned]

[Shade Shift Learned]

Damn system, not now. My vision darkens as I fall. No, this isn’t the type of darkness that comes from being in a dark room. I catch a glimpse of the cause. My [Hp] has drop below fifteen percent — on the red line — and it’s continuously going down. Not even my natural recuperative ability is fast enough to counterbalance the poison’s effect. I’m dying. I really am.

What do I do? Forget about getting home. Rosalia, Fia, those two need to run.

“……should only be an overseer. The creator should not directly mingle in the qualms of his dungeon.”

Wait, who was that speaking? I can’t tell. My wounds ache so bad it feels like my heart would stop beating. My vision is blurring and the feeling of my limbs would soon abandon my body. This is it. With the last of my strength, I put skill points on poison resistance before everything fade into blackness.

* * *

I wake with a gasp, my body instantly sitting upright in the bed. The bed? How did I end up here? Brown hues surround me, and there’s a window above the small wooden dresser where I could see a glimpse of the blue moon — this must be my room. So how?

“Great, his lordship is finally awake.” Albeit sarcastic, I think I hear the voice of an angel. Am I in heaven after all? Someone — Rosalia sits on the bed and looks at me with knitted eyebrows. The loose sleeves of her robe are tied back and she’s carrying a towel.

“Rosalia? Where’s Fia? How long was I asleep?” I ask as she wipes my arms.

“Today’s the 16th of Felise, so you’ve been asleep for three days, and your slave has watched over you since then. I believe she’s currently resting in her room at the moment.” Her voice sounds aloof and cold, making me wonder if I did something to upset her again.

“But she’s fine, right?”

“Yes, she’s fine.”

What a relief. “So, what happened?”

Rosalia rolls her eyes at my question. “Don’t you think it’s me who’s supposed to ask you that? We decided to follow you after this loud, crumbling noise, and when we came in, we found you sprawled on the ground, unconscious and wounded. I really thought you wouldn’t make it, but now…” Rosalia pauses to look at my bandaged chest and arms. “It took some time for your fever to wane, but your wounds had healed in less than a single night we didn’t even need to call a doctor.”

I hold my head with one arm, trying to recall the events in my head. “I see. So that’s what happened.”

I must’ve looked weird. And as much as I hate to say it, that guy handed my ass to me. It was a one-sided fight. Though, the question remains: why did he left me to live? My thoughts are in such a mess I don’t think I want to know for now. What’s important is that I’m still alive and with it are infinite possibilities.

“How’s your body feeling?” Rosalia asks, pulling me out of my musings. “Any internal pain?”

“None. I’m good for the most part.”

“Well, as long as you’re okay now…”

“You leaving already?”

“I did my part and you seem fine by yourself now, so yes?”

I grab her hand before she has the chance to stand. “Stay some more, Rosalia. I like you here with me.”

That got her thinking, I’m sure, but then she frowns. “You think a comment like that is enough to make me go gooey?”

“You thought about it; that’s a start for me,” I say, watching her with a smile.

Then she looks away. “I don’t know what to say… We’ve only known each other for a few days…”

“Alright.” I let go of her hand and sit on the edge of the bed, stretching my feet while digging my pockets for my precious cigarettes.

For a second, I catch her eyes are on my face, showing a face of worry.

“What do you plan to do now?” she asks.

I sigh. “I think I’ll steer away from the labyrinth for now. Maybe find some other place for Fia and I to gain strength. This labyrinth is too dangerous for us at the moment.”

“I see… So you plan to leave the city?”

“It’s still undecided. But my decision may end to that.”

I’m not even sure this dungeon is the one I previously conquered before. According to that dude who whooped my ass, there’s three more dungeons besides this one. That alone is enough to make me sigh again. Things just got even more complicated I feel like my brain would pop.

I stand up and get to the window and light a stick. This bad habit of mine needs to go. Smoking whenever I’m stressed isn’t the best solution, but I can’t stop this narcotic addiction. Rosalia remains silent, so I take that initiative and ask her if she wants to take part in my foolishness.

“Dood, you’re not a bad guy, but I don’t think I want to involve myself in whatever it is that you’re pursuing. You’re not even telling me what’s wrong. You’re keeping too many secrets.”

So it comes to that, eh? “What do you want to know?”

“First of all, I don’t even know why you like me.”

“Do you need a reason to like someone? If I tell you right now that I like you because your breasts are small, you’d probably hate me.”

“I won’t hate you, but I’d hit you until I’m satisfied.”

How is that any different?

“So how about we kiss then? If you still don’t feel anything after that, then I’ll leave you alone.”

Her eyes dart away from mine, across the space between the two of us, as if she’s searching the air for answers. Because I don’t want to ruin this perfect chance, I discard my lighted cigarette out of the window and tease her even more.

“Rosalia, we’re both adults. Whatever we do in this room, it’s our business.”

“And how does that relate to us kissing? I don’t see any connection between the two.”

Lifting my shoulders in optimism, I approach her. “Yes, or no!?”

“Fine! Only once!”

Challenge accepted. “Sure.”

I’m quiet. She’s quiet. She closes her eyes when I touch her face and lean in close, brushing our lips slightly. I stay like that and wait till she opens her eyes. Her eyelids flutter like the wings of a butterfly. I grin and press her mouth to mine. Rosalia tenses up, lifting her head slightly. Then I pull away after a few seconds, unsure of the results.

“One more?” I ask in my excitement, breathing against her lips. She nods and gives me permission, so I kiss her again, more firmer this time, as I softly run my fingers through her short hair.

If she still doesn’t feel butterflies in her stomach after this, I just don’t know.