Chapter 268: Mud and Rain |
Dub-Dubb-Dub-Dubbb…
The ground under Aldrich's feet quaked, and a stampede-like noise reached his ears.
It was as if hundreds of wild beasts were charging towards him from afar in a single line. Aldrich looked to his right, from where the scream had come, and squinted his eyes. It was extremely crucial for him to stay in his position, and not move for an entire day.
The instruction scroll said that if the overseers won't detect any change in a Dreamer's position for an entire day, they would come to help the Dreamer. Aldrich had always been playing with mind tricks like these since his childhood. These statements did nothing but give false security to Dreamers, giving them a push to keep moving with no worry.
But if there was any truth to it, he had to find out. And what could be a better way to just not move for the said period of twenty-four hours. It wasn't an arduous task for him, even if some lethal beast were to approach him. There were things Aldrich could only do if there wasn't anyone watching over him.
DUB-DUBBB…
Ahhhhhhh!!!
The shaking of the ground had intensified to an unimaginable degree, and the scream had become shriller. The sun had almost gone, and a hint of stars could be seen from the gap between the leaves.
Aldrich's grip on his "cane" became tighter by a small amount as he saw two red beams of light flashing within the thick of the jungle. The trees were getting crushed, and the rocks were getting smashed. Whoever was running away from the beast with the red eyes was also about to leave his mortal shell.
A bang rang out, and a broken trunk of a tree flew by some hundred meters away from Aldrich. Following this tree came out a gigantic man, running for his life. He had brown grizzly hair, and his face was covered in scars. Aldrich knew this man as he had already shared a seat with him.
This man was none other than Meuric Boid.
But…
Unlike the ruthlessness Meuric had shown within the spaceship, there wasn't a hint of bravery on his face now. Tears were streaming out from the corners of his eyes, and his mouth was wide open like an alligator, letting out shriek after shrieks.
"FATHER!!! BIG BROTHER!!! BIG SISSSSS… AHHHH!!!"
The way his arms were moving about haphazardly, it didn't feel like he was a grown man who must have faced danger many times by now. Meuric didn't notice Aldrich, who was still standing like a statue and was looking at him without blinking.
As Meuric reached the clearance, caused by the broken piece of a tree in front of Aldrich, he finally looked at Aldrich by sheer coincidence. Aldrich saw Meuric's crying face becoming paler and paler as the two kept staring at each other.
"…"
"…"
Suddenly, Meuric's lost, and clueless eyes became grave. The ruthlessness and ferocity he had while slamming Bolut's head returned. All hints of tears vanished from his face, and as a roaring sound came out of the jungle, Meuric turned around and stood tall to face the beast.
Raorrr-Grrrrr!!!
'This IDIOT…'
Aldrich almost face-palmed, seeing this baffling change in Meuric's action. But before he could say anything, the roaring beast came out in the open. Unlike what Aldrich had felt, it was just one beast who had shaken the ground.
The almost 5-meter tall black beast had the head of a boar. But its body was of a bull's, with ripped muscles popping out of the seemingly bulletproof hide. Over its nose, there were two pointy horns, like that of a rhino. And its eyes were completely red, having no sense of its surroundings.
At a glance, Aldrich could tell that this beast was in heat. But most of his concentration was on Meuric, whose legs were shaking, trying to keep himself standing on the ground. Unlike the feelings let out by his body, his face was like a painting, showing nothing but dauntlessness and cruelty.
Meuric made a fist, seeing the beast coming closer and closer, and let out a shout.
"I AM BOID… I AM FEARLESS…"
As Aldrich saw this scene, he couldn't help but shake his head.
Aldrich had already found out these hidden emotions in Meuric's heart in the spaceship. The pity, which Meuric had in his heart while looking at Aldrich after the violent action, was for himself and not for Aldrich. The subsequent emotions of getting his actual feelings to be found out by someone had made him sweat even though it wasn't hot.
But he couldn't hide those emotions from Aldrich, nor could he hide the fact that this seemingly huge warrior was just a 15-year-old boy.
Aldrich noticed, though Meuric's legs were shaking, his posture was perfect. Aldrich wasn't a master of fighting arts, but from what he had learned, he could find out these things like an AI running simulations.
The terror of Class Generalist always loomed over the world and its beings like Death itself.
Just as the beast was about to pierce Meuric, through and through, a shout came out of his mouth.
"THUNDER BOA FIRST FIST…"
Aldrich was like a scientist, staring at a guinea pig behind the glass. With Meuric's roar, he noticed the Mana around his right arm changed and a blurry image of a tiny snake formed out of it. But this snake was made of thunder which kept coiling around Meuric's arm, letting out sparks after sparks.
Meuric's hand was like that of a snake and a lightning bolt, contorted into a single form. And as his voice got buried under the pounding hooves of the beast, he punched it right at the end of its horns.
"… THUNDER FANG STRIKE!!!"
Tudud-Cr-ackkk!!!
BOOM!!!
Meuric's tall figure was like a pebble thrown over a lake. It skipped thrice on the ground before finally getting slammed into a tree with a thick trunk.
Bang!
Cough!!!
A shower of blood came out of Meuric's mouth. His right fist had become bloody and his fingers were bent backward. Aldrich saw the beast slamming its head on the ground, making the last traces of the lightning vanish from his face.
Grrrr-ROArrrrr!!!
The beast howled, grunted, and sent out mud flying here and there. Its red eyes were still looking at Meuric's body, sliding down to the bottom of the tree. In this heat, the beast should have already attacked Aldrich if he had sensed him. But none could perceive Aldrich's location without directly looking at him.
Though there was a restriction on the use of Perception, Aldrich could still make its value zero.
"Don't…"
Aldrich was analyzing Meuric's strike when a word rang out. He looked towards his left, and found Meuric, leaning against the trunk. His eyes were wide open, and he was looking at Aldrich, ignoring the charging beast.
Meuric's lips parted, but no sound came out. But Aldrich could still read his lips, and what he heard made him raise his eyebrows.
"… Don't… tell anyone…"
'Such conviction…'
Aldrich could tell that Meuric was asking of him. The 15-year-old boy was more concerned if Aldrich would gossip about him crying, being chased by a beast. Even at the door of death, the emotion in Meuric's heart was of pity.
A pity for himself.
*
Meuric closed his eyes, and the sound of hooves kept coming closer and closer. The world kept getting compressed over him as if someone was pressing his head from all around. He could feel the hot air coming out of the beast's nose, and the presence of Mana on its horns.
But just as it came the time of death, all sound vanished around him.
Pop!
This sound wasn't of his head getting smashed into pieces, but it indeed was something like that. Meuric couldn't help but furrow his brows as he felt something squishy and wet falling all over him. With sheer willpower, the young boy cracked his eyes open.
The sky had gone dark, but there was a red tinge to it. In front of him, there was no sign of any beast, but only mud. A mud which wasn't brown or black, but red.
Red mud…
Tip-Tapp!!!
Two drops fell on his nose and forehead, and he finally realized it was raining.
It was also a rain of blood...
Meuric looked up at the cloudless sky and muttered.
"… Am I in… Hell?!"