Thug!
Thug!
Thug!
The creature's heavy footsteps resonated, slamming into the ground with brute force from its sheer weight.
It looked exactly like an animal known as Varanus komodoensis, but this creature was massive, measuring a staggering ten feet in length, with a whip-like tail extending five meters.
Its skin was as hard as leather, its muscle mass comparable to that of a bodybuilder. Yet, even with its size, it moved harmoniously and coordinated each step.
But then, it suddenly came to a halt...
Sniff...
Sniff!...
It took large whiffs of air, inhaling the scent of something familiar, an aroma both sweet and savory, one that was undeniably addictive.
Blood...
Following its nose to a particular patch of earth, where the scent was irresistibly strong, it instantly succumbed to an uncontrollable urge, licking the ground as if it had been starving for weeks.
Its snake-like tongue acted as a makeshift shovel, digging and clawing deeper into the earth to get a taste.
'What am I to do?!' The petrified Victor thought.
He couldn't just outright attack the creature unless he had another death wish. And with the Drak being dangerously close, it was only a matter of time before it sniffed him out.
Running wasn't even an option, just sheer stupidity — one look at that tail told him it could close ten feet faster than he could crawl one.
No blades on its back — no Draconium Veil, no energy to draw on, just muscle and instinct. In his old life, he'd have gutted a dozen of these on a slow patrol without breaking stride. Back then it would've taken one clean strike to the base of the skull and a half-second of follow-through. Now he wasn't sure he could manage the follow-through part at all.
Quickly searching through the memories of the body's original owner, his expression turned sour at the realization of just how weak he was.
'The fuck?, How weak was this guy?!'
The owner was a nobody, an orphan who dreamed of becoming a hero, fighting, and saving people.
After qualifying for the military, he became a soldier and joined a scouting group on his first mission.
But fate had been cruel to him. Betrayed by a teammate for being a nuisance, he was stabbed in the back and left for dead in the dark forest.
Victor, however, didn't care for the original owner or who he had been. The only thing he was grateful for was that he hadn't ended up in another world.
'With this new life, I can finally take vengeance for all I've lost. This time, whether it's the Draks or even humanity that stands in my way, death is the only thing they'll find.'
'I can immobilize it just enough to run away. That should work.'
At the moment, the best weapon he had was the experience he had gathered from the countless battles he had fought over the years.
Stuck in situations that should have killed him multiple times, he had always found a way out. And even though he couldn't properly lift his katana now, he would find a way.
He took a deep breath, exhaling slowly in an attempt to steady his racing heart. His palms were slick with sweat despite the cold, and his arms trembled just holding the weapon at rest.
His grip tightened around the katana, the rough hilt pressing against his skin.
Holding it with both hands, he stood firm—his feet planted firmly on the ground, applying more pressure as he calculated his breathing. His waistline curved slightly backward, preparing for a powerful swing.
"Come on... come on..., you bastard," he whispered under his breath.
Seeing that digging deeper into the earth yielded no results, the Drak abandoned the three-meter hole it had made and followed another fresh scent it had picked up earlier.
It moved closer to a tree. Victor watched as its sloppy snake-like tongue flickered in and out, picking up the scent not just through smell but through taste as well.
The moment its head poked from the side and locked eyes with him, Victor mindlessly swung the katana.
Though the weapon was heavy, he decided to use the weight to his advantage, propelling himself forward along with the blade toward the creature's head.
He had no strength to hold himself back, so he simply went along with the attack.
Fortunately, the strike caught the Drak by surprise. It had known a human was nearby from the scent, but it had never expected the human to be prepared for a fight — a no-blade like this ran on instinct alone, and instinct hadn't accounted for a blade coming back at it.
The blade flew straight like a torpedo, heading right for the Drak's noggin.
It hit hard, digging a few inches into its head but stopping right when it touched the skull.
Victor weakly staggered back, surprised that the weapon had turned out to be that sharp.
What kind of weapon is this? It's definitely lethal.
He knew that, given his current physical condition, he couldn't possibly have inflicted much damage. Thankfully, this was a special weapon.
For a brief moment, a flashback surfaced in his mind, reminding him of what kind of weapon this was.
Veil weapon…
Why do simple humans have such advanced weapons? What year is this? I've never heard of anything like this before.
Well, that wasn't his problem at the moment. The real issue was the Drak, despite being stabbed, it didn't budge or show any sign of pain. Its eye, slitted and yellow, rolled toward him with something closer to irritation than pain — like he'd interrupted a meal rather than hurt it.
Sigh… fuck me.
The next moment, like a bolt of lightning, the Drak's tail whipped through the air, crashing through several trees. Even that didn't slow its momentum as the strike connected, sending Victor flying.
Ugh!!
Smash!!
He slammed into a tree with such force that it toppled over upon impact.
The world started spinning, and before he could come to his senses, he realized he was plummeting off a cliff.
Disoriented, he couldn't even react to his impending doom.
I'm about to die again…
Those were his last words before his head cracked against the hard earth.
He lay at the bottom of the cliff, his vision blurring into darkness.
But then, his fading consciousness was interrupted.
Ding!!
[Stupid host decision to fight a Drak in his weakened state.]
[Your body has suffered multiple fractures, including skull damage. 10 minutes remaining until your demise.]
…